Falling Stars

by Rokas

Chapter 17 - Battalions of Steel

Author's forenote: This chapter contains excessive amounts of headcanon. If you disagree with it, fine, please do so calmly. If you're going to whine and complain, p*ss off.

Some links to Sarna.net (a BattleTech wiki) are provided. Again, they are not required reading, just there for those who want a bit more information. Also a couple of songs, too.

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DropShip Heart of Steel

Outside Canterlot, Equestria

September 25th, AD 3070/1023 RC

Princess Luna was deep in thought as she was led through the bowels of the humans' spacecraft. I know that Starbuck and Stonewall both approve of this plan, she thought. But it still troubles me to put my little ponies into such positions, even if it is only on a volunteer basis. She stifled a sigh at that, and paused her rumination briefly in order to follow a spoken instruction to stop just before the lift doors. Yet the work gone into these ideas is sound, and the logic reasonable, so how could I say no?

“Are you alright, your highness?” The question brought Luna out of her thoughts, and she blinked as she focused on the present and glanced over to see James McKenna giving her a concerned look. “You seem to be rather distracted.”

“Aye,” Luna replied, with barely a second of thought. “I am worried about the safety of those ponies who wish to volunteer for 'embedding', as you called it.”

James nodded to her as the lift rose in its passage. “I understand your qualms, princess, but please be assured that they will not be facing anything that the guard units with us won't encounter,” he explained, while Luna and the entourage behind them listened intently. “In fact, many of them will be behind modern armor composites.”

“I understand that,” Luna agreed, and then sighed. “But as thou hath mentioned, thine mechanized forces will be a prime target for the enemy,” she added, as she walked into the lift with James and two of her guards. A look from both of the leaders told their respective subordinates that a moment of privacy was desired, and no one else boarded the machine before the doors were closed and it began its descent.

“Yes, we will,” James replied to Luna, as they dropped below the lip of the deck. “And we both know I cannot promise that they'll be safe. All I can promise is that they'll be given a chance to add their own considerable talents to our pool of battlefield resources and, hopefully, help us achieve victory.”

“Verily,” Luna replied, as the upper 'Mech bay opened before her. “But my little ponies are not like your people,” she continued, as she glanced over some of the bipedal war machines receiving some last-minute attention. “They have not seen war, not true war. The battles so far have been grievous indeed, but they shall pale in comparison to a real fight between opposing armies.” She paused then, as the lift started to descend through the upper bay's deck. “I daresay that the mindless terror, the abject horror and soul-consuming pain of battle will be even worse with human machines at the fore.”

“I daresay you're probably right,” James morosely agreed. “Unfortunately we're just plain out of options, and time is ticking.”

“Indeed,” Luna concurred. “Yet such inevitability doth not ease my mind.”

“No,” James said, quietly. “I suppose it wouldn't.” They both fell silent at that, thought it was short-lived as the lift reached the lower 'Mech bay, and the elevator's riders stared out at an incredulous scene. “What the Hell is he doing?” James asked, in shock.

Luna frowned as she peered out across the open bay, though the expression soon gave way to one of stunned confusion. “He doth appear to be playing 'fetch' with the manticore,” she wryly observed. Even as the group aboard the lift looked on, the armored figure who'd caught their eyes threw a soft, white object towards the side of the bay, which the aforementioned creature promptly jumped into flight in order to snatch the object out of mid-air with its jaws.

“IVAN!” James shouted, the suddenness startling the ponies in the lift with him. The commander quickly opened the gate once the lift reached the main deck, and he stormed out and over towards where the larger human was now petting the manticore, while the latter chewed on the item it had fetched. “What in the name of all that is holy are you doing?”

The infantryman looked over to James as the latter approached and spoke. “Playing with Mister Nibbles,” he said, matter of factly.

“In full armor kit?” James asked, incredulous. “And is that a piece of myomer? As in the preciously expensive and scarce myomer that we need to keep our 'mechs working?”

Although dressed in his power armor, Ivan had left his helmet sitting on a nearby shipping container, and so James could easily make out the unworried expression on the larger man. “Mister Nibbles likes to be rough,” Ivan replied easily, as he reached out a hand to lightly pet the manticore while the beast continued to chew on the soft polymer composite. “And mister McCoy said Ivan could use bad muscle.”

James' eye ticked at that, and he spent a moment to take a deep, calming breath. “Alright then,” he quietly said, and then paused for another deep breath. “McCoy!” he shouted, after having turned to look over the 'mech bay. “Where the Hell are you, you drunken Scot?”

“Ach, what do ye want?” the familiar voice of McCoy shouted back, as the elder human stuck his head over the railing of the upper deck. “I've got enough o' yer problems tae fix as it is, last thing I need is another blasted interruption!”

James snapped his head up as soon as the chief tech started talking, and waited for the elder man to finish before he pointed to the manticore with his good hand. “If you didn't want an interruption, then why the flip did you let Ivan's pet have a piece of irreplaceable technology?”

“It was that, or he'd be up here botherin' me for somethin' else for that buggering chimera o' his,” McCoy shot back. “An' if that's all yer whinin' about, I'm getting' back tae work!” And with that, the technician withdrew his head from is position, and subsequently himself from the conversation.

An eye twitched on the commander's face, and he turned around to storm off towards the large, curving ramp that lead to the upper bay for 'mechs to move between decks. James paused briefly, and then shot a glance towards Ivan. “Don't destroy anything else 'til I get back,” he ordered, and then resumed his angry march once the larger man gave a simple nod.

Luna watched the entire scene with an odd feeling of detachment, as if she were viewing some strange theater production. Curious are these humans, she mused. The sound of the lift behind her brought the princess out of her thoughts, and she turned her head back in time to see a second load of humans and ponies standing in the powered conveyance.

One pony in particular was stunned by the appearance of the large beast in the 'mech bay. “Is that a manticore?” Fluttershy asked, as the lift gate was opened. She did not wait for an answer, though, and instead dashed out into the open bay and took to the air to quickly close the distance between her and Ivan and his new friend. The manticore, a fierce beast in the wild and even more fearsome as a tamed war mount for griffons, tensed as she rapidly approached, yet relaxed as the pegasus gently reached out and started to pet it behind the ears. “Aww, you're so cute!” Fluttershy cooed.

Then again, some ponies are just as unfathomable as any human, Luna amended, and then waited as Twilight Sparkle, Applejack, Rainbow Dash, and Johannes Schneider all walked over. “Methinks I shall never understand the mindset of dear Fluttershy, who cowers from ponies yet approaches beasts with confidence,” she observed, as the others came up beside her and looked on the scene of the aforementioned pony and Ivan both attending to the surprisingly docile manticore.

“She really likes animals,” Rainbow Dash replied, with a shrug of her wings. “Hay, after seeing Ivan work with Mister Nibbles, I can start to understand how she might find the thing interesting.”

Twilight frowned at the exchange. “'Mister Nibbles'?” she asked.

“Apparently, 'tis the beast's name,” Luna wryly replied, with a raised eyebrow. “And I find I am fearful to delve into the reason of it.”

Schneider sighed at that and entered the conversation. “Probably better that way, your highness,” he observed. “Ivan operates on another plane of thought that I'm not entirely convinced isn't a form of insanity.”

A moment of thoughtful silence met that remark, though it was brief. “How th' hay did he tame that thing, anyway?” Applejack asked, as she squinted one eye at the strange scene in an attempt to discern its secrets.

“Hell if I know,” Schneider replied, with a shrug. “Let's go ask,” he added, and then started off towards the three figures standing at the feet of the Dark Horse's Centurion.

The ponies behind him all blinked in surprise and hesitated out of apprehension; even princess Luna seemed leery of approaching the manticore. Finally, though, Rainbow Dash just shook her head and silently trotted off to follow, which prompted the others to do so as well. They moved a bit faster on four legs than humans did on two, and so caught up to Schneider as he warily stopped a good meter and a half away from the trio occupying his attention. “Hey, Ivan?” Johannes asked, and then waited for the larger man to give him his attention. Once assured this was the case, Schneider just waved a hand at the manticore. “How?”

Ivan raised an eyebrow at the smaller man, but soon his face was split by a wide grin. “Ivan's cousin work for Canopian pleasure circus,” he explained. “He wrestle bears for show. Make good money.”

“So, he taught ya how ta wrassal bears?” Applejack asked, curious.

“Indeed, Applejack,” Ivan replied, even as he reached out to add a few pets to Fluttershy's ministrations to the purring creature. “Cousin Zangief teach Ivan how to listen to animals and to see how they act, so they listen to you, yes?” he asked, and then grinned. “Cousin Zangief also teach Ivan how to crush man's head between his thighs like sparrow's egg. Is good thing to know if caught in street fight.”

A series of hard blinks met this proclamation, followed immediately by everyone taking a step back. “Well, okay then,” Schneider said, his tone uneasy. “Uhm, carry on,” he added, with a gesture towards Mister Nibbles, who was purring as Fluttershy continued to pet its mane with a hoof.

“Da,” Ivan agreed, and then turned to face the mercenary company's newest “acquisition”. “Come on, Nibbles,” he said, which prompted the manticore to look up at him. “We go for walkies.”

The beast almost beamed at that, and it swiftly and surely moved to its paws. It barely took a moment to stretch before it sauntered off after Ivan, who led it towards the ramp to the outside. Schneider and the ponies watched the odd pair go, and one in particular sighed wistfully. “It's so nice that Ivan decided to take care of the manticore,” Fluttershy observed. “It was sad having to work for the griffons.”

Schneider gave her a curious look. “How could you possibly know that?” he asked.

“He told me,” Fluttershy replied, in a matter-of-fact tone.

“The manticore told you?” Schneider asked, and then held his tongue as Fluttershy nodded in response. Slowly, the human took in a deep breath, and then let it out. “Okay, I think I've had enough of... this sort of thing for today,” he muttered, and then turned to give Luna his full attention. “Unless there is anything else you require my presence for, your majesty, I'd like to go and see to the preparations we've discussed.”

Luna gave the human a sympathetic look and a nod. “'Tis fine, mister Schneider. I believe we shall wait for commander McKenna to return,” she replied. “Please give my regards to your, technical staff, I believed you called them?” she asked.

“Yes, your highness,” he replied, and gave a nod. “I'll do that; I'm sure it will give them a morale boost after all they've done to prepare everything for the coming fight.” He gave a little bow, and then turned and walked off towards his 'mech.

“Well, that was interesting,” Luna wryly observed, and then turned her head to look over the nearby ponies. “Is it mine imagination, Twilight Sparkle, or doth it seem like reality is skewed inside this vessel?” she asked, a hint of sarcasm coloring her tone.

“More than you know, princess,” Twilight replied, sotto voce, as she glanced over at Rainbow Dash.

The look did not go unnoticed. “Hey, what's that supposed to mean?” Dash asked, offended.

“Nothing,” Twilight replied, with a roll of her eyes away from the pegasus.

“Ladies,” Luna interjected. Both arguing ponies turned their attention to the princess and cringed slightly under her stern gaze. “Pray tell, what has driven you to cross words?”

Twilight and Rainbow both blushed at the question, glanced to each other, and then looked off to each side. “Uh, nothing?” Rainbow Dash sheepishly offered, as she slowly turned her head back to face the alicorn.

Luna frowned at the pegasus. “It cannot be nothing, if this is how thou acts when pressed,” she stated. “If there is something betwixt thee, then now is the time to air it out. The enemy closes in and if thou paid attention, then thou knows that the Elements, no matter how much we wish not to use them, must be available as a last resort.” She paused for effect, and then spread her wings to emphasize her next words. “Equestra herself depends and you and your bond of friendship. You know this and yet you bicker; I must ask why.”

A split second passed before Twilight and Rainbow shared a look. “Well, uh, you see,” Dash began, but was soon interrupted.

“You read my report about general human physiology, right?” Twilight asked, hopeful. “Granted I know you're quite busy, princess, but did you at least skim over their... diet?”

Luna raised an eyebrow as she folded her wings back against her sides. “Aye, I read the report,” she said, slowly. “Pray tell, how doth it apply here?”

“Uh, well,” Dash took over, hesitantly. “I, uh, kinda didn't know about that when I started helping the tech guys, and mister McCoy left some of his breakfast uneaten one morning, and he said I could have it,” she explained, even as a blush crept over her face. “And... it was meat. And I liked it. A lot. Annnnd I've kinda been eating it every day since.”

Silence fell over the group after this admission, as the other ponies gazed at Rainbow Dash with varying looks. Applejack looked shocked, Fluttershy seemed concerned, and Twilight Sparkle had a mix of embarrassment and chagrin.

Princess Luna, however, simply stared at Rainbow Dash with an entirely unfathomable expression upon her face, perfectly still save for the movement of her ethereal mane. The silence stretched on as Dash's friends slowly turned their attentions to the princess and awaited her reaction, and the pegasus in question began to shuffle her legs a bit. Just as the quiet started to become awkward, however, Luna broke the tableau and slowly walked forward until she stood right in front of Dash. There she paused for a moment and looked down at her subject. “Hold still,” she commanded, her voice calm and soft, yet with an undercurrent of iron. Then she abruptly lowered her head, pushed her nose through Dash's mane, and then pressed it against her forehead, whereupon she began to delicately sniff.

Rainbow's blush deepened in an almost exponential manner as the seconds ticked away, and though she held to Luna's order and remained still while the alicorn sniffed her head, she nevertheless cast her eyes about in confusion. Her friends had no answers for her, however, as they all looked as surprised as she, and in Fluttershy's case wore a blush that matched Dash's own. Okay, this is too weird, Rainbow thought, and then opened her mouth to protest.

Before she could vocalize, however, Luna brought her head up and then took a few steps back to look over the pegasus; her expression was calm, but her eyes were piercing. “Hmm,” she hummed, and then nodded once to herself. “Twilight Sparkle,” she said, and then looked over to her sister's protegé. “Thou attests as in thy report that the animals the humans consume were not intelligent?”

The question startled Twilight out of her shock, and she nodded. “Yes, princess,” she replied, quickly. “They have ample documentation on common animals from their worlds, and the ones they... consume, are not even close to sapient.”

“Then what is the problem?” Luna asked. “As... unsettling as Rainbow Dash's continued consumption of meat might be, if it is not hurting any thinking being then it should not be a problem betwixt you two.”

A blush to match the ones worn by Rainbow and Fluttershy crept over Twilight's face. “It's... just... she...” the unicorn stuttered. After a moment she closed her eyes, and then sighed. “It's just so strange, princess.”

“I understand,” Luna evenly replied. “But is it truly such a terrible thing that you would let it interfere in your friendship?”

“I...” Twilight began, though soon fell silent for a moment as she thought. “No... no, it isn't,” she said to Luna, and then turned to face Rainbow. “I'm sorry, Dash. I didn't mean for this to become such an issue.”

Rainbow grinned sheepishly and rubbed the back of her head with a hoof. “Ah, it's okay, Twilight,” she said, friendlily. “I know it's really weird,” she added, and then paused to glance over to Luna. “Though not as weird as some things.”

Luna simply raised a single eyebrow in return, but said nothing and kept her visage neutral. Dash mentally shrugged at that, and then returned her attention to Twilight. “Anyway, let's just forget about it, okay?” she asked, and then extended her raised hoof towards the unicorn.

Twilight smiled at that and reached out herself to shake the proffered limb. “Sure,” she replied. “Just... try not to do that sort of thing near me, okay?”

Dash raised an eyebrow even as she lowered her hoof to the deck. “It bothers you that much?” she asked. “I mean c'mon, Twi, there's nothing wrong with it. Heck, you should even try some yourself.”

The smile disappeared off of Twilight's face as she blanched at the suggestion. “I... I don't really think that—”

“An excellent idea,” Luna interjected, much to everypony's surprise. “It would be an illuminating experience, methinks.”

The other ponies just gave her a strange look—save her two guards, who stood a fair distance away and maintained their traditional stone-faced expressions. “Are you alright, Luna?” Twilight asked, with a raised eyebrow. Although she did not often speak to the princesses so informally, she felt it was warranted here. “I mean, you're saying that I actually try to eat... meat?”

“Twas merely a suggestion,” Luna replied, her tone and expression as steady as ever. The looks she got in return, though, bid her to move to another topic, and so she looked around almost casually. “By the bye, why have we not seen more of our group?” she asked, genuinely concerned. “Where are the ladies Rarity and Pinkie Pie?”

“And where's the Dark Horse guys?” Dash asked, looking just as perplexed. “Shouldn't they be—” Her words died in her throat as movement to the side caught her eyes, and she turned her head to see the elevator making another trip down with a load of humans. “Huh, I guess that answers that,” she half-muttered.

And then her eyes widened in fear as something new entered her mind. “Where's Dorian?” She asked herself, and then abruptly took to the air and flew over to meet the group of mechwarriors as they moved away from the lift. Surprised at this sudden shift in attention, the ponies Rainbow Dash left behind shared a look of confusion. Then Luna lifted her wings in a shrug and then trotted off after the flighty pegasus, which prompted the others to follow.

They approached just as Shepard finished speaking to Dash: “...Said something about 'taking care of loose ends' and then went off towards the mess.”

Rainbow's eyes widened even as her irises shrunk. “My bacon,” she muttered, and then narrowed her eyes even as she unfurled her wings. “Dorian...” she growled out, and then snapped her wings down hard and propelled herself into the air. There she turned and accelerated rapidly to leave only a rainbow afterimage in the eyes of those who watched.

Luna blinked as she saw the trail lead over the edge of the upper 'mech bay deck only to disappear over the lip. The sound of startled alarms and metal slamming into metal, though, told her that Rainbow Dash's passage was not uneventful. “What could warrant such a disregard for safety?” the night princess speculated.

“Supposedly, the best food she's ever tasted,” Twilight Sparkle answered.

“Bacon is pretty darn good,” Shepard interjected, while her compatriots moved off to either side and headed towards their personal destinations; their amusement at Rainbow's reaction was notable. “Also, Dorian is a jerk, so Dash is justified in worrying about her little hoard.”

“'Hoard'?” Luna echoed, with a confused visage.

“Yeah,” Shepard replied, with a smile. “We each paid Rainbow Dash a piece of bacon so we could take a turn petting her earlier.”

The confusion of the night princess only grew at that. “I see,” she said, with an unsure tone. “I still do not understand that.”

Shepard blushed a bit. “Well, you're all just adorable, you know?”

“Even me?” Luna asked, in surprise.

“Especially you,” Shepard replied, without a pause. Though she did take a moment to smile sheepishly as Luna gave her a flabbergasted look. “I mean, you have this strong, aloof aura about you, but anyone who's been around someone in authority can see that it's just your public persona. The fact that you've been very patient with everyone today and the way you mingle with your subjects shows that you're actually a very caring individual, just that you're afraid to show it because you think it'll make you look weaker in some eyes.

“So... uhm...” Shepard continued, albeit with increasing hesitance as the princess simply stared at her. “Yeah, add that to the fact that all of you ponies are adorable, and frankly, I just want to give you a hug.”

“Alexis!” the familiar voice of James McKenna sounded from nearby. Shepard and the ponies all startled at that, and quickly turned their heads to see the wounded human walking down the ramp that lead to the upper 'mech bay. “Stop embarrassing her highness and go check out your 'mech,” he added, a hint of irritation in his otherwise even tone.

“Yes sir,” Shepard replied, with a casual but sincere salute. She then glanced to Luna and nodded. “Milady,” she said, and then turned to walk off towards the company's Grand Dragon.

James grumbled to himself as he approached the ponies, who simply stood in a daze of confusion. “I swear, I can't go even an hour without them gettin' weird,” the human muttered, and then sighed as he stopped an appropriate distance from Luna. “Once again you have my apologies, princess,” he said, sincerely, and then decided to quickly change the subject. “If you'd like, we have that demonstration set up for you.”

Luna blinked as her mind shifted back into working order. “Yes, I believe that would be ideal,” she replied, as she unfolded a wing to gesture forward. “Please, lead on.”

“Excellent. Follow me, please,” James said, and then turned to head back the way he came. For her part Luna collected her guards and the present element bearers by eye and then strode off after the human with her subjects in tow. The walk up the access ramp was uneventful and quick, and soon the upper 'mech bay came into view.

A bit less impressive than the lower section, Luna mused, as she cast an eye over the smaller space. Although she was of course uneducated when it came to DropShip design, she nevertheless could see that some of the clean, orderly lines of the ship's original design had been replaced by later modifications that marred the symmetry and aesthetics that were prevalent elsewhere in the ship. It was then that she realized that the ship even had a sense of aesthetics built into it; what is that phrase somepony coined this last century? “Utilitarian”, that's it. Strange how one doesn't miss something so subtle until it's been replaced by... whatever it is I am looking at.

The area that caught her attention the most was where McKenna was leading them towards: a cluster of furnishings, equipment, and storage containers all secured to the decking with metal straps, bolts, and several welds. Laid out around these were a collection of odds and ends that Luna could not fathom as such technology was outside her experience. What she did recognize, however, was an irate McCoy supervising two humans she did not recognize and several ponies as they helped to clean up what seemed to be a recent mess.

“...Rainbow-haired spawn of a Trachazoi,” the chief tech was griping as McKenna and Luna's group arrived. He turned at that and gave his commander a harsh look. “And who's bloody idea was it tae let th' hyperactive flyin' pony rattle 'round the ship like a loose autocannon?”

“I'll take care of him as soon as I have a word with the guy who let a manticore chew on a piece of myomer,” James wryly replied.

For a wonder, McCoy actually sputtered once before he regained his self control. “Alright, ya jibberin' jabberwock, let's git this dog n' pony show on th' road,” he said, and then turned to face the humans and ponies assisting him. “Forget th' cleanup, jus' git in positions.”

A series of confirmations came back, and the debris still on the floor was quickly shoveled aside with unicorn telekinesis while the human assistants moved several large objects onto a central table that had previously been empty. “We were gonna start with th' harness, but since miss high octane ain't here at th' moment, we'll git tae th' recoilless rifle,” McCoy stated, and then walked up to the display table whereupon he patted a large, cylindrical tube. “This here is a simple weapon, simply uses action n' reaction tae send a nasty little package down range,” he explained, as Luna walked forward to get a better look at the device. “Also Steelshod figured how tae make holds fer ye freaky hooves, so ye not be needin' that fancy magic o' yours tae use 'em.”

One of the assisting ponies winced at the hooves comment and quickly jumped in when McCoy finished speaking. “The weapons are easy to produce, your majesty,” the yellow stallion began. “Being a simple tube of high-tensile strength steel means that we can easily adapt civilian steel production for the weapons. However,” he added, and then paused to rub a forehoof along the back of his neck. “We're having some problems with the triggers and ammunition.”

“What sort of problems, Widget?” Luna asked, concerned.

“Chiefly, the intricacy of it,” the pony, Clever Widget, replied. “The ignition mechanisms for both the propellent and the explosive payload require a precision that is seldom seen outside of clockwork, and while we can do that kind of work easily enough, doing it fast is the real issue. Steelshod has everypony he can grab working around the clock, but he estimates we won't have more than one hundred rounds by tomorrow.”

“A pittance,” McCoy said, somewhat dejectedly. “We managed tae get 'bout four rifles ready yesterday, an' he promised me six today. Ten rounds fer each weapon won't last ye long.”

“Then we'll have to be sure to use them at the right moment,” McKenna interjected. “That will fit into our battle plan, though.”

“I see,” Luna said, with a nod of her head. “I am impressed, McCoy, Widget, that you could do even this much so quickly.”

McCoy nodded back. “Aye, lass. Ye ponies ain't much fer high tech, but whatever ye can do ye do fast an' well. Almost as good as havin' some o' those lostech automated factories back home.”

Luna raised an eyebrow at that, but decided to let the comment slide. I shall have to ask about such things at a later date when there is more time, she mused. “I am glad to hear that we have a value beyond our 'cuteness',” she wryly observed.

Some of the humans blushed at that, but the ponies with them—save Luna and her group—seemed surprised at the statement. Mayhaps they have not heard how the humans regard us? Luna mused over that briefly, but then turned her attention back to McCoy. “I believe there was another innovation you wished to show us?”

“Aye, but we cannae do it 'til miss rocket butt gets back, so why don't ye talk tae yer purple friend there 'bout that magic fluffle she's so worked up about?” McCoy replied, with a dismissive wave of his hand towards Twilight Sparkle.

Twilight gave the human a hard look in return. After a moment, however, she closed her eyes and then took in a few deep breaths before she opened them again, once again in control of her emotions. “I think this will work best with one of the guard volunteers,” she began, with a glance towards her princess. Luna nodded once, and Twilight turned her head back to the group of ponies assisting McCoy. “Desert Wash, would you assist me?” she asked.

A beige unicorn with a blonde mane and tail walked forward from the group at that. “Of course, miss Sparkle,” he replied. “I am at your service,” he added, with a bow.

A blush briefly ran over Twilight's face at that, but she quickly suppressed it. “Thank you. We'll start with the modified shield spells. Please stand over by the railing,” she instructed, and pointed with a foreleg.

Wash nodded at that and then trotted over to stand at the indicated spot. Then he turned back to face the others and waited patiently as Twilight Sparkle spoke again. “Shield spells are normally 'all-or-nothing' affairs, requiring the caster to maintain a solid barrier,” she began, as she walked out to stand between Desert Wash and the others. “The problem with that is the barrier is only as resilient as the pony who casts it is strong, thaumaturgically speaking. The average unicorn could maintain a defense rating of about three on the Sharp Wit scale, which for our human friends translates approximately into something capable of holding off maybe a single short-ranged missile before the shield collapses,” she explained, as she had taken time to read up a bit on human war technology as a matter of course. “Stronger unicorns can have a defense rating of up to fifteen or sixteen. A rare few can have ratings up to twenty-five, while certain exceptional individuals have topped out at one hundred or more.”

“Such as thy brother and thyself,” Luna stated, with a nod.

Twilight blushed at that. “You know about that?” she asked, timidly.

“Celestia spoke of it proudly,” the alicorn stated. “She was grateful to have such individuals of strength and moral fiber so willing to defend the realm.”

“I, uh, see,” Twilight sputtered a bit, as the blush on her face started to look as if it were a permanent fixture. Then she cleared her throat and turned her head to glance to Desert Wash. “Anyway, could you bring up the modified shield spell?”

“Certainly,” Wash said, somewhat uncomfortably as he felt Sparkle's embarrassment and empathized with it. Still, he managed to concentrate and a pale aura appeared around his horn, followed a split second later by the appearance of a shield.

Luna blinked in surprise as she saw that, instead of the usual bubble, the magical shield was instead a flat plane in front of Desert Wash, tilted at an angle so that its bottom was further away from the projecting pony than its top. “A directional shield?” she asked, bemused.

“Yes,” Twilight replied, a bit more confidently as she once again eased back into her lecture role. “Spherical shields do a good job for all around defense, but they spread out a unicorn's power instead of focusing it. Furthermore, mister McCoy has been... illuminating about ballistic shaping.”

“And what would that be?” Luna asked, curiously.

“The specific property of angling surfaces so that they deflect projectiles instead of attempting to absorb the entirety of their kinetic energy,” Twilight replied, in a lecturing tone.

A brief silence followed that. Luna frowned a bit in befuddlement. “Which means?” she asked.

“She means this,” McCoy said, as he withdrew a pistol from his belt holster and aimed it at Desert Wash. The pony barely had time to flinch before the human pulled the trigger and filled every being's ears with the loud report of a large-caliber handgun.

Although she flinched a bit in surprise, Luna saw that the bullet bounced off of the shield and flew straight up. Or, I think the pieces of it did, she mused, as her mind replayed the brief event.

Unfortunately for the princess, her thoughts were interrupted by a shout. “What the fuck is wrong with you, Drew!” McKenna exclaimed. “Using a firearm in a 'mech bay? While aiming it at someone? Have you gone completely batshit insane?”

“Ah, quit yer bellyachin'; the lad's fine!” McCoy countered, as he holstered his pistol with one hand while he pointed to Desert Wash, who was shaken but remained standing. “Look, he dinna even wet himself!”

“That's not the point!” McKenna shouted, as he took a step towards the elder human. “You could've hurt him!”

“What, ye dinna think we tested this stuff already?” McCoy asked, sounding genuinely confused for a change. “What do ye think we were doin' th' last ten days while ye minced around pony town? Have a wank contest?” He shook his head at that and gave the commander a hard look. “Ye pay me tae make this stuff work, I think you would trust me.”

“You shot a gun at someone out of the blue,” McKenna replied, his tone a bit more sedate, but still with a vein of anger. “The possibility of ricochet alone is bad enough.”

“Ach, it was a frangible round!” McCoy countered, as he threw both of his arms in the air. “I'm not that old yet, ya daft monkey.”

A moment of deadly silence filled the area, broken only by the noises from the deck below as various individuals made inquiries about the sudden noise. None of the other humans or ponies in the group, however, wanted to make so much as a move lest they bring upon themselves the wrath of the two men staring at each other. Even Luna felt ill at ease at the sudden conflict. I could crush their necks with a thought, she darkly mused. Yet they arouse in me a fear that doing so would only make them angry.

Finally, a light cough broke the tableau, and both men turned to see Twilight Sparkle giving them a harsh look. “If you are both done being childish, we can move on,” she stated.

Something in her tone finally penetrated into the two men's minds, and they both grumbled noncommittal utterances. James, though, felt a rise of his flippant side, and he could help but raise his good hand and pointed at McCoy. “He started it.”

McCoy looked shocked for a moment, before a gleam lit up in his eyes. “I did not!”

“Did too.”

“Did not times ten!”

“Did too times infinity!”

“That's it, I'm tellin' your mother about this when we get home,” McCoy countered, as he crossed his arms.

“Tattletale,” McKenna countered, with a smirk.

“Ugh,” Twilight groaned, even as she brought up a foreleg and covered her face with a fetlock. “You two are worse than my brother and Spike.”

A string of muffled chuckles entered the unicorn's ears, and she lowered her leg and saw that most of the humans and ponies in the group were trying hard not to laugh at the recent display. Even Luna was fighting a smirk that threatened to expand into a wide grin. Even though it was a bit at her expense, Twilight couldn't help but feel some of the tension lift, and she managed a lopsided smile that said 'I'm still angry but I do see the humor'. “Anyway, may I continue now?”

“Certainly, miss Sparkle,” McKenna said, with a wave of his arm.

“Good,” Twilight replied, and then gave McCoy another hard look. “And no more guns, or I'll take it away from you.”

“Bah,” McCoy grunted, but otherwise remained silent.

Twilight took the unusual agreement in stride, and she turned to give Desert Wash her attention. “Are you alright?” she asked. “Can you go on, or would you like to switch out?”

“I'm fine, miss Sparkle,” Wash replied, with a shaky grin. “Just surprised, that's all.”

“Okay,” Twilight said, a bit unsure. Well, if he's still willing to go on... She cleared her throat and then turned her body so she could once again shift her head back and forth between Wash and the main group. “Well, as I was saying before I was so rudely interrupted,” Twilight began, with only a brief pause to give McCoy another poisonous glance. “Is that the new shield configuration will allow a greater deflection of energy and mass. Most especially now because with a planar surface they can be overlaid to form a defensive matrix.”

Again, a moment of silence fell over the group, though it was brief as Applejack quickly uttered what most were thinking: “Huh?”

Twilight sighed. “It means we can do this,” she said, and then conjured up a shield similar to the one Wash was projecting. Then she conjured a second, and then a third, and then moved them around in the air until they meshed together with Wash's projection and each other, two in front and side-by-side, while the other two worked in behind them, arranged so that their edges were behind the middle of the forward shields. “I had the idea after glancing though some of the humans' older history from the pre-spaceflight era, namely the ancient armies of Greece,” Twilight explained, and then gave a sheepish grin at the odd looks she garnered. “Well, I was just interested in seeing how far back one had to look before human military technology matched Equstria's current state,” she said, and then sighed as her visage fell. “Sadly, that was thirty-four hundred years ago...

“Anyway,” the unicorn added, a bit forcefully as she made herself to perk up a bit. “The interlocking shields will help distribute impacts across multiple ponies. In addition, the spell has also been modified so that the conservation of energy effects will not be translated into a thaumaturgical wavefront, but remain physical in nature.”

“Equish, Twilight,” Applejack flatly stated.

A sigh wracked the unicorn. “Instead of being turned into a drain on the caster's energy, the physical force will remain physical,” she reiterated. “The original spell was intended solely for individual protection and was made to prevent crushing and impacts from wounding the caster or tossing her about. But the ability to deflect projectiles better combined with the interlocking defense means that the force should be sustainable for the fit ponies of their majesties' guard even in the face of significant kinetic impacts and thermal events.”

“She means that a platoon of unicorns can create an array of shields that can, hopefully, withstand up to significantly more punishment, even from human weapons,” Desert Wash interpreted. He shirked back a bit, though, when Twilight gave him an irritated look. “Well, that is what you're saying, isn't it?” he asked her.

“Yes, but I was giving the proper description,” she replied, in a huff.

“Which is much appreciated, Twilight,” Luna interjected, with a raised hoof. “But Desert Wash's succinct explanation is more along the lines of what we're looking for, at the moment.”

The mare blushed at that, and then nodded. “Of course, princess. My apologies, time is of the essence after all,” she replied. The aura over her horn died, as did the shields she was generating, and she then glanced to Wash. “Thank you for your help, sergeant; I can handle the rest of the demonstration.”

“My pleasure, miss,” Desert Wash replied, and then cut his own magic and trotted over to stand by his fellow guardsponies who had been working with the humans.

“The next demonstration is of another modified form of the shield spell,” Twilight began as she walked over to where Desert Wash had been standing. “Again, I was inspired by some of human history, though this was a bit more recent,” she said, and then charged her horn. An instant later a bubble appeared around her, and Twilight remained silent for a moment as the bubble's texture and shape varied a little while she fine-tuned the spell. “Mister McCoy,” she said, as she turned her head to address the human. “I suppose this might sound a bit hypocritical, but...” she paused, and took a moment to draw in a deep breath. “I want you to shoot me.”

This startled everyone else in the area. “Are ye sure 'bout that, lass?” McCoy asked. “I know yer supposed tae be strong and all, but I don't remember testin' a second shield.”

“I'll be fine, I promise,” Twilight replied, with a smile. McCoy shrugged at that and then started to withdraw his pistol again, but a quick upraised lavender hoof halted him. “Just... not the face, okay?” Twilight added.

“Alright, lass,” McCoy said, as he finished drawing his weapon. Then he raised it and aimed carefully, towards the center of her cutie mark. “If yer sure about this.”

“I'm one hundred percent sure, so—” Twilight began, but was interrupted by the report of the pistol as McCoy fired it again. The bullet slammed into the shield, but surprisingly enough was not stopped by it. Instead the frangible round shattered as passed through the shield, and the fragments had just enough velocity to slap into Twilight's flank. The pony flinched at the contact, and then lifted the affected rear leg a bit with a wince. “You could have waited until I finished talking,” she grumbled at McCoy, who merely shrugged. “That really stings.”

“That should have done more or less than sting,” James McKenna spoke up. “I thought your shields were supposed to stop all incoming attacks?”

“Usually, yes,” Twilight replied, even as she dismissed her shield and then used her magic to press down and rub her flank a bit where the fragments had impacted. “However, while I was waiting in Ponyville yesterday I... needed something to distract myself,” she said, and then glanced down as her tone fell along with her features. Both Applejack and Fluttershy winced and started to make their way over to their friend, but Twilight soon looked up and held out a hoof to stop them. “Anyway,” she continued, once again in control of her voice. “I remembered you mentioned something about a place called Solaris VII, so I looked it up in the library you let me borrow. It was very informative, especially the part about what they called 'Class Six Arenas', and one in particular.”

The eyes of every human in the group widened at that as Twilight's words sunk in. “You're talking about the Colosseum, right?” McKenna asked, and then took in a breath when she nodded. “You recreated the Detonator Grid?”

“Er, not exactly,” Twilight replied. She grinned sheepishly as she sat on her haunches so she could rub the back of her neck with a foreleg. “But I did realize that it had many of the same properties as our defense spells, so I spent last night working on a new version of the shield that would mimic it somewhat.”

“Wait a moment, please,” Luna interjected, with a raised hoof, and then looked towards McKenna. “What is this 'detonator grid'?” she asked.

“It's a piece of lostech—excuse me,” he quickly added, as he saw Luna become confused. “'Lostech' is a word that means 'lost technology', and generally applies to anything made by the First Star League that our people forgot how to build, or even how it works.” James paused for a moment to gather his thoughts and his breath. “The Detonator Grid was one of the most advanced technologies ever produced; a field of some sort that would sap the energy of lasers and particle cannons, stop machine gun bullets, and cause missiles and autocannon shells to explode.

“Sadly, the technology had only barely been invented before the Usurper threw the League into civil war, which led to its collapse. The only known example was built and hardwired into an arena called the Colosseum, which is the only place in known space where spectators can sit in stands and watch BattleMechs fight in gladiatorial combat directly, and not through remote video feeds.” James looked over at Twilight again, and his face took on a look of open admiration. “Even with the Helm memory core and fifty years of reclaiming many forms of lostech, the Detonator Grid and several other wonders stand out as they're as incomprehensible as they've ever been.”

“And Twilight Sparkle copied it in one night from readin' a description,” McCoy added in, while he holstered his pistol once again. No one missed the fact that he was too stunned to even apply a mocking nickname for the unicorn. “Sweet mother o' God, lass, there are boys back home who would marry you for figurin' that out, pony or no.”

Twilight blushed heavily at this, even as she grinned a bit in pride. The grin faded after a moment, however, and she cleared her throat again. “Unfortunately, it's not a perfect copy,” she stated. “As princess Luna noted, I can generate especially powerful fields, but most unicorns would be hard-pressed to stop a machine gun burst, let alone the heavy weapons a BattleMech carries.”

McKenna frowned at that. “Then why make the spell in the first place?” he asked.

“Because unlike the other shield spells, this one can be adjusted in magnitude depending on the caster,” Twilight answered. “While I could probably do a decent job of copying the grid, at least over small areas, other ponies could at least denude damage done by energy weapons by half, prematurely detonate missiles, and possibly deflect cannon shells and bullets as long as the caster can maintain the spell. Furthermore, this shield is more easily projected in a sphere without losing its effects,” the mare added, and then gave McKenna a sly look. “ And I did remember what we spoke about in the meetings before today, commander; I know what you want unicorns for. I figured this spell might be helpful to add to that plan, and it would work better for any of us riding in your war machines than the simple directional shield.”

“It... certainly could,” James replied. He brought up his good hand and began to stroke his stubble-covered chin. “If what you're saying is true, then it won't stop everything, but it'll reduce the amount of damage a 'mech will take for a time and give us the practical equivalent of carrying more armor.”

“I have questions, however,” Luna spoke up, which garnered everyone's attention. “Firstly, how are the thermal and kinetic effects bled off? Secondly, will the casting pony be put in jeopardy by doing this?”

Twilight Sparkle nodded to her liege. “Good questions. To answer the first one, the incoming damage is soaked into a thaumaturgical waveform per the standard shield spell, although I've used some of what Celestia taught me just before... before O'Connell landed,” she broke up a bit at this, but managed to carry on. “I've modified it so that the waveform will spread out further along the Binding directly, instead of carrying all of its force through a pony's magic reserves.”

Luna raised an eyebrow. “That could cause serious disruptions in nearby casting,” she observed.

“It's possible, even likely,” Twilight admitted. “But... well, as the humans say, 'this is war',” she added, somberly. “Sometimes you need something that works right away rather than something perfect that won't be done until you've lost.”

“Lass, keep talkin' that way and I'll be the one tae marry ya,” McCoy added in, with his usual disregard for propriety. The comment worked, though, as a round of chuckles ran through the group of humans and ponies and lightened the mood. “Yer an engineer after me own, blackened heart.”

Another series of chuckles was heard, and Twilight managed to blush again. “Thank you, I think,” she wryly replied. Then she turned back to Luna. “Anyway, princess, as to the second question, I've also built in a cut-off feature into the spell that should theoretically cause it to fail before the feedback reaches the threshold at which permanent damage can occur to a caster.”

“Should?” Desert Wash chimed in from the side.

Twilight nodded to him. “Yes. I'm sorry, but I did just come up with this last night—and lost a lot of sleep, I might add. Unfortunately, it's not a full, peer-reviewed spell and I don't think we have the time for it now, do you?”

Wash backed up a step as some heat entered Twilight's voice. “Er, no miss,” he replied. “I was just trying to clarify.”

“Well, consider it clear,” Twilight flatly stated. A pregnant pause fell over the group at that, but it was fortunately brief as Twilight took a deep, calming breath, and then turned herself to face the group as a whole once again. “In any case, that covers the defensive spells. Offensive spells will be simple magical bursts, which appear to be one of the few advantages ponies—or, at least unicorns—do have over humans, as the average blast produced by a properly trained guardspony has the roughly the same damage capacity as a human long-ranged missile, albeit at significantly shorter range.”

“If I may?” Desert Wash gently interrupted. Twilight's expression turned annoyed briefly, but she soon dismissed the feeling and nodded to the stallion. He nodded back, and then turned his head to address Luna. “This is one field we've already had some practice in, thanks to our normal training and some education courtesy of mister Schneider,” he began. “We plan to fire in volleys to maximize our impact and increase the chance of hitting the enemy forces. The practices we've had have shown that we can maintain an effective firing rate for ten minutes before magical exhaustion begins to affect us.”

Luna frowned. “That doth not seem to be very long, sergeant,” she observed.

“It will probably be enough for the battle we're about to face,” McKenna interjected. “Most smaller-scale 'mech battles are over within five to ten minutes, fifteen at the most; our weapons deal too much damage for any but the most heavily armored 'mechs to endure more than that. Of course, some battles last longer, especially the larger ones where large scale maneuver becomes important.”

“Such as the battle you are about to face?” Luna asked.

James grimaced a bit at that, but he nodded. “Yes. But even then the battle plan we have means your guards shouldn't be engaged throughout the entirety of it.”

The frown remained on Luna's face, but she nodded. “I note the 'should', but I suppose that cannot be helped,” she said, and then sighed herself. “I need no reminders on the vagaries of war,” she added, and then waited patiently for McKenna to nod his agreement before she turned her head back to Twilight. “Is that all, Twilight Sparkle?”

“There's just one more spell,” Twilight replied, and then paused to draw breath in for another explanation. She was interrupted, however, by the sound of the main lift descending to the deck and its door being opened.

Everyone else heard this as well, and they all turned their bodies or heads around to see an odd sight: Dorian Carmine lying face-down on the floor of the lift, while Rainbow Dash sat on his back, happily chewing on something while a plate was balanced on one outstretched wing.

“Well, it's about time someone killed him,” McCoy wryly observed, rather loudly so that his voice would carry the distance to the elevator. “Did ya use a knife, lass, or just pummel him with yer hooves?”

“He's not dead,” Rainbow Dash replied, loud enough to be heard, and then slowly climbed off of Dorian's back.

“I'm close to it!” the sprawled human yelled out, though his words were muffled as he kept his head face-down.

“Oh don't be a baby,” Dash replied, as she turned her head back to look down at the man. Then she carefully extended a rear leg and prodded his shoulder with the hoof. “I barely touched you.”

Dorian seemed to tense at that, and then he finally started to push himself up. Dash felt her blood chill a bit, though, as she saw he had a sinister smile on his face. “Oh, you touched me alright,” he said, and then turned his head to look at the others watching the interplay. “She just couldn't keep her hooves off of me as she ravaged my body in ways both criminal and intimate.”

“WHAT!” Rainbow shouted, as her eyes bugged out. She spun around, barely keeping the plate stable on a wing, and jabbed a foreleg towards Carmine. “That's a lie and you know it!” she said, even as laughter and snickers erupted behind her.

“Oh come now, Dashie,” Dorian said, as he slowly shifted into a sitting position. “There's no shame in admitting how rakishly handsome I am, and how it drove you to violate my person.”

“The only reason I touched you is 'cus you were eating my bacon!” Dash retorted, while her face turned red. Whether from anger or embarrassment, even she didn't know. “And all I did was slap you on the head with a wing! You're the one who said it would be funnier if I was sitting on top of you when the elevator came down!”

“And you're the one who agreed to it,” Dorian replied, a smirk on his face. “I think that proves that you're just eager for a ride on the Carmine express.”

Rainbow Dash could only sputter at that, her face a brilliant red even through her cyan coat. “I... you... Not in a million years!”

Carmine couldn't take it any more, and he burst into laughter so strong that he soon slumped back to the floor. “Your face...” he managed out between convulsions of amusement. “It's priceless!”

The laughter behind Rainbow was no longer constrained, and she frowned in anger as the man in front of her continued to lead everyone in merriment. She was just starting to contemplate severely mauling Carmine when the laughter started to die out, and she heard footsteps from a human approach her from the group behind. Dash turned her head around in time to see James walk up beside her, a curious mix of anger and amusement on his face. When he spoke, however, his tone was hard and unyielding. “Dorian,” he began, and the laughter cut off. “Your 'mech. Now.”

The smile on Carmine's face died, and he nodded as he stood up. “Yes sir,” he replied, and then stepped back into the lift. He quickly pushed the button for the lower deck and soon disappeared from sight.

“Now that's over with,” McKenna said, as he turned to face Rainbow fully. “Miss Dash, I believe you were going to help McCoy with a presentation for your princess?”

“Oh, uh, yeah, right,” the pegasus nervously replied, as his tone of voice even worked on her. “I'll just go over there, then,” she said, and then turned and trotted off towards where McCoy had turned to fiddle with something on one of the tables.

The elder human turned to Dash as she trotted up, and then waited as she set her plate of goodies down on a small crate. “'Bout time ye got here, lass,” he said, matter-of-factly, as if the scene with Dorian hadn't occurred at all. “C'mon, let's give 'em a good look-see at what ye've been so patient with.”

“Rainbow Dash, patient? Th' world must be comin' to an end,” Applejack snarked from the sideline.

“I can be when I need to,” Dash retorted, while she turned her head around to give her friend a hard look. The expression was replaced by a look of surprise, however, as McCoy hefted a strange harness off of one of the work benches and abruptly half-dropped it onto Rainbow's back. “Hey!” she shouted, as she pitched her head to look at the gruff human. “Could you give me a warning next time?”

“Fer such a fast pony ye like tae waste time talkin',” McCoy observed, as he shifted the device around on the pegasus' back, and made an adjustment now and again. “Now are ye gonna fasten th' straps 'round yer middle or am I gonna have tae get Dorian back up here tae do it for ya?”

Rainbow shot him a dirty look, but she begrudgingly complied and bent her head and neck down and lifted a foreleg so she could reach under her barrel. She tugged at several straps with her mouth and used her raised hoof to help manipulate them.

Luna watched in quiet confusion as the strange contraption was fitted to Dash's body. It looks as if a backpack, a saddlebag, and one of the humans' mechanical walkers had a bizarre offspring, she mused, as the large packs or boxes affixed to a relatively stiff harness looked almost ridiculous on the normally sleek pegasus. And that strange arm off to the side; doth that not look like that 'myomer' attached to its articulation points?

The princess' confusion increased further when McCoy turned back to the workbench to retrieve another piece of equipment. This one looked like some sort of strange wire or cord with several pads attached on little offshoots from the center trunk, and McCoy made sure to get Dash's attention while he was holding it. “Lemme know when yer ready for this, lass.”

Dash finished tightening a strap and then looked up and nodded. “Go ahead,” she said, and then turned her head to face forward and held still. McCoy took the invitation and swiftly moved to push the odd device up against the back of her head and neck, pushing portions of her mane aside so that the odd pads could affix directly to her body, with only the thin, fine hair of her coat between them and her skin. This was a paltry barrier, as an unseen adhesive affixed the device directly to Dash's body. Once this was secure, McCoy quickly strung a wire from the back of it and plugged it into one of the large boxes attached to the harness Rainbow wore.

After a few more moments of watching these odd preparations, Luna felt her curiosity get the better of her. “Pray tell, what is this?” she finally asked.

“It's a motorized auto-articulatin' harness with inertial gyroscopes tae aim a weapon an' a neural interface fer operatin' th' gun,” McCoy explained, his tone dry as he maintained his focus on testing several connections on the device. Then abruptly he turned and went to the bench he had retrieved the harness from and picked up what even Luna could recognize as a human weapon of some sort. “In this case, we're usin' a Colt Interstellar M-3032 sub-machine gun,” the armorer added, as he knelt down next to Dash and quickly began to affix the weapon to the odd arm coming off of the harness. “Zack, help me with this,” he added, with a turn of his head to address one of his astechs, who came over immediately to assist.

“This is that project I mentioned yesterday, princess,” Twilight Sparkle interjected. “It basically is a machine that allows a pony to aim and fire a human weapon without requiring their hands.”

“Aye,” McCoy agreed, as he and the astech finished fastening the weapon and then stood back up. “It's a cobbled together piece o' tech, made from some extra parts we had lyin' around. It ain't much, nothin' like a real artificial limb, but it ought tae work.”

“Ah,” Luna replied, and then watched with morbid interest as McCoy took out a noteputer—something she had been introduced to in the brief meeting before the battle—and plugged it into a port on the side of one of the boxes on the harness. “Will we see a demonstration of this ability?” she asked.

“Soon 'nough,” McCoy replied, as he finished his electronic fiddling and then detached the noteputer and placed it back on the workbench. He then reached for yet another device, and then took it over to Rainbow's head. “Last piece, Dash.”

“I'm ready,” the pegasus replied, nonchalantly. McCoy didn't say anything in reply, but instead just knelt down again and quickly but carefully began to fit the odd item over Dash's head. Luna quickly realized it was made precisely to do that, as it nestled snugly against the curves of the pegasus' head, and in fact wrapped around to the front to place a small translucent panel of some sort over Rainbow's right eye. The princess watched with keen interest as McCoy began to attach some leads from the wire harness he'd placed earlier.

“Alright, let's turn it on,” McCoy said, as he finished with his task and then stood up once again. “Try it like we practiced,” he added, with a look at Rainbow Dash.

“Right.” The pegasus nodded as she spoke, and then closed her eyes to concentrate. A moment later the arm with the weapon twitched, and then Dash opened her eyes again and grinned. “It's on,” she said, and then turned her head a bit. The gun at her side tracked with her movement, and pointed in the same direction she looked.

“Interesting,” Luna observed. “How does it work?”

“Half-assed,” McCoy immediately replied, much to the wincing chagrin of McKenna. “This sort o' tech ain't supposed tae be possible outside th' gobbledygook th' Wobbies or Clans were stickin' in their zealots' heads, but a clever man kin find a way 'round ordinary limitations.”

“But when you can't find a clever man, you go with a crotchety old fart,” James chimed in from the side.

“Correction: a crotchety old fart who knows how tae keep a fusion reactor runnin' with bailin' wire and duct tape,” McCoy retorted, his voice laced with pride. He then reached down and then lightly patted the top of the SMG affixed to the harness. “In this case, I figured we dinnae need a full MMI—which is good 'cus there ain't a way we kin make one from scratch—but ye can do all sorts o' clever things with spare neurosensors an' smart programming.”

“I see,” Luna replied, somewhat bemused. “And what is an 'MMI'?”

“It's an acronym that stands for 'mind-machine interface',” McKenna answered for his chief tech. “The idea is that it creates a bridge between the organic brain and electronic computers. The neurohelmets us mechwarriors use are a basic form of MMI, taking our sense of balance and kinesthetics and using it to keep a 'mech upright, while providing a form of feedback that allows a skilled pilot to more deftly control his machine.”

A brief silence fell over the area as Luna processed the humans' words. “Astounding,” she said, clearly impressed. “And this technology is being used here?”

“Aye,” McCoy replied. “But only tae turn the thing on an' fire it. And we could only do that because miss Dash has what we call an 'aggressive' personality,” the elder human added, and then smirked just slightly as Applejack and Twilight chuckled a bit at the description. They shut up, though, when Dash shot them a look and the gun at her side tracked over. “Ach. Careful, lass!” McCoy added, as he reached down to pull Rainbow's head away from her friends by grabbing the pegasus' muzzle.

“Hey!” Dash snapped, as she tore her muzzle away from the human's grip. “What gives?”

“It's bad discipline to point a gun you haven't personally inspected at anyone or anything you don't want to shoot,” James interjected, his tone once again the cold, hard steel of command. “That gun may not be loaded, but until you've seen that for yourself you must assume that it is. Because if you assume it isn't and it actually has a round chambered, then you run the risk of accidentally triggering it and killing someone.”

The harsh words rolled over Rainbow Dash like a wave, and she visibly sagged as the ideas registered. “Oh,” she said, and then lowered her head. “Sorry.”

“Humph,” McCoy grunted, before an awkward silence could set in. “Gettin' back tae why we're here,” he added, and then turned to face the princess. “My point was that this kind o' thing ain't usually workable, but the blue blunderbuss here has some high peakin' brainwaves that makes it easy fer some simple commands tae be triggered when she has a specific thought. We've set it it so that one turns th' thing on and off, and the other makes th' gun fire. Other than that th' actual gun mount is controlled by a spare targeting system from one of our battle armor suits that tracks th' gun tae wherever th' eyepiece is pointing an' feeds th' operator information through said eyepiece.”

The discussion paused again, as Luna's mind worked to absorb the information she'd been given. Eventually, an idea percolated through her brain. “You say that this is possible thanks to miss Dash's specific thoughts?” she asked.

“Not exactly,” McCoy replied. “Anyone with an extra-distinctive brainwave pattern an' a good, strong thought, like a memory or idea that really gets their attention can do it.”

“Excellent,” Luna said. “I know we are pressed for time, but I can have several candidates from the guard here right after we're done. I hope thou may be able to test them out in time before thou must begin thy march?”

“Whoa, wait,” Rainbow interceded. She started to turn her head to face the princess, but then remembered what McKenna had said, and then paused for a moment as a look of concentration came over her face. The gun at her side then abruptly drooped and pointed down, which allowed the pegasus to face Luna. “What are you talking about, princess?”

Luna frowned at the petulant pony. “Rainbow Dash, surely thou didst not expect to be sent into battle?” she asked, bemused.

“Well, yeah,” Dash replied, and then grew indignant at the looks she got from pony and human alike. “Look, I may not be a trained guard or soldier, but I can fight. I have fought.” She paused then, and her expression fell as she glanced off to the side. “And yesterday... I killed.” Soft gasps came from her friends at that, but this seemed to reinvigorate the pegasus, and she quickly brought her head up and looked Luna straight in the eye. “I did it to save lives, and to stop ponies from suffering.

“And last night, I realized something,” she continued, and her voice grew soft as her eyes watered slightly. “I did it because nopony else could do it. I was the only one who could fly that fast, and do what needed to be done. It was my duty.” Dash nearly whispered the last word, and she paused to close her eyes and take in a deep, calming breath. Soon enough, though, she was once again staring her princess down. “I can't turn my back on what's right. I can't—I won't sit back and hide when other ponies are fighting and killing and dying for me. Especially if, by being out there, I can cover their back and keep them from dying at all.”

Stunned silence met Rainbow's speech, and it dragged on for several long seconds before Luna finally shook her head. “It is not as simple as that, Rainbow Dash,” the alicorn began, her voice low and even. “Thou hast a greater duty, to keep thyself safe so that if the Elements of Harmony need to be used, they can be. To throw thyself into battle would do a disservice to the concept of duty, as it could end up with thy death, and the Elements rendered unusable.”

Dash frowned. “But if I'm out there fighting, then maybe it might be the one last bit of effort that keeps the Elements from needing to be used at all,” she pressed back. “And even if it's not, even if we win without the Elements, how could I live with myself if I knew I could have been there, could have maybe saved somepony's life by killing someone who was going to hurt them?”

“Rainbow, listen to yourself,” a meek, soft voice intruded. Despite the low volume, the sheer beauty of the speaker's voice was enough to capture everyone's attention. Heads turned to regard Fluttershy, and the timid pony trembled slightly under their gaze. Still, something gave her strength, and she managed to stay standing, and even took a few steps forward, towards her friend. “Y-you're talking about hurting and killing other beings,” she added, and her eyes misted up. “H-how can you talk about that so easily, even want to do it?”

Contrary to what many ponies believed, Rainbow Dash was not entirely immune to Fluttershy's unique persuasiveness. The cyan pegasus winced and glanced to the side so she could gather her thoughts. This lasted only a moment before Dash sighed, and then turned her head back to regard her friend. “Fluttershy... if you could have stopped O'Connell from killing those ponies in Manehattan, would you have done it?”

“Absolutely!” Fluttershy exclaimed.

“Okay, but what if the only way you could do that was to kill O'Connell?” Dash asked, carefully.

Fluttershy blanched at the question. “I... I couldn't...” she said, almost in tears.

“I know,” Dash replied, softly, and then took a few steps closer to the other pegasus. “You could never do something like that, most ponies couldn't... but Flutters, I can,” she added, a pleading look upon her face. “I did it before, and I'll do it again. I'll keep doing it until they realize that war won't get them what they want, because that's the only way they'll stop.

“I don't want to do it,” Dash continued, and then took another step towards Fluttershy. “But somepony has to do it, because they won't stop until somepony makes them stop. You saw what they did in Manehattan, you saw what they did to Canterlot; they'll do that to every town in Equestria unless we stop them. If that means I have to go out and fight and kill and... maybe even die...” Rainbow had to pause at that and glance to the side, as tears briefly welled up in her eyes. “If what I do can stop the war sooner, then it'll be worth it to protect ponies like you.” She looked back towards Fluttershy then, and her voice picked up a measure of steel. “If an innocent pony never has to see war, if some foal never has to hide from rockets raining on their town, never has to see their parents killed because some jerk thinks they're a lesser being, then it'll be worth it.

“Because some things are worth fighting for,” Dash added, and then turned her head to levelly gaze into Luna's eyes again. “And one way or another, I'm going to fight.”

Stunned silence met this defiant proclamation, as everyone in the area just looked to where Rainbow Dash and princess Luna were holding an impromptu staring contest. The pause grew until it became awkward for the rest of the persons in the group, but fortunately Luna broke the quiet a moment later. “Be that as it may,” she said, quietly. “It will not be as a representative of Equestria.”

Rainbow found herself frowning again. “What does that mean?”

“It means thou will not have my blessing, nor my support,” Luna calmly explained. “Neither will thee receive any from the military or the government. Thou will not be allowed to travel with any unit, nor will the resources of the crowns be available to thee. Thou art free to do as thou sees fit as prescribed by our laws, but I am not obligated to support this reckless behavior.” She narrowed her eyes a bit, and everyone else in the room would later swear the temperature dropped. “If thy selfish desires are what thou will indulge, then upon thine own head be it.”

Silence ruled the tableau once again. Rainbow visibly paled under her coat, and her ears folded back, but she returned Luna's hard stare with one of her own. Yet, it was not her who spoke next. “It's not selfish.”

Luna blinked at the unexpected intrusion, and she turned her head to see Twilight Sparkle with a look of determination on her face to match that of Rainbow Dash. The reason for it snapped into Luna's mind with crystal clarity, and her eyes widened slightly. “Thou cannot mean...?”

Twilight blushed slightly in embarrassment, but she nodded. “I was going to wait until after the demonstrations to mention it... but yes,” she replied, somewhat sheepishly. “I want to volunteer to be one of the ponies in the BattleMechs.”

Luna stared at the lavender unicorn with an expression of pure shock. Soon enough, however, her face hardened. “We must have words,” she moodily spoke, and then lit up her horn. Before any pony or human could say or do anything about it, however, twin flashes lit the area and forced everyone to flinch in pain from the overwhelming display of light. When they looked back a second later, neither Twilight nor Luna could be seen.

“Well... that was unexpected,” McCoy observed.

“What th' tarnation is goin' on?” Applejack spoke up, and then turned to walk over to Dash. “Rainbow, didja talk ta Twilight 'bout this?”

“N-no,” Dash replied, with a faint and brief stutter. “I haven't spoken with her since yesterday. I honestly had no idea.”

“I don't think any of us did,” a new voice spoke from the side. The group clustered around the worktables turned almost as one to see Rebecca McKenna leading both Rarity and Pinkie Pie towards them from the lift, though it had been Rarity who had spoke. “The poor dear didn't say a word to any of us.”

“There you are,” James said, as his wife drew close. “How much did you hear?”

“Enough,” Rebecca replied, and then slipped an arm around James' shoulders and gave them little squeeze. “So... figured out how we're going to budget it yet?”

James raised an eyebrow. “Budget what?”

“The job you're going to offer Rainbow Dash,” Rebecca replied, to the surprise of the ponies and a few humans in the area.

“I think you're a bit ahead of me,” James replied, his tone unsure. “Mind moving the slider bar back a few minutes?”

Rebecca sighed in an overly dramatic fashion before she began. “Princess Luna obviously won't let her help her country, but you know very well how much local guides are used by merc units,” she said, and then simply maintained eye contact with her husband as his expression lit up with understanding.

“What are you two talking about?” Rainbow asked from the side, and both McKennas looked down to see that her friends had gathered around the cyan pegasus and all were looking up at the two mercenaries with curious and befuddled expressions. “What's this about a job?”

James didn't answer at first, but simply turned his head to regard his wife again. She returned the look, and the two carried out a silent conversation consisting mainly of facial movements and a few shrugs. This, of course, only confused the ponies more, as they had ever seen body language of such detail. Soon enough, however, James sighed and then shook his head. “You realize that this is only going to tick off the lady who's technically our boss, and can also crush my head with a thought?”

“I don't think she'll do that,” Rarity spoke up again, inserting herself into the conversation. “Princess Luna is very passionate, but also very forgiving.”

“Oh yeah!” Pinkie Pie interjected. “If she wasn't she would have totally gone crazy loco on me after that first Nightmare Night when she dropped by and scared the junipers out of everypony even though she wasn't trying at first and didn't know what was going on exactly but after she did she really really really got into it and now she's totally digging the whole 'dark knight' thing which is funny because knight rhymes with night and so it sounds like she's crusading in the middle of the night which is kinda actually what she does so it works out really well!”

The pause that followed Pinkie's ramble was quiet enough to hear a pin drop. Fortunately, it was broken up by someone dropping something significantly heavier than a pin on the deck below, and the thump and assorted cursing broke everyone out of the pink party pony's spell. “Er, okay, so she won't go postal on me, then?” James asked.

“Goin' postal?” Applejack asked. “What's that mean?”

“It means he wants tae make sure miss tight buns won't get so mad she'd lose her temper,” McCoy chimed in from where he had turned to fiddling with his noteputer. Barely had he finished talking, however, when he slapped the side of it. “Ach, blasted thing! Stupid magic teleportin' horses and their bloody EMP.”

“Wait, what?” James asked, with a hard blink of his eyes. “What EMP?”

“One thing at a time, dear,” Rebecca interceded, while she used one hand to turn her husband's face away from the elderly tech and towards her own. “Now, standard guide contract?”

“I suppose,” James begrudgingly replied. “But you take care of the details; I'll have a big enough headache trying to keep the princess from declaring the unit persona non grata.”

“Uh, guys?” Dash interrupted once more. “You're talking about me, so I'd like to know what's going on.”

Rebecca and James shared another look, which ended with the male McKenna giving his wife a smirk. She rolled her eyes in return but then quickly turned to fully face Rainbow Dash and knelt a bit to level her eyes with that of the ponies. “Princess Luna said she won't help you, right?” Rebecca asked, and then waited as she received a nod in return. “Well, it's a common practice back in the Inner Sphere for mercenary units to hire local guides to show them around places on a new planet and find out things, like hidden trails or hiding spots and stuff like that,” she explained, and then grinned. “We've made use of a few in our time, as well. After all, every planet is different, and there are a lot of planets back home.”

“So... you're saying you're going to give me a job?” Rainbow asked, slowly. “And that means you'd let me fight?”

“Under our direction, yes,” James chimed in. “And that is non-negotiable; you will follow orders, or I'll drag you back to the DropShip myself.”

Dash nodded firmly at that and then raised her right foreleg in a salute. “Understood!”

A round of chuckles erupted from the humans at that. “Well, Melissa was right; you've got the spirit for it, that's for sure,” Rebecca observed, with a smile as she stood erect once more. “Still, a fire in your belly won't be all that you need. Are you sure, absolutely sure, that you want to see more battle?”

“Yes,” Dash replied, soberly. Her voice held strength, yet was devoid of false pride. “I meant what I said, and I know what I'm going to see.” She glanced down briefly. “Heavens know I saw enough of that yesterday to know what's coming.”

Rebecca shot her husband another look, to which James simply replied with a nod. “Just know that it never really gets better. Only that you'll unfortunately get used to it,” she said, speaking just a bit slower than usual to emphasize the meaning behind her words. “You're going to see and do things that aren't put in the movies or holovids, and it won't be pretty. But if you hold on, keep your honor clean and never give up, you'll see some good things as well, and even help make them happen.”

Rainbow couldn't help a small grin that appeared on her muzzle. “I can hardly wait,” she replied.

“Excellent,” Rebecca said, and then clapped her hands. “Now, let's see if we can find a noteputer with a verigraph coder...”

* * * *

The flash of teleportation washed over Twilight Sparkle, and she had to blink her eyes several times to clear the afterimage seared into her retinas. Soon enough, however, she saw that Luna had teleported them both into... “The dungeon?!”

“Yes,” Luna replied, as she gracefully walked past the unicorn and over to inspect a table covered in various piles of junk parts. “It is hardly used these days, and I wanted privacy,” she explained, and then fell silent. She remained quiet just long enough to get her thoughts in order, and then turned back to Sparkle before the silence became awkward. “Art thou even aware of what thou art attempting to do?” she asked, vehemently.

Twilight flinched slightly at the tone of voice, but she stood firm. “I know very well, Luna,” she replied, evenly. “I'm volunteering to go into war. I would provide you my reasons, but Rainbow already stated them.” And more eloquently than I would think her capable of, Twilight mentally added.

“Truly?” Luna asked, and then scoffed when Twilight nodded. “Dost thou take me for a fool?”

The increasing harshness of the princess' tone and mannerisms confused Twilight, and she frowned at the alicorn. “I don't think you're a fool at all, princess,” she answered.

“Then dispense with the mummery,” Luna heatedly retorted. “And confess thy true purpose.”

“I-I don't know what you mean,” Twilight replied, in a hurt tone of voice as Luna's attitude confused her to no end. “Please, Luna, I don't know what you want from me.”

Luna just narrowed her eyes and continued to stare at the unicorn. “Don't you?” she asked, skeptically. “Tell me, Twilight Sparkle, how long have I been alive?”

“I—what does that have to do with this conversation?” Twilight asked.

“Because my sister boasted of how intelligent and well studied you are,” Luna replied. “Surely thy curiosity wouldst have been aroused by my return? Did thou not immediately delve into the royal genealogy upon the events of the Summer Sun Celebration before last, or was Celestia mistaken when she spoke to me of it?”

A blush washed over Twilight Sparkle's face. “Er, well, yes. I didn't think it would cause any problems...”

“And it hath not,” Luna amended, her voice softening a bit. “But I reference it now because thou should know that I am indeed quite old by most pony standards, and I have seen and done much.” She paused at that, and then took a step forward to give the unicorn another hard look. “So when I say that I can see through thy surface reasons and into thine heart, know that I am not merely bluffing. Speak all thou may want about the rightness of the cause, but I know that thou have a darker purpose in mind.”

Twilight's face did an immediate reversal of the blush, and soon paled. She then ducked her head down and looked at the floor. “I...” she said, but soon choked up as emotion overwhelmed her.

Luna felt some regret at that, and she softened both her expression and tone. “I know what happened to thy family was not something that one can respond to without verve,” she said, consolingly. “But revenge is not a good reason for war. Or anything else, really.”

“I know that,” Twilight Sparkle replied, so softly that Luna could barely hear her.

“Then why dost thou—“ Luna began, but was quickly cut off as Twilight snapped her head up and gave the alicorn a burning stare.

“Because they destroyed my parents' house, the place I lived for over half my life, and they had to come to Ponyville on a late train only to find out that their son, my brother, is near death because some griffon asshole put a poisoned arrow into his side!” she snapped, her voice rising in volume as she went. “Those murdering bastards have killed ponies without care, put Celestia in a coma, made my parents homeless, and nearly killed my brother!” Twilight's voice reached near Royal Canterlot Voice levels, and even Luna was not immune to the effect as her ears twitched back. “And I am not going to let them do that anymore! No! More!” She punctuated the last two words with stomps of a hoof, and then defiantly stared into Luna's face. This lasted only until Twilight noticed that Luna was now completely aghast, her eyes wide and jaw slacked in shock. The unicorn blushed profusely and then glanced to the side. “No more...” she added, softly, in a voice that was near sobbing.

Luna could only blink repeatedly as her mind struggled with the shock of seeing Twilight Sparkle in such a profound state of anger. Eventually her wits returned to her, and she slowly walked over to sit on her haunches just in front of her subject. “Twilight,” she said, softly, as she put a hoof on Twilight's shoulder. “This is not like you. Throughout this crisis thou hath been a pillar of stability, even in the face of my sister's grievous wounding and the terror that everypony felt upon seeing the might of the invaders. Pray tell, what hath changed in thou to bring about such anger?”

Silence settled over the pair, broken only by an occasional sniff from Twilight. Eventually, though, she slowly looked up and met Luna's gaze. There was no defiance or anger in her eyes now, only sadness and determination. “It wasn't just any one thing,” Twilight began, softly. “It's everything that seems to keep happening. The changelings, Discord, Ni—” She cut herself off, and then bit her lip.

“Myself, you mean,” Luna said, and then rubbed her hoof over Twilight's shoulder. “I take full responsibility for what I have done, Twilight Sparkle. Be not ashamed that you must reckon my actions in the same company of those villains, for that shame is mine and mine alone,” she added, and then gave a wan smile.

Twilight managed a brief, faint smile back, but soon enough her expression returned to its previous state. “It just seems like everything keeps getting worse. Equestria had centuries of peace, and now in the last two years we've had no less than three attempts to conquer the country, and they all almost succeeded,” she explained, and then shook her head. “The last time... they almost won. We were so close to being slaves and food, and the only reason we aren't is because the changeling queen got careless.

“And now, another force is trying to take the land over,” Twilight continued, and then glanced down again. “And they're the worst enemy by far. Machines of such power, driven by beings of such greed and callous disregard for life and peace, the northern griffons aligned with them, and now that changeling caught in the train station...” She sighed, and then shook her head at that. “Even with McKenna's forces helping, it feels like this are our last days of freedom. Like all that makes us unique and special will be destroyed, burned away or shoveled under by the oppressive hoof of a tyranny.

“And what's worse is that this isn't just a feeling; I've spent days studying the humans' history, looking at key points. Greece, Rome, China, the Crusades, the Reformation, the Enlightenment, the Crazy Years, the Age of War, the Star League, the Succession Wars...” Twilight sniffed again and hung her head a bit. “So many times they've tried living in peace, and every time someone comes along and ruins it. War, intrigue, social engineering, outright greed, they always spell the end for everything good. Then comes suffering and pain for years, even centuries.

“It can happen here,” Twilight continued, and then looked back into Luna's worried eyes. “It is happening here. We keep getting attacked again and again, and eventually our luck will run out and we'll get an enemy who won't be overconfident, who will exploit all of our weaknesses and finally bring Equestria down. And despite his arrogance, O'Connell seems just competent enough to do it.”

Luna could only look sadly at the distressed pony in front of her. This drove her to stand up so she could move over and sit right next to Twilight, and then wrap a wing around the unicorn's back. Propriety be damned, she thought. “And this is why thou art so vexed?”

“No,” Twilight surprisingly replied. The unicorn then looked up at her liege gave Luna a frustrated look. “I'm angry because the world is insane and makes no sense!”

“What dost thou mean?” Luna asked, with a frown.

Twilight sighed at that, and then shook her head. “What's happening to Equestria is just like dozens, if not hundreds of stories from human history,” she explained. “And it's maddening because it's almost predictable! Every empire, every kingdom and principality and republic always meets its end because they were too successful. They would win wars, they would find peace and tranquility and prosperity... and then it would all fall to pieces because they had forgotten how hard they had to fight for it, how it was the cost in lives and toil and sacrifice that bought them their golden ages.

“And it's happening here, to us right now!” Twilight continued, and then abruptly stood and started to pace near to where Luna remained seated. “You and your sister bought us eleven hundred year of peace and prosperity—and for that I am grateful,” she hastily amended, with a pause to give Luna an earnest look. “Please understand that I'm not complaining about you and Celestia, princess,” Twilight added as she resumed pacing. “But it's that very peace and prosperity that has made us incapable of standing against O'Connell on our own.

“I know our own history,” the unicorn went on, seemingly on a tangent. “Everypony has the Hearth's Warming play memorized by the age of eight, and we all know that in the past the pegasi were great warriors. Yet all three of the tribes in those ancient times were just as contentious as anything the humans dealt with, and I think if we had shared a world with them we would have given even them a run for their money. But then we founded Equestria, you and Celestia came with the Elements of Harmony and sealed Discord, and even when you had your... uh...”

“Celestia named it a 'Hissy Fit',” Luna suggested, and then raised an eyebrow when Twilight looked at her in shock. “But call it whatever you wish.”

“...Breakdown,” Twilight said, and then continued once Luna simply nodded her acquiescence. “Even then it was a brief fight, not even worthy of being called a war. Equestria hasn't been challenged in so long that the best military technology we have are spears and armors the humans discarded as obsolete before they figured out their world was round. Our best technology overall is a hodgepodge of steam engines, vacuum tube electronics, and some advanced chemical industries, all things that humans managed and improved upon before they took to the stars, and even then only a century or so before. We've had these things for three centuries now and we've barely made any improvements because we didn't need to.” She paused, and then turned her head to regard Luna once again. “We enjoy peace and prosperity and contentment, all thanks to harmony and the Magic of Friendship... and it's made us incapable of protecting ourselves when that magic is not enough.

“And that's why I'm so mad,” Twilight added, and then paused to clench her jaw for a moment. “Because it's ridiculous, utterly ridiculous the way reality is set up, that the reward for victory is to eventually lose everything you've won. That a civilization that builds itself on good qualities such as love and harmony can so easily be threatened with complete destruction by a force made up of the wicked, the greedy, or the desperate. It's as if all of existence, all of creation and even beyond is stacked against everything we consider good and right and rewards those who are evil and depraved.”

Twilight fell silent just then, as her thoughts and emotions started to run away from her. She stopped her pacing and just stood still for a moment, before she shook her head again, as if to chase out the cobwebs. “I'm just so angry,” she began, quietly. “Because it's a cycle without end, and no place is immune. Even if we beat O'Connell, another enemy will crop up sooner or later. And then another, and then another... and eventually, Equestria will fall. Whether to an invading army or the populace's own growing inertia, the result will be the same: the dream will end, peace will be replaced with strife, and everything, everything we've fought for, everything we stand for will be cast aside and forgotten like a used toiletry!” Twilight grimaced at that, and then turned to face away from Luna and lit up her horn. A matching aura surrounded the table in the room, and before the princess could even think to ask about the unicorn's intentions, the entire mass of the table and the scraps on it was hurled across the small room and into a wall. The table shattered and the horrendous noise of metal and wood smashing and scraping against itself made Luna wince, but she remained calm as her eyes fell again to Twilight Sparkle.

She was panting, though Luna could tell it was not from the exertion of the body or even magic, but rather her own tortured mental state. Soon enough, Twilight turned back around to face the alicorn, and her face was a twisted mess of emotions. “What is it all good for?” Twilight asked, plaintively. “So many good ponies died yesterday, so many will in the future, my brother may yet die, and for what? For a peace that won't last? To protect a populace that's grown so used to that protection that they can't even look out for themselves anymore? To sustain a way of life that has only stagnated us to the point that when something truly challenging comes along we all but fold up in front of it?

“What good...” Twilight choked up then, and her eyes filled with tears. “What good is the Magic of Friendship when the security it brings us is an illusion just waiting to be shattered by the cold hoof of reality?”

Luna could only look on in stunned silence for a moment, but soon her eyes filled up with tears of her own. Slowly, she reached a foreleg to the side, and then patted the floor next to her. “Sit with me, Twilight Sparkle,” she said, softly inviting. Twilight frowned a bit in confusion, but she complied and walked over to take her seat beside the alicorn. Once again Luna reached out a wing and wrapped it around Twilight's back and shoulders, though this time she pulled it a bit tighter and made it into a gentle hug. “Only thou may answer the questions you have posed.”

Twilight looked up at the princess in confusion. “But... I've already spent so much time wondering, trying to think of an answer and I can't find one.”

“And that is why you fail,” Luna lightly admonished. “Twilight Sparkle, you of all ponies in this world should know by now that the Magic of Friendship is not the magic of the mind, as unicorns practice it. There art no spells to cast, no tomes to pen and study in dusty libraries. It is not the magic of the elements that grants pegasi their flight and abilities and is honed as one would train muscle. Nor is it the magic of the earthers that works in such harmony with their very bodies that it is hardly noticed at all, and works by instinct alone.

“The Magic of Friendship is that of the heart, of the very souls the creator granted us,” Luna continued, her tone soft and understanding. “It is the shining jewel that lies in the heart of every good pony—of every good person, no matter their species. It can become tarnished, it can be buried, but it can never be destroyed so long as you hold onto it. My sister believed in that, and it is the sole reason that I remain alive today, for she was willing to risk my madness and the problems it caused a second time by locking me in the moon with the Elements.” Luna paused, and then took in a breath to fortify herself. “She could have killed me, you know,” she said, which caused Twilight to stare at her in shock. “She didn't have to use the Elements, for she had her guards distract and harry me, and in that confusion, in my madness, she could have plunged her spear into my chest a half-dozen times and ended the threat to the principality for once and for all.

“Celestia risked so much: I could have descended deeper into my rage and killed her guards. I could have unleashed terrible spells to induce madness, or warp the minds of our subjects. I could have flown to the gates of Tartarus and released the terrible abominations that are sealed within. But she risked it all because she believed that no pony is beyond redemption, that all the pain and strife was worth it to save even one deluded mare from her madness...” Luna sighed at that and hung her head. “She believed in that, even when other ponies told her it was hopeless. Despite all the logic against her, despite having no evidence, she trusted in the Magic of Friendship, and that one day a new set of Bearers would rise to the challenge.

“So thou must look within thyself, Twilight Sparkle,” Luna added, and then turned her head back to face Twilight once again. “Do not try to reason it out, but instead ask deeply of your own soul the questions thou possesses.”

Twilight frowned at her liege. Soon enough, however, she nodded, and then turned her head forward and closed her eyes. What is it all good for? she asked herself, amidst a pang and sadness and self-pity. Why? Why fight, why struggle so hard when nothing we do, nothing we build will last? What is the point?

Silence. No words met her plea, no revelation surfaced in her mind, and Twilight frowned again even as she felt her eyes tear up once more. Typical, she bitterly though. No answers, no reasons, just nothing. Just like when I tried to figure out Pinkie Pie...

A thought entered her head then, and Twilight found it hard not to focus on the memory of that rather painful week. Despite herself and the situation, she couldn't help but smile at the past. Even after all of that, even after me being so skeptical to the point of being insulting, Pinkie was just happy she could share some time with me. And it's kind of funny, but that situation was turned right around on me when I tried telling Rainbow Dash how great reading could be, and now she can hardly pull herself away from the adventure novels. Like how Rarity obsesses over a new client's dress, always trying to treat them the same way Applejack treats her family. Or how Fluttershy tends to her animals and spends so much time trying to make their lives so much better, even though they have such short lifespans and—

Her eyes snapped open as a realization flooded into her mind. Tears immediately came to them, and Twilight had to take a few shuddering breaths to calm herself. “My friends,” she began, sotto voce.

“What about them?” Luna asked, softly.

Twilight flinched a bit, as she had briefly forgotten the princess was even there, but she soon recovered and looked up at Luna. “Everything,” she replied. “Everything about them. And my family, and all the ponies who live their lives right and true,” Twilight elaborated, and then closed her eyes again. “It doesn't matter, that nothing we do will truly last. Before we're born we have no burden, and after we die our trials have ended. But in between,” she continued, and then opened her wet eyes to look up at Luna once again. “We have the ability to make ponies happier, to help others and to brighten the world, and whether or not that continues after we're gone is the responsibility of those who'll come after.”

“And they will have nothing but good examples to live up to,” Luna added, with a smile. “Examples that will light their way even through the darkest of times, and remind them that just as the good times will end, so too will the suffering pass and be consigned to memory. That cycle you mentioned goes both ways after all, my friend.” Twilight blushed at that, and the resolution of her inner conflict finally allowed Luna to ask a question that had been niggling in the back of her mind. “But please indulge me, Twilight; if thou had such doubts before, then thy answer that thou agreed with Rainbow Dash seems... illegitimate.”

Twilight's blush deepened at that, and she turned her head down in a sheepish manner. “Oh, well... ostensibly, I do agree with her. But yes, they aren't exactly the reasons for why I want to volunteer,” she replied, and then slowly looked back to the alicorn. “But it's not revenge, either. If I wanted revenge, I could teleport into the prison camp for the griffins captured after the battle and pop their heads like bubble wrap.” Twilight blinked then, as she realized what she had said, and then gave a weak, sheepish smile to a shocked-looking Luna. “Er, I didn't exactly say I hadn't thought about revenge, just.... I certainly know that's not the right thing to do.”

“I... see...” Luna responded, as she pushed down the sudden, irrational fear she felt towards the unicorn. “Well then, pray tell me what did inspire you?”

Sparkle pursed her lips a bit, and then sighed. “Because... it's what Shining Armor would have done,” she replied, softly. “He would know how important this coming battle is, how we would need to put our best hoof forward, and he would have been on the front lines even if he had to resign his commission and leave Cadence tied up in their bedroom so she couldn't drag him back.” The two shared a chuckle at that, and Twilight continued. “I knew, intellectually, that the reasons Dash gave were good ones. But really, I just wanted to make sure that no matter what there would be a powerful unicorn in the fight, because that's what Shiny would have wanted. Even if he would've sooner tied me up as well to keep me from going out there.

Luna could only smile at that, although it was a sad one. She then stood up slowly and took a few steps away from Twilight Sparkle. “He wouldst not have been the only one,” she said, morosely.

Twilight frowned at the words, and she stood to walk over and face her liege. “Are you saying what I think you're saying, Luna?” she asked, bemused. “Are you saying you'd keep me here against my will?”

“What I am saying, Twilight, is that thou art more important to Equestria's future than thou realizes,” Luna replied, somewhat evasively.

“What does that mean?” Twilight pressed, as she grew more frustrated. “I know you're not happy at Dash and I risking ourselves. But what Dash said, and what I've learned just now... We can't just hide in a cellar and wait to be taken out when we're needed, like some piece of machinery or an old photo album. We're ponies for pity's sake! If we can't make our own decisions in our lives now, then O'Connell has already won!”

“I know this!” Luna snapped, and then grimaced as she saw Twilight flinch back at the harsh tone. “Forgive me,” the princess added, more softly. “But thou doth not speak any words I have not heard before... or used with my sister.”

“Sister?” Twilight asked, as she blinked in surprise. “What does Celestia have to do with this?”

Luna didn't reply immediately, but instead started to do some pacing of her own. She remained silent for a few moments, and then stopped and turned to face the other pony once again. “She has... plans, for you,” the dark alicorn explained.

“Plans?” Twilight echoed. “What plans?”

“Trials,” Luna replied. “Tests to push you, to make thee grow and to learn valuable lessons to temper thine mind and outlook.”

Twilight took a step forward and closer to Luna. “For what?” she pressed.

Silence met her question, but it was brief as Luna could only sigh. “It is... not my place to say,” she temporized.

“But it's your place to tell me Celestia has some sort of mysterious plan for me?” Twilight incredulously asked.

“Nay, I should not have mentioned even that,” Luna replied, and then started to pace again. “I promised her that I would remain silent and not interfere, no matter how much I disagreed with her.”

A look of anger washed over Twilight's features, and she stepped forward to forcefully insert herself in front of Luna's path. “Luna, you have to tell me,” Twilight said. “I trust your sister—and you—with my life. But I do not appreciate being manipulated or controlled.”

“Neither of which is part of her plan,” Luna retorted. Another silent moment passed between them, albeit mercifully brief as the alicorn shook her head. “I should not say a word... but events have come to pass far too speedily and even Celestia could not anticipate an invasion from beyond the stars.” She paused at that, and then sighed again and sat down on the floor. “But know this, Twilight Sparkle: once I speak to thee of the future, thou may find viewing thyself and thy place in this world far more differently.”

Twilight bit her lower lip as she thought for a moment, but soon nodded. “Alright,” she said, and then sat down in front of Luna. “I might not like what I hear, but I want to hear it.”

Luna nodded back, and then took a moment to gather her thoughts. “I must lay some groundwork first. Celestia hath told me of thine entrance exam for her school, and being the one it is about I am sure thou art familiar with that story as well. So I must ask thee, if the requirement to enter Celestia's School for Gifted Unicorns is to hatch a dragon's egg, and there are hundreds of students in said school, then why art there not more dragons, babies or otherwise, living in Equestria today?”

The unicorn could only blink at that for a good, solid moment. “I've always wondered that myself, actually,” she replied. “It did seem kind of odd that Spike was the only one around.”

“Then understand that the test was never intended to be completed,” Luna continued, and then waited as Twilight once again struggled with her confusion. “That egg... if I recall correctly, it was white with green dots all over it. Am I correct?”

“Er, yes,” Twilight answered. “But how—”

“—Did I know of it when I was locked in the moon for a thousand years?” Luna finished the question for her, and then smirked slightly when Twilight nodded. “Because, faithful student of my sister, that egg hath been in the possession of Celestia's school and its predecessor for nearly fifteen hundred years.”

“What!” Twilight exclaimed. “But that's not possible! Eggs aren't viable forever, and even though dragons aren't well understood I'm sure that even one of theirs couldn't have been able to hatch fifteen centuries later.”

“Thou art correct, for the most part,” Luna explained. “Dragon eggs do last for a long time, up to three centuries I believe was the record. But if it were not hatched before then, it would never hatch.”

Twilight bit her lower lip. “Is... that what happened to Spike's egg?”

“Nay,” Luna replied, and shook her head to reinforce the answer. “That egg was a dud; they sometimes happen, unfortunately, even when properly taken care of. Celestia personally knew the being who laid it, and the nature of the incident haunted the poor dragoness so much that my sister offered to take the egg away so the lady wouldst not be forced to either crush the egg, or leave it around and be constantly reminded of the loss. The dragoness agreed and left Equestria soon after, and since dragon eggs are notoriously magic resistant, it found a place in testing prospective unicorn prodigies.”

“But,” Twilight interjected. “If the egg was a dud, and magic resistant to boot, then why use it to test unicorn magic? And how could I have hatched it anyway when I was a mere filly?”

“To answer those questions in order, it is used because the test isn't whether or not a pony can perform a miracle, but to see how they handle adversity,” Luna explained. “The mark of a truly great pony is not their raw power, but how they apply themselves and how determined they are to achieve the goals set before them. That is what the dud egg tested, and from what I am told you scored very well on the test even before the start of your little incident.

“As to the second question...” Luna trailed off, and then sighed once more. “I shall be blunt: thou art not a normal pony.”

“Eh... excuse me?” Twilight confusedly asked.

“No normal filly could have hatched that egg. Even a full-grown alicorn would have been hard-pressed, and most likely would have failed anyway,” Luna said, taking her time to make sure her words were clearly understood. “Yet thou did. My sister saw this, and she was impressed. More so, when the simple touch of a hoof snapped you out of your thaumaturgical convulsion and you unconsciously set things right.”

“I... I didn't do that,” Twilight said, disbelieving. “Celestia cast a spell to fix everything, she told me.”

“She lied,” Luna replied. “Please understand, she did not hold the Element of Honesty, and while in no way is her heart larcenous she hath never been tied to the truth as much as myself. It certainly makes her a better politician, and in this case it allowed her to keep the full knowledge of your abilities to herself alone.”

Twilight could only stare at Luna, completely flummoxed at the story the alicorn was telling her. “What do you mean?” she asked.

“What I mean, Twilight Sparkle, is thou art not one of the most powerful unicorns in all of Equestria,” Luna answered. “Thou art the most powerful unicorn in all the land. My sister saw this and hath been molding and grooming thee ever since.”

“For what?” was all Twilight could say.

Luna paused, and then gave Sparkle a flat, humorless grin. “To prepare you for your inevitable ascension into an alicorn, and become the fourth princess of Equestria.”

Nothing was said for several long moments, and neither pony moved. Then, with a groan, Twilight's eyes rolled back into her head and she fainted.

Luna shook her head, even as she caught Twilight in her telekinesis so the unicorn wouldn't bang her head. “And here I am with no witnesses to help me win the bet,” she grumbled. 'Tia still owes me fifty bits, though.

* * * *

It was dark. Dark enough to drive a man mad, had one been in the place. Noises came from outside the enclosed space, and soon blinding light flooded in as the door was opened.

James McKenna could only grin as he opened the small, almost forgettable storage locker wedged into a space between the curve of the inner hull and the side of the Heart of Steel's small weapons armory. “And here we are,” he said, for the sake of his companions.

“Okay,” Rainbow Dash—now sans harness—said, as she took to the air and fluttered high enough to look over the human's shoulder. “So this is where you keep your souvenirs and junk. Why are we here again?”

James sighed at that. “It's not just souvenirs we keep here, but also some heraldry and banners,” he patiently explained. For the third time, he thought. “I'm here because this coming battle is important, and I wanted to get a flag out for it for sentimentality's sake. You're here because my wife doesn't like the fact that I've got a busted arm, and since you're the scrub she gave you the unfortunate task of trying to babysit me.” He paused, and then glanced down to the third member of their little group. “As for miss Belle, she's here because my darling Rebecca is a sadist at heart and enjoys my suffering.”

“Really now, there's no need to be insulting,” Rarity sniffed, though her tone of voice told Dash that she wasn't truly angry. “Missus McKenna and I had such a lovely talk about uniforms and she was insistent that I take into account your tastes in colors and symbols. That is why I am here.”

“Yeah, yeah,” James muttered, as he opened a storage box and rifled through it with his good hand. “Please understand, miss Belle—“

“Rarity,” the unicorn interrupted. “I prefer the singular name, standing alone as its meaning implies. It's far more fitting that way for an up-and-coming fashionista, don't you think?”

James glanced back at that, and then shared a look with Rainbow Dash before they both rolled their eyes. He then turned back to his task, though he resumed speaking. “Anyway, as I was saying, I'm mainly complaining about my wife and her sudden obsession for uniforms. Her decision to 'include' me, despite all stated intentions, is merely rubbing my nose in the fact that she has decided to proceed no matter what I have to say and thus infuriates me with my own helplessness. Since she's had similar little episodes like this before, I can only conclude that she thoroughly enjoys my suffering. So while your company is by no means offensive by itself, miss Rarity, it is nonetheless a grating reminder that Rebecca enjoys twisting the knife whenever she can.”

Both ponies in the room could only stare at the human in mild shock, for which the human was grateful. Maybe now I can—aha! “Here we go,” he said, and then pulled out a polished wooden case, rectangular in its two larger dimensions and only a few inches thick. He quickly turned away from the closet and then took a few steps over to a shelf mounted on the wall of the small room and set down the box so he could work its latches. Curious, both Rarity and Dash moved to get a good look, with the latter still hovering in mid-air.

James ignored them for the moment, and instead simply opened the box and then grinned at the contents. “Still in good condition,” he said, as he lightly touched each of the two flags stored in the box in turn.

“May I?” Rarity asked, in a polite tone. When James turned to give her a questioning look, she smiled. “My interest may be mostly in clothing, but I've always had an eye for any sort of cloth work,” she explained. “Tapestries, heraldry, flags, they're all so interesting in that a little piece of cloth can profoundly affect ponies, so I admit to being a bit curious.”

Despite his earlier irritation James found he could only smile back. “Alright, go ahead,” he said, and then stepped aside. “Just don't let either touch the floor, okay?”

“I understand perfectly,” Rarity said, as she lit up her horn and used her magic to lift the flag that had caught her eye the most. It was folded into a triangle, and the rich blue with white stars reminded her of Equestria's own flag. Yet after she levitated it into the air between the three persons and unfolded it, she was surprised to see that the star field was only a small portion of the flag; three quarters of it was taken up by red and white stripes. “My goodness,” she said, confused. “What a busy design.”

“But an important one,” James interjected. “This is the Stars and Stripes, a flag belonging to a long-gone, but important nation called the United States of America. They were only around for a relatively short time, but the mark they left on history... well, it wouldn't be an exaggeration to say they pretty much changed the course of all human history, to the point where even today many of their values and beliefs still motivate countless billions and guide our politics.”

“Hm, pity they didn't pick a less gaudy design,” Rarity mused, as she turned the flag around in various positions, all the while observing it. “Still... it's a fashionable gaudy, something that draws the eyes in with strong colors and bold shapes, yet doesn't punish anypony for looking at it.”

“Well, the whole design is supposed to be symbolic,” James responded. “Most flags are, but this one really set the bar for later national banners.”

“Ah,” Rarity said, and then started to fold up the flag as she had found it. “Well, is this what you were looking for?” she asked.

“Not really,” James replied, somewhat sadly. “It's a proud flag, one that should be flown even today... but unfortunately, while the Americans strongly influenced all of humanity, for the most part we've forgotten the ideals they based their original culture upon.” He paused as Rarity finished folding the flag back up, and then gently took it from her telekinetic grasp with a thankful nod to the pony. “It wouldn't feel right to fly it now, not until the republic is reestablished. If it ever is,” he added, and then sighed as he placed the flag back into its storage slot. “But the other flag here, it's from one of the states in that old union, and it has a simpler design and feel.” At this, James picked up the other flag, and then gently proffered it towards Rarity.

Rarity could only nod her own appreciation towards the human, and she quickly collected the flag in her magic and unfolded it. “Hmm, a bit more plain than the other one,” she observed.

“Yes, but it's just as special to me,” James said, and then lightly touched the edge of the fabric. “To me it honors the past, looks to the future, and has respect for God. But mostly,” he added, and then sighed. “It means home.”

Both Rarity and Dash gave the human an odd look at the wistful tone of his voice, but soon returned to looking at the flag. As McKenna said, it was a simpler design, consisting mainly of a white field with a red saltire. But at the center of the cross and overlaid upon it was an image of trees, water, and a human woman dressed in strange clothes dropping flowers into a river, while in the background the sun rose over what looked to be a ship of some kind. Around the edge, written in orange on yellow, were the words: GREAT SEAL OF THE STATE OF FLORIDA * IN GOD WE TRUST.

“This is the flag I bring out whenever I need a boost,” James explained, once he'd given the ponies a moment to look over the banner. They looked to him as Rarity slowly folded it back up with her magic. “It reminds me that no matter what we might lose, no matter how complicated and hard life can get, there's always hope, and there's always home. Wherever that may be.” He gently plucked the flag out of Rarity's magic once she was finished, and then tucked it into the sling supporting his wounded arm so that he could turn and close the storage box on the shelf. The ponies waited patiently as he took the box and returned it to the closet before closing and locking the door to it. Finally, he turned around and nodded to them. “Alright, let's get back and see if everything's ready,” James said, and then led the group out of the armory.

* * * *

Canterlot, Equestria

Late Afternoon

September 25th, AD 3070/1023 RC

James couldn't help but smile a bit as the Highlander's Diagnostic Interpretation computer went through its final startup procedures. “Reactor; online. Sensors; online. Weapons; online. Communications; online. All systems; nominal.”

“Does it do that every time?” a voice asked to his left, and the mechwarrior slowly turned his head, heavy neurohelmet and all, to regard passenger strapped into the cockpit's fold-down auxiliary seat. The unicorn wore a headset tied into the communications network and a standard cooling vest, though for ponies the latter article was almost a full body sleeve.

Fortunately for them, James mused. That fur's gonna make the heat worse for 'em, so it's good that they have something to balance that out. I'm going to have to give McCoy his docked pay back for how he's managed to splice in secondary cooling lines.

The pony said his name, and James had to shake his head a bit to chase out the cobwebs. “Sorry, I was woolgathering a bit,” he said, and then turned around to seat himself properly once again. “Yeah, it does that every time. Believe it or not, it actually gets comforting after a while as it becomes a familiar routine.”

“I'll take your word for it,” his guest replied, a tone of disbelief in her voice. “So... I guess it's time to go?”

“Yup,” McKenna replied, as he lowered his good hand to the throttle. “I'll have to be careful with my arm being all torn up, but I should be able to get us to the palace and meet up with the pony troops there with no problems so long as I take it easy.” With that, he pushed the throttle on the left side of his command couch slightly forward, and the 90-tonne 'mech lurched into motion in response. “And on the way there, maybe you can tell me how you got princess Luna to let you come along?”

Twilight Sparkle blushed, and was thankful that McKenna was too busy piloting the BattleMech through the Heart of Steel's 'Mech bay to look at her. “She wasn't exactly happy about it, that's for sure,” she said, and then thought back to only a few hours ago.

* * * *

“Thou art too valuable to Equestria alive,” Luna said, fiercely. The two had been arguing since Twilight awoke from her brief faint, and the alicorn's face was weary.

“I don't belong to Equestria,” Twilight retorted. “I'm not some piece of property to hoard like a miser with her coins.”

“It is not about being owned!” Luna snapped. “It's about how important thou art!”

“To your sister's plan?” Twilight acidly asked.

“Dost thou think I give a whit of care for Celestia's machinations?” Luna countered. “They pale in comparison to the threat we face.”

“Then why—” Twilight began, but was quickly cut off.

“Thou art important to us!” Luna interrupted, with tears in her eyes much to Twilight's surprise. Slowly, the alicorn drew in a deep, calming breath, and then sat down. “Thou art the first friend I have had in more than a thousand years. Even before my banishment I had no friends, as my old ones had died years before and the younger ponies treated me with fear and suspicion simply because I ruled and protected them in the night. They thought that I was just another monster that crept in the darkness...”

Twilight was stunned at this revelation. Luna's silent tears, however, bade her to move forward, and the unicorn quickly moved to sit next to her liege and wrap a foreleg around her shoulders in a hug. “That's why it hurt you so much to see ponies running from you that first Nightmare Night back, isn't it?”

“Aye,” Luna replied, sadly. “I thought they had never changed, and still hated me as a monster. But then thou came to me and worked to ingratiate me with the town,” she continued, and then lifted her head to look at Twilight. “Thou saw who I really was, and cared enough to make other ponies see me in the same light. It is the second greatest kindness I have been ever shown, with my sister's forgiveness the only one to eclipse it.”

Twilight felt her own eyes tearing up. “Luna...” she said, quietly.

“And I didst mean 'us',” Luna continued. “'Tia—Celestia didn't lay out her plans on a whim. She saw within thee a great potential when thou were a foal, but didst not plan for thy ascension until after thou had stopped me and cleansed my madness. I wish thou could have seen how proud she was, how she spoke of thy bravery and dedication.”

Twilight felt her ears wilt, and the tears started to pour out of her. “Sh–she did?”

“Indeed,” Luna replied, and then managed a wan smile through her melancholy. “Thou ceased to be an ordinary student to her long ago, Twilight Sparkle. By now she considers thee as a daughter, though she wouldst never tell thee that herself; she hath seen how being her student already stresses thee, and to add to that would be foalishness. But she is proud of you, Twilight.

“Which is why I cannot fathom letting thou go into battle,” Luna continued, and then released a sad sigh. “If thou perished, it would break my sister's heart. And mine. And those of thy friends,” she added, soberly.

Twilight had nothing to say to that, and so remained silent as she ducked her head and struggled with her emotions. Eventually, however, she breathed deeply, and then returned her gaze to Luna's eyes. “Thank you,” she said, quietly.

“For what?” Luna asked, confused.

“For being my friend,” Twilight replied, and then gave a wan smile of her own. “For looking out for me. For caring so much.” Slowly her smile died, and she shook her head. “But... a pony has to know when it's time to stop arguing, and to accept that her friend has made a choice.” Twilight paused to bite her lip for a moment and gather her thoughts, and then moved on. “I need to help. Not just for Shining Armor, not just for my friends, but for everypony, and every being on this world who wants to just be left alone.

“You said that Celestia wants to make me a princess?” the unicorn asked, and only waited a moment for Luna to nod. “Well, what kind of princess could I be if I stayed behind and let others fight for me? Celestia didn't do things that way, and I know if you weren't needed in Canterlot to keep the government from imploding in outright fear you'd be out there as well. You two and Cadence have set the bar high, and I can't allow myself the luxury of waiting until I somehow grow a pair of wings to finally mare up and act the way I should have been acting the whole time.”

Luna smiled, and even managed a rueful chuckle. “Thou makes a solid point,” she admitted, and then shook her head as the mirth passed. “Art thou sure I cannot persuade thee otherwise?”

“Not unless you're going to ruin the ideal of an Equestrian princess by starting to act like Blueblood,” Twilight replied, with a smirk.

Another chuckle escaped Luna's muzzle, and she wore a less strained smile. Again it was brief, and she sighed. “Very well, I shall not stand in thine way,” she said, slowly. “But I beg of you, Twilight, please come back.”

“I will,” Twilight replied, with a smile. “I'll even Pinkie Promise it,” she said, and then made the motions.

Another smile graced Luna's muzzle at that. “I am far too old for such silly things... but thank th—thank you, Twilight Sparkle.”

* * * *

“You okay?”

Twilight startled a bit, and she blushed again as she found that James had once again strained to turn his helmeted head around to view her. “I'm fine,” she answered. “Sorry, I was just... thinking.”

“Might want to wait on that,” James replied, with a smirk, and then shifted to seat his neurohelmet on his shoulders once again. “There'll be plenty of time for that during the march. Besides that, we're here.”

The last sentence caught Twilight by surprise, but she quickly recovered and turned her head to look out of the Highlander's ferroglass cockpit. In front of her was the Royal Palace, its ramparts crowded with numerous ponies who had yet to be evacuated. They were all staring out at the Highlander and the other two BattleMechs waiting in the square in front of the palace; Schneider's Firestarter and Franz Mendoza's Commando. The two were standing on either side of the many ranks of pony guards and soldiers who were at attention in perfect box formations, their gold-painted armor and naked spear tips gleaming in the sun. The only break from the uniformity of their appearance was twenty earth ponies, carrying either the new recoilless rifles or their ammunition, and the humanoid figures of the Blackfoot, who had been deployed to try and add one last touch up to the ponies' training that morning.

And standing tall on top of the palace's gatehouse was princess Luna, her magic-infused hair shimmering in a wind that was, for once, actually there; a breeze ruffled the manes and tails of every pony in the square. Scarcely had McKenna brought his war machine to a halt in front of the impressive display before Luna began to speak, using the Royal Canterlot Voice to project her words across the wide open spaces and into the ears of every being there. “Commander James McKenna VII,” she said, the distance making her volume tolerable. “As a princess of Equestria I, Luna Nightbringer, Mistress of the Moon, Duchess of Yoke, Consul of Cloudsdale, Viscountess of Maremansk, Baroness of Las Neighgas and Salt Lick City, do hereby place thee in command of the First Division of Our Royal Guards and Army and charge thee to defend the realm from the forces of the renegade O'Connell and his griffon allies.”

James licked his lips as he waited for Luna to finish, and then reached out to turn on his external speakers. Good thing they coached me beforehand. “Princess of the Night, I am humbled by this charge, and I pledge to you that I shall carry it out to the best of my abilities. God willing, we shall prevail.” The last sentence was his own addition, but Luna had no objection to it when he brought it up it earlier.

“Then go, with my blessing,” Luna replied. “May the sun and moon guide you.”

“And may the Force be with you,” a voice interjected, straight into McKenna's ear.

James turned off his external speakers at that, and then let out a groan. “Goddammit, Dorian,” he said, after triggering his radio. “You're making me regret having Hermes pipe this to the rest of the unit.”

“Sorry, boss, I couldn't help myself,” Dorian replied, apologetically.

“Just keep the channels clear,” James added. “Now, let's do this properly. Dark Horse Three, pick up our infantry. Nine, you take caboose position. I'll take the lead through the city.”

A chorus of affirmation came through the radio, though one voice chimed in at the end. “Do you still want me to do that thing, boss?” April Lewis asked.

James couldn't help but grin a bit. “Indeed. I'll hold 'er steady for ya,” he replied. “Now hurry up and get up here.”

“Yes sir,” Lewis answered, and then trotted forward. Unlike the other Blackfoot, she had stood near the front of the ponies' formations, alongside their color guard. This was thanks to the fact that she held McKenna's favored flag on a pole and was acting as an impromptu color guard herself. The flag waved brilliantly as she moved forward, and then hit her jump jets once she was a good distance away from the guardsponies. The ponies watching from the palace gasped in surprise at the event and their eyes were riveted on Lewis as she alighted on top of the Highlander's distinctly flat head and then proudly held the flag up and to the side with one hand while the other reached for and gripped the hardened radio antenna that stuck up from the top of the BattleMech. “Okay, I'm good,” she said, as she took a wide-legged stance.

James couldn't help but chuckle a bit. “Alright,” he said, and then switched to his external speakers again. “Expeditionary force, forward march!” he called out, and then turned his 'mech around and started it off back the way he had come through Canterlot's widest avenues. Behind him the ranks of the guard marched forward with impeccable precision, and they quickly caught up to and matched the leisurely 10 km/h speed McKenna had set his throttle at. Even as he did this, he grinned evilly and reached out with his hand to flip a few more controls on the side of his command console. “Some music for everyone to get us in the mood,” he said, with his external speakers still engaged. One final button press activated the song he'd set up, and it began to play through the external speakers as well.

Despite the fact he couldn't see her, Twilight Sparkle gave James a perplexed look as the metal song began to play, though her confusion died out as the lyrics made themselves known. “You're some kind of crazy, do you know that?” she asked, though she couldn't keep a grin off of her face nor the mirth from her voice.

McKenna chuckled. “Yeah, well, I wouldn't be here if I wasn't a little bit nuts,” he replied. The two then fell silent as James concentrated on piloting, and Twilight found herself looking out at the streets of the capital, both in sadness at the damage she saw and hopeful determination to keep what was left safe.

Here and there were more ponies who had yet to leave the city, and they cheered wildly as the parade of human and pony military forces moved through the streets. A few pegasi, teenagers mostly, even flew up to the same level as the Highlander's head, and they waved both at the cockpit and, Twilight presumed, at Lewis, as their gazes shifted higher. Twilight wanted to wave back but she knew that they couldn't see her through the polarized ferroglass, and so contented herself with the knowledge that the mere sight of such a powerful behemoth on their side was already doing good things for the city's morale.

Soon enough the streets ended and the parade was marching out of the gates and onto the grassy fields beyond Canterlot's walls. Waiting there were the rest of the Dark Horse BattleMechs, lined up on either side of the road into the city. The radio clicked on again, and Twilight listened carefully as Rebecca McKenna spoke up. “You know, April, you don't have to sit up there and indulge my husband's eccentricities,” she said.

Surprisingly, Lewis replied with a laugh. “Ma'am, I'm suited up in powered armor strong enough to rip the turret off of a tank, holding a flag up for a military unit as I ride on top of a ninety-ton war robot while heavy metal music plays around me. I have never before felt so Goddamned sexy in my entire life and with all due respect, I pity anyone who isn't in my position right now.”

A round of raucous laughter filled the commnet at that, and even Rebecca managed to laugh along with everyone else. “Point taken, April,” the red-haired McKenna allowed. “And I admit, I feel just a teensy bit jealous.”

Twilight smiled and shook her head at that, even as James cut into the conversation. “Alright, boys and girls,” he said, and then shifted his head a bit as if he were about to turn it. He didn't, however, and then spoke up again. “And I suppose colts and fillies, as well,” he added, and then flashed a quick thumbs-up to Twilight Sparkle. “We're on our way.”

Author's Note:

And finally, it's out.

I am so sorry it's taken so long, but I've been dealing with a long bout of depression. Still, I'll finish this story even if it kills me; rest assured I'll be focusing more on it soon now that we're finally getting to the big stompy robots and magic-slinging ponies having it out in a conflagration of utter insanity. A good portion of the next chapter is already written; I actually had to stop and create this one because I felt there were certain scenes that needed to be done and ideas established before we actually waded into it.

Still, I am also sorry for the amount of technobabble, but I felt I really had to set up what I had in mind, instead of springing it on you during the battle to come and thus distracting both you and me from the actual events of the fight. This way I hope the processes at work will be nice and clear so that I can maintain a fast and hectic pacing for the next chapter that can help convey the speed and ferocity of mechanized warfare.

Also, in case you missed the link in the text and don't know what the chapter title is for, listen to this song. DO IT, FILLY. I basically consider it the unofficial theme song of BattleTech/MechWarrior.

Hopefully the next chapter will be out much sooner... But don't quote me. My muse loves to let me make such declarations, then runs away and hides. PINKIE PIE, THOU ART A HARSH MISTRESS.

And she smiles...

Anyway, enough insanity. I hope you enjoyed the chapter, and if you have complaints about my headcanon, I'm sorry, I'm not going to change it because you disagree with me, whether you're polite and rational about it or foam at the mouth. If you don't like it then I invite you to write your own story; why do you think I write? I want to see my own ideas put out, and was tired of not seeing them in fiction. So as Iron Will says: Don't debate, create!

EDIT TO NOTE: Forgot to mention, I have finally set the timeline for this story as taking place between the end of Season 2 and before the beginning of Season 3.

Comments

[BlackJack27356]

Yes. You just made my day.

[Ranakastrasz]

YES YES YES YES YES YES YES YES YES

[Arad]

Oh hey! Must read!

Will leave a more detailed comment as soon as I finish it...

[LtCWest]

23k words in this one?! Do you have a remote idea what time it is in central europe?!
If I start now I might be able to finish before sunrise!

Ah, screw sleep, whats coffee for.

[Rokas]

2957794
Considering I was up until 6AM EST to finish writing this, I both understand your plight and call you a wuss.

[MerlosTheMad]

OOOOOOOOOOH MYYYYYYYYYY GOOOOOOOOOOOOOOD

[AidanPryde]

As a fellow Georgia Brony, as well as a hard core BT fan, I must say thank you for your work. I appreciate the care that you put into your story development! I must say, however, that the wait is agonizing! Keep on keeping on!

[random reader]

Well, this took for fcking ever to update! But thanks by the way, it was worth the wait.

[Tundara]

GREAT SCOTT! It lives! I was just about to spend a few days writing a Mechwarrior cross-over too (still might). YAY!

[shira]

"Cousin Zangief" and you wonder why we love you.

[LtCWest]

2957813 Then I shall honor you by reading the shit out of it. Even if it means drinking coffee, a brewage I have a dislike for because of bad flavor (except the vanilla mix, thats tasty).

[Rokas]

2958032
I was teasing you. Get some sleep, this will still be here in the morning. Or afternoon. Whichever.

Unless of course a terrible tragedy befalls the internet... but if that happens we'll all have a lot more to worry about in that case.

[Rokas]

2958020
Frankly, I think of Ivan as looking more like Zangief than the Heavy. And how could I not make them cousins? It's practically begging for it!

[Isshiki Kotonashi]

But revenge is a good reason for war

I think, based on the context, you wanted "is not a good reason"

[LtCWest]

2958048 Its oke and I dont really have anything planned for tomorow anyway.
Also, I think my inner Twilight would approve of some late night reading.

[Rokas]

2958062

I did, yes. Thank you, I'll fix that.

[thefluffyone]

Luna's and Twilight's argument was enjoyable, but I must side with Twilight.

Luna's philosophy was nice and all, but that still doesn't change the facts that Twilight pointed out.
Equestria has stagnated and become weak, due to the illusion of safety a rainbow cannon brings.

Also, the alicorn destiny reveal; perhaps this will change everything?
A confrontation with Celestia perhaps?
A refusal and forging of her own destiny?

[SouthernmostDogs]

Dat Zangief.

Also, CHANGE THE CHANNEL!

[twillale]

I get an... overpowering American vibe from this. But it is all fine. It's BattleTech, after all.

"Cousin Zangief"? Really?

[KMCA]

Yeah, a little too american heavy in my books, but a great chapter otherwise... Cousin Zangief... I bet you wrote that part right after wreck it ralph

[The Archimedes]

I only really clicked on this because the cover looks like it is from a game I used to play on Xbox that I have been trying to remember the name of for about two years, keep in mind I have not been actively trying for two years.

[VelvetHeart]

The beliefs and morality of the USA populace dramatically influenced the development of human society in the universe? Yike, no wonder everyone is constantly at war there.

[MerlosTheMad]

“Cousin Zangief teach Ivan how to listen to animals and to see how they act, so they listen to you, yes?” he asked, and then grinned. “Cousin Zangief also teach Ivan how to crush man's head between his thighs like sparrow's egg. Is good thing to know if caught in street fight.”

Alright *takes off his wizards hat and gives it to Rokas.* You win brother, keep it, it's yours.

[Orthoros]

sooo. this took me 2 hours and 04 minutes to read... shit i've gotten slow... I really need to pick up reading again...

Great chapter. Everytime i forgot about this story you update, are you psychic?

[MerlosTheMad]

“That didn't stop McCoy from shooting at Desert Wash,” Dash countered.

Dash wasn't there for that!

[imeandus]

Today is a good day!

[The Snide Sniper]

2958370 Same here, except I know the name of the game I played (Mechwarrior 4: Vengeance) and I played on PC.

If I recall correctly, I completely abandoned using long-range missiles once I realized I could switch to a mouselook control scheme and use short-range missles, which instantly lock onto whatever is under your crosshair (again, this assumes I recalled the information correctly).

[Rokas]

2958603
*Looks*

FFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFF—

Edit: Fixed.

[MerlosTheMad]

2958783

*snatches back his wizard hat.*

[Rokas]

2958331
2958341
Being an American I can't help my outlook, really.

2958375
Oh, my, an American-hater who just can't wait to get his rocks off by acting as if the USA was the source of all evil in the world.

Go away, child. Whine about my country to your friends but don't try to sell me that load of sh*t.

[Rokas]

2958804
Meh, I have my own snazzy hat.

[jmlop0]

Surprisingly, Lewis replied with a laugh. “Ma'am, I'm suited up in powered armor strong enough to rip the turret off of a tank, holding a flag up for a military unit as I ride on top of a ninety-ton war robot while heavy metal music plays around me. I have never before felt so Goddamned sexy in my entire life and with all due respect, I pity anyone who isn't in my position right now.”

HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!We need a picture made just for that.

[Arcane Howitzer]

"Well, what kind of princess could I be if I stayed behind and let others fight for me? Celestia didn't do things that way..."

Except against Nightmare Moon, and Discord, and Sombra, and... okay, I'll admit she didn't mean to when Chrysalis attacked, but seriously.

Oh, and Sunset Frickin' Shimmer!

[MerlosTheMad]

“Trials,” Luna replied. “Tests to push you, to make thee grow and to learn valuable lessons to temper thine mind and outlook.”

Twilight took a step forward and closer to Luna. “For what?” she pressed.

Silence met her question, but it was brief as Luna could only sigh. “It is... not my place to say,” she temporized.

Booo, another bastion of hope and goodness falls to the lame that is merchandise driven Twilicorn.

[Rokas]

2959046
The entire show is merchandise-driven.

And I didn't hear a complaint when I put in Shining Armor, even though he and Cadence were clearly ALSO made up out of thin air for selling more toys. So...

[MerlosTheMad]

2959121

If I complain too much I get called out on it, but since you brought them up...I dislike them just as much.

Still so a casual reader doesn't misinterpret this I in no way blame the writers for their existence, at the very least they made their entrance somewhat passable. I'm just the sort to dislike things on principle.

Now, had they done a GOOD job with writing them, not just a passable one, I could overlook even that. But quite frankly Twilicorn, EQG and a few other things *grumbles* are well and truly sloppy, and very blatantly shoe horned into the state of things in the show.

**Spoilers**
But this isn't the place for that sort of talk, and I don't actually mind seeing Twilicorn in your fic. The fans make far better use of her than the show ever could, and Twilight's reaction was very, very much adorkable and fun to behold.
-Edit By all means Rokas, rewrite and make shine what the actual writers could not.

2959009

*gasps* Do not mention she who must not be named!

[Rokas]

2959143
I figured it was more on principle since you weren't frothing at the mouth.

EQG is meh, I tolerate it, but otherwise tend to write it out in my mind.

Shining Armor and Cadence I thought were handled a lot better than I feared they would be, and they give a lot of openings to explore Twilight's past (and explain why she wasn't a complete social wreck at the beginning of the series as opposed to the merely adorkable social malcontent she was), whereas Twilicorn was so obvious that fans were writing her out long before the end of Season 3. So I don't mind either of those; I feel they could have been handled better, but really there's only so much they can do on a kid's TV show.

[LtCWest]

Oke finished it and it must say it was worth it.

Sadly, because of my sleep deprived mind Im unable to point out everyone of my favorite parts in this. The one thing I can however is to admire how you added some Kobayashi Maru to Twilights entrance exam. This pleases my inner nerd.
Also, nice build-up to Twilicon.

2959193 I must agree that Hasbro could have done batter with Twilicorn. They could have allowed DHX to wait another season and give it a proper setup (HC: then again Twilicorn was in the making probably since season 1). EQG? Well, one can love or hate it. I went into it with no exceptions and I was well entertained. Many things felt right, from Twilight faceplanting at the start (Flight <> Hover, there is a difference) to her panic attack of beeing human all suddenly. Even the end part felt kinda uplifting (even thou I expected a nice little duel) and the songs were pretty good, except for that one in the cafeteria, that was downright awesome! Still cant get it out of my head.

Ooops, I guess I went a bit on a tangent here. Ill just back off now and put myself horizontal.
Have a nice day wherever you are!

PS: Cant wait for the upcomming battle!

*HC: HeadCanon

[Beyond the Horizon]

Er. I'd rather not have this venture kill you. That'd make me depressed.

That aside- THE BATTLE FOR EQUESTRIA KICKS UP TO THE NEXT NOTCH!

[Vates Despero]

This story, it has words. Words are important for stories. There are many characters, they do things, we are told about those things.

[Vates Despero]

2958375 Strong USA influence on the IS is canon. Not this story's canon, the source canon. Japan is fairly influential as well, along with China.

[Sabban]

“But an important one,” James interjected. “This is the Stars and Stripes, a flag belonging to a long-gone, but important nation called the United States of America. They were only around for a relatively short time, but the mark they left on history... well, it wouldn't be an exaggeration to say they pretty much changed the course of all human history, to the point where even today many of their values and beliefs still motivate countless billions and guide our politics.”

Seriously, dude. I realize, murrican patriot and all, but please don't rub it into people's face. Some of us might not agree.

[Minalkra]

2959573 2958806
I'm fairly certain that was a light-hearted joke on Velvet's part ... at least I hope so. And being an American myself, I don't necessarily disagree that the military adventurism that has overtaken America as-late has overshadowed our brighter and more honest/peaceful past ... but this isn't the time nor place to be political.

[Skillfulist]

Glad to see this updated, I needed something to cheer me up. Just had my grandfather pass away.
He was buried with full military honors.

[law abiding pony]

2958127

Luna's philosophy was nice and all, but that still doesn't change the facts that Twilight pointed out.

Equestria has stagnated and become weak, due to the illusion of safety a rainbow cannon brings

In times like this, we must all look to one of the great philosophers.

images2.wikia.nocookie.net/__cb20100610185441/masseffect/images/4/4e/Wrex_Character_Box.png

"Anything that isn't constantly challenged grows weak."

[Skydancer]

Excellent! I was concerned about the gap, but it turns out to be well worth the wait. Just one question...
Why Florida?

[Rokas]

2960014
Because that's where I live and I like it here.

[Still Waters]

You updated! And it looks like it'll be quite the update

[thefluffyone]

2959993

Shepard.

[Rokas]

2960237
Wrex.

2959993
You win one (1) internet. Wrex for Best Krogan.