Chapter 3: Enemy
Ranger
Chapter 3: Enemy
By Wanderer D
Sunset had been cowering inside an old building for what felt like hours, and once she had managed to get a hold of herself, she had started—silently—swearing and cursing at herself. She had left behind the one place where she could—arguably—figure out a way to return home. And all because of what? Zombies?
She snorted, angry with herself at her fear. "I'm more than capable of handling a few—"
Sunset clamped one of her claws on her mouth the moment she heard the cracking sound outside of her building, followed by a hoarse scream. Several of the popping explosions followed again, and she could hear the screeches of the zombie creatures being cut short, until the sounds stopped and then she heard the sound of something crashing against metal.
She heard a gurgling sound and another scream… although this one didn't possess the same feral quality of the zombies. She risked looking out the window and saw two zombies, one of which was grappling and slashing at another creature… but this one was no zombie. It wore dark green armor of some sort that made it look very official. Its face was covered, but it was sentient!
It was clearly injured, with orange blood slowly dripping down a wounded leg. That was odd, but then again, she was in another dimension. It managed to grab past the zombie's flailing arms and broke its neck, both of them falling to the ground.
It was exhausted, and unable to push the other zombie off itself. The last zombie growled and slowly approached, clearly intending to finish the job. The official-looking creature spat and said something most likely offensive, although it wasn't a language Sunset understood.
Later Sunset would tell herself that she knew on some level that she needed assistance and thus the practical thing to do was to help… but regardless of what she told herself later, she was already running. She felt her magic race down the metallic bat as she focused everything on her swing… it was a solid hit. She felt bones crush under her strike, heard them even as the zombie creature went silent and flew to the side, crashing wetly against a wall and sliding down leaving a trail of green goo behind.
Sunset was breathing heavily, either from her magic being drained or the rush of adrenaline, but it only took a moment to realize what she had done. She felt bile rise in her throat, and the desperate need to throw the bat away, but her mind reigned it in. She forced her instincts back; her feelings of guilt or horror had to be squished… she didn't have time for that. She couldn't throw her weapon away.
She had exposed herself to save this other creature and now she was either going to get killed or gain an ally.
Sunset really didn't want to die... she needed an ally.
Pratal looked up, dazed, at the young woman who had saved him. 'A teenager! A human teenager saved me! Pratal Mox!'
He could feel his jaw going slack in surprise for a moment, before his thoughts focused. There was little reason for a female human teenager to be in the middle of the city unless she was part of one of the Native tribes that still refused to join the cities.
But she looked too clean and too scared to be used to this. He could see her stealing horrified glances at the bodies, but still forcing herself to concentrate on him and to the matter at hand.
Pratal seldom felt anything but contempt for humans, but despite himself, he felt a slight respect for such a vulnerable creature taking such a risk.
"Can you move?" The girl asked, as if unsure she'd be understood.
"I can," Pratal said, carefully judging her expression. "I would like to thank you for your assistance, citizen."
He watched for any sign that might betray a negative reaction to that statement, but found himself surprised to see relief, rather than an immediate urge to deny any connection to ADVENT as any Native would present. And her disposition clearly indicated that she was no rebel.
"Thank Ce—goodness," the girl stammered, offering her hand to him to help him up.
Prodded as he was against a lampost, it was enough assistance to allow him to stand and they both stared at each other awkwardly. She wasn't dressed in a way that could prepare her for this kind of thing. Jeans and a leather jacket… very antiquated looking, in comparison to modern wear at the cities.
But there was something else. Something was different about her, although he couldn't really place his finger on it. He felt less on edge than he did with humans in his experience so far. Perhaps it was simply that she had rescued him? Regardless… "We should head out," he said, pointing towards the edge of the city. "There is an ADVENT outpost in that direction, I can ask for backup. They will pick us up and drop you off in a center to be allowed back in the city."
"Great. Paperwork," the girl muttered. She studied him up and down, and despite his obvious size compared to her, she didn't seem intimidated at all by him. "My name is Sunset Shimmer."
"Pratal Mox."
That was all they said to each other for the next hour or so, choosing to move slowly towards their destination. The girl was alert, if untrained, which helped put his mind at ease in some ways… clearly she wasn't an agent of some sort. While that was encouraging, her jumpiness and lack of focus would create more trouble for them if it wasn't fixed.
In the end, against what his training had indicated, he had started coaching the girl on basic survival skills. What to look for. What to listen for. How to move decisively from cover to cover, in order to lower the chances of being seen. He had depleted his ammo, and she had no guns on her, but perhaps that was for the best in this situation… less chances of her missing the shot and hitting him instead.
He had focused then on teaching her how to grip her weapons, although she had looked at him blankly when he had explained how to position her hands until he had shown her what he meant. She had taken to the simple knife techniques with undisguised relish, and he had to admit, some talent. She could definitely be trained to be a soldier, with enough time and the right environment. As it was, most of what she was learning would prove useless in a sudden confrontation—there was a reason real training was repetitive, but his intention was mainly to get her to feel a bit more comfortable and secure, not for her to face down a torrent of enemies.
Whoever she really was, she was a quick study, however, and soon enough was doing a passable job of keeping watch. For an untrained rookie. If they made it to safety he might recommend her joining ADVENT… a quick flash of what would happen to her ran through his mind and he quenched the sudden uneasiness. He had never questioned the process, but something about her made it almost… difficult to contemplate.
"Sunset, wasn't it?" Pratal asked when they took a break to sit down. She was keeping an eye out of the building they had hidden in while he replaced his bandages. "You don't seem like a warrior or renegade, how is it that you are in these ruins?"
She gave him a look. "Accident. I wasn't trying to come here, I just got side-tracked and ended up in this messed-up place with those creatures." She seemed reluctant to say more. "So… what about you? Are you here for those creatures?"
Pratal steeled himself, cursing silently the fact that he had not anticipated this. As a captain, he had much more individuality than others of his species, and more freedom of will and thus more chances to… develop affection for lesser beings. Most likely the loss of blood had made him slightly delirious. Of course Sunset would not be set free. At best she'd be imprisoned, interrogated, and then...
"I suppose there is no point in denying it. I was leading a troop of ADVENT soldiers in ridding the city of the Drak-ten. This is sensitive information and ADVENT does not want citizens to know such a risk still exists. They are being purged."
Sunset shuddered. "Good. Those things have no reason to exist."
Pratal chuckled and took that as a sign that he was ready to go again. His wound still hurt, but the bleeding had stopped and the new bandages were tighter and more secure. It would still be a few hours, but he would make it.
As they carried on, and with a surprisingly scarce need to advice Sunset on how to do better at her current efforts, he decided to distract himself, pointing out vantage points for scouting, sniping or even strategic retreats. Sunset was an attentive student, and listened intently to his description of previous firefights against insurgents, how positioning and planning had helped, the few times he had been taken by surprise and why, etc.
Although she was clearly not experienced in fighting, Sunset seemed to have a theoretical knowledge of strategy—the type that would be learnt in an academy, if such things still existed. She knew plenty of war theory, from sources she refused to name… was it possible that she was originally being groomed for a position of some importance in a military detail of some sort?
But that didn't match her lack of real training in other areas. All in all she was a conundrum, one that would be interrogated and tortured if needed to dismiss any possibility of her being a spy. He resisted the urge to growl. Whatever happened, he wouldn't allow one of his soldiers to—there it was again. That sense of familiarity and unexpected trust in Sunset… to the extent that he had considered her—for the briefest of moments—one of his troops. Something strange was going on, but he couldn't quite put his finger on it.
Regardless. He had a few hours to try and figure it out.
Sunset cursed under her breath.
According to Pratal Mox, they were just a few blocks away from the edge of the city, and from there just an hour or so from the rally point. But here she was now, flat on her stomach, on top of a rusty truck, spying on a bunch of shambling zombies. The main street they had been going down had several tons worth of metal and bricks blocking it and the side streets didn't look much better. As such, they had taken this route, staying on track towards the East of the city, and had been fortunate enough to not encounter too many of the Lost. They would need to double back, or try and get through the buildings without drawing attention.
So far, Pratal Mox had been useful. He had given her advice on several combat scenarios and, although she did not expect to find herself in situations like that herself, she could see how the knowledge in itself was useful. If she proceeded with her original plans to raise an army to claim Equestria, she needed to know at least the basic capabilities of potential enemies.
She was reminded of her old griffon teacher, Galahad, who had taught her military history despite Celestia's uneasiness at the prospect. The princess was a pacifist, true, but she hadn't raised much of an argument against the case Sunset had presented to her in which a good leader needed broader education, even in military affairs.
Both Galahad and Pratal were clearly very experienced in these matters, and they both had been eager to share their knowledge about the topic once they got comfortable explaining it. It was as oddly endearing then as it was now.
She snorted, then slowly moved away from the creatures. She slid down the back of the truck and headed as silently as she could back to where he waited. "The street is full of Lost, we'll have to go around."
She couldn't see all of his face under that helmet, but his jaw clenched visibly. "That will add more time, but we do not have the resources to fight through the damned creatures and make a break to freedom."
Sunset sighed. "I figured as much."
She watched as Pratal Mox forced himself to his feet. She wouldn't say it to him, but she had to admit she was impressed with his resilience. The wound on his leg was no laughing matter, and would have incapacitated a normal pony for quite some time, even with some healing magic applied.
She wasn't really concerned, but… "Are you sure you don't want to rest a bit longer?"
Pratal Mox turned sharply to look at her, and his hand whipped out quicker than she could follow. Before she knew it, his combat knife was embedded in the forehead of a Lost that had crept up behind her.
The creature stumbled back, opening its mouth to screech, no doubt, but Pratal Mox was already next to her, taking up her bat and breaking its neck before it had fallen back or screeched.
Tossing her the bat back, he pulled out the knife with a sickening, squelching sound. "We don't have time. Only this one seems to have seen you, but the others will soon sense it is gone. Come, we must not linger."
Luckily, the pair were able to sneak past the last of the Lost, breaking into the wilderness soon after. It seemed that the Lost didn't wander far from the slightly greenish mist that spread through the city. That was something to keep in mind.
She followed Pratal to a fenced area at the top of a small hill. There were some metal crates there, and he quickly set to work, pulling out several hi-tech looking devices, which uses escaped her understanding. After a few minutes, he seemed to be ready and set out a signal.
A voice followed soon after. "Set frak Dat-al?"
"Pratal Mox," he replied to whatever the question was. He glanced her way and he seemed to be hesitating. "Set mer dukat. Drak-ten, semmet sakrat."
"Dos vis." The voice in the radio replied.
"So," Sunset gave him a look. "What was all of that?"
Pratal Mox sat down heavily on the crate. "I told them I was the last survivor of the latest mission against the Lost. And that I was alone."
Sunset felt a bit of anger rise within her. "Oh? And why would you say that?"
He looked away for a few seconds. "If they find you with me, you will be captured, tortured and interrogated before… being forced to join us. I owe you my life, and I cannot allow this if I want to retain my honor."
She resisted the urge to point out that she would have probably died in the city without his help, or that he had also saved her life. She didn't want him to decide it was all settled and she was indeed due an interrogation after all. "So… what does this mean for me?"
He dug out the device and fiddled with it, before attaching it to another one. He tossed it at her. "Once I'm gone… use that to call for help. You will be rescued by one of the nearby human settlements. They have patrols all over the place. They will help you out."
"But I—"
"No time!" Pratal interrupted, raising his hand in warning. As if testing her, he made the hand signal for silence, and immediately she could hear several sounds, whirring and humming. "They are close by… go hide."
Despite wanting to buck Pratal in the face, she ran down the hill and into the undergrowth, watching as several vehicles pulled up to where they had been. Several individuals in armor similar to his, yet… discolored or decorated strangely, ran out, pointing their weapons at him.
Pratal had stood up and was crouching into a defensive position. One of the bigger vehicles stopped within her sight and a figure emerged from inside once it was very clear that he had no chance of escaping or fighting back.
"Well, well," a female voice reached her. "If it isn't Pratal Mox himself. Isn't this a surprise?"
o.0.o End Chapter 3 o.0.o
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Good job, Mox! I actaully wonder if ADENT soldiers can be premoted and if the officers have different ranks. Makes me also wonder if the Lost were intended to be created by the fog pods or not, if I may ask, what do you think?
Since we can hear ADVENT officers giving out ordesr in English, it makes sense for Sunset to be able to talk with him, though I wonder if the regular troopers can too, since in the intro, we see them talk with civillians, who can understand them perfectly.
Sorry, old habit of mine to think about such things.
I am assuming that the female individual at the end is the leader of the Skirmishers? Or is she a Reaper?
8695606
Guessing it's betos given the fact the armor is said to be similar to what mox was wearing.
8695726
Personally, my favorite X-com 2 story so far is The Harmony Initiative by Madame Hellspawn. Basically make it so the Aliens attacked Equis instead of Earth, and Princesses Luna & Celestia, mostly Luna, make the Equis equivalent of X-com to fight them. Twilight is the Commander, with Shining Armor as "Central" Bradford. https://www.fimfiction.net/story/361513/the-harmony-initiative
Oh! And the author has a character pool you can submit OCs to and have them be in the story!
Is it bad to ask for more?
Sunset end up lucky with this Advent being pretty much friendly.
Although reading some of the comment, it seems this Pratal Mox has some interesting story in the game. Did some little search just to find he has some role in War of the Chose. Unfortunately I never bought the extensions, I expected an all in one pack like the first X-com, but it didn't happened.
8695793
Well, the main things I don't like in Harmony Initiative are... Twilight and Shining as Commander and Central. And strange arm-things.
Shining Armor as Central, well, okay. Twilight as highest ranked officer, before ascension, and even after that? No, just, no. She is not the military type for me.
Arm-things... what is wrong with good old battle-saddle developed by Fallout Equestria? Simple and not ridiculous.
And Equestria being on a very high technology level. Nope. They should fight mostly with swords, spears and... magic. Yes, I know, it would be unfair fight, and it would create a need for some advanced technomagic, but again: Equestria was for a very long time at peace, and with no need to have technology (steam trains are the latest, right?), and now them having what they have in that story? No, sorry, for me it's just stupid and without good sense. :/
Idea in general is good, but, for me, after a few chapters, THI is too much rip-off, and shortcuts.
On the other hoof, in Stardust we have exatly that: ba, when Elders find Twilight, they kinda lost interest in Earth and come to Equis, which now have to rapidly discover new means of fighting with really advanced technology.
But first Twilight must gain trust of new maybe-allies, which are now invaded by alien spiecies and become a little... xenophobic. Not without reason.
But, as there is saying, "there are tastes and gushes".
8695852
Dude, 1: FRICKIN' SPOILERS! I HAVEN'T GOTTEN THAT FAR IN STARDUST! THANKS FOR TAKING SHOCK VALUE OUT.
And 2: So you want the Harmony Initiative to be as close to canon as possible, in an Alternate Universe that diverges from canon, where them using spears, shields, and the like will mean that in a matter of weeks the Aliens will win? Dude, it's pretty much the only X-com story on this SITE that doesn't involve Humans in any way, shape, or form. Give it some slack. Also, never read a Fallout: Equestria story, so have no idea what a battle saddle is. Also, it's NOT JUST PONIES THAT ARE PART OF THE INITIATIVE. It would be better to make something that multiple races can use, like the mechanical arms, which are still connected to a sort-of saddle, than just something that ponies can use. Also, how would the non-unicorn ponies throw grenades without the arms?
Also, the arms are multipurpose. They are also used by engineering and autopsy.
Also, Twilight already ascended in Harmony Initiative, it occurs post-Season 6.
8695852
Also, pretty sure that is not a saying.
So, the Assassin? The Reapers don't have advent style clothing, and Mox was the first of the Advent troopers to become free, in the game. Or is it not the case here?
8695876
Honestly, that isn't that big of a spoiler. It doesn't happen in the fist story, that's the premisse of the second one - that is in the description. Relax, you are still golden.
8695968
Mox was the first Skirmisher that you meet in game, but he used to be a member of Advent. The leader of the Skirmishers is another freed Advent named Betos, someone else already told me her name since I forgot it, and she had been free longer than him, at least in this story.
8695902
Well, I don't exatly know how to translate this from Polish. Ot, a little "powiedzonko". ;)
No spoiler alert for you, well, because you were already saying that a THI is better than Stardust, so you have to read at least few chapters of the latter. I cannot take away from you something what you don't have. Otherwise you have no right about saying that one thing is better than the other.
Never read a Fallout Equestria? Shame. Just, shame. There was a very nice explanation to how the firearms come to be, and how anypony is able to use them. And yes, they are variants for different species. Non-unicorn ponies are using mouthgrips and fire by using their tounge (in pistols) or just have battle-sadle with trigger near mouth. Zebras are zebras, see what Zecora can do (also, we need more zebras in the show... :(). It is inconvinient? Yes. More realistic then weird arm-things? Much yes!
No, no exatly. As I was saying: no firearms in Equestria. Just, no. Bows, magic bullets, spears, magic. Weird technology arms? What even is a "arm" or "hand"?
How should no-unicorns throw grenades? You should ask anyone in Appleloosa, really. ;)
A little different bulit device than you know as a human, and it should not be significant harder than throwing pies. :)
Slowly (or rapidly) searching for new ways to fight for your life? Yes. Having this already developed because of "secret project"? Lame. Remember that ponies are peacefull, and have magic which is a last word in almost everything. And have one to four alicorns with much greater power. And one of them controls sun, other moon, third "emotions", and last one... books. ;)
And as I was saying: Twilight as a Commander is no-go by definition. She never has any kind of military training, probably just read books about war, if ever, and just because they were books, so her knowledge would be a very academic at best. She is too naive, too delicate.
I don't know how about you, but I would much prefer to knowing that my commander know what he/she is doing, and it's based on some practical knowledge and experience, not by just "reading books about it"...
Commander in XCOM games also (probably, but one can hope) wasn't someone taken from royal family/goverment/fresh out from military academy, but he had to have some experience how to command people. Rest, as what XCOM is using, was a little technical.
Twilight, even as a alicorn, just don't met this requirements. Maybe after few hundreds years, but not now. :/
8695987
Wasn't she just the first free Advent in game? Wasn't that told during after-mision? I don't remember now, and can't check it as I don't own War of the Chosen. A little pricy for a DLC that blocks Long War 2 and give in exchange little... :(
huh though would be more interesting for her to have encountered templars.
Oh my god, D. Is this going to be a daily?
8696057 More like little batches, I imagine. If I can keep mostly daily, I will.
8696046
In resposne to your first point, I have read multiple chapters of Stardust. My opinion is still that THI is better.
I didn't assume that you had never read THI, your comments led me to believe that you had at least given it a chance, so I would appreciate that same courtesy from you.
Second, I just never found the concept of Fallout: Equestria interesting. No shame there, just personal preference.
Third: Just because you feel like the way things are handled in THI is wrong, doesn't mean you should shove how and why you feel it is wrong in someone's face. Madame Hellspawn wrote their story how they wanted, and if you disagree with that, then just disagree.
I DID NOT AIM TO START AN ARGUMENT OF WHY ONE STORY IS BETTER THAN ANOTHER. THIS STARTED WITH ME MERELY THROWING OUT WHAT I PERSONALLY HELD TO BE MY FAVORITE X-COM FIC ON THE SITE.
Addendum: I have read 8 chapters of Stardust before even picking up Ranger. I still prefer THI.
Are you going to say I am wrong? Because that would be saying that an opinion different from yours is wrong.
8696141>>8696046
This is the page for Wanderer D's fic, and he doesn't deserve to have you fight over two completely different fics in his comments section.
Didn't you just say you didn't want to have an argument? Please cool down a little. You can still be the bigger person and choose to stop the argument.
8696117
That is awesome! I'll notify the Jury.
8696255
I did not intend to fight. I just get defensive when someone assumes I am stating an opinion without having knowledge of one of the fics in question.
Sunset Shimmer in ODST gear from Halo on the cover of an XCOM story?
Eh, close enough.
Gunsmoke, Young Amazons, and now this. Who knew that Sunset Shimmer and crossovers would mix so well?
Though technically correct, the first “off” makes this sentence awkward. I recommend removing it (the first “off,” not the whole sentence).
I’ve never read one of your stories before, and I’m pretty happy with what I’ve seen, so far.
8696920 thanks for the advice, I'll do that! Also... is... is that a charizard in N7 armor?
8696957
Charmander, I believe.
8696786
Ponies make any franchise good
8697065 Yes, I'm a bit off my pokemon naming lately but you are correct and it still looks awesome.
It's face was covered, but it was sentient
1. Its.
8696615 glad i wasnt the only one who noticed that
I got to ask, D.
Did you enjoy writing the Stardust chapters of TSC so much that you felt the need to write more X-COM crossover or is it just coincidence?
>A human teenager
She's almost as old as you, Mox. Or should I say, Elder Kracsad? (What Dragunova originally called him. I guess Pratal Mox was a name he chose for himself post-liberation.)
His chip has to have been busted by the explosion for him to even consider collaborating with dissidents like this. She would be perfectly safe in the embrace of the Elders! They would never interrogate a loyal ADVENT citizen like her!
I suppose the timing is spot on, though; the only question is how they found him so fast.
Time for a pop quiz on what she's learned so far!
Hmm... I feel like this I'm missing something.
Marina Sirtis?
Are these the rangers from the dlc?
Started publishing in 2018... are we foreshadowing Sunset's "empathy" powers already? Hmm... Curious...
-GM, master of 19.
Wait, ADVENT? She just found bad guys.
This entire sentence really bothers me. From what I've observed, professionalism is highly valued by his organization, and especially leader figures I'd reckon. It simply seems very... Unorthodox that not only would this detail slip, but that he'd also allow himself to become emotionally compromised.
Cockiness meter: 120%
*enter smash bro rko reverence here*
Uh-oh!
Never played this dlc... Have to watch it later.
Nice turn of events. What do it spell for Sunset?
Ok gonna admit, I have played the first xcom. Never finish, but I have no knowledge of the 2nd.
As such, the suspense is killing me.
Ooooh, it seems Sunset might have a role to play long before her 'psionics' are discovered. I bet her magic will be rather significant, given that it seems to exceed anything the Elders are capable of... That might be a huge edge to the rebellion, if she can teach it. I wonder how Advent will react to being faced with capabilities that exceed their own, given how familiarity they are with having better technology.
Magnificent not friendship, great chapter.
Sad that the Elder have no compassion left.