The Hunter From Another World

by Marezinger Z

Chapter 14

The return trip to Canterlot came with another surprise as Cadence and Shining Armor awaited them in the throne room along with the royal sisters.

“Cadence, big brother!” Twilight hurried to them and fell into a group hug.

“Hey, Twily.” Shining Armor rubbed the top of her head.

“It’s good to see you safe after all we’ve heard from Celestia.” Cadence added.

Celestia joined their circle. “I took the liberty of contacting them after you left.” She noted. “With the talk of needing reinforcements from Fluttershy, I thought they would be the perfect pair to aid us.”

“Absolutely.” Shining Armor nodded. As Hunter, Sunset, Maud and Starlight approached, the royal couple stepped forward to introduce themselves. “Hunter, I take it.” Shining Armor held his hoof out. “Celestia has already told us about you.” He noted as they shook.

“Warned us, in some ways.” Cadence laughed as she did the same.

Hunter looked past them at the Princess who only offered him an innocent smile in return. “Am I that bad?” He looked back at Sunset.

“Yes.” She said without hesitation. “I just happen to really like you.”

“Jesus.” He sighed. “Well, it’s good to have you on board; I’m starting to feel better about our chances.”

“We heard what you all have been through.” Cadence looked over the group. “Rest assured we will do all we can to help you bring this to an end.”

“Great, as soon as Spitfire gets back I’ll let you know which crazy plan I decide to go with.” Hunter chuckled.

“I’ll get Starlight and Maud settled in.” Sunset volunteered as she led them back out into the halls.

Shining Armor wandered over to Hunter and sat beside him. “I heard you’re a soldier in your world.”

“Not in the traditional sense.” Hunter shrugged. “But yeah, more or less. You?”

“I used to be captain of the guard here before I married Cadence and moved to the Crystal Empire.”

“Haven’t gotten rusty, have you?” Hunter smiled.

“Not at all.” Shining Armor proudly informed. “I still keep up my old drills even to his day.”

“Old training habits die hard, right?”

“You know it.” He nodded.

“Honey?” Cadence called. “I’m going to spend some time with Twilight.”

“Alright, dear.” Shining Armor waved, his smile fading as his wife and sister left earshot. “So seriously, one soldier to another, how bad is this looking?”

“We don’t have the advantage, that’s for sure.” Hunter nodded slowly. “Our enemy knows we’re going to be coming, they have terrain advantage, number advantage and hostages.” He sighed. “I’m really banking on a specific scenario that’s only going to be possible if they’re holed up where I think they are. Won’t know for sure until the scouts get back.” He glanced back to see the Princesses talking to one another. “Can I tell you something?”

“Sure.”

“Celestia’s been dealing with this as best she can, I get that.” Hunter began. “She wasn’t too happy when I killed Stinger and I promised her I’d try to end this without killing Skyfall or Ridgeback. To be honest though, I don’t know if I’m going to be able to keep that promise.”

“Are these guys that bad?”

“Worse.” Hunter shook his head. “If I hold back in this fight to try and keep my promise, I’m going to run the risk of someone getting killed; hostage, ally… or myself.”

Shining Armor nodded understandingly. “I can tell Celestia’s foundation has been rocked by what’s been going on.” He looked over at Hunter. “She does have a lot of respect for you and what you do, you know. When we spoke she told us it takes a strong creature, pony or human, to live and fight in the type of world you do and still have so noble a heart.”

Hunter breathed a laugh. “I wish my supervisors felt that way.”

“Point is, she knows that at the end of the day you both want to see Equestria safe.” Shining Armor summarized. “As a soldier, I get that you have to do what you have to in order to make that happen; and I know that she does too.”

Hunter looked back at the Princess again and nodded. “Thanks.”

---

Just as worry was beginning to set in, the Wonderbolts finally returned to the castle; Celestia summoned everyone to the conference hall for their penultimate strategy meeting. Spitfire laid Twilight’s map of the Badlands out on the table and began reporting their findings.

“Okay, everypony.” She began. “We’ve located the enemy camp and it’s here.” She pointed to a spot near the north western corner of the Badlands. “The area has only one, open access path leading into it and the surrounding canyon walls are sheer and appear unclimbable. The ponies are being housed in a shanty town and there are three, larger wood structures located to the encampment’s southern end.”

“Do you know what they are?” Luna asked.

“No, we didn’t see any movement in or out.” Spitfire shook her head. “The ponies we saw were moving carts of rock in and out of a shaft against the canyon wall. The entrance is guarded by Diamond Dogs as well as key locations here, here and here.” She pointed to the camp's access path and two other locations to its south and north. “Both targets that were described are there as well.” She looked to the Princesses. “That’s all we could see from the air.”

“Well done, Spitfire.” Celestia praised. “Thank you, all of you.”

“Princess!” The Wonderbolts responded as they saluted.

“Alright Hunter.” Celestia turned her attention to him. “What do you make of all this?”

“Well… fortunately, they’re right where I was hoping they’d be.” Hunter began walking around the table. “Which is good, because our options if that wasn’t the case were pretty grim. But, I do have a plan that should undo most of their advantages.”

“Which is?” Twilight queried.

“We’re going to flood the place.” He answered with a tilted smile.

“What?” Applejack raised her brow.

“Yeah, how are you going to flood a dried up canyon?” Rainbow Dash continued.

“Using their mine.” He laid his talon to the map. “The Badlands have a system of tunnels and caves beneath it that were detailed in one of the books Twilight gave me. This area they are in is below sea level and a huge portion of it is below the water table. They can mine, but those tunnels are just feet from the surrounding aquifers; it’s the same underground waterways that feed into the Hayseed swamps that run around the exterior of the Badlands.” He drug his talon around the area. “Suffice to say, they’re sitting in a giant bowl on top of a lake and we’re going to punch a hole in the bottom.”

“You’re right.” Sunset nodded. “That is a crazy plan.”

“If we do this, what about the ponies that are being held?” Celestia asked.

“Well, that’s where our numbers come into play.” He looked over the now group of four Princesses. “I’m going to need you to do a mass teleportation out of the area. Can the four of you handle that?”

“We’ve never attempted such a feat.” Luna said honestly. “Teleportation is not as simple as it appears and our magic would have to be perfectly synchronized.”

“That’s true.” Twilight concurred. “If we’re off even a little, there’s no telling what could happen to the individual ponies.”

“It will be done, Hunter.” Celestia assured.

“Celestia?” Cadence eyed her unsurely.

“I know we can accomplish this, Cadence.” Celestia confidently stated. “If there is any combination of magic that can perform this task, it is ours.”

“That’s the spirit.” Hunter smiled.

“Very well.” Luna nodded. “If it is a miracle you require, then a miracle you shall have.”

“If you believe we can, then I shall give it my all.” Cadence agreed.

“Same here.” Twilight added.

“Alright then.” Hunter let out a long breath. “Here’s how this is going to go down. Maud is going to lead a team down into tunnels and get into position below the camp; I’ve already got an access point in mind so all you have to worry about is finding the best position to rupture the tunnels and start the flooding. You’re going to need a teleport out, so Starlight will be with you along with Pinkie and Applejack.” He set his eyes to Shining Armor. “You and I are going to move in and get the fight started, take the Wonderbolts and go after the Diamond Dogs.”

“I’ll be joining them.” Rarity announced. “I still owe those mutts for last time.”

“What about you?” Shining Armor asked.

“I’m going to pull Skyfall and Ridgeback away from the ponies so the Princesses can start the extraction.” Hunter explained.

“You can’t take them both alone.” Sunset worriedly insisted.

“It won’t be forever, Sunny.” He promised. “Once the ponies are evacuated then I’ll have plenty of backup.” He looked to the Princesses. “Once I have their attention, move in and round up the ponies. We’ll set up a location outside the camp where Fluttershy and Sunset will be waiting to keep them calm and organized.”

“I can help with that.” Rainbow Dash raised her hoof.

“You still can’t walk.” Hunter reminded.

“I can fly.” She spread her wings. “I spend most of my time in the air anyway. I can help get the ponies to safety to free up Sunset. You’ll need all the magic you can get for the fight.”

Hunter nodded acceptingly. “Okay. Sunny, stick with Shining Armor and leave the ponies to Shy and Dash.”

“Right.” Sunset acknowledged.

“Now, for the timing.” He looked back to Maud. “We’ll give you thirty minutes to get into position. After that, give us ten before you break open the dam.”

“No problem.” Maud said evenly.

“Once the water starts to fill the area, the Diamond Dogs will become useless and I’ll be able to use my Sea Pony form. After that, we just have to take down Skyfall and Ridgeback.” He stood back from the table. “Sound like a plan?” He looked around to hear words of agreement from his friends. “Alright then; tomorrow, come hell or literal high water, we end this.”

---

That night, they all gathered around the lavish dining hall table to relax before the undoubtedly perilous mission. Hunter did what he did best and kept the table on its toes as everyone swapped stories and ribs. As Starlight finished detailing her time in the Crystal Empire, Celestia took a moment to speak up.

“My friends.” She looked over the assembly. “Sitting here, I find that it is true what they say about the worst of times bringing the best of reunions. I had never imagined that one day I would be able to share an evening like this with both of my brightest students.” She smiled at Sunset and Twilight. “Our situation is grave and Equestria has suffered loss, not only of life but of innocence in some respects. Even so, this moment is one that will remain a beacon in my heart no matter what may come.” She used her magic to raise her glass. “A solemn toast; to family, friends both new and old and to those that our world has lost.”

“Well said.” Hunter raised his glass, the others following suit.

As the evening wound down, the group slowly separated for the night and Sunset returned to her room with Hunter. She sat on the edge of the bed and watched him as he set out the pieces of his armor. “Tonight was really nice, wasn’t it?”

“All things considered, yeah.” He looked over his shoulder at her. “This world has a lot of heart, it really shined through around that table. I’m not used to having nice evenings, let alone ones before a mission; it’s a good feeling.” He set his helm down and stood. “All my fights have been won by being prepared, having the best equipment and making the right calls… nothing more and nothing less.” He joined her on the bed. “But it’s surprising how just knowing you aren’t going in alone makes you feel more ready than any of that.”

“Well, teaching the values of friendship is what Celestia and Twilight are all about.”

“And you.” He ran his thumb over her chin. “You taught my ass, that’s for sure.”

Sunset smiled and kissed his talon. “Thanks.” She reached over and ran her hoof across his abdomen. “So, how you feeling?”

“Good.” He patted his midsection. “Good enough for a brawl anyway.”

“What about this?” She whispered, pulling him into a long kiss. Hunter laced his arms around her, lightly digging his nails into her back.

“I think I can handle it.” He smiled as her lips left him. “Can you?” He grinned.

Sunset rolled her eyes and pushed him back onto the bed. “Do yourself a favor and don’t talk.” With a loving giggle she straddled his body and gave herself up to him.

Comments

[TheHardie-Boy]

Calling it right now, Hunter quits his job on Earth

[FolkloreBrony]

Yes, yes! Give yourself to the snark.