Finding My Place

by Firestar463

Chapter 5

Though the hedge wall and the trees beyond it kept the sun from view, I could tell that it was just beginning to set as I approached the large tent near the edge that made up the command center. The western edge of the sky that I could see was streaked with lines of ruby red, and the eastern horizon was turning a dark shade of purple, with the stars already beginning to show. And it wasn’t just the sky that told me night was fast approaching. Now that I was away from the roaring fire that I had been cooking on, the chill of the evening hit me hard. I found chills racing up my spine, and my breath was already beginning to turn to fog in front of me. It didn’t help that a cold autumn breeze was rolling through the camp.

And so it was that I gladly stepped into the large tent. Though the air was still chilly, and steam still formed as I breathed out, the wind at least would not bite as much in here. Still, I was looking forward to being back in my tent. I knew I had some warmer clothes to change into there. Not to mention the sleeping bag.

There was only one other figure in the command center when I entered. Serenity was already seated at the far end of the large table, with a single other chair beside her. She smiled as I walked in and motioned for me to take a seat beside her.

“Hello again, Chris,” she greeted me. “Thank you for helping to prepare dinner tonight. Though unusual to most of our palates, tonight’s fish was mild enough for us to stomach easily enough.”

I couldn’t help but chuckle. “I’ll take that as a compliment,” I smiled. “So I take it that I passed the test?”

“You did indeed. You’ll be working with Blossom and Orchard from now on until we’ve managed to retake Everfree.” Even in the growing darkness, I could see her expression fall. “Assuming, of course, that you decide to stay.”

I paused for a moment. “What do you mean?

Serenity seemed not to hear me. “No doubt you’re wondering why I’ve asked you to come here.”

“...I’m a bit curious, yeah…”

“We’ve been receiving information throughout the day about our current situation,” Serenity began. “I think it only fair that we let you know exactly the predicament we face. I understand that this is not your war. And… I won’t blame you if you decide you cannot help us.”

“You already know that the Minotaurs have taken our capital city, Everfree. The city is now under their complete control. Anypony with any connection to the crown is being rounded up and hauled off to the dungeons. Including my husband, King Solaris. The rest of our citizens are being repressed and kept under tight control. I fear greatly for their safety if we cannot retake Everfree quickly.”

“But it does not end there. Already, the Minotaur war machine marches on. Numerous other cities have already surrendered after hearing of the fall of Everfree. Half of Equestria is now under Minotaur rule, whether by force or by surrender. The other half, I fear, will soon follow. Our camp is now deep in enemy territory. We must be very, very careful not to draw their attention.”

“So the kingdom is gone then,” I summarized. “Is there no place that could have held out? No city with some tactical advantage that could repel an invasion?”

“Only one,” Serenity sighed. “Cloudsdale, the floating city of the Pegasi. But it is of no use to us. We cannot flee there, for only Pegasi may walk on the clouds they use for their city. They'll be holding up in there for as long as they can... Other than that, the only city that could have held out is not even a city in Equestria. The Crystal Empire, Equestria’s greatest ally, lies several weeks travel by hoof to the north. I doubt even the Minotaur Empire could stretch its supply lines long enough to even reach the city. But nor do they have the forces and resources needed to push out and help us retake Equestria. Unfortunately, our only hope at this point is internal resistance.”

“Or to break their block on your magic,” I added. “Have any of your reports identified a possible source of the protection?”

“Something I was just coming to. We have reason to believe that Adamant Will has found an ancient talisman of some kind. An artifact that predates Equestria, and perhaps the Minotaur Empire itself. It is likely that this talisman is what is protecting his forces. This was sent to us by one of our scouts.” Serenity slid a paper across the table to me. It was a hastily-drawn sketch - an upside-down triangle with a diamond in the center, a Unicorn head jutting from the top, and two angelic wings jutting from the base of the Unicorn’s neck.

“Alright. So snatch that thing away from Adamant Will and your Unicorns have their magic back,” I smirked. “Easy Peasy.”

“It’s not quite as ‘easy peasy’ as that,” Serenity frowned. “We’ve already tried that. Adamant Will is wearing that talisman on a string around his neck, and is always heavily guarded whenever moving throughout the city. Two Unicorns were killed attempting that exact feat you just described. Besides which, an observer described to our scout that the talisman refused to move, even when our Unicorns attempted to remove it. We believe it will only be removed if the wearer removes it voluntarily.”

“Oh…” I murmured. “Guess… I should have figured you’d have tried that already, huh?”

“Unless we can somehow convince him to remove the amulet - a near impossibility at this point,” Serenity continued, “ - then I fear that our only option may be to kill him. And with Everfree essentially on lockdown, and our remaining forces far too small to even think of attempting a direct assault…”

She shrugged helplessly. “You now know our situation, Chris. I will be the first to admit that it is dire. It is likely that Equestria has seen her final days. We will continue to resist the Minotaurs as we can, but as I said… this is not your war. The Minotaurs do not know that you have aided us. If you wish, you may leave now and never return. I will not blame you.” Serenity fell silent as she leaned backwards in her chair. She refused to meet my eyes, instead choosing to focus on a set of papers on the table in front of her.

I leaned back in my chair as well, arms folded and eyes closed. Serenity had spoken the truth. Besides the one Minotaur in the caves, which was now dead, no other Minotaur had spotted me. Unless they’d seen me wandering in the darkness through the wilderness as we fled towards the camp, in which case it would have been difficult to identify me as anything other than another Pony. I could just leave now, and try to find my way back home on my own. I ignored the small protest in the back of my mind as I opened my eyes again. “So… you’re saying I could just… go,” I repeated. “Leave the camp and not come back. That’s it, full stop, no strings attached, nothing?”

“Well, we could not risk you divulging our camp’s location to the Minotaur, whether by choice or under coercion,” Serenity admitted. “If you were to choose to leave, we would have to purge the memory of this place from your mind.”

“Wait, what?!” I yelped. “No. Uh uh. Not happening. No way am I letting you all screw around with my head. Not a chance in hell.”

“Then we cannot let you leave.”

I shot Serenity a glare, though I doubt she noticed - she still refused to meet my eyes. “Then I guess I’m staying.”

“You do realize the consequences of such a choice, correct?” She demanded. Suddenly, her eyes locked onto mine, and I found I could not look away. “If you elect to remain in this camp, you will ally yourself with Equestria. If the Minotaurs find out that you’re here, they will treat you as an enemy. We can offer you no guarantee of your safety or survival.”

”Well the way I look at it, I’ve got two choices,” I shot back. “I take my chances in here, or I take my chances out there. Now, I know what’s in here. I know what you all - we - are up against. I know what I can do here. I don’t have a damn clue what happens if I leave. Could be better. Could be a hell of a lot worse. And if I stay in here, I don’t have you lot poking through my brain. So I’m taking what’s behind door number one.”

I refused to break eye contact as Serenity stared me down. Truth be told, I was probably going to stay even if one of the conditions of my departure hadn’t been a memory wipe. That merely sealed the deal. It didn’t necessarily mean I was happy with it - while I sympathised with Serenity and her plight, my prime concern was getting back home. Still, I had spoken the truth. Better the devil you know than the devil you don’t.

Finally, it was Serenity who blinked first. “Very well, Chris,” She said slowly. “If this is your choice, so be it. Your duties shall remain as we have discussed earlier.”

“Fine by me.”

“And… there is… one other condition.”

Oh joy. “What?”

“If we are attacked, I must insist that you know how to defend yourself properly. I will not have a soul in this camp who cannot fight.”

I blinked. “Say what now?”

“Combat, Mister Powell.” Serenity peered across the table at me. “This is a war camp, after all. Staying here puts you directly in the path of combat. As I said, we cannot promise your safety or survival. You must rely on yourself for these things. You have already told us that you cannot fight. And so you shall be trained to do so.”

“I’m not planning on fighting anytime soon.”

“Neither was I,” Serenity countered. “And yet, here we are. It is not an option, Chris. If you are going to stay with us, you will have to learn to defend yourself for when - not if, but when - a battle comes.”

I grumbled angrily under my breath. I knew she was right. Not knowing how to properly fight while staying in a rebellion camp was nothing short of suicidal. Even if I wasn’t planning on cracking any more skulls than I already had… “Fine,” I muttered.

“Excellent. Your training begins in five minutes.”

“Wait, what?”’

“The sooner you start, the sooner you shall learn.”

“God damnit all…” I swore under my breath. “Alright, alright. So who’s going to be training me?”

“Luna has agreed to teach you. You will find her back in the dining area clearing.”

“At least it’s a familiar face…” I muttered under my breath. “Anything else?”

“No, that is all I can think of for now.”

“Good. Then I guess I’d better go get this over with.” Without waiting for a reply, I stood and turned my back to her, making my way around the large table and out of the command center.

Was I upset? A little bit. Who was I upset at? Mostly myself. I’d hoped I’d be able to get through this whole ordeal without having to fight. In retrospect, it was kind of an empty hope. Living in a rebellion camp, in the middle of a war zone? There was no way I’d be able to get away without fighting. Yes, I knew how to shoot a gun, but I didn’t have one on me - I’d been hauling our hunting rifles, but I guess I lost them during my fall. Plus, based on Orchard’s reaction to the matchbox, I doubted that Ponies had even discovered firearms. It was very likely that their form of fighting revolved around magic and more medieval combat.

It didn’t take me but a few minutes to make my way from the command center back to the fire pit. By now, dusk was well and truly upon us. The moon and stars shone brightly overhead, with the western horizon being illuminated by brilliant hues of red and orange. I quickly pulled out my phone to check the time again. 7:20. I tucked my phone back into my pocket and glanced around the large clearing. A number of bright, glowing balls of energy were hovering in the air above and around the clearing, similar to the one used by Serenity in the caves, though not quite as bright. Off to my left, I could see a group of a half-dozen Ponies working near the fire pit, scrubbing and cleaning away. And directly in front of me, standing all alone in the center of the large area, was Luna.

“Chris,” She nodded as I stopped a few paces away from her.

“Princess.”

“So you’ve decided to stay with us, I take it?”

“I’ll take my chances with the threats I know rather than the threats I don’t.”

“And mother has told you that I’ll be teaching you to fight?”

“She did, yeah.”

“Excellent.” Luna’s horn lit up with a dark violet aura, and she closed her eyes. An instant later, A large chest popped into existence beside her, falling to the ground with a heavy thud. “Now then. We’ll be meeting here every evening, half an hour after dinner,” she continued as she opened her eyes. “Obviously, we don’t have the time to go as in-depth as we’d like, considering our circumstances. But I can at least teach you enough over the coming days and weeks so that, when the time for battle does come, you will be more than a meat shield for our forces.”

“Looking forward to it,” I muttered under my breath.

If Luna heard me, she didn’t let it show. Instead, she knelt down next to the chest and flung the lid open. A number of weapons floated out, surrounded by Luna’s magical aura. Just as I had suspected, they were all the kinds of weapons you’d expect to see in a stereotypical medieval setting - a large sword, a mace, a battleaxe, a bow, a crossbow, a smaller sword and shield, a spear, a pair of daggers…

“You’ll learn how to use each of these weapons, along with others,” Luna explained. For tonight, I shall let you select your preferred weapon to begin with, and we shall branch out from there.”

I glanced back and forth between the weapons floating between me and luna. To be honest, I only had a basic idea of how each of the weapons would handle differently - A battle axe and sword would both cut, for example, but the battle axe had a bit more power behind it due to being more top-heavy. Other than that, I was pretty clueless. All I knew was that, if a battle was going to happen, I didn’t want to be anywhere near those Minotaurs. Even if I had a shield, I had no doubt that they could just smash right through it. Tentatively, I reached out and plucked the bow from the air.

“A ranger, hm?” Luna murmured as the other weapons floated towards her and back into the chest. “An interesting choice.”

“I’ve shot a few arrows before,” I explained quickly. “Might as well start with something familiar…”

Luna’s horn died down as the chest was closed, but almost instantly lit up again. Another object popped into existence at the far end of the clearing - this time, a large effigy made of straw. Directly behind it, a large wooden wall appeared as well. Finally, next to Luna, a third object appeared - a quiver full of arrows, which floated over to me. I tugged it out of the air and slung it over my shoulder.

“Alright Chris. Let’s see how good your aim is.” Luna strode over towards the effigy, drawing a line in the dirt with her foot about two dozen yards from the target. “Stand behind the line, and shoot.”

I walked over and stood behind the line, staring down the clearing towards the dummy. I’d shot a bow and arrow a few times in my life, though the last time had been at summer camp over a decade ago. The wooden bow in my hand felt very unusual. Heavier than I had been expecting. And the string… I strummed it once, feeling the tension behind it. I took a deep breath and reached over my shoulder, drawing an arrow. I ran over what I could remember in my head as I notched the arrow, with one of the feathers sticking up vertically. Slowly, I drew the string back. It was even more tense than I had imagined, and it took considerable effort to draw the string back. I looked down the firing range once more, aimed for the chest of the dummy, and released the string.

An instantly later, the arrow went whistling through the air. I could tell it wasn’t a great shot - The arrow began to rotate slightly as it flew the short distance down towards the target. Still, at this relatively short distance, it wasn’t a huge problem. The arrow struck the dummy in the knee, with the feathers pointing upwards at an angle towards the sky.

“Not… terrible,” Luna murmured. “But we definitely need to work on your form. Draw the bow again.” I notched another arrow and drew the string back. Luna was there in an instant, pushing and pulling at various points on my legs, torso, and arms. After what felt like ages, she finally stepped back. “Let it fly.”

I let loose the string again. Once again, I heard the whistling of the arrow as it screamed down the range. This time, it didn’t seem to tilt as much, and it struck at a much shallower angle in the dummy’s pelvis. It was an improvement.

Luna seemed to think so as well. “Better,” she nodded. “Again.

---

The moon was already high in the sky by the time Luna called an end to our training. I gladly dropped the bow and fell backwards onto my rear. The dummy was peppered with holes from top to bottom, and a few of the arrows still stuck out of it and the wall behind it. Luna had increased my shooting distance to nearly a hundred yards towards the end, and my aim had only gotten worse as the distance increased. It didn’t help that my right index and middle fingers were now rubbed red from pulling on the string for hours.

“You’ve improved today,” Luna commented as I pushed myself upright again, massaging my sore fingers. “But you still have a ways to go. Same time, back here tomorrow.” With that, she turned and walked away towards the command center. I stooped down grab the ow and slung it over my shoulder, along with my quiver, and set off towards my tent.

It only took me a few minutes to reach my new dwelling. The bow and quiver were deposited on the ground as I stooped down to fit under the small canopy. A quick check told me that the shirt I had been wearing when I fell into the pool was now mostly dry, and so i tossed it off to the side and laid my pants out to dry. With nothing else pressing coming to mind, I curled up in my sleeping bag and prepared to drift off to sleep.

My first day in this crazy world was done. It was still hard to believe that it had only been 24 hours since I’d woken up in that pool. And now I was stuck on one side of an extraterrestrial war. It hadn't been an easy day, to say the least. I stank of sweat and raw fish, with a hint of wood smoke to go with it. I was tired, I was sore, I was scared, my head hurt, my fingers hurt worse… All in all, not how I’d planned to spend today when I’d left to go hiking.

Well… Looks like I’d be staying here for a while. Better get used to it.

Comments

[Moongaze14]

Nice to see Chris learning how to fight and use the bow.

[SRY]

Actually Chris has the ability (but not necessarily the knowledge) using the ingredients he has now to make one really nasty bioweapon that could be used against a stronghold of the Minotaurs. Basically, Botulism toxin, and all he needs are the fish (low ph food), a sealed container (need anaerobic conditions), some dirt (spore source), or even some diluted honey (spore source), and some time. All he has to do is remember why eating bad canned food will kill you.

Pros: Super easy to make. Good psychological effects even if off target or misses the bad guy. Delayed effect, hours and days before symptoms sometimes up to two weeks.
Cons: Indiscriminate use, will kill off target, in the water supply you are basically killing a town. Delivery is somewhat difficult, you still need to get it there. Takes time to prepare. Can act through inhalation or skin absorption so he needs to be careful in making it. Chris may also have ethical problems with this action too. But making it and not using it except as a last resort is possible too.

Step 1: Mix ingredients and wait. Test on local wildlife if unsure of potency.
Step 2: Sneak into town water supply or aerosolize and seed cloud over town.
Step 3: Wait for paralysis to set in (hours to weeks).
Step 4: Walk in, kill the incapacitated bad guy, or remove alicorn amulet from corpse.

[hs0003]

Depending on how magic works, he could probably translate the basic concept of a firearm into a magical weapon for the unicorns. Have them throw small stones really fast since the energy needed is quite small and the anti magic won't do shit once the projectile got its momentum.

[Sipioc]

A little surprised he didn't go with the crossbow. More akin to a gun

[Amethyst Blade]

Melee weapon of choice for those who don't know how to use them: Spear. Pretty straight forward and any conscript with enough common sense can use them to great effect.
Range weapon of choice: Crossbow. Pretty simple to use. Don't need quite as much skill and strength as a bow.

If I have time, then Sword and Shield like the Roman Legionaries. The big ass shield will protect me very well and the relatively short sword will be better for up close and personal.
Just my personal take and choice in medieval/roman-greeco era weaponry.

[Saris Daddy]

7698341 I was halfway through typing the same comment

[Lexiebommel10]

And now I was stuck on one side of an extraterrestrial war

who said you were lost in space it could be a few dimensions to the left or a billion years in the future

[ForgottenBackgroundPony]

7110744
So similar to a railgun?