Chapter 23: An Error In Judgement
As much as it seems as though Achmed could find temporary relief once more, it would soon be quickly dashed in a blink of an eye. For fate had decided the future setting it in stone for all of time to behold. A future that would lead to an exodus, unleash paranoia and fear, rekindled hope for the distraught, and wage a war between worlds...........................
Achmed blinked a few times, just to make sure his eyes hadn't deceived him. But lo and behold, there his friend still stood, wearing the same fatigues and carrying the same rifle he had on him the day he disappeared. Tim himself on the other hand didn't recognize the man in front of him at first glance. Somewhat relieved to see another human being, but one entirely unknown to him. This stranger's face was concealed behind a balaclava and uncertain of what his true purpose was. Tim wondered how he knew his name, and he was about to find out.
"You Militia?" Tim asked, rifle still raised and at the ready.
"*What? Well Duh.*" Achmed replied in a confused tone.
"Who are you? Name and rank." Tim asked resolutely.
Achmed gave him a confused stare, before realizing that all the gear and the balaclava he was wearing obscured his regular appearance.
"*Tim. It's me.*" Achmed said, taking his helmet and balaclava off, revealing his face in full view.
The moment when the stranger was revealed to be his friend Achmed is when Tim's eyes shot up with astonishment.
"Achmed?!" he exclaimed. "What the hell are you doing here? How did y-"
"*Tim, shh!*" Achmed interjected. "*You'll alert the guards.*"
It took Tim a few seconds to piece things together, but he eventually caught on that Achmed must have snuck in here, and more importantly, wished to go about unnoticed. Questions pertaining to how he got here and he looked ready to fight an entire platoon would have to come later.
"*Right.*" Tim said. "*Follow me, I know a place where we can talk in private.*"
Achmed followed his friend, as he no doubt had a better feel for this place, assuming he had spent the last four to five days in this world. Tim took him down the hallway left of the room with the round table, then down another turn to the right, coming to an end at the first door on the right of that hallway. Tim opened it and beckoned for his friend to follow him inside, to which Achmed did without hesitation.
Once inside Achmed took a look around the room. It appeared to be a lavish bedroom reminiscent of an era long past, complete with one's very own bed and an assortment of furnishings. Signs of it's use by Tim were visible, with the contents of Tim's satchel spread out across the top of a dresser, Tim's DPM uniform shirt draped over a chair, and his hat resting atop the nightstand next to his bed.
Tim closed the door, pressing an ear up against it once it was shut and listening for anything that might lead him to believe they were followed. Thankfully, there was nothing, and Tim deemed it safe to speak. But before he did so, Tim walked over to his friend and almost choked him in a hefty bro hug. The two chuckled, glad to see each other again.
"*Damn good to see ya' again buddy!*" Tim exclaimed as he let go of his friend.
"*Likewise.*" Achmed replied. "*How have you been?*"
"*Just dandy. How did you even get here?*" Tim asked.
"*How do you think? The same way you did.*"
Tim's generally happy attitude showed a slight shift in the other direction.
"*You mean to tell me that the portal sucked you in here against your own will too?*" Tim asked.
"*Not exactly, we walked in.*"
"*Oh, well that makes a little more sense given what you saw happen to me.........Wait?We?*" Tim asked. "*You came in with a team?*"
"*Yeah, two in fact.*"
"*How many of y'all are there?*"
Achmed began to count off using his fingers.
"*Let's see, there's twelve of us. Me, the Sarge, Lamond, Harris, Ahab, and the Commander.*" Achmed listed off. "*Along with a First Recon team led by Colonel Antonov.*"
Tim was silent as his face transitioned from slightly concerned to worried at the mere mention of a "Commander". He grabbed Achmed by the shoulders and looked him stone-cold in the eye.
"*Commander?" Tim uttered. "*As in the Commander-in-chief? As in Commander Sawyer himself?!*"
Achmed quickly caught wind that Tim wasn't taking this news well, but had no way of really softening the blow.
"*Yeeeeeeeeaaahhhh? That Commander.*" Achmed replied awkwardly.
Tim let go of Achmed, his left eye twitching a little before he blurted out loud.
"Why the hell is he here?!"
"*Tim! Dude, keep your voice down!*" Achmed begged.
Tim, realized how he loud he had said that, and lowered his voice back down to a hushed tone.
"*Sorry.*" Tim started off by saying. "*But what the hell is he doing here? He's a Councilor for Christ's sake!*"
Achmed wished he could explain it all to him right then and there, but it donned on him that now was neither the time nor place to do it. Achmed was still cut off from the rest of his team, and desperately needed to get both Tim and himself to rendezvous back downstairs.
"*I'll explain it later.*" Achmed promised. "*But the bottom line is that we came here to get you home. Now we need to get back to the others, and away from these things."
"*By things, I assume you're talking about the ponies?*"
Achmed shot Tim a perplexed glance.
"*Ponies? You call them ponies? As in the miniature version of a horse?*" Achmed asked.
"*No, they do. Although I suppose if that name's too silly you could call em' Equestrians. After the country they hail from.*"
Achmed, still a little confused with the naming situation decided it wasn't really important.
"*Whatever.*" Achmed argued. "*So are these little guys hostile? We're you detained by them or what?*"
"*Nah, not at all, I asked them for help. They've been pretty hospitable so far, offered me a place to stay and found a way for me to get back. They were wary of me at first, but after I explained how I got here, they seemed to come around.*"
Achmed kept a mental note on his friend's description of the natives, keeping it into account for debriefing.
"*Pretty nice folks.*" Tim went on to say. "*But that may not be the case if one of the Princesses finds one of you with me. They may think something's up.*"
"*Princesses?.................Is one of them dark blue? With a flowing mane?*"
"*Yeah, her name's Princess Luna, guessing you saw her?*"
"*That I did. She left her room about a minute before I ran into you. Took three of her guards with her. It was hard hear, but I think she said something was amiss.*"
Tim gave a worried look.
"*Do you think she knows we're here?*" Achmed asked.
"*No, but it's probably not best to sit around wondering if she does or not. Right now, you guys need to find a way outta here.*" Tim stated. "*Which brings me to my next question, if your here by yourself, where's everybody else you came here with?*"
"*Downstairs. I got separated from them.*"
"*How?*" Tim asked.
"*My team managed to inadvertently get stuck in that room with the round table.*" Achmed explained. "*We had one of our guys operating a RARD to get us through. Everyone else made it out just fine, but when it was my turn the drone went dark.*"
"*Can't you contact them with that HUD-set ya got there?*"
"*No, I can't. Seems whatever caused the drone to go dark effected my equipment too. My comms, optics, even the light-up crosshairs to my scope went out.*"
"*So you're stuck.*"
"*Yeah, looks that way.*"
"*Well, guess that means we gotta sneak you out. But how.......*"
Tim began to pace back and forth across the room, with the task of figuring out a solution to Achmed's predicament on his head. Meanwhile, Achmed's memory of how he got cut off from the others inadvertently touched upon another, more specifically, the conversation that preceded it between the Commander, the Colonel, and Councilor Bradford. Though he hadn't seen it himself, Achmed understood the potential danger it could bring. At the same time, it could be a huge misunderstanding, and like Bradford had said, the only way to make a clear judgement on what to do about it would be to get Tim's perspective on the matter. Achmed could only imagine how they'd do it, every thorough and time-consuming minute spent in a military debriefing. Deep down Achmed knew it be best to let the higher-ups find out what happened at a later time, let them assess the whole thing. But Tim was his friend, and as his friend there was a need to hear his Tim's point of view before they did.
It seems now would be the time to ask just how the natives "helped" his friend. Achmed knew his friend well, well enough to know that if he somehow had a hand in its creation, that it wasn't out of hostility to The Survivors, bu that same principle couldn't be applied to these Equestrians, not yet. Tim was loyal to his friends and what he and every other man and woman in the Militia believed in, but he had a habit of taking everyone's word, which in this scenario could have led to the Equestrians using him. Humanity's survival was just as important to Tim as it was to the Council. He knew that, Tim knew that, but the evidence provided over the comms needed a due explanation.
"*Tim, there's something I need to ask.*" Achmed stated.
"*...What is it?*" Tim asked, still thinking over what to do next.
"*Before I lost contact, The Colonel and his team came across a library. Inside he said he found two things. The decapitated head of an Obelisk.............and a duplicate of the portal we found back on Earth.*"
Tim closed his eyes and grimaced. It seemed that he had wished to keep it secret.
"*Shit...........Was really hoping y'all hadn't found that.*" he said in a hushed voice.
"*Tim! Why is it even here, okay, and why do they have it?*"
Tim had stopped pacing at this point, slowly turning around to his friend. There was dead silence for several seconds, with Tim no doubt prepping a reasonable explanation. The silence lingered for ten more seconds before Tim broke it with his reply.
"*I needed a way back home, and I'll be honest I wasn't exactly expecting a rescue.*" Tim stated.
"*So you went off on your own accord and asked another species for help instead of waiting to see if we might find you first?*" Achmed said, deliberately angry. "*Do you have any idea-*"
"*Hey! How was I supposed to know I was gonna be rescued?!*" Tim said defensively. "*Usually when someone goes MIA, they write it off in the books, prep a eulogy, and that's it. I figured I was on my own.*"
"*Okay, fine, I suppose that explains why you went looking for help, but to place enough trust in these Equestrians, to build you a portal for the sole purpose of getting you home?*"
"*...............Yeah? What about it?*"
"*Did you didn't even once stop to think if they might be playing you?*"
"*Of course I did!*" Tim said in defense. "*Achmed, I was wary of them from the start, but like I said, there a pretty peaceful people. More so than us humans! They've never dealt with constant conflict like we have. Hell! The closest thing to a war they've ever had left less than a hundred and thirty dead, and it happened thousands of years ago. So if that don't tell you that you got nothing to worry about then I don't know what will.*"
Alas, Achmed remained unconvinced.
"*Really? If they're so peaceful why is there a severed head of an Obelisk sitting on the table in the same room? What the hell we're you doing for something like that to even happen?*"
"*What I was trained to do, scouting.*" Tim replied bluntly.
"*Scouting?*" Achmed said doubtingly.
"*Yeah.*" Tim said, rubbing the back of his head in a not so self-assured tone. "*Though, probably one of the worst situations I found myself in while scouting. More so than that rocket project we cooked up.*"
"*Tim, right now's not really time to bring up that stupid rocket.*"
"*Hey! It wadn't stupid...................you're stupid.*"
"*Tim!*" Achmed snapped at him.
"*What do you want out of me, Achmed!? A confession!?*"
"*How about we start with what happened when you used it?*" Achmed suggested.
"*Is this really important right now?*" Tim asked. "*A second ago you were talking about how you needed to regroup with the others.*"
"*That can wait for now. I'm only asking because as of just few minutes ago, the Commander, the Colonel, and the Councilor were debating whether or not to blow it up!*"
Tim's face contorted to a panic.
"*No. Nonononono, bad idea!*"
"*Then I need to know why it's a bad idea.*" Achmed stressed. "*The final decision boils down to what happened, and why it was created.................So let's hear it.*"
Tim, seeing no other way out of this, bit the bullet and began to explain everything that transpired over the last day and a half.
"*Well......................*"
...........16 hours ago...........
The Library was a bustling sight to behold. Ever since the party returned from their trip from the Everfree, Tim, Twilight, her friends, along with Princess Luna and Princess Celestia, had spent the remainder of their day yesterday working tirelessly on the portal's progress. They poured over the contents of the tome that detailed the method they had chosen before hand for the portals construction, which required a the appropriate magical items to act as the catalyst. But their tireless work had paid off, and it was because of it that they would be able to construct today. Essentially, all the items Tim and the others had brought back needed to be arranged in a triangular configuration, divided into groups that best suited their nature. Once that had been arranged, Twilight, Luna, and Celestia would magically carve out the proper runes they spent all night memorizing and emblazon upon the configuration.
Paper, being the most abundant of the materials collected, and other wood-based trinkets, like pencils and such, were set up in it's own pile. Objects composed entirely of metal or plastic we're in another, with technology being the third and final pile currently being set up. While Twilight's friends aided in moving objects to and fro, the guards with Tim's aid did most of the "heavy" lifting so to speak. Tim had instructed a pair of guards to move a large printer when he spotted Princess Luna by the doorway.
Unbeknownst to the others, Tim had been suffering repeating night terrors every night since his arrival to Equestria, with the exception of one. He had hopes that they would cease, yet sadly they hadn't. He had one when spending the night in the Everfree forest, and another last night. The one he had in the Everfree was enough for him to consider asking for Luna's aid, the one he experienced last night, was enough to outright convince him. It had been the middle of the night when he went up to her room. He was denied entry at first, but Luna was still up and about when she heard the commotion outside her bedroom door.
She followed Tim back to his room, and there he discussed with her what had been going on during his sleep. Luna listened to him discuss whatever specifics he could about the nightmares. Shadowy figures, distorted landscapes, and endless splotchy blackness. Yet through it all Tim couldn't help but shake the feeling that they retained a familiarity to himself. Luna, having expertise in the field of dreams and their meanings, had experienced cases like this in the past, yet had yet to experience the dream of a human being. Luna explained to Tim how the different species of the world often had varying differences in their dreams. Most of the variance came in minor things, such as subject, perception, level of lucid awareness, etc.
Nonetheless, Luna agreed to help. When he went to sleep that night however, Tim's nightmare continued to persist. Whether Luna had altered the dreams clarity or outcome was hard to say, for he had no control in the dreams he had. He eventually woke, up, distraught and fatigued from restless sleep as usual. Upon awakening, Luna wasn't there. That had been about 3 hours ago, and now that she was in plain sight, Tim felt inclined to discuss what had transpired within the inner workings of his mind with her. Noticing his approach, Luna turned to him, with an expression that could almost come across as distressed.
"Good morning, Princess." Tim greeted.
"Good morning, Tim." She greeted back, in as friendly and relaxed as she could muster. "I have no doubt that your anxious to hear of what I found, yes?"
Tim peered over his shoulder. Despite being present in good company and disclosing the matter of his dreams to both Luna and her sister, he didn't want the others concerned over it. So in a hushed voice, he vocalized his concern.
"*Yeah. Did you find out what's causing the nightmares?*"
Luna began to open her mouth as if to speak, yet found herself incapable of speech.
"*What's wrong?*" Tim asked.
Luna cleared her throat to respond.
"I did manage to find the source of the problem, but what I saw, is, what assume, very personal..........to you in fact."
Tim took a minute to grasp his head around that idea.
"*What do you mean?*" he asked. "*What did you see exactly?*"
Luna took a look around the room, getting a clear sense that it was quite crowded.
"If I may, I believe it would be best to discuss this at another time with perhaps a more private setting."
Tim's curiosity turned to anxiousness, yet ultimately he set it aside, getting a clear picture that whatever it was carried importance. To what, he couldn't say.
"Well, if you thinks that's best I won't argue. You're the dream expert after all." He said in a dissapointed yet understanding voice. "Anyways, Twilight and her friends are just about done setting everything up. From what I've been told, all that's left is for you and Princess Celestia to work y'alls magic."
Luna, took a slight breath of relief, from what Tim assumed related to their previous conversation. The two walked over to where the piles were stacked up.
"Yes." She said. "I'll check over the preparations, see that they're all in order before beginning the assembly spell. If you have any questions now would be the ideal time."
"I've got one big one." Tim said. "How are we supposed to know where it will end up? Like, how am I gonna know if the other side is safe enough to scout out?"
"Well, I not sure of how portals work in your world, but in our worlds portals can come in a variety of forms. And you'll be glad to know that this one possesses the ability of a two-way visual plane."
"So, I'll be able to see the other side?"
"I-.........yes. No offense, Tim, but I'm actually surprised you didn't make an inquiry into what that term meant."
"Yeah, well, Twilight was dishing out a bunch of magic jargon all-day yesterday. Tried to pick up on and learn whatever I could."
"If I may ask, why? It's not as if you can use magic." Luna pointed out.
Tim gave it some thought, eventually shrugging his shoulders.
"I dunno. Just interests me I guess. Even though the idea of magic still baffles me, it's kinda comforting that there's a lot of work put into it. It doesn't exactly come at "the snap of a finger", so to speak?"
"Snap of a finger?" Luna said confused.
"Oh.......human saying, basically means little-to-no effort put into it."
"Oh! I see."
The two had now reached the piles. Luna stepped forward and began inspecting it.
"Miss Sparkle, is everything separated by material and function?" Luna called out.
Twilight quickly flew over to the Princess of the night, already giddy and excited as they were moments away from the portal's construction.
"You bet, Princess. Paper and wood in one pile, with metal and technology in their own piles. I've also already taken the liberty of getting acquainted with the proper runes that need to be inscribed at the base of each pile."
"Yes but are the piles complete?" Luna asked.
"They are now, Princess!" yelled Applejack, as she and a guard set down a busted computer monitor in the technology pile. "Just got the last piece unloaded."
"Then it seems we're ready to begin. I'll ask everypony to stand back. And be ready to shield your eyes. I have a feeling that this will be bright. Sister, Miss Sparkle, let us proceed."
As the three alicorns met at the center of the room, Tim stood in the back of the library, in close proximity to Applejack, Rarity, and Rainbow Dash. Whilst Luna discussed what exactly needed to be done to begin the Portal's assembly. Rainbow Dash looked at Tim, shying her head away and sinking down. Suddenly, she took a deep breath, and looked up to Tim.
"Hey, Tim." She said in a soft spoken voice.
Catching his attention, He looked down at Rainbow Dash. This had been the first time they had spoken since the incident in the forest. Ever since then she had been kind of reclusive towards him, no doubt feeling a tad bit ashamed that her distrust caused him injury and almost jeopardized the entire group. Seeing her only reminded him of his wound, which thankfully by now didn't nearly hurt as bad now that it had been a day and a half since he acquired it.
Tim thought back on the way he reacted to her when she came up to him after the incident. Thinking back on it Tim was conflicted on whether or not that he may have been a tad bit harsh towards her, with the other half telling him his reaction was more than justified. Regardless, the tone she spoke with now indicated that she needed to get something off her chest, and Tim had a good idea on what it probably was.
"Yes?" he said calmly.
"I just wanted to apologize about what happened." Rainbow Dash went on to say. "I may.........no I was a way overprotective. I should've taken Twilight's advice and given you a chance. Instead I put the group in danger, almost became a Timberwolve's lunch, with you ended up getting hurt. So I guess what I want to say, or ask really, is if we...can start over?"
Sincerity hung onto every word she spoke. Tim wholeheartedly accepted it, as he wasn't the kind of man to hold a grudge.
"It's alright. I'm willing to let bygones be bygones."
Rainbow took a sigh of relief in comfort.
"Thanks, Tim. I'll try to get my act together, and won't go all out next time something like that happens."
"I hope so."
The Two turned their eyes back to the center of the room, where the three alicorn princesses began to ignite their horns in their respected magical hues. Each took a spot between the gaps between, shooting a beam that land on the three piles. Soon, their eyes began to glow white, and each opened their wings and began to hover about a meter above the ground. Runes began to emerge on the floor between each pile. Each one intricate and carved with a bright, almost blinding, white light, forming shapes and runes foreign to Tim.
Suddenly the contents of the piles, now in direct contact with the magical beams, began to levitate off the ground, gradually melding from their original form. The contents shot up to the center of the triangular configuration, converging at a single point, which in turn formed a large glowing mass. The Princesses and back on the ground, and with the slightest head motion, the mass descended towards the end of the room. Upon making contact with the floor, it seemingly began to flatten, spreading out in a perfect circular radius from its contact point. Soon, the mass laid flat across the floor, and the Princesses ceased their magical manipulation upon it. They soon broke their original formation, approaching the still glowing circle on the floor. Celestia's horn glowed once more and it looked as she was about to fire off another spell. But suddenly, she stopped, and smiled, turning to look at her pupil.
"Twilight, would you like to do the honors?" Celestia asked.
Twilight's face shot out in a smile, and with confidence ever so bold, she began to ignite her horn once more. Twilight approached the outer edge of the magic circle. This time, she shot out three beams simultaneously into the air. They lingered for about five seconds, floating in the air, before all three increased speed, converging at the center of the glowing circle. Suddenly The circle's light became blinding. Tim and many of the others in the room squinted their eyes or either looked away. The light began to recede, and although it was hard to see, Tim was certain that that a structure was beginning to rise from the magic circle as its boundaries began to recede. All seemed according to plan, until the receding circle reached the rising form.
Faces in the room began to turn confused, or concerned, as the circle's recession halted, and the once blinding light began to immediately transition into an almost pitch black.
"Wait......what's happening?" Twilight asked. "Why did it stop?"
Luna and Celestia looked to one another hoping to find an answer. Meanwhile, Tim began to approach it, somewhat distressed as it seemed things weren't going to plan.
"What happened, did something go wrong?" He asked.
"I'm not sure, I mean, we did everything correctly." Twilight stated.
"Even that spell you just shot out?" Tim asked, anxiously needing an answer.
"Yes. I've known that spell for years. I don't understand. It should have continued."
"Perhaps the material we obtained wasn't enough to establish a connection?" Luna suggested.
Tim's fist clenched and frustration began to take over.
"You gotta be shitting me?" he cursed.
"That can't be." Celestia stated. "If we were lacking in sufficient material, Twilight's spell would have simply reverted everything back to it's original form."
"Then how come-"
Suddenly the mass let out a massive seismic shockwave, knocking everyone in the room down to the floor. The mass became active once again, but rather than a gradual recession of blinding light, It began to contort and diskew in rapid series of intervals. Everyone watched with attentive anxiety, wondering what would come of this misshapen creation next.
"What's happening!" Tim yelled out.
"I have no idea!" Twilight yelled back.
"It's unstable!" Celestia called. "Luna! Twilight! Quickly, we need to keep it still."
The two other alicorns were quick to get back up on their hooves, firing off a constant beam of magic to keep the active mass stable. The effort to keep it this way took tremendous amounts of focus, as Tim could see that all three of them we're struggling to keep it still, with sweat coming off their brow, and veins stretching out across the neck and forehead. Eventually the mass began to recede once again, with the complete form finally coming into view. The first sight that came wasn't what either Tim or the ponies of this world came to expect. Sandbags piled one on top of the other, intertwined with a small section of barbed wire.
To make matters worse the room suddenly began to overcome with a dark shadow, blocking any direct light from the outside from peering in. A strong wind emanated from the source of the mass, sending books and loose leaf objects flying backward. The guards began to notice, and instinctively began to prepare for anything. Tim's focus was centered on the receding form of the portal. Which began to show signs of an arch-like structure composed of metal. In the midst of the chaos this portal spewed, Tim caught traces of rust in the metal, along with dents, claw marks, bullet holes, and exposed circuitry. As each mark of damage came into view, Tim could swear he heard faint traces of what would leave it, but it could also just be the wind playing tricks on him. As more and more of the portal came into view, the wind began to die down, shadows began to give way to sunlight, and at the very last moment, before the black formless mass disappeared entirely, a booming echo thundered out.
The Alicorn Princesses ceased their magic, slinking down in posture and breathing heavily from exhaustion. Twilight looked up at him, and the portal, and managed to get a few words out.
"Is.............every..........pony alright?" she asked.
She only manged to get a few responses in the forms of nods, grunts, moans, and the occasional shout out. she saw how most in the room had their sights dead set on what she and the other two Princesses managed to maintain. She herself looked to the point where all eyes converged, seeing clear as day what now stood at the edge of her library.
The Portal had been completed, but it looked about as different from any other portal as she had ever seen. No intricate designs, no elaborate manifestations reflecting the kind of magic she was used to. This portal was worn, beaten, torn, and scarred in so many places that one could only wonder what had happened to it. Tim was standing directly in front of it, absolutely baffled.
His mind still inquired at what he had heard and saw take shape. But voices of those around him began to fade in, and his mental state was suddenly brought back to the here and now.
"Tim!" Twilight shouted out.
Tim turned around to her, and suddenly became alarmed at the sight of the three completely worn out.
"Jesus! Are you three alright." He said, walking up towards them to offer whatever assistance he could.
"Could be better." Twilight responded. "I have no clue as to what kind of magic that was. That wasn't supposed to happen."
"I......think.....I have an idea.......on what that was." Luna said between breaths.
"You do?" Twilight said, genuinely curious.
Her and Celestia took a few seconds to recuperate, with Celestia urging her sister to inform them on her theory.
"Luna, do tell...........was that some sort of dark magic?" Celestia asked.
"I don't believe so. I remember in the book that a portal often reflects the world it leads to. In most cases, it would have simply receded in that white aura, as many worlds often bear a neutral or benevolent nature, like ours." Luna informed.
Tim got a sense of what she was referring to. A broken world like Earth was an abysmal place, and if Luna's theory was correct, it would make sense why the portal looked in absolute disrepair.
"Instead we had to fight with it." Luna suggested. "Our magic with some unknown force that most likely wasn't compatible with it. What we witnessed could best be described as the state of the world."
"Broken." Tim said bluntly. "But you managed to get it under control, right?"
"For the most part." Luna replied. "There's only one way to find out. The port............................oh my."
It was at this point that the three alicorns saw the state the portal was in, taken a bit aback by its appearance. Tim had seen it in full just moments earlier, but what Tim had noticed right then and there just was how familiar it looked.
"Well I'll be damned........." he said, approaching the portal once more.
Twilight shook herself out of the state of shock, to inquire on Tim's sudden statement.
"What is it?" she asked.
"I........looks just like the portal that brought me here. Only smaller and..........much more deteriorated."
"How can that be?" Celestia asked. "Why would it take that form?"
Luna, just as confused as her sister, would have added her own input, but quickly remembered why they constructed this portal in the first place.
"I'm afraid that answer will need to come at a later time. For now, I suggest we test the portal's functionality, as planned."
Tim was quick to concur with Luna's suggestion.
"I'll have to agree on that one." he said. "Let's get this thing working first, see if it puts me close to any Militia instillation."
"If it will work." Applejack yelled out. "Thing looks like it took a beating with heck of a belt."
"Pfft, yeah you ain't kidding." Tim concurred.
Luna walked past Tim and approached the base of the portal, her magical energy almost fully replenished. She spread her wings and floated up to the portal's central opening. She closed her eyes, and when they opened, they were blinding white. Her Horn ignited and shot out an orb of blue magic which found it's way to the center opening, bursting into several strands of magic that ricochet within the confines of the arch upon reaching it's destination.
Luna gradually floated back down to the ground as she let her magic form the entryway to Earth. The ricochets began to find a place to stop along the edges of the arch-way. When each found their resting place, they began to connect with one another, forming a semi-circle. Tim watched with utter astonishment.
Nobody's gonna believe this when I get back. He thought to himself.
"Everything seems to be in working order, now all we have to do is wait, the other side should come into view shortly." Luna announced.
Everyone in the room watched as the other side began to fade in. Despite what all had transpired, Twilight found an uncontrollable curiosity as to what laid in store on the other side. After a few seconds however, curiosity was replaced by low spirits. Some of the guards took off their helms, staring wide eyed into the emerging world. Twilight as silent, every pony in the room was silent. Tim's own spirits began to sink, as although his home was coming into view, it was a home that he wasn't entirely fond of for obvious reasons. When the magic ceased and the entry was complete, the image it brought with it was one that Equestrians could only imagine as unthinkable. For Tim, it was routine.
Immediately in plain view was a long desolate road, cracked and shattered. The sky was a grim grey, with swooping swaths of dust, sand and ash making an occasional pass in the wind. In the distance were the ruins of a once great spanning city, now rendered into crumbling structures. Some f the skyscrapers still stood tall, but many had fallen in the decades of war. In close proximity to the portal once stood buildings, but no longer. Only the faintest hints of their foundation rose from the sand. Littered across the barren road were the rotted and rusted out husk of a variety of cars. Other than that. There was nothing. No sound but the wind blowing. The foreboding emptiness and stillness maintaining its indomitable grip over the Earth.
The ponies were speechless, even though they had knowledge of the state of Earth, seeing it for the first time was enough for everyone of them to feel pity for man. Rainbow Dash walked up next to Tim, with the same expression of horror and shock that everypony else had in the room.
"This..........is Earth?" she asked timidly.
"Yeah." he replied somberly.
Tim decided that enough time had been spent just looking. Tim swung his AKM around, unlatching the safety, knowing that once he stepped foot over to the other side, anything could happen. Tim began to approach the portal. Before he could step through, Twilight called for him.
"Tim......wait, do you want any of us to come with you?" she asked.
Tim stopped and turned around to answer.
"Not a good idea. I have no idea how the radiation will effect you guys."
"Well, how bad can it be?" Rainbow Dash asked.
"Bad." He said assertively. "Without proper protection, it'll cook you alive over the course of a few days. It'll start by making you sick to your stomach, then it'll cause hell with your entire body. Diarrhea, then fever, fatigue, disorientation, hair loss, and whole mess of other symptoms. Eventually it'll just kill ya, or worse, warp your DNA and turn you into some unholy mutant."
Despite the the portal serving as a safeguard against any airborne entities from both sides, some of the guards standing by the portal began to take a few steps away from the portal's entrance just as a precaution.
"Best to play it safe." Tim made clear. "I'll go in alone, just gonna have a little look see and then come back. I can do a more detailed search later."
Twilight and many others in the room wanted to object, as going alone in a place like this seemed like a terrible idea. But Tim seemed to know what he was doing, and putting them n unnecessary danger would only serve to hinder things.
"If you think that's best, then we'll stay here." Twilight said. "Good luck."
"Thanks." he replied back.
Tim was about to leave when he stopped, turned back around to ask about something he hadn't thought about until now.
"How long will this thing stay open?" Tim asked.
Luna stepped forward to provide an answer.
"For as long as its needed. Taking the danger of your world into account I intentionally chose a portal that could be rendered inactive at a moment's notice."
"So if I run into trouble and high-tail it back here, there's a way to turn it off?"
"Yes. Although the deactivation spell is a wind up spell that takes 15 seconds to complete. So if there is immediate danger, we need it to be made known as soon as possible."
With this in mind, Tim began to show a hint of concern, as a lot of sticky situations could turn ugly in that short span of time, and with no method of communication, warning them ahead of time could prove to be a problem. Regardless, Tim would have to keep this in mind for when they were actually ready for him to start scouting. Today would more or less, serve as a test.
"Alright. I won't wander off too far, so we should be good to go."
Tim once again headed for the portal, making his way up to the platform where the door between worlds awaited him. All eyes were centered on him. As he passed the last pair of guards to the left and right of the portal, he turned to one of them and simply said.
"Be ready for anything."
Tim took a deep breath and proceeded into the portal. There was a brief flash in his vision when crossing worlds, and side from startling him for a brief moment his vision hadn't been hindered in any capacity.
"Are you okay, Tim!" Twilight asked, calling out.
Tim quickly turned around, giving a thumbs up, letting them know all was well. Tim proceeded, rifle at the ready, and took a long walk down the barren landscape. The change in worlds was not only clear in his surroundings, but in the very air he breathed. Tim had started to grow accustomed to the pureness of the air in Equestria, but suddenly found himself coughing a little in the thick and polluted atmosphere of the Earth.
Signs of life were next to none, and Tim had no idea where he was. The sand that covered the road and ground was loose and swept over the road with each gust of wind. Tim took a look at the cars. Many were past the point of any recognizable identification, simply rotting away with the bones of their owners resting in their rusty grave. A loud echo came bursting out in the distance towards the ghost city ahead. Although the buildings were miles away, he could see that one of the skyscrapers had just came tumbling down, blowing out chunks and puffs of debris with it.
Tim made an effort to look out to his horizon. To his left a small rocky mountain range stood, and two his left was endless desert. Tim was taking these environmental surroundings into note when he noticed something emerge from the right horizon. It was small and faint, but seemed to be growing in the distance. The other back in Equestria watched with anticipation. Wondering what Tim was looking for out there.
"You think he'll find what he'd looking for?" Applejack asked.
"I have no idea, Applejack." Twilight replied.
"He sure wasn't exaggerating when he described it as a wasteland, was he?" Rainbow Dash said.
"I'm not entirely sure what he'll find. That place looks absolutely deserted." Rarity inputted.
"One big empty world. To think he's had to deal with this his whole life." Celestia said. "The poor thing."
They continued to watch diligently, when they saw he took a turn right a walked a few feet forward in that direction.
"Wait, what's he doing now?" Luna asked.
Tim walked forward few feet stopping when he began to hear something in the distance. It was faint, but becoming increasingly audible to the ear, and in the same direction as the rising object off in the horizon. Tim slung his rifle around his shoulder and began to pull out the binoculars in his satchel. Putting them up to his eyes and fiddling with the focus, Tim made an effort to make out what it was. With the blur of the optics shortly subsiding with the turn of the knob, Tim could make out what it was, or more appropriately, what was coming.
Tim's body began to tense up, yet he continued to make it out. Suddenly it became that the object had become objects, increasingly closing the distance towards him. He quickly put away his binoculars and began to high-tail it back to the portal. The others began to grow nervous as they saw Tim come back into view, running as fast as he could. Words weren't needed to know something was up, and Luna was quick to act.
"Something's wrong, guards, be ready by the entrance!" Luna commanded.
The guards obeyed, and began to set up in formation by the entrance of the portal, spears at the ready with a few unicorn guards ready to blast away at anything that came through. Under the impression that Tim would be back momentarily, she wasted no time warming up the deactivation spell.
On the other side the sound of a thousand feet charging became overbearing, and served as incentive to move faster. However as if straight out of a bad horror movie, Tim found himself in the worst possible situation at a time like this. Just 2-3 feet away from the portal, the road beneath him caved in a little. Not enough to cause him to fall but enough to offset his balance and ensnare his foot under chunk of concrete. Tim hit the ground chest first, within sight of everypony present. He shouted.
"FUCK!"
Panting and desperately trying to escape, Tim turned around to see his predicament, and couldn't help but swear in frustration.
"AHHHH! You gotta be fucking kidding me! My foot's stuck!" he cried out.
"Wait! Princess Luna!" Twilight cried out.
Already aware, Luna canceled out the spell and began to charge headfirst towards the portal. Tim saw this and sought to stop her from getting any closer.
"NO! DON'T! The radiation will kill you!" He yelled out as she came to a skidding stop in front of the portal entrance.
"What about you!?" Luna cried out.
Tim desperately tried to find a solution out of this. He could considered pulling something off along the lines of the Timberwolf encounter, but ultimately realized that it would take too long. Knowing that whatever was coming would be here soon, he let out what he thought would be his last words.
"Close the portal!"
"WHAT!?" Luna cried out.
"Close it before-"
"No! I won't leave you to the mercy of whatever is coming!"
Luna struck up a temporary force field around herself, strong enough to hopefully protect her from the harmful effects of radiation. Once it was encased around her, she flew out onto the other side, much to the dismay of Tim and everyone else on the other side. Luna's horn it up again as she hovered a few feet from the ground of the Earth. She began to to levitate the large chuck of concrete, effectively freeing Tim's foot. Tim quickly got up, and noticing that the sound of thundering horde of footsteps was nearly upon them, both he and Luna were quick to rush back to the relative safety of Equestria.
"Somebody fire up that spell quick!" Tim shouted, quickly joining the guards with his rifle raised at the ready.
Twilight began to wind up the deactivation spell. The horde of footsteps could now be clearly heard by all, and as the seconds pass, the source of it came into view, washing over the road like a wave of death. The very ground of the library shook as a enormous horde of monsters came into view. They poured past the portal in what looked like the hundreds, and it wasn't too long before some began to take notice of the potential meal next to them. One came to a full stop at the dead center of the portal's visual range, fangs and canines covered in a thick coat of saliva, howling out in a blood-curdling rage. Soon others began to follow his lead and joined him.
The creatures resembled dogs, yet were nearly five times the size of them, just roughly larger than the Alpha Timberwolf encountered in the Everfree. They lacked skin, and in it's place was what looked like callused muscle with pockets of dark gray fur no more than an inch long patched along various parts of the body. Things like lips, ears, a nose, and other purely skin based extremities were absent. Teeth rested along the edge of the mouth, constantly bared, aural extensions amount to a simple ear canal at the rear of the head, and in the place of a nose were bare nostrils, forming along the edges given by the skull. The mutant monsters stared the ponies down with bloodshot, pupiless eyes, more joining in with the initial spotter as each second passed. Their bodies twitched, their instincts to ferociously slaughter any prey before them grew. They growled and roared, taking occasional snaps at one another with a level of viciousness that lacked an equivalent in Equestria.
"What in Equus are those things!?" one of the guards shouted.
"Wastehounds!" Tim yelled. "And by the looks of it, we opened up in the middle of their migration path!"
Had it not been the foreign and almost deceptive nature of the portal before them, they would've have most likely attacked by now, flooding through the portal in a massive wave. Seconds passed, though they felt like minutes watching the ravenous beasts snap their jaws from a distance. Tim, progressively wanting the situation to end, hectically turned to Twilight for a progress update.
"How's that spell coming along?!" he yelled.
"I'm almost there!" Twilight announced. "Just a few mor-"
"SWEET CELESTIA! IT'S CHARGING!" one of the guards shouted.
Tim turned back around in a split second, with the first thing in sight being one of the creatures making a mad break to the portal. Tim was ready to fire off a pound full of lead at what would eventually turn into a full fledged charge by it's pack. But before a single round could be fired, the spot where Tim's foot caved in burst opened when the mutant ran over it. Dust, debris, and chunks of concrete came flying in all directions, including through the portal. A large chunk was sent soaring in Tim's general direction.
"LOOK OUT!" He screamed.
Everyone ran for cover as fast as they could, and while Twilight made an effort to hold her ground and continue the spell, the large chunk would have crushed her had Celestia not pulled her student to the side using her magic. In the chaos, Tim and several other guard ponies began to her the yelps and cries of the massive horde of mutants, as whatever happened must have done serious damage. No one could tell, as the amount of dust kicked up obscured everything from view. One of the guards managed to fully recuperate to ask what the situation was.
"What in Equestria happened?!" she asked.
Tim got back into his original position in front of the portal before answering.
"Must've been a cave-in from where my foot got stuck." Tim theorized. "Probably some old sewer system that-"
"RRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWRRRRRRRRRRRRR!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!"
An absolutely hellish and blood-curdling roar put Tim's possible explanation in the grave. The roar made him freeze, as the intensity and pitch was instantly recognizable.
"What......was that?" Another guard asked backing away from the portal.
Tim spent no time to waste answering his question.
"Close that thing now or we're all dead." he muttered.
That sent many of ponies in the room into a panic, some urging one of the princesses to do as he said and begin the deactivation spell, while others succumbed to fear of the unknown and demanded a better answer. All that Tim knew was that he hadn't seen the deactivation spell, and time was running out.
"ARE YOU ALL DEAF! I SAID CLOSE IT! NOW!" Tim yelled.
Twilight began to start the deactivation spell again, while wanting an answer at the same time.
"Tim, just tell us what is it!?"
"It's an Obelisk! Big! Scary! Insanely tough to kill!"
At that moment the road just inches away from the portal cracked under the pounding force of a large, mutated claw. Another bellowing roar let out. The thundering footsteps that they had heard just moments prior had begun to pick up at a major speed, indicating that the pack had effectively begun a retreat from the area. The dust that had been kicked up was beginning to clear, and unfortunately for Tim and the others, revealed the source of the chaos.
It rose Well above the portal's height, taking up most of the visual space the arch had to offer, roughly twelve or so feet away from the link between worlds. At the moment, it's back looked was turned towards them. The bodily make-up was unnatural, as the lower form bore a strange resemblance to a human being, but misshapen, overgrown and contorted in a way that made it quadrupedal. The back legs were bent forward, the skin covered in boils, scarring, tumors, and other assortments of blemishes, intestines veined out from the skin, and the claws that formed at the base of each leg were mismatched, with each toe a different size and bearing a different extremity. Where the human spine was normally located was a large gargantuan growth, with a base that took up as much width as the back would allow, towering above the over the lower body by least 25 feet tall. Along its back were large and jagged rock-like calluses that gradually shrunk in size as they went up to what they assumed would be the head.
The library was dead silent, watching in horror as the behemoth scoured the area for any more potential prey. Stridden across the irradiated ground where it once made its home were the corpses of at least a dozen of the pack-hunters, all torn apart as if they were made of paper, insides littering the ground with torn appendages soaking in pools of blood. No one made so much as peep, fearing to gain the attention of whatever beast had mopped the floor with the pack. They wouldn't be so lucky.
The creature lowered his head, revealing it to be similar to that of a crocodile. But this to was mutated by the effects of radiation. The head lacked eyes of any sort. Teeth were as sharp as knives, and seem to grow one on top of the other in several places along the crooked confines of the upper and lower jawline. Two large gaping nostrils served as it's primary form of sense. Resting in it's maw was lower half of one of the many slain canine mutants, in the midst of being swallowed whole by it's killer.
Tim was trying to calm himself down as best he could. He knew if that thing spotted them it'd most likely be game over. Why shit had to hit the fan so quickly on just a test run, he had no idea. Perhaps fate or God was getting back at him for some unknown reason. Reasons aside, there'd be no way he could take the Obelisk down. 6 years ago it took the full fledged firepower of a BMP-2 to kill the one that attacked his unit in Egypt. All Tim had on him was his AK, which wouldn't even make a dent in the damn thing, and the guards, armed with nothing but spears or magic that couldn't kill, had a less chance at survival if the thing spotted them.
Suffice to say, The Obelisk spotted them. Once it had finished swallowing it's prey, it began by a clearly audible sniff, indicating it smelled something off in it's environment, no doubt coming from Equestria. Following this, it began shifting itself towards the portal's direction lowering it's head and sniffed again. It's head twitched, followed by the Obelisk opening its maw and letting out yet another echoing roar.
"It spotted us!" Tim yelled.
"Plan of attack!?" one of the guards asked.
"Don't! Just run!" Tim encouraged.
"What?!" Another guard shouted in dismay.
"Ain't no way we gonna kill this thing! JUST RUN!"
The Obelisk charged at an incredibly fast pace, closing the distance at a rate that many of the ponies hadn't expected. Celestia was quick to act.
"Anypony with no magical abilities needs to evacuate the room immediately!" she commanded.
The guards armed with spears did as instructed, evacuating all the Earth and Pegasi ponies out into the hall. Tim stayed, and turned to Celestia in a desperate attempt to convince her that whatever effort she was about to put up would be in vain.
"You can't fight it! Bullets won't do a damn thing!"
"Maybe so, but perhaps magic will!"
Just as it was less than two feet away though, Twilight fired off the now fully finished deactivation spell, landing it on the portal frame itself.
"I did it! Everypony, the portal's clos-"
However, as the visual of Earth began to fade from view, The Obelisk at the last minute had manged to force its head through to the other side. Magic disruption burst forth from the portal, unable to fully close with a foreign object in the way. the Magic was also forcefully trying to eject the foreign creature back to its world. But the Obelisk was strong, able to stand its ground against the magic that attempted to banish it back to it's world. Tim and the guards were still in the room, watching the forces of magic and mutation in a theoretical pushing match. The guards who possessed the ability of magic began pelting the monstrosity with blasts of magic. They had little to no effect, only serving to enrage the Obelisk as it let out cackling shriek of frustration.
The room was in a complete state of panic at this point, Guards blasting magic bolt after magic bolt, yelling orders to push the mutant back with Twilight and Celestia began to pelt the beast with magic of their own in the form concentrated beams. They landed on the rock-like dorsal spines, sending tiny chucks bursting in multiple directions. This time, the Obelisk let out a cry of pain, temporarily losing footing as a portion of it's head was sent back to Earth. The Obelisk however quickly regained its strength and forcefully pushed itself back through the portal. Uncertain as to why, Tim lent his aid. Time lined up his sight's with the beast's mouth, firing short-to-medium bursts of 7.62 whenever it opened, as that was one of the beast's only vulnerable spots.
Many of the guards in the room saw this weapon in action for the first time, watching as the bullets landed inside the mouth, sending blood flying upon impact. This only bolstered them to keep the pressure up. The room echoed loudly with the sound of battle. Magic bolts and gunfire contesting with the roars of The Obelisk, who was gradually fighting his way through. Tim emptied an entire mag into the thing with little to no effect. To make matter's worse, The Obelisk was making progress, with one of it's claws no poking through.
God dammit this isn't working he swore to himself mid-reload.
The Obelisk was now fully enraged at this point, thrashing it's head violently, snapping at the closest foe he could with little success. That wouldn't be the case for long though, as the entirety of his first claw made it through, and was now pushing down on the receding portal. Tim was about to verbally call out for a retread, before another roar from the Obelisk was suddenly cut off by an ear-piercing sound. Tim heard it clear as day, and looked for its source, finding it come from the now somewhat blinded form of Princess Luna floating several feet into the, firing down an enormous beam of raw energy at the base of the mutant's head. The Obelisk's head began to unnaturally twitch, as the beam made it's way down, slicing through the neck slowly but assuredly. The bolts of magic began to cease, as did Tim's fears, as he and everypony in the room, watched as the head of the Obelisk was severed completely off. The now lifeless body was sent flying back towards the other side of the portal as the link to Earth was shut completely off, and the now decapitated head plopped on the floor of the now trashed library.
The raw energy from Luna's horn died down, and after such a massive expense of energy, she fainted, losing grasp of her flight and falling several feet above the ground. Celestia was quick to catch up to her sister in free fall. She caught her in forelegs and gently laid her on the ground. Twilight and many of the guards surrounded the pair awaiting for Luna to awake.
"Luna?" Celestia cried out concernedly. "Please sister, answer me!"
Luna's eyes began to show movement slight movement underneath her eyelids. Soon her eyes opened, followed by a timid groan.
"Did, did it work?" Luna asked quietly, still fatigued from the massive spell she had unleashed.
Everyone looked at the room to the decapitated head of the Obelisk in the room. The spell had effectively burned its head off the body, cauterizing the wound it left behind. Trickles of blood trickled from the mouth where Tim had shot it in the mouth. Tim was the one to answer her query.
"Surprisingly, Princess, yeah, it's dead." Tim said.
Once the ponies helped Luna back up on her hooves, they began to approach the head, as the danger had subsided. Tim simply sat on the floor, regaining his bearings. he looked around the room. What had once minutes ago looked like a peaceful study now looked like a tornado had passed through. Books, bits of concrete, and loose leaf paper littered the floor and when he spotted Twilight passing by, he was almost too ashamed look at her.
"I'm sorry." he said to her. "I.....I didn't mean nor want any of this to happen."
Twilight turned to look at him, now fully aware of the sorry state he was in. Twilight approached him, placing a hoof on his shoulder.
"Don't feel guilty Tim. None of this is your fault." she assured him.
"Well it sure feels like it." he said. "I almost got a lot of folks killed."
"In truth Tim, there was a lot of faults on multiple ponies' parts. In retrospect, I shouldn't have been asking questions during a time like that, where everypony was in peril. But other times, you just can't account for things out of our control. To be honest, in my book you did everything right. You warned us of oncoming danger as quickly as possible, even going as far to sacrifice yourself for the safety of others. Though I'm glad it didn't come to that."
"Same here. I guess I owe Princess Luna my life for that one."
Tim looked up to where the others had gathered around the head.
"What kind of spell did she pull off back there exactly?" Tim asked.
"One of the most destructive of it's kind, one capable of killing, though for our circumstances, it seemed as if it was our only option. I've never seen any creature resist magic like that. The closing portal has enough strength to send a Dragon flying miles away. That thing had to have incredible resilience to push back against it while fending off a barrage of magic from me and the other casters."
Tim proceeded to stand up and approach the others along with Twilight.
"Well it's not invincible, but as you probably already saw, my rifle was doing little to deter it away."
"And to think you humans deal with monsters like these constantly. How do you do it?" twilight asked.
"However we can, Princess. However we can."
Achmed listened to Tim's tale diligently, taking note of every minute detail. From how Tim described it, these Equestrians had just barely managed to make it out of that situation without a single casualty. A rare feat to pull off. Even then though, the method of disposing of the Obelisk still pressed some cause for concern, but Achmed thankfully found some comfort in how strenuous it was to cast such a powerful spell. In fact, the entire concept of magic itself was still a struggle to wrap his head around, as it seemed to lack any major limitations, and could accomplish a variety of tasks and functions.
"*So what happened after that?*" Achmed asked.
"*I went to see how Princess Luna was holding up.*" Tim explained. "*Said she was a little shaken up and decided to head on to her room, recuperate a little. I thanked her for saving me when I got my foot stuck, in fact, we pretty much all did. She was kind of the hero today. After that I talked with Twilight and Celestia, started discussing what steps and precautions should be taken for next time.*"
"*Did you get any flak for what happened? Anyone place the blame on you? C'mon, I assume someone must have felt that if you hadn't have showed up none of that would have happened.*"
"*Surprisingly no. Me and Twilight met back up with her friends. They were just glad we were safe and nobody got hurt. I will admit, I felt a little guilty about what happened, but Twilight and her friends said I could make up for by helping them clean up the mess that got left behind. Take a guess who cleaned up the head?*"
Achmed rolled his eyes. Despite the rather dramatic nature of Tim's explanation, it didn't seem like these natives had any ill-intent for mankind nor the capability of it. But Achmed still had his doubts, but decided Tim's story was enough evidence to keep the portal where it was for the meantime.
"*Alright, well whatever the case is, I'm just glad you mostly took things back home into account before doing something drastic.*" said Achmed. "*So it's safe to say that they wont try you for treason. Speaking of which, it's probably about time to get going. The Commander and the others will definitely wanna know about this. Then we can finally get our ticket out of here.*"
As Achmed proceeded to the door exiting the room, Tim bit his lip down, and took a deep sigh.
"*No. Just your ticket out, I'm afraid.*" Tim stated.
Achmed stopped about a half way's distance to the door, wondering if he had heard his friend right. He turned around, giving Tim a gaze of disbelief.
"*What did you say?*" Achmed asked, stupefied.
Tim was forced to look him straight in the eye. With a voice stemming from an assertive stance with utter sincerity, he made his words clear.
"*I'm staying, Achmed.*"
Andrew snuck his way through the second floor in his search for Sabbag. Even without the drone, Andrew had been keen to take a mental note on the security presence on the second floor the first time he made his way through, which made sneaking past the guards a less challenging task. Still though, not getting caught was the name of the game, for were it to happen the whole mission could fall apart.
Andrew had just finished evading another patrol when all of a sudden, everything went dark. Everything from his comms to his optics went dead. Andrew found a spot where he could lay low momentarily to see if he could make an attempt to fix it. Alas, no amount of field repair skills could fix the problem. Whatever error occurred was almost certainly an outside force rather than a problem with his equipment.
Guessing whatever fried my equipment happened to Sabbag as well. Andrew mentally noted.
Regardless of whether his equipment functioned or not, Andrew still had a soldier to round-up, two if he was lucky, though any signs of Berfield had yet to be seen by the likes of him. Andrew recollected himself and proceeded forward, turning right at the end of his current hallway. As he moved up, a new set a figures came into view. At first glance, Andrew mistook them for just another patrol of guards, but as he focused his vision on them that didn't prove to be the case.
While there were guards, one of them seemed to tower over the rest, and the sight of her was one to behold from an aesthetic perspective. This Native possessed a coat a white that glistened like pure light in the darkness of the hallway. Sporting both a pair of almost angelic wings and a horn that jutted out like a small tower of ivory. Her mane and tail flowed as if it was caught in a constant state of breeze, painted in an assortment of unsaturated green, blue, and red. And like all the other natives they had encountered u to this point, she too seemed to bear a mark towards the rear of her body, one depicting a blazing sun. By her side was another native similar to her, yet appeared to be a polar opposite. This one, while not as tall as her counterpart, still maintained the same mystical quality as the other. Her features seemed to embody that of night. A coat of dark blue, with a similar flowing mane and tail of what looked like pure starlight, bearing the mark of the crescent moon surrounded by splotches of black.
From what Andrew could see, the two seemed to be talking to one another, about what Andrew couldn't say, but he was dead-set to find out. Andre began to move in closer, yet carefully so. As they cleared the corner of another hallway it was evidently clear that they attained a very high status, for their escort of guards was larger than any of the patrols he and his team had encountered yet. Andrew made his best effort to hear what the two leading this armed contingent by backing tracking ahead, cutting them off at the hallway's next cross section. The cross-section was thankfully unguarded, but that was subject to change at any section, for sound of approaching guards was evident by the sound of twelve sets clanking armor. Andrew desperately looked for a hiding spot and eventually found it in the form of a room with it's door left open. Andrew carefully slipped his way inside and closed the door till it was just shy two inches of being completely shut. Andrew crouched down and kept his ear open for voices. Soon enough, he could hear voices begin to fade in.
"Sister, I can respect your concern after today's close call But this seems a tad bit unnecessary. Tim already assured us that whatever dangers the portal brought were neutralized." The white equine argued.
From what he could pick up, the two were clearly siblings of sorts, which could explain the similarities. As though it seemed they were about to make a pass from where Andrew was, the blue equine stopped, and sighed almost angrily. Movement outside the hall all but ceased. Andrew began to grow tense, yet realized his advantageous circumstance. These two clearly had a hand or at least some knowledge of the portal Vik and his team found in the library, and thus Andrew continued to gather whatever intel he could from their conversation.
"It's not what came through our portal, sister." The Blue equine expressed. "I fear that another human has entered our world, possibly by the same means as Tim."
Andrew was now all ears upon the mere mention of Berfield's name, furthermore by the fact that the blue equine might have picked up that Andrew and his team were here. Thankfully by the sound of it, it seemed that they were unaware of Sabbag's presence, though that was subject to change at any minute. Andrew continued to eavesdrop.
"What makes you say that, Luna?" The White equine asked.
Luna. Andrew now had a name. Whoever she and this other equine were seemed to carry an aroma of authority with them. Possible heads of government.
"Remember how I told you this morning how Tim asked me for aid in his dreams?" Luna asked.
Andrew listened yet fail to grasp the nature of the context.
Dreams? What the hell is she going on about? Andrew wondered.
"Yes, how does this relate, Luna?" the White equine asked.
"Celestia, I'm getting there." Luna snapped.
Celestia. Another name to note down as Luna continued with her reasoning.
"I had promised Berfield I would discuss the matter of his dreams tonight. Before I set out to do so, I went on my usual nightly dream search, searching for anypony who may need my aid. Instead I found a dream aspect similar to the one Tim's had the night prior. A large shadowy orb, silent and seemingly sporadic. Before my entry I assumed the dream in question must have been one of Tim's recurring nightmares. But when I entered, the scene was, horrific. Tim's nightmares held a dark overtone to them, but nothing hat would make me question the kind of being he was. But this dream belonged to another. And the things I saw were.........were.................."
"It's alright Luna. If what you saw is too uncomfortable to speak about I won't force you. But you said this dream belonged to another human?" Celestia asked.
"I don't think, I know. Amidst the horror, there was a conversation between this man and what I assume was his partner. Human dreams, from what I can tell are confusing, I didn't see the two talking, but the conversation was overbearing enough to clearly hear it. This man's name is Andrew."
Andrew's eyes widened and he felt his body freeze in place. She knew his name, she saw his dream, and furthermore, she knew he was here. Thoughts of the mission itself might being compromised from the start flowed through his mind. Wondering if the setbacks he and his team were facing were traps set up by her and those under her command. If so, this op could've already been compromised. With the current lack of communication it was hard to tell what was going on. However, what was discussed between the two sisters next managed to put many of his fears to rest.
"Do you think this Andrew might be in the same predicament as Tim?" Celestia asked.
"I don't believe so. I'm not even sure where this Andrew is. All I know is that he's in Equestria." Luna insisted. "Otherwise I wouldn't have been able to access his dream."
"Do you think Tim may know him?"
"It's very possible, given the tight-knit nature of his society. Which is why we need to discuss this matter with him." Luna insisted.
"Can this not wait till tomorrow, dear sister. It's late as it is, and the presence of guards has already come across as intimidating when we first met him."
"Under normal circumstances I'd agree with you, but I have the uncanny feeling that Tim may be aware of this human's presence. Perhaps even be in league with him."
Celestia gave her sister an uncertain look, indicating that she had doubts about her sister's theory.
"What would lead you to believe that?" Celestia asked with a brow raised.
"Nothing at the moment. Know that I'm not accusing Tim of going behind our backs, but we can't rule out any possibilities. This matter's importance is paramount. Unlike Tim, this human has killed other humans. Several in fact."
The two began to make their way back down the hall with their guards in tout, still conversing as they gradually moved out of earshot.
"What? How do You know this?"
"The dreams I've encountered in humans are not so much as dreams as they are-"
Andrew slowly made his way back out into the hall, with the idea that this Luna had witnessed his dream.
How did she know my name? How does she know I've killed people?
Intending to find out, Andrew began following them, for it was abundantly clear that wherever their destination was, Berfield was at the end of it. With any luck, perhaps he could bump into Sabbag along the way and extract him whenever they were done with him, perhaps even find out what their motives were behind the portal in the library.
At the moment, they were still unknown, but the conversation did seem to push in favor Viktor and Bradford's side of the argument. Despite this, Andrew couldn't shake the feeling that it's purpose had ill-intent for mankind, and if that were the case, he'd be hellbent on neutralizing it before these natives could make any use of it.
Sarah and Lamond still waited anxiously for the Commander's return, and not so much for the Colonel's. Were the Colonel to return first, they'd simply follow the orders given to them, though both had a feeling the Colonel wouldn't be too pleased with them, or the Commander for that fact. It had been at least 15 minutes since the Commander went back to the second floor to search for Achmed, since then there'd had been no contact from either him or Achmed.
A minute later, Wolfpack returned. Viktor, still somewhat pissed with how Andrew cut him off and went charging off to attend to his own escapade regardless of the consequences, again, wanted answers immediately from the two of his team left guarding the grand staircase.
"*Where is he!?*" Viktor barked.
Sarah began to explain in an assertive, but respectful voice.
"*Commander Sawyer went upstairs to look for Sabbag. He told us to tell you that we need an exit secured. He should be back any moment.*"
Viktor looked at her with an irate glare, and then up the floor above her. It seems that the Commander put him in a position where he couldn't refuse, again. If Viktor had it his way, he'd march up to the second floor, grab Andrew by the balls and drag his ass back to the first floor. Hell, maybe even throw him back to the other side of the portal if he could get Bradford to open it for him. But alas, splitting the team up even more than it was was just asking for trouble. While Viktor's mind was on his old friend and the ways he could give him an ass kicking, the rest of the team seemed concerned with what to do with the newly discovered portal, as its relevance was still fresh on everyone's mind.
"*Are we just going to forget about the portal?*" Hale asked.
Viktor already irritated, turned to his second.
"*No, but until we know for certain what it's purpose is, we don't do anything. Right now, we follow the Commander's instructions. Secure an exit. Looks like we'll be leaving soon.*"
Viktor pressed the transmit button on his HUD-set.
"*Wolf 4, get Gateway on the line, tell Bradford to be ready with that portal at Wolf 3's position.*"
"*Copy that, Alpha.*" Nate responded. "*But what about the Commander? I lost contact with him about two minutes ago.*"
"*God dammit Andrew!*" Viktor cursed off the comms.
Viktor let out an irritated groan. He found himself in charge of the operation for the time being. Viktor evaluated everything that had transpired. The man they were sent to search for had yet to be found, communications seemed to be cut upon entry to the second floor, which would make searching it a logistical challenge, especially with the RARD's signal being lost. There was no way to contact either Sabbag or Andrew. the discovery of the new portal brought a soon-to-be political nightmare with it, and operational progress at the moment had been grounded to a halt. Things weren't particularly good at the moment, which made what he had to say hard to stomach.
"*We give him hour to return. If he's not here before the end of that time..........................we may have no choice but to abort the mission and return home. When your done with Gateway go ahead and link up with 3 and Osaka 4.*"Wolf 1, out.*"
As Viktor cut off from the comms, It was now Sarah's turn to give the Colonel a glare
"*Abort the mission?*" she said in disbelief.
"*Yes, Sergeant, abort the mission.*" Viktor reiterated. "*In the Commander's absence, I make the decisions. He has an hour to return.*"
"*I though he was your friend? How can you just leave him like that?*"
"*You don't think I know that!?*" Viktor barked. "*I've fought at his side for twenty years. But Andrew has always had a habit of rushing in at problems head on without thinking it through. Luck's usually been on his side for most of those decisions, but this time is different. This goes beyond any raider den or mutant lair. Humanity's survival is on the line this time, and I can't risk that. Not even for him.*"
Sarah's outrage slowly began to dwindle, as she came around to seeing his point of view. A part of her still told her that leaving him, Sabbag, and Berfield was wrong, but she simply labeled those feelings off as personal morality, and that sometimes had to be pushed aside for the greater good. Viktor could see the conflict within her, he felt the same thing inside himself. He looked up to second floor once again, wondering if he'd see his friend coming down them within the next hour.
"*He got himself into this mess, let's pray he can get himself out.*"
Achmed couldn't believe what he just heard. After all this time, after all the distance they covered, after the entire week that had been taken to prepare for this mission and succeeding in it's goal, the very man who supposed to be rescued, didn't want to. Achmed shook his head, utterly refusing what Tim had just said to him.
"*You're shitting me?*" Achmed claimed.
"*I'm not. I-*"
"*No! You're fucking shitting me! We come all this way, to find you, and you decide you're going to stay!? Why!? Why the hell would you do that?!*"
Tim did his best to provide an explanation to his clearly distressed friend.
"*Look, it's not that I don't wanna come back, I do. But.........*"
"*But what?! You decided ya like it here!? Wanted to enjoy the wonders of this world and say fuck all to the rest of us!?*" Achmed accused.
"*HEY! It ain't like that!*" Tim snapped back. "*You know I wouldn't do shit like that!*"
Achmed, still angry, but seeing reason, made an effort to calm himself down.
"*Then why?! What reason do you have for staying? Is it the portal? look we have one that an take you back right now!*"
"*Achmed, it's got nothing to do with the portals, it's for another reason. Just hear me out, okay?*"
Still upset and angry with his friend's decision, would at least be kind enough to accept his friend's request.
"*.................Fine. Let's hear it.*" Achmed said.
"*Okay look, you and I both know that it's only a matter of time before things fall apart back home.*"
This somewhat surprised Achmed, this subject had arisen several times among his time here with his fireteam, but it now seemed as if Tim had his own plan for alleviating the current crisis. Whether it was a good plan or not remained to be seen.
"*I've spent time with the folks here. They tell me it's place where people go for a second chance. Humanity can have it's second chance here too, but only if I stay. I have a plan, but it's gonna take awhile. This portal might take a month or two to get the kinks out of it. That may be enough time for me to convince them to let us in.*"
"*What do you mean by us*" Achmed asked.
"*Everyone. You, me, the entire human race. If I can prove that we're worthy of a second chance they may be charitable enough to allow us entry. We could start over.*"
Despite the sincerity he tried to put into describing what he had in mind, Achmed was having none of it.
"*Tim, that's not your responsibility! Something like that is better suited in the hands of the Council! It's kind of their job to represent humanity! You're just a grunt!*"
"*Yeah, well this grunt managed to gain the trust of the two leaders of this country. A trust I'm not about to break by leaving.*"
"*Tim, even if you stay how do know for certain that they'll be willing to let us in. You already told me that they have knowledge of what mankind did during the Conflict. They know we're prone to violence. Do you really think an entire race who practice pacifism and peace would just willingly allow a race that destroyed their entire planet in with open arms? Hah! I doubt it!*"
"*Doubt it all you want Achmed, If I leave now, chances at a peaceful transition are shit at best. You have a point, a lot of them are still scared of us. But so far I'm the only one they've seen. The only one they've come to trust. We need their trust before we can come here. If I leave now and we let the council negotiate things there's a very good chance we'll be denied. Considering what the state of things are like back home, take a wild guess at what'll happen after something like that?*"
Achmed grew quiet, not wanting to say it but well-aware that Tim had a point.
"*Go on, guess!*" Tim insisted.
"*War.*" Achmed muttered.
"*Exactly.*"
"*Tim that's only one possibility. You have no idea what will happen.*"
"*I know which option won't lead to a conflict of interests. If I leave with you now without an explanation they'll think something's up. What happens after that is fair game, but you and I both know that Sawyer won't accept no for an answer. If we go to war it won't end well for them.*"
Achmed was about to make another point, but caught himself lingering on Tim's last sentence.
"*For them?" Achmed said confusedly
"*Yes, them.*" Tim reiterated. "*Achmed, they have no clue what methods we'd use in a conflict. Despite the power of their magic, it won't even compare to what we've stockpiled. They'll be slaughtered. Humanity will be painted as the aggressor yet again, just like The Conflict. Is that what you want? Is that what anyone wants?*"
Achmed reflected over Tim's words, as they had substance to them. It was clear that Tim had thought long and hard about this, something that usually was never the case. War could be a viable solution if what Tim said was true, but brought a load of risk and consequences with it. There was the possibility it could only be a temporary solution, if Equestria was attacked and this world of peaceful inhabitants decide that mankind is a mutual enemy, that could lead to devastating consequences. If mankind was victorious however, they could get their slice of paradise, but that ran the risk of alienating themselves. Given that this world no doubt had luxuries that humans did not, such as a functioning economy, war ran the risk of damaging there new home, with no surefire solution to repairing it. And the most obvious consequence, humans would be painted as the aggressor, the enemy. A race of savages who learned nothing from the destruction of their own world, only to invade another to eventually repeat history.
Achmed had his own set of gripes with Tim's decision, but soon came to realize they didn't stem from what Tim had in mind for humanity, but rather that he was being forced to leave a friend behind. Achmed felt guilty about what happened to Tim, but seeing the result had dissipated that feeling entirely, supplementing it with questionable doubt. Regardless, Achmed came to a decision. Tim's plan seemed to offer the best solution to the bigger picture. But how was he to explain this to the likes of Sawyer, Antonov, and Bradford?
"*You'll need to tell the Commander, Tim.*" Achmed stated.
"*Something tells me he won't be as understanding.*" Tim voice.
"*Well, it was his idea to lead a group of five regulars posed as First Recon Operators on mission to another world, so the pot for crazy ideas isn't entirely full yet.*" Achmed said jokingly.
Tim was unmoved, still adamant on his concerns about the Commander. Achmed sighed.
"*Look Tim, one way or another, he'll need to know about the portal's purpose.*"
"*Why can't you tell him? Why not just relay the information to him?*"
"*Because I'm not going to follow it up by lying to him and saying I don't know where you are!*"
Tim was staunchly against the idea, but wasn't willing to put Achmed in that position either.
"*.............Alright.*" Tim conceded. "*But Achmed, remember what I said. If I leave, it could be a disaster.*"
"*I know. But on the bright side, Sawyer's probably the only one who has a chance of saying yes to your idea.*"
Tim shot his friend a confused glance.
"*Thanks..............I guess?*" Tim said.
Achmed facepalmed, pretty much done at this point.
"*Nevermind, let's just get going.*" Achmed urged.
Tim waited for Achmed to grab his helmet, HUD-set, and mask before heading to the door. Once the two were ready, Tim opened the door open, peering his head out and giving a quick glance in both directions, checking if the coast was clear before going out into the hallway.
"*C'mon, coast is clear.*" Tim announced.
Achmed filed out into the hallway behind his friend, covering his 6 and looking out for any signs of movement in the hallway. Seeing that the coast was clear behind them, he saw that Tim had made some progress ahead of him, and quickly sought to catch up. His friend was 5 meters away when he came to a heart-stopping halt in front of one of the hallway's cross-sections. Achmed wasn't sure why, as he just stopped as he closed the distance between him and his friend. Upon walking up beside his friend and turning to look down the cross section, Achmed had wished he had done the same. Right in front of them was Princess Luna, and who he assumed was her sister, Princess Celestia, followed by six guards. The two groups stared at one another for what felt like minutes, eventually ended with the only words could possibly muster.
"Aheh....................good evening, Princess?"
Luna's reaction was immediately hostile, as her horn lit up with magic.
"I knew it!" Luna shouted, seething under her breath. "You've been lying to us the whole time! haven't you!? Guards, restrain them both."
Tim raised up his hands up in a defensive posture.
"Please, Princess, I can explain!" He insisted. "it's not what you think. I-"
Tim's words were cut off by the sound of Achmed cocking his rifle and aiming it at the guard closest to him. Tim was quick to act, grabbing his friend's rifle towards the front and forcefully pushing it down.
"Dude! What the hell are you doing?!" Tim demanded.
"Like I'm just going to let that happen!" Achmed protested. "I thought you said they were friendly?!"
Celestia, who still confused, yet not nearly as quick to react in such a defensive manner as her sister, sought a level-headed approach to the situation before things took a turn for the worst.
"Luna, stop this at once! Guards, stand down! Tim! What's going on?" She asked.
"I know it looks bad, but it's not what you think."
"Why do I not believe you?" Luna asked rhetorically. "I presume your Andrew?"
"What? No, my name's Achmed!"
Achmed was shocked that she knew the Commander's name, but not the man behind it. Unfortunately, it didn't occur to Achmed that it would advantageous to use this as an opportunity to throw her off by answering yes. Instead, he inadvertently informed her that there were others, and she caught onto that notion quick.
"If...........if you're not Andrew then..........."
Luna's anger rose once again as the magical intensity of her horn rose.
"How many more of you are there!" Luna demanded.
Achmed raised his rifle yet again to the sign of aggression. Tim did some quick thinking and stood between Luna and his friend.
"I ain't telling you shit lady!" Achmed shouted.
"ACHMED! DUDE! Shut up! Yes, there's more of them. Twelve in all."
Achmed looked at his friend with an irate glare for effectively selling them all out.
"Dude! What the fuck!?" he shouted.
"Achmed, I ain't gonna lie to them!"
"That's Enough!" Celestia shouted in her royal Canterlot voice.
Achmed lowered his rifle and the magic surrounding Luna's horn dissipated. Celestia cleared her throat after expending
"Luna, I'm just as concerned as you are but we still don't have the full story. Instigating hostilities will prove to only make things worse!" She scowled at her sister before turning to Tim and Achmed. "Tim, I hope you're aware of how this looks for us?"
"I am, but I swear to God, It's not what you think. I didn't even know he or anyone else was here until tonight."
"If that's the case then we need to talk about it, and more importantly locate them. We'll discuss this someplace where level-heads can prevail. But for the meantime, and I'm sorry to say this, but I must ask that your friend be temporarily taken into custody."
"WHAT!!?!!" Achmed cried out. "But I didn't do anything."
"So skulking about on royal grounds without proper entry constitutes as 'not doing anything'?" Luna snapped, still clearly angry.
Tim turned to his friend, who gave him a look that said, "Do something!".
"Does he really need to be detained?" Tim asked.
"I'm afraid so, Tim. Were the circumstances different I'd consider it rash, but with the knowledge of twelve human intruders on castle grounds, I'm afraid it's necessary. Their custody is subject to change once things can be cleared up."
Knowing that he just landed himself in quite the shitty situation, forced to choose between his friend's freedom and retaining the trust with Celestia ad her sister for the good of mankind, he made the hard decision to choose the latter.
"Promise me you wont hurt him." Tim said.
"We won't." Celestia assured him.
Tim turned around to attempt to coerce his friend, only to be met with rifle butt to his lower torso. The pain was excruciating, but temporary. Tim, who had been knocked down to his knees, got back up for a second attempt.
"Look Achmed, I promise they're not-"
"Not fucking happening!" he stated clearly
His attempts were clearly met with no success as Achmed's fight instincts kicked into high gear, cocking the bolt to his gun, and aiming at Luna. The Guards and Celestia were quick to react. The Guards had spears at the ready, with Celestia ready to whatever was necessary to protect her little sister.
It was at this time that Andrew came around the corner, only to see a stand off between the two sisters and their escort and Sabbag, with a second man standing in between. Unsure at exactly what had unfolded, Andrew made his way up gun at the ready, ready to jump in at a moments notice. Tim was still trying to desperately get Achmed to cooperate whilst simultaneously begging his hosts to not blast him into the next room over.
"Achmed.........calm down." Tim urged.
Achmed didn't respond, focused on training his sights on his would-be captors. Luna then took a step forward with her horn ignited. Achmed took step back and let out a warning.
"One step closer and I shoot!"
Luna halted her advance, for she merely needed a clear shot at him.
"Luna? What are you doing?" Celestia asked.
"If he won't come willingly, then he'll be apprehended when he's out cold!" Luna declared "A sleep spell should do the trick."
"Now just wait a second!" Tim yelled. Still trying desperately to calm the situation down.
"You keep that Magic shit away from me!" Achmed warned.
"Princess Luna, I-......No!" Tim begged.
But it was too late to change her mind. The spell shot forth from her ignited horn at high velocity. Tim instinctively stepped in front of his friend to block her shot, which he successfully managed to do. But rather than the intended effect of putting one to sleep, those who witnessed the impact reeled back in horror, the caster included, as Luna's eyes widened in shock. The bolt of what should've put one to sleep instead pierced through the right side of Tim's chest, through the heart and lung.
Tim sharply exhaled as the magic shot through him, and he soon found that he was unable to draw breath at all. Tim turned around, gazing upon his friend. Achmed's angry expression gave way to sorrow as tears began to form around his eyes. It looked as if he wanted to say something, something important, but somehow the words just didn't sync. Tim felt tired, too tired to think, too tired to stand, too tired to do just about anything. He felt himself fall yet couldn't recall an impact of any kind, he was about to ask those around him why, but found he was still too tired to do even that. The hall began to lighten up, and he wondered if he would ever feel the impact. He turned around facing the oncoming light, seeing what could only described as comfort. All his grief, responsibility, worries, and even his duty to those he swore to protect, seemed unimportant.
A voice called out, words as soft and heavenly as those that were spoken to him during the days when he was young, cradled in the arms of a mother who cared dearly for him and his sibling. Perhaps they were waiting for him to come back home, wondering if perhaps he had been gone too long. He couldn't help but feel relaxed, relieved, even happy. happier than he had been in a long time. The glistening hand reached out for him, with benevolence unmatched and unequal. He graciously accepted. For the burdens of world were lifted. His wings spread upon feeling her touch, and he was intent to see that he and she soar to the fate that awaited him. Something told him it would be pleasant, as the last traces of his soul left this world, for the last time.
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Dammit Luna
Ya done fucked up, and I thought Andrew was going to be the one that fucks up.
War I say
Let's show these ponies why we're apex predators
orig09.deviantart.net/e8af/f/2014/305/0/b/human_supremacy_by_alexer-d84wqio.jpg
I think the race you are looking for is the Krogan, not Humanity.
Time for some revive magic!
Woah. Tim, you idiot.
Well Tim got his wish he is staying 6 feet under
8083812
Humans are not apex predators. Apex predators are predators that subsist by eating other predators and have no predators that subsist on them in turn. (Besides scavengers and/or natural decomposition)
At most, we rank along with pigs or anchovies. (Except for Eskimo and Inuit populations, whom are pretty much apex predators)
The correct term would be local super-predator. Because of our heavy reliance on tools and domesticated hunting animals.
Suffice to say: If you want to call yourself a apex predator you are going to have to eat every manticore you bring down.
Bring condiments.
8084038 At this point, we are pretty much apex predators.
I do see your point however.
8083812 Manehattan in 2 days..........
az616578.vo.msecnd.net/files/2016/07/31/636055929320824543832881307_war%20zone.jpg
8083814 Well in this universe we did destroy our planet, just like the krogan. Sooooooooooooooo..........................
8083824 Nah. Just hit em with the defibs, he'll be fine!
8084130 I thought it was funny.
8084324 Fraid' not.
8084386
dang, that would have been a sick reference, ever play any XCOM?
8084438 Sadly no.
Rest In Peace Tim
8083814 if the krogans had any leader who isnt wrex in a stor like that it whould end obviously in violence because wrex is the only one besides eva or what ever her names is who can think clearly
300 Likes!
8083812 for some reason your comment made me remember my last stellaris campaign where i just nuked every primitve planet into submission that i found
why does it always have to be luna
I believe this fits nicely:
But seriously what the hell happened? Did Luna forget to switch from kill mode earlier back to stun?
I think humans might be more vulnerable to magic to the point a sleep spell could kill us. Damn man that was fucked up! We know Luna did not mean to do that. Can only imagine how guilty she's gonna feel, for the rest of her long life. Not to mention the soon to be war casualties. Damn it! I'm just.....such at a lost for words man......
I've been with this story almost from the beginning, and even thou I KNEW it would come to this,......i don't know, it's kinda what I wanted, but at the same time I wanted peace, only this story and a select few have ever made me conflicted in confusion of what I wanted to happen.
........I'm gonna miss that son of a bitch, rest in peace bro.
Im glad you showed him going to heaven, it.....fullfilled me.
Your a great writer dude! This story is one of my top ten favrit, out of litterly hundreds to a thousand other story on my face list, you know your story is AWESOME!!!
I know the story just updated bro but PLEASE don't make us wait so long for the next chapter.
The wait and suspense is gonna kill me! Xd
Till next time dude.
8084660 she is the younger and more emotional one since celestia has 1000 years of practice with hiding emotions
So close, can I have partial credit since achmed was a idiot?
8085135 Nope. Cuz Achmed Didn't take the shot!
All transactions are final!
8084928
Thank you, I appreciate your enthusiasm. I'm sorry chapters take so long, but between school and spending time with friends, I don't get nearly as much time to write.
8084442 i would highly recommend it to anyone, excet the 90s versions and The Bureau: XCOM declassified
Mostly because the 90s versions are regarded as some of the hardest games of all time and the bureau is just a nightmare
8085141
just terrible. if all that werent enough all the blood of thousands of humans and ponies in the war to come, caused by her....... really, i cant even begin to imagine what shes going to feel......will that make luna fall to dispair and bring nightmare moon back!? 
this is a domino effect of apocalyptic proportions.
Friends are important. That's what the shows all about is it not? Xp
My final conclusion is that humans are vulnerable to magic, MAKES kinda sense since we live in a world without. In many stories involving this exact scenario humans are either immune or weak against magic. Tim never had magic cast against him as far as I rember from the story, so no one would have known about the lethalness it had on humans. again I can only imagine the guilt Luna is gonna feel, and being long living as well, and to add insult to injury they Kinda were friends......
I'm really Gonna miss you tim, you bastard.
One more thing I wanna say is, it's not that I want the ponies to lose really, I just want humanity to win.
........great. another conflict of emotions. Lol
Don't ever give up on this AWESOME story bro, it's a one of a kind!
Huh...well that happened. Kind of an interesting turn of events. Wonder where the story is gonna go from here now that there's no middle man between species.
WE ARE HUNGRY FOR BLOOD AND BATTLE!!!!
8085141
FIne, when and where
8086366 3:00pm, Freeman Playground, by the monkey bars.....................be there.
8086747
I think thats in a different state
Great idea killing off the one guy who was trying to keep the peace, was hoping this wouldn't be one of those fanfics where the one human sides with ponies against the other humans
Keep up the good work
8088221 Thanks. I know what you mean. But I had Tim's death kinda of planned from the start. Essentially the driving force that pushes for war.
Hello. I don't normally comment on stories, but in this case, I'll give it a shot. These are the reasons I believe what we saw was not what it appeared to be, at the end of the story.
Princess Luna, who had not been to a world contaminated with radiation before, went to Earth.
There is no evidence that Equestrian magic can block radiation. Princess Luna attempts it, in order to
rescue Tim.
Princess Luna and Tim return to Equestria, and Princess Luna uses her magic to slice the head off of a
creature native to Earth.
This action, is regarded by Tim to be an extraordinary feat.
We don't see Princess Luna use magic on anything of earthly origin, until her encounter with Achmed
and Tim.
Tim subsequently, accidentally, and unintentionally, has a hole burned through his chest, by way of
Princess Luna.
Perhaps, Luna was contaminated with radiation, and when her spell discharged, her sleep spell was contaminated with radiation.
Highly focused magic beams, bonded with radiation, could explain why a hole was drilled into Tim.
That's just what I believe, at this point. Have fun, everyone. :)
8088224 I know and you are awesome, keep writing I can't wait for the next chapter
The ending of the character is great
8089238 Thanks.
MOAR!!!!! DAAAAAMMMMIIIIT
8089765 ALRIGHT! Just don't hurt me, I have sensitive skin.
Poor achmed. All he wanted to to was save his friend.
This story has been pretty realistic so far. Hoping to see more solid work form you, even if it takes time.
For me, this fanfic got more and more boring as it went on... I don't know why but it just seemed to become rather dull and unentertaining... thanks for the good read for a little while, but this will probably be the last chapter I read.
And thus exterminatus was declared on their puny race.
8093031 Well that's a shame, but I suppose I should commend and even thank you for explaining your dissatisfaction with my story. I'll take that into account for my next chapter, every bit of input helps But at the end of the day I can't force you to read something you don't like. It's been a pleasure having you along for the ride.
8093489 I had a pleasure reading this... If I get bored I might come back to this, but right now, I've been a little burned out on this
8099565 regular unsubscribe or mass unsubscribe?
Time to kill all ponies.
25.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_m6hafqmmmJ1rxm2uxo1_1280.jpg
Blood for the Blood God!
Love the new front cover!!!
does this mean next update around the corner?
8120333 Possibly.
8120738
YOU AWESOME!!!!!!!
But I'm not trying to pressure you to do so dude, if it sounded like I was then I apologize.