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//Retrieve
Major Adam Jenkins gripped his rifle tightly, his masked eyes fixed on the dropship door. The vehicle rumbled and shook slightly as it descended, the other marines shifting as it reached the end of its journey. Jenkins glanced down at his rifle once again, making sure nothing had mysteriously moved out of place since his last look.
The ship’s intercom blazed to life. “This is as close as I can get you. No sign of any locals, but there’s still a lot of places to hide out there.”
Jenkins prepared himself to move. “Alright. Open the door.”
A mechanical whine pierced the air as the dropship’s exit slide aside and, with their Major at their head, the marines filed out. Heavy boots touched down on the cobblestone square creating a series of loud thumps and thuds in the dead of the night. Tall, dark buildings loomed over the squad, their old, flat stonework combined with the twisting shadows of the night gave them a quite sinister appearance.
“Ghost town.” A soldier muttered as he swept his torch over the nearby buildings, the cone of light creating dancing shadows through the windows as it passed.
Couldn’t have put it better myself, Jenkins silently remarked. There had been lights in the city as they approached, but the area around the huge fortress at the southern end of the city had been shrouded in darkness. Jenkins couldn’t help but feel that they were being watched.
“Let’s move.” He commanded, the network of transceivers in the soldier’s armour sharing the message between the squad whilst blocking the sound from the outside world.
The squad followed the twisting road toward the beacon, all the while keeping their eyes on the surrounding buildings in case any of the locals would be bold enough to stage an ambush. In the back of each man’s mind was a niggling fear, the fear of the mysterious forces that powered this seemingly impossible world, and what those forces could do to an unprepared man.
Several tense minutes dragged by as the black shape of the fortress came into view, the beacon’s signal emanating from within. Jenkins was uncomfortable. Nothing had attacked them yet, but did that mean they were scared, or that they were still waiting? When he first saw what he would be dealing with he had thought this would be an easy job. With armour strong enough to repel their simple medieval weaponry, nothing even needed to get shot.
But soon enough, reports had trickled in: glowing lights, levitating objects, dragon-like creatures with breaths hot enough to melt vehicles, and even men bursting into flames without any rational explanation or warning. This world was a mystery, and a dangerous one at that. Previous encounters suggested that some of the equine creatures possessed telekinetic and some pyrokinetic abilities. Perhaps the ‘gryphons’ were capable of such powers as well?
“Sir, top of the stairs. See that?”
The marines stood in a small courtyard in front of the fortress. The structure was made of huge stone bricks, layered on top of one another creating tall, imposing walls that would probably take a lot of force for the locals to breach. Dark windows dotted the walls at regular intervals, giving enough room for a man – or alien, in this case – to shoot out of, whilst not making itself an easy target. At the end of the courtyard as wide set of stone stairs ran up to a large gate of huge wooden boards, covered in metal plates. A single torch cast a flickering orange light in the darkness, illuminating a white mass at the top of the stairs. On closer inspection, the Major realised it was a white sheet spread over something.
Something the size of a man.
“You two, with me.” Jenkins gestured to two marines. “The rest of you, stay alert and keep an eye out.”
The soldier’s heavy boots thumped loudly as they scaled the stairs made up of steps barely big enough to give their soles room. The two marines with him covered Jenkins’ sides as they approached their target. It was definitely a man, Jenkins observed. The shape of a human body was clear under the stained white cloth. The Major kneeled down and slowly drew back the sheet.
A pair of closed eyes on a pale white face was the first thing he saw. A huge mat of black bruises streaked across the body’s bare chest, and on closer inspection, his chest was deformed slightly, the man’s ribs looking as though they had been crushed. As Jenkins expected, he was dead.
The Major sighed as he lowered the sheet back over the deceased officer’s face. He reached down, sliding his gauntlets under the body and lifting it, wrapping the remaining cloth around the corpse as best he could.
“Back to the LZ. Time to go.”
From Skies Above – Aftermath
Twilight staggered on her hooves, struggling to maintain her balance as the after effect of the spell struck. For a few moments her vision blurred, her ears rang and she lost her grasp on what was up and what was down, as if some omnipotent being had decided to snuff out gravity like a candle. Bracing herself where she stood, Twilight waited impatiently for the effects to pass.
Her experience in the field of magic rivalled all other unicorns alive, and maybe even those who aren’t, so teleportation was familiar ground to her. But even with all of her experience, her most recent attempt had been one of her hardest. Contrary to popular belief, it was actually easier when the user moved herself along with whatever objects, keeping the magical source closer to the objects along the journey to the target.
That’s why it was easier for the unicorn to transport herself, several friends, and a baby dragon a large distance rather than move, say, half a dozen fully armed and armoured guardsponies several hundred metres.
Twilight shook her head clear, the world around her coming into focus as the ringing in her ears subsided. Her hearing returned, and immediately she picked up the groans of several dazed guards. A spark of relief burst into life as Twilight realised she had succeeded in rescuing her brother.
“Shining?” The young mare frantically looked between the stirring masses of white and gold, her eyes quickly landing on the signature purple armour of the captain.
But something wasn’t right. The pale coloured armour and pure white fur was stain with bright red. Twilight gaped at her unmoving brother, feeling tears welling in her eyes. She hadn’t been fast enough. “Shining!”
“Fetch help.” Twilight glanced around, spotting Princess Celesita, the alicorn’s attention directed at one of the guards stationed in the room. The armour clad stallion nodded before taking off out of sight.
“Do not fear, Twilight Sparkle.” The unmistakable voice reached Twilight’s ears as the dark alicorn stepped into Twilight’s view. Her expression was soft, in the form of a reassuring smile. “We shall not allow Shining Armour to perish.”
*
His ears rang.
His flank was ablaze with pain.
Emerald Haze slowly opened his eyes and courtyard was first to grace his sighting. It’s once flawless, shining surfaces were now riddled with tiny craters and debris. The scorched remains of a tree rose like a twisted, blackened talon, and its brother lay torn apart on the other side where it had been struck by the thunderous alien cannons.
Slowly, Emerald raised himself off the ground, standing on shaky legs. His head throbbed, and he felt a warmth travelling down his brow. The unicorn gently touched his brow, withdrawing his hoof to find a small stain of red. How was he still alive? The last thing he remembered was the bright flash of the alien soldier erupting into flames, being thrown aside and the pounding booms of the biped’s retaliation.
“Lieutenant!”
Emerald Haze turned his head to face the call. A pony was galloping toward him, clad in the same armour Haze himself had been given upon joining the guard. The pony weaved through the debris, then slid to a halt before Emerald.
“By Harmony! You’re alive!” he exclaimed breathlessly, “Are you alright?”
“I... I think.” Emerald looked back over himself. His mane was a mess, tangled and in dire need of a thorough washing. His coat hadn’t fared much better, the fur resembling the twisting waves of a storm over open water, and the bandages applied by the aliens were stained red, probably meaning the wound had reopened.
“What happened?” Haze asked, “Why did they attack?”
“Somepony on the balconies thought they were going to start killing, and decided to hit first.” He looked over his shoulder, Emerald following his eyes to the what he presumed was balcony where it had started. “They fired back at the spellcasters, then used the big cannon on the courtyard. Nopony was down there but the Captain, though, and he teleported out before they wrecked the yard. Either they missed, or were just trying to scare us.”
The guard looked Emerald over, frowning when he saw the reddened bandages on his side. “Lieutenant, I think we should get you to the infirmary.”
Haze merely nodded. Who knows what the aliens could have done to him when he was in their thrall? He’d rather not wait to find out. “Let’s go.”
*
The heavy thumping of the alien’s footsteps echoed through the night as they backtracked through the city. Their dark shapes were contrasted by the cones of light that shone from their heads, brighter than any torch or lantern could hope to be. Through the maze of tall, tightly packed buildings was their destination. The square stood as an open clearing in a forest of buildings, marked by the huge flying beast that hung in the air above it. Jets of fire spurted from its body, illuminating its shining, metallic armour.
Alwin clung to the edge of his cloud, peering down at the huge, black clad beasts as they marched hastily though the city. He felt uneasy, as if something wasn’t right. Despite his expectations, the plan had gone ahead smoothly, and the bipeds had shown no signs of aggression. Personally, Alwin had been sure that simply leaving the body outside with nothing but a sheet to cover it would only incite anger in the beasts, yet they had merely collected their fallen and set off on their way.
Perhaps they were planning on removing their soldiers from the city before they unleashed their wrath? If a gryphon had been killed and his body so blatantly desecrated through the actions of another clan, warriors would be taking arms within minutes in case the situation should go south, and if that individual was of any importance, there was no doubt blood was going to be spilled.
The troop of bipeds thumped into the square, emerging into full view from the tightly packed structures that made up the city. All of the buildings had rooftop entrances, as most gryphons favoured the sky over walking. Roads were only in place to allow the wounded, crippled and the occasion ground faring visitor access to the city, and for larger wagons to transport supplies, although the latter was rapidly being replaced by small civilian airships.
The floating metal giant began to stir, descending to the ground. Alwin watched cautiously as the aliens disappeared into its hold before the beast took flight, rapidly putting distance between itself and the city until it was lost into the night sky. Alwin waited for several minutes, expecting more of the airships to appear and lay waste to the gryphon’s home.
None came.
Puzzled and relieved, the gryphon leapt off the cloud, setting his sights on the fortress.
*
An ivory mare sat still against the wall behind her, a golden helmet discarded on the floor beside her. The mare’s short blue mane hung down past her horn, ending just above her eyes, and her chest rose and fell quickly with every one of her short breaths. Not far from where she sat, a still open doorway allowed light entry into the building. If she stepped outside she would find herself on a balcony overlooking the ruins of a once magnificent courtyard, full of debris and dotted with impact holes.
The others had left, scrambling to re-establish control of the situation. It was just her now, her and...
Starry Night turned her head, her eyes fixated on a single point in the doorway. A thin red smear stretched through the entry, leading back out of sight. It didn’t matter whether or not she could see where it ended; she already knew that. She slowly reached up to her snout, feeling the coarse, dried blood that stained the fur on her face. What have I done?
Starry gritted her teeth and slammed her hoof down. No. I did what I had to. They were attacking...
The unicorn’s ear flicked at the sound of hoofsteps, and she raised her head, finding herself looking up into the stern gaze of a Royal Guard, one of two now standing before her. “Starry Night. I have orders to escort you to Princess Celestia immediately.”
Starry’s eyes widened. Oh no.
*
“They just left?”
Banewin’s deep voice held neither surprise nor joy. He looked down at the smaller gryphon who nodded frantically under his superior’s gaze.
“Yes, sire. They retrieved their fallen and left the city.”
The battlements were crowded with warriors armed an array of dangerous looking weapons, who now shared glances of relief, and some of confusion. Stories had been quick to circulate amongst the warriors, and the biped’s already immense power needed no exaggerating to inspire fear in the hearts of even the strongest warriors. Banewin resided in the midst of the defending force, his own fearsome blade grasped in his claw. There was no way he would shirk his duty to defend his own city, even if it was against a seemingly invincible enemy.
“Did they leave anything behind?” he asked.
The scout, Alwin, appeared to think for a moment before answering. “No, sire. I cannot recall the creatures leaving anything.”
“Very well.” Banewin turned away from him, pointing a talon at two nearby warriors. “Take these two and search the streets where the beasts have passed. Make sure they left nothing behind.”
“Of course, sire.” Alwin bowed before the large gryphon, then turned and waved his claw at the selected gryphons, gesturing them to follow. The trio took flight, Alwin leading the way, and they disappeared out of sight as they flew into the streets of the city below.
//Disposal
“Second squad is clear. We’ve recovered the body and encountered no resistance. En route to the Colmar as we speak.”
Bailey’s eyes did not leave his screen as the voice echoed its owner through the speakers. He tapped a key on the terminal before him and spoke. “Body?”
There was a moment of silence before the voice returned. “Yes sir. He was dead when we found him. The locals left him on the doorstep. No sign of his armour or weapons.”
Bailey frowned. He didn’t like the idea of leaving anything behind on the planet. The impact they’d already had would no doubt resonate through the culture of the aliens for years to come, there was no need to further aggravate the issue by leaving weapons and technology behind for the creatures to study. “How did he die?”
“I can’t be sure at the moment, but it looks like he got hit by something, and hard, too. His chest is heavily bruised and it looks like the ribs were crushed.”
“A weapon? Mace? Club?”
“Possible, but there’s no distinctive marking.”
Bailey leaned back into his chair. Mysteries had become a familiarity to the man over the past few weeks. From the unknown of each jump as the fleet scrambled to hold itself together, to the unidentified enemy that sought the destruction of the USM, to planets full of mythological beasts and forces he could not comprehend. Finally, he addressed the man on the other end of the connection. “Thank you, Jenkins.”
“ETA twenty minutes, sir. Jenkins out.” A short, sharp tone announced the connection’s severing.
Bailey leaned over the terminal, tapping several keys. “Roger? Is the Yamato clear?”
Another voice, this one belonging to a man much younger than the last, sounded out from the terminal’s speakers. “All ground teams are away. The area is clear.”
“Good. You know what to do.”
“Yes sir.”
The tone repeated itself, not long before the Colmar’s PA system sputtered to life. “Attention all crew members. Main batteries are online. Prepare for discharge.”
The planet almost seemed to glow in the darkness of space as Bailey looked out through the bridge’s observation window. The clouds swirled across its surface, and bright green landmasses rose up out of brilliant blue oceans.
“Discharge in three... two...”
It was just like Earth. Bailey smiled. Just like home.
“...one... firing.”
The ship rumbled, and there was a bright flash from somewhere below the observation window. A streak of flame appeared in the planet’s atmosphere marking a trail that lead down toward the surface.
To anything unlucky enough to be caught in the Yamato at the time, the resulting chaos would be reminiscent of divine intervention, perhaps against the invading monsters from the skies above, or directed as a warning toward the populous for angering their gods.
To Bailey, it was just tying up loose ends.
*
The sky itself seemed to scream as the streak of fire hurtled toward the ground, trailing black smoke in its wake. Under a layer of fresh snow the looming black mass of the Yamato rose out of the ground like a plateau of scorched rock, sitting right in the path of the falling star. In mere moments, the flames crossed vast distances and struck down directly on top of the metal giant. The resulting explosion was like none seen in Equestrian history, shining bright enough to blind the naked eye, and hot enough to incinerate those who were unfortunate enough to be too close. The shockwaves would be felt for miles away.
Words cannot express how sorry I am about leaving this for so long. I have my reasons, but its nothing overly important so I'm not going to bore you with them.
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this is still so awesome cant wait for more
Some of us like being bored by reasons. Nice chapter, I can see why it gave you troubles.
Nice chapter.
desktopwallpaperz.com/thumbs/cityscapes_skylines_nuclear_atomic_bomb_explosions_armageddon_buildings-t2.jpg
...4 da lulz
good chapter again I say but a little too short
Worth the wait.
...Equestria has REALLY big death wish, don't they?
"What the hell are 'smithereens' anyway?"
~Anonymous Marauder
1622908
I had a big conundrum about whether or not I wanted to completely rewrite it, and then my school term was squashed from ten weeks to six weeks, and the assessment with it. Plus the usually writer's block and such.
I had to check to make sure the story wasn't marked "Complete", lol. It IS still marked "On Hiatus", though... if that's an error, then good to see this back! And I'm somewhat relieved it's not going through a complete rewrite. There are some parts I wish had gone differently (Ryan), but I'd honestly much rather the story just keep going. You've learned from whatever mistakes you noticed that made you consider a rewrite, and can now avoid making them in the future. That's the more important thing.
Remind me again, the yamato is the downed ship?
1623131
Oops, I forgot about that. Thanks!
That's pretty much how I feel at the moment. The idea of going back and rewriting is still appealing, but I'd much rather leave it as is. I will be going back and fixing up some of the minor errors and inconsistencies, though. Thanks for reading!
Orbital strike... Finish it ounce and for all.
Whoa...just...whoa
Holy shit I thought you died or something
Ok, so... don't interfere with the locals too much, but blast a gigantic crater which is rather impossible to miss.
Humans, this is why the aliens of "The Day The Earth Stood Still" from the 1950's threatened to destroy the world. You are both violent and exceedingly stupid and should never be allowed to pollute other worlds with your inane reasoning.
1623156
That would be correct.
1623190
Which would leave a greater impact? A crater or a leftover alien spaceship?
Perhaps, in a few generations, once the memories of this brutish exchange fade from the populaces of the gryphons and ponies, the humans will try to come back for more peaceful activities. If that time ever comes, they will still have to deal with a very pissed off Celestia.
That is, assuming the unnamed Covenant analogue doesn't force them to return and beg the locals to share their knowledge of magic to fight off said anonymous aggressors.
Well I enjoyed it.
Personally I'm looking forward to the next updates (if there are going to be some) and I hope you are going to continue writing. I also hope to see more Twi stuff.
1623198 Well, considering how Start Trek handled the Prime Directive the few times the Enterprise crew managed to screw things up badly enough that the locals knew aliens existed, this entire episode was quite possibly the worst accidental first contact proceeding I have ever seen.
Do you not realize that upon gaining the ability of interstellar travel there would be protocols put in place to ensure something like this didn't happen? Protocols which would likely include rather strict instructions never to land in search of a lost scout ship if aliens had already found it, as that would risk conflict, as well as the use of non-lethal arms against alien life forms if an altercation proved unavoidable?
The humans here clearly had zero training in diplomacy, which strikes me as implausible given what I know of international protocols already written for the possibility of alien first contact situations.
Yes, the braniacs among us have already taken steps to ensure this sort of thing doesn't happen.
1282664 The super-advanced aliens from "The Day The Earth Stood Still" (The 1950's classic, not the gay environmentalist wet-dream one with Keanu Reeves) would like a word with you. Aliens: Humanity, stop being assholes or we'll exterminate you to keep you from infesting peaceful planets. Nothing personal, you're just total assholes.
1623164 And finally Celestia says, "Stuff this shit." She swings the sun into the ships, destroying them all instantly.
And that's what happens when mortals fuck with a god.
1623268
I'm tempted to pull the 'they're pretty much running for their lives' card here, but I've already done that before. I guess I'll have to add this to the list of things I'll have to look up.
I don't think it matters all that much at this point. The humans are already poorly portrayed (and they're not the only ones) and have made some horrible decisions. I never really intended their reasoning and agenda to be the focus of the story, though, rather the ponies and gryphons and what effect a poor first contact situation would have on them, but I'm not all that good at staying on target and they have been fairly fun to write.
1623309
And of course bringing the sun that close to the planet couldn't possible have any negative effects on the inhabitants.
1623198 metal shards but a big ass crater. Even without being a warship anything that survives an impact like that is too hard to completely eradicate. Those shards btw would make great spearheads... just saying.
1623338 It's a tiny magical sun, not a full-size star. That's the only way it makes sense, otherwise to move a star the size of even a red dwarf would mean Celestia is... well... so powerful that not even the Death Star would stand a chance against her.
Try to calculate the kilojoules of energy required to move a mass over 1.9 x 1030. That's the mass of our Sun. You'd have to be out of your mind to risk pissing off an entity with enough magic to move an entire star at will.
1623309 Ya know it was never canonized that she is a "god". Hell we don't even know HOW she moves the sun just that she does in my head canon the sun and moon moved on their own but some traumatic event happened and screwed it up. So celestia and luna were born with the talent to send vasts amounts of energy every morning/evening to the sun/moon so they can move for a period of time. but they can't change the speed or anything just give them energy to move.
1623380
That's assuming that she does actually control the sun. For all we know she might just spin the planet, or it's all just a magical illusion in the atmosphere.
1623302
Maybe we should hold the humans in the story to a higher standard because they have more advanced technology, but by the way the Griffons and Equestrians have been portrayed: I could see them doing the exact same thing in the humans’ place. Each race has a very ‘human’ element too them, frankly it’s why we can identify with them.
Just because we have better gadgets doesn’t change who and what we are. Technology develops way faster than humanity can adapt to it and has implications we cannot even begin to fathom. Even in Star Trek, in many of the episodes, violations of the Prime Directive were a direct result of a characters humanity asserting itself.
Maybe the super-advanced aliens should just wipe out all of the sentient races in this story.
1623380
Tell me then, if she is so powerful, how did she get pwnt by the changelings?
1623338 Well, I'm looking forward to seeing how this concludes, or GASP (even better) continues!
1623440 The same way everybody in Dragon Ball Z is amazed when a villain can blow up a planet, even when Vegeta could do that when his power level was only around 22,000.
It's called 'inconsistency'.
1623433
Congrats, you got the 1001st comment.
1623440
Because love is the strongest thing in existence (at the moment).
1623430 Personally I think it's the planetary spin. Still an amazing feat, but considerably more believable than moving a zonking sun.
As is I hope it isn't quite the end. I mean we completely miss Ms. "Jump-the-gun" getting lectured by Celestia, something I've been wanting to see.
1623467
Not really. Correct me if I'm wrong, but the power of love was never touched on before in the show, so you can hardly call it inconsistent.
Keep in mind that we are talking about a children's show with magic and talking pastel ponies. Anything goes.
Happy to have you back
Good Chapter, hopefully things won't turn shitfaced again...
1623433 what about the weapons griffons stole?
plus there wasnt a single ground vehicle in the story NOT even a tank!
1623309 As I have said before, ONE CUBIC METER of anti-matter could easily destroy their entire solar system.
Checkmate
While staring at the mushroom cloud the gryphons and ponies share a single thought.
OH… Fuck.
It’s good that they live so Starry Night can get a verbal slapping for her Derp moment, and will probably have a few choice words for the Griffons.
Should be "dragon-like creatures with breath"
Glad to see this got a proper ending, assuming that's what this was. Really glad, the original joke ending made me cringe.
1623467
Then why do you say she has so much power?
"To all living things on this damn rock...PREPARE FOR YOUR ANNIHILATION!!!!"
"KILL THE XENO SCUM!!!!!"
no
1623430 My thoughts exactly.
Celestia pushes on one side of the planet, and Luna pushes on the other.
1623513
Why would they need ground vehicles? This was a first contact gone bad, not a military campaign.
1623329 I fr one actually like the portrayal of the humans in this story because their actions were both sub-optimal and believable. The Yamato was a total write off the instant it came down and took any kind of command structure with it, so any responses by the crew are going to be haphazard attempts by personnel who are at best marginally familiar with the first contact protocols. When you combine this with the somewhat desperate bid for survival on an alien planet and immediate hostility from the locals directed against personnel without the armor of the marines it is really not surprising that things disintegrated into a bloodbath.
There may have been a chance for a peaceful resolution when the rescue teams started dropping in, but they landed in the middle of the fighting and were forced to engage to save the vulnerable crew so they cannot be blamed for their actions there. A third chance presented itself when they went in to pick up the prisoners, but they were attacked with lethal force once again and had to respond in kind so neither failure is really surprising.
As for this chapter, I like how the Gryphons actually took the smart choice by leaving the body out, although I think the humans should have raided the place for the missing gear or at least called home about it. I also like that the humans have given the locals a brief demonstration of what their real weapons are capable of, although we will have to wait for the reaction which should be a whole lot of fun.
1623470 I am personally in the total fabrication camp. The best explanation I have seen was that the Unicorns made it up before the tribes were united to give themselves power, and the princesses got forced into taking over the charade to pacify the population.
Well, that about covers everything. Good work as usual, and I am very glad to see that this is not dead.
How are the ponies going to plea to the aliens now? The griffons are also in trouble now though due to their hiding of weapons.
1623268
Think of it from less of a philanthropist startreky point of view and more of a militaristic Halo one. Yes more than likely they would have rules preventing the unrestricted contamination of any alien species they come across, but to them preventing human technology from being stolen and used by said alien culture is probably a lot higher on their agenda. AkA destroying the Yamato would be their primary objective, with a secondary objective of rescuing any survivors. Yes survivors and contamination control is important but to a militaristic human future preventing the spread of technology to species who one day may become a threat is far more critical.