Fireteam Odium

by EchoTheFloof

12) Gathering an Army

The three guardians stood at a large table within the town barracks. Kalis and Exodus had made their way there as fast as they could, ending up taking only ten minutes to arrive at their destination. Kervis, meanwhile, had finished his drink and thanked the bar tender before leaving to meet up with his team in around the same time it took them to arrive.

“So,” The War Mage leader began, “I am aware you want ponies, but how many do you need? As I have stated previously, we do not have all that many Mages ready.”

“As many as you can spare. We need as much support as we can get, though I want to give you a warning before we continue.” Exodus said, “The Cabal are ruthless. They will kill, and they won't hesitate to do so. If your ponies go into combat, and they are not captured, they may very well be killed.”

The Mage was quiet for a moment, thinking upon the decision she now had to make. After a short while, she spoke up, “These monsters are going to cause untold damage if we don't stop them. Losses are inevitable, but we need to endure. The War Mages will stand by your side until these creatures have been all but destroyed.”

“I understand that this is difficult for you, but we will do our best to make sure as many ponies as possible come home.” Exodus said, standing tall.

The pony smiled at that, “Thank you. Now, you three are more than welcome to stay here in town while we work on preparing the Mages. We should be ready by evening tomorrow.” She said.

The guardians gave her a nod and back out from the room, beginning their walk down the corridor towards the exit.

“God, I wish we didn't have to do this.” Kalis commented, looking down at the ground slightly as she walked.

“As do we, Kalis, but we can't change that now.” Exodus replied.

“Maybe not, but I can still dream.”

The rest of their walk out of the building and around the town was mostly silent. None of them knew what to say to make it better, though with the job they had now given themselves, there wasn't likely anything that could be said.

They eventually settled down in the bar, Kervis going upstairs to get some sleep. It was going to be a long night.

- - -

Chrome Shield walked slowly through the town, taking in the sights around him. It wasn't the first time he had come to this town, and it likely wasn't going to be the last. His cousin lived near the town centre, making clothing for the Mages that lived around her.

The job seemed to pay well, as the Mages were not allowed to train without their combat robes, which naturally deteriorated with time in the field. This left her pretty well off, living in a large home, with plenty of space to spare.

With nothing else to do until the next day, the unicorn decided to pay his family member a visit, altering his path to reach her home. The streets remained quiet with the time of night, even the later hours shops had begun packing up for the evening.

Not long after, he arrived at the door to her house. It was a large slab of oak, hoof-crafted to fit her style. He gave the wood a short knock, listening as a few clatters could be heard throughout the interior of the building.

When the clattering had ceased, the door pushed open slightly, revealing a pink unicorn with a purple mane. She gave him a look over before her face switched to one of recognition.

“Chrome? What are you doing here?” She asked, her eyes wide at the sight of her cousin.

“I came here with some, uh... ponies. I wanted to come over and check up on you, see how you were doing.” He responded with a smile, hesitating at the thought of trying to explain the guardians on a porch.

“Ah, well would you like to come in? I was just about to make something to eat before bed.” She said, opening the door to allow him to enter.

“I can come in for a while, though I don't think I'll be eating anything tonight. The Mages will likely make us something before we leave tomorrow.”

“You're only staying for a day?” She asked, slight disappointment in her voice.

“We need to back out there as quickly as possible, I'm afraid. But when this is all over I would love to drop by again, if you would be up for that.”

“Of course! You are always welcome here,” She chirped, her disappointment seemingly disappeared, “Feel free to make yourself at home, I'll be there in just a minute!”

Chrome nodded and took a quick look around. It had been some time since he had set hoof in this house, the last time he could remember being before he joined the army. The house wasn't overly messy, but with her work taking so much of her time, it was clear she hadn't had much of a chance to properly clean.

Turning to his right, he entered the living room, silently appreciating the furniture that decorated it. Three double-seated couches surrounded a small coffee table, all of which had intricate patterns across them to give them a more noble look. Various cupboards lined the walls, each filled with old hardware that had once been used to make robes, until a new device showed up that outperformed the one before it. An ornate chandelier hung from the ceiling directly over the table, its multitude of lights shining bright enough to light the entire room easily.

The carpet was, unfortunately, the least impressive thing in the room. It was a simple black, absorbing any excess light to give the rest of the room a more homely feel.

Done with looking around, Chrome sat down upon one of the couches, feeling himself sink into the plush cushion. As he waited, he thought upon the mission he and the guardians had been given. They were to raise an army, but only had a few days to do it. Something of that scale hadn't been accomplished in many decades, and even then, the army wasn't needed in the end. Even if they got the army ready in time, the soldiers would probably be ill-prepared for what they were going to face.

His thoughts were ceased by the sound of hooves coming down the stairs. He turned his head to see his cousin walk into the room, sitting down on a couch opposite to him.

“So how are you, Chrome? It's been quite a while since you were last here,” She asked, smiling slightly.

“After everything that has been happening, I've honestly been better. What about you? I've heard some good things from the Mages about the work you have been doing.” Chrome replied.

“It's been hard work, but not too bad. There aren't many new Mages coming in with the lack of any significant wars, so my job has mostly been repairing damaged robes or making new ones for a few clothing shops around Equestria.”

Chrome shuffled slightly before speaking up, “There haven’t been new Mages? Did you not hear about what happened in Manehattan?”

“We all did. It's horrible, but what are we supposed to do? There isn't even two-hundred Mages ready for combat here, the rest were sent on guard duty in the lesser villages and towns. The ones that stayed here were the ones that had exceptional promise. Even if we got new Mages, they would have to endure years of training.”

“Then we can only hope that our new allies can help count for those losses.” The stallion commented, drawing a confused look from the mare.

“New allies? Another country has come to our aid?” She asked.

“No. Did you hear the stories about three beings evacuating the city?”

She nodded, seemingly unsure as to where this was going. After an expectant look from her cousin, however, her mind clicked into place.

“They are here? Oh my goodness! Can I speak with them? I would love to be able to,” She exclaimed, her eyes lighting up.

“Uh, sure. I think Kervis is sleeping but Kalis and Exodus should still be awake. Why exactly did you want to speak with them?”

“I was told they were wearing armour of some kind. If that armour is capable of blocking all that damage I would simply adore to learn how it is made. Imagine if the Mages were capable of blocking damage without spells!”

The blue unicorn sighed slightly at that, “While I admire your enthusiasm, I don't think they would like you poking around at their armour.”

“It would just be for a minute! All I would be doing is casting a quick spell to learn their compositions, and then I would be done.”

“I think we should at least talk with them before-hoof, Cross. They need that stuff to protect them during combat. Should something go wrong, and that armour became damaged, they might be at a disadvantage in the field.”

She looked a bit downcast at that news, but satisfied with the compromise. She was about to speak once more when a loud whistle sounded from another room.

“Oh! Please excuse me for just a moment, dinner's nearly ready.”

Chrome gave a smile and nodded, shaking his head slightly at the disappearing form of his cousin.

“This is gonna be interesting,” He muttered, settling down.

- - -

In the town of Despectus, two ponies trotted back into the town. The mare and stallion both had worried looks adorning their faces, both silently praying that their home and son would be safe when they returned.

As they entered the town square, they could see the monsters speaking quietly with Elder Shine. The pony was giving them a warm smile as she spoke, occasionally pointed to various places within the town.

In order to reach their home, they had to pass through the square. Not something either of them wanted to do, but it was necessary to reach their son quickly. They ducked down slightly, hoping not to be seen, and made their way through the open area.

A glance from the mare showed the biggest of the monsters to have noticed them, but it made no signs of moving. Shine was too busy giving a welcome to them to notice the presence of the two ponies.

At the speed they were moving, it wasn't long before they got through, away from the monsters. They ran up to the door of their home and slammed it open, the mare galloping into the living room to find their colt sitting in the centre, a wide smile on his face when he recognised his mother and father.

“Mom! Dad! I'm so glad you guys are safe!” He cried, racing into their embrace.

“And I'm glad you are, kiddo.” The father said, giving his son a hug, “Did anything happen while we were gone?”

“Nope. Some ponies were crying but they went back into their homes real quick. It's been quiet since.”

“Good. Now, your mother and I need to have a quick chat, and then we will be with you again, okay?” His father asked, looking down at him with a smile.

“Um, okay.” The colt muttered.

“Don't worry, Indigo. It will only be a minute or two, and then we will be right here with you.” The mare said, hoping to raise the spirits of the little blue pegasus.

He gave a nod in response and walked back to the centre of the room, sitting down to wait for his parents return. The mare and stallion, meanwhile, moved into the kitchen to speak privately.

“What are we going to do? Those monsters have just been allowed into the town! What if they decide to attack?” The mare asked in a hushed whisper when they had arrived in the room.

“Trust me on this. If they had wanted to harm us they would have done so. I don't necessarily trust them either, but if Shine says they are okay, we have no reason to distrust her. Plus, think about all the Mages we have around here. If they try to do anything, the Mages will slaughter them.” The stallion responded, in the same volume of his wife.

“But there were Mages in Manehattan, and look what happened there.”

“There were literally millions of monsters during that fight and less than one-hundred Mages. The only reason anypony even got out of that place was because of those three. Here, there aren’t even twenty monsters, but there are over fifty Mages. They are hideously outnumbered, and they know it.”

The mare gave a look to the doorway leading to the living area, “I just... I just don't want Indigo to get hurt.”

“And neither do I, but we need to have faith in our Elders, at least until Crimson returns. When she is back, we will know what we need to do.”

“If you say so, hun.” She muttered, giving her husband a short nuzzle, “I think we should probably get back to Indigo.”

“Yeah. Just remember to stay positive. The Elders know what they are talking about and if they say that the monsters are alright, you should trust them.”

The mare gave a nod and turned, walking towards the living area with her husband in tow, hoping to have a quiet night with her family.

- - -

On a train destined for Canterlot, a guarded car rolled along in stony silence, the ponies either sleeping or watching as the scenery passed in a blur.

In a far corner of the car, two ponies sat in a whispered conversation. One of them being Celestia, the other the purple alicorn.

“But how do we know we can trust them? Sure, they helped get ponies out during the Manehattan attack, but you saw the devastation just one of them dealt to those few city blocks. Imagine us having to fight them and the monsters.” The purple alicorn said the white one, her whisper threatening to reach normal talking levels in her anxiety.

“Twilight, please. I have been around for many, many years, and while I couldn't see their faces, I can tell an ally from an enemy. I have already received word that they have reached Solacium with no issues, and the War Mages have welcomed them into their town. If you keep worrying like this, you will end up driving yourself up the wall, and I think we both remember how that ended.”

“But princess, we are talking about a war against a race that we have never seen before, and our only allies are three beings of yet another race we have never seen before. Surely we should be cautious until we know more about them?” The alicorn known as Twilight commented, her voice lowering into that of a whisper once more.

“In a time like this we don't have much of a choice but to accept that they are our friends. Should they attempt to harm us, I will stop them. But until that time, we need all the help we can get.”

Twilight paused for a moment before responding, “Alright, princess. I'll take your word for it. But I have another thing I wanted to speak with you about.”

Celestia tilted her head slightly, awaiting her question.

“According to what was taken from the monster's ships, they are trying to take our magic to use as a weapon. If they are going to be stopped when they take ponies, why have they not gone for the Tree of Harmony?”

“I have thought upon this for a while now, and can only come up with two options as to why the Tree of Harmony hasn't been touched. One option is that they simply don't know where it is, and so have not launched an investigation into it. Another is that they are aware of the wrath they would be going against should they attempt to take it. That tree isn't as simple as it seems, and has quite a few countermeasures to protect it in case something came to damage it.”

The younger alicorn gave a nod at that and stood from her seat, “Well, I think that was it. I'm going to go to sleep, and let the girls know what is going on. Have a good night, princess.”

“And the same to you, Twilight.”

- - -

Far away, two ponies trotted down the dark streets to the barracks where the three guardians were staying. As they arrived at the door, the dark blue unicorn turned to speak with the mare beside him.

“Now, Cross. These guys have been through hell and I think this is the first break they have had in a long while. I know you are excited, but please, try to keep your enthusiasm under control.”

“I know, don't worry. Now can we get in there?” She replied, a beaming smile crossing her face.

“Alright, alright. C'mon.”

With that, Chrome pushed the door to the barracks open, trotting in with Cross. The guardians had been given their own area of the barracks to use as a temporary home, making it easy to find them. Kalis and Exodus were talking with each other over a table, a game of cards before them. Kervis was sleeping nearby, the larger parts of his armour laying near the bed.

As they walked closer, Exodus noticed them and gave then a quick nod, drawing Kalis' attention over aswell.

“Hey guys,” She whispered, putting her cards facing down in front of her so she could face the ponies.

“Hey, I was hoping to introduce you to my cousin, Cross Stitch. She would like to speak with you about your armour.” Chrome replied in a similar whisper, hoping to not wake up the Titan.

“Of course, what would you like to know?” Exodus asked, also setting his cards down.

This time, Cross Stitch spoke up, “I would love to know what each piece of your armour is made of. I make the robes that the Mages use and if I knew what that stuff was made of I might be able to transfer that into the production of armoured robes, helping our Mages last longer without having to use healing spells.”

“Well, normally Kervis would be the person to ask, as he wears the heaviest armour out of the the three of us, but as he is currently unavailable, I guess you can look at mine.” Exodus said.

“Oh, thank you! I won't be a moment, I just have to cast a spell on it and I'm sorted.” She explained, stepping closer to the Warlock.

“Fair enough, go ahead.”

Still smiling, she started her spell and cast it upon the feathered metal that made up the Warlock's chestpiece. But as the spell finished, she could feel and odd energy conflicting with her magic. Before she could completely finish casting it, she gasped as she felt the energy react to the new magic that enveloped it. In only a few seconds, a blinding light smothered everyone in the room following with a colossal explosion. When the ponies and people regained their vision, their reactions were mixed.

There, in the corner of the room, Exodus lay still, a gaping hole within his chest. As they stared at the corpse, his Ghost became visible and opened his segments, signifying the Exo's death.

“The hell was that!?” Chrome yelled, pulling the mare back.

“I-I don't know, that wasn't supposed to happen... oh no, is he dead?” She stammered, a look of horror on her face.

Kalis had stood when the explosion rang out, pure rage racing through her body. A pony she thought was an ally just killed her friend, and she was beyond pissed.

“You motherfucker.” She muttered, drawing her knife. Chrome saw this immediately and stood in front of Cross.

“Kalis, it was an accident, you and I both know that. Just put the knife away and let's talk about this.” He said, hoping to defuse the situation.

The Hunter turned slowly to look at the unicorn, her hands shaking slightly. She gave no response, instead channelling Arc energy through her body and blade.

“Kalis, please. This isn't you.” Chrome continued.

“Oh this is completely me.” She said quietly, sprinting forward and swinging her blade towards the two ponies.

Chrome was just able to fire a shield spell, something he was well practiced with, that blocked the incoming guardian. The shield was enough to slow her down, but as she struck the barrier, he could feel his strength beginning to wane. He only had a split second to cast it, and so it didn't have enough energy to impede the Hunter for long.

Their saviour came quickly, just as his shield was about to break. Their vision turned purple as a new sound rang out from behind them. Kervis, his armour fully equipped, stood tall, his hands surrounded in Void energy as he stared down the Hunter.

“Kalis! What the fuck are you doing?” He called out.

“Can you not see? They killed Exodus!” She responded, finally breaking the shield cast by Chrome and stepping forward, just outside the dome of Void light.

“I highly doubt that they did it intentionally. This is your lack of thinking kicking in once more, Kalis. Look at them, they are clearly upset about what had happened and the mare looks like she is about to have a fucking panic attack. If you don't put that super away I swear I'm going to do something I really don't want to do.”

The Exo looked them over for a few seconds before grunting, stowing her blade and allowing the Arc energy to dissipate. She said nothing as she pushed past the them, leaving the building and walking away outside.

Kervis sighed and dropped the Ward, turning to the ponies, “You two okay?”

The mare was feebly muttering something, tears streaming down her face with her hooves covering her head, Chrome was trying to console her, but to no avail. When he realised the question had been directed at them, he looked up at the Titan.

“She's scared, but okay. I'm gonna need a minute as well. Whenever a shield breaks, I need to recover.” He explained.

Kneeling down, he spoke softly to the petrified mare, “Hey, are you alright? I assume you never meant for that to happen.”

The pony looked up at the human, quickly giving a slew of apologies and rushed explanations, allowing Kervis to determine what happened.

“You shouldn't worry. Kalis can be like that at times, especially when her friends are harmed. She means well, but you will have to give her some time. As for Exodus, he'll be fine.”

“W-what?” She asked through her tears, “But he died, look, his body turned into dust!”

Sure enough, Exodus' corpse, along with his armour had turned into a fine black dust, his Ghost was nearby it, his segments still open and spinning.

“Just trust me, he's fine,” The Titan said, standing up and walking to the Ghost. When he was within arm's length, he rose his hand near the Warlock's companion and pushed some light into it, the blue the made the gaps between his segments flashing in response to the new energy. When enough had been given, the Ghost began the resurrection process, dropping the Warlock down and disappearing from sight.

“Gah,” Exodus muttered, holding his head, “What happened?”

“Accident involving this mare here and your light. Sorry it took so long to res you, Kalis went ballistic again.” Kervis explained, turning to signify the mare he was talking about.

Cross was now watching as the guardian she thought was dead walked over and knelt down, “Did she hurt you? I swear to God, if she did...”

The mare shook her head, slowly standing. She gave his knee a prod, trying to make sure she wasn't seeing things. Chuckling, the Warlock gave her mane a rub and stood, looking over at Kervis.

“Where did she go?” He asked.

“Outside, her Ghost will probably feed telemetry to you if you need it.”

“I'll go speak with her, can you stay here and look after these two?”

“No problem, if you need any help feel free to ask.” Kervis replied, sitting down near the ponies.

“Thanks, I'll let you know what happens.” Exodus said, walking out of the building, “Now where have you gone, Kalis?”

Author's Note:

After a long delay, chapter 12 is finally here!

Thank you all for your patience, I have been slowing down as of late but I hope to change that.

Hope you all enjoyed this chapter. I am trying to refrain from making too many chapters devoted to drama and fighting to give some character development, hope you are all okay with waiting for the more action-packed chapters to start kicking in.

Cross Stitch belongs to Never_Comfortable. The OC has been used with his permission.

Also, some art! This was made by Never_Comfortable for the scene where Exodus meets back up with Breeze, isn't it cute?

Comments

[Indigo Tornado]

yay I'm in it again even if its for a short segment.Too generous u are (I am Yoda apparently).

[EchoTheFloof]

8291734
Indigo is going to be a semi-important character in the future so keep an eye out

[Indigo Tornado]

8291811
why thank you good sir

[EchoTheFloof]

8292561
Haha, I'm honoured that this story has gained that title from you. Really am glad that you have enjoyed this story so far, and especially thankful that you have stuck around since the very beginning

On the subject of Exodus, possibly, but who knows? I guess you'll just have to wait for the next chapter

[EchoTheFloof]

8292586
Because I love to tease you guys about this stuff, it's so fun.

In all seriousness though, even Never_Comfortable doesn't know what will happen half the time and he is the guy that proofreads this stuff. I prefer to keep things like this a mystery, which is why, for example, you guys have never been given an actual description of the guardians' faces.

[Script Singer]

Worth the wait. I have no idea why I keep reading this late at night tho...

[EchoTheFloof]

8292811
Why not?

[NightGear]

Love the chapter, keep up the awesome job!
You looking forward to the Destiny 2 Beta on the 18th?

[EchoTheFloof]

8293973
Of course I am :D

And I'm glad you enjoy it