Xcom: Alien Unknown

by Bronycommander

Chapter 2 Unification day

Chapter 2 Unification day

As Dinky woke up, she could see Ponyville in the distance, her home. Full of joy, she galloped towards it.

Her pace slowed. She blinked. Her nostrils stung. The grass felt dry beneath her hooves.

The ground itself felt crumbly.

She suddenly realized the lights in the distant town, weren't those of welcome. She saw that the town was burning and screams could be heard.

She feared for her family and friends. The little unicorn ran as fast as she could towards the town, and became horrified at what she saw.

Most of the buildings were destroyed and corpses littered. Despite being scared, she looked at them and hoped that her friends and family weren’t among them.

Then, a horrifying screech came from behind.

As she slowly turned around, the filly trembled as a four-legged purple colored creature stood a few meters away from her. The creature had two claws, very sharp tow formed its teeth, Its eyes glowed yellow.

Something told the unicorn that this creature was responsible for this, but she was too scared to run and frozen on the spot.

Dinky screamed as it leaped towards her, her life flashing before her eyes.

“Get away from her!!” Sparkler’s voice ringed in her ears, mixed with the sounds of fighting.

Slowly opening her ears, she saw how the older unicorn was fighting the insect-like creature with her bare hooves, covered in blood. “Dinky, run!” the mare yelled. She didn’t have to say it twice.

Dinky ran as fast as her legs could carry her. She hid in a small, still intact building and slammed the door shut. She cowered as she peeked out of the window.

Sparkler bravely stood her ground but then, the creature hit her into her chest with its teeth and lifted her into the air. She screamed in pain before she became limp.

Sparkler…N-no…

The creature then dropped the body; it implanted what looked like an egg into the mare’s chest, then walked out of sight.

Dinky just stared, not able to believe what had just happened. Her big sister was dead, the rest of her family and friends probably too.

She curled herself into a ball and cried.

A horrible groan made her flinch.

As she dared to peek out of the window again, she witnessed in horror how the body of Sparkler stood up, her eyes glowed red and her skin pale.

Whatever the insect thing had done to Sparkler, it had forced her to rise again as some mindless, lifeless creature.

The undead pony wandered aimlessly in a slow stumbling manner. Dinky wanted to look away but she just couldn’t.

After what seemed like hours, the unicorn started to bleed from the mouth and vomited blood. It made the young filly wonder what has happened.

The zombie collapsed and twitched as if it was about to burst.

To Dinky’s horror, it did burst and a smaller version of those creatures hatched from the body. It had a visually lighter color.

It stared at her, then lunged at her.

The last thing she heard was her own scream.

---

In that moment, the filly jumped up with a scream, breathing heavy and had cold sweat on her face.

Within seconds, the door to the guest room opened and the married couple came in with worried expressions. “Dinky, are you alright?” the man asked.

“I-I…had a nightmare…”the filly said in a shaken voice before Lena scooped the filly in her arms.

“Shh, it was just a dream. Please calm down,” she spoke in a calming and motherly tone, before she wiped out a few tears out of Dinky’s eyes.

Dinky buried her head into Lena’s chest. Lena patted her mane.

“Shhh...Don't worry. We are here...Shhh.” She rocked Dinky and hummed a lullaby to her.

Before Dinky fell asleep, the woman whispered, “You can sleep with us.”

Once back in bed, she said to her husband, “Goodnight, my dear.” They all slept peaceful.

It was early morning when Lukas woke up, and he had to smile to what he saw.

The little filly smiled in her sleep while being hugged by his wife.

Despite this heartwarming sight, he wasted no time to have breakfast and went to work.

The middle-aged man worked at the local bakery and specialized in sweets like muffins. His mother used to be a baker and his idea of specializing in treats came from Dinky’s mother.

He barely entered the bakery as a voice called out, “Good morning, Lukas, how’s it going?”

He turned around to see a man with similar height and build as him as he walked in, but he had a broad face and chin, green eyes and black hair. “I’m doing well, Franz, what may it be?” He asked in a friendly tone to his first customer of the day. Lukas and Franz were best friends since grade school.

“A coffee and a pretzel please.”

“There you go.”

“Thanks.” Franz ate with a smile, it showed that he enjoyed it. “I’m also glad to hear that you and your wife are doing fine. My liver is killing me again. I’m afraid the gene clinic will be the only option left for me.” He had suffered from liver problems since he was a child.

Barber shuddered at those words. His mother suffered once from cancer and went to a gene clinic to cure it, but never returned. As such, it filled him with unease. “Okay, just be careful,” he replied with worry, he didn’t want to lose him too.

“Of course, my friend. Can you give your wife my regards?”

“Sure thing,” Lukas replied as his friend paid for the meal and left.

---

The young unicorn woke up with a yawn. She smiled as she saw that Lena was still asleep and that it was sunny outside.

Dinky carefully climbed out of the bed and walked into the kitchen to make breakfast for the woman. It was the least she could do as repayment for their hospitality. Plus, she made breakfast often for her parents and Fletcher and they were pleased every time.

A delicious smell crept into Lena’s nose and caused her to stir and wake up.

“Good morning, I made you breakfast.” Dinky walked in with a breakfast board, a piece of toast and a glass of juice in it.

“Oh, Dinky, you really didn't have to. Thanks so much,” the woman said with a smile. She enjoyed her meal, which pleased Dinky.

“I'm glad you liked it. What have you planned for today?”

“Today is an important holiday, so I actually have today free. I had planned to clean the house. What you like to help?”

The filly grinned. “With pleasure! And where is Lukas?”

“At work, he’s a baker like his mother used to be, but comes back around noon or afternoon at holidays.”

“Okay.”

---

The day at work was mostly quiet, but Lukas couldn’t complain, he liked the job, yet was glad when he could close up and go home.

Around 2PM, he closed the bakery and went home for lunch. He brought some pretzels from his bakery.

“Welcome back!” the child greeted with glee.

“Thank you, Dinky,” he replied with a smile before they had lunch, the filly enjoyed it to the fullest.

“They taste really well, you sure know your job,” she complimented him.

“Glad to hear it, I learned it from my mother.”

“That's nice. So did I. How is she doing?” the unicorn asked with innocence.

The man sighed. “She was great.”

“Oh…” The child lowered her ears in guilt. “I’m sorry.”

Lukas stroked her mane. “It’s okay, you couldn’t have known that.”

The filly then asked with a weak smile, “How did you got to met your wife?”

Lena took the word. “There isn’t much to tell, we went to the same school. And…witnessed the invasion…” The woman shuddered with a slightly horrified expression.

“Sorry that I brought back bad memories…” Dinky lowered her head.

Lena in return gave her a hug with a weak smile. “It’s fine, Dinky. We were just around your age back then, maybe a bit younger or older, I can’t remember exactly. It started like any other day.

We went to school that morning, and the only thing we were thinking about was what to do after class. Suddenly, there was an explosion that shook the whole building. I remember the windows rattled and the teacher looked out of the window, and his expression terrified.

We all went to the windows to look out, and we saw this… thing. A giant spaceship came out through the clouds, and emitted a green light… plasma shots, rained down onto the city. I saw buildings just collapse, and fire spreaded all over.” She took a deep breath, her voice was shaken her expression became slightly horrified again.

“We went to shelter shortly after, but then the-the things landed… I saw the first one hit the ground next to our school and released green gas, that sucked everyone in that was near it.”

“We heard screams and held each other for dear life as it went on for what seemed like hours.” Lukas continued, his voice and expression were also unsettled. “When it stopped, we saw blood and bodies of dead teachers and students in the hallways as the roof had taken a hit from the plasma, a clear line through the middle.

Then, those aliens came and started to abduct people. It made us both hope that help would arrive quickly.
,
Fortunately it did, in the form of XCOM. A squad of soldiers quickly moved in and eliminated the aliens before they could get into the school. We both were very grateful back then, but the screams and blood…both burned themselves into our minds.” He finished with a disturbed voice.

“Oh my…I can’t imagine how horrible this must have been,” the filly said with a hint of shock in her voice.

“Yes. We watched the news from a fallout shelter as their biggest ship arrived off the coast of South America, it caused earthquakes across the planet, and made us fear for the worst,” Lukas said as he took another deep breath. “XCOM managed to destroy it, and we thought that was it. But it wasn’t…”

“What happened?” Dinky asked.

“Shortly after, another big ship arrived. And another, and another. The resistance was defeated worldwide and we held our breaths as we waited for the aliens to suddenly strike us down.” He started to tremble slightly, his voice was close to break down.

“But they didn't. The governments made peace with the Elders. They moved entire populations to the newly made City Centers which they created within a month. Old cities were brought down, the rubble cleared, and new ones erected in their place.” He slowly stopped to tremble, his voice was shaken again.

It took the filly a moment to process everything. “I see. You said your father was serving in XCOM, what happened to him?”

The man let out a sigh. “After the peace treaty, my mother and I got visit from a XCOM soldier that had managed to escape death. He told us that my father was killed in action, and gave my mother his wedding ring. That was how I got to know he was in XCOM. And I will never forgot their efforts to defend us. It was six months of living in fear and they fought hard to keep earth safe.”

Dinky couldn’t imagine how hard and terrifying that must have been. “I’m sorry to hear that.”

Lukas smiled weakly. “It’s okay, it’s in the past. Now let’s enjoy the rest of the day.”

The two adults decided to play “Do not get angry” with Dinky, which she knew from home under the same name. She often played it with her friends.

It was a German board game, for up to six players. The goal for each player was to move four figures from the old “home” into the new “home” by making a clockwise round on the board, but a player could throw out a figure from other players if they landed on them, it forced said player to get the figure out of the old house again. This could frustrate any player, thus the name of the game.

For some reason, the married couple felt a sense of joy they hadn’t felt in years; their hearts were warmed after they saw Dinky was happy and had fun.

As such they weren’t surprised when she finished first with a smile.

The hours passed and soon became evening. Lena made some fried potatoes for the three of them for dinner. The foal had good manners and ate with both knife and fork. She used her magic to do so and smiled to show her hosts that she enjoyed her meal. “They taste really good, you’re a good cook, Lena.”

“Thanks for the compliment.”

“I wanted to ask, what is this holiday you spoke of?” Dinky wanted to know.

“It’s the Unification Day, celebrating when the peace treaty was made 20 years ago.” Lena explained.

“Makes sense.” Dinky replied as she finished her meal.

“It should start any moment now.” Lukas turned the TV on and it showed the ADVENT logo, a strange, foreboding, jigsaw-like monogram, black on red before a news reporter was shown. AVENT troops marched in formation, led by officers who saluted by making a fist to their chest as reporters could be seen in the background broadcasting live .

“Excitement continues to build as city centers across the globe prepare for the 20^th anniversary of Unification Day.” The reporter said and the picture behind him switched to civilians that have gathered on the streets. “Thousands line up at the side of the Great Accord, celebrating the formation of the ADVENT Coalition.” The Great Acord looked like a stage with a big screen and a large Elder statue behind it that stood tall, high into the sky.

“In keeping with their promise to humanity, 12 new gene clinics will be opening in selected cities by the end of the new year.” It then showed one of the clinics It looked like a typical hospital, expect, it had a logo of DNA on the roof before a damaged clinic was shown. “Despite the attack by fringe Elements, operations in the new facility in Paris thankfully remain unaffected. In response to the unprovoked intrusion on the eve of our most beloved celebration, the Speaker reaches out to us.”

The broadcast switched back to the Great Accord. It showed a man with short black hair and blue suit as he walked up on the stage, his eyes hidden by black sunglasses. The filly also took notice that he had green splotches on his neck.

“A small number of dissidents again repeat the mistakes of the old world.” The speaker started as a live broadcast of ADVENT troops that fought resistance members and aided civilians caught in the crossfire was shown. “Striking as we celebrate a benevolent savior who time and again offers only friendship and compassion. Yet these trivial actions could never break the bond between humanity and the Elders.”

The scene then showed ADVENT troops making arrests and raids as the news reporter continued, “Peacekeeping forces have already made several preemptive arrests of known collaborators. ADVENT again assures that today’s celebrations will continue as planned.” The broadcast then ended.

The unicorn stayed silent as she did not know what to say, before Lukas looked at her. “While many attend it, we stay home. Can’t leave you without company, can we?”

Dinky smiled. “I guess. Even if it’s only a day, I already enjoy your company. I think you would make good parents.”

Lena chuckled. “It pleases me that you think that of us. We actually planned to have a child, but in order to do that, I would have to visit the local gene clinic for tests, but I’m afraid to go there.”

Dinky’s expression became confused. “Why? Are you afraid of needles?”

“No, nothing like that. We had some friends that visited the clinics and went missing afterwards. I don’t want to lose my husband, he’s everything I have left now.” The woman’s reply was filled with sadness as her head lowered.

“I see. May I help you in the kitchen?” The filly wanted to help in any way she could.

Lena smiled. “We appreciate your help, but leave it to us.”

“Okay, I’ll be in the living room.”

While the two adults cleaned the kitchen, the woman spoke up. “Her parents really raised her well, they can be proud of her.”

“Yeah, though I wonder how her uncle looks like,” Lukas replied as he finished putting everything into the dishwasher before his wife said,

“Honey, look.” What they both saw warmed their hearts.

Dinky has fallen asleep on the floor with several drawn pictures.

The first one were her parents, the Brown Earth pony known as Time Turner, or Doctor Whooves and the grey Pegasus mare known as Derpy. The second picture showed her big sister Sparkler, together with the unicorn filly Tootsie Flute. It made sense as the filly was seen with Sparkler together in one episode.

The next picture showed her friends. The little colt known as Pipsqueak, the three fillies known as the CMC, the unicorn called Ruby Pinch and many more. The two bronies took notice that along Dinky’s friends, there was a grey Earth pony colt with a human girl that had yellow and orange striped hair. The married couple decided not to think much about it as they looked at the last picture.

Three ponies, a green unicorn, a blue Pegasus and a grey bat pony. The unicorn had written “Best uncle ever” under it. All pictures had writing that said, “I miss you.”

“That must be Fletcher Fray.” Lena said with a sad voice. She knew that the filly missed her family and friends already.

“Yeah, still, we must do anything we can to keep her safe until they find her.” Lukas replied before he tucked the child in.

“Indeed,” His wife replied as they went to bed.

The filly woke up with a yawn in the morning and noticed a delicious smell in her nose.

“Good morning, I made you breakfast.” The woman walked in with a breakfast board to give toast with juice to repay the generous action.

“Thank you very much,” Dinky smiled and ate her breakfast with glee. After she finished, she noticed that it was hot today and decided to get another glass out of the fridge. “I’m thirsty.” The eyes of the humans went wide as the unicorn levitated a giant glass out of the fridge with a determined expression, and nodded. “This is an extreme thirst!”

It created a small shockwave as she putted it down. “Uhh…”Lukas was lost for words.

The unicorn grinned. “Just an illusion spell I learned from Sparkler.” And in a flash, the glass went back to normal size. “This warm weather just makes me very thirsty.”

The wife chuckled. “Of course.”

The filly let out a happy sigh after she drank the juice. “Much better!”

Suddenly the doorbell rang, followed by a not very gently knock on the door, yet not rude either. “Visitors so early in the morning? Dinky, stay out of sight.” Lukas looked at her, she nodded and walked back into the guest room.

As he opened the door, he saw an ADVENT officer together with two normal soldiers standing before him. “Mr. Lukas Barber?” the officer asked in German.

“Yes?” he asked slightly nervous in return.

“Please come with us. We only have a few questions.”

Lukas nodded before looking at his wife, who had a worried expression. He gave her a hug, with the ADVENT soldiers watching neutral before they left with him.

Dinky had watched everything and noticed that Luna started to sob. Without hesitation, the filly hugged her in an attempt to cheer her up.

The pony could tell that this wasn’t good and that she had to be here for the woman, as she had been there for her with Lukas.

Author's Note:

At least they weren't here for Dinky.

Comments

[Black--Soul]

Another Fantastic chapter

This three are gret together

Nooo... What do they want from him?

[Bronycommander]

10813016
Thank you! As for Lukas, you can only find out and see

[Black--Soul]

Byebeye Lukaaasss

Advents at its not so best ladies and gentlemen.
Rather surprising that Advent isn't covering up better about the disappearances.
But what better way than to make space in a full city than liquidation of its citizens.
I wonder if age effect the harvesting process.
Because I would if it is not a factor be going for the old only.

[Bronycommander]

11748054
you tell me, I wish the lore had explained this better. I always wondered what advent actually means