Of War and Friendship

by DocDelray

Loose Ends

The world was a dismal mess of dark grey and florescent lighting. Twilight groaned as she forced her eyes to stay open until they focused. Eventually details started to take shape; she could make out the light fixtures overhead and the plating of the ceiling. A dull pain nipped at her shoulder where the saber had plunged into her. To her relief, it no longer tore at her as sharply as it had before; in fact, her body now felt lighter compared to earlier.

With some reluctance, her eyes moved over her form to investigate. She found that her armor had been removed, and in its place a hastily thrown-together hospital gown had been wrapped around her. Bandages had been applied to her shoulder over what had been the hole burnt through her skin and bone. Her afflicted forelimb had been placed in a sling to keep it from being put through much more strain. A warm sensation drew her attention to her unhindered hoof only to find a hand holding it.

Twilight’s eyes quickly darted up along the arm to discern the owner of this limb. Sitting beside her, clad in dark blue and gold armor was a human male that was unfamiliar to her. He appeared to be somewhere near Arkanna’s age at first glance. A strong jaw line and messed blonde hair framed a youthful face and bright blue eyes. His eyes finally moved to Twilight’s, causing her to freeze up inside as a touch of heat entered her face.

“Hey, I was wondering when you were gonna wake up.” Her mysterious new friend said with a teasing smile.

A thousand questions ran through her head, but her analytical mind zeroed in on the ones that would be the easiest to get answers for, “Who in the world are you?”

“We never did get formally introduced; I’m medical officer Dax Theydar.” He stated with a chuckle.

“Ah, yes, nice to meet you Dax. My name is Twilight Sparkle,” She replied with a polite nod, “Now, if you don’t mind, why are you holding my hoof?”

Dax glanced down at his hand still on her hoof before letting it go with a slight tinge of embarrassment, “Oh, that. Well, you sort of forced me to promise I’d hold onto it until you woke up.”

Twilight could feel a bright red heat filling her cheeks, “Heh, I’m sorry about that. I uhm, I tend to get very ‘friendly’ when under the effects of mind-altering substances. I, uh, what exactly did I say and or do?”

A playful smile etched across Dax’s face, “Let’s see, you pestered me to remove my helmet because you wanted to see if I was ‘as cute as my voice sounded,’ then you wanted to know if I was single, which eventually led to ten minutes of blatant pick up lines.” He watched with an amused chuckle as the mare tried to sink out of sight into the mattress, her face a crimson beacon that burned through her violet fur, “I don’t get hit on by many of my patients, so it was a very interesting experience for me.”

”Well, since you’re awake now, I need to get to the planet surface and help with the relief effort,” Dax said as he rose to his feet, giving her one more heartwarming smile, “I’ll leave you and your friends alone to catch up, I’m sure they’re dying to fill you in on all the excitement you’ve missed.”

She gave him a confused look as she watched him leave, “My friends?”

Looking to the other side of the room, her heart sank in near terror at what she saw. Sitting on the bed that shared this room were both Rainbow Dash and Kell Skirata. They both fought hard to keep their fits of laughter from spilling out until Dax had exited the room. Loud, jovial laughter rolled out of the cyan Pegasus as she fought to stay sitting upright, holding her sides.

With a pained groan, Twilight magically pulled her pillow out from under her head and used it to cover her face, muffling an annoyed yell. Satisfied that the majority of her bottled rage had left her system, she peeked an eye out from under it, “How long have you both been there?”

“Literally the entire time,” Kell snickered.

Rainbow Dash laboriously forced herself back up, still wading through waves of giggles, “So Twi, got yourself a coltfriend now?”

She shot her friend a death glare before forcing herself to sit up in the bed, “How long have I been out?”

Kell returned his attention to a pile of cards that set between himself and Rainbow Dash on the bed, “Few hours. Not surprising, considering you took a lightsaber stab like that.”

Dash stared at her friend sadly, “Does it still hurt?”

Her hoof tentatively reached up to touch the wall of gauze over the wound, “Not like it did earlier… It was painful though, like nothing I’d ever felt before… It was like my entire body was being set on fire from the inside out.”

“Technically, it was,” Kell pointed out as he drew a card from the pile before throwing one back in, “Nasty things, those Jedi weapons. They tear whatever they hit apart down to a molecular level with super-heated energy.”

Both ponies stared blankly at the human who seemed to take little notice of their obvious discomfort. Clearing her throat, Twilight sought to break this sudden uncomfortable silence, “Well… That certainly sums up how it felt. So, what exactly was Dax talking about? What’d I miss?”

Rainbow Dash smiled excitedly at the chance to recount everything of note from the past few hours, “Only Princess Luna staring down like a billion warships and then tellin’ them to get the buck outta here ‘cause we were gonna take our chances with the Mandalorians!” She nearly squealed at the thought of what she’d seen, “I mean, I knew the Princesses were powerful an’ all, but jeez, I’m starting to see why you look up to them, Twi!”

Kell snickered at the dumbfounded look on Twilight’s face, “Don’t feel too bad, I missed out on it too.”

Her mind was still having trouble processing everything around her, but one thing clicked very quickly to bring words into her mouth, “Wait, she… She allied us with the Protectors without consulting Celestia or anything?”

“Pretty much so,” Kell replied, “You guys are all officially part of the Mandalorian Nation now.”

Dash canted her head to the side in confusion as a deathly serious look fell over her friend’s features. The speedster found herself dreadfully lost on the subject of politics, “Something wrong, Twi?”

Twilight shook her thoughts clear as she refocused on Dash, “Nothing, just… Thinking about something, that’s all. So where is everypony else?”

Kell tapped his chin in thought as he brought up the last time that subject had come up in conversation, “Let’s see, last I heard your friends from the village are all hard at work with the relief effort on the surface along with both of the Princesses as well as Zex an’ Torb. Neither of whom would leave the planet till the job is done; Torb thinks it’d set a bad example if he were to rile them up for conflict and then walk away, Zex just thinks if he lets someone take over for him they’ll just get it wrong. Our young Private Kershom has all but vanished alongside the lovely Ms. Shy. And vod is off with Mand’alor, probably discussing our next deployment.” He grinned from ear to ear as he brought this to their attentions.

---

Far removed from the rest of the ship and crew were the lavished, yet modest quarters of Mandalore Fett. The room was slightly larger than most other crew quarters, decorated with a number of tapestries depicting ancient battles long past on worlds far removed from the one they orbited now. About the room were several furnishings that were more lavished than most onboard would own. Fett enjoyed indulging in the fruits of her labors from time to time, a joy she took great pride in, considering how far she had to go to gain it all.

The ruler of the Mandalorian nation set a pair of glasses on the reflective surface of the table at the center of the room, beside them a jug of sweetly scented liquid. Across from her sat her long time friend and the commanding officer of her favored team of misfits, “Help yourself, Kad. From your report, I’d say you’ve earned a drink.”

The aged warrior nodded and took her advice, pouring them both a tall glass of the red-tinted liquor, “Best thing I’ve heard all day.” He declared with a wry smile.

Taking a long sip, Fett began sizing him up for a moment, “You’ve been pretty quiet, Kad, why don’t you just get things off your chest? It’ll make drinking easier.”

Kad turned the words over in his head as his misgivings began to rise to the surface, “Alright then,” Setting the glass down, he looked Fett dead in the eyes, “I can understand certain forces showing up after that Force wave ripped across the galaxy an’ such, but there’s a few things that don’t add up. First bein’ the size an’ scale to which they all showed up. I can understand a few exploratory ships but these boys looked ready for an all-out war. Second bein’ the presence of several corporate militaries, for the life’a me I can’t figure why they’d even know ‘bout this.”

Fett continued to nurse her drink, happily savoring the strong sweetness of the fruits used to concoct it, “That is awfully strange,” She playfully mused, “What theories do you have about all of this business, Captain?”

“Just the one,” Kad took a long drink from his glass. If this came out wrong, she’d have every right to bust him down to a Private; last thing he wanted to do was screw up his career without getting to taste the good stuff, “Someone told them to show up ready to conquer.”

Shaysa reclined back against the soft cushions of the couch, swirling the contents of her glass in deep thought, “More than likely, though I wouldn’t worry about that, Skirata,” Taking another sip of wine she turned her attention towards the planet floating outside the window, “I’d be more focused on this Princess Luna. Very odd how quickly she jumped at the chance to bring her people under our banner.”

Kad’s brow rose in curiosity at this new theory, “You think she’s up to somethin’?”

“Ner burcya, everyone in this galaxy is up to something,” Shaysa snickered, “The question is, just what can we gain for ourselves by letting her indulge in these pursuits?”

“In the meantime though,” Shaysa continued as she slid a datapad across the table towards him, “We have our own pursuits to focus on.”

---

Off in the distance, the sounds of fighting could still be heard throughout the streets of Canterlot. With the retreat of Deathwatch’s main forces from the system and the influx of Neo Protectors into the city, things looked to be dying down very quickly. This was a much welcomed change of pace for the besieged Equestrians, but provided little comfort to Tolik and his small group of defectors whom still made camp in the bombed-out ruins of the once lovely café. They and their pair of pony companions remained in an awkward silence as things continued to progress outside.

“Sounds like all the fighting is moving to the other side of the city,” Their Twi’lek lookout brought to the group’s attention, “I’d say the western half from the sound of it.”

“That puts them in the residential district,” Gallant stated with a happy sigh, “Guess things are finally almost over.”

“Perhaps,” The entire room whirled around to find the Chiss second in command of Epsilon squad. Torb leaned casually against the back wall near the entrance to the kitchen, his helmet tucked under his arm. The blue-skinned humanoid grinned from ear to ear as he looked over the room, he could just taste the unease in the air. Despite every weapon being trained on him now, or at least in Mackers’ case his general direction, Torb showed no signs of fear, “However, I don’t believe these criminals should be allowed to see this victory outside of a detention center.”

“You gonna arrest all three of us all alone LT?” Tolik drew a bead on Torb’s forehead as he awaited the answer.

Torb snickered a bit at this rather outlandish challenge, “No, I’m afraid I just don’t have the time for such troublesome things.” He stated waving off the notion, “If you haven’t noticed, I’m heading the entire relief effort here, as well as coordinating the actions being taken to subdue the remnants of Deathwatch. So you see, I just simply don’t have the time to waste on three terrorists-turned-heroes.”

Tensions in the room began to subside as a few weapons began lowering, “So you’re going to let us go, then?” Mackers chimed in with a hopeful tone.

“Hardly,” Torb scoffed, “I just don’t have the time to deal with you is all.” The Chiss turned to leave the same way he had snuck in, only to stop mid stride, “You know, with so many of the Mando’ade running around the city right now, all one would need is a change in armor color and they could sneak off this planet so easily…” He mused out loud before glancing over his shoulder, “Well, that’s one way to look at it, anyway.”

As he turned the corner behind the shop, he found his newly acquired “pet” droid keeping guard along with the Equestrian, Fancy Pants. The Unicorn gave his alien friend a quizzical look, “I say, do you really plan to let them go free like that?”

Torb gave the pony a teasing smirk, “Free? Oh, I would call their situation anything but free. You see, I am always looking to expand the assets I have in the field, letting them ‘go’ is nothing short of me doing just that. They will soon learn there is no place in this galaxy they can go that I cannot find them. Their freedom is nothing but an invisible cage.”

Slipping his helmet back on, he gave the Unicorn another glance from the corner of his visor, “For now though, we really should stay focused on the problems at hand. Or hoof, I suppose.”

---

Aboard the personal dreadnaught of Mandalore Fett, on the top level of the ship sat what had been dubbed the observation deck. In truth, this relatively small section of the ship was nothing more than a hallway with a few benches, potted plants and a large pair of windows allowing a view on either side of the ship. The area had originally been nothing more than an unused area of the ship that linked a few non-essential areas together. However, after receiving several requests for a lounge and in a few cases a bar to be added to the ship, Fett thought it would be in everyone’s best interest to keep liquor away from the hordes of warriors with access to capital ship weaponry. Instead, the simple and cheap solution was chosen to make use of the long hallway.

At this time the entire area was deserted, save for one pair of figures lounged upon one of the benches. The young warrior Arkanna Kershom and the Equestrian volunteer Fluttershy sat side by side, their armors long since discarded and their wounds bandaged. It was clear now just how much damage the soft-spoken mare had taken in her rescue attempt. Strips of white linen covered the side of her face and eye as well as around her midsection and a splinted wing.

Arkanna had suffered relatively light damage from the fall, and couldn’t help scolding himself over how she had to shield him from the impact the way she did. He tried to keep his attention focused on the coming and going ships over her planet, “So, I told’ja I’d show you some of the galaxy when this whole mess was over with,” He happily reminded her, “I don’t think I’ll be counting this, though.”

Fluttershy giggled softly at his comment, “Oh, that’s okay, really. I’m just happy that whole terrible ordeal is over with.”

There was one thing that kept crawling back into the warrior’s mind though, ‘Ni kar'taylir darasuum gar ti an ner kar'rta,’ It just kept replaying over and over in his mind, “Fluttershy, I, uh,” He knew he had to talk to her about it, “There’s something I wanted to talk to you about,”

She turned her good eye up at him curiously, a slight tinge of red in her cheeks at the reluctantly serious tone of his voice, “Y-yes, what is it?”

He could feel his own cheeks become heated as he stared into her cerulean orb, he felt himself unconsciously fidget under her gaze, “Well… It has to do with what you said, before the mission started.”

Her face became the epitome of worry and dread, “Oh no, I-I didn’t say something wrong did I?” She gasped out.

“No,” Arkanna quickly corrected her, “No, there was nothing wrong with what you said, nothing at all wrong with it.” The young human cursed himself over and over again in his mind. He was a verd, a warrior elite of Mandalore, talking to a girl regardless of how cute she was or what planet she came from should not be this difficult for him. It was then that something dawned on him, “Uh, but, what exactly did you think you said?”

“Oh, well, I was told the words meant, ‘I care for and respect you my dear friend,’” She stated happily with a flap of her good wing. Her head canted a bit curiously up at him, “Why, wasn’t that what I said?”

Arkanna slowly shook his head which only made the look of worry and dread on the timid flyer’s face grow all the more desperate. Her cheeks turning into red beacons through her golden fur, “W-what did I say then?”

He had been afraid of this, with a heavy sigh he tried to break the news to her gently, “Well, uh, what you actually ended up saying was a profession of love to me with all your heart and soul.”

Arkanna had believed her face couldn’t get any redder than it already was, and he found he was sorely mistaken. The fragile mare’s face became a bright red beacon as this information and the gravity of what she said sank in. Her body began to shake and tremble as fear and panic gripped her core. Tears began to swell up in her eye as Fluttershy’s breathing became shallow and rapid, “I- I- I…”

The urge to run and hide became overwhelming for her. How could she say something like that to somepony she barely knew? How little he must have thought of her, the foalish little thing from another planet trying to stumble around with his people’s ways. The only thing she could think to do now was find some dark corner of the ship and cry her heart out. No longer able to stand her ground under his gaze, she shut her eyes tightly and attempted to bolt as fast as her pain-wracked body would allow.

Something was wrong though. No matter how hard she forced her limbs to move, she didn’t feel as though she was moving anywhere. Her eye cracked open to find herself flailing them uselessly in the air. A pressure around her stomach drew her attention to the strong arm wrapped around her, keeping her from fleeing. This would push her further into a panicked state as she muttered incoherently about her own short comings until a hand moved soothingly through her mane. The young mare’s body froze for a moment as goose bumps formed beneath a layer of golden fur.

“Fluttershy, it’s okay,” Arkanna said softly as he continued his efforts to calm her, “I told you, mesh’la, there was nothing wrong with what you said. Not one thing.” He was relieved to see his words were having an effect as she stopped struggling and let herself be held, “I understand that someone played this trick on you, but to be honest, I’m kinda glad they did.”

“Y- you are?” Her shaken words were laid heavily with confusion.

Arkanna smiled thoughtfully as he watched her start to relax, “See, you saying that forced me to start thinking, and, well, thing is…” His cheeks began to burn as feelings started to surface, “I like being around you, Fluttershy. The more I am the more I want to know about you, your world. I dunno if any of this makes sense to you; hell, I’m sort of stumbling through this myself.”

He found it hard to judge her feelings as she refused to turn and face him, but Arkanna wouldn’t let that deter him. This was something he knew he had to do, “I know we haven’t know each other that long, but, I’d really like it if, uh, well, if we could give us a chance, y’know?” The words fell out of his mouth in a clumsy fashion, feeding his already growing embarrassment, “And, well, who knows, maybe someday you can say those words again and mean them.”

For several agonizing seconds, Arkanna found himself staring at the back of her head. The anxiety began to reach a fevered pitch until finally she turned to face him. Her face was still a bright shining ball of red; tears ran down her good eye and soaked the linen over the other orb. A wide smile was plastered on her face as she looked into his eyes thoughtfully. Without any hesitation she threw her forelimbs tightly around his neck and began squeezing him tightly, immediately surprising the human with the amount of strength her frame provided. Pink tresses fell against his face as her timid words tickled his ear, “Okay.”

Arkanna felt his heart leap in his chest at her words. The young warrior smiled from ear to ear as his own limbs moved to embrace her form. Without thought, his lips pecked her upon the cheek, gifting him with a surprised gasp. Snickering a bit, he finally pulled himself away to look upon the joyful mare’s face, “So, whaddya say we go see if Twilight’s woken up yet?”

---

Far from the battleground that was Canterlot or the still smoldering rustic town of Ponyville, in the snow choked northern lands sits the city of Stalliongrad. An industrial megalith, this city of iron, stone and snow is one of the few bastions of life in the blistering cold. Though founded by the ponies of Equestria, it has since become home to a melting pot of different races, all seeking to make their personal fortunes in the cold city of the north. The city’s reputation for taking in all comers worked to the advantage of a group of strange beings that appeared out of nowhere, clad in nothing but the smallest amount of clothing. To the relief of the alien visitors, very few questions were asked and even fewer of the citizens seemed to really care about them beyond a passing curiosity.

These same six beings now currently occupied a large wooden table in one of the city’s seedier bars. It was here that the group of exiled warriors had managed to find not only work, but a wardrobe to survive the cold in. Between them, several bottles of clear alcohol were past around as they unloaded their gripes upon one another.

“I still say this is all your fault, Jensen,” The only other human pointed out with an angry grunt before taking a long drink from one of the bottles.

“When are you guys gonna let that whole tracking beacon thing go?” The besieged Jensen pleaded.

“Maybe when we get the credits to get off this rock,” The Nikto of the group snarled at him, “Until then, everything is your fault.”

Before any more complaints could be levied against the most disliked man at the table, a canine creature padded its way over. Its slumped form had been clad in what looked to be finer materials than the groups’ ragged-looking gear. It regarded the group of aliens with suspicious, golden eyes before leaning against the table, “Just got word from the boss, we have a job for you newbies.”

The former Deathwatch warriors gave each other a bemused look at the mention of the slanderous title of “newbie”. Being the largest of them all, the Nikto leaned in closely, his facial spikes nearly touching the canine’s snout, causing him to shift uncomfortably, “The boss better be paying us this time.”

---

Sounds of creaking metal and the choking stench of burning circuit boards filled Lieutenant Feltan’s senses as he finally began to regain consciousness. With a pained grunt, he forced himself to sit upright despite the screaming pain across his body demanding he not. As his vision began to clear, he found the torn remnants of his ships’ bridge all around him. Sparking wires that still carried some power spilled out from their busted containers while shattered instrument panels continued to blaze warnings that were now frozen upon their screens.

His mind was a jumble of events that refused to move in any coherent order. With a great deal of effort he started picking individual points out as he tried to work out what lead to this current situation. He remembered the commando team sneaking onboard his ship with a few of those things, the Equestrians. The battle in the ship’s hangar bay became a fresh, visceral chain of events running through his mind. He could recall the fall through the atmosphere, the fire of re-entry dancing across the hull of the ship as he took manual control of the weapons systems and attempted to shoot down the offending shuttle. Most importantly, he could recall her. The tall Equestrian in black armor, her speed and grace in combat was impressive, to say the least.

Feltan forced himself to get to his feet, the image of that woman driving his rage and anger. He could feel the spiteful fire burning away his pain as he took to his shaky legs. His vision finally cleared, and he could see through the nearest shattered viewport the twisted state of his ship as well as its current location.

As far as his eyes could see there was nothing but dirt, sand and rocks. He had been left in a desolate wasteland with the wreckage of a warship. Grumbling some choice words about the sorry excuse for a planet, he started his arduous task of escaping the grounded hulk.

The trip through the remains of the ship was a long and extremely depressing walk for the Lieutenant as he picked his way through the wreckage. As the hours passed by, he found himself reminded at every turn of just how much he had screwed this mission up. The occasional dead Deathwatch trooper’s glassy stare begged him for answers he just couldn’t find the time to give. Only one thing pushed him forward, just one single thing that kept him from just putting a blaster muzzle to his chin and ending everything. It was her, the warrior in onyx armor that pushed harder than any other opponent. She consumed his mind and drove him forward every step of the way. Her graceful motions, perfect form, it consumed his mind. She was out there, and somehow he was going to see her again, and kill her with his bare hands.

The thought of murderous revenge helped to pass the time, and Feltan finally reached a working hatch that was close to the ground. With a little bit of elbow grease and a lot of cursing, the airlock door was forced open. The desert sun glared down upon the armored alien as he stepped out into its burning embrace, making him very thankful for full-armor climate control. With a brief survey of the surrounding landscape, he spotted on the distant horizon what looked like hints of civilization. Feltan reminded himself that where there’s civilization, there’s booze.

His heart skipped a bit at the prospect of drinking away his troubles. Before he could get very far a deep, gruff voice spoke up from behind him, “Excuse me, sir.”

Slowly turning around, Feltan found himself face to face with a creature unlike any he’d ever seen before. Massive and as bulky as it was huge, this strange beast was covered in thick dark brown fur. A rather important-looking headband filled with feathers sat atop this thing’s head. Feltan would wager from the rumble of his voice that this creature was more than getting on in years.

“We do not wish to bother you, but it seems you have placed your giant metal wedge in the way of our sacred stampeding grounds, and would be most thankful if you would please move it out of the way.” The aging alien said.

Feltan raised a brow from behind his visor at the mention of “we” and slowly peeked past the creature’s thick shoulders. He found several hundred more of these things waiting patiently for this issue to be resolved. His attention then shifted back to the one that had been addressing him, “Ya know what, you move the damn thing,” He stated as he started to march towards the town. Reaching up to his shoulder, he removed the shoulder armor that bore the symbol of Deathwatch and tossed it away, “I quit.”

---

A makeshift landing zone had been put together on the outskirts of the city walls where a number of long range shuttles sat at the ready as Mandalorians and even a few ponies helped to unload the desperately-needed cargo. The level of security for this area was understandably high as droves of armed troops came and went. Watching all of this from the vantage point of the city wall, Tolik took careful note of the landing patterns of the ships and the movements of the soldiers.

He and his defectors had taken Torb’s passive advice and found a way to change their colors quite literally. With the aid of Gallant and a quickly thrown-together spell on his part, the former Deathwatch Sergeant had to admit that this Unicorn magic stuff was more than a little useful. Tolik, however, was less than happy about the two Equestrians insisting on staying with him and his group of fugitives for so long.

“Alright, just a few hundred armed guards between us and that shuttle. No pressure.” Tolik informed the group in a casual tone.

“So what’s our plan, then? How do we get onboard one of those ships?” Gallant asked as he peered over the side of the wall.

From behind his helmet, Tolik gave the Equestrian a quizzical look, “Hold up a second, who said you were coming?”

Gallant brought himself eye to visor with the Mandalorian, “Do you honestly think I’m about to let a couple of terrorists go running around the galaxy unchecked on MY watch?” His tone was dipped slightly into a snarl, “Besides that, if I’m further than twenty yards away from any of you, the spell will fade. If you want off this planet alive, you’re gonna need me.”

With an annoyed grumble, Tolik finally gave in to the pressuring of their comrade, “Alright, fine, horn-head. You can come along, just try and keep up with the rest of us.”

“Hey, that’s one more member to our merry band!” Mackers happily declared with a chuckle, “So what about you Spitfire, you wanna come see the galaxy?”

The mare accompanying them had remained quiet for the majority of their trip to the city outskirts. Her mind was deep in a cascade of thoughts until Mackers roused her from these visions, “Tempting offer, but I can’t just leave Equestria when there’s still so much work to do.” Moving to Mackers’ side she placed a hoof on his shoulder, “Means this is probably goodbye. Try not to get yourselves killed out there, will ya?”

Spitfire hesitated a moment as she was leaving, “Oh, what the hay,” She muttered before wrapping her forelimbs tightly around Mackers’ neck and pressing her lips tightly to his. The blinded human in her grasp was clearly taken off guard before his own limbs moved to embrace the mare as well. The kiss continued unhindered by the slack jawed expressions of their companions until it reached its natural conclusion. With a proud smirk she pointed out, “For luck.”

Yazan cleared his throat to gain some attention, “Hey, I could use some luck, too, ya know.”

Shaking his head in annoyance, Tolik motioned to them all, “Alright, knock off the goofin’ around. we got a ship to steal!”

It didn’t take long for the small team to make its way to the landing zone. As per their quickly thrown together plan, Gallant and Tolik were on point running interference while Yazan helped Mackers trudge his way aboard the shuttle. Everything would be put the test soon enough as a pair of guards watching over the hastily set up airfield moved to intercept them, “Hold up, actions back in the city, you boys get lost or something?”

“Let me do the talking,” Tolik muttered under his breath in blind hope that the rather large ears of his Equestrian friend would pick up on it, “Soldier, we need to commandeer one of these shuttle crafts, important business.”

The pair of guards shared a look before taking a moment to examine the entire group, most of all the injured man being led around by his comrade, “Yeah, look, secret mission or not, I’m not about to just let the first random group to walk up to me today walk off with a billion credit spacecraft because he asked nicely for it.”

Before Tolik could utter another word, Gallant strode forward past him, “Excuse me soldier, but perhaps you didn’t get the same orders we were issued.”

There was an obvious attempt on one guards part to stifle a clear and present snicker at the quadruped’s angry words, “Oh, clearly I have been kept out of the loop. Do enlighten me, four-legs.”

Gallant’s eyes went cold with rage as he magically tugged the soldier by his collar to bring him eye to visor with him. To the hardened Unicorn’s credit he didn’t flinch or break eye contact for even a second as the caught trooper’s partner leveled his weapon on him and started yelling orders for him to let him go, “What is your rank soldier?” He growled out.

“C-Corporal,”

“Corporal, the last time I checked, Equestria had come under the Mandalorian banner. As such, I am to assume my rank of Lieutenant Commander should still trump yours!” Tolik had to admit that this display gave him chills to watch as well, “My escort spoke out of turn; I am the one in need of this shuttle craft in order to collect the much-needed support troops from the Manehattan garrison as well as find this brave young man much-needed medical help after saving my life. Now unless rank and file works differently on whatever back-water planet you crawled off of, I suggest you stop getting in my way, soldier!”

With a magical shove, the trooper was pushed away from Gallant’s path as he continued on towards the nearest craft with an air of authority and purpose in his step. From his side, Tolik made his way to stroll beside him and snickering a bit, “Lieutenant Commander?”

“Always thought it sounded really important,” Gallant replied with a chuckle as they boarded the ship.

---

Kad strode the halls of the dreadnaught; like any son of Mandalore, being surrounded by so much weaponry and destructive force brought a feeling of ease to his soul. The heart and soul of the Mando’ade was that of vagabonds, wanderers and nomads. But to travel across the endless night sky in the sheltering strength of such a weapon of war was enough to set any Mandalorian’s heart a flutter.

His attention briefly returned to the datapad in his pocket and the plans Shaysa had shared with him during their drink together. Over the years, Kad had become more than aware of her drive and desire to raise Mandalore to heights not even achieved by her supposed ancestor Boba Fett. The knight himself had been an integral part of her plots and schemes and even played a key role in her rise to the title of Mand’alor. Even now, Kad could find no reason to hesitate or pull out of his support of the woman he put into power.

A knowing smirk slid over his face as he recalled those words he’d spoken to the Guardian before his death, 'The Mando'ade will pull them outta the darkness an' into glory; usin' your corpse as a steppin' stone if we have to,’ He never was good at visions or reading the Force, but he could certainly see it now, the change and glory he had promised for the Equestrians. Shaysa always seemed to have a way of putting everything into perspective for him.

Rounding the corner, his destination came into sight: The infirmary room in which he had left his brother and the mare he owed his life to now. Through the open doorway he could see Kell and Arkanna trying to show the three mares how to play pazaak. The sounds of laughter and happy chatter warmed the warrior’s old heart.

Behind him, an elevator door hissed open as a multicolored wave of white, orange and pink rushed past the human, making a dash for the door. Regaining his bearings, Kad watched the jovial chaos with the addition of the rest of their six mare team, most of all the happy bouncing and singing of Pinkie Pie. All the warrior could think about was one of the most important tenants of his people. Family is more than blood, and these girls knew exactly what that meant.

A presence behind him drew his gaze to the blue-eyed Unicorn stallion clad in purple armor with a tightly-wrapped back leg he tentatively avoided putting pressure on, “Shining Armor,” Kad greeted him warmly, “Find what ya were lookin’ for, son?”

“Yes,” He stated with a relieved smile upon his face, “Our mother and father had managed to take shelter during the first wave. Turns out that dad’s old skills from his time in the Equestrian Armed Forces weren’t as rusty as I’d always assumed they were.

Kad gave him a teasing nudge, “Never count us old kath hounds down an’ out boy, otherwise ya just might get bit.”

The Captain of the royal guard shifted a bit as he fought to find his words, “I… wanted to thank you, for keeping my sister safe, and for saving the city. I can’t imagine how much longer we would’ve lasted without your help.”

He took a moment to regard the Equestrian as one soldier to another, “Considerin’ what odds you were up against, I would venture to say that ya did a damn fine job out there son. You an’ your sister are the heroes here, me an’ my boys are just mercenaries hired to do a job.”

“Worth every bit from what I’ve seen,” Shining Armor complimented before his mood shifted to a more serious tone, “We’ve still lost so many, dead or… Or taken.”

“I’m sorry for what Deathwatch’s done to your world an’ for the people they’ve taken.”

“Tell me, what’s going to happen to them?”

Kad was silent for a moment before finally, “There’s an old sayin’ that dates back a few thousand years, 'Mandalorians don’t take prisoners, they use ’em’. From what I’ve heard an’ seen, they’ve got two choices now: join Deathwatch’s ranks or be put in chains as slave labor.”

Shining Armor let this information sink in as he slowly began to stew in his ever-growing anger, “You’re going after them though, right? Stopping Deathwatch is what you Neo Protectors do, isn’t it? I want to go with you when you do.”

“I’m no Protector son, not anymore,” Kad stated in a low tone, “Was given my walking papers just an hour ago, I’m being transferred back to the Mandalorian Knights.”

He could read the confusion and frustration in Shining Armor’s face like an open book, “Let me explain somethin’ to ya; a Knight of the Mando’ade is tasked with protecting our people an’ worlds. Your people an’ your world are under our banner now. Besides that, Deathwatch is trouble for the whole Mandalorian sector. You’re damn right I’m goin’ after ’em.” He glanced at the makeshift celebration in the adjacent room, “Till then son, go to your sister an’ soak up this victory. The next fight’ll be here when it’s ready.”

---

Light years away from the formally besieged star system, on the distant reaches of the outer rim, was a long-dead star system overlooked and ignored by many star charts. There was little reason to enter this area of space beyond maybe dumping trash or charging one’s engines before the next jump to hyperspace. A white dwarf sat at the center of this edge of nowhere, casting a deathly-pale light upon surfaces of the few planets in the system. Along the outskirts of this solar system was a thick chain of asteroids, the largest of which were dotted with the tell-tale signs of mining operations long since past.

It is here that Deathwatch had built themselves an extensive base of operations that stretched throughout the entire asteroid belt. The discarded remnants of the now-dead mining operation had given them an ideal platform to build a base on top of. The radiation given off by the dying star that barely lit the system helped mask engine signatures and power sources, adding additional touches of security.

On board his personal flagship, Hrask examined the latest pair of “recruits,” courtesy of a rather strange turn of events. Standing before the hardened Admiral was a pair of frightened and confused young Equestrians clad in light grey uniforms. Behind them, a lone trooper assigned to them as their guardian stood stock-still. Behind his visor, the Deathwatch Admiral picked the children standing before him apart with a scrutinizing eye, “So, these are the ‘sons’ of Davian Teth?”

“Aye sir,” The trooper answered back, “We managed to get them off the planet after receiving the order to retreat.”

Hrask could see a strong glimmer of potential in these children. They had lost their family, been taken from their home and dragged halfway across the galaxy. Despite being clearly frightened by their lack of control on the situation, they stood strong side by side. Yes, they could be fashioned and honed into acceptable weapons of war, “Find them a place to settle in and begin their training. You are dismissed.”

With a sharp salute, the trooper began escorting the colts from the room. Upon their exit, a red light began to flash on a console built into Hrask’s desk. With a few memorized commands, the entire room was locked down before a holo-projector built into the ceiling created a blurred image at the center of the room. A hunched-over creature clad in black robes that obscured his form and face leaned heavily upon a gnarled staff.

Moving to stand before the visage, Hrask kneeled to the grainy image as his head bowed low, “My lord,”

“Yen Hrask,” the words slithered out from broken, rotting teeth with a sickening tinge to them, “I am to understand that congratulations are in order.”

“Yes my lord,” he replied, keeping his gaze fixed upon the floor, “The civil war has begun, and the forces of Mandalore will be far too preoccupied brining their own house in order to be a threat to your plans in the outer rim. Though it would appear that one of our agents, Davian Teth, was lost in the process.”

“I felt his death, it is a minor setback,” he stated coldly, “but not one without its benefits. Before his death I sensed a massive surge through the Force, it would appear he found something that may be of great use to us on this strange new planet.” A withered hand reached up and stroked along his leathery chin, “There is something powerful hidden there, something that may aid us in our efforts. See to your war, Yen Hrask, but keep a close watch on this planet and their allies. They must not be allowed to interfere again.”

Bowing his head lower, Hrask awaited for the hologram to finally fade away, “As you wish, Grandfather."

Comments

[StatusQo]

So Mackers finally got some eh? good for him, hope to see more of there merry little crew.

[DarthRevan12345]

“Ya know what, you move the damn thing,” He stated as he started to march towards the town. Reaching up to his shoulder, he removed the shoulder armor that bore the symbol of Deathwatch and tossed it away, “I quit.”

I love that reaction