The Changelings have returned, and they want nothing more than to see Equestria in flames. However, they`re about the get the surprise of their lives, the UNSC.
The year is 2558, six months after the UNSC Infinity's incident on Requiem. Captain Thomas Lasky and his crew have finally found the other half of the Librarian's "Janus" key; but when the map leads them to an Equestria in crisis, they are forced to save it. For, if Equestria falls, so too will the six forerunner artifacts discovered on this planet: The Elements of Harmony.
WARNING: Strong usage of profanity and one scene of rape...
The Scorchedlands (575 miles southwest of Equestrian borders)
The Changeling Grand Palace/Military Training Grounds
Queen Chrysalis sat on her throne. She was silently fuming, her face a contorted screen of rage. It had been almost a year since she and her army were defeated in Canterlot; and she was determined to have her revenge.
They will rue the day… she thought.
Her anger turned to joy however, as her most trusted General trotted through the grand gates into her throne room. He wore a dark purple helmet, a hole through the top to allow his horn to protrude, as well as the flowing dark blue robe used to identify all non-combat officers. He marched about three-fourths of the way between the doors and the Queen`s throne before he stopped, and then spoke.
"My Queen," said the General before bowing to his superior.
"General Hives," said Chrysalis coolly. "What news do you have for me?"
"Our armies are ready your highness," said General Hives. "Just give us the word."
"Excellent!" said the ecstatic monarch. "May I observe?"
"Of course, your highness."
They then proceeded to walk out into a long hallway; making their way to a balcony that overlooked the training grounds. When they reached said balcony, the General was once again the first to speak.
"I trust you will be pleased with our progress my Queen," said Hives smugly as they both looked down upon their troops in training. "Our weaponry has advanced well beyond that of the Equestrian armed forces. Observe our training exercise."
Hives pointed to a changeling trooper in front of three pony combat training mannequins. He was holding a black spear with an emerald green point in his two front hooves, and was standing on his hind legs. Suddenly, the drill instructor used his magic to make the central mannequin bolt forward. In a flash, the changeling spun left and sliced the poor mannequin`s head right off. The instructor then levitated the mannequin that was now in front of the changeling soldier forward. He quickly decapitated his second adversary by performing the same technique as before, but to the right that time. Then, before the instructor could move the third one, the trainee sliced it in two; the head and forelegs on one half, and the hind legs and tail on the other.
"Very impressive dance show General," said a now unimpressed and indignant Chrysalis. "But I see no new weaponry at all! I specifically remember soldiers of Celestia`s Royal Guard wielding spears that look almost exactly like those!"
"Patience my Queen," said the changeling General. "The demonstration is not yet over."
Suddenly, the drill instructor used his magic to levitate over twenty pony mannequins over a hill in an all out charge on the changeling soldier.
"You are about to see, your majesty, that our spears aren`t, exactly like those of the Royal Guard," said Hives.
What happened next caught Chrysalis off guard: the changeling soldier took a knee and held his spear at his waist, the tip pointed directly at the oncoming charge. Then the changeling`s horn and spear began to glow bright green; as he was clearly using his magic to make the spear do something.
What that something was however, would leave the changeling Queen nearly speechless.
The spear`s tip began to not only glow, but shine bright green before a brilliant beam of green-colored energy burst from the tip, incinerating the lead mannequin instantaneously.
Queen Chrysalis could only let her jaw drop as the trainee managed to keep the beam going, aiming it left and right through his crowd of targets; it incinerated every pony mannequin that was unfortunate enough to get caught in its linear maelstrom of burning destruction.
"They`ll never see it coming," General Hives said smugly. "We designed the spear to channel the energy of the user`s magic into the tip and then amplify its power tenfold. It then holds it there until the user wishes to fire. The magic is under the user`s control during the whole process; it is the user`s magic after all. Also, a single beam isn`t the only thing that can be fired; the spear can throw anything the user`s mind can think of: from the single beam you saw, to explosive balls of fire, to even a siphoning beam that can siphon a unicorn`s magic."
"General," Chrysalis began. "If I`ve ever told you that you`ve outdone yourself, I was sadly mistaken. Now, you`ve outdone yourself!"
"Thank you, my Queen."
"You said the troops were ready?"
"Yes, my Queen, they`re right down there actually."
He pointed straight down off the balcony, and when Chrysalis looked, she saw what must have been entire battalions of troops right below her; each and every one of them wielding the same type of spear that was just demonstrated to her.
"How did I not notice them?" said the incredulous monarch.
"First, second, and third divisions are ready for deployment you highness," said Hives. "The amassment of fourth division will soon be complete."
"Outstanding! We will hold the fourth in reserve," said Chrysalis before pointing straight down at the troops below her. "Right now, see to it that they start cutting a path to the north, straight to Equestria!"
"Yes, your highness," said General Hives before he moved to the very edge of the balcony and placed both his front hooves over the railing. The division leaders below saw him and gave crisp salutes.
"Gentlecolts! Preseeeeeeaaant hooves!" commanded each division leader. Immediately, every changeling on the ground put their spears in their left hooves and gave crisp salutes to their General above.
Hives then used his magic to increase the volume of his voice to the point where he was his own loudspeaker.
"Our Queen has given us the word!" he announced before pointing to the northeast. "Move north to Equestria, and obliterate everything that stands in your way! For the Queen!"
"FOR THE QUEEN!" shouted the troops in a powerful battle cry before taking to the sky.
Any ray of the waning sun that wasn`t already blocked out by the smoke coming from surrounding volcanoes was almost entirely blocked out by the changelings` numbers.
After a minute of watching his troops fly away, General Hives then used his magic to contact the division leaders telepathically.
"All division leaders, report," he said out loud.
"Leader of first is ready to receive orders."
"Leader of second reporting."
"Leader of third hears you loud and clear."
"Gentlecolts," said the general. "Here are your orders: first division is to fly north across the water to Canida; your objective is to capture its capital of Ottapaw. When those dogs surrender, have the entire division occupy the country until further orders arrive. Understood?"
"Yes sir!"
"Second and third, you two are to head east to Boardor. Your job is to capture that territory from the boars; leave two platoons from second behind for the occupation. The rest of you are to then fly north to Canida to regroup with first. Understood?"
"Yes sir!"
On those last set of commands, Queen Chrysalis saw two-thirds of the group break away from the full force, changing their headings eastward.
"And so it begins," she said smugly.
"Even if they do see us coming," said the General after disconnecting with his troops. "There`s no way they`ll be able to stop us!"
The two shared a maniacal laugh as they headed back inside.
Princess Celestia sat on her throne, her face calm and relaxed; reflecting the same feelings she had within. Her faithful student, Twilight Sparkle, recently became an alicorn. She was no longer her student, but a fellow princess (put in charge of Ponyville). Overall, Equestria was enjoying an era of peace and prosperity and the light of harmony seemed to hit every corner of this wonderful land.
It would never last.
Celestia was surprised when her sister, Princess Luna, trotted in. Celestia had recently appointed her the commander in chief of all Equestrian military forces across the known world (she was still to take orders from Celestia herself though). The distressed look on her face along with the quickened pace of her trotting told Celestia that she was nervous; and that meant she definitely didn't have good news for her. As Celestia stood, Luna spoke.
"My sister," said Luna as both princesses moved toward each other. "News from Pretuskria."
"Boardor?" asked Celestia. "What`s wrong with them? Nothing those boars can`t handle I'm hoping."
"I'm afraid to say that you are mistaken my sister. I recently received this recorded message from the Equestrian embassy there."
Luna`s horn then lit up and her eyes began to glow. She used her magic to darken the room and project a rectangular image on the wall. Suddenly, the image began to move; the message was playing. There was a white unicorn on the screen wearing the silver armor plating of the Royal Equestrian Army, his horn lit with the magic used to send the message; he seemed out of breath and there were burn marks on his face.
Burn marks? Thought the sun princess. What`s going on?
"Princess!" said the stallion on screen. "I don't know if you`re receiving this, hell, I don't even know if anypony will ever see this recording, but the changelings are back! They just came straight out of the mountains at 0600, a whole swarm of `em! And that`s not the worst part. I don't know how, but they`re shooting at us! I don't know how they`re able to do that but they`re shooting at us! With beams that can incinerate a whole pony and…and balls of fire! They shoot those from above while they`re flying. We can barely get close to `em without getting our flanks burned!"
He paused to catch his breath, for he had been rambling with only two.
"We can`t hold out for much longer, and I don't think I can sur-"
He would never finish that thought, as a door opened off-screen and the unicorn`s eyes widened in fear as he looked towards it.
"Gotcha!" said an unknown voice from off-screen before a blast of green energy grazed the stallion`s face.
He fell off-screen screaming in pain.
"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHH! AAAAAHHH! AHHH MY FACE IS BURNING! I CAN FEEL IT MELTING!"
A changeling soldier holding a black spear with a green tip walked into view on his hind legs, laughing at the agony of his newest victim; suddenly, his laughter ceased.
"Hold on, this one`s Equestrian!" said the changeling. "A unicorn huh?"
He looked straight at Celestia.
"And he`s sending a message to his people. I suppose it will end when he wants it to…or when he`s dead. Listen closely, whoever this is, the changelings are back! And it is us who are dominant above all other species on this earth! We are superior to all!We are the ones meant to rule the world!"
He then moved over to the dying pony at his feet, still writhing in pain.
"See how weak you are…how inferior! Whatever Equestrian is watching this, pray to Celestia, and watch how she will finally fail you. Equestria. Will.FALL!"
And on that last note, he lifted his spear up, and brought the tip down off-screen, presumably into his victim`s head.
Suddenly, the room filled itself with light once again as the message ended, cut short by the sender`s sudden death.
The stunned silence that followed was finally broken by Celestia.
"How long ago did you receive that message?" she asked.
"Around five minutes ago," Luna answered. "I'm guessing that, by now, Pretuskria has fallen and Boardor has surrendered to the changeling army; and by the time we figure out how to make projectile weapons that can match those of the changelings` it will be too late."
"They managed to conquer a city that big in only three hours?!"
"I'm afraid so, my sister."
Celestia began to pace back and forth, trying desperately to think of a solution. Her search seemed to be in vain, when she suddenly looked up at the ceiling with a gasp.
"Yes! That`ll do it! There`s still hope."
"How? I hate to sound so negative my sister but, how is there any hope for Equestria now? What hope could there possibly be?"
"Humans."
Luna`s eyes widened in fear.
"You`re not serious are you?" said Luna incredulously.
"My sister," said Celestia calmly. "We have no other choice if Equestria is to survive."
"No! There`s always a choice!" said Luna as she and her sister took their discussion outside onto a balcony. "Besides, the humans are too dangerous and you know it!"
"True, there are other choices," said Celestia as she looked up at the sky. "Other species that are just as powerful. But of all the most powerful out there, humanity is one of the few that would do anything to protect harmony. I know there is good in them! Plus, we need help now; and, as destiny may have it, the humans are the closest ones to us."
"How close?"
Celestia looked back at her solar counterpart; and as her horn began to glow, she smiled and answered, "They`re already here."
Captain Thomas Lasky had never been so exited in all his life; a rare smile stretched across his face. In his right hand he held the one half of the Librarian`s Janus Key that Spartan Fireteam Majestic had recovered on Requiem; in his left, the other half that Dr. Halsey had just handed to him with her new, prosthetic left arm; she had lost her left arm during the battle that had raged on said planet.
"Uhh…Doc?" said Roland, the ship`s A.I. "You sure you know what you`re doing?"
"Hey, I still don't trust her," said Spartan Commander Sarah Palmer.
"You never trusted me," said Dr. Catherine Halsey. "But I'm afraid that you have no choice but to Spartan, given that I`m the only one in here who actually saw the Librarian use the key."
"Palmer, curiosity may have killed the cat-" Captain Lasky started.
"-and salted the snail," said Roland.
"Thank you Roland," said Lasky, slightly annoyed.
"No problem, sir," said the yellow, WW2 fighter pilot hologram of Roland.
The Captain returned his attention to the Spartan Commander.
"But how would the rest of the cats and snails have learned from their comrade`s mistake?"
"Fine," said an irritated Palmer. "Let`s just get this over with."
"Okay," said Lasky before he looked to Doctor Halsey. "So, how exactly did the Librarian do this?"
"She just," said Halsey before pausing and then clapping her hands together. "Slapped them together."
"Really?" said Lasky in disbelief. "That`s it?"
"They should feel like magnetic puzzle pieces…or something like that."
"Okay," said the Captain before taking a deep breath. "Here goes nothing."
He held the two pieces out in front of him and slowly brought them together. Suddenly, he felt the magnetic attraction between them, and they pulled each other together.
With a metallic *clang* and a small flash of light, the room was instantly filled with a three-dimensional hologram of what seemed like a bunch of floating, blue gyroscopes.
Lasky realized that he had closed his eyes out of fear. He first opened one eye, to see if he was still alive, and then opened the other to find them both greeted with the sight of the bridge full of astonished faces; except for Dr. Halsey, who was looking at the Captain with an amused smile. A moment later, Lasky broke the stunned silence.
"So," said Lasky. "This is the map?"
"Yes," Halsey responded. "This is it. Although I must admit, I'd forgotten how big it was."
"Captain," said Roland. "If the map is too big for you, I can shrink it down if you place it on the hologram table."
Lasky looked at the table in the center of the room; the grid atop it glowing a turquoise blue shade.
"Alright," he said.
As he walked, the entire map moved with him.
"So I guess this explains why I was only seeing half of it," said Dr. Henry Glassman, the Infinity`s Chief Engineer and head scientist as he dodged one of the blue gyroscopes.
"Yeah," Lasky responded as he centered the Janus Key on the grid. "No wonder."
Suddenly, every floating gyroscope on the bridge flew towards the hologram table as Roland condensed the map into a holographic picture of the Milky Way Galaxy.
"There you have it Captain," said Roland. "The locations of every piece of Forerunner tech in the galaxy right in front of you."
"Outstanding Roland," said the Captain, all resentful feelings of the A.I. forgotten. Lasky gazed at the map for a moment before continuing. "How `bout we start small? Roland, locate the nearest artifact to our current location."
"Way ahead of ya boss, I've already located the nearest six artifacts for you."
"Six? That`s a…strange, number to stop at. Zoom in on them."
"Yessir," said Roland as the map began to expand. Since the map was now contained within the hologram table`s borders, anything that passed them was dropped off and no longer displayed.
Roland continued to zoom until only one big gyroscope was displayed on the table.
"All six artifacts are located on this planet, sir," he said.
"Six for one?" said Lasky excitedly. "And this one`s close, it`s still in the Cygnus arm. Take us there, Roland."
"You got it, boss," said Roland as he got on the ship`s main intercom. "Attention all hands, prep for slip-space jump!"
. . .
August 5, 2558
0905 hours (Equestrian Time)
The Milky Way Galaxy: Cygnus arm
1500 miles above Equestria
The bridge of the UNSC Infinity
The Infinity emerged from a blue portal in orbit above a surprisingly Earth-like planet. Although Dr. Glassman wasn`t the first one to notice this fact, no one was surprised that he was the first to mention it.
"By the looks of it sir," said Glassman as he and a few others were looking out the window on the Bridge`s observation deck. "I'd say this planet is eligible to support life."
"Great," said Palmer sarcastically. "More aliens. Just what we need…again."
"You know," started Dr. Halsey. "Due to the sheer mathematical odds, there has to be another species out there that isn't as hostile as the Covenant."
"All we can do is hope that there`s at least one on this planet that`s a little nicer," said Roland.
"If there are any, we should try contacting them," Lasky declared. "See if they know about the artifacts."
"Umm…sir?" said Roland. "I don't think that will be necessary."
All eyes turned to the A.I.`s yellow, holographic Avatar.
"And why`s that, Roland?" Lasky inquired.
"Because the Infinity appears to be receiving a signal," said Roland, looking around as if there was a fly in the room and he was following it with his eyes, before looking directly at his Captain. "From the planet itself."
Princess Celestia and her sister Princess Luna stood on a balcony overlooking the palace courtyard. Celestia was looking at the sky, her horn glowing bright yellow, and Luna did NOT seem to like what her sister was doing.
"What are you doing?!" asked Princess Luna. "Don`t contact them!"
"Do you have a better idea?" Celestia retorted.
"We could get the griffons to help us."
"Please, you and I both know that they wouldn't be as much help to us; their weaponry is just as far behind the changelings` as ours is. And griffons aren't very fond of us ponies anyway."
"And both you and I also know how primitive and dangerous humans can be."
Celestia took a deep breath and looked at her sister with a smile.
"I know my sister," said Celestia. "I know how dangerous they can be; I've been observing them for quite some time now, longer than you have I'm sure. I've seen the wars they`ve fought with each other, the kind of evil they were capable of, but most importantly, I've seen the capacity for good in their hearts.
"If there is one thing I have truly seen in humanity, it`s that there will always be humans who fight the right fight and that the good in them always conquers the evil that took up the same space.
"Humans have always been seeking some form of harmony with each other; it`s just that they always seem to go about it in the wrong way. But just the fact that they are, by nature, seeking out harmony, tells me that they would do anything to protect it when they found it."
Before Luna could respond, Celestia suddenly picked up a voice on the other end of her signal.
"This is Captain Thomas Lasky of the UNSC Infinity. We are receiving your signal, if you are hearing this, please respond."
. . .
August 5, 2558
0905 hours (Equestrian Time)
The Milky Way Galaxy: Cygnus arm
1500 miles above Equestria
The bridge of the UNSC Infinity
"So they`re contacting us," said Lasky with subtle astonishment. "Can you put it through, Roland?"
"Yes sir," said Roland.
Lasky walked over to the center of the observation deck and cleared his throat. Though he knew it was unlikely that these aliens spoke English, he didn't know any other options.
"Okay," said Roland. "I think that should do it. Go ahead, Captain."
"This is Captain Thomas Lasky of the UNSC Infinity," he announced."We are receiving your signal, if you are hearing this, please respond."
To everyone`s surprise, not only was there an immediate response, but it was, in fact, spoken in clear English.
"This is Princess Celestia, ruler of Equestria. Our species is in dire need of help from yours."
"Whoa, wait, hold on," said Lasky, quite stunned. "Your species? Where did…how did…whoa!"
"Wow," said an incredulous Roland. "I did not see that coming."
"I know this probably wasn`t what you were expecting, and that your species has serious trust issues, but please, you must trust us. We desperately need your help."
"Who is we?" said Lasky.
"We are a race of intelligent and peaceful equines who inhabit a land of love, happiness, and harmony. My sister and I rule over it. We haven`t fought a war in almost a thousand years and now face a more technologically advanced species that wants nothing more than our slaughter. Please, we need your help! Please help us!"
"The crew of my ship and I came here only to find a number of forerunner artifacts on your planet."
"Forerunner artifacts?"
"Yes, but I suppose your situation is worth looking in to."
There was a moment of silence before the Princess continued, her tone now one of more composure and less desperation.
"Thank you. Come down to the planet surface so we may discuss our negotiation."
"Looking forward to it, ma`am. Lasky out."
"Uhh…Captain?" said Roland as soon as the conversation ceased. "I'm not sure how but, that signal broadcasted this over the intercom and, the entire ship just heard your little tête-à-tête."
"God dammit Roland!" said an irritated Lasky.
"It was the signal`s fault! I couldn't control it," said Roland, throwing his holographic hands up in innocence. "And look on the bright side, this will save you the speech, won`t it?"
The Captain took a deep breath before continuing. "I suppose you`re right. But I'll still have to deal with whatever complaints start coming my way, like a mutiny, hopefully not."
"I'd agree it`s not too likely, sir."
"Yeah, but going back to business now. Roland, I need you to take us down through the atmosphere. Then call in Fireteam Icebreaker and tell them to meet me in hangar bay C. I want a pelican prepped and ready for launch as soon as we`re below this planet`s troposphere."
"Yes sir!" said Roland before his avatar disappeared with a crisp salute.
"Wait! Captain," said Palmer. "What about Halsey? I know we`ve agreed not to kill her, but doesn't FLEETCOM already think she`s dead?"
"Probably," said Dr. Halsey.
"Don't worry about her, I`ll handle FLEETCOM," said Lasky. "Right now, it seems that I need to meet with a certain princess."
Luna stared at her sister in utter disbelief for what she had just done. Then she thought for a moment, and then sighed before giving her response.
"Okay, I understand your reasoning, and I agree that we should recruit them." she said. "But you do know you`re going to have to tell them that you`ve been watching them."
"You know as well as I do that that should be the least of our worries," said Celestia. "For one thing, we`ll have to tell the public something about all this."
"Princess!" called a royal guard from within.
Both alicorns looked, and then ran, back inside the throne room to meet him. The guard was sweating profusely and, to their surprise, was holding a newspaper with his magic.
He held it out to his two leaders before speaking.
"This is today`s issue of the Canterlot Times, your highness," he said. "I don't know how the press got a hold of this information but…Oh! Just look at the front page headline!"
Both princesses did so, and what they saw made them gasp inside.
The Changelings Declare War!
Is Equestria Safe? The Destruction of Boardor leaves an uneasy answer to this question.
"How could this happen?!" demanded Celestia.
"I just told you! I don't know!" the guard responded.
"Actually, my sister," Luna interjected. "I should have probably told you this earlier, but the message sent to me from the soldier in Boardor was automatically sent to his family as well."
"What?!" asked Celestia. "Why?"
"I'm not sure, maybe he also wanted to say goodbye to his family, but forgot to in his haste. And also, the family that owns the Canterlot Times was the family of that soldier."
"So that would explain how this information got out so quickly," said the guard. "The crowd is in a frenzy."
"And then there`s that," said Celestia. "What crowd?!"
"Oh yeah, I was going to tell you both about this crowd that`s gathered out in front of the palace, but then you two got caught up in your little banter," said the guard as he pointed at the newspaper in his magical grip. "Anyway, they`re all demanding an explanation for this."
"You couldn`t have told her that first?!" Luna yelled at the guard as her sister walked towards the exit. "Tia, what will you do?"
"They deserve to know," declared Celestia. "Plus the best alibi for a massive human ship coming down from space would be that they`ve come here to protect us."
"You know what? That alibi might actually increase public morale!"
"Exactly, so if you`ll excuse me," said Celestia as she exited the throne room through its massive double doors.
The white alicorn moved towards the balcony at the front of the palace to address the crowd. When she reached it, she saw that the looks on everypony`s faces were those of absolute terror.
She then used her magic to increase the volume of her voice so that even the ponies in the far back of the crowd could hear her. She took a deep breath and began her speech.
"My fellow Equestrians," she began. "I'm sure you`ve all heard the news. The changelings have indeed returned and are heading this way."
Celestia felt a knot of guilt form in her stomach as gasps and shrieks pop-corned their way around the crowd.
Nevertheless, she kept her composure, and continued.
"The changelings` weapons technology is far superior to ours and every civilization that stands in their way."
The knot tightened as more ponies began to shriek while others started hugging each other and sobbing into one another`s shoulders.
All the same, she retained her composure and continued further.
"However, there is still hope. My sister and I have recruited a powerful ally to aid us."
At the sound of hope, the mood of the crowd immediately changed: the sobbing and shrieking stopped; everything became eerily silent, as everypony was now eager to hear who this ally was.
"They call themselves humans. They are an alien race that has endured great hardship in the past; a species that always tries to find harmony, but never goes about it in the right way. They know how to fight a war better than we do, and certainly better than the changelings. Their weapons technology can match that of the changeling arsenal. They will save us from the changeling threat, and in return, we will show them the path to true harmony. These humans can be trusted, although it may take time for them to trust you. They are a good species at heart. They deserve our friendship. And thankfully, they have come to us at the best time. Now."
Celestia pointed at the sky behind the crowd, and everypony followed her hoof.
What everypony saw caused more shrieks and apprehensive mumbling to ripple through the crowd.
A giant, blackish grey cylinder hovered eerily, and almost menacingly, above Ponyville. It had a pattern on one end that glowed blue. On its side read the words UNSC INFINITY.
"Do not be alarmed, for that is their spaceship," said Celestia. "As long as you see that ship, we will be safe. Be as hospitable as you can to the humans on board, for they are here to save our lives."
Suddenly, Celestia saw a single, small craft of some sort emerge from the distant ship; it was heading towards Ponyville.
The alicorn princess used her magic to bring her voice back down to its normal volume before saying to herself, "Oh dear, I forgot to tell them where to land!"
. . .
August 5, 2558
0910 hours
Ponyville
The Golden Oaks Library
It was a quiet day in Ponyville. That was, of course, until the news got out that the changelings had returned. The Foal Free Press, no longer just a school newspaper but the newspaper for all of Ponyville, had come out with a story regarding the family that owns the Canterlot Times, saying how their son had sent them a recorded message of his death and of the changeling soldier that condemned Equestria.
Princess Twilight Sparkle was in her library, pacing back and forth. Spike was on her back, holding that very newspaper in his claws, reading and rereading that same article. Neither Twilight nor Spike could believe that any of this was happening.
"How could the changelings be back?" asked the incredulous purple dragon. "I thought they were all destroyed in that magical blast made by your brother and Cadence."
"That wouldn`t nearly be enough to destroy them," said the lavender alicorn. "It was only enough to banish their queen all the way to the Scorched Lands.
"That volcanic area just west of Boardor?" said Spike as he hopped off of Twilight`s back.
"That`s the one."
"Well, that explains how they were able to reach Boardor so quickly."
Spike then headed towards the red door to exit his tree home.
"Oh my Celestia," he said. "I need some air."
At the sound of the sun princess's name, Twilight trotted over to her desk.
"That reminds me," she said. "I should probably inform the princess that I know of this predicament."
"Uhh, that may have to wait," said Spike, now looking up at the sky through the open door. "We`ve got bigger problems than sending a letter."
"But it`s Princess Celestia we`re talking about here," said Twilight as the trotted over to the open door. "What could possibly be more important than tha…?"
Twilight trailed off as she looked to the sky. Above Ponyville loomed an object that the lavender unicorn could only describe as some sort of enormous, dark grey, cylindrically shaped rock that could somehow float on its own. She could tell that it wasn`t being lifted by some powerful unicorn because there was no magical aura surrounding it.
"What in Equestria is that?!" Twilight asked, nearly speechless.
"More importantly," said Spike, failing to conceal his fear. "What`s that coming towards us?!"
Twilight suddenly realized, she was so busy looking at the big object, that she didn't notice the smaller one coming off it.
It headed straight for Ponyville.
"Spike, get back inside," said Twilight
"What`re you gunna do?" asked Spike.
"I'm the princess here, I might as well be the first to talk to whatever`s coming down here."
"Twilight, whatever`s coming down could be here to kill you for all you know!"
"If they wanted to destroy ponykind, they`d have come down here with a larger force."
"You don`t know that!"
"Spike, we have to at least try to see if they`re friendly."
"And if they're not?"
"Then I'll think of something. Now get inside!"
Spike reluctantly did so, the alicorn watching him as he closed the door.
A faint humming caught Twilight`s attention, making her turn back around towards the street and look up at the sky. The object had now gotten much closer; she concluded that it must have been some kind of flying, metal aircraft. She saw it turn parallel to the street and swoop to a stop in front of the library, flames jetting out some tubes on the wings and back flaps, scorching the grass under it.
Suddenly, a ramp on the back of the craft dropped and a group of bipedal creatures thundered out, leveling large devices in what must have been hands. Their bodies were a combination of black, dark green, and dark gray. On top were green heads with white faces.
Five of them were in front, kneeling. They had created some kind of semicircle formation around the backside of the craft. Then a sixth one descended from the ramp, holding a much smaller device in one hand, lifting it up, down, left, and right as if trying to get a better look at it in different shades of light.
And then what was most unexpected, was not that Twilight heard the sixth creature speak, but that it spoke in perfect Equestrian.
"Scanning," it said with an accent that reminded Twilight of Rarity. "This atmosphere is 78% nitrogen, 21% oxygen, and 1% water vapor, carbon dioxide, and other trace amounts of gaseous particles."
Then the one closest to Twilight spoke, also in perfect Equestrian.
"Get to the point, corporal," it said, now looking back at the sixth one. Its accent was more like Twilight`s, apart from the fact that it was masculine. "What`s the verdict?"
"Somehow, the air is perfectly breathable," said the sixth one, the one called Corporal. "We can take our HAZOP masks off."
What happened next made the lavender alicorn shriek inside. All six creatures reached for their faces and pulled them off. She would have shrieked out loud if she hadn`t realized that they were only taking off their masks.
Underneath those masks were their actual faces, made of what seemed to be smooth, rubbery skin, two eyes, a nose, and a mouthful of teeth.
Corporal then turned and looked back inside the craft.
"Captain!" it said, doing what Twilight concluded was beckoning for something inside to come out.
And come out it did. It gave its mask to Corporal as it walked forward. Other than the metal pad on its left shoulder, this one wore only cloth coverings: on his left and right arms were three golden yellow stripes pointing downward with a sunburst star of the same color on top. It had short, brown mane that seemed natural and not cut.
"Thank you, Corporal Williams," said the cloth covered one. "Now let`s figure out where we are."
. . .
August 5, 2558
0914 hours
In the L.Z. on an unknown planet
In the middle of an unknown town
"You know, she never told us where to land," said Private First Class Ogden Jenkins as he handed his mask to Corporal Marcus Williams to stow back inside the Pelican.
"I know, right? You`d think she`d be a little more specific," said the corporal as he jogged back inside with all the masks.
"Maybe she`ll come to us," said Sergeant Alex Thompson.
"Yeah right, sarge," said Private Eugene Phillips. "Or maybe she just ain`t thinking today."
"Hey! Lock that tone down, Shifty," said Gunnery Sergeant David Alvarez. "We want to make a good impression on the equines of this planet, and insulting their leader isn`t going to help."
"Aye, aye, gunny," said Shifty.
"Uhh…sir?" said Private Oscar Morgan. "That purple one`s moving toward us."
"We`ve gone over the rules of engagement, Sidney," gunny whispered. "Shoot only if attacked."
Gunny then turned to Captain Laskey.
"Captain?" he said. "What should we do?"
As Laskey walked past the line of marines, he smiled and said, "Ask for directions."
As he approached the horned and winged animal, it was the first to speak.
"Umm…hello," it said in a feminine voice. "My name is Twilight Sparkle, Princess Twilight Sparkle. Welcome to Equestria."
Twilight Sparkle?! thought Laskey. Oh, I'll just ask it later.
It held out a hoof to Laskey, who hesitantly shook it and responded.
"Captain Thomas Laskey of the UNSC Infinity. So you must be the monarch who rules this country," said Laskey. "I'll be frank, I thought you`re tree-house would be more of a palace if you know what I mean."
"Oh! Sorry, there seems to be a misunderstanding," said Twilight Sparkle. "I don't rule this country. That`s Princess Celestia`s job."
"Wait, but, you just said that you were the princess."
"Yeah? And?"
"How can there be two princesses from the same country?"
"There are actually three."
"What?! Oh, Jesus."
"Excuse me?"
"Oh! Nothing, uhh…would you happen to know where I could find this Princess Celestia?"
Twilight briefly and silently debated with herself on whether or not she should disclose Celestia`s location to this alien. In the end, she figured that they seemed nice enough.
"She should be up in Canterl-"
Twilight would never finish that thought, as a sudden flash of light blinded everyone.
Laskey turned to Fireteam Icebreaker and saw them raising their rifles.
"Men!" he shouted as he ran over to them. "Hold your fire! Hold your fire!"
The Captain looked back and held a hand to his face to shield his eyes. As the light dissipated, he saw that a white alicorn, taller than Twilight, had materialized next to the lavender pony.
"So," said Laskey. "I'm guessing that you must be Princess Celestia?"
"I am," said the sun princess.
"The one who contacted my ship?"
"Yes."
"You know, you never told me where to land."
"I know. I give you my deepest apologies Captain Thomas Laskey."
"Wait!" interjected Twilight. "Princess, how do you know its name? He never told it to you yet."
"Oh yes he has," said the white alicorn. "And Twilight, you`re a princess now. You can call me Celestia. Also, it is a he, and you will refer to him as such."
"Oh…uhh…"
"Sorry Twilight. I know this must be quite a bit to take in, but Laskey and I need to talk privately. I'll explain everything later."
Celestia then turned her attention back to Laskey.
"Captain, do you mind leaving your men in Twilight`s care before we depart? I'm sure they can answer all her questions."
"Ooh!" said Twilight excitedly. "I'd love to learn about a newly discovered species!"
"I'm sure we would too…" Thomas responded as he turned and looked back up at his ship, a thoughtful expression on his face. "…some of us anyway."
He then began walking back to his men.
"Captain, sir," said gunny, snapping a salute to his Captain.
The rest of the squad did the same.
"At ease. Okay marines, here`s the deal," Laskey started. "I have to make what I'm guessing are 'peace' negotiations with the princess over there, the white one, not the lavender one. The lavender one would however, like to get to know our species a little better. While I'm out, I'd like you six to stay at her house while she asks you all some questions about the human race. Understood?"
"Aye, aye, sir!" said all six in unison.
Then gunny raised his hand and said, "Permission to speak, sir."
"Granted," said his Captain.
"I`d love to go into that tree-house, sir. But doesn`t this sound like something the scientists would want to do? Namely Halsey or Glassman? Or both for that matter?"
"Oh don't worry, they`ll get their chance. Don't tell anyone, but as soon as I'm absolutely sure that the equines of this planet are trustworthy, I'll bring them on the ship. Bring them to the scientists as a special treat. Plus, all the equipment`s stuck up in the ship anyway; they`d be able to study them in better detail up there than down here. Does that make sense?"
"Yes sir."
"Okay. Just remember not to tell anybody, understand?"
"Yessir."
"Good. Now get to it marines!"
"Aye, aye, sir!" said all six in unison as they jogged over to the tree-house.
Once they were all inside, Laskey made his way over to Princess Celestia.
"So," the Captain started. "Guess it`s just you and me now, huh?"
"So it would seem…" said Celestia as she observed pony bystanders gawking at Laskey, the aircraft behind him, or his ship up above. "This isn't the most private place to talk."
"Oh yeah. Why don't you tell me where your palace is, and I'll fly there in my pelican."
"Actually, why don't you tell the pilot of your, 'pelican,' to fly back to your ship. I know a quicker route."
"You sure about that?"
"Positively."
"You have seen how fast this thing was going, right?"
"Trust me, it`s faster."
"Oh-kay," said Laskey, bringing his wrist communicator to his mouth. "Echo 419, head back to the ship. I'm gunna be down here for a while. No need to waste fuel."
"Yes sir!" came a female voice from Laskey`s communicator. "Rolling out."
On that last note, the pelican rose upward, turned, and thundered back towards its gargantuan mastership.
"So," said Laskey. "What`s this route of yours?"
"Take my hoof," said Celestia as she extended her hoof to the Captain.
Laskey did so. Then the princess`s horn began to glow.
And in another bright flash of light, they were both gone.
Author`s Note: Aaaaaaand it`s finally done! I'd just like all my faithful readers to know that, yes, the chapters of this story are going to be much longer from now on. See you in the next one! ;D
Inside Princess Celestia`s throne room, there was a bright flash of light. Out of it materialized the alicorn princess and Captain Thomas Laskey.
Immediately the human barfed out his breakfast out onto the scarlet colored carpet.
"*cough*Oh god," said the dazed and kneeling Captain, staring down at his mess. "I am so sorry. *cough*I don't think my body was made*cough*for that kind of travel. *cough*That, or I just wasn't ready."
"Oh it`s quite alright," said Princess Celestia. "You humans have always been so, resistant to magic."
"That reminds me," said Laskey as he stood up and regained his composure. "How do you know so much about humanity? You somehow knew about how powerful we`ve become, then you mentioned our 'trust issues,' and now this."
Thomas motioned to his puddle of puke on the ground.
"Your species has been of great interest to me for quite some time now," said Celestia as she used her magic to toss the mess out an open window. "That shouldn't hit anypony."
"So you`ve been watching us," said Laskey. "How?"
"Like this," said Celestia as her horn began to glow again.
Celestia stood before him; they were both standing on a solid, yet invisible surface of some sort. Laskey was the first to speak.
"Where are we?" he asked.
"Everywhere," responded the sun princess. "And nowhere."
"That doesn't even make any sense."
"It shouldn't. All you need to know is that this is where I go to observe what happens throughout the universe."
"How`d you find this place?"
"The Librarian showed it to me, so that I could watch over the universe after the rings were activated."
"Those rings wiped out every sentient being in the universe. How`d you survive?"
"The forerunners knew of the magic that my sister and I possessed; they knew the rings wouldn't be able to touch us if we didn't want them to, but they didn't care. The only reason they built the rings in the first place was because they were desperate to wipe out the flood. Since the Librarian knew my sister and I would survive, she thought it best for us to be the new supervisors of the universe."
"Supervisors, but not protectors? If you saw that something in the universe was wrong, you wouldn't do a thing about it?"
"No, that's where you come in."
"Me?"
"Your species I mean. As you may know, the human race existed before the rings were activated. Up until then, your species was second only to the forerunners in terms of power."
"What kind of power?"
"The power of your mind and your military, especially your military. In terms of that, I believe you and the forerunners were almost equal."
"Wow, we were really that powerful?"
"Yes, your species was almost twice as technologically advanced as you are now, from what I've seen at least."
"Alright, so what does power have to do with it?"
"Before the rings were activated, the forerunners were the most powerful species in the galaxy and they could see the universe by the simple means of coming to this place. Therefore, they held the mantle of responsibility to protect the galaxy."
"And if they were ever destroyed, we would be next in line?"
"Correct, the mantle would fall upon humanity`s shoulders. When both the forerunners and humanity were destroyed by the rings, humans came back because some of their D.N.A. was cataloged by the forerunners."
"Wait, hold on. How does an entire species come out of a catalogue?"
"Forerunner catalogues work a little differently from how you think human catalogues work. If the forerunners catalogue D.N.A. for example, they put it in a device that could regenerate the tissue, and therefore the entire being, back into existence at any specified time."
"Then they must`ve set it to sometime after the rings had done their work."
"Right you are, Captain. After humanity came back, I still firmly believed that you were the rightful inheritors of the mantle. Come, walk with me."
Celestia began walking to Laskey`s left; he followed.
Suddenly, from some focal point in the distance, shot out squares of light to Laskey`s left and right, forming a kind of hallway with walls made of moving images.
On the images were just about everything, from scenes of a happy family sitting at home to scenes of war and destruction.
"I have observed and recorded everything humanity has done since your resurfacing after the rings," said Celestia. "Though you may have started off quite primitive…"
The two walked past a square showing a caveman playing with a rock.
"…you began to grow back to your former glory. Countries began to be formed, and wars began to be fought amongst yourselves…"
The duo then walked past another square, this one screening a sword battle being fought in a field by two opposing armies sometime in the middle ages.
"…soon, you started wanting to gain the upper hand on your enemies. You began advancing your weapons technology to new levels of destruction…"
They then strode past another square depicting a trench battle being fought with guns and artillery.
"…you kept trying to invent new ways to kill each other in order to win wars. It nearly got out of hand…"
They then passed by a square portraying a nuclear explosion in the middle of a desert.
"…thankfully though, you were able to stop your own madness at the end of your second world war. You formed the United Nations, and then you looked to the stars. Humans were soon able to put their heads together to form the United Nations Space Command."
"How come none of this ever happened to your species?" asked Laskey. "The wars I mean?"
"The equines of Equestria abolished the very idea of warfare at the end of the first one we ever fought; I can barely even remember what it was like. Even to this day, I`m still not entirely sure why your species, or any other species for that matter, didn't abolish war as well."
"I guess some wars need to be fought."
"True, but the wars that needed to be fought, sometimes never even had to start. Not even the war you fought with the Covenant had to happen."
They stopped at a multiple squares all flicking through multiple battle scenes of human and Covenant forces clashing with one another, both on the ground and in space.
"The Covenant could have gone and activated the rings without getting humanity involved," said Celestia. "Humans would have never even known what the Covenant was doing had they not attacked you."
"I lost my girlfriend in that war," said Laskey.
"Yes, you know all too well that war cannot come without a cost; that victory cannot come without sacrifice. And that reminds me, if there's one thing that I've learnt about your species in all the time that I've been watching you, it`s that you know how to bounce back. After everything that you suffer and survive through, you don't just bounce back to where you were before, you bounce even higher. Your species was almost completely annihilated after the Human-Covenant War, and just look where you are now. You may not be the humans I knew before the rings, but you are, once again, the giants of this galaxy."
"Hey, I thought that same thing when I became Captain of the Infinity."
"See? That's how prevalent that fact is."
"So what now?"
The square in front of them then switched to a scene depicting the Librarian handing the Janus Key over to Dr. Halsey.
"When the Librarian gave the Janus Key to Dr. Catherine Halsey, she henceforth conceded the mantle to humanity."
"Halsey told me about this; we`re supposed to be the protectors of the galaxy now, right?"
"Yes."
"And now you want us to protect you? Also, am I going to puke again when we leave this place?"
Celestia smiled as her horn began to glow once again.
"No," she said. "You should be fine this time."
Laskey`s vision blurred once again; when it had refocused, both he and the alicorn princess were back in the throne room.
"That was a very nice revelation, princess," said the Captain. "But something`s telling me that there`s more to this than meets the eye. You`re making it sound like you can offer us something in return."
"Humans have always been searching for harmony, but have never gone about it in the right way; that revelation was meant to show you that," said the monarch. "We can show you the path."
"How?"
"I understand that you`ve come here looking for six forerunner artifacts, am I correct?"
"Yeah, how…how`d you know that?"
"Oh, just a lucky guess," said the princess sarcastically.
Both she and Laskey walked out onto a balcony, the Infinity looming in the distance.
"I'm guessing you know where they are?" said Thomas.
"They`re closer than you think," said Celestia. "You remember Twilight Sparkle?"
"That purple alicorn that lives in a tree?"
"Yes. That tree is what houses the artifacts."
"Oh," said Laskey as he looked at the Princess. "Wait! My marines are in there!"
"Is there some concern?"
"Well, no. I doubt that they`ll do anything stupid, but I should still get down there before there`s some kind of miscommunication. I don't want anything happening to those artifacts."
"Would you like to me to teleport you again?"
"No offense, your majesty, but I think it`d be safer for me if I took my pelican this time."
"None taken," said the sun princess as she looked at the spot where Laskey had puked. "It`s quite understandable."
The Captain brought his communicator to his mouth and said, "Echo 419, this is Captain Laskey. I need pickup ASAP."
"Aye, aye, sir," came the same female voice. "Rolling in."
"You didn't even tell her where you were," said Celestia as Thomas brought the communicator down from his mouth.
"I didn't need to," said Laskey. "She can just pinpoint the source of my signal to find me; it helps to keep us from disclosing our locations over the radio."
"How come you couldn't pinpoint my signal?"
"Well, you see, you have to keep the signal going so it can be traced. You had shut yours off."
"Oh," said the princess as she saw the pelican approaching in the distance. "My mistake I guess."
Laskey brought his wrist communicator back up to his mouth.
"Gunnery Sergeant David Alvarez," said Laskey. "Do you read?"
"Yes sir," came David's voice from the communicator.
"Are you still in Twilight`s house?"
"You mean her tree?"
"Yes."
"Then yeah, we`re still here, sir."
"The artifacts are in that house. Be sure to let your men know."
"Yes sir, I'll tell them, sir."
"And be sure to ask Twilight where these artifacts are and what they look like."
"Yes sir, I'll ask her, sir."
"Once you have that Intel, do NOT touch or do anything of the sort to the artifacts; just make sure they don't go anywhere until I arrive, understood?"
"Yes sir."
At this point, the pelican had arrived, turned 180 degrees, and was lowering the ramp onto the balcony for Laskey to get on.
"Alright, I'm on my way with the princess. Laskey out," said Thomas before ending the transmission.
Laskey looked at the equine monarch and gestured to the inside of the pelican.
"After you, your highness," said the Captain.
"You want me to go in there?" said an incredulous princess, looking into the pelican`s cargo bay.
"Yeah, I came here by your means of transportation first. Now it`s my turn."
"Well," said Celestia before stepping into the aircraft. "I suppose it`s only fair."
August 5, 2558 0927 hours (five minutes earlier) Ponyville The Golden Oaks Library
The marines of Fireteam Icebreaker were standing around inside the library, answering Twilight Sparkle`s various questions while she wrote down their responses on a levitating sheet of paper with a levitating quill.
“So, how many colonies does humanity own?” asked the lavender alicorn, jotting down the last response. “And as a follow-up question, on which colony were each of you born on?”
“My, my,” said Corporal Marcus Williams. “For a princess, you are quite curious.”
“And apparently you like to read,” said Private Eugene Phillips, seemingly mesmerized by all the shelves of books in the room. “A lot.”
“Thank you both for stating the obvious,” said Sergeant Alex Thompson sarcastically.
“As of now, I believe the UNSC owns well over a hundred colony worlds,” said Gunnery Sergeant David Alvarez. “Ironically, none of us were born on a colony. We were all born on our home world, called Earth. Alex, Eugene, and I were all born in a country called the United States of America, USA, or US for short. Jenkins was born in a country just north of the US, called Canada. Marcus over there was born in a country called England.”
“And I was born in Australia,” said Private Oscar Morgan. “`s why all my mates call me Sidney.”
“Yeah, uh, the capital of Australia is called Sydney,” gunny explained. “Since it can also be a name, we thought that it`d only be fitting to call him that.”
“Which leads me to my next question,” said Twilight. “Why did you all give each other such peculiar nicknames in the first place?”
“It`s partially because we`ve become such good friends with each other, brothers almost,” said gunny. “I'm sure your friends have given you at least one nickname.”
Twilight thought about this and realized that her friends had given her, as well as each other, nicknames.
“Yeah, my friends sometimes call me Twi,” said Twilight.
“See? That`s what I mean,” said gunny. “Although, I'm pretty sure it`s mostly because when we`re in combat, a short nickname can help us call on each other quickly.”
“Combat, huh? Interesting,” said Twilight as she scribbled more notes on her paper. “Very interesting.”
“I have a question,” said Spike who, up until now, had been completely silent. “How do we know that we can trust you?”
“My god,” said Alex. “Does everything on this planet speak English?”
“You mean Equestrian,” said Spike.
“Oh, whatever you call it.”
Suddenly, David brought his hand up to his helmet communicator.
“Yes sir…” he said as he stepped away from the group and began pacing the floor. All eyes were silently fixated on him. “…You mean her tree?... Then yeah, we`re still here, sir…Yes sir, I'll tell them, sir…Yes sir, I'll ask her, sir…Yes sir…Aye, aye, sir.”
“Who was it?” asked Private First Class Ogden Jenkins.
“The Captain,” gunny answered. “He`s on his way here with the other princess. Turns out, the artifacts are here in this tre- er, I mean, house, and Twilight here knows where they`re at.”
“Artifacts?” said Twilight.
“Yeah, he said to ask you where they are and what they look like.”
“Oh! You must be talking about the Elements of Harmony.”
“Elements of Harmony?” said gunny.
“Yeah, they`re right over there.”
Twilight pointed a hoof across the room to a glass case containing five necklaces and a tiara. They were all seemingly made out of gold and each had its own unique symbol.
“*whistle*Damn,” said Private Eugene Phillips as he walked over to them. “How much did these babies cost?”
He began to reach out to touch the glass casing before gunny added, “And, Shifty, Captain Laskey also made it very clear to not touch the artifacts until he arrives with the princess. Am I clear?”
“Yessir,” said Shifty, quickly pulling his hand away and sheepishly placing it behind his head.
“Good.”
Suddenly, a frantic knocking was heard at the door.
“That might be the Captain,” said Jenkins as he began walking up to the door. “I'll get it.”
However, as the Private First Class opened the scarlet red, wooden door, the sight that greeted him was not that of the Infinity`s Captain, but of the stunned faces of five more ponies.
The cyan one with rainbow-colored mane suddenly tackled him onto his back.
“I've got the alien!” she exclaimed as she pinned Ogden to the floor with her hooves on his forearms. “Get Twilight and go!”
Suddenly, Ogden quickly wrestled his right arm free, grabbed the hoof that held his left, lifted it, grabbed it with both hands, went under Rainbow`s armpit as he stood up on a knee, and forced Rainbow to the floor on her face, thus subduing her. He placed his left knee on her back for good measure.
“Rainbow, they`re not here to hurt us!” said Twilight.
“Oh, yeah? Well then how do you explain this?!” said Rainbow, referring to the awkward position that Ogden now held her in.
“Jenkins, stand down,” said gunny as he walked up to them and the other ponies that were filing in.
“Yes sir,” said the PFC, letting go of R.D.
As she stood back up, he said to her, “Sorry, but you really can’t expect me to not react to an assault like that.”
“Yeah, well…you just got lucky!” said an irritated Rainbow before trotting back over to her friends.
Then the orange-colored pony wearing a cowboy hat approached Ogden.
“Don’ mind her,” she said. “She just don’t ‘preciate bein’ embarrassed is all.”
“I didn’t want to embarrass her,” said Ogden. “I was just focused on subduing her.”
“You think she`ll see it the same way? Wha don’ you talk to her abat it later?”
Jenkins looked over at Rainbow Dash with a look of sorrow.
I hope the Captain doesn’t make me too busy, he thought. There were so many things he had done in his past that he wasn’t forgiven for, but this was the first time in a while that he wanted forgiveness. He couldn’t tell what it was, but there was something about this pony…
Suddenly, a familiar humming could be heard outside the library, followed by a knock at the door.
“Now that must be the Captain,” said gunny as he, once again, walked up to the door.
Upon opening the door he saw the Captain with the alicorn princess at his side.
“Sir,” said gunny, saluting his commanding officer before ushering them both in.
As Laskey walked inside gunny announced, “Marines! Captain on deck!”
All the marines of Fireteam Icebreaker saluted to their ship commander.
“At ease,” said Laskey.
When gunny had lowered his arm, he gave the princess a nod, “Your highness.”
“Alvarez?” said Laskey.
“Yes sir!” said David.
“Have you located the artifacts?”
“Right over there, sir,” said gunny, pointing to the glass case across the room. “Twilight called them the ‘Elements of Harmony’ sir.”
“Elements of Harmony?” said Laskey as he approached the six golden pieces of apparel.
“Yes,” said Celestia. “This is why we need your help, for within these artifacts lies the magical power to fix any problem too big to be solved on our own, such as unimaginable chaos, great evil, and even war.”
“If it can solve war,” said Laskey. “Then why do you need our help?”
“They can only do these things if close enough to the threat. I have considered this to be far too dangerous considering the Changeling`s ranged weaponry, technology that has never been seen before on this planet.”
The Captain thought for a moment before asking, “How are the Elements used exactly?”
“They are worn and powered by the living embodiments of the Elements themselves,” said the Alicorn Princess before gesturing with a hoof to the other six ponies in the room. “Which, as luck may have it, are the mares standing right before you.”
“So…do you want us to escort them to an area close enough to the changelings so that they can use the Elements?”
“No.”
“No?”
“It`s too risky. I have already seen what they have done to my own troops. If just one of the projectiles makes contact with bare skin, it will incinerate anypony down to their bare bones.”
“Wow, sounds like not even a Spartan escort would be enough.”
“Precisely. This is why we need humanity to fight the war that the changelings wanted Equestria to fight.”
“So you`re using us as cannon fodder?”
“I completely understand if you feel that this is mistreatment, and I wish that there was another way, but if you don’t, humanity will lose it`s only chance of achieving harmony.”
“And I also suppose that FLEETCOM wouldn’t be too happy about me allowing the destruction of not one, but six forerunner artifacts.”
“Exactly. So, either way, I really don’t think you have a choice.”
Laskey thought for a moment before saying, “You saw that humanity has faced this same genocidal threat before in the past, the only difference here is that you can`t defend yourself.”
He then looked the Sun Princess in the eye, “Your species doesn’t deserve that fate.”
August 5, 2558 2200 hours Canterlot The Royal Castle Throne Room
Nighttime in Canterlot, and Pinkie Pie had finally gotten around to throwing a party for the interstellar visitors; the lights of which were bright enough to render the stars of Luna`s night invisible. The party was raging in Canterlot Square, humans and ponies alike dancing, drinking cider, and even taking turns singing on the erected stage.
Their leaders, however, were in the palace overlooking the festivities, discussing what should be done about the coming threat.
“Two countries in a day?!” exclaimed Celestia.
“I am afraid so my sister,” said Luna solemnly. “Canida has fallen to the changeling army.”
“Damn,” said Lasky. “So it`s possible that their armies are superior and that their opponents are behind in technology. Either way, I have no intel; if you two know anything about their troops, like how they operate, what weapons they`re using, how many of them there are, etc, tell me now.”
“Well they…actually, how about we just show you?” said Celestia. “Luna? Would you please?”
Luna then proceeded to show Lasky the same recording sent to her by the Equestrian soldier when Boardor fell.
After the recording had finished, there was, once again, a familiar stunned silence; this time, however, it was broken by the only human in the room.
“They have a vendetta against you,” Lasky stated flatly. “Why?”
“So, you were barely able to hold them off even when they were using their bare hooves?” asked Thomas.
“Along with weaker, but still somewhat effective, magic from their horns, yes,” confirmed Celestia.
“And from what we saw from that soldier`s recording, I'd bet that they`ve found a way to amplify that magic with those spears. If we could only get our hands on one of them, then I'm sure that Infinity Science would be able to figure something out for us.
“Also, I'm pretty sure that their main advantage is their ability to spy. That’s what made you so vulnerable that day, the fact that they could magically disguise themselves and look exactly like anypony they choose; that is, anypony, not anything, meaning that they can`t disguise themselves as one of us humans. Speaking of which, what is stopping them from spying on us right now?”
“There is no way,” said Luna. “Not only was every changeling in Equestria driven out of Equestria when Shining Armor and Cadence used their magic of love to scatter them, but now the shield has been modified so that it is now invisible, encompasses all of Equestria, and will not allow any changeling to pass through whether they are disguised or not.”
“And when exactly was that shield put up?” said Lasky. “What if a few changelings managed to get within your borders before it was?”
“It was put up the moment the spell was cast that day,” said Celestia. “Thankfully, though, with the assistance of Cadence`s magic, Captain Armor no longer needs to think about nor replenish the shield. However, we fear that the changelings` new weapon will allow them to break through.”
“Okay, but I still think that security should be increased around here,” said Lasky. “I think the best option would be to have a few of our SPARTAN-IV fireteams replace your royal guard.”
“Why? Haven’t we just established that there are presently no changelings in Equestria?”
“Celestia, wouldn’t you agree that humanity`s lack of trust can sometimes be its greatest asset?”
“I, guess so.”
“Then you understand why I wouldn’t trust our established enemy to stay out when potentially getting in could potentially give them every advantage?”
“You just said the word potentially twice; aren’t you inadvertently saying that the odds of this are very slim?”
“Yes, but you`re missing the point here, I'm saying that even though the odds of a changeling being put here are slim, aren’t the profits of doing so too great for them to not risk it?”
“Well, I suppose you do have a valid point there,” said Celestia. “So, what should we do about it?”
“Well the first thing we should do is get all royalty in one place, this palace looks like our best option as of now. If any royalty is too far from here, then, with your permission, we`ll use human transport to get them here, because if changelings can only disguise themselves as other ponies, then we can`t risk using any royal guards for exfil; now it`s nothing personal, it`s just a precaution.”
“Very well, you have my authorization.”
“Good, now if you`d be so kind as to tell me where any royalty that isn’t in Canterlot is so that we can go get them?”
Putting a hoof to her chin, Celestia said, “Let me see, along with Luna and I, Shining Armor is here in this palace as well; Princess Cadence is over in the crystal empire; and Princess Twilight Sparkle is down at the party.”
“I'll send a Pelican to pick up Cadence,” said Lasky. “Maybe Captain Armor should go there with the transport; that way she`ll know that we can be trusted.”
“Good idea, I will send for him,” said the princess of the night as she walked towards the throne room`s exit.
“Got it,” said the Ship Captain to the departing alicorn before returning his attention to the other. “And as for Twilight, I'll get Fireteam Icebreaker to escort her inside.”
Captain Lasky and Princess Celestia then went out onto and looked over the throne room`s balcony to observe the party once again.
“Although,” Lasky started. “They do seem to be having a good time down there…”
Suddenly, multiple humans came on stage and their lead singer announced, “This next song is dedicated to why we humans will fight for you wonderful ponies. Hit it Vinyl!"
Thomas and Celestia were surprised by this, and curiosity got the better of them.
“Okay,” said the ship commander. “I'll contact them after this one.”
Nobody here knocking at my door The sound of silence I can’t take anymore Nobody ringing my telephone now Oh how I miss such a beautiful sound
And I don’t even know how I survive I won’t make it to the shore without your light No I don’t even know if I’m alive Oh, oh, oh without you now This is what it feels like
Nothing to hold but the memories and frames Oh they remind me of the battle I face without your love, without you I drown Somebody save me I’m going down
And I don’t even know how I survive I won’t make it to the shore without your light No I don’t even know if I’m alive Oh, oh, oh without you now This is what it feels like
And I don’t even know how I survive I won’t make it down the road with one headlight No I don’t even know if I’m alive Oh, oh, oh without you now This is what it feels like
As the song ended, and the mixed crowd of humans and ponies erupted into their thunderous applause, the Captain found himself momentarily shocked at the amount of preparation that must have been done within a single day to put on such a show. But then he remembered that many of the marines and naval crewman were, in some form or another, very artistically inclined. Also, that Vinyl Scratch character really seemed to have a way with modern-sounding music.
“Umm, Captain?” said Celestia as she placed a hoof on Lasky`s shoulder, interrupting his thoughts. “Weren't you going to contact your men?”
Suddenly, thoughts of the crisis at hand re-flooded Lasky`s mind, and he remembered what he supposed to do after the song.
“Oh yeah, right” he said as he brought his wrist communicator to his mouth. “Gunnery Sergeant David Alvarez? Do you read?”
. . .
August 5, 2558 2231 hours Canterlot Square
The thing about apple cider is that it`s basically pony`s alcohol; therefore, the harder it is, the more it hurts their tongues and the drunker they become. For humans however, the sensation is much more different; for them it`s just sweet, like drinking a non-carbonated bottle of soda.
Therefore, the bartender at the party`s bar, as well as anypony at or around the bar, was impressed (to say the least) when all six of the marines of Fireteam Icebreaker each began to chug down a full bottle of the hardest cider that the bartender could give out (it was what the bartender said was so hard, that he was only allowed to mix it with other drinks and not give it out by itself).
Everypony continued to watch in awe as the six humans finished their bottles in synchronous, at which point they and every being around them, whether a pony or a human, gave out enthusiastic cheers and then proceeded to continue partying to Vinyl`s looping tune.
This was one of the biggest and brightest parties that the marines of Gypsy Company had been to in a long time. There was rarely any partying aboard the ship, so they were determined to make the best of it. So, Fireteam Icebreaker decided to scatter after their little show of cider to meet some ponies and other marines.
However, there was one marine out of the six who`s main goal that night was to meet (and apologize to) just one, particular young pegasus with rainbow-colored mane.
You`d think that with hair like that, thought PFC Ogden Jenkins. She`d be easier to pick out in this crowd.
As he wandered through said crowd with another bottle of cider, he concluded that it must be the various colors reflecting off of the magically floating disco ball and bathing the square in rainbow-colored light that must be making it so hard. It was at this point that the young soldier wished that he had found out her name earlier so he could at least try calling out to her through the noise of the music and partygoers.
He finally struck luck when he reached the edge of the crowd and saw her sitting at a table talking to her purple princess alicorn friend, Twilight Sparkle. As he approached, he could hear them gossiping about somepony who was apparently named “Flash Sentry.”
Setting his bottle on the table, he said, “So, some party, eh?” as he thumbed at the fray behind him. As he sat down with them, he took off his helmet and placed it on the table as well, revealing his short, black hair. Looking to the rainbow-maned pegasus in front of him, he said, “Look I'm sorry if I hurt you or made you feel humiliated today. I was only doing what I was ordered to, attack if attacked, or subdue, in that case.”
“Oh, it`s alright,” said the cyan mare with a smile, much to the marine`s surprise.
“Wow,” said Jenkins. “That was…fast.”
“What do you mean?”
“Well, I don’t know, it-it`s just the way you looked as I left Twilight`s tree-house; I mean it must`ve been the look in your eyes or something, I just didn’t think you`d be this quick to forgive me.”
“Oh, please, I don’t hold grudges; especially not after that song one of you just sung, apparently you`re going to fight the changelings for us? Anyway, I still want a good rematch!”
“Pff, bring it!” said Ogden jokingly, throwing up his arms in challenge before waving it off. “Not now though, we don’t want to crash this party now do we?”
The three shared a quick laugh, glad that there were no more hard feelings.
“By the way,” started Jenkins as he pointed a finger at the cyan pegasus. “I never got your name.”
“I'm Rainbow Dash!” said Rainbow Dash as she struck a proud pose. “Fastest flyer in all of Equestria!”
“Ogden Jenkins, Private First Class of the UNSC marine corps,” said Jenkins, holding out his hand for a handshake. “Pleasure to meet you miss Dash.”
Dash stared at the hand awkwardly for a few seconds before holding up a hoof for Ogden to see. Ogden realized what she was trying to get across and made his hand into a fist. They both chuckled as they fist/hoof-bumped.
Twilight however, remained silent, deep in thought as she observed Ogden`s fist change back into a hand, seemingly in slow motion, as he retracted the gloved appendage back to himself.
Where have I seen that before? she thought to herself.
A sudden tap on her shoulder ripped her from her thoughts.
“Princess Twilight?!” called a voice from behind her.
The purple alicorn turned to see the leader of the six humans that had come to her house earlier that day.
“Oh hi!” said Twilight, having to now shout over the music as Vinyl raised the volume. “Mr. David Alvarez isn’t it?!”
“Yeah! That`s me!” said gunny with a smile. “Listen, uh, my Captain has just ordered me to take my squad and escort you back to the castle!”
“Why?!”
“I dunno! He just said that it was for security reasons and that he`d brief us when we got there!” gunny then pointed at the PFC. “Jenkins! Call `em in!”
“Aye, aye, sir! Let`s hope they still have their helmets on!” said Jenkins as he put on his and adjusted the helmet mike. “Icebreaker, Icebreaker, this is Jenkins!”
As he was saying this, he spotted Sgt. Alex Thompson in the crowd. He was standing next to Private Oscar Morgan while talking with the cowgirl pony with an orange coat and blond mane named Applejack while the private was speaking with a pegasus pony with a yellow coat and pink mane named Fluttershy. Since Alex had his helmet on, he heard the incoming transmission. He began to look around and quickly spotted Jenkins and gunny at the table.
The PFC beckoned him over with his arm as he continued, “Fall in on gunny`s position over!”
Ogden then observed as Alex tapped on Sidney`s shoulder and told him to follow him. They then quickly said their goodbyes and jogged over to the table. Corporal Marcus Williams and Private Eugene Phillips soon joined them as well.
“What`s going on?” asked the Corporal.
“We need to escort Princess Twilight to the castle,” said gunny. “Captain`s orders.”
“Aw man!” complained Eugene. “I hate to have to leave such an awesome party so soon.”
“Yeah come on, gunny,” said Alex. “It`s the first party he`s ever been to!”
“What?! No it isn’t!”
“Then quit complaining!”
“Aye, aye, sir.”
“Come on, marines,” said gunny. “Let`s load up and get this done.”
“Aye, aye, sir!” said the rest of the marines in unison.
They then proceeded to walk toward the castle. At the edge of the party/concert area there was an exit leading towards the castle; just outside of it, Fireteam Icebreaker found the ammo dump where every marine at the party had dropped their gear, weapons, and, well, ammo.
Any marine in the squad that didn’t have on a helmet grabbed one. They then proceeded to each take and load a M6H handgun and then take a combat knife and place it in the knife sleeves on their shoulders.
There were a few other marines guarding the dump who struck up a conversation as Icebreaker began to leave it.
“Leaving so soon?” one of them joked. “Where`re you headed?”
“The Castle,” said gunny. “Captain wants her up there but had to call for some protection. Don’t worry, though, we`ll be back.”
“Alright, see ya round!”
“See ya.”
As they walked away from the party, two mares were still in it, sitting at another table, watching them leave from a distance. Their names were Lyra and Bon Bon.
Except, they weren't Lyra and Bon Bon.
“They`re leaving!” said “Bon Bon”.
“I have an idea,” said “Lyra” before getting out of her chair. “Follow me.”
They both walked into a nearby alleyway where they changed into their true form, two changeling soldiers.
As they walked past a dumpster, they could hear the muffled screams of the real Lyra and Bon Bon coming from it.
“Sir,” wispered the changeling that had recently been disguised as Bon Bon. “They`re awake!”
“Don’t worry,” whispered back the other, higher ranking changeling. “Once you`ve tied up, gagged, and blindfolded a pony, they just can never seem to find a way out!”
“Combine that with putting them in a place where nopony will think to look and they`re doomed!”
“Right you are. Another reason why changelings are superior!”
“Heh heh, yes sir!”
The two continued to quietly giggle manically as they exited on the other side of the alleyway, the sounds of the party now sounding much more distant though only behind one building.
“So, what`s your plan?” asked the subordinate. “And what will we do about these, humans, that have come to help the infernal ponies?”
“Don’t worry about the humans, whatever they are, for we have already managed to topple the countries of two other species today! We`ll just kill them like the rest. As for my plan…”
The changeling then shape-shifted into one of Celestia`s royal guards, armor and everything.
Fireteam Icebreaker was now about halfway to the Royal Castle; they had formed a makeshift “convoy” in which each man was about three meters apart from each other in a hexagonal defensive perimeter around the princess, and up until this point, everyone in the group had yet to say a single word. The only sounds heard were the sounds of footsteps and hoofsteps combined with the evermore distant sounds of music from the party. The only pony in the group was the one to break the silence.
“So,” said Princess Twilight Sparkle, trying to strike up a conversation. “How was the party? Did any of you get to meet anypony?”
Finding themselves bored as well, due to a lack of something to keep their minds occupied, the six-man group around the alicorn decided to grant her request for a discussion.
“Oh, yeah,” said Private Oscar Morgan. “I got to talk to that pegasus named Fluttershy. Strange how her name seems to match her personality, ‘cause I'll tell you mate, in all that noise, it was a miracle that I was even able to hear her name when she told it to me. I don’t think I've ever met anyone as soft-spoken as her.”
“Well there`s Fluttershy for you,” said Twilight with a chuckle.
“Yeah, but I don’t care, I like her. She seems really kind and caring. I don’t see why anyone wouldn’t be friends with someone like her. How ‘bout you, Shifty? Who`d you meet?”
“I got to meet the one who orchestrated the entire party,” said Private Eugene Phillips. “That silly pink mare ironically named Pinkie Pie. I like her too, but I just don’t get her sometimes. She`s very naïve, she seems to have a thing for saying entire speeches in one breath, and then she starts defying the laws of physics. One moment she`s here, another moment she`s over there, then she`s suddenly right behind me! And then there`s the fact that she always bounces around everywhere; she never seems to run out of energy.”
“Oh that Pinkie Pie,” said Twilight. “She is quite eccentric.”
“Yeah, but strangely, it`s that eccentricity that I really like about her.”
“Hah! No wonder you could never find a woman back home,” teased Sergeant Alex Thompson.
“I got to meet that Applejack character. Seems that she grew up on a farm like I did, still works there too. She also really seems to like food, mostly anything apple based. I swear, if she wasn’t selling all those apple pies at her stand, she`d be stuffing her face with ‘em! Also, I don’t know where she went to school, but she had some pretty broken English-er Equestrian, if that`s what you prefer to call it. Jenkins? I believe you met that Rainbow-haired pegasus for the second time today? You were sitting at the same table she was at when you called us over. She still mad about what happened?”
“No actually,” said Jenkins. “She said she was fine and that she doesn’t hold grudges, which I find kind of weird, given how boastful she is by nature. The first thing she said about herself to me was a proud claim that she`s the fastest flyer in Equestria. Seriously though, where`s the proof there?”
“You`ll believe it when you see it,” said Twilight.
“Oh sure,” said Jenkins sarcastically. “Ooh! She should totally race one of our F-41s!”
“A Broadsword? Please,” said Corporal Marcus Williams. “That`s the fastest multipurpose strike fighter ever created by the Misriah Armory. It`d leave her in the dust.”
“Well, if she`s as fast as she claims to be, then she`ll at least keep up with it. By the way Corporal, did you meet anyone tonight?”
“Yes actually, tonight I met the acquaintance of miss Rarity. She`s a fashion designer at Ponyville`s Carousel Boutique, reminds me of my mother.”
“Your mother was a fashion designer?!” teased the Sergeant once again. “How`d you end up the military?”
“Oh, I don’t know Sergeant,” said Marcus indignantly. “Maybe the only planet humanity had left was under siege by an alien alliance that wanted nothing more than to see us burn?!”
“Okay, okay! Calm down, I know,” said a now serious Alex as he looked at the ground. “I'm sorry I said that. That`s why we all joined, and became ODSTs.”
“Then why`d you stay?” asked Gunnery Sergeant David Alvarez who, up until now, had been completely silent. “After the war had ended, you could have all gone home to your families; instead you stuck around, signed up to work on the Infinity as marines. Why?”
“Well, I had had friends before the war,” started Jenkins. “But when I joined the ODSTs, got assigned to this squad, and dropped into our first mission, we became so close that, I realized that none of my friends back home were true friends like you guys. I mean if they saw me drowning and were under fire at the same time, they would`ve run away to save their own asses, but you saved me. I just couldn’t leave you guys. I mean, I love my family and all, but I also found that there was no other paying job that I was good at than being a soldier.”
“You know what?” said Corporal Williams. “I think that`s why we all stayed.”
The rest of the marines spoke out in agreement.
“Well, your friendship seemed to have started in a, strange way,” said Twilight. “But I hope this bond lasts as long as possible.”
“Thank you, Twilight,” said gunny.
Before they knew it, they had arrived at their destination. Canterlot castle loomed overhead. In front of the main doorway stood two royal guards.
“We`ll take it from here humans,” said the one on the left.
“Alright,” said Alvarez as he stopped to let the alicorn princess trot past him. “We`ll see you tomorrow Twilight. It was nice meeting you!”
“You too,” said Twilight as she walked between the two guards. “See ya!”
The guards then proceeded to turn around and follow the princess close behind. Gunnery Sergeant Alvarez and his team then turned around and began their journey back to the party.
They had no idea of what was currently happening inside.
. . .
As Twilight trotted through Canterlot Castle, flanked by her two guards, she couldn’t help but think about the humans` peculiar story of how their friendship was started. She also found it hard to believe that the five men of that Fireteam under the command of that Alvarez soldier had, seemingly by coincidence, individually met each of her five friends.
Humans are so strange, she thought. Yet so interesting. Ugh, there`s my inner scientist coming out again. But there`s something else, I feel like I've seen their species befo-
Her thoughts were suddenly interrupted when she entered the throne room, for the sight that greeted her left her too stunned to think, or move.
. . .
August 5, 2558 2250 hours (20 minutes earlier) Canterlot The Royal Castle
Princess Luna had just entered the main castle barracks and was about to call out for Shining Armor before two guards stopped her.
“Captain Armor is needed at once,” ordered Luna.
“Of course, your highness,” said the guard on the right. “Right this way.”
Luna followed the guards for about five minutes before reaching Shining Armor`s private quarters.
The princess of the moon wasted no time.
“Captain Armor!” called Luna before knocking on the door. “It is Luna! You are needed fo-”
She stopped mid-sentence as the door creaked open in response to her knocks.
“Shini-? *gasp!*” said Luna as she opened the door fully to reveal a gagged Captain of the Royal Guard, with a magic-restraining ring on his horn, struggling with sticky, green goo that restrained his forehooves.
This was the last thing Luna saw before the royal guard behind her knocked her unconscious with the blunt end of his spear.
As the princess of the night fell face-first onto the floor, the two guards materialized into the true forms of the changelings they were.
“Good hit sir,” said one. “Why`s this happening now?”
“I dunno,” responded the other. “Ten minutes ago, the commander telepathically ordered me to do this. You can ask him when he gets here with the purple one.”
Shining Armor froze at the mentioning of his little sister, but all he could do was give both changelings an angry stare that failed to faze either of them.
“Yes sir. So, what about these two?”
“Commander`s orders are to get all Equestrian Royalty tied up in the throne room. So get the princess here restrained with goo and put a ring on her horn while I carry the Captain over there.”
“Yes sir.”
. . .
August 5, 2558 2210 hours (one hour earlier) Northern Equestria The Crystal Empire The Crystal Palace Throne Room
“Your majesty,” said a high ranking crystal guard. “An urgent message from Canterlot. Your presence is needed in the Capital.”
“Why?” asked Princess Cadence with much concern in her voice. “Is something wrong?”
“I'm afraid so princess. From what I hear, the changelings have returned.”
“Oh dear!” said Cadence, remembering her encounter with their queen. “Then it must be a security issue.”
“Yes indeed, we`ve already prepared a chariot for you. Follow me.”
She got off her throne and followed the crystal guard out of the throne room into the adjacent hallway. The hallway then led to a set of doors that opened to a large balcony revealing a chariot with two guards in front of it.
She walked up to the chariot`s side door, but when she reached to open it, there were suddenly three flashes of bright green light behind her.
Cadence froze. When she turned around, she saw that she was no longer flanked by three crystal guards, but by three changeling soldiers. They each pulled out a foot-long black rod that mechanically extended into their spears.
“Alright princess,” said the changeling in the center. “Turn around, open that chariot`s door, then get on your knees in front of it.”
Terrified and seeing no way out, as the three changelings could impale her if she tried to make a break for it and that they would be immune to her magic because they wielded their own, she unwillingly did so.
Once on her knees, facing the inside of her chariot with her hooves behind her head, the center changeling that had spoken to her collapsed his spear back into a foot-long black rod, attached it onto his back, walked up to the now surrendering pink alicorn, and spat a sticky, green goo out of his mouth and onto both of her front hooves.
“Ugh,” said Cadence, in disgust for the goo, as the changeling placed both her hooves behind her back and glued them both together with more of the green, gooey adhesive.
The changeling then glued her wings together (Cadence mentally facehooffing having not even thought to use them) before he finally placed the magic-restraining ring on her horn and stripped her of her crown.
A hoof placed on the back of her head was the last thing Cadence felt before her face was shoved into the chariot`s floor-fabric.
. . .
August 5, 2558 2310 hours Canterlot The Royal Castle Throne Room
In front of Twilight lay the sight of all Equestrian royalty on their knees, their forehooves glued behind their backs with some sticky, green goo and magic-restraining rings on their horns.
Before she could react, she was grabbed from behind and shoved to the ground by one of her royal guards.
“Twily! Nooo!” cried her older brother, who could only watch helplessly as the guard materialized into the changeling he was and restrained her hooves and wings with goo.
The other guard that was behind Twilight shape-shifted into the changelings` squad leader.
“Where is the human?!” he demanded as he walked up to the changelings standing by the sun princess.
“We don’t know commander,” one of them responded. “When we jumped Celestia, he was standing right next to her; but then when we had her on the ground, he was nowhere to be seen.”
“Gaaahh!” exclaimed the squad leader in frustration. “What will I ever do with you bums?!”
In desperation, Twilight`s horn began to glow as she tried using her magic to do something, anything, before yelping as the changeling soldier standing over shoved her head, face-first, onto the scarlet-colored floor carpet.
Her horn still glowing, the changeling said, “Don’t you dare! If you do anything with your magic, we`ll randomly vaporize one of your royal friends!”
The glow of Twilight`s horn faded, and the shape-shifter placed a ring on it.
“Good girl,” he said before lifting her to her knees, tears streaming down her face.
“I'm sorry princess,” she sobbed.
“It`s okay Twilight,” said Celestia, sympathizing with the lavender alicorn, even though they both knew it wasn’t.
All the while, Captain Lasky was in fact hiding right behind the throne itself. He concealed himself there when he and the princess were ambushed. He mentally thanked fate that these changelings weren't bright enough to search the room for him. Lasky was outnumbered, and out gunned; the changelings were ten soldiers strong, and wielding spears that could incinerate anything in the room, while all he had on his person was his M6H, which he now had armed in his right hand.
He needed backup, and fast.
He brought his wrist communicator to his mouth and whispered, “Fireteam Icebreaker! Come in Icebreaker!”
. . .
August 5, 2558 2312 hours Canterlot Halfway Between the Castle and the Party
“Fireteam Icebreaker! Come in Icebreaker!”
“Captain?” said Alvarez. “Is that you? And why are you whispering?”
“The changelings have infiltrated the city and have all Equestrian Royalty at gunpoint in the throne room! Get over here now! I'll contact Spartan Palmer to send additional support, hurry!”
The Gunnery Sergeant looked to his men and asked if they all got that message via their own helmet mikes. When they all nodded their heads, all six men immediately turned around and began their sprint back towards the Castle.
. . .
Meanwhile, back in the throne room, the situation was deteriorating quickly.
“Sir? Why are we doing this now?” asked one of the changeling soldiers. “I thought we were supposed to wait until the main forces got closer.”
“Well, I've decided to change the plan,” the commander responded. “By killing off all Equestrian leaders, we`ll throw Equestria into complete anarchy! By the time the main forces get here, Equestria will be in complete chaos, and takeover will be a breeze.”
“We`ll be heroes!” exclaimed the insubordinate.
“Precisely! The changeling empire will idolize us for its victory!” said the commander as he walked up to Celestia and placed the tip of his spear on her nose. “And now, such fame is but seconds away.”
BANG!
A bullet hit the commander right between the eyes; his head snapped back as green blood splattered onto the changelings behind him.
All at once, things went into slow-motion as his stunned comrades and their royal hostages watched as his body fell to the ground; Princess Celestia looked behind her to see that Lasky had broken his cover from behind the throne, the barrel of his weapon smoking.
Both Cadence and Twilight squealed in absolute shock as the doors of the throne room opened to reveal Fireteam Icebreaker with their M6Hs drawn level, PFC Ogden spearheading their breach.
“Targets front! Targets front!” he barked.
When Jenkins spoke, the changeling insubordinate that the commander had been talking to immediately spun to face the human with his spear; in response, the PFC shot him in the face without hesitation.
Each man in the Fireteam managed to headshot one changeling in the room (gunny managed to kill the one holding Twilight) before three Spartan IVs burst through the stained glass window right next to Twilight.
It seemed as if the changeling soldiers were done for, when something completely unexpected happened.
As the Spartans landed around Twilight, they were all hit by the fiery projectiles fired from the changelings' spears. When their shots made contact with their shields, they began to glow bright green.
Then, all at once, all three Spartans vaporized into thin air, their weapons clattering to the floor.
While every pony and live changeling had expected this, every human was utterly dumbfounded.
While they were stunned, the changelings then pointed their spears at the marines and fired.
But this time, to everyone`s surprise, when the marines were hit in their abdomens, their armor actually absorbed the projectiles and then blew them off their feet a few meters back. The breath may have been knocked out of them, but they were still alive.
When Alvarez became the only marine left standing, he immediately shook himself out of his trance and went to work.
“What the fuck is going on?!” he yelled as he and Lasky shot the final three changelings to death.
August 5, 2558 2330 hours Canterlot The Royal Castle Throne Room
“Owww…” groaned Ogden as he lay dazed on the floor. “What just happened?”
“I dunno Jenkins,” said Gunnery Sergeant Alvarez solemnly. “First we land on a planet filled with talking ponies, then find that they need our help, and now three Spartan-IVs just got vaporized before our very eyes!”
“B-but, but*cough*,” stuttered Private Eugene Phillips. “Spartans don’t die! I-I thought that…*cough* ju-Spartans don’t fucking die goddammit!”
“Oh god*cough*,” said Sergeant Alex Thompson. “Shifty, let`s just get something straight here. Now I know you’ve grown up to be brainwashed into thinking Spartans are invincible, but here`s the thing: Spartans die. They do, alright?! They aren’t completely invulnerable! But they only die physically. When people say that ‘Spartans don’t die,’ they mean that their legacy lives on, that they`re never forgotten.”
“Oh,” Shifty responded nonchalantly. “That makes a lot more sense.”
“But how this happened remains a mystery,” said Captain Lasky as he walked away from the throne towards the Spartans` remains, pointing his pistol at the glowing green ashes. “We need to get Infinity Science on this right away. For now, get these ponies untied Icebreaker.”
“You mean unglued sir?” said Alvarez.
“Yeah.”
Gunny pulled out his combat knife. “Aye, aye, sir,” he said.
He walked over to unglue Twilight as the rest of his marines went to unglue the others. All the while Captain Lasky was radioing the Infinity to send down Dr. Halsey and Dr. Glassman.
“How?” Twilight nearly whispered as she stared at the body of the dead changeling behind her.
“Excuse me?” said gunny.
“How could you? How can you just effortlessly end a life without thinking?”
“`Cause we`ve been doing this for a long time sweetheart,” said Sergeant Thompson as he cut the green goo binding Celestia`s front hooves and began working on freeing her wings. The marines all chuckling in agreement.
“Yeah,” said gunny as he got behind Twilight and started cutting her front hooves free. “All our lives we`ve been shooting at and killing alien life forms. These guys were no different to us.”
“What were these things anyway?” asked PFC Jenkins as he finished freeing Cadence and Shining Armor.
“They call them changelings,” said Lasky.
“Oh! These are the changelings that every pony out there was talking about,” said Shifty. “Wait, but how`d you know that sir?”
“Private, what did you think I was doing this whole time up here in the Princesses` palace?” the Captain responded. “Don’t answer that.”
All the humans exchanged whole-hearted laughter, Celestia and Luna both blushing, while Twilight remained silent, deep in scolding thought.
They just killed ten living things, thought Twilight. And they`re laughing. Laughing as if something so tragic never happened.
She then looked down at the dead and bleeding bodies of the changeling soldiers, the stench of their rotting flesh beginning to surface.
It`s as if they had never lived at all. I know I should be grateful to them for saving my life, but still…it just seems wrong; it just doesn’t feel right to me that they`re acting this way.
She then looked back up to the humans and noticed something.
“Wait!” she said, now relieved of any green goo restraining her limbs. “I remember now! I have seen your species before!”
“What?!” said all seven humans in unified response to her claim.
She had, in fact, seen humans before, in her quest to find and take back her crown from Sunset Shimmer.
The lavender alicorn now knew why she hadn’t recognized the human species before: they simply looked different. The humans she had encountered at Canterlot High School were young, skinny adolescents, most of them female; on top of that, their skin color varied through virtually every color of the rainbow, their hair more elongated and fashioned. These humans were mostly male adult soldiers covered in combat gear and armor, their hair in crew cuts. They were also more muscular than the Canterlot High teenagers, and their skin color only varied through black, white, and various shades of brown with the occasional red.
“Uh, marines?” said Lasky. “I think you`d better head back to the party; you`ve earned it.”
“Aye, aye, sir,” said gunny. “Come on men. Good work.”
“Also, while you`re there, spread the word about this. All marines need to be notified right away: they`re going to the front lines now, not the Spartans.”
“You got it sir.”
As they left, Lasky radioed for a pelican from the Infinity.
“It`s already been too long,” he said. “Three of my Spartans are dead and FLEETCOM still has yet to be informed of this planet`s existence. Also, I'm not sure if I can convince them on my own to let me utilize any military force on this planet.”
“So, how do you plan to convince them?” asked Luna.
“Well, I'm going to need all of you with me talking to them as well.”
“You want us to go up there?!” asked Cadence incredulously.
“I can only radio them from my ship; so yes, you`re going up there.”
“Oh boy,” said Shining Armor. “Here we go.”
. . .
August 5, 2558 2342 hours Canterlot Square
As Icebreaker reentered the party, it seemed crystal clear to them that it would continue on well after midnight. The music was still just as loud and the partiers were still just as lively as ever before.
The six-man Fireteam broke up once again, and Ogden decided to revisit the table where he thought Rainbow Dash would still be sitting at. When he found that she wasn’t there, he resolved to just go and sit at the bar, order a few drinks of cider maybe, for he was far too tired to go looking for her. Fortunately for him, he wouldn’t need to, for Rainbow Dash had already beaten him there.
“Hey there,” said Ogden as he sat down on the stool next to the one she was sitting on.
“Hey,” she responded with but a cursory glance in his direction. “Did Twilight make it safely to the castle? Like I already don’t know the answer.”
Realizing that she had no idea of what had just happened up there, Jenkins decided to change the subject while putting her mind to ease.
“Oh yeah. Don’t worry, she made it,” he said back. “Uh, how`s the cider?”
“Strong as ever,” she responded before taking a sip of her glass, grimacing as she struggled to swallow. “Ugh, how is it so easy for you to just scarf this stuff down?!”
“I dunno. Evolution?” he said as the bartender passed him another bottle of the strong cider.
As he opened the bottle, two male pegasi walked up to the cyan mare from behind. One was covered in a brown coat with a dumbbell cutie mark while the other had a tan coat showcasing a cutie mark of three basketballs.
“Well, well, well, look who we have here,” said the brown one.
“Oh Celestia no,” groaned Rainbow.
“Flirting with a human Rainbow Crash?” joked the other before they both burst into a bullying laughter.
Rainbow could only hang her head and ears as she let bullies harass her. Meanwhile, Jenkins faced towards the front of the bar, pretending not to listen.
“Hey bartender,” he said. “Get me a glass.”
As the bartender passed it to him, the brown-coated pegasus trotted up next to him, between him and Rainbow.
“Who is this human anyway?” scoffed the stallion. “Interact with your own kind, alien.”
Ogden casually poured some of the cider from his bottle into the glass.
“Hey?!” continued the pegasus as he thumped an arm down onto the bar table in front of the marine. “Didn’t you hear me? Get off my seat.”
The marine then firmly pushed him a few inches back, holding his hand on the stallion`s chest and then looking up to his face.
“Hold your horses,” Jenkins said. “I'll get up.”
“Horse?!” exclaimed the pegasus as Jenkins began to drink the cider from his glass. “For your information, alien, I'm a pony.”
At the word alien, Jenkins accelerated his drinking and in half a second the cider was gone from the glass. Then at the word pony he stood up and smashed the now empty glass against the brown stallion`s temple.
It had all happened in a flash, and now Jenkins stood towering above the once pompous now bleeding and groaning pegasus; his tan-coated partner having stepped back in shock, the look on his face matched only by that of Rainbow`s (and everypony watching as well).
“Her name,” said the PFC slowly. “Is Rainbow Dash. And you will NOT, speak to either me or her in that way do you understand?”
“Okay! Okay!” pleaded the brown one, continuing to hold a hoof to his head as he backed away on the floor and began to stand.
Once he was up, Jenkins got right up into the stallions` face.
“I suggest you show a little more respect next time. We`re here to save your asses, so the least you can do is be a little more grateful! Understand?!”
“Y-yes! Yes! Okay!” stuttered the bleeding stallion.
“Just leave us alone!” said his buddy before they both ran away through the crowd.
As Jenkins sat back down, Rainbow finally managed to shake her trance and speak.
“Wow,” she said. “Nopony`s ever stood up for me like that. In fact I don’t think anypony`s ever stood up to those two before!”
She then stared at the drink in her hoof and consumed it like a shot of beer.
Wiping her mouth, and with a drunken smile, she said, “Thank you.”
“Yeah,” said the bartender. “Though that was kind of violent, I like what you did human. You`re the first I've ever seen stand up to those two.”
“Oh don’t mention it guys,” said Ogden. “I hate bullies, and there were a lot where I grew up.”
“You poor thing,” Rainbow slurred slightly. “But you know, you're a pretty cool guy, Ogden. I like you.”
“Aw, you don't mean that,” Jenkins replied, a faint shade of red coming to his cheeks.
“No, I do. You're really cool,” Dash reaffirmed, making sure the PFC got it this time.
“Thanks, that means a lot coming from you.”
“Of course it does! I`m the coolest pony in Ponyville, after all,” the Pegasus boasted once more.
“Yeah, uh, you said that already.”
“You know what? Why don’t you rest at my place tonight?”
Now recognizing her new demeanor, Ogden turned his head to look straight into her eyes.
“Are you drunk?” he asked.
“Well yeah,” she responded, well, drunkenly. “Didn’t you know this stuff made us tipsy all the time?”
“I should probably walk you home, then. Just in case.”
“Hah, you think I walk home?” she said as she flared her wings.
“Wait, what? Where`s your house?”
“It`s a cloud-house. Only pegasi like me can get there.”
“So, you want me to ride on your back?”
“Uh-huh.”
“But you`re drunk.”
“So?! There`s nothin` I can run into in th`air, and I ain`t that impaired.”
“You`d better hope so, you and me both actually.”
“C`mon, it`s gettin` late.”
Rainbow hopped off her seat at the bar and began her long trek to the party exit, stumbling drunkenly back and forth as she slowly made her way. Jenkins got off his own stool and walked after her. Once he had caught up he tried to keep her trotting in as much of a straight line as possible. All the while he wondered how non-alcoholic cider could intoxicate any living thing this much.
Once out, Rainbow spread her wings and beckoned for Ogden to climb aboard. Once on, he proceeded to cross himself and then bend down and hug her neck tightly.
“All good back here,” he said as he patted her side.
“O-kay, here we go!”
With one, big flap of her powerful wings, she took to the air, flying near mach-1. Ogden had to duck his head down to keep the wind and G-forces from tearing his face off. He kept his helmet on his head with one hand while holding onto the rainbow-maned pegasus with the other.
“Hah HAAA!!! THIS IS UNREAL!!!!!” yelled the young marine happily over the roar of the planet`s atmosphere rushing past his ears as he and the young mare rocketed toward Cloudsdale.
. . .
August 5, 2558 2350 hours The UNSC Infinity
Aboard the Infinity, all Canterlot royalty marveled at all the advanced technology that surrounded them, particularly the young, lavender alicorn, whose scientific origins were putting her in seventh-heaven right now.
“This technology is amazing!” she exclaimed. “And I see how it works now: because you don’t have magic, you used electricity instead! However, I find it unbelievable that you could go farther with electricity that we could go with magic.”
“Well, you see,” said Lasky. “And me and Celestia have been over this, correct me if I'm wrong, but due to relativity, our species has existed longer than yours. Therefore, we had the time to do all this.”
“Wow. That is just incredible,” said Lasky. “But why would there be humans, or at least humanoids, beyond the portal?”
“Beats me,” Twilight responded. “It must have been a sign.”
“Maybe,” said Thomas as they entered through the doors to the bridge.
“Captain on deck!” barked a naval officer before everyone in the room stopped what they were doing to stand up and salute their ship commander. They all then briefly looked strangely at the entering group of equines following their Captain before his signal of “at ease” sat them all back down to continue their work.
“Well here we are,” said the Captain to everypony as they walked to the front of the room, where a large window lay between them and the endless vacuum beyond. “This is the bridge, where I command everything that goes on both in and outside the ship.”
As he spoke, Roland`s hologram appeared above the turquoise-blue hologram table just behind the group.
“Ah,” said Lasky. “Everypony, this is Roland, the ship`s artificial intelligence program, or A.I. for short.”
“Pleasure to mee-” he started before giving a confused look. “Wait, sir? Did you just say everypony?”
“Well, yeah,” said Thomas as he gestured to the equines behind him.
“Uhhhhmmmmmm…Oh, kay? Pleasure to meet you all,” he said, before turning his attention back to Lasky. “Captain, Admiral Osmond from FLEETCOM is on the line.”
“Oh really? I was just about to call her myself; I guess it has been too long. Put her through, Roland.”
“Yes Captain.”
As Lasky turned to the window, straightening his shirt collar, it doubled up into its own TV screen as the symbol of the UNSC appeared in the center. The image then melted away digitally to reveal a woman in her early thirties sitting at a desk in an office of some kind. This was Admiral Osmond, and she was not happy.
“Captain Thomas Lasky!” said Osmond on screen. “I have been trying to reach you fo– what the hell are those things behind you?! What have you been keeping from me Captain?!”
“Kind of pushy isn’t she?” said Celestia as Twilight hid behind her.
“Oh yes,” said Lasky.
“Wait, what? D-did it just speak?” said the surprised Admiral. “And did you just respond to it?!”
“Ma`am, I know this must be coming as quite a shock to you,” Lasky responded. “Everything will be explained in due time. I realize that I've kept quiet for a time longer than what was expected of me and kept a lot of information from you, and I apologize for that. But right now I need to explain myself; that`s why you called isn’t it?”
“Very well,” said Osmond, still clearly in a slight state of shock at the talking creatures on her screen as she shakily sat back in her chair. “The floor is yours, but I'd like you to start by telling me what in the universe these creatures are.”
“Yes ma`am, let me introduce you to Princess Celestia, Princess Luna, Princess Cadence and her husband Prince Shining Armor, and Princess Twilight Sparkle,” he pointed to each royal equine as he listed their names. “They are all alicorns, except for Shining Armor, he`s a unicorn. They are all the royal monarchs who rule over their country, not ironically named Equestria.”
“Oh my.”
“I know this is a lot to take in ma`am,” said Lasky. “But don’t worry, it`s been a weird day for all of us.”
“Well alright, I guess we`ve all seen our fair share of aliens.”
“I agree ma`am.”
“But what about the forerunner artifacts? What about the mission?”
“Well, we warped to this planet because the Janus Key identified six forerunner artifacts on it.”
“Yes, I was informed of that. I'd like to hear more about them.”
“Yes ma`am. They call them the ‘Elements of Harmony,’ and the good news is that they`ve agreed to share them with us. However, before they do so, we have to do them a small favor.”
“What kind of favor?”
“Princess?” said Lasky as he stepped aside to allow Celestia the floor. “Would you please?”
. . .
As Rainbow stumbled towards her bed, Ogden followed close behind, still reeling from his ride up here.
“That was amazing,” he exclaimed as he took off his helmet, revealing his black hair. “You ponies are all just…amazing! Really, you are!”
“Thanks,” said Rainbow, putting her bedcovers over herself before beckoning for the marine to follow. “C`mon in.”
Jenkins immediately started backing away, once again realizing just how drunk the cyan pegasus was.
“Oh no, I can`t,” he said.
“Why not?” asked Rainbow playfully.
“Well, I can, but I, just, thought I'd sleep on the floor tonight.”
“Oh come on now!” she laughed. “You`re hurting my feelings.”
Realizing that she most likely wasn’t going to give in, Ogden decided to give her what she wanted.
“*sigh*Okay,” he said as he reluctantly walked up to the bed. “If you say so.”
. . .
Captain Thomas Lasky exited the bridge through its electronic sliding doors with an enthusiastic fist-pump.
“Yes! Score!” he almost shouted. “I now have full military jurisdiction in Equestria, time to do whatever it takes to protect this place from the changelings. Thank you all so much for talking to her; you did great!”
“’Twas no problem at all,” said Luna.
“I'm actually quite surprised that Osmond was so lenient about my losing three of my Spartain IVs,” said Lasky. “Maybe what happened on Requiem made this look like a smaller mishap.”
“So what`s your plan?” asked Celestia.
“Well, first things first,” started Lasky. “Since I can`t use Spartans anymore, I'll have to resort to using only my marines. I'll have Castle Company be on 24/7 guard of Canterlot along with your royal guard, Shadow Company on the front lines 24/7, and Gypsy Company split half-and-half: part-time guarding Cloudsdale and Ponyville, and part-time on the front lines.”
“Sounds like a plan,” said Shining Armor.
“But before I send any marines out to fight, they need to be trained.”
“Trained? What do you mean?” asked Twilight. “Haven’t they already been trained and combat experienced?”
“Yes, but they still need to get used to this planet`s gravity. I've noticed that it`s slightly less than our norm and needs a little more getting used to. I'll have my men run a few combat training exercises against each other, so they can get used to fighting under this planet`s conditions.”
“But where exactly?”
“Well, before we were ambushed, Celestia and I were talking about what you call the ‘Everfree Forest’ near Ponyville. Apparently you`re all scared of it because the plants grow all on their own, the animals care for themselves all on their own, and the clouds move, all on their own.”
“Well yeah, most ponies are going to be scared of that because that`s just not natural around here. In Equestrian borders, excluding the Everfree Forest of course, plants don’t grow unless earthponies water them, clouds are moved around by weatherponies, and, at least in Ponyville, Fluttershy has to take care of all the animals.”
“Wait, so you`re saying that outside of Equestria, things thrive independently as well? Similar to the Everfree Forest?”
“Yes.”
“Okay then. Well, here`s the thing. Where humans come from, places like the Everfree Forest are natural. The clouds that move on their own water the plants which then grow on their own. Those plants are then eaten by the animals themselves. It`s all its own cycle.”
“Wow. You humans really are the warriors we need.”
“You said it sister. Also, my men only know how to fight humanoid alien species as well as other humans. They also need to learn how to fight equines, or an equinoid species if you will. From what I've seen, that`s what these changelings are aren’t they? Equinoid?”
“You hold a valid point,” said Luna. “What are you proposing?”
“Well, these changelings are basically equines with spears aren’t they?”
“Correct.”
“So I thought, well, aren’t your royal guards equines with spears as well?”
“Ah.”
“Exactly, so I'd like your permission to allow my marines to train with your royal guards in hand-to-hoof combat, so that I can be sure that if they ever get into close quarters with the changelings, that they`ll still be confident enough to take them on.”
“Permission granted,” said the alicorn princesses of the sun and moon in unison.
. . .
August 6, 2558 0050 hours Canterlot The Royal Castle Throne Room
Captain Lasky had finally come back down from the ship to see what Infinity Science had come up with regarding the Spartan`s greater vulnerability than that of the marines.
By the time he had reached the place, there were already about a dozen scientists in white lab coats analyzing the scene, utilizing all sorts of different gadgets and gismos, the radiation detection equipment being amongst the many. Dr. Catherine Halsey and Dr. Henry Glassman were among the scientists, both hard at work analyzing the still glowing green ashes of the three super soldiers that once were.
“Sorry for keeping you all up so late,” was the first thing to exit Lasky`s mouth as he walked in through the throne room`s two massive double doors, the princesses trailing behind.
“Oh it`s no problem, sir,” said Dr. Glassman. “All our internal alarm clocks were screwed up from the start anyway. Although, *yawn*it is pretty dark out.”
“Have you reached a verdict?” asked Lasky.
“Yes sir. I think we`ve figured it out. Care to explain Halsey?”
“Well,” started the elderly scientist. “Our radiation equipment seems to have picked up some sort of ambient or radiant energy left over from the attack; I can only guess, as much as I hate to admit it, that this energy is some sort of magic. I'm sure one of the Captain`s pony friends can attest to this. Moving on, the Spartans must have been affected by this magic because their energy shields were also a fine source of a similar radiant energy which then mixed well with the changelings` projectiles. This leads me to assume that, since the magic is under the changelings` control and the changelings wanted the Spartans dead, well, let`s just say the magic had no choice but to give the changelings what they wanted. The marines however, have no recumbent or ambient energy of the kind that this projectile can affect to cause this Vaporization, because, unlike the Spartans, their armor isn't powered by any energy; it's just plain Kevlar armor with crystal coated and imbedded Titanium. This means that the marines had armor that not only deflected the magic, but also dispersed the searing heat of the fireball that would have otherwise burnt them to a crisp had the projectile made contact with bare skin. I'm sure that ODSTs, with their similar armor, will also have similar resistance.”
“This is a lot of useful information Halsey,” said Lasky, kneeling down next to the ashes. “Good work team. Why don’t you all go get some rest back on the ship? You`ve earned it."
. . .
August 6, 2558 0600 hours 575 miles southwest of Equestrian borders The Changeling Grand Palace
“My queen,” said General Hives as his leader groggily sat up in her bed. “Sorry to wake you so early.”
“What is it Hives?” said Chrysalis as she rubbed her eyes. “What could it be that is so important as to interrupt my beauty sleep?”
“We have lost contact with our spies.”
“What?! How?!”
“I don’t know, your highness, but before they went they gave me information that is all that we`ll ever need.”
“What?”
“They told me the plan is falling into place. Our approaching troops are serving as the perfect distraction. The foolish equines and their ally have no idea that–”
“Wait,” Chrysalis cut off. “What ally?”
“Some alien species my queen. They said that the ponies called them humans, but our spies informed me that they shouldn’t be a challenge.”
“Very well, continue.”
“As I was saying, your majesty, the foolish equines have no idea that they currently have more than one enemy.”
August 6, 2558 0730 hours Canterlot Castle Princess Luna`s Bedroom
Luna stood on the balcony just outside her private quarters, staring up at the behemoth of a floating vessel that was the UNSC Infinity hovering just above the outskirts of Ponyville.
“What is your story?” she wondered aloud to nopony in particular, before trotting back inside, closing the doors, and finally resting her legs by sitting down on her haunches.
She closed her eyes, and her horn began to glow its shade of sapphire.
. . .
October 20, 2552 2210 hours Earth Africa Kenya New Mombasa streets
Upon entering the dream of Gunnery Sergeant David Alvarez, the human that had saved her life, Luna found herself standing in what appeared to be a human city. Apart from the burning buildings in the distance, this section of the city seemed calm and peaceful.
For the most part at least.
Suddenly, a large, blue and purple aircraft emanating an eerie hovering sound flew overhead; a spotlight coming off of it, searching, searching for any signs of human resistance.
At that moment, Luna felt something. She knew this feeling all too well; it was what told her the location of the dreamer every time she entered a dream. But something wasn’t right. For some reason she sensed his presence above her.
“That does not make sense,” said the midnight blue alicorn to herself. “Humans cannot fly.”
She took to the air regardless; quieter than the breeze was her takeoff, all the while looking for Alvarez.
Finally her eyes came to rest on what looked like some kind of pod large enough to fit one human, lodged into the side of one of the buildings. Hovering just beside it with her wings, she peeked inside to discover a human soldier sitting unconscious within. Though he was wearing a helmet with a visor that obscured his entire face, Luna knew that this had to be him.
Suddenly, he began to move. As soon as he did so, Luna instinctively flew to a hovering position just above the pod to avoid being seen.
Inside, he began to speak.
“Ah fuck,” he began. “It`s dark out! I must`ve been knocked unconscious for a few hours.”
Though he was inside the pod, Luna could hear every word crystal clear, as this was somepony else`s dream that she had entered, her mind could hear every thought of the dreamer.
“I gotta get outta this thing ASAP,” he said before punching four green buttons.
Suddenly, the front end of the pod burst off and clattered to the ground nearly one-hundred feet below. Holstering his silenced M6C sidearm and grabbing his silenced M7 submachine gun, he jumped out. Seconds later he landed with an audible thud and yelp of pain.
Concerned for him, Luna quietly descended to the aching human, activating an invisibility spell on her way down.
“Ooowwwwww…” he groaned before looking around; his eyes finally landing on a pair of medpacks on the other side of the street. “Medpacks…gotta fix myself up quick.”
He stumbled over to them, grunting against the pain the entire agonizing way. Once there, he picked one of them up, the machine beginning an automated advertisement as he did so.
“Fast, accurate diagnosis,” It said in its computer-like voice. “Or your money back.”
“ONI covered up the majority of my identity and faked the rest for this shit?” said David to no one in particular, seeming to ignore the machine as he treated himself back to health. “Somehow I was born on Luna now, Earth`s moon instead of Earth itself for god`s sake!”
They call their moon Luna? Thought Luna. Interesting.
“And apparently my name`s John Doe now,” said the ODST, now finished healing himself. “Man, I gotta stop complaining; I gotta focus. My squad`s out there somewhere. Hell, they could all be dead, but I still gotta try.”
He raised his weapon and began to move.
“And something tells me there`s more to this mission,” he said as he moved into the night. “I hope we weren't just desperate measures…”
Luna looked on until Alvarez had disappeared into the darkness of the city streets, then she deactivated her invisibility spell. She looked on for another moment at the burning city in the distance before activating her horn and disappearing herself as she left David`s dream to enter another.
. . .
April 27, 2526 0034 hours Circinius IV 3 miles outside of Corbulo Academy of Military Science
It was nighttime again, but this time Luna found herself in the middle of a woodland area that reminded her of the Everfree Forest. She was in a clearing, standing next to some concrete structure. Off in the distance, she heard the roar of some creature followed closely by a distant green light.
Suddenly, she heard voices and saw flashlights coming ever closer at an alarmingly fast rate. She instinctively activated her invisibility spell once again just as four young humans burst into the clearing. They were wearing armor similar to the marines that were currently in Equestria.
The midnight blue alicorn once again felt the presence of the dreamer, this time right in front of her.
One of them had been helping another to walk and was setting him down underneath the structure. Luna walked up to the wounded human and the one kneeling next to him. Upon closer inspection as he pulled his helmet off she found that the wounded one was actually female. She was coughing violently and seemed to be in a lot of pain.
“We`re gunna get you outta here okay?” said the young soldier beside her.
“April! Stun rounds,” said the only other male in the group.
The one named April did as she was told; she got the stun rounds and broke them in half as she walked back to her wounded comrade.
“This will numb the pain,” said April as she poured out the contents of the bullet onto the wounds of her friend. It only seemed to make it worse as the wounded one flinched in agony.
“Hang in there Chyler, c`mon hang in there,” said the male soldier beside the one named Chyler.
After a few moments of the two looking almost lovingly into each other`s eyes, the male reached out to her neck and pulled off a metal object of some kind that looked something like a necklace.
He began to shake his head violently as if he refused to believe something, as if he refused to believe what was happening.
“It`s okay, Tom,” said Chyler.
Realizing who it was next to her, holding her necklace object, tearing up, and shaking his head violently, Luna`s eyes began to tear up as well as she pieced together what was happening.
“I'm sorry,” she croaked.
The young Thomas Lasky barely managed to whisper back his desperate response, “No, please.”
A few moments later, Chyler Silva gave her last breath and grew still.
She was gone.
“Oh Chyler,” sobbed Lasky.
Luna could barely take it anymore, as she was on the verge of tears herself. Knowing that sobbing could give away her position, she covered her mouth and quietly mourned.
Suddenly, Lasky screamed to the heavens, “Chiiiiiiiiiiiiiyleeeeeeeeeeeeerrr!!!”
And then the world around them collapsed.
. . .
August 6, 2558 0800 hours UNSC Infinity The Captain`s Quarters
Nearly five miles above Equestria, Captain Thomas Lasky woke with a start and sat upright in his bed. He was in a cold sweat and breathing hard from his memories of that fateful night.
Once he had regained his composure, he moved to the side of his bed and turned on the room lights with a small remote. The resulting light illuminated the once dark room, but just barely. He had set the lights to a dim setting, only enough light to allow him to see his hands. Using said hands, he wiped the sweat off his face and forehead before reaching over to his bedside compartment.
Unlocking it and reaching in, he pulled out a pair of dog tags with Chyler Silva`s name on them.
For the first time in years, a tear ran down his cheek.
“I don’t know how I ended up in this situation,” he said. “But this just got more personal than I ever thought possible. I can`t believe I'm saying this, but I can`t let these ponies down."
August 6, 2558 0823 hours Cloudsdale Rainbow Dash`s cloud-house
Rainbow Dash awoke to the headache of a hangover. She sat up dizzily and put her head in her hooves.
“Ahhh…” she groaned. “Too much cider. Maybe if I get up, walk arou-”
She froze, for as she moved to exit off her mattress, she felt the slightest tug on her abdomen. Somepony`s hoof was there, but who`s hoof? She lifted the blankets.
It wasn’t a hoof.
It was the arm of some unknown creature with five more little appendages coming off the end of it.
She looked behind her and saw the face of the alien that was holding her.
It began to move.
In shock, she gave a small squeal as she fell off her bed, wings flapping uncontrollably. The alien awoke to her squeal and the sound of her hitting the floor.
Rainbow backed away a little as the extraterrestrial sat up in her bed. It wore some sort of armor, had black mane, and had tan-colored skin. They made eye contact, and instantly the events of the previous day flooded back into their minds.
“That wasn’t a dream?!” the human exclaimed.
“I wasn’t dreaming?” asked Rainbow as though she hadn’t heard the human in front of her.
“Oh my god.”
“Oh my Celestia.”
They made eye contact once more, and Private First Class Ogden Jenkins got off the bed and slowly walked over to the cyan mare. He knelt down to her, and after a few more seconds of looking into her large, magenta eyes, he reached out and gently put a hand on her cheek.
Rainbow shut her eyes and softly gasped at his touch.
“Easy,” said Jenkins soothingly. “I not gunna hurt you.”
He then put his other hand behind her head and brought her in for a hug.
“Sorry for startling you,” he said.
“S`okay,” Rainbow responded as she returned the embrace. “I wasn’t scared though.”
“Sure you weren't,” said the PFC sarcastically.
“I wasn’t!”
“Are you kidding? You should’ve seen the look on your face! It was hilarious!”
The two began laughing jovially as they let go of each other, glad to have their disquieting morning encounter with each other behind them.
“By the way,” started the cyan pegasus, her headache now having been startled out of her. “About that rematch.”
Before the marine could react, she grabbed him by his arms, flew him over onto the bed, and started tickling his neck.
“Ahahahaha-quit it! HeheHAhaha!”
“Oh? Are humans the ticklish kind?” said Rainbow as she continued her torture.
“Hahahokay, alright, that’s it! Game on!” said Jenkins before he quickly turned the tables on his cyan tormenter by grabbing the front of her neck and using his legs to flip the two of them over.
Now Jenkins was on top of her.
“Rainbow, you’re about to learn one of the many things that fingers can be useful for. This one being that they`re good for TICKLING!”
The marine began his torture by attacking her neck, just as she had attacked his.
“Who`s the ticklish one now?” boasted the PFC as he moved one hand down to her belly.
“No NO nahat there! Anywhere but there!” said the cyan pegasus as she as she rolled over onto her face.
Rainbow was having a wonderful time, despite what she was saying (and the fact that she was losing).
“Do you surrender?” asked Jenkins.
“Never!” shouted Rainbow into her bedcovers.
The human then went for her armpits.
“GAAhahahahokay! Okay! I give, I GIHIHIVE!”
Only then did Jenkins finally stop. He got off of her and lay down next to her. Rainbow brought her face out of her bed covers and laid her cheek on them, now smiling playfully at the human next to her as she audibly breathed in and out, trying to catch her breath. Jenkins smiled back as he felt her breath on his face. He reached over and stroked her rainbow mane.
“You know,” started Jenkins. “You`re the only one of your kind that I've seen with this rainbow-colored hair.”
“It`s called mane,” said Rainbow. “And rainbow-mane is extremely rare.”
“I could imagine. Who were your parents?”
“Oh they both had rainbow-colored mane too,” she said. “It runs in the family, and I really don’t know where it started. I feel it`s been something that`s made my family really unique.”
“Sounds like somepony had a happy childhood,” said Jenkins. “Can`t say the same for myself though.”
“Why not? Didn’t you have nice parents?”
“Not really.”
“Did you even know your parents?” said Dash in sarcastic disbelief.
“Unfortunately yes.”
“What d`ya mean?”
“Well, just my father mostly. You see, my mom died giving birth to me.”
“*gasp*”
“I know, and as a result it was pretty rough growing up, as you could probably imagine.”
“Why? Didn’t he try to take care of you?”
“Oh absolutely, it`s just that, he was a bit of a jerk. Okay, a lot a bit.”
“What?”
“It must have been the death of his wife that had gotten him so naturally riled up. I'm pretty sure he blamed me for her passing, and he wasn’t gunna blame himself. By the time I'd turned 17 I had grown so sick of the guy that I couldn’t have been happier when I was forced to enlist into the UNSC.”
"Why were you forced?”
“Obviously because of my father…partially. ‘Why don’t you join with me?!’ I asked,” Jenkins made a grumpy face, and in a gruff, old man`s voice said, “‘`Cause I'm too old!’ he responded. ‘Ya know there`s an age limit! And you`re just old enough to sign up!’”
Rainbow giggled slightly at his impression.
The marine returned to his normal voice, “‘Well I was going to enlist anyway! `Cause guess what?’ I said. “I'm too old for your shit!’ and I ran out the door.”
“Wow. You were pretty rebellious.”
“As if you weren't; I can tell.”
“But what was the big rush? Why was there so much urgency to join?”
“Because the Covenant had reached Earth, my homeworld, and people everywhere were enlisting to defend it.”
“Ah, so you had to do it, huh?”
“Yep.”
The two sat in silence for another minute.
“So about your rainbow mane again,” said Ogden. “You said it was rare?”
“Oh yeah,” Dash responded. “I said it`s one of the things that make me feel special.”
“As if you weren't already,” flirted Jenkins. “You know I've also noticed how your ears twitch as they pick up sounds. I think that`s really cute.”
“Thanks,” said the cyan pegasus as she wrapped her hooves around the PFC`s arm, closing the gap between her and her new, interstellar friend.
“Rainbow, I wanna thank you for your hospitality. We may not have a whole lot in common, but you`re real nice for letting me stay anyway.”
“No problem,” said Dash, snuggling a little closer. “No problem at all.”
The two stared at the ceiling in silence for another minute, until a crackle from Jenkins` helmet radio sitting on the nightstand disturbed the stillness.
“…Jenkins, come in…”
“Sorry,” said the marine as he got off the bed. “I gotta get that.”
“What is it?” asked Rainbow.
“It`s my squad,” the human responded as he put the helmet on. “They`re probably wondering where I am.”
“Oh.”
“…Come on marine, answer me…”
Jenkins knew that voice, he`d heard it through helmet microphones long enough to identify it anytime he heard it.
“Go Sergeant.”
“…Goddammit marine! You gave us a scare…”
“Aww, did you actually miss me Sarge?”
“…Shut up Jenkins, and tell us where the hell you are…”
“Is gunny there?”
“…Yeah, and reading you loud and clear…Where are ya?”
“Umm…Hold on,” he turned to the cyan mare. “Rainbow, what`d you call this place again?”
“Cloudsdale.”
“I'm in a floating cloud city called Cloudsdale, sir. One of the equines was kind enough to show it to me.”
“…Ya mean that flying one with the Rainbow-colored hair? Looks like you made things up with her after all…”
“…Shifty, get off the line…”
“…Aye sir…”
“…You too, Sidney…”
“…Aww, c`mon mate…”
“…Sid-ney!...”
“…Aye sir…”
“Sounds like you`re all together. I assume the Corporal`s there too?”
“…Oh damn, you got me…”
“Where are you guys, gunny?”
“…In a pelican, now heading for this cloud city you`re in. We`ve been looking for you all morning! Since 0600 actually…”
“What for?”
“…We`re heading to Ponyville to train with the Princess` royal guard…”
“What? Why?”
“…Hell if I know. All I do know is that we`ve gotta head back to the Infinity and change out of these Hazop Uniforms and into our regular infantry uniforms before heading to the training area…”
“Understood sir.”
“…And Jenkins?...”
“Yes, sir?”
“…What were you doing with that pegasus?...”
“Oh, um, well, I uhhh…ahem, what I mean to say is–”
“…Out with it Jenkins! It`s awkward already, so you might as well say it…”
“I slept with her, sir.”
Laughter erupted on the other end.
“Okay, I know what you`re thinking, and in my defense–”
“…Jenkins, I don’t want to know…”
“…Looks like they made up a little more than I thought!...”
“…Shifty? Remember when I told you to stay off the line?...”
“…Yeah?…”
“…Well consider that a standing order…”
“…Aye sir…”
“Well, looks like someone`s pissed this morning.”
“…Please, who doesn’t get a little cranky in the morning? I'll just be happy once you’re on board. I want your things together by the time we arrive…”
“Aye sir.”
Turning off his microphone, Jenkins turned around to face Rainbow.
“Hey Dash? I'm gunna have to leave soo–” Now realizing that the cyan mare was nowhere to be seen, “Dash?”
“In here!” she called from a closet at the end of the room.
“I gotta go soon. My guys are coming to pick me up.”
“Really?” said Rainbow as she came out wearing a blue and yellow colored suit with a pair of goggles strapped to her forehead. “I gotta leave too. How about that?”
“Whoa, where are you going?”
“To Wonderbolt practice.”
“Wonderbolt?”
“The Wonderbolts are only the greatest flyers in all of Equestria,” said Rainbow as she trotted up to Jenkins. “And I recently became one of their Captains!”
“Wow, congrats! You must be quite the athlete.”
The sound of a pelican`s engines came, coming ever closer.
“Oh! Sorry, wish I could stay and chat but,” he leaned down and kissed her on the nose. “Gotta go!”
Dash brought a hoof up to the spot on her nose where Jenkins had just kissed her moments before, watching him as he jogged to the door and leaped into the pelican. As the aircraft pulled away, the marine turned back and gave her a quick, two-fingered salute in her direction. When it had left, Rainbow finally realized that she had been blushing. She gave a sassy smile to herself before flying outside.
. . .
August 6, 2558 0830 hours Aboard Pelican Delta 337 Five miles outside of Ponyville
Fireteam Icebreaker was strapped in their seats inside their pelican transport, now changed into their regular infantry uniforms. Gunnery Sergeant David Alvarez, Sergeant Alex Thompson, and Corporal Marcus Williams wore the white chest-plates, shoulder pads, leggings, and helmets worn by all Noncommissioned Officers, while Private Oscar Morgan and Private Eugene Phillips bore the grey, green, and tan uniforms of regular infantry. Only PFC Ogden Jenkins stood out among his comrades; he wore a large radio on his back, used for contacting fire support teams in the area, along with a grey helmet with a white stripe going down the middle of it. He was the first to break the all encompassing silence that had befallen the inside of the pelican.
“So you guys all slept on the Infinity last night?” asked Jenkins.
“Nah, we were just giving you a hard time,” said Corporal Marcus Williams. “Truth is, we all slept with somepony.”
“Really?”
“Well, all of us except for gunny. He actually was on the Infinity.”
“Okay, so let`s go down the line here. Who`d each of you sleep with?”
“The one named Rarity invited me into her boutique in Ponyville,” said Corporal Williams.
“Fluttershy brought me to her cottage,” said Sidney.
“Pinkie Pie, god that name is way too cheesy,” said Shifty. “She took me to her home in this bakery called: I think it was ‘Sugar Cube Corner?’ Yeah, that was it.”
“And the orange one named Applejack took me over to her farmhouse over at ‘Sweet Apple Acres,” said Sergeant Alex Thompson. “Was nice to be back on a farm again.”
“So what were you picking on me for Sarge?” asked Jenkins. “You basically did the same thing I did.”
“Yeah I know, I know. Like we said, we were just givin` you a hard time is all. I mean, they were all so drunk! How does non-alcoholic cider make anything so intoxicated?”
“I know right?” said Jenkins before his whole Fireteam joined him in buoyant laughter.
“So the reason gunny`s so pissed is because he had to spend all morning flying this pelican around to pick us all up,” whispered Shifty to Jenkins, as they were strapped in right next to each other. “Also, I think he might have had another dream last night about that drop he made six years ago.”
“New Mombasa?” Jenkins whispered back.
“That`s the one. I'm starting to think that memories like those keep him up at night.”
“How do you think he made it outta there?”
Just then, the two marines suddenly became aware that gunny had heard almost every word. He was strapped in the seat across from them. They looked at him, glanced back at each other for a moment, and then looked back at his face again.
“In a captured phantom,” he said, answering Jenkins` question. “Made it out just before a Covenant assault cruiser glassed the whole damn coastal highway.”
Jenkins and Shifty looked back at each other, and then decided to just shrug it off and continue looking straight ahead.
“We`re here,” came the pilot`s voice over the helmet radios as the pelican`s ramp began to come down.
The sight that greeted them was a large, hilly landscape covered in bright green grass. In the distance ran a modestly large river, Ponyville looming just beyond. In the sky rose Celestia`s bright, yellow sun and, seeming only mere inches away, one could just make out the cluster of clouds known as Cloudsdale. As the pelican touched down, the sight of Gypsy Company, as well as an equally large force of Royal Guardsponies lay before the marines.
As Fireteam Icebreaker dismounted from their pelican, along with a few other fireteams from other pelicans, Gypsy Company Commander Captain Robert Peterson arrived in the passenger seat of a Warthog, which stopped near the edge of the congregation. The Captain Stood up on his seat and faced his marines. From his elevated position, he began his briefing.
“Alright men! Listen Up!” he began in his authoritative voice. “Castle and Shadow Companies are currently training up in Canterlot. Castle has been assigned 24/7 guard duty of the Capital, while Shadow will be on the front line 24/7. As for us, we`ve been split half-and-half. Only half of our company will be out fighting at a time, the time of which we are not sure of just yet. During this time, the other half will be guarding both Ponyville and Cloudsdale. After today`s training, you will find out which platoons will be assigned guard duty, and which will be shipping out, understood?”
“AYE SIR!”
“Good. Now I suppose you`re wondering why you need this training. The reason, is that Captain Lasky wants to make sure that we are comfortable fighting what is known as an Equinoid species, or horse-like species, in what is now about to be known as hand-to-hoof combat. These royal guardsme–er guardsponies, are here to instruct you on how to handle yourself the event that a changeling catches you without a weapon or with just your knife. Listen to what they say, and we can all come out of this a little more confident in our abilities.”
“AYE SIR!”
“Alright, now you`ll be doing hand-to-hoof combat training until 1300 hours. At that time,” he pointed to the woodland area to the north. “You`ll all need to head over to the Everfree forest. Once there, all platoon commanders are to meet me at the tree line for a briefing on the field training exercise that we are going to do there. Everyone understand?”
“AYE SIR!”
“Good. Now get to it marines!” said Captain Peterson before sitting back down in his seat.
“AYE SIR!”
The Warthog then sped off toward the Everfree forest tree line.
“Alright Alpha Platoon!” called Lieutenant Daniel Dietz, who was standing about one-hundred feet away next to a royal guard officer, and an entire platoon of royal guardspony subordinates right behind the two of them. “Fall in around us!”
Alpha gathered in front of the group as Bravo through Delta Platoons did the same in front of other royal guard platoons throughout the field. Lieutenant Dietz was wearing his officer`s cap and had his M6D holstered on his hip.
“Men, today marks the first and last day of your hand-to-hoof combat training,” said the young LT. “So pay attention and learn well.”
“AYE SIR!”
. . .
August 6, 2558 1254 hours Outskirts of Ponyville Hand-to-Hoof Combat Training Grounds
“Man!” said Jenkins as he took a moment to catch his breath, beads of sweat visibly rolling down his face. “Hard to believe we`ve been doing this for almost four and a half hours, huh?”
“You think you`ve got this down?” said his unicorn trainer.
“Yeah.”
“Good, `cause here comes your final test.”
Noticing that the unicorn was looking past him, Jenkins looked over his shoulder to see a royal guard sergeant and the Lieutenant Dietz walking over to them. The LT held in his hands a digital clipboard to check off the progress of his marines; due to the look on his face, it seemed that all was going well.
“How`s his progress Corporal?” said the Sergeant.
“Oh it`s great, sir,” said the Corporal. “I have to say, you humans are really fast learners!”
“Good,” said the LT. “`Cause the Captain wants us over by the Everfree Forest in–” checking his digital wristwatch, “–literally five minutes! So let`s get this examination through with quickly.”
“Alright,” started the sergeant. “Here`s what we`re going to do. In the next five minutes, you will have to perform for us six different takedowns; two with your knife, two with your gun, and two with you bare hands. Got it?”
“Yes sir,” said Jenkins.
“Let`s start with bare hands,” said the Lieutenant.
“Aye, sir.”
“Okay,” started the sergeant. “He tries to buck you in the chest, how do you react?!”
Ogden`s royal guard trainer immediately spun one-eighty degrees and let his two hind legs loose, but the PFC had already sidestepped to the right, following up by swiping the unicorn`s two front hooves out from under him.
“That`s one,” said the royal guard sergeant. “Now if he comes at you with his spear?”
The downed guard got back on his hooves and grabbed his spear that was off to the side and got in a ready stance. He then thrust it forward at Ogden`s chest, but the human had sidestepped again, this time to the left. He moved forward past the spearhead and grabbed the unicorn`s horn and pulled it forward, off-balancing the royal guard. Immediately after, Jenkins used his right leg to trip the unicorn onto the ground and on his back. The marine held him there with a hand clasping his horn to the ground and his right knee on the royal guard`s chest-plate, his left hand raised in a fist, ready to strike if the subdued pony made any sudden move to escape.
It had all happened within mere seconds.
“And that`s two,” said the LT. “Well done Private. Now take out your knife. It`s time for your two knife takedowns.”
“Wait,” said the sergeant. “What`s that?”
Everyone looked to where the sergeant was pointing, which was at Jenkins` hand, currently grasping the unicorn`s horn. The corporal was apparently trying to cast some magic spell, but Ogden`s hand appeared to be blocking the magical flow through the horn.
“Whoa,” said the LT, who then began to take a quick video of the phenomenon with his digital clipboard. “Now that`s interesting. Let me just save that real quick…there! I'll send that to the Captain later, see if he can get Infinity Science on that. Now pull out your knife Private.”
“Aye, sir,” said the PFC, standing up and pulling his combat knife out of its shoulder harness.
“Okay,” said the sergeant. “He tries whacking you with his spear.”
The royal guard corporal swung his weapon from the right, but Jenkins caught it with his arm before it struck his head. He then quickly pulled on the spear, pulling its royal guard handler with it, as he brought the handle-end of his knife on the spot where the corporal`s heart would be, due to safety reasons, and thereby avoiding any fatal puncture of the royal guard`s hide.
“Good, very good,” said the sergeant. “I like you humans; you`re fast, agile, and sharp. Personally, I don’t think the changelings stand a chance.”
“Assuming they even get the chance to stand,” said the LT.
“Hah! Good one.”
“Okay private, on to your next one.”
“Aye sir.”
The guard then came at Jenkins, attempting to stab him in the chest with the spear. Jenkins, with his free left hand, deflected the oncoming spearhead to the right while his opponent`s momentum continued to force the unfortunate guard forward. Jenkins sidestepped to the left and stopped the royal guard in his tracks by placing the blunt end of the knife blade on his foe`s neck, covering his throat.
“And that`s a kill,” said Lieutenant Dietz. “Good work, now with a gun. First, your pistol.”
“What do you do in a situation where a changeling is trying to choke you from behind?” said the royal guard sergeant.
Jenkins and his trainer got into position; the royal guard corporal wrapped his two front hooves around the marine`s neck. Because hooves can`t grip each other very easily, it was almost effortless for Jenkins to pull them apart, thus releasing the guard`s grip on his neck. Ogden then sidestepped to the left and then put his right leg as far between the guard`s two legs and elbowed the equine to the ground. The marine then pulled his M6D out of its holster as he turned to face his downed opponent. With the royal guard corporal on his back and Jenkins now pointing his pistol at him, the first of Jenkins` two gun-takedowns was complete.
“Okay private,” said the LT. “Well done. Now get your rifle and do one more.”
Jenkins then helped the corporal to his feet before picking up his MA5D assault rifle.
“Now, in this situation,” said LT Dietz. “You`re in close quarters, and just as you`re about to round a corner, he grabs your rifle and starts trying to wrestle it out of your hands. What do you do?”
Jenkins then raised his rifle, and then his royal guard trainer came in from his right and grabbed the barrel of the weapon with his two bare hooves. The marine then elbowed the unicorn across the face with his right arm, grabbed his horn yet again with his right hand, and pulled it straight down, thus tripping the equine over the human`s leg and flipping him over onto his back. Jenkins then stepped away from his downed adversary while pointing his rifle at him.
His test was over.
“Well done soldier!” praised Lieutenant Dietz. “You got him off of your weapon, subdued on the ground, and got back to your tool. You made space for your weapon so you could shoot him.”
“Thank you sir,” said Jenkins.
“That technique of making space for your weapon,” said the royal guard sergeant. “Is actually more effective than any other martial arts technique I've ever seen. It`s just so fast and simple.”
“Yeah, well centuries upon centuries of warfare will teach you a thing or two,” said the LT.
“I can see that.”
The LT then regarded his digital wristwatch once again.
“Right on time,” he said before shouting to everyone. “Time! Time! Time! Fall in men! Time to start heading over to the forest!”
“AYE SIR!”
“Alright, let`s move.”
Jenkins, the royal guard sergeant and corporal, and Lieutenant Dietz then began their march towards the Everfree Forest.
“Jenkins, go form up with your squad,” said the LT. “We`re going to jog over to the forest. Spread the word that we`re going to be singing the UNSC marine corps cadence.”
“Aye sir,” said the PFC as he turned and headed back toward the congregation of humans and ponies following close behind.
“And you two,” said Dietz, referring to the guardsmen grunts before him. “You guys should probably head back to your royal guard regiment as well.”
“You got it,” said the sergeant. “C`mon corporal.”
“Yessir,” said the subordinate, following his superior back to their formation like a terrier follows his master.
August 6, 2558 1305 hours Everfree Forest Tree line Field Combat Training Grounds
A pair of F-41 strike fighters soared overhead, heading back towards a distant Cloudsdale on their now daily patrols of the skies above Equestria.
Below stood Captain Robert Peterson, Gypsy Company Commander, and his enlisted tech expert whom sat in a chair in front of an array of big monitors that had just been turned on.
“Alright Corporal,” said Captain Peterson. “Are the screens set and ready to go?”
“Yes sir,” said the Corporal, not glancing away from the screens. “All we`ll have to do now is connect each participating marine`s helmet cameras to a monitor before starting the field exercise.”
“Looks like we`re all set up then. Good work.”
“Sir,” came a voice from behind. “The Captain is here with the princesses.”
Captain Peterson turned around to see Captain Lasky with Princess Celestia and Princess Twilight approaching his makeshift outpost.
“Captain Peterson,” started Lasky as both he and Robert Saluted each other. “Is everything ready?”
“Yes sir,” said the Marine Captain. “All we need now are the marines themselves to arrive.”
“One early morning `bout zero-five!” came a few voices off in the distance.
“ONE EARLY MORNING `BOUT ZERO-FIVE!” came the sound of almost two hundred more.
“Speak of the devil…” said the Marine Captain as all of Gypsy Company began jogging into earshot, singing the rest of the UNSC Marine Corps cadence.
The ground will rumble, there'll be lightning in the sky! Helljumper helljumper where`ve ya been?!” Feet first into hell and back again! When I die please bury me deep! Place an MA5 down by my feet! Don't cry for me, don't shed no tear! Just pack my box with PT gear! Don't you worry, don't come undone! It's just my ghost on a PT run!
By the end of the verse, the company had arrived at their destination. All four lieutenants then gathered by their Captains.
“Your men are quite disciplined,” said Celestia.
“Princess,” said Captain Peterson. “May I ask where your sister is?”
“In Canterlot,” she replied.
“She`s overlooking the fortification of the City and the training of Castle Company,” said Lasky. “Focusing now on what we`re here for, now that the marines are here I believe we should get our field training exercise underway?”
“Yes sir,” said Captain Peterson as he began to walk towards a small, gridded holo-table near the big TV monitors. “If you would all follow me please.”
On the holo-table there projected a 3-D holographic map of the Everfree Forest. As the two Captains and two princesses approached it, so too did the four lieutenants from the group of marines that had just marched over.
“Gentlemen,” said Peterson once everyone had gathered around the table. He pointed a finger at the map. “Today you will be conducting a field training exercise here in the Everfree Forest. Before I continue, Captain? Is there anything you`d like to say before I debrief them on the details?”
“Yes,” said Lasky. “The point of this exercise, plain and simple, is to get you and your men used to fighting with this planet`s slightly-less-than-you`re-used-to gravity as well as warm you all up for the war you are to fight ahead. This forest is very similar to an environment you`d find on any of our worlds, as well as simulate what the rest of this planet is like. Captain Peterson, you may continue.”
“Yes sir,” said the marine Captain as he began pointing out different spots on the map. “You will be divided into two teams: Alpha and Bravo will be the blue team, Charlie and Delta will be red team. You and your men will each receive removable Velcro stripes of your respective team color that can be put on all of your helmets.”
He pointed to the northern end of the map at a river that split the forest in two. This was the same river that Ponyville was built next to.
“Red team will start here,” he said. “On the eastern side of that river.”
He then pointed to the southern end of the map at the same river.
“Blue team is to start there, on the southern bank of that river. You will be using non-lethal sim-munition rounds in your weapons to ensure safety. Anyone who is hit is to lie down on their backs where they stood. Any questions?”
“Sir?” asked LT Daniel Dietz. “What areas are off limits?”
“Lieutenant, once I send the message to your holo-pads to start the exercise, every location on this map will be up for grabs. The only places you aren’t allowed to go until this is over are any place not on this map. Make sense?”
“Yes sir,” he said as he and the other platoon commanders began to eye the old, medieval-style castle at the northern end of the forest.
“Any other questions?” asked Captain Peterson.
The four lieutenants shook their heads.
“Alright, get to it then. We begin at 1500.”
“Aye sir,” said the four in unison before jogging back to their respective platoons.
“Hold on a second,” said Twilight, who had been silent up until now. “So you humans are about to fight…each other?”
“Oh yes Twilight,” said Lasky. “I should mention, you`ll finally get to see what a human battle looks like.”
“But why would you ever fight yourselves? It just seems wrong.”
“Well, we have fought each other in our past numerous times for multitudes of reasons. All I know is that it`s the reason we`ve become so powerful as a species, because we mastered warfare, by using it on each other.”
As if Twilight didn’t seem dumbfounded enough by what she had just heard, Celestia leaned in and spoke into her ear something even more shocking.
“As a matter of fact twilight,” she whispered. “Humans have been fighting wars with each other longer than ponies of this era have been in existence.”
“Oh my,” was all the lavender alicorn could say.
. . .
August 6, 2558 1495 hours Everfree Forest Field Combat Training Grounds
Alpha platoon was crouched, motionless among the trees. Among them was Fireteam Icebreaker, the platoon`s six-man, scout-sniper squad. The squad sniper was Corporal Marcus Williams, he held his sniper rifle in his hands and his M6D sidearm on his hip. The assistant squad sniper was also the team leader, Gunnery Sergeant David Alvarez, who held a BR85HB SR battle rifle in his hands with an M45D tactical shotgun on his back. PFC Ogden Jenkins was the squad radio man; he held an MA5D assault rifle in his hands with an M6D on his hip as well. Sergeant Alex Thompson, the squad`s light machine gunner, held his M739 squad automatic weapon in his arms and an M395 designated marksman rifle on his back. Private Eugene Phillips and Private Oscar Morgan both had an M395 DMR in their hands and an M6D pistol on each of their hips.
A couple hundred meters away crouched Bravo platoon. Just a few meters to their north ran the river they were told to start next to. The sound of its rushing water was calming and serene. The marines all now wore blue stripes going down the middle of their helmets. Between them stood their two commanders, who also wore helmets with the same appearance, looking down at a holographic map on one of their holo-pads. They were putting the finishing touches on their plan.
“So, let`s review the plan,” said LT Dennis Ackerson of Bravo platoon, pointing at the castle to the north. “Your men will capture and secure this abandoned castle while we follow this river to the center of the forest.”
“Then, when the enemy attacks the castle,” said LT Daniel Dietz of Alpha platoon. “You can move in from behind and hit their flank.”
“Sounds like a plan,” said Dennis before shaking Daniel`s hand. “Let`s get back to our guys.”
“Alright, let`s do this,” said Daniel before they parted ways.
As Dietz approached Fireteam Icebreaker, Gunnery Sergeant David Alvarez saw his Lieutenant approaching and stood up to walk over and greet him.
“So what`s the plan, sir?” he asked.
“Bravo`s going to move northeast along this river,” started the LT. “We are going to cross it and head north to this castle.”
He pointed to the castle`s location on the holo-pad.
“But before we make the clearing, around here,” he pointed to a spot about half a mile away from the castle. “I need you and your squad to scout ahead and stop at the clearing. Once there, you are to recon and survey the castle and the surrounding clearing. Radio back to us if you see any enemies in or around the objective, okay?”
“Aye sir,” said gunny as he turned to head back to his squad.
“And Sergeant?” said the LT.
Gunny turned back around.
“Yes sir?” he said.
“I understand that you and your squad used to be ODSTs,” said Dietz. “I just want you to know that that`s why I chose you for this task.”
“I understand, sir.”
At that moment, LT Dietz`s holo-pad vibrated, signaling that it had just received a message.
It read one simple word:
BEGIN
Dietz, upon reading this, looked up to see Bravo moving forward.
“Okay men,” he said, pulling out his M6D pistol. “Let`s move!”
. . .
August 6, 2558 1501 hours Everfree Forest Tree line Field Combat Training Grounds
“Okay,” said Captain Peterson as he observed the holo-table. “The exercise has begun.”
Soldiers on the map were shown as either red or blue dots, for red and blue teams respectively. It had been only a minute since the marine Captain had sent his message to begin the combat and already he and his ship Captain, along with the two princesses that were present, could see the dots moving out.
“Now this battle may take a while,” said Peterson. “A lot of times they go well on into the night.”
“So I hope you two can stay long,” said Lasky.
“Oh, we should be fine,” said Celestia.
“Yeah,” said Twilight. “Number one, I've spent many sleepless nights studying before, so a long night shouldn’t be anything I can`t handle; and number two, if anything urgent does come up, either Celestia or I can teleport to wherever we need to be and back in a jiffy.”
“Hey!” came a shout from a few hundred feet away in the general direction of Ponyville. “This area`s off limits to civilians!”
Twilight turned around to see two human marines holding back her five friends.
“Oh, c`mon! Let us through!” said Rainbow Dash.
“Ma`am, I'm gunna have to ask you stand back,” said the other marine. “We are under direct orders not to let any civilians in here.”
“Oh, that`s okay,” came Fluttershy`s soft voice. “Sorry to bother you, we were just leaving anyway, right girls?”
Her implied suggestion seemed to go unnoticed.
“We jus` wanna check up on our friends!” said Applejack. “We`ll be in and out, quick as a fiddle.”
“I can`t allow that ma`am,” said the marine. “Once again I'm under strict orders to–”
“Well now you`re under orders from me,” said Twilight from behind. “Let them pass.”
“Oh,” he said as he turned his head and then let the five through. “Of course your highness.”
Twilight and her friends trotted up to and greeted each other.
“Thanks Twi,” said Rainbow.
“Now do tell,” said Rarity. “Where are our newest acquaintances?”
“Well,” started Twilight. “You really can`t talk to them right now, they`re still in the middle of a training exercise. Speaking of training, Rainbow Dash? What are you doing here? I thought you had Wonderbolt practice.”
Rainbow just shrugged.
“It ended early today,” she said.
“Any particular reason?” asked Twilight.
“Well, it may have had something to do with one of those human flying machines soaring straight through our practice area, but I'm sure it won`t happen again.”
“Let`s hope not,” said Twilight, looking a little worried.
“So where are they?” asked Pinkie Pie. “I don’t see them.”
“They`re training in there.”
Twilight pointed into the Everfree Forest.
“What?!” squeaked Fluttershy. “Oh, those poor things! I hope they`re okay.”
“Oh don’t worry Fluttershy,” said Twilight. “Their Captain tells me that the kind of environment that`s in there is very similar to a typical forest they`d find on any one of their worlds.”
“So, they`re used to it?” asked Rainbow.
“Yep, it`s like they`re right at home in there.”
“Well is there any way we can see how they`re doin` without havin` to trot on in there?” asked Applejack, clearly scared that she may have to. “I mean, it`s pretty likely that we ain`t allowed in there anyway.”
Twilight was easily able to see through her excuse.
“Don’t worry AJ,” she said. “We won`t have to go in there. Thanks to the wonders of human technology, we can see how they`re doing from right here.”
“Nah howkin` that be?” asked Applejack.
“Just follow me girls,” said the lavender alicorn before turning and heading towards the array of monitors.
Her friends followed suit, soon attracting the attention of Captain Peterson.
“Who are you?” he asked.
“Ah!” said Lasky. “The Elements of Harmony, welcome! May I ask what brings you here?”
Seeing that his ship Captain recognized them, Captain Peterson decided that the five newcomers were of no real threat.
“They just wanted to check up on their human friends,” said Twilight. “It is the friendly thing to do.”
“Umm…oh-kay,” said Lasky. “But are you sure you wanna see this? It gets pretty intense.”
“We came here fur a reasn`” said Applejack. “We ain`t gunna turn away now. Right girls?”
“Uh-huh!” said the other four in unison.
“Alright then,” said Lasky. “Corporal, pull up Fireteam Icebreaker`s helmet cams.”
“Aye sir.”
“Who`s an Ice-breaker? They must not like the cold,” said Pinkie as the six nearest monitors switched to each individual member of Fireteam Icebreaker.
“It`s the collective codename for the six-man Fireteam that each of your friends are a part of,” said the ship Captain.
“Okey dokey lokey!”
“Uhh…alright…I guess?” said Thomas awkwardly.
“My goodness!” exclaimed Rarity now looking at the screens. “They really are deep in those woods!”
“Yes they are little lady,” said Captain Peterson. “Hold on, are they separated from their platoon? They`re all by themselves out there.”
“They`re probably just scouting ahead,” said Lasky. “They are a scout-sniper squad after all.”
Lasky then pointed at a group of six moving blue dots on the holographic map, far ahead of a much larger group of nearly fifty stationary dots further south.
“That`s Icebreaker right there,” he said. “And that must be the rest of Alpha platoon. They currently appear to be holding their position, probably waiting for Icebreaker`s assessment of the terrain.”
Captian Peterson decided to stay by the holo-table, watching the battle as a whole unfold. The rest of the group continued to watch the Fireteam`s helmet cams on the monitors.
“They`re not talking to each other,” observed Rainbow Dash. “Why are they just using a bunch of hand signals?”
“It`s called silent team communication,” explained Lasky. “It`s commonly used when performing stealthy tasks, such as reconnaissance missions.”
Lasky gestured to the screens in front of him at the end of that last statement, implying that that was what Icebreaker was doing.
On screen, the group could see that Fireteam Icebreaker was using maneuver tactics. One or two men stood behind a tree with their weapons at the ready while the rest moved to another area of cover, and then repeated the process with the next two men. They were ever ready to fight any enemy that may come their way, though it was quite unlikely since it was a big forest and the game had just begun. Still it didn’t hurt to take precautions.
Captain Peterson came back over to the monitors.
“They should be approaching some kind of clearing by now,” he said.
“Wait,” said Twilight. “Isn`t that the castle of the two sisters?”
“The one that nearly scared us all to death?” said Fluttershy.
“Well, not me,” said Rainbow. “But, you know.”
“It appears so,” said Celestia, a concerned look adorned on her face.
“Oh shit,” said Captain Peterson. “My bad, princess. I told them that once the game started, anything would be up for grabs. It seemed only logical then that they`d go for that castle. It`s a very strategic point if you ask me.”
“Oh it`s quite alright,” she responded. “I'd actually like to see what your men will do with it.”
. . .
August 6, 2558 1507 hours Everfree Forest Near the Castle of the Two Sisters
Fireteam Icebreaker stood crouched just behind a tree line overlooking the castle. It was at this point that they decided to speak again with their voices instead of using mere hand signals.
“There she is,” said Jenkins in a low voice. “Should we radio back?”
“Yeah,” whispered gunny. “You do that while we set up.”
“Aye gunny,” said Jenkins before moving back a few yards to send a radio transmission.
Meanwhile, gunny got right to work.
“Okay. Marcus, you find a good overwatch position to cover our rout in,” he ordered. “Sidney, go be his spotter.”
“Aye gunny,” said the two in their unified, low voices.
“Sir? Weren't we ordered to stay back?” asked Private Eugene Phillips.
“Yeah, but this could be our only chance to secure this place, Shifty,” said gunny. “I don’t wanna risk this strategic point getting into enemy hands.”
“But what if we`re attacked while we`re in it?” asked Sergeant Alex Thompson. “We won`t last five minutes!”
“While they`re attacking, the rest of Alpha can come in from here and flank `em. They`ll have no choice but to fall back if that happens.”
“Okay, but you`ll be disobeying a direct order.”
“What`re they gunna do? Court-martial me? Sometimes it takes a little insubordination to win a war.”
“It also takes the same amount to get yourself killed. You sure you know what you`re doing?”
“Of course, Alex, when have I ever gotten you killed?”
“Well, I am still here gunny.”
“Exactly. So once Jenkins is finished with his call and Marcus and Sidney are in position, Shifty, Jenkins, and I will cross that bridge. You stay here and set up your SAW. You are to provide cover fire if things go south. Got it?”
“Aye sir.”
“…We`re in position gunny…” said Corporal Marcus Williams over gunny`s helmet radio.
“Rodger, good hunting,” gunny radioed back.
Up on the nearby rock where Marcus and Sidney lay prone, a conversation began between the two.
“Oy, Sidney?” said Marcus as he looked through his sniper scope.
“Yeah?”
“You still think this is a dream? I mean, we`re fighting for multicolored ponies! Doesn’t that say something to ya?”
“I dunno mate, it seems pretty real to me. But hey, even if it is, it`s one I'll never forget for as long as I live.”
Sidney brought up his DMR and aimed through the scope.
“I'll spot using the scope on this gun; I'm not gunna bother taking it off though, just so you know.”
“Gotcha.”
“You see anything in the castle?”
“Nope, nor anywhere else. There`s something fishy going on here though, you feel it?”
“Yeah.”
Meanwhile, back on the ground, Jenkins had just finished his transmission and had walked back over to the rest of his squad.
“So what`s the plan?” he asked.
Gunny pointed a hand at the wooden bridge.
“We`re gunna cross that bridge and recon the castle,” he said before putting a hand to his helmet radio. “Corporal? Are the windows clear?”
“Yes sir,” came Marcus` voice. “The whole castle looks completely deserted. You should be clear.”
“Rodger,” said gunny back before turning his attention back to the three marines in front of him. “Alright, I'll take point as we cross the bridge, Jenkins has got the middle, and Shifty you take the rear. Sarge`ll stay back with the SAW. Everyone got it?”
Everyone nodded.
“Alright,” said gunny. “Let`s go.”
Sarge got into a prone position behind a tree, the barrel of his SAW sticking out past it, as Jenkins, gunny, and Shifty ran for the bridge. Once they got there, gunny, then Jenkins, and then Shifty got on the bridge and quickly, but carefully, began to cross it. Once they were three-fourths of the way across, they seemed to be in the clear.
Suddenly, gunfire erupted from the castle.
“Shit!” yelled gunny as red paint from the sim-munition rounds being fired at them tore at the bridge around them.
Since the group was almost across the bridge when they were fired upon, they quickly made it across and dived behind some bush cover. Luckily for them, the bushes were thick enough to block the majority of the rounds being fired at them, and as if they weren't lucky enough, miraculously, none of them had been hit.
“Goddammit!” Shifty blurted out, a look of pure terror on his face, before blind-firing a few shots above the bush.
As the three of them lay prone behind their makeshift cover, Ogden was the first to state the obvious.
“We`re pinned down, gunny!” he shouted, with one hand on his helmet and his rifle in the other. “We gotta get them offa us!”
Gunny wasted no time, remaining calm despite the circumstances; his years of combat experience were kicking in.
“Roger that!” he shouted back to the PFC before bringing a hand up to his helmet radio. “Sergeant! Lay down cover fire!”
“Already on it!” came Alex`s voice as gunny began to observe that rounds from Alex`s SAW were flying over the bridge.
Meanwhile, back on the rock at the tree line, Marcus and Sidney had already started going to work.
“Targets in the windows around the door,” said Sidney, spotting with his DMR. “They`re two, three-man machine gun teams.”
“Roger,” said Marcus as he took aim.
He fired his four shots, dropping both gunners and their spotters. The third man in each group either fled or ducked back under the window.
This was followed immediately by a lull in the gunfire.
“You`re clear, gunny,” said Sidney over the helmet radio while Marcus reloaded. “Hurry back across the bridge!”
“Roger that!” gunny said back before pushing Ogden to his feet. “Go! Go! GO!”
The three marines got up and booked it for the bridge. They were only halfway there when they came under fire again, not from endless machine gun fire from SAW`s, but from a single shot that impacted the ground right next to Ogden`s left foot.
“Fuck!” yelled Shifty as another shot whizzed right past his head. “Snipers!”
“Take `em out Marcus!” ordered gunny over the radio before shouting at the two teammates in front of him. “Serpentine! Serpentine!”
“Sniper, top floor of the tower on the right,” said Sidney back up on the rock. “Another in the left, same level. I'll suppress the one the right, you go for the left!”
“Gotcha,” responded Marcus while Sidney began firing on the tower to the right.
A few seconds later, Marcus fired. He saw his target`s chest explode with red paint, the force of the hit knocking him down behind the window.
“First one`s down,” he said before turning his scope on the other tower.
By this time, the clip in Sidney`s DMR had only five shots left. Marcus could see that the suppression fire Sidney was giving was working; the enemy sniper appeared to have taken cover.
“Alright, I'm out,” said Sidney as his clip ran out.
An eternity seemed to pass as the Corporal kept his sights trained on the window. He saw his target cautiously peek out from behind his cover, but then quickly pull back. By this time, gunny, Shifty, and Jenkins had almost made it back across the bridge. Seeing but one opportunity left to make a kill, the remaining enemy sniper then slowly peeked his barrel out of the window and took aim at the three marines. When Marcus saw the first glimpse of his target`s helmet, he fired.
Through his scope, Marcus could see the red paint from the sim-munition round hit the top of the enemy sniper`s helmet. He saw his head snap back on impact, and then witness his body fall to the floor behind the window.
“Target down,” said Marcus coolly.
“Good shot, mate,” said Sidney.
Meanwhile, Alex had repositioned his SAW in the crotch of a different tree, still aiming at the castle as his teammates ran towards him and the forest beyond. But right before they reached the tree line, one last shot rang out from the castle.
Shifty went down with a cry of pain.
He had been hit in the leg. His teammates heard him fall and immediately turned ran to his aid. Jenkins ran to pick him up while Alex and gunny moved in front of him and fired their weapons at the castle. Sniper fire could be heard as Marcus shot at the enemy marine that had shot his buddy.
“Was that a DMR shot?” asked Sidney.
“Yeah,” Marcus responded.
“Did you get him?”
“Nah, but I scared him off.”
“Alright.”
Back on the ground, Jenkins had managed to get Shifty on his shoulders in a fireman`s carry.
“I got `em!” he grunted. “Let`s go!”
Jenkins ran back into the woods with Shifty on his back; gunny and Alex fired one more volley at the castle before doing the same.
Back on the rock, when Sidney saw that his teammates had made it safely back into the forest, he tapped Marcus on the shoulder, and the two pulled back off the rock.
. . .
August 6, 2558 1515 hours Everfree Forest Tree line Field Combat Training Grounds
The eyes of Captain Peterson, Captain Lasky, Princess Celestia, and the Mane Six remained glued to the TV screens, even though the entire ordeal that they had just witnessed was now over.
The Mane Six remained in stunned silence, while Celestia and the two Captains almost immediately began to analyze what they had just seen.
“Well, that was kind of stupid of them to just run in there like that,” said Captain Peterson.
“I think it was worth it if you ask me,” said Captain Lasky. “Because of their actions, they and their entire platoon now know that at least an entire enemy platoon must be in that castle now. If you ask me, it`s better they get shot at than all of Alpha.”
“How do they know an entire platoon might be in there? That could’ve been just another scouting party like them. The castle itself could be vacant now and they wouldn’t even know!”
“Well the thing is, Peterson, you and I both know that it isn’t.”
Lasky pointed at the holographic map, which showed a multitude of red dots inside the castle.
“All of Charlie Platoon is in there,” he continued. “The best thing they can do now is assume the worst, and with that knowledge, prepare for the worst.”
“Seems to make sense,” said Celestia. “But none of this explains why Charlie Company failed to hit your Fireteam.”
“The sun was in their eyes,” said Peterson. “When the skirmish broke out, the sun was facing the castle. What this does is throw off their aim just enough for them to miss, as well as illuminate them for enemy snipers, which in this case happened to be Corporal Marcus Williams.”
“Was that planned?”
“Hell if I know. Some of our men have so much combat experience that some things, at this point, are just instinctive.”
“Intriguing…What happens to those who were hit?”
“Those with hits in fatal areas are considered ‘dead,’ and they’ll be picked up by pelican at the end of the day,” said Lasky. “According to the rules, guys like Private Eugene Phillips, who got hit in the leg, or in a ‘non-fatal’ area, will be ‘fully healed’ after thirty minutes.”
“Wow, you’ve really thought this through. So what now?”
“Now, we wait. After skirmishes like that, there are usually lulls in the battle, periods of time where the men plan for the next assault.”
Meanwhile, the Mane Six had finally found their words.
“That…was…AWESOME!!!” squealed Rainbow Dash.
“Rainbow!” exclaimed Rarity. “How could you possibly defend such barbaric actions?!”
“So…violent,” said Fluttershy with her face in her hooves, shivering as if it were 30 degrees colder outside.
“Well, it did seem pretty coordinated,” said Twilight.
“Not you too Twilight,” complained Rarity.
“Hey, you girls are the ones that wanted to check up on them. What else did you expect to see? Our newest friends are professional warriors! How else do you think they train?”
Rarity stayed silent.
“They train for war,” said Twilight. “Because that`s what they`re best at and what we need them for.”
“Why are they using red paint?” said Pinkie Pie. “If you ask me, it should totally be green!”
The other five just stared at her.
“What?” she continued. “It`s to simulate changeling blood.”
“Uh, Pinkie?” said Rainbow Dash. “Are you okay?”
“Yeah, just fine. Why?”
“Oh no reason. It`s just that that was kinda…dark.”
“What? I was only giving a suggestion!”
The others then looked away as if to say, “O-kay” and went back to watching the screens along with Celestia and the two Captains.
. . .
August 6, 2558 1525 hours Everfree Forest Fireteam Icebreaker
The six marines of Fireteam Icebreaker were running through the dense foliage of the Everfree Forest. Jenkins had Shifty on his back in a fireman`s carry while the other four ran beside him in a defensive perimeter around him.
“Hey Jenkins?” said Shifty. “You know you can put me down now. I don’t think were being followed.”
“Oh really?” said Jenkins sarcastically. “When did that happen? Last I checked you couldn’t even walk!”
“Like, five-hundred yards ago! My leg doesn’t even hurt anymore. It was just red paint y`know.”
“Hold on just a little longer Shifty,” said gunny, who was jogging in front of Jenkins. “I see Alpha dead ahead.”
“Friendlies coming in on our twelve!” shouted one of Alpha Platoon`s marines. “Check your fire!”
Alpha was entrenched in a small ditch-like depression on the forest floor. Jenkins stopped by some rock cover to set Shifty down while the rest of Icebreaker sat down to catch their breath.
“So, does this mean I'm out?” said Shifty, referring to the red paint on the back of his leg.
“Nope, just means you have to act wounded by limping around for the next half-hour,” said Lieutenant Daniel Dietz as he approached the six-man group.
“Sorry LT, but we ran into some trouble back there,” explained gunny rather vaguely.
“Yeah, we dug in as soon as we heard gunfire from your area. Mind telling me what happened?”
Gunny stood up and looked directly at his commanding officer`s face as he spoke.
“I'll give you the truth, sir. I disobeyed your order and approached the mansion without your consent. We came under fire from the castle and just barely managed to escape, costing Private Phillips to lose his leg for the next twenty-five minutes. It was my decision, sir, and I accept full responsibility.”
“It`s okay, Alvarez,” said the Lieutenant. “I understand, and I actually don’t think you could’ve pulled off anything better, you managed to make it out of there without losing a single man. That’s actually quite a victory.”
“Thank you sir.”
“But I'd really like to know what kind of intelligence you gathered. You said you came under fire from the castle itself? Could you tell how many were in there?”
“No sir, I didn’t have the best view, but I think Corporal Williams had better eyes on.”
“I did, sirs,” said Corporal Williams. “I only saw two, three-man machinegun teams and two snipers. I managed to down both snipers and take out two men in each machinegun team. I don’t suspect that there were any more in there, but it would probably be in our best interests to not be too aggressive with this one.”
“We could’ve just taken out a simple scouting party like ourselves,” said Ogden. “And the entire castle could be vacant right now, or, at worst, both Charlie and Delta platoons could be in there right now, holding the high ground.”
“Trust us sir,” said gunny. “It looks way to easy to dig in inside that castle. We got lucky; the sun was in their eyes. So trust us when we say that a full-blown frontal assault right now could be suicide.”
“Well Alpha doesn’t attack from the front, now do we?” said Lieutenant Dietz.
“No, sir. That`s what humans did in the old days.”
“You got that right. So, thanks to your reconnaissance, I can now formulate a decent plan.”
“What`ve you got?”
“Gather `round.”
The Lieutenant knelt down next to a dry patch of dirt. Fireteam Icebreaker came and stood in a circle around it as their commanding officer smoothed it out.
“Sergeant?” he said. “Your knife please.”
“Just don’t get it too dirty,” said Sergeant Alex Thompson as he handed him his combat knife.
“So here`s the plan,” said the LT as he drew a square in the dirt with the knife. “We`re going to move out at 2200 or 2300 and commence the attack at midnight. This square is the castle…”
He then drew a circle around it.
“…and this is the hill it sits on. Alvarez? What route did you and your men take in?”
He handed gunny the knife.
“Well, there was this canyon separating us from the hill,” said gunny, drawing two parallel lines next to the circle to represent the canyon next to the hill before drawing another two parallel lines connecting the two ends of the canyon. “And there was this narrow, rope bridge here to allow passage. This route we definitely wouldn’t recommend. The only way you`re getting across this bridge is single-file, and it`s completely exposed to the front of the mansion.”
He drew an X over his drawing of the bridge.
“Simply put, we`d be sitting ducks. So we`re not gunna go that way. Before we moved in, I believe I saw an open field west of the castle. Sidney? I'm pretty sure you got a better view of that field than I did from your position on the rock.”
“Yes sir,” said Sidney, pointing to the left of the square. “There is a field to the castle`s west, but it isn’t exactly wide open, mate. I observed some tall grass that could be used to cover our approach.”
The private then pulled out his own combat knife.
“Also, I did happen to observe a somewhat hidden entrance to the castle`s east,” he said as he drew another bridge on the right side of the square. “While there were windows overlooking this pathway as well, I think this would be an ideal infiltration point, assuming that there aren’t any guards in those windows.”
“Good observation Sidney,” said gunny. “LT, do you think that while the bulk of Alpha is assaulting the castle, me and my squad can infiltrate the structure from this back entrance?”
“I don’t see why not,” said Dietz.
“But what`s our plan once inside?” asked Jenkins.
The Lieutenant thought for a moment before snapping his fingers at the arrival of a new idea.
“I've got it!” he stated. “Why don’t you take out their commanding officer, Lieutenant Evans?”
“How will we know where he is?” asked Alex.
“Trust me, I know Fred. He`ll be as far from the battle as possible. He really isn’t the kind to lead from the front like me.”
“So because his platoon can be subject to attack from almost all directions,” said gunny. “We can easily conclude that he`ll be hiding out towards the center of the castle?”
“Precisely,” said the LT. “So that`s where you`ll need to look. Your mission is then, essentially, to cut the head off the snake so the body will die.”
“But what about Delta Platoon? Couldn’t they also potentially be in there?”
“Sir!” came the voice of a radio operator. “Lieutenant Ackerson has engaged with Delta Platoon about one mile east of our location.”
“Thank you Private,” said the LT, turning back to the six men around him. “Well now we know the answer to that question.”
“Sir? While my team and I are sneaking in,” started gunny. “What will you be trying to do?”
“For us, it`ll be your standard direct-action raid,” said Lieutenant Dietz. “All of us will be using the night vision setting on the heads-up-displays of our gas masks. We`ll begin the assault under the cover of darkness from the tall-grass field to the west, and from there the objective will simply be to take that castle by whatever means necessary.”
“Oorah,” said Shifty as he shook out his leg, loosening it up.
The seven marines then shared a quick chuckle before spreading the word of the plan around the makeshift encampment.
Fireteam Icebreaker sat in a circle in a small ditch, each eating an MRE.
“You know, I'm glad they decided to improve the quality of our food supply,” said gunny. “Remember when you`d rather die than eat one of these things?”
“Hell yeah,” said Shifty with his mouth full. “Those were the glory days…”
“I think it`s `cause they`ve actually had the time to make them better since the war ended,” said Sergeant Thompson.
Suddenly, Jenkins began to chuckle to himself.
“What`s so funny, mate?” said Sidney. “You`ve been awfully quiet up until now.”
“Yeah, c`mon then,” said Marcus. “Tell us the news.”
“Well, it`s just that,” said Jenkins, still slightly chuckling. “It`s just the fact that last night all of us slept with some pony.”
They all then began to chuckle, for they had to admit, it was kind of funny.
“Now, when you guys said that you`d slept with them,” said Jenkins. “Did you mean, like, in their beds?”
“Whoa, hell no,” said Shifty immediately. “The hell are you thinking? We just meant somewhere in their houses. I mean, me? I slept in one of the guest rooms in Sugar Cube Corner. Marcus? Didn’t you say that, while Rarity slept on one of her, like ten queen-sized beds, you slept on her only king-sized one?”
“Yeah, and on the other side of the hallway too,” said the Corporal. “I insisted that that be where I slept too, and she agreed without a second thought!”
“You lucky bastard,” said Sidney. “Fluttershy put me on the couch on the first floor of her house surrounded by a bunch of snoring animals!”
“You poor child!” said Sergeant Alex sarcastically. “I had to sleep in a barn with nothing but hay under me and a thin blanket for warmth, all while surrounded by animals that smelled like shit!”
“I thought you enjoyed being on a farm again Alex,” said gunny. “Didn’t you grow up with that kind of stuff?”
“Yeah, but we would never actually sleep in the barn! Anyway, Jenkins? Why exactly did you ask that question?”
They all stared intently at him.
“Oh…” he said very awkwardly. “No reason…”
Shifty caught on immediately.
“You dirty boy!” he said jokingly, punching Jenkins in the shoulder. “You were in bed with her!”
“Okay, but we were as far apart from each other as possible when we got in!” said Jenkins. “Now can we please change the subject?!”
“Why? You brought it up!”
By this point, everyone in the small ditch had erupted in laughter, and just outside the Everfree forest, a rainbow-maned pegasus blushed furiously as her five friends and a princess all looked at her.
. . .
August 6, 2558 2305 hours Everfree Forest Near the Castle of the Two Sisters
Lieutenant Daniel Dietz stood crouched in the field west of the castle; the marines of his platoon were crouched around him among the tall grass. Darkness surrounded them, and all had donned their gas masks and had their night vision setting turned on.
“Comms check,” said Dietz into his helmet mike.
“Fireteam Hawk reporting.”
“Fireteam Wolf is all accounted for.”
“Fireteam Juno is all set.”
“Fireteam Ivy is ready.”
“Fireteam Sword ready to go.”
“Fireteam Charlie ready to go.”
“Fireteam Icebreaker is in position east of the castle,” came gunny`s voice into Daniel`s helmet.
“Remember the plan Alvarez,” he responded.
“Roger.”
“Solid copy Icebreaker. All other Fireteams, move up!” said the lieutenant as he raised a fist before extending it into a hand and pointing it forward. He then raised his own MA5D assault rifle as a symphony of “Oorah”s erupted into his helmet. “Let`s get tactical marines!”
The grass suddenly gave way to about one-hundred meters of an open field of short-grass between the tall grass field and the castle. As the marines sprinted across the short but open expanse, their rifles raised, they encountered little resistance.
But after the first fifty meters or so, all hell broke loose. Gunfire burst from the castle windows and a few of the lieutenant`s men went down; a few paint grenades burst, tossing some marines to the side like the dirt kicked up by the explosion.
“Move up men!” shouted Dietz through the maelstrom as he ran towards the castle, firing his rifle in bursts all the while. “Move up!”
The marines managed to consolidate and lay down an effective line of fire, taking out a designated marksman in a second-story window and two machine-gunners on the first floor. This created a short lull in the fire coming at them, allowing them to charge forward and take cover next to the windows.
“Fire in the hole!” shouted one marine as both he and the LT tossed a paint grenade inside.
. . .
On screen, the explosives went off inside the castle, and a flash of light momentarily illuminated the ground around the group of ponies and humans who watched. Then, the marine subordinate who had thrown his grenade in with the lieutenant jumped inside, followed by two more.
“Sweet Celestia!” exclaimed Rarity, seemingly unaware of the princess she just named right beside her. “This is just barbaric!”
“This is intense!” squealed Rainbow Dash. “I'm sooo glad we`re staying here all night for this!”
“I find it quite intriguing how they manage to stay so focused under such circumstances,” said Twilight.
“Well it`s like I said,” said Lasky. “It`s those years of experience kicking in again. Corporal, let`s check on Icebreaker now, see what they`re up to.”
“Aye sir.”
All of a sudden, as the feed from Lieutenant Dietz`s helmet cam showed him jumping through the window behind two of his men, the screens switched from the chaotic scene to a much more quiet picture on the other side of the castle. Five other screens depicted a similar setting; it was feed from all six of the helmet cams of Fireteam Icebreaker.
“Sounds like it`s time to go,” said one of the marines.
“That`s `cause it is time Shifty,” said another.
“Hey! I recognize those guys!” cried Pinkie. “That`s Fireteam Icebreaker! They same humans we all met!”
“Uh, yeah Pinkie,” said Rainbow. “That`s what Lasky told us like, two seconds ago! Right before he switched to them.”
“I know, I'm just saying, isn’t it weird how all the humans we met are all on the same combat group?”
Twilight suddenly seemed shocked by this statement.
“Y`know what Pinkie?” she said. “That is quite a coincidence…”
. . .
“Sidney?” asked gunny. “There any hostiles in the windows?”
The private was looking at the house through the scope of his silenced DMR.
“Only one, sir,” he responded before pulling the trigger twice.
*Pew-pew*
Two small splatters of paint suddenly appeared on the enemy marine`s chest. The six marines of Fireteam Icebreaker could faintly hear him say “God, damn it!” as he dropped his rifle and laid down on his back.
“Target down,” said Sidney.
“Alright, let`s move,” said gunny as he raised his M45D tactical shotgun. “Single-file across the bridge, go!”
They moved across stealthily, gunny in the lead followed by Jenkins, Alex, Marcus, and Shifty in that order; Sidney pulled up the rear walking backwards, checking the forest behind them just in case. Alex had his SAW on his back and held his now silenced DMR in his hands; Marcus had his sniper rifle on his back and instead shouldered gunny`s battle rifle.
Unlike their comrades on the other side of the castle, Icebreaker encountered no resistance either during or after the crossing.
“Alright, we`re gunna keep this as silent as possible for as long as we can.” said gunny upon reaching the other end of the bridge. “Marcus, you and Sidney make your way up to the top of that tower and see if you can give good sniper cover from up there. If you can`t, then let me know and then just relocate to wherever you see fit.”
“Roger,” said Marcus as he and Sidney then turned and entered the castle through a broken section in the wall.
“Everyone else, on me.”
As they stacked up on the window, gunny peeked through it from the left as Alex did so from the right.
“Clear left,” said Alex.
“Clear right,” said gunny before Jenkins slowly crept through the window, followed by Shifty, himself, and then Alex.
The four of them moved stealthily down the hallway. As they came to an open room in the center, Sidney`s voice came over their helmet radios.
“…Sir, we`re in position. There`s a nice hole in the roof that allows us to see a great deal from here…”
“Excellent,” said gunny. “We`ve reached the center of the building, do you have eyes on?”
“…Not yet…”
“What? That doesn’t make sense. He should be there. LT said he`d be as far from the fight as possible.”
“…Wait! Hold on,” said Marcus. “Someone`s coming from the west end through the top-floor entrance!...”
Gunny and Jenkins peeked out towards the walkway (gunny was standing and Jenkins was crouching), aiming down the sights of their guns. They could just make out multiple shadows approaching the doorway.
“Multiple contacts,” said Jenkins. “If it`s him, then he`s got an escort.”
“Marcus, if it`s him, take the shot,” said gunny. “Then we`ll focus on cleaning up that escort. If it isn’t him, we`ll just take `em anyway, so be ready to shoot.”
“…Roger…”
Just a few moments later, their target came into view. Lieutenant Frederick Evans stepped into the light, flanked on both sides by two of his men.
“…Taking the shot…”
A sniper shot rang out from above, and Evans was struck in the middle of the chest, red paint splattering on his two teammates, who were both immediately shot in the same place by precision fire from gunny and Jenkins.
They could just barely hear the dour lieutenant say, “Ah, shit.”
“LT,” gunny spoke into his helmet mike. “Evans is down. How are things holding up on your end?”
“…We`re taking heavy fire from the top floor hallway! Flank `em from behind!...”
“Roger, moving now,” said gunny before turning to his teammates. “You heard him, let`s move! Lieutenant Evans must`ve set them up to cover his escape.”
The four of them ran up the stairs and onto the walkway, where Evans and his two men were playing dead.
“Marcus,” said gunny into the helmet mike as they stacked up on the entrance. “Nice shot! You and Sidney stay put, we`ve got this one.”
“…Roger…”
“Stay frosty,” he said before squeezing Jenkins` shoulder.
The four then moved though the hallway, their guns raised and ready, Jenkins on point, Alvarez second, Shifty third, and Alex in last on rear security. As they went, they could hear the combined-fire of a SAW gun and multiple assault rifles getting ever closer; soon, it was right around the corner.
Rounding said corner, they came face-to-face with an enemy Fireteam, though not literally; the five men were unaware of Icebreaker`s four man presence to their right. One man, as expected was in prone position firing down the hallway with a SAW, while three of his teammates were firing in the same direction with assault rifles.
The fifth and final man was arming another paint grenade. Gunny, Jenkins, and Shifty each managed to shoot one man each, taking out two marines with assault rifles and the one SAW gunner. Alex managed to turn around just in time to shoot the third man with an AR as he was turning to shoot at Icebreaker.
The final marine, seeing no other option, tossed the grenade at them before Jenkins shot him in the center of the chest; it rolled into the middle of the group.
“GRENAAADE!!!” yelled the PFC, his teammates crouching down and covering their helmets, as he threw his rifle aside and jumped on top of the explosive.
. . .
On screen, the blast lurched Jenkins about two feet off the ground before he came crashing back to the floor, his teammates unharmed (or in this case, clean of red paint).
The front of Jenkins` entire body however, was now covered in the stuff. He was also clearly struggling for breath, as the force must have knocked the air out of him.
Lasky, realizing that innocent ponies had just witnessed this, turned to see their reactions.
Every single one of them had their hooves over their mouths in shock that a living thing would perform such an act. Lasky turned to Celestia and saw that she too had a hoof over her mouth.
“Oh my,” was all she could utter.
Fluttershy had been excruciatingly quiet the entire time; so, as you can imagine, it was quite surprising when she spoke the first full sentence after the event had unfolded.
“Why? Why would he do that?” she squeaked/sobbed. She was covering her eyes as tears had begun to form.
Dashie had been hovering in place with her wings, but now was slumped on her haunches.
She removed her hooves from her mouth and asked, “Is he all right?!”
As Jenkins rolled up onto his back, she gave a hefty sigh of relief as her question was now answered. On screen, the marines were now just starting to assess what had just occurred.
“Jenkins!” said Sergeant Alex as he knelt beside his comrade, patting him on the shoulder and shaking his head in disbelief. “You are one crazy son-of-a-bitch.”
“*cough* You`re welcome,” Jenkins struggled to say. “And yes, I'm fine, *cough* Thanks for asking.”
“You sure?” asked Alex. “It might be the blast shaking up your judgment, cause you don’t look fine.”
“Or sound fine for that matter,” said Shifty. “It sounds like something ugly crawled into your throat and died.”
“Just take it easy son,” said gunny as he approached Jenkins` limp form. “And thanks.”
Jenkins nodded, before laying his head down and nodding off to sleep.
. . .
August 7, 2558 0630 hours Everfree Forest Tree Line Field Combat Training Grounds
The morning after the attack, everyone who had been “killed” the previous day crowded onto a single pelican to be transported out. Among them was Private First Class Ogden Jenkins, who, needless to say, was more red in the face (and torso, and arms, legs, etc.) than all the others.
Upon stepping off the pelican`s ramp, the marines dispersed, most going off to sit in the grass and relax after the previous day`s adrenaline rush, and to also reflect on their own, individual performances and how they could improve upon them.
Jenkins was walking over to a group to do the same, when he was suddenly tackled by a cyan blur.
“Ohmygosh!” was the squeal he heard from his back. “You`re okay!”
Jenkins, now on his stomach, managed to cock his head over to see Rainbow Dash tightly hugging him. He had to admit, that was pretty cute.
“Heh, it`s good to see you too,” he said as he ruffled her mane.
“You guys were amazing!” she exclaimed as her five friends rushed over with Captian Robert Peterson and Captain Thomas Lasky in tow.
“Wait,” said Jenkins in disbelief as he looked over to where all the TV screens were set up. “You guys were watching that?”
“Uh huh.”
“You saw, all of that?”
By now, the group was within talking distance.
“Ya dern fool!” shouted Applejack. “Why`d ya hafta go an` blow yerself up fer?”
“Would you rather we all got taken by the blast?” asked Jenkins.
“Well couldn`t you have kicked it away? Or ran away? Or both?” asked Pinkie.
“I'm not sure if that would’ve helped as much,” the marine responded. “In that confined of a space, it`s too risky to assume the fuse is long enough for all of us to escape. But then again you may be right; the pin had been pulled right in front of me, so we may have actually had the time to escape. I don’t know. All I do know is that it`s happened and it`s over; we can`t do much about it now, can we?”
“Son, that was an honorable act of valor back there,” stated Captain Peterson.
“Thank you, sir.”
“I ought to put you in for a promotion.”
“With all due respect sir, just me, sir? What about the rest of my guys? Didn’t they perform commendably as well?”
The marine captain thought for a moment before saying, “I'll see what I can do.”
“Thank you, sir. I'm honored, sir.”
“You wanna see how your squad is doing right now?” asked Robert as he pointed at the TV monitors that he and his group were at a minute ago.
“Yes sir!” said Jenkins, immediately getting up and walking towards the screens, eager to see how his buddies would fare throughout the rest of the exercise.
. . .
That night, Delta platoon attacked the castle. Though the fight was hard, it was evident that Delta`s preparation for the assault wasn’t as good as Alpha`s.
For one thing, their attack commenced while the sun was still setting, allowing for a little more light that made them easier targets. Also, they seemed to have gotten a little too clever for their own good, for half their force attacked, or at least attempted to, across the narrow rope bridge, where they thought their opponent wouldn’t expect them to come from. As expected, they were all sitting ducks, and were taken care of easily.
As for the other half that attacked on the west side of the castle, Alpha was even more greatly prepared. Machinegun teams were on both floors this time; those that were on the first floor had men behind them whose only job was to catch grenades thrown through the window and throw them harmlessly through the hallway entrance in the back of the room, where no one was present or on guard; those that were on the second floor had men whose job was to simply throw grenades down at enemies that were getting too close. Designated marksmen were in every window, supported by sniper teams that were posted in both towers that could both observe in three-hundred-sixty degrees around the castle. Simply put, they had learnt from the castle`s previous owners and were now a much more difficult target.
And to top it all off, Alpha was able to hold them off long enough to spring their trap. Bravo platoon charged out of the forest behind Delta, effectively surrounding them and “killing off” every last enemy.
August 8, 2558 1300 hours Canterlot Canterlot Castle
Despite the fact that the training exercise was able to successfully “warm up” an entire company of marines, Lasky had decided that it had taken far too long. In the interest of time, given that he was expecting the changelings to arrive soon, and in order to fill the ranks as quickly as possible, he had to cut the training exercise out. He concluded that it really wasn’t that hard to get used to this planet`s gravity anyway.
Lasky also wanted to make use of as many of the Infinity`s 6,021 marines as possible, so despite the fact that half of Gypsy company had lost last night`s combat training exercise, he would have the whole company deployed anyway along with Shadow company in just a few days, along with 500 marines, or about half a battalion. He then had Gypsy company`s original responsibility of patrolling both Cloudsdale and Ponyville put into the hands of the other half of that battalion (another 500 marines); the two half- battalions would switch off active duty and guard duty every three months. An air wing of around 900 pilots, both naval and marine, would guard the skies above Cloudsdale, Ponyville, and Canterlot as well as support ground troops on the front lines if need be.
Visible human military presence in Equestria was now greater than ever before.
Inside Canterlot castle however, the princesses were still worried, for the changeling threat had moved ever closer to the borders of Equestria.
“During that training exercise, the changelings had moved quite some distance towards us,” said Luna as the three walked over to a large table with a map on it.
“*Whistle*They`ve been busy,” said Lasky in amazement.
“And that is not all,” said Luna as both the table and her horn were surrounded by a dark blue aura.
“We believe that they`re poised to strike into the Mild West next,” said Celestia. “That`s why that arrow is there, because we know that they`ll take that route. Appleloosa is Equestrian territory, so there`s no reason why they wouldn’t attack there first.”
“They could be attacking it right now for all we know,” said Luna. “The time is nigh.”
“I'll send a few scouts their way,” said Lasky. “In the meantime, I'll also prep my first deployment of marines to head for Appleloosa.”
“Sound`s good,” said Celestia.
“It`s a good thing I took out that training exercise.”
“…Captain Lasky! Come in!...” came the voice of the Infinity`s A.I. from Lasky`s wrist communicator.
He brought it up in front of the two princesses before responding.
“Go Roland,” he said.
“…Sir, we`re picking up movement just north of Canterlot…”
“Can you identify?”
“…Uh, I'm not sure what they are, sir. They look like a combination of lions and eagles, and they`re about five miles outside the capital and closing fast!...”
Lasky looked up at the princesses and saw almost immediately the looks on their faces, telling him that they knew what was coming.
“Griffons,” said the two alicorns gravely.
“Roland, dispatch two pairs of F-41`s to intercept,” said the ship Captain.
“Aye sir, but that`s not all, we`re also picking up heat signatures to both the east and west, and these we can identify.”
“What are they?”
“They`re both pony-like creatures, and they`re armed with what look like crossbows. The ones in the east are heading south to Stalliongrad by land, and the ones in the west are headed for Manehattan by sea.”
“Son of a bitch, it`s a three pronged attack. Looks like the changelings had some allies.”
“Four F-41`s are headed your way, sir. They`ve been ordered to engage on sight.”
“Good, now call up two more marine battalions; have one deployed to Manehattan and the other to Stalliongrad.”
“Aye sir.”
Lasky disconnected and turned back to the princesses.
“It must be Gildedale and Germaney,” said Luna. “If we lose Manehattan, it will be a devastating blow to our economy and industry.”
“And if we lose Stalliongrad, we`ll be effectively cut off from the Crystal Empire,” said Celestia.
“Then it makes sense why they`d be targeted,” said Lasky. “Because both are strategic cities.”
The trio walked outside onto a balcony. Above, the Infinity was now quite literally buzzing with activity, as the F-41`s that had taken off and the pelicans carrying dozens of marines each flew around the massive ship like bees around a hive, before the pelicans broke off in opposite directions towards their targeted cities while the strike fighters continued to circle.
. . .
August 8, 2558 1300 hours (ten minutes earlier) Canterlot
The mane six and Fireteam Icebreaker decided to have one last little get-together in Canterlot before deployment. The city had also been fortified with more men as well, for Lasky had assigned another battalion of around one-thousand marines to reinforce Castle Company and the Equestrian Capital.
The group was eating lunch in one of Canterlot`s many fancy restaurants, exchanging stories and becoming ever closer with each other.
Suddenly, Gunnery Sergeant David Alvarez stood up and addressed all six ponies.
“Hey guys, I just wanted to thank you all for sticking around last night to watch us on those screens,” said gunny. “I don’t think you guys really understand this, but it really meant a lot to us that you did that, and again we all just wanna thank you for that.”
“Oh, you`re most welcome darling,” said Rarity. “It`s what friends are for isn’t it? We`ll generously give up any amount of time necessary for each other.”
“Thank you,” said gunny before sitting back down and turning to his teammates. “You know, I actually didn’t even know that they were going to do that, did any of you?”
“Not really,” said Marcus. “I had a hunch when I saw those TV monitors before going inside the forest, but I never actually thought that that was what they were doing.”
“Well, you know. Big brother is always watching,” said Shifty with a mouth full of sandwich before swallowing and putting a hand in front of him in defense. “I'm kidding.”
The group shared a hardy laugh that dissipated as they heard shouts in the room, along with, “What in Celestia is that?!” and, “What`s going on?!” among the bewildered faced of the ponies in the restaurant.
Outside, they could see ponies standing in place with their eyes fixed on the sky, and marines doing the same with their guns.
“Let`s get out there Icebreaker,” said gunny to his men.
“Wait! But I'm not done with my sandwich!” said Shifty as his teammates rushed for the door.
“Shifty! Outside, NOW!” Sergeant Alex called back to him.
“Shit,” the private said to himself before he placed his sandwich between his teeth. “Grd dongit!” came his muffled voice as he grabbed his DMR and sprinted after his squad.
Outside, the Fireteam saw what had disturbed the peace, for in the distance coming towards them was what seemed to be a massive flock of giant birds. As they came closer, while every human remained baffled as to what they were, every pony helped them out with the identification.
“GRIFFONS!!!!!!” yelled everypony before scattering in pure panic.
The mayhem was short-lived however, as four F-41 strike fighters screamed overhead, seemingly just a couple hundred feet above the buildings, straight for the enemy flock.
“Holy horseapples! Whoa!!!” squealed Rainbow Dash as she and her five friends ran out of the restaurant to join their human companions, speeding aircraft unsurprisingly tickling her fancy.
The four planes split into two groups, a flight leader and his wingman in each; one went right and the other went left, forming a pincer. Each aircraft then unloaded their pair M6088 ST/MMP “Medusa” missiles, each hitting their target with precision and hurling shrapnel out to other griffons, knocking them out of the sky. They then followed up by flying straight inside the cluster while firing their two M1075 machine-linked autocannons with deadly accuracy.
As the F-41`s completed their pincer and regrouped to come around for another pass, the marines on the ground all cheered as nearly fifty griffons fell out of the sky. The celebration, though morale boosting, was short-lived as the troops came to realize that the griffons had numbered around five hundred, and were still coming, confirming that they were indeed hostile.
“Are those AA-guns operational?” said a nearby lieutenant colonel, the commander of the battalion guarding Canterlot, to one of his nearby radiomen.
“Yes sir!” the marine subordinate responded.
The officer then picked up the radioman`s receiver and said, “This is Lieutenant Colonel Mathew Adams to all AA-gun emplacements! Engage! Engage! Engage!”
M71 Anti-Aircraft Guns roared to life in the distance, firing high explosive incendiary/armor piercing ammunition straight into the flock of griffons; what followed was a grim spectacle of griffons being tossed around like ragdolls, crashing into one another and/or blowing up into multiple, flaming body parts.
In ten seconds flat, the once menacing cluster of griffons was now in burning shambles. Most griffons went straight down at a near ninety-degree angle, not even making it to the cliff at the edge of the city; these were the ones that had presumably died instantly. The rest were seemingly barely alive as they appeared to struggle, and fail, to keep themselves airborne, and came crashing towards the city, knowing that, with their backup now dead or burning-to-death, capture and imprisonment waited for them within, assuming they survived the impact.
“Incoming!!!” yelled Ogden as one such missile came barreling towards them. “Get down!”
He grabbed Rainbow Dash, pulled her to the ground, and shielded her with his body, the rest of Icebreaker doing the same to the other five ponies as the griffon blazed just feet above them to crash down just ten feet behind them.
As the dust settled, the interstellar dozen got up and slowly approached the once majestic winged creature. Icebreaker moved ahead of the mane six in a semicircle, their guns raised as they closed in around it.
It began to stir, confirming that it was still alive. Icebreaker then halted their advance just feet from the griffon, their guns still trained on it. She was lying on her side, appearing to try to sit up; the pain was too much however, as there appeared to be shrapnel and burn wounds all along the right side of her body, her right wing broken and burning.
“Wait! It can`t be,” said Rainbow Dash in recognition before running past the marines without warning.
“Rainbow! Don’t!” Ogden shouted at her as every marine reflected the same thought on their faces, stunned at the mare`s sudden decision.
But the cyan pegasus didn’t even appear to acknowledge his presence as she slowly knelt in front of the griffon.
“No…no, no, no,” she said softly, her eyes becoming misty as she lifted the griffon`s left claw and looked into her eyes. “G-Gi-Gilda? Y-your wing…”
As Ogden came up beside Rainbow with his assault rifle still pointed at Gilda, he asked, “You know this one?”
She nodded.
“Awkwaaard…” said Shifty.
Suddenly, Gilda coughed, then spoke in a very hoarse voice, “Rainbow…”
“Yeah?” the pegasus responded, her mouth forming a small smile.
“Heh, long time no see friend…”
Dash wiped some tears from her face.
“Same,” she choked.
“Dash…” she said as she suddenly pulled out a small, one-handed crossbow with a fire-tipped arrow on it from under her arm. “I'm sorry.”
“Wha-?” said Rainbow before Ogden tackled her out of the way just as Gilda pulled the trigger, sending the arrow past her and Jenkins.
Straight into Sidney`s stomach.
The private recoiled a little at the impact, before aiming his DMR and sending two rounds into Gilda`s stomach and one through her skull.
“NO! NOOOOOOOO!” screamed Rainbow as she shoved Jenkins off of her before running towards Gilda’s corpse. “Oh no, Celestia please! NAHAHAHOOOOOOO!”
Suddenly, Sidney felt a white hot burning sensation burst through his lower torso; as his gun clattered to the ground he looked down at the projectile that had hit him to find that the head had gone through his fatigues.
The mane six, minus Fluttershy, who was now on her side covering her eyes and softly screaming, watched in horror as he collapsed onto his back, clutching the arrow in his stomach and screaming in agony. Sergeant Alex ran over to him and knelt beside him.
“Medic!” he shouted as he put a hand on Sidney`s shoulder to keep him still. “Mediiic!”
Surprisingly, there didn’t seem to be any around.
Then, Sidney stopped screaming and started taking quick, deep breaths before speaking.
“Sarge,” he said, the tone in his voice clearly showing the pain he was still in. “Sarge…”
“Shh, save your breath Sidney!” said Alex. “Save your strength.”
“Sarge!” he said forcefully as he grabbed the NCO by the collar and pulled him in. “G-Get…Fluttershy!...”
Alex looked over at the butter-yellow pegasus. He then looked back at the private, nodding in understanding before leaving his side to get the young equine.
Fluttershy was at a loss; a wild mix of emotions was swirling around in her head, and she could barely concentrate with a mind so flooded.
The city was in lockdown, and the group had taken refuge inside Twilight`s old library.
The creature before the butter-yellow pegasus had ended the life of another, and now she and a marine medic who had shown up on the way here were now tasked with making sure that he recovered. She had become good friends with Sidney, and would try all she could to save his life, but she now found herself questioning whether or not he deserved an extended life at all.
Had she…made a bad friend? Was there such a thing in this universe?
Sidney was on a wooden table which had been covered with food ready to eat, but was cleared rather untidily for him as there was food now littering the floor around the makeshift stretcher. He seemed to take notice of Fluttershy`s grim demeanor, and turned to everyone in the room.
“Mates?” he said. “Could you give me and Fluttershy a moment please?”
In wordless understanding they proceeded to leave, until the marine private and the yellow pegasus were the only ones left in the room.
“Ok Fluttershy, what`s wrong?” asked Sidney. “I'm sorry I killed her, but what else was I supposed to do?”
“You could have talked to her,” she responded rather assertively. “Asked her why the griffons were attacking. You could’ve just taken her prisoner; she`d still be alive at least. Did you ever think of that?!”
“To be honest, I don’t think she was in the talking mood, and most fighters would die before giving any sort of information.”
Fluttershy remained silent. The look on her face clearly showed that she wasn’t convinced.
Seeing this, Sidney tried a different approach.
“I don’t like killing,” he said, pausing to let that sink in. “I really don’t. None of us do.”
This surprised Fluttershy, and the marine could see it, as she was now making eye contact with him for the first time since he got here.
“But, if you don’t like it, then why do you do it?” she asked. “And how do you do it so easily?”
“Because I've been doing it for quite a while now,” he answered. “It`s my job, and at this point, it`s as easy breathing. Can you imagine what it`s like to live a life where every breath you take gives you so much guilt? Each one feeling so morally wrong?”
“You poor thing,” she said as she put a hoof on his chest. “Why would you take such a job?”
“I had no choice. Well, at least at the time I didn’t think I had one, for we all felt that we had a moral obligation to join. I thought, as well as everyone else, that if I didn’t join, Earth would be doomed. Me, one man. To this day I can`t believe how naïve I was.”
“Why would you stay?”
Sidney`s eyes began to tear up as he pointed at the door.
“Because of them,” he stated flatly. “Combat will change you. In combat, marines don’t fight for flag or country, or even for the friends and family we grew up with our entire lives; in combat, marines fight for each other, for the complete strangers we were put together with. So yes, we`ll pick on each other from time to time, but we will all remain loyal to each other.”
He then looked back at Fluttershy, tears now flooding his eyes.
“And I'm speaking for all six of us when I say that we`ll always act like we enjoy killing,” he said. “But the truth is that we never did.”
Fluttershy, tears flooding her own eyes now as well, embraced Sidney in the warmest hug she ever gave.
As they embraced, on the other side of the door, a young, cyan pegasus began to tear up as well, having eavesdropped on the conversation.
To avoid openly sobbing in front of her friends, she quickly flew into another room, a rainbow-colored trail outlining her exact path.
Without a word, Jenkins immediately stood up and walked towards the door. Shifty followed right behind.
Upon reaching the door, the PFC placed a hand on the private’s chest without turning around. He took a quick peek behind him just to see who it was following him before looking away again.
“Shifty,” said Jenkins without facing him. “I can handle this. Okay?”
Shifty looked back at gunny, who nodded his head upon eye contact. The private then turned back to Jenkins, giving him a quick pat on the back and a nod before heading back.
Without another word, Jenkins opened the door and stepped inside.
The room was dimly lit; the room was filled with isles upon isles of books. It was clearly another subsection of the library. In the corner, Rainbow Dash sobbed hysterically. Jenkins approached her without a second thought.
“Rainbow?” said Jenkins as he placed a hand on her shoulder.
“Sh-she’s gone!” she choked. “She’s g-gone!”
“Ssshhhhh! Sshhh! It’s okay!” said Jenkins as he embraced her in a hug, trying to comfort her. “It’s okay…”
“No it’s not!” she squeaked. “My best friend is dead and I don’t know if I should be mad at you or not for it!”
“Your friend tried to kill you. What else could we do?”
“I don’t know! I don’t even know what’s real anymore…”
“Rainbow, I’m sorry, but we did what we had to. Gilda was just following orders, and that made her a threat.”
The both sat there, holding each other tightly for another minute or so. Rainbow’s sobbing gradually stopped; she became quiet, but her eyes remained misty.
“*sniff*I hoped you’d never see me like this,” she said.
“That’s alright,” said Jenkins. “That’s okay. We all have a little pride, a little ego, but every so often it needs a shrink. I could tell from the start that you weren’t perfect, yet you were trying to make yourself look that way.”
Dash looked into Jenkins’ eyes, her own eyes reflecting a mix of sadness and annoyance.
“No one’s perfect Rainbow,” said the marine as he stroked her mane. “Not even me. Yeah, I’ll admit it; in fact, our species has a saying, ‘we’re only human.’ We say it to remind ourselves that, while we may be pretty awesome, we’ve still got our limitations.”
The cyan pegasus broke eye-contact, now looking at the floor.
“Look on the bright side Dashie,” said Ogden, hugging her tight again. “A private experience like this only brings us closer as friends.”
She looked up towards the bookshelf in front of her, registering what he had just said.
“I’ve lost friends too,” he continued. “And believe me, it was hard, but for each one that passed, I made another one. And in a way, it’s like that love never died.”
Rainbow started to cry again.
“I think I’ve made that new friend,” she said, confirming for Jenkins that these were now tears of joy. “Thank you.”
About a minute later, the two of them reentered the room where the rest of Icebreaker and the mane six minus Fluttershy sat.
“Is she feeling better?” asked Twilight.
“Yeah,” said Rainbow and Jenkins in unison.
They looked at each other upon doing that, then chuckled.
“Come on guys,” said gunny solemnly, pointing at the door to the living room. “I think we’ve given them enough time.”
He reentered the room with every man and pony following suit right behind him. The yellow pegasus then quickly collected herself upon seeing them.
“So how`s he healing up?” Shifty asked the butter yellow pegasus.
“Very well,” she responded. “His bodily fluids extinguished the fire on the tip rather quickly. From there, all I had to do was remove the arrowhead without causing any further damage, and then simply utilize some of that, bio-foam I think it’s called, to clear up the wound.”
“Good job,” said gunny as he patted her on the back. “We’re gunna need him for the fight ahead.”
“And it’s a good thing he knew to stay alive,” said Sergeant Alex. “’Cause he knows that the only person allowed to kill him is me.”
Sidney exchanged a hearty laugh with everyone in the room at that, glancing at Fluttershy to make sure that she still understood.
Thankfully, it seemed that she did.
. . .
August 8, 2558 1415 hours Canterlot Castle
“I knew griffons weren't fond of us,” said Celestia. “But I didn’t think they`d go this far.”
“And what about Germaney and Gildedale?” asked Luna. “Why are they attacking us? What did we do to them?”
“I don’t care what the politics are behind all this,” said Lasky. “What I wanna know ponies, is if they`re gunna come around for another attack; I didn’t just put the city into lockdown for no reason.”
“Trust me, they won’t,” said Celestia. “If there`s one thing we know about griffons, it`s that they`ll always avoid forces stronger than their own.”
Lasky took a moment to look at the Griffon Kingdoms on the map.
“Well then,” he said. “I guess we don’t have to worry about them for now, and if they try to come back, we’ll be ready for `em. Besides, we`ve got three other adversaries to deal with right now, so if you don’t mind, I'm going back up to my ship. I can handle this kind of thing much better from up there.”
. . .
August 8, 2558 1430 hours UNSC Infinity Bridge
“That`s better,” said Lasky as he approached the hologram table, the princesses gathering around it with him.
“Now you can command this war a little more directly,” commented Roland, appearing beside the table. “Instead of having to tell me what do from the ground, you yourself can do it right here.”
Lasky gave Roland a quick look of slight irritation before getting right back to business.
“So what`s the situation?” he asked.
“The griffons have been pushed back,” Roland responded. “The Gildes have already taken half of Manehattan and the Germanes nearly have all of the city of Stalliongrad. The changelings are still a long ways off from the Equestrian border, so I’d recommend taking care of those already in country.”
“Alright, then we’ll deploy that half-battalion, along with Shadow and Gypsy companies, to Manehattan. Send our reserve tank battalion to the outskirts of Stalliongrad.”
“Why the outskirts?” asked princess Celestia. “Why not send them straight in to beat back the invaders?”
“Because that’s what they’re expecting,” said Lasky. “They expect us to meet them head on in a close-quarter battle. What they’re not going to expect are hundreds of tanks to be dug in around the city, surrounding it and cutting them off from reinforcements and supplies. They’ll be starved into surrender.”
“And if they do not?” asked Luna.
“Then we move inside and fight. At that point, they’ll be a lot less battle-ready, due to a lack of food and supplies. Point is, I want to make a close-quarter street fight a last-resort.”
“But what about Manehattan?” asked Celestia. “Will you avoid it there too?”
“I’m afraid not. The land surrounding Manehattan isn’t flat like it is around Stalliongrad. For this, we’re going to have to go inside the city and fight toe-to-horseshoe with the Gildes and push them back into the sea. From there, our airpower can keep them at bay, as they won’t have to worry about any collateral damage out there.”
The princesses nodded in understanding before Lasky pushed a button on the holo-table.
“1st Tank Battalion, get to the outskirts of Stalliongrad. Wait until they’ve almost completely moved inside the city, then surround it and lock it down.”
“Aye, aye, sir!” came a voice from the table’s speakers.
Lasky then began working with the holo-table’s functions in order to switch communication between battalion commanders.
“Now let’s get those 500 plus marines to Manehattan,” he said.
. . .
August 8, 2558 1500 hours Canterlot Square
A few pelicans had come to pick up any marines-to-be-deployed that were in Canterlot at the time. One such vehicle waited in Canterlot square to pick up Fireteam Icebreaker as well as a few other squads in the battalion that were in the area at the time.
“Well, I guess this is goodbye,” said Jenkins. “For now at least.”
“I’ll be waiting,” said Rainbow softly before the two of them hugged.
“Let’s go Jenkins! Come on!” shouted gunny from inside the pelican.
At that, he gave her another kiss on the cheek before darting inside the vehicle.
Rainbow held the spot on her cheek as the aircraft closed its ramp and rose into the air.
The cyan mare then lifted into the air as well as the pelican began to pull away.
A tear ran down her cheek.
“I’ll be waiting,” she reiterated, watching it go off towards the western horizon.
Princess Celestia, Dr. Glassman, and Dr. Halsey sat at one end of the room, while Captain Thomas Lasky was busy towards the front, commanding the battle with Roland at the holo-table. The two scientists thought that this would be a good time to talk to her and learn about her species and its history.
Their affinity was science and research after all, not war.
“Celestia, what reason would the griffons have to attack Equestria?” asked Dr. Halsey. “What reason would all these attacking countries have for that matter?”
“Well, let’s start with the griffons first,” said Celesta. “Before Equestria was founded, the pegasi and the griffons had made a treaty, stating that no pegasi would enter griffon airspace as long as the griffons didn’t enter ours, and vice versa. As you could probably tell, there had been many skirmishes over airspace between the two races before this treaty, making that the reason it was created in the first place.
“When Equestria was founded, the griffons used that as an opportunity to gain more airspace, considering the old treaty as null and void as this was no longer “pegasi” airspace, but now “Equestrian” airspace. My sister and I tried to negotiate with their leader, who at the time was named Gregor, telling him that this was a mere technicality.”
“But he would have none of it,” said Luna as she approached the table, joining in on the conversation. “War seemed inevitable, but luckily I had befriended a manticore at the time, who understood griffons much better than I or my sister did, and learned of the griffons’ sweet tooth.”
“Wait,” said Dr. Glassman, a hint of disbelief in his tone. “So are you both about to tell me that you just gave Gregor some kind of tasty treat, and he just left you alone?”
Luna and Celestia looked at each other, then back at the two human scientists.
“Pretty much,” they both responded in unison.
“It was an éclair, to be exact,” said Luna.
“I can only assume that the changelings convinced them to fight us again, as mercenaries of some sort,” continued Celestia, staying on topic. “It must not have been very hard, given the story I just told.”
“I was surprised that they weren’t using the same weapons as the changelings,” said Luna. “I guess they always were quite traditional.”
Dr. Glassman visibly blinked in disbelief, as if trying to find the words for his pure astonishment, before furiously writing down notes onto his holo-pad.
“By god,” he said. “This world is strange. Interesting, but strange.”
“I prefer the term, unique,” said Dr. Halsey before motioning with her robotic arm for Celestia to continue. “Please, go on.”
“Of course,” said Celestia. “But before I do, I just want to know, who is this deity that you humans keep referring to? I believe you call him, god?”
“Oh! No offense to you your highness,” said Dr. Glassman.
Celestia giggled, “None taken.”
“Sorry, it’s just that, all human religions point to a single, or multiple, all powerful beings, who we would simply call, god, or gods,” Henry continued. “Over time, phrases were created through language and culture like, ‘Oh my god!’ and things like that. Basically, a figure of speech, similar to how every pony I’ve talked to has said things along the lines of, ‘Oh my Celestia!’”
“Ah,” said Celestia in understanding.
“That is rather interesting,” said Luna.
“Quite,” said Dr. Halsey. “Sorry if I seem rushed, but could you please continue with your story? This…interview, is more about your species, not ours.”
“Of course,” said Celestia. “The next two countries go together, in that they’re very similar in their origins, and conclusively, their motives. Gildedale and Germaney both broke away from Equestria shortly after its founding. Unlike the griffons, neither of them gave us very much trouble, if at all, until now, but that doesn’t mean that they liked us any more than the griffons did.”
“Both countries were formed under separate groups of earth ponies,” said Luna. “Both believed the unison of the three pony races would undermine the purity of the earth pony species. With a mentality like that, I can only imagine how easy it must have been for the changelings to convince them both to join their cause.”
“So you two knew about this all along?” asked Dr. Glassman. “Surely with this foreknowledge you must’ve posted guards near the borders?”
“We did,” said Luna. “However, given that both armies decided to use weapons similar to those of the changelings, our guards were proven ineffective.”
“Wait, how can they use those kinds of weapons?” asked Halsey. “Don’t they require magic like the kind wielded by unicorns in order to operate them?”
“We aren’t sure,” said Celestia.
“Our best guess is that they have some kind of limited power source energizing their shots,” said Luna.
“How did they get this gear in the first place?” asked Dr. Glassman
“The changelings have possibly sold it to them to increase the effectiveness of their ally’s army,” said Luna.
“And also quite likely to gain a profit,” said Celestia. “Yes, the changelings too have an economy to drive.”
“And what about the changelings themselves?” asked Dr. Halsey. “Correct me if I'm wrong, but they seem to be the root cause of the, official declarations of war by these other nations.”
“If anything, the root cause is us,” said Celestia. “We should’ve been more aware of our own neighbors. Then, maybe conflict with more than one nation could’ve been avoided long ago.”
“Mmm…good point,” mused Halsey, nodding in understanding. “No offense to you…again…”
“It’s alright,” said Luna. “As leaders of a nation, we should at least learn from the mistakes we have already made.”
“Correct,” said Celestia. “But back to your question on the changelings, as their name suggests, they are a species of shape shifters. They are designed, by evolution and magic, to impersonate equines all across the known world. The reason they do it is that they feed off of somepony else’s love. If left unchecked, one changeling can become as magically potent as almost fifty.”
“As I'm sure you’ve already heard by this point, this isn’t our first encounter with them,” said Luna. “About one year ago, they and their queen, Chrysalis, led a direct assault on Canterlot...”
. . .
August 8, 2558 1505 hours Manehattan Square
Three pelicans coming in from Canterlot touched down in Manehattan Square. Out of one came the six marines of Fireteam Icebreaker, who were immediately approached by Captain Robert Peterson and Lieutenant Daniel Dietz.
“Welcome to the green zone boys!” said Dietz, using a voice raised over the roar of the departing pelicans. “Glad you could make it to the party!”
“Good to be here!” said gunny, raising his voice as well. “What’s the situation?”
Captain Peterson waited until the airborne troop transports had departed before speaking.
“We’ve managed to halt their advance completely,” he said. “They’ve barely made it past the beaches and have only a few buildings under their control. These, ‘Daleponies’ I think they’re called, are a lot better equipped than I thought. They’re armed with spears and crossbows similar to the ones that the changelings use; they appear to be powered by a battery of some sort, most likely powered by a limited amount of magic rather than magic directly from a horn. Despite the limited charge, they’ve been putting up a hard fight with those things.”
“Unfortunately, they’ve figured out that if they land a shot in the face, the marine vaporizes instantly,” said Lieutenant Dietz. “We almost lost an entire platoon that way.”
“Those lucky enough to get out alive didn’t do so before getting their bones broken,” said Peterson. “I’ll tell ya, these guys can buck hard! If we really want to end this battle as soon as possible, we’re going to need to take out some leadership.”
“That’s where you come in,” said the LT. “Recon has located the building that their commanding officer, a Miss Field Marshal Greyblade, has taken up residence. It’s only a few blocks that way, close to the beachheads and the battle lines.”
He pointed an open hand down the street.
“Kill or capture?” asked Sergeant Alex.
“Capture,” responded the Captain. “Kill if necessary, but we need her alive. She can give us information on why they and two other countries attacked Equestria. Either way, you’ll strip the Daleponies of their leadership, making them all the more easier to fight.”
“Understood sir,” said gunny.
“Good, now get to it marines!”
“Aye, sir! Come on boys, let’s get it done!”
“Oorah!” said the other five marines as they started down the road.
. . .
"So it makes sense that they would want revenge," said Dr. Glassman, finishing up his notes.
“Thank you for your time Princesses,” said Dr. Halsey. “I know you have a country to run and that it isn't easy to find time to talk."
"Oh, you're most welcome," said Luna, before she and her sister left the room.
Outside, Celestia turned to Luna and said, "You go on ahead back to the castle, I'll go check with Lasky on how the war is shaping up."
. . .
August 8, 2558 1507 hours Manehattan Streets
Aside from the distant sounds of gunfire and explosions, the street that Icebreaker moved down was deafeningly quiet.
“An entire platoon wasted?” said Shifty as they walked. “That hasn’t happened since…since-”
“Hey! Focus!” said Alex. “We’ve got a job to do.”
They moved in a line, hugging the right side of the street instead of walking down the center. Their rifles were all brought to bear, each pointed in a different direction as to cover all angles.
Suddenly, gunny held up a fist, and everyone stopped and took a knee. He then motioned over to a building across an intersection atop which enemy sentries were poised.
"Eyes on target," said gunny. "That has to be it."
"Simple breach-and-clear?" asked Ogden.
Gunny only smiled in response as a pair of wounded dalepony soldiers were seen rushing inside.
. . .
Field Marshal Greyblade was an armored mare with a dull, grey coat, blue eyes, and blond mane. Her body armor was gold-painted leather instead of the rusty, brown leather of her subordinates. Her mane was tied in a braid and lay upon her right shoulder to make way for her golden helmet, upon the forehead of which an emerald was adorned.
She was on the second floor, discussing a plan with one of her higher ranked subordinates when two of her wounded soldiers stumbled inside.
"Ma'am! The second front has been overrun!" said the first one.
"They brought these giant, metal death machines of some kind!" said the other. "We were the only two to just barely make it out alive to inform you!"
"Thank you for letting me know," said Greyblade. "You both may rest."
"Thank you Ma'am," they said in unison.
"Captain," said the Field Marshal after the two had left. "Get me a line to Thatchholm. We need to call for exfiltration."
"Yes Ma'am."
Suddenly, a loud explosion was heard from the first floor, followed almost immediately by the sound of gunfire and dying daleponies.
“The wounded!” exclaimed the Captain before rushing to the door.
But before he could reach it, a line of six marines burst through, knocking him onto his back and his spear out of his hooves. One of them then promptly shot the Captain in the back as he was reaching for his weapon.
“On your knees!” yelled one of the marines. “Turn around!”
Greyblade shakily lowered herself while raising her forehooves, before shuffling around so that her back was to them. Alex then darted forward and pinned her to the ground with his boot. He held her there by slapping both of her forehooves onto the back of her helmet while one of his comrades came up to her and searched her hoof-to-tail, stopping only when he reached the honorary dagger at her hip.
“Souvenir?” asked Corporal Williams, getting up and tossing the dagger to gunny as Alex ziptied the Dalepony’s hooves behind her back.
“Thanks,” said gunny. “Jenkins, radio for extract, we’ve got our prize.”
“Aye sir,” said Jenkins, pulling the radio receiver off his back and to his ear. “Echo 419, this is Fireteam Icebreaker requesting exfil. The package is in our hands.”
“You MONSTERS!!!” shouted Greyblade in anger and grief, tears now streaming down her face. “What have you done?! Have you really just killed wounded soldiers?!”
“I can’t say that none were caught in the crossfire,” said Alex, still holding her to the floor. “But no, almost all of ‘em are still alive. We’ll make sure that they’re given good medical attention.”
“You would aid us?” said Greyblade in disbelief. “After all the damage we’ve done already?”
“We may be efficient warriors,” said Corporal Williams with a grin, kneeling down to her level. “But we’re not monsters.”
“Grid coordinates: 279045,” said Jenkins. “Roger that, see you in a few. Gunny, he’s picking us up at roof-level in five mikes.”
“Got it,” said Gunny. “Corporal, take Sydney and secure the rest of this floor while we wait.”
“Aye sir,” said the Corporal before making his way to the door, where Shifty and Sydney had taken up a defensive position, each on an opposing side of the doorframe pointing their weapons in opposing directions down the hallway. “Alright Syd, let’s move.”
“You’re clear left,” said Shifty.
“Clear right,” said Sydney.
Corporal Williams then walked through the door with his gun raised and with Sydney in tow, following him out the door and letting Jenkins take his place.
. . .
“I doubt anyone’s left in this house,” said Sydney. “It already looked empty from the outside.”
“And yet look at how many were actually inside,” said the Corporal. “You can never be too thorough in this line of work.”
“And that’s why you’re in charge at the moment, Marcus.”
The two cautiously entered another room, guns at the ready, when they heard a soft whimpering within a nearby closet.
“Sounds like a filly to me,” said Marcus, the noise going quiet as soon as he said that. “It came from in there.”
“Watch my back,” said Sydney. “I’ll check the closet.”
Marcus then turned away from the closet, crouched, and shouldered his weapon as Sydney cautiously opened the small closet behind him.
Inside, the private found a dirt brown earth pony filly with pink mane and a pair of scissors for a cutie mark. Her eyes were wide in terror and she quivered in silence at the sight of the marine.
“G’dday, mate,” said Sydney in his most friendly voice.
“P-Please d-don’t hurt me…!” she squeaked.
“Easy,” a calmer tone in his Australian accented voice now as he picked her up. “I won’t hurt you. None of us will. We’re here to get you out.”
“And what if I don’t believe you?”
“Well, I’m holding you right now…are you hurt yet?”
The filly sheepishly looked at his arms, cradling her like a baby.
“No,” she responded, a little calmer now.
“What’s your name?” he asked after a short pause. “Mine’s Sid.”
“I-I’m Babs Seed.”
“Do you know what happened here?”
“I-I just remember Auntie Orange tellin’ me that some bad ponies were takin’ over town, so she told me to hide in the closet! I…I don’t think I saw her again after that.”
Her face brightens at a realization.
“Have ya seen her by any chance Sid?” she asked. “She’s got a bright yellow coat and orange mane.”
Sydney thought for a moment, realizing he had quite a decision to make right then. Suddenly, one red dot, then two, then three and counting began to approach the door opposite the one from which the two marines had entered.
“I have,” he said, deciding to lie. “She’s going to be okay. I saw her get out. And now we’re here to get you out, so you can see her again.”
“Do you trust us?” asked Marcus.
Babs nodded with renewed vitality. “I do.”
“Good, ‘cause we’re about to have company!” the corporal responded as quietly as he could. “Sidney, we’ve got to go back the way we came, right now!”
The Australian then stood up, hugging Babs Seed as tightly as he could to his body with one arm, and arming his pistol in the other.
“I’ll take point,” he said, rushing to the door farthest from the red dots. “She’ll be protected the most if I’m in front.”
“Gotcha,” said Marcus, following close behind. “Now let’s move!”
Right then, an enemy dalepony burst through the opposite door. Marcus spun around in time to put two rounds from his DMR into the enemy’s chest, just as the dalepony was raising his weapon to fire; this gave Sydney enough time to round the corner of the doorframe, out of sight from the remaining daleponies. The next one to round the corner exploded half the ceiling in the room after the marine corporal put a shot between his eyes while walking backwards. The third however, as he was right behind the second, had enough time to get a clean shot at Marcus; he missed by inches, but the blast was enough to throw the marine in the direction Sydney had been running, as well as knock his weapon out of his hand.
Now without a rifle and with nearly half a dozen daleponies after him, Marcus got up, pulled out his pistol, and sprinted towards Sydney while firing back at the doorway, hoping to suppress them long enough.
When he reached Sydney, he holstered his pistol and grabbed the battle rifle that was on Sydney’s back as he said, “I’m gunna borrow this for a bit, if you don’t mind.”
“Go right ahead.”
Marcus spun back around just in time to fire burst after burst into oncoming daleponies that decided it’d be a good idea to breach the doorframe. Sydney was doing the same towards the front with his sidearm.
“Friendlies coming in!” yelled Shifty as he cooked a grenade which he threw down the hall after Sydney and Marcus had dived back into the room. “Frag out!”
Jenkins and Shifty then moved away from the door as a green bolt struck the doorframe they had just been standing next to, sending splinters in all directions; right before Shifty’s grenade went off with yellow flash and a deafening bang, sending blood, screams, and a couple body parts down the hall and past the doorway.
“Time to go,” Sergeant Alex deadpanned as he hoisted Greyblade onto his shoulders in a fireman’s carry.
“Sydney,” said Jenkins, pointing at the filly in the private’s arms. “Who’s that?”
“An unexpected passenger,” was the reply.
“Stairs to the roof are this way!” said gunny before bashing the opposite door open with his shoulder. “Move with a purpose Icebreaker!”
The team rushed single-file through the door, moved swiftly down the hallway, up some stairs and burst onto the rooftop, where they found a pelican less than a quarter-mile away closing in fast on their location.
“Pelican 096, you got any turrets on that bird?” asked Jenkins over his radio.
“You don’t need to tell me twice,” came a masculine voice over all of Icebreaker’s helmet radios. “We’re already engaging enemy ground forces converging on your building. You guys just can’t make extracts at any other temperature can you?”
“That’s just the way we like it, sir,” responded gunny through his helmet. “Marines, this is gunna be tight. High-value targets and civvies in first!”
“Oorah!” was the unified response.
Right then, the pelican reached the rooftop, turning one-hundred-and-eighty degrees in midair so that the open end was facing the ground squad. A marine brandished the heavy turret mounted at the opening.
“C’mon boys!” he commanded in a thick Russian accent. “I’ve got you covered. Let’s get out of here!”
Alex and Greyblade were on first, followed by Sydney and Babs, just as daleponies began to emerge from the doorway onto the roof. One by one, the members of Fireteam Icebreaker got onto the pelican as both they and the pelican gunner mowed down the flurry of enemy troops attempting to stop them from capturing their Field Marshall.
When only gunny and Jenkins were left, a powerful green bolt of energy struck the pelican’s right engine.
“She’ll hold,” said the pilot. “But we need to leave, now!”
“Roger, pull away!” said the gunnery sergeant immediately.
“Gunny?” asked Jenkins before Alvarez hopped inside the troop transport, just as it was pulling away.
“Jump Ogden!” shouted Marcus. “Jump!”
Without another word, Jenkins threw aside his assault rifle and sprinted towards the pelican. Seeing as it was already beyond the edge of the roof, he knew he had no choice but to jump from there. With all his strength, Jenkins leaped from the rooftop, cartwheeling his arms in hopes to grab something, anything in or on the pelican to bring him to safety. Seemingly by a stroke of luck, he caught the edge of the drop-door with his forearm; he managed to bring his other arm onto it as well but, he was slipping! Jenkins tried desperately to hold on, but it was no use. He was going to fall off!
Just as all hope seemed to be lost for the PFC, Corporal Williams’ hands reached out and grabbed one of his.
“Gotcha!” said Marcus just as he saved his friend from the edge.
Gunny came over and assisted in pulling him inside as the doors closed behind them.
“You son of a bitch!” said Jenkins to gunny with playful smile and a punch to the shoulder. “I see what you did there.”
“What? I-I don’t understand,” said Greyblade. “Your superior almost left you for dead! How are you okay with that?”
“No, it’s okay,” said Jenkins. “He was just trying to get me back for doing the same thing to him during a mission way back in the day.”
The cuffed, grey mare simply shook her head in disbelief as Alex strapped her into her seat.
“You are a strange race,” she said.
. . .
“This is Private First Class Ogden Jenkins to Infinity, high value target is in custody, break…aaand we have one civilian in tow, over.” Roger that Icebreaker, return the civilian to a safe location, then head back to Canterlot Castle with the HVT, over.
“Aye, aye, sir. Over and out.” Roger, Infinity out.
Once pelican 096 was parked outside the palace, her pilot lowered the ramp and her passengers got off. Sergeant Alex carried Greyblade over his shoulder as he and his squad walked toward Shining Armor, who had just emerged from the barracks.
“You know, you haven’t exactly tied her legs,” said the Captain of the Royal Guard once he and two of his men were close enough. “She could easily kick you in the face.”
As if on cue, Greyblade snapped one of her hind hooves back and nailed Alex in the forehead.
“FUCK!” Alex exclaimed as he dropped her to the ground and held his forehead in both palms while the rest of his squad burst into laughter.
A pair of royal guards then came over to Greyblade and knocked her unconscious before carrying her away.
“*sniff*That’s such a dick move,” said Shifty after he’d had his laugh. “You ok, Sarge?”
“Yeah,” Sergeant Thompson said with a grunt of pain. “I’d kill that bitch if I was allowed to…”
“Easy now Thompson,” said Gunnery Sergeant Alvarez. “She’ll get hers.”
“She’d better.”
“Gentlecolts,” said Shining Armor as he stopped in front of the group and levitated a piece of parchment up to read. “I was told by Captain Lasky to relay some information to you.”
The six marines listened in as he began reading from the paper; the members of Fireteam Icebreaker could tell that it was printed from a printer onboard the ship, rather than hoof-written by a pony.
“While you all were out fighting in Manehattan, an encirclement of Stalliongrad has been achieved and the Germanes are now cut off,” he started. “Marines stay on the outskirts to contain enemies and permit civilians to pass; since these particular equine soldiers do not possess any of the more advanced weaponry we’ve seen, Spartans are now moving into the city to finish off any enemy resistance until they surrender, or are all killed.”
“Sir? Pardon my interruption,” interjected Shifty. “But why hasn’t Captain Lasky sent you with some hologram-message instead of this paper?”
“Huh, I didn’t know there was such a thing. I guess he assumed that I wouldn’t know how to use it and just gave me something more…old fashioned I guess.”
“Ah.”
“Can I continue?”
Shifty raised both hands in the air.
“I’m not stopping you, sir,” he said.
With a grin Shining Armor continued.
“I have now tasked Gypsy Company, Shadow Company, and another 500 marines to head to the southwestern-most border of Equestria to begin our fight against the changelings. The most recent reports suggest that they have already taken Appleloosa.”
“Appleloosa?! Already?” said Alex, recalling the name of the town Applejack spoke so highly of. “That’s like, only a hundred miles from the border!”
“So, it’s easily reachable,” said Shining Armor. “You six are to all report back to your commanding officers back in Ponyville; there, they will be preparing for the counterattack as we speak. Thomas and both company commanders have agreed to send Gypsy Company in on the first wave.”
He looked up from the parchment.
“By train,” he finished, folding the paper up and levitating it back into his satchel. “Shadow Company will reinforce 30 minutes after you have secured the town. Any questions?”
“With all due respect, Captain,” said Gunnery Sergeant David Alvarez. “Did you call our Captain by his first name?”
“Yes, I did soldier,” Shining Armor responded. “He has deemed the princesses and their constituents, AKA me, known well enough for us all to be on a first-name basis with each other.”
Gunny only nodded in response, with a look on his face that said, “Aight…cool…”
“Any other questions?” said Shining with no response. “Very well, you have your orders. Good luck.”
The six marines saluted the Captain of the Royal Guard, to which he returned the salute, before they all went their separate ways.
. . .
August 8, 2558 1700 hours Canterlot Castle Dungeon
Field Marshal Greyblade awoke in a dungeon cell. From the silence, she could tell that, apart from herself, the entire dungeon was completely empty.
She turned her attention to herself. Her hooves were no longer restrained, allowing her to stand; she was also completely naked now, stripped of her armor and rank. Her blonde mane was now fully unbraided and it naturally fell around her visage.
Two royal guards came over to her cell, unlocked it, and entered; they were followed by a human and the Captain of the Royal Guard himself.
In a burst of rage, Greyblade lunged at the first two pony-guards, who proceeded to swiftly knock the wind out of her and shove her flat onto her stomach, holding her forehead and muzzle on the cold floor.
They brought her up by the armpits and held her on her knees in front of Shining Armor. She continued to resist their grip as much as she could, even as Shining Armor addressed her.
“Field Marshal Greyblade,” said Shining. “One of the few female leaders and warriors in Gildedale’s Army. Quite an impressive accolade if I do say so myself.”
“Don’t patronize me,” she hissed immediately. “Whatever you want from me, you’re not gunna get it!”
She then spat on his chest plate, prompting one of the guards restraining her to backhoof the mare.
After taking the blow to her cheek, she snapped her head back up to bare her teeth at the guard who did it before looking back at the Captain.
“Cowards,” she growled. “Making these creatures do your dirty work!”
She gestured with her head when she referred to the female marine standing behind Shining Armor.
“Had you faced us head on,” she continued. “We would have wiped you off the face of this world!”
“Well that’s just the problem, isn’t it my dear?” said Shining. “We needed help, we got it miraculously just in time, and you all payed for it. It’s not like we weren’t going to use them! And they seemed more than happy to help out. Besides, you knew they were here already, didn’t you? As a Field Marshall, you must have been pretty heavily involved with the planning of this invasion. Tell me, did you know we had help? And why help the changelings? What in the world did they tell you that convinced you all to do this?”
“I’ll never tell you,” Greyblade hissed. “Unicorn scum!”
“Oh you Gildedale ponies,” said Shining, shaking his head with a hoof on his face. “So prideful of your, ‘purity.’ I knew you wouldn’t talk right away, so allow me to present you with something to change your mind.”
The marine was holding a holo-pad in her arms. She proceeded to type in a few commands before turning the pad around to display a flat-screen video, something a holo-pad could also do, contrary to popular belief.
The video played, and Greyblade watched…
. . .
Manehattan Docks 1 hour ago
Lieutenant Daniel Dietz stood with Gypsy Company. They were holding captive over 500 enemy combatants that had surrendered.
“A single company keeping watch over a whole battalion,” he mused. “This is just absurd.”
Captain Robert Peterson came over to him and the two exchanged salutes.
“New orders,” said the Captain. “I’ll go pass it down the line. We’re wipin ’em, right now.”
“Sir?” asked Dietz.
“We’re executing them, Lieutenant,” said Peterson, in disgust at what he was saying. “I don’t like it as much as you do either, but we gotta do what we’re told. Line ‘em up at the edge.”
“A-aye sir,” he stuttered in disbelief.
In a few minutes, the entire battalion had been lined up at the edge of the docks, the marines that had put them there now crouching and standing as one big firing squad. Most of the ponies were begging for mercy, others were either crying for their mothers or embracing each other, the more experienced of them simply stayed quiet and awaited their doom.
“Ready!” said Captain Peterson into his microphone, a solemn look on his face.
. . .
Fire!
Greyblade watched in horror as her army was gunned down, bodies falling into the water. When the marines shot at anypony still alive in the water, that’s when she looked away.
“No…” she sobbed. “No, no, no, no, no…”
The guards had released her, her face now in her hooves, sobbing at her misfortune.
“I failed them,*sniff*I…failed…”
The marine stopped the video before asking, “Captain? With all due respect, who gave–?”
“It is none of your concern, Corporal,” Shining interrupted.
“Sir, I demand to know!”
Shining Armor turned to the insubordinate.
“Soldier, I don’t take orders from you.”
“I’m not a soldier, I’m a marine! And I don’t take orders from you either! I know Captain Lasky, and he would never give an order like that! Now either you tell me, or I’m taking this right to him!”
Shining was taken aback by this, but only for a moment. He ripped the holo-pad out of her arm with his magic and smashed it into the wall before the marine could react.
“He’s not gunna know about this,” said Shining, placing an authoritarian hoof on her chest. “Understood?”
The marine looked up at the Captain for a moment, before backing up while saying, “You’re insane.”
She dashed out of the room without another word.
“You did this,” breathed Greyblade after the marine had left, with her voice increasing in volume with every next word. “Your. Princesses. Ordered. My army. EXECUTED?!!!”
The guards had to grab her by her arms again as she attempted to lash out at Shining. While being restrained she continued to scream like an animal in her rage and yell profanities, calling the princesses whores and Shining himself to be a “marebucker.”
Greyblade finally was quiet after a couple minutes, rapidly breathing deeply in her anger.
“Are you done yet?” asked Shining after she had quieted down.
“Buck off!” she spat. “And buck you! I’ll never tell you anything!”
Shining could see it in her eyes; though they were filled with fury, the few popped veins around her bright, blue pupils and the stream of tears down her face could suggest only one thing: she was nearly broken already.
“We’ll see about that,” he said. “I’m not a torturer, but I’ve been tasked to get information out of you. The more you resist, the more you make me do things that I regret doing.”
“Then do it marebucker,” said Greyblade, a smirk on her face now. “Do it you won’t!”
“*sigh*If you want it, you asked for it. I suppose you have nothing left to lose at this point.”
He pointed out of the chamber.
“Bring her outside,” he ordered.
. . .
It was a gloomy, overcast day outside suddenly, as Greyblade was dragged by her arms out near the edge of a hill just outside the dungeon. The ground was muddy as if it had just rained.
Probably weather pegasi who made it this way. Greyblade thought to herself. Just for me.
The royal guards holding her threw her into the mud. She looked up to see she was behind two more royal guards, each with rope tied to their waists that extended out behind them until their ends were in front of her.
“On your knees,” ordered one of the guards behind Greyblade as she stood up on all fours. “Hold your hooves out in front of you.”
She lowered herself to her hind knees and held her forehooves out in front of her; the guard began tying both ropes around her forehooves while Shining Armor walked up to her side.
“You think me weak-minded, don’t you?” said Greyblade as the final knot was tightened. “You’ll realize soon enough that you’ll just have to kill me.”
“You’re lucky that we’ve decided to merciful,” said Shining Armor, ignoring her comment as he directed the original two guards back inside. “We could have left the hill you’re about to go down as dry and bumpy as it always is, but I got some pegasi instead to soften it up with rain, as you can see.”
He signaled to the two stallions roped to her. They started forward just enough to yank Greyblade’s hooves forward far enough to make her lose balance and splash, flat and face-first with a yelp, into the cold and wet black mud, then they stopped so Shining Armor could continue.
“We just didn’t want to waste such a pretty face,” he said sarcastically as Greyblade lifted her head to breath, as her airways would have been cut off otherwise.
Her face was now nearly completely darkened, having been covered in mud, parts of her mane smooth, but already clumped together by the mud. Shining promptly shoved her face back into the raw Earth.
“Uh-uh, no peeking!” he said as he held her muzzle down. “There’ll be water at the bottom. Enjoy the ride!”
At this, the two stallions tied to Greyblade began their charge down the hill, dragging her along, mud and stones whipping by her the whole way down.
. . .
The stallions slowed down as they approached the bottom of the hill, approaching the large pond in the valley.
Greyblade had attempted to keep her head somewhat raised during her drag, to make sure that she could breathe the whole time.
Once stopped, she finally rested her head; both royal guards proceeded to untie Greyblade before carrying her by the armpits to the water’s edge; there, they positioned her so that only her head was above the water while the rest of her lay flat on land. As Shining Armor approached, one guard straddled her before pinning her legs together and holding her forehooves behind her back, whilst the other shoved her head into the water.
She violently struggled for a good ten seconds before they ripped her head out of the water.
Through desperate gasps for air she said, “Enough! PLEASE!”
“Let her go,” Shining ordered before the two guards simply threw her back onto land.
After rolling for a bit, Greyblade slowly got onto her elbows and knees as she quietly sobbed. Shining Armor knew she was beaten, not just physically, as she did not attempt to run, nor did she seem interested in fighting back anymore.
Broken.
“You and I knew it was only a matter of time,” said Shining Armor as he approached. “I’d like you to know I didn’t enjoy any of that, even if my voice sounded playful at times.”
Greyblade was quiet for a moment, letting the last of her tears roll down her face.
“I’ll tell you anything,” she quietly said after some time. “Just promise to kill me afterwards…so I can join my soldiers you executed…”
“Your final punishment is to live,” said Shining Armor flatly. “Your reward and punishment I should say.”
Greyblade didn’t even seem to react, continuing to look at the dark, muddy ground.
“If it helps, I didn’t order your battalion slaughtered,” said Shining.
Greyblade raised her head at this, a look of shock and confusion alongside her drying tears. She turned her head to look at Shining.
“Then who did?” she asked simply.
“Let’s make a deal,” said Shining. “I’ll tell who gave the order, after you answer me this…”
Chapter 18: Mild West Meets the Wild West August 8, 2558 1715 hours Bridge of the UNSC Infinity
“I thought you were headed back to the castle?” asked Celestia.
“Oh, I couldn’t help staying on this ship,” Luna responded. “It’s just so, fascinating! Anyway, were we not leaving some ten minutes ago anyway?”
“Captain Lasky requested that the two of us stay by this, hologram-table, until he says we can go,” said Celestia. “The request apparently came right as we should have left.”
Luna only looked skeptical.
“But why?” was all she could ask. “We haven’t wronged anypony have we?”
“I haven’t the slightest–”
Just then, Captain Lasky came into the room and stormed right up to the table.
Placing his hands on the table as he leaned over it, Roland appeared with crossed arms and the two simply stared down the princesses.
“Which one of you gave that order?” Lasky asked clearly and sternly.
When neither princess answered, he promptly slammed a fist onto the holo-table, prompting Roland’s image to momentarily lose balance.
“Did I stutter?!” he asked, borderline shouting. “Who in Tartarus gave that bucking order?!”
Both princesses took a step back at this, shocked at Lasky’s sudden indignance.
“Sir,” said Roland, looking up at Lasky with an equally shocked look. “You just swore in their language.”
“So that they would pay attention,” the Captain responded, his gaze unwavering. “ANSWER THE QUESTION!”
Celestia and Luna only looked at each other wide-eyed before looking back at their interrogator.
“What order?” asked the two sisters in unison.
“Roland, you think they’d lie to me?” asked Lasky to his AI friend.
“They don’t seem like the lying type, sir,” he responded, virtual arms crossed again.
“Don’t play dumb with me,” said Lasky to the princesses now. “I’ll have you know Roland has a built-in lie detector.”
“I do indee–wait, I do?!”
“Dammit Roland! That’s where you were supposed to stay quiet…”
Lasky only massaged the vein between his eyes right then.
“Ohhh! Shit,” said Roland, virtually facepalming. “My bad, sir. I fucked up.”
“It’s not a big deal,” said Lasky, holding up his hand after taking a breath. “You’re doing a lot of multitasking, I get it.”
Roland only shrugged.
“One of you gave that order,” said Lasky, turning his attention back to the princesses, who looked more confused now. “So, I’m giving you the benefit of the doubt, whichever one of you it was, and I’ll just say that you momentarily forgot that you gave it.”
The Captain pointed at his AI helper.
“Roland, why don’t you jog their memory?”
“With pleasure, sir.”
Roland snapped his fingers and the video of marines mowing down Daleponies began to play.
“I left the bridge about an hour ago,” Lasky started. “The battle was over, yet sometime between then and now, someone…”
He pointed at the video solemnly yet angrily.
“…or should I say, somepony, with some pretty high security clearance ordered this to happen; yet somehow I only hear about it fifteen minutes ago. Such an order is one that I would consider inhumane, I think you both can guess what that means, and whichever one of you issued it did not run it by me first!”
Celestia was the first to speak up.
“How dare you accuse us of this!” she said. “And how dare you speak to us in this manner! You know a princess outranks any Captain.”
Captain Lasky once again pointed his authoritative finger at the princesses.
“You two may be the rulers of this land, but I’m the one in charge of this war!” he stated matter-of-factly. “Command your own troops as you please, but never, ever, even try to command mine without consulting me first! That’s the chain of command that’s in place here, and I hope I won’t have to remind you two of that again.”
Celestia was only quiet, as she could not argue with his logic.
“Now, which one of you,” he started again, more quietly. “Gave that order?”
Celestia was about to retort immediately, but right as she opened her mouth she was interrupted by Luna.
“Celestia,” she said, prompting all eyes, real and virtual, to turn towards her. “I think I know what he’s talking about.”
The look on Luna’s face was faint, but it was there: the look of guilt.
Celestia gasped before covering her mouth in shock.
“Luna?!” she exclaimed softly, tears beginning to well up.
“Ah-ha!” said Roland. “The plot thickens…”
. . .
August 8, 2558 1720 hours Ponyville Train Station
“What, are we actually sleeping in the train?!” asked Private Eugene Phillips incredulously.
“First wave means first wave Private,” said Gunnery Sergeant David Alvarez as he tossed him a sleeping bag. “Bright and early tomorrow morning, we’re shooting some bug-eyes out!”
Shifty merely sighed in response and glanced down at his temporary bed forlornly.
“Yes, sir,” he said before turning around and walking into the train.
PFC Ogden Jenkins walked out as Shifty walked in.
“My spot’s all set up, gunny,” he said after exchanging salutes.
“Understood,” gunny responded. “I assume you came out for some air?”
“Yes, sir.”
“Very well then, I’ll be inside–”
His voice trailed off as he looked up. Jenkins followed his gaze to see a pelican coming in for a landing. It flew overhead and began landing behind the station.
“Or not,” gunny deadpanned. “Sounds like it’s landing.”
“Is that the last one from Manehattan?” asked Jenkins.
“Yeah, LT and the Cap should be in that one so, I’ll head back and greet.”
“Sir,” said Jenkins as he saluted.
“Enjoy the nighttime air,” ordered gunny as he returned the salute before jogging around the back.
As soon as gunny was out of sight, Jenkins turned around to get a face full of rainbow. Rainbow Dash had swooped in from above and tackled Jenkins in an embrace.
“You’re back!” she exclaimed. “I-I was so worried!”
“*cough*Glad to see you too!*cough*” said Jenkins.
The PFC looked over towards the train to see the rest of Icebreaker laughing at him through the windows, to which he responded with his middle finger.
. . .
Behind the station, gunny ran up to his two superior officers as they disembarked a pelican that flew away shortly after.
“Good evening gentlemen!” he greeted over the pelican’s roar, saluting.
“Good evening,” Lieutenant Daniel Dietz and Captain Robert Peterson said in unison, saluting their subordinate as the noise subsided.
“All of Alpha platoon is set up inside the train, sir,” said gunny to Dietz, before turning to Peterson. “The rest of Gypsy company is almost done.”
“Good work son,” said the Captain, saying nothing more as he nonchalantly adjusted his officer’s cap.
“Rest easy tonight,” said the Lieutenant, patting gunny on the shoulder without making eye-contact as he passed his subordinate. “We’ve got a big day tomorrow…”
The Gunnery Sergeant could clearly tell that something was wrong.
“Sir?” he said as he grabbed the Lieutenant’s shoulder from behind. “Is something wrong, if you don’t mind me asking?”
They both looked at the NCO, who looked from Dietz to Peterson.
“I haven’t seen either of you like this since…well, a really long time,” he stated. “What is it?”
Lieutenant Dietz turned around and laid a hand on gunny’s shoulder, finally making eye contact as the Captain took off his hat behind the NCO before running a hand through his short hair.
. . .
“So, you were worried about me?” Jenkins started as he stood up and dusted himself off. “How sweet.”
“What?” said Rainbow, looking up at him. “I care! What’s wrong with that?”
“Just giving you a hard time, again.”
“Heh heh, so…you have to go again huh?”
Jenkins only nodded.
“But you just got back!” said Rainbow.
“A marine’s job is never done,” Jenkins said straightforwardly, kneeling to Rainbow’s height. “You know it’s not healthy to be this worried about me, right? Don’t you have other things, like that Wonderbolt stuff, to be concerned with too?”
“Ugh, I know,” said Rainbow, looking down.
“Hey, look at me,” said Jenkins as he lifted her head up by the chin. “I’ll be fine.”
The PFC sighed and dropped his arm when she still didn’t seem convinced.
“You’re still thinking about that training exercise, aren’t you?” he asked, to which she nodded in response. “You wanna know the truth?”
Again, she nodded.
“That’s the only time that’s ever happened to me; that’s a fact. And you know what else?”
“What?”
“Changelings don’t have grenades!”
He smiled and playfully slapped her shoulder as he spouted that lie. Though it was more of a half-lie, as he had no idea whether or not changelings had grenades. But as long as Rainbow seemed convinced, he’d be happy lying to her just to put her mind at ease.
Thankfully, it seemed to work, as Rainbow’s face brightened up.
“Really?!” she asked.
“Absolutely,” Jenkins responded. “So, don’t worry about me. We’ll solve this bug infestation soon, and who knows? I might get the chance to hang out with you in some regular clothing for once!”
“These aren’t your normal clothes?”
“Nah, but we’ll get to that discussion in due time. Consider it something to think about while I’m away.”
“I will! So, when do you head out?”
“Early tomorrow morning. We’ll be gone before you wake up.”
Rainbow’s face grew long once again.
“So, I guess this is goodbye again?” she asked. “Already?”
“Afraid so,” said Jenkins, reaching for her face again.
Before the PFC could react however, Rainbow leaned in and kissed him on the nose before levitating away. He put a hand on his nose as she spoke.
“Gotcha first this time!” she said, smiling now, before soaring away.
Jenkins briefly chuckled to himself as Shifty opened the train window.
“Ma man!” was all he said before putting the index finger of one hand through a circle he made with his other hand.
“I didn’t have sex with her, give it a rest already!” Jenkins snapped. “Fuck, man.”
Just then, gunny rounded the corner behind Captain Peterson and Lieutenant Dietz. All three looked like they’d seen ghosts.
Shifty closed the window before the PFC exchanged salutes with the two officers. After they had passed and walked into the train, Jenkins looked to gunny, having clearly read the trio’s average demeanor.
“Sir?” he asked, pointing at the entrance of the train. “Is something wrong?”
“That’s what I asked,” said gunny solemnly, avoiding eye-contact. “And you wouldn’t believe the answer…”
. . .
August 8, 2558 1725 hours Bridge of the UNSC Infinity
“…and that is why I thought it rational to at least execute one of their battalions,” Luna finished.
Celestia’s mouth was agape while Lasky and Roland merely stood speechless.
“What the hell?” said Roland finally. “That’s like, medieval-level doctrine! Which is weird, considering most of the Equestria we’ve seen looks pretty modern.”
“Yeah,” said Lasky. “Were you gone for like, a thousand years or something?”
He was taken aback by the princess’ knowing, surprised looks.
“What?” he asked. “Was it exactly one-thousand?”
“A millennia-long banishment to the moon, yes,” said Luna.
“To the moo-?” Lasky trailed off as he brought an astonished hand up to his forehead.
“You humans deduce things quickly,” said Celestia.
“You know what? I’m not gunna ask,” said Lasky, bringing his arm back down. “But at least we’re all clear on where that damn order came from.”
“I do apologize for overstepping my bounds Thomas,” said Luna.
“Apology not accepted,” snapped Lasky. “…yet. Don’t ever tarnish my marines’ reputation like that again, and that goes for you too Celestia! From now on, if either of you want my forces to do something you want, you’ll bring it to me first, period. Is that understood?”
“Understood Thomas,” said Celestia.
“And don’t do stuff like that anymore Luna!” said Lasky. “You live in a new age. I’m sure your sister can give you the talk later.”
“I understand,” said Luna.
“Good,” said Lasky as he eyed them both. “You’re both dismissed.”
After the princesses had walked out of the room, Roland turned to his superior.
“Respect sir,” he said. “You just told off two princesses!”
Lasky was the one to shrug this time.
“I mean, they kinda have to take it,” he responded. “They’d already be toast without me, wouldn’t they?”
“This is true. But, speaking of toast, I’ve been meaning to ask you something, sir,” said Roland as Lasky seemed to be all ears. “I can’t believe none of us came up with this until now, but why don’t we just nuke the changeling hive?”
“Oh, is that all? Don’t worry, I’ve already thought that contingency through.”
“Oh, and a ship AI couldn’t? It’s most likely that a single one of our tactical nukes would be enough to wipe it out; this whole mission could be pretty much over in one move!”
“Correct, but I’d rather not.”
“Why though...sir? You know I can locate the hive right now and just drop one on ‘em?”
“Can you though?”
“What do you mean?”
“Go ahead,” said Lasky with a wave of his arm. “Find out where they are.”
“Right now?” asked Roland quizzically.
“Right now,” the Captain ordered, pointing at the holo-table. “Locate the hive.”
“Oh-kay,” said Roland as he turned to face the center of the table. “Should be easy enough.”
Roland brought up a three-dimensional hologram of the planet.
“So, they’ve mentioned multiple times that the changelings live in a place called, ‘the Scorchedlands’,” he said as he zoomed in on a fairly large part of one of the planet’s continents. “According to that map they gave us, the Scorchedlands are located here.”
“And the hive?” asked Lasky.
“Huh,” the AI pondered. “It’s a pretty geologically active area; lots of volcanism, multiple fault lines, no complex structures detected…”
“I probably should’ve mentioned this to you earlier, but I spoke with Celestia about why they’re undetectable. They’ve blanketed themselves in a kind of, magical cloaking spell, preventing our instruments from detecting them. And forget flying into the Scorchedlands to use our own eyes to see them, as the spell prevents even our own eyes from seeing it; I know because she demonstrated it on herself, proving that even human eyes couldn’t see through it.”
Roland thought for a moment.
“We really don’t have the tech?” was all he could ask.
“We’ve literally never run into this kind of energy, AKA magic, before,” said Lasky. “I wouldn’t be too surprised.”
Roland only continued to give Lasky a skeptical look.
“C’mon, I know you believe in magic at this point; you and I have already witnessed our fair share.”
“It’s not that, sir,” said the AI. “I’ll believe in the existence of a cloaking spell, but then what’s the proof that the changelings are even in the Scorchedlands?”
“The attack came out of the Scorchedlands only three days ago, the neighboring country of Boardor was the first nation conquered within hours. You do have a point though, fingers crossed that it’s not some kind of ruse.”
“And the geological activity in the region means we can’t just carpet-bomb the whole area with conventional bombs,” said Roland, looking at the map. “That could cause dormant volcanoes to become active and active volcanoes to become more active, not to mention the earthquakes that would come with it could rock nearby countries to their cores.”
He turned to Lasky.
“Too many active volcanoes would mean too much greenhouse gas,” he continued. “Which could alter the climate of the globe in a very unwanted way for these equines.”
“Exactly,” said Lasky. “So, imagine what a single nuke would cause, and I’m not about to blanket that whole area with them; that by itself could cause a global climate shift, not to mention a potential worldwide nuclear winter.”
Roland then assumed the pose of someone in deep thought.
“Theoretically, couldn’t those weather ponies handle a climate shift? Keeping the weather as is without anypony noticing?”
“Roland, we’d only be trading Equestria one problem for another,” stated Lasky. “We are not bombing them, and that’s final; we’re not here to make their lives harder! I hope you know that.”
“Understood sir,” said the AI. “Just speculating is all.”
. . .
August 9, 2558 0551 hours The Mild West Aboard the train to Appleloosa Gypsy Company Alpha Platoon Fireteam Icebreaker
Ogden awoke to the first rays of dawn and the sound of clattering train tracks below him. They were moving. They must have left the station while they were all asleep.
“Rise and Shine,” whispered gunny, sitting behind Jenkins between their two beds. He held up a finger to his lips to indicate all the marines around them, still fast asleep. They were all in uniform as well, in anticipation of hitting Appleloosa at 0600.
“How long have you been awake?” asked the PFC quietly, turning to sit towards his NCO.
“Since about a minute ago,” he whispered back.
As Jenkins rubbed his eyes, he couldn’t help remembering what his squad leader had told him yesterday.
“A whole battalion?!” Jenkins said, leaning in close to be quieter with his exclamation.
“Why else do you think everyone in this company was so quiet yesterday?” said gunny. “Princess Luna wanted to send a message, we’ve been over this! At least we know it wasn’t Lasky, ‘cause that wouldn’t make any sense.”
“That’s true, but that was still kind of extreme wouldn’t you say?”
“I wouldn’t want to say anything. They have their reasons, we just follow their orders.”
“*yawn*I thought you thought for yourself, sir,” said Shifty, waking up from underneath the bed adjacent to Jenkins’.
“The hell?” said Jenkins, not so quietly now. “You slept under the bed?”
“Wasn’t any room dude,” the private responded. “Least I had this sleeping bag. Thanks gunny.”
“Don’t thank me, thank logistics,” said gunny as he opened his canteen. “You know this already!”
“Aye sir,” said Shifty as he squirmed out from underneath the bed, waking up Sidney with the noise.
“Aw! Whatthefuckmate?!” said the Aussie in disgust, waking up every marine in the train car.
“So much for being quiet,” said gunny, at normal volume now as he put his canteen away.
“Bloody hell Sid,” said Corporal Williams from the bed opposite Sidney’s, looking and sounding very drowsy. “You and him agreed upon that. Do you not remember, mate?!”
“I swear I just wanna, no I’m going to kill all of you!” said Sergeant Alex as he sat up in his bed, rubbing his eyes.
“Can it all of you!” gunny ordered. “We’ve had worse mornings.”
“Aye, gunny,” said the rest of Icebreaker in unison.
“Be happy the lead train car actually has beds, ok?” he went on. “Marines in the next car over are either waking up on narrow, hard-cushioned seats or on the floor!”
“Aye, gunny,” they all said again.
Suddenly, Lt. Dietz walked in from the front of the train, where the engine and the pony train conductor were.
“Gas masks on!” he ordered, cocking his pistol. “Look alive marines! Conductor says we’re less than five mikes out! Sergeant Alvarez, send a runner to make sure everyone’s awake!”
“Aye sir!” said gunny. “Jenkins, that’s you.”
“Weren’t they all told via radio?” the PFC asked.
“Some may have slept through it or had their helmets off while they were sleeping,” said Sergeant Alex, loading his assault rifle. “Now go! We’ve got no time!”
“Make sure you get your ass back here when you’re done!” said gunny as he loaded his shotgun.
“Aye sir,” said Jenkins as he put his helmet on and bolted out the door with his own assault rifle.
“I guess the Mild West is about to meet the Wild West,” said Sergeant Alex.
Everyone who heard him just stared.
“Oh please,” he said. “Y’all knew that pun was coming…”
. . .
All was quiet now inside the train as it pulled into Appaloosa station; all marines crouching low around the windows to stay out of sight, while every other marine held a frag grenade in hand. Everyone had their gas masks on, effectively minimizing the amount of skin vulnerable to blasts from the changeling’s staffs.
Seconds turned into minutes as the station materialized outside, and as the train could be felt slowing to a halt.
“On my go,” said Lieutenant Dietz over the comms.
Gunny and Jenkins were crouched near one window, Jenkins held the grenade while his superior held an 8-guage shotgun.
An eternity seemed to pass before the train came to a standstill. When it finally did, every marine holding a grenade pushed the button to prime it. Dietz waited until a lone changeling guard approached one of the windows.
As soon as he saw him attempt to peer through the glass, he set his marines in motion.
“Now!” he ordered, causing all his marines holding their primed explosives to release their fuses.
As every pair of marines was doing all across the train at their designated windows, gunny stood up and smashed his and Jenkins’ window with the butt of his shotgun before Jenkins tossed his grenade through the break. The two then ducked back down before a chorus of explosions rocked the station just outside of the train, causing countless shards of glass to fly inward and across the floor, bouncing off of the marines’ now fully armored bodies; screams from the dying changelings outside soon followed said glass shards.
Gunny peaked back out to see a bloodied changeling, seemingly shell-shocked, stumbling about almost right outside his window; he promptly fired his 8-guage at his enemy’s head, sending his, now even more green, carcass tumbling a few feet back in the green mist of its blood.
“Off the train, Alpha!” barked Dietz over the radio, jumping out an opposite window onto the dirt after head-shotting another changeling with his pistol. “Go, go, go!”
With a menacing “OORAAAH!” the marines of Alpha Platoon charged out of the train.
Any changeling still standing unaware in the open were quickly cut down; most others managed to find cover inside the nearby buildings. After a good ten seconds of initial slaughter, changeling snipers finally opened fire from the clocktower above. The marines instinctively took cover behind the two nearest buildings: the hat shop and the saloon.
While some marines went around the back of their respective buildings to kick in the back door, Lieutenant Dietz turned to icebreaker; he and his subordinate fireteam were in cover behind the saloon.
“Sergeant! You and your men clear that clocktower!” he ordered over the noise. “We’re going to try and set up a temp-HQ in this saloon!”
“Aye sir!” responded gunny as he and the rest of icebreaker got ready to run.
“Covering fire!” yelled Dietz, before he and a couple of other marines began shooting at the clocktower, cueing Icebreaker to sprint across the street towards it.
. . .
Inside the first floor of the clocktower, light and noise rushed to fill the room as gunny kicked the door in; the rest of Fireteam Icebreaker poured in, following standard room-clearing procedures, the second-to-last in being Marcus with a sniper rifle on his back and an M6H pistol in hand, with Sidney bringing up the rear watching everyone’s back.
Empty.
Assuming the room was clear, Icebreaker began running towards the stairs when, in a sudden flash of green, the tables and chairs became hostile changeling soldiers; in an instant, the marines were encroached upon from every angle.
Having just barely enough time to react, gunny looked behind him, right at the Corporal, and ordered, “Protect Marcus! Get down, man!”
The squad didn’t hesitate; they knew the Corporal and his rifle were the priority, as he was to have the best vantage point from atop the clocktower. As Marcus was ducking, with his brethren diving onto him, he caught a glimpse of his superior pulling out a frag-grenade, but not just any; this one was painted yellow with a smiley-face drawn on it, and Marcus instantly knew Gunny’s plan without another word being spoken.
In under two seconds, nearly a dozen changelings were swarming atop the marines, but not before Gunny had activated his grenade, and thrown it straight up to the ceiling where it would stick.
An eternity seemed to pass as Icebreaker remained nearly suffocated under the mass of changelings attempting to claw away at their armor, before Alvarez’s sticky grenade finally detonated; the initial shockwave broke the bones of the miniature changeling swarm before the shrapnel that followed shredded through their flesh.
As the shocked and wounded hive members, if not dead hive members, flopped off the marines who were now half-covered in green changeling blood, they rushed to escape the zone right under the blast, for large shards of wood that had previously constituted the section of floor above them came raining down onto said spot just seconds later, some impaling changeling bodies both dead and alive.
“To the stairs! Move!” ordered Gunny, wasting no time. “Sid, keep watching our backs as we go up, in case any survivors try to chase us.”
“Aye, si-ir!” responded the Private, slipping and catching himself on some more green blood as the group continued across the room towards the stairwell. “So not disgusting, mate!”
. . .
Meanwhile, back outside, some changelings were being shot out of the sky as they attempted to fly away; those humans shooting them had taken over the rooftops of the initially captured buildings.
. . .
At the top of the clocktower lay some of the changeling snipers’ bodies, still laying with their backs upon the walls with fresh bullet holes through their skulls; the rest were killed as they tried to come down the stairs, tumbling down them past the marines after being shot.
Shifty had taken over watching the rear, as Sidney had to spot for Corporal Marcus, who was setting up his sniper rifle; the American Private was aiming his rifle down the stairs through an opening in the floor that had served as their doorway to the top floor. All was quiet in the room, aside from the outside gunfire below.
“I thought you wanted to die with ‘Big Bang’?” asked Eugene, his gaze not wavering from the stairwell.
Though they were all wearing masks, the Gunnery Sergeant knew the Private could only be referring to one person.
“I’d be crazy if that was my only use for it,” said Gunny. “Just call it a, split-second decision…a creative one at that. Besides, I can always buy a new one on the black market.”
“You bought that?! On the black market?!” asked Corporal Williams, pausing the setup of his sniper post. “And here I thought you built the bloody thing.”
“Let’s just say you get some, special security clearances, when you become a Sergeant,” said Alex.
“When you’re a rank above that actually, Sergeant Thompson,” said Gunny, correcting his second-in-command. “You’ll get your turn soon enough, officially/unofficially.”
“Yeah,” said the Sergeant towards the rest of the squad. “Basically, you didn’t hear this from us.”
“Aight,” was all Shifty could say in response.
Marcus had simply shrugged it off at that point before looking out his opening in the tower wall.
“What the…?” he trailed off before rapping on Sidney’s shoulder. “Hey, you seeing this?
He pointed off into the distance, Sidney taking a moment to follow his arm and finger.
“Spot that for me, will you?” he ordered before finalizing his setup.
Sidney then raised his binoculars and zoomed-in with them as far as he could as Marcus locked in a fresh clip.
In the distance, changelings were rapidly setting up on a distant cliffside in pairs; one would take his spear and stick it into the ground, before proceeding to move it around in the dirt like old TV antennas, while the other would hold his spear like normal as if to protect his exposed comrade.
“There are pairs of changelings setting up on a cliff to the southeast,” the Aussie reported. “I’ve no idea what for, but they’re facing our way…”
“I dunno what they’re planning either, but I don’t like it,” said his sniper partner next to him. “Sir? How should we proceed?”
“Engage how you see fit Corporal,” said Gunny. “You don’t need me once your set up.”
“Aye, sir. With pleasure!” said the Brit before taking a quick breath in and firing on his exhalations.
“Lieutenant Dietz, be advised,” spoke gunny into his helmet’s headset, passing the info on. “We’ve engaged multiple hostiles on a cliff to the southeast; seems like they were prepping something, how copy?”
Ten-Four; keep ‘em contained and let me know what else comes up. How copy?
“Aye, sir. Solid copy, out.”
Gunny turned just in time to see a changeling’s bolt strike the barrel of the Corporal’s rifle from the ground, bending it and rendering it unusable.
“CUNTS!” yelled Marcus, dropping his rifle in frustration.
“And they’ve retreated from the cliffside!” stated Sidney, still managing to peer through the dust with his detached scope. “Looked like you managed to nail most of ‘em though, mate. Nice work.”
He had lowered his scope and was looking away before doing a double-take.
“Crikey,” said the Australian Private in awe as his eyes went wide.
In response, everyone but Shifty, who still vigilantly watched the stairs, came to look out of the opening to see green fireballs raining down from above; the cliff being their origin.
“They’ve turned their spears into mortars!” Sidney deadpanned before turning and running to the stairs. “And piss off! There are way more than I thought!”
Those last two words were spoken as he jumped past Shifty and began rapidly descending the stairs.
“What?” asked a very confused young Private.
“Sid’s got the right idea,” said Alvarez pointing a hand towards the stairs that the private had just leapt down. “Move!”
“Wait, the fuck’s going on?!” asked the still confused American Private as his teammates ran past.
“Don’t ask, just run!” squawked Jenkins, holding his helmet as he sprinted past.
Whiiirr-BOOM!!!
“Oh, fuck me!” came the Private’s realization upon hearing/feeling the explosion from outside, which was only to be followed by much, much more.
. . .
First Lieutenant Danial Dietz stood just outside the saloon where his marines had set up their “HQ”; he was looking up at the condensed, green changeling magic raining down like artillery. He followed the path of one such projectile with his eye, watching it crash and explode between him and the clocktower, directly hitting one of his marines and vaporizing her in the middle of the dirt street!
Suddenly, Jenkins, along with the rest of the Fireteam Icebreaker, emerged from the settling dust, sprinting towards the officer.
“Lieutenant Dietz!” yelled the PFC right before a green ball of fire plowed into the clock tower behind him, making it explode in all directions, and rain down wooden splinters and shards of broken glass from above. “They`ve got us zeroed! We gotta spread it out!”
The officer quickly connected to all frequencies as he ran back inside.
“Alpha platoon, this Lieutenant Dietz. I want a perimeter around the town of at least a half mile!” he ordered. “If you’re inside a building, leave now! I want air support called in and strafing that goddamn cliff ASAP!”
. . .
Icebreaker ran and ran as fast as they could, past the train station (right before it too was blown apart by two changeling fireballs) and past many a cactus through the surrounding desert, before Gunnery Sergeant David Alvarez finally held up his fist.
“Alright, stop! Stop!” he ordered as he slowed to a halt, the explosions still going off behind them all. “This is far enough away…catch your breath boys…”
They all dropped to either their bums or knees, and there they sat with weary breaths, watching the barrage continue to decimate the town. Marcus held the MA5D assault rifle that had belonged to the marine they saw get vaporized just moments before; he had taken it to use as his primary weapon since his sniper rifle had been severely damaged moments earlier.
The Brit dropped it onto the ground for all to see.
“They’ve managed to find yet another way to kill us,” he said as he simply pointed at it, still with shortened breath. “How the hell did we make it out of that?!”
“It ain’t the first, or the worst, barrage we’ve survived,” said Sergeant Alex. “That’s for sure.”
“We still got pretty lucky. Those green fireballs aren’t the only things killing,” said Jenkins, pointing at his chest. “I saw one guy get hit with this massive, wooden shard! I think it impaled him though the heart; it was going so fast!”
“Jesus…” was all Alex could respond with as he looked down and massaged the vein in the middle of his forehead.
Their thoughts were interrupted by the flyover of a pair of F-41 Broadsword strike fighters, zooming towards the cliff where presumably dozens of changelings awaited their demise, hidden from the ground.
After just a couple of strafing runs, the barrage was silenced, and the marines could begin their cautious walk back into town.
Chapter 19: Am I Not Welcome Here? August 9, 2558 0735 hours Ponyville Sweet Apple Acres
Another clear morning over Ponyville.
If anypony had woken up from a long, deep sleep, he or she would have been unable to guess that there was a war going on; that is, except for the UNSC Infinity parked up above. Even from their farm not too far off, Applejack and Big Mac thought the silence from town didn’t quite feel right.
The element of honesty and her brother had been out working the farm for just over an hour by now, when an unknown face approached the front gate.
“Who’s that?” asked Big McIntosh, noticing the curious mare first, prompting his sister to look where he was looking.
She was wearing a tan jacket over a white t-shirt, with a plain-black cap on her head, carrying a dual travel-satchel across her back, suggesting that she was from out-of-town.
“Well, we ain’t gunna find out without askin’ her,” said Applejack.
The two began trotting over. As they got closer, they saw that she was a grey-coated earth pony with braided mane, blonder than Applejack’s, complemented by natural, sky blue eyes that would’ve been obscured by her cap if she were not looking up at the apple cut-out, wooden sign hanging from the entrance; while her face and physique were both stunning and beautiful, it was heavily contradicted by her darkened demeanor.
She didn’t look so happy, and in fact, if Applejack didn’t know any better, she almost looked depressed; the cowgirl just assumed anypony would look that way after a long journey.
“Howdy stranger!” she greeted the anonymous visitor, looking her way now instead of up at the sign. “What brings you to the Apple Family farm?”
“Work…I’m, looking for work,” she said, with a mildly anxious smile. “And, a place to stay; your farm wouldn’t be hiring, would it?”
Big Mac and his sister looked at each other in doubt for a moment before turning back to her.
“Nnope,” was all he said.
“What ma big brother means to say is,” Applejack interjected. “We just met ya, so…”
“Please,” she said, with slight desperation in her voice that caught the two Apples off guard. “I have nothing left right now, I-I…”
She trailed off, but it was enough to seem genuine.
“Well, I suppose extra help around the farm never hurt anypony did it?” said Applejack.
“Eyyup.”
Applejack could then see slight confusion in the newcomer’s eyes, as if wondering if those were the only two things her brother ever said, before shaking herself out of that trance.
“Oh, thank you!” she said in joyous relief, wiping her own, misty eyes with a sniffle. “Thank you so much!”
“I…hope you weren’t expecting to get much pay though,” Applejack continued.
“That’s fine!” said the mare. “That’s perfectly fine, I…just so long as I have a place to stay. A roof over my head and food to eat, right?...Even if it’s in that barn…”
“Goodness!” said AJ. “Don’t you worry. We got a guest bedroom and everything; we’ll take care o’ya until you can find your own place!”
“Oh, thank you!” the mare breathed in pure relief. “I don’t know how I’ll repay you!”
“Your work will be payment enough dearie,” said Big Mac, confirming for her that he could say more than just two words.
“But first,” said Applejack as she placed a hoof onto the unidentified mare’s chest as said mare began stepping onto the Apple’s property. “I gotta know yer name. Gotta introduce yerself at some point if we’re gunna be workin’ together, ya know?”
The mare held out her hoof immediately.
“Greybl-*cough**cough*” she choked, presumably from being parched. “Excuse me, uh, the name’s…Grey!…Abigail Grey.”
Applejack only held a skeptical look on her face as Greyblade held her hoof out to her once again, before replacing the look with a more welcoming smile as she took said hoof in her own.
“Well, welcome to the farm Abigail,” she said as they shook hooves. “Big Mac’ll show ya to yer room.”
As the grey earth pony trotted her way past Big Mac and towards the barnhouse, Applejack went over and whispered to her brother.
“That was strange,” she said to him. “We ought-ta check ourselves when around her.”
“I’m sure she’s fine sis,” Mac whispered back as he began following the newcomer. “She’s just tired is all. I’d watch yerself if I was you, since you have a habit of judging books by their cover, if’n you know what I mean.”
“I jus’ don’ think she’s bein’ very honest with us is all,” said Applejack dismissively. “Just keep your eye on her? I’ll keep workin’ the field fer now.”
. . .
0805 hours
“Did she act suspicious at all?” asked Applejack.
“Not in the slightest,” said Big Mac with an amused grin. “She went ta rest on her new bed, and was passed out a few moments later!”
. . .
2030 hours
Greyblade stirred awake with a start. She was on her stomach, resting on the most comfortable mattress she’d ever been on, and her face had been stuffed into a pillow; her black cap had fallen off her head, bounced off her nose, and onto said pillow before her.
It was dark outside, and the only light that now filled the room came from the open door behind her.
She realized that whoever opened it, had only just opened it, and that was what had shaken her from her slumber.
Turning over onto her side to look behind her, she found that a very young filly, wearing a red bowtie, was the one holding it open.
“Evenin’, Abby!” she said in an oddly cheerful, yet melodic young voice. “We, uh, fixed ya some dinner! In case you were hungry?”
“Uhm, sure,” was all she could say in response, faking a smile while holding her hoof up to shield her eyes from the incoming light. “Be right down!”
“Great! See ya soon!” *SLAM!*
Dark again.
As her eyes began readjusting, Greyblade turned all the way onto her back and stared blankly at the ceiling.
How the hay did I come up with that name? she asked herself, with disgusted sarcasm. Abigail…very bucking original.
Memories of recent came flooding back to her: of the castle guards giving her merely some clothes to wear and a pair of saddlebags; of said saddlebags carrying nothing more than a map, two pieces of bread, some toothpaste, and a toothbrush; set free to make a new life. She had decided to make her way to Ponyville.
To this very farm…because farming was all she knew back home, aside from war.
Home.
She could not entirely remember the day she had gotten her cutie-mark, a single gold-and-black-hilted dagger, but she did remember the first time her parents had called her Greyblade; the first time in her life that she hadn’t been referred to as merely, grey filly.
Suddenly, she had a purpose.
And off she went to the most elite training her country had to offer.
To be a warrior.
A leader.
She immediately shook her head, attempting to stop the swell of guilt she began feeling upon her shoulders; she instead tried to go back to remembering how she had gotten into this room, after nearly stumbling onto Sweet Apple Acres.
She had been so tired, that she had neither taken off her jacket nor unbraided her mane; it seemed truly a miracle to the Dalepony that she had managed to stay upright during the entire conversation that morning. Another memory came to her of dropping her saddlebags some ways between the doorway and the bed.
Feeling somewhat rested, but still a little drowsy, she got up out of her new bed to go pick them up off the floor, only to find that they had already been hung up on the opposite end of her room.
How polite… she thought as she shook her head, slowly trotting towards the door. I don’t deserve this…
. . .
Greyblade was surprised at how hungry she really was.
The mare was just barely avoiding scarfing down her food in order to keep it polite! Despite these efforts, Granny Smith had quietly noticed the entire time.
“You can’t fool an ol’ timer like me,” said the elderly pony eventually. “I know when a girl’s not had something to eat in a while!”
The earth pony in question looked up from her food to see that everypony’s eyes were upon her.
“Sorry,” she said after swallowing. “It’s just that, I’ve…been travelling for a while, with very limited rations, you know?”
You’re SUCH a terrible liar! she thought to herself.
The truth was, Greyblade had never seen so much food available for just one pony, as back home, her “city” of Thatchholm was really just a communal barn where the limited yield of the crops were shared amongst the populace; the amount of food in front of her, before she started eating, had been more than even what the King would have available for himself to eat! But despite the outright lie, they all seemed to believe her with their nods.
All except for one pony; the orange earth pony across from her simply kept her slightly unnerving and skeptical stare. She didn’t say anything though, so Greyblade decided to not pay much further attention.
“Well, I’m glad yer enjoyin’ yerself then, missy,” said Granny.
“Uh, Granny? She has a name?” said Applejack, now with a subtle smirk on her face as she both continued to look at and leaned in towards Greyblade. “It wouldn’ be mighty polite o’ ya ta, not call our guest by her first name, na would it?”
Everypony in the room except for Granny Smith now felt a palpable tension in the room as they continued to eat.
“Oh, o’course! Where ma manners?” said Granny with a mild chuckle. “I’m glad yer enjoyin’ yerself, Miss…Miss…oh darn, it seems you’ll hafta fergive me! I’ve fergotten yer name?”
Greyblade’s heartrate had been rising the moment Applejack said what she had said, realizing what the cowpony had set in motion, dreading having to answer the question Granny Smith had just asked; it was now plainly obvious how much the cowpony mistrusted her presence. The Dalepony had been racking her brain to recall the name she had come up with on the spot.
Miraculously, she managed to remember just in time!
“Abigail,” she said with a smile, hiding how stressed she was.
“Miss Abigail,” said Granny. “I’m glad yer enjoyin’ our dinner.”
“And thank you so much for making it.”
“Ah, don’ mention it!”
With this, everypony continued their meal, though Greyblade found her appetite to be slightly ruined after what felt like a very unwelcoming, subliminal confrontation, preventing her from tasting much of her food thereafter. Out of the corner of her eye, she could still see Applejack’s untrusting gaze was still unbroken.
. . .
After everypony had finished eating, Greyblade went straight up to her room and shut the door.
“Why me?” she asked herself quietly, still with her hooves on the doorframe.
Even she herself wasn’t quite sure what she was getting at, yet she was beginning to feel incredibly emotional for some reason. As she made her way over to the bathroom, she finally took off her clothes, thinking that, perhaps taking some time to defecate and brush her teeth would take her mind off things.
. . .
After washing her hooves, she simply stared into the mirror; undoing her own braid, she began to think about just how much had happened in only a couple of days.
She smiled at the memory of laughing along with her subordinates, joking around and having a good time the morning of the invasion, just a few hours before they would armor up and ship out; keeping the pleasant memory in mind, she looked into the mirror once again, this time paying real attention to what she was seeing. She realized at that moment, for the first time in a while, just how beautiful she was; symmetrical, her head and body all the right proportions, her naturally straight mane caressing the sides of her face and falling naturally around her ears.
Still, she couldn’t help but frown once again, preparing her toothbrush; something still wasn’t quite right. She began thinking about why that was as she started brushing.
Though she had still managed to find a home, it was not the most welcoming place; could that be it?
No.
It was deeper, and much more troubling.
She spat into the sink, finished attending to her dental hygiene; as she was wiping the excess toothpaste from her mouth with a small towel, that’s when she remembered.
A silent pang of guilt struck her in the stomach. She froze, wide-eyed and towel in hoof, as she recalled the dreadful recording shown to her the day before.
She looked back at the mirror again as the towel fell to the floor, seeing her blue eyes become misty.
She looked away almost immediately, leaving the bathroom and turning off the light behind her; suddenly unable to look at herself, she entered the darkness of her bedroom once again.
How could she have forgotten the recording? How could she forget about what had happened to her friends?!
Why me? she asked herself again, this time understanding the pain she felt. Why did I have to live?!
Now whimpering and on her knees in the middle of the room, her thoughts were becoming a maelstrom.
I helped coordinate the attack. I led them into battle. Applejack is right to be suspicious of me. I attacked her people. She has no reason to help me…
Soon, Greyblade wanted nothing more than to scream. It wasn’t cold at all, yet she found herself shivering, hugging herself across the chest to perhaps find solace in her own embrace; it was as if she were back in the dungeon cell!
Desperately, Greyblade looked for something to cling to, something that the dungeon didn’t have.
The bed.
The Dalepony practically dragged herself over to the foot of the bed, but when she got there, she could no longer help herself.
Igot them all KILLED! she shrieked mentally. I’m the pony least deserving of even a bed to sleep on!
It was there that she broke down, finally allowing herself to grieve.
She turned and put her back to the foot of the bed before sinking down onto her haunches as she sobbed. Her face was contorted in anguish as she let out all her bottled emotions, knowing it was now okay to do so, when nopony had to see her weak and vulnerable. To keep anypony from hearing her outside of the room, she had to cover her mouth with one hoof and tightly hold it in place with the other.
She grieved for nearly twenty minutes, until she finally managed to pull herself onto the bed and quietly cry herself to sleep.
. . .
August 10, 2558 0730 hours The Mild West Appleloosa
Shadow Company had long drove ahead, punching deep into changeling-controlled territory; the marines of Gypsy Company, meanwhile, were preparing for their journey upon their recently arrived mammoth and pelicans.
Alpha platoon was loading up in the big rig, along with warthogs and other heavy weapons. Icebreaker sat in a circle atop the machine, the lower levels too busy for sitting and chilling out, as they discussed the preceding day.
“We shot up every piece of furniture we could find, and there were no stragglers,” said Private Eugene 'Shifty' Phillips. “None! Are we unlucky or what?”
“Either they were killed by their friendly artillery strike or they decided to call it quits early and get shot outta the sky,” said Sergeant Alex Thompson. “We’d gone into the clocktower relatively early on, so…”
“Let’s hope they don’t decide to use more of that artillery in the future,” said Gunnery Sergeant David Alvarez. “We should keep wearing our masks though, so that normal bolts of their magic will be guaranteed to not kill us.”
The rest of the squad nodded their heads in agreement.
“I still can’t believe they’ve found a way to penetrate our armor,” said Private Oscar 'Sydney' Morgan.
“Hey man, we tried,” said PFC Ogden Jenkins, putting a hand on Sidney’s shoulder. “All we can do now is minimize the danger; like Gunny said, just keep your mask on.”
As Sidney nodded in response, Captain Robert Peterson came around the corner, having walked up from below.
“Icebreaker,” he said as the members of the squad in question raised their heads from out of their circle like meerkats. “You’re needed aboard the Infinity.”
They only gave each other confused looks before getting up like they were told.
Once they were outside the mammoth, Peterson directed all six members of Icebreaker into a Pelican that was parked right next to it. It was at that time that Alvarez decided to speak up, knowing that they were now all out of earshot.
“Sir?” said the Gunnery Sergeant over the Pelican’s engines. “What’s this about?”
“Dunno, it’s top secret,” said the Captain over the noise as well. “But something tells me you’re gunna be glad it is…”
. . .
August 10, 2558 0753 hours Ponyville Sweet Apple Acres
For the first time in a long time, Greyblade woke up naturally.
No alarm clock.
Nopony rapping on her door.
Nothing.
She simply awakened as her own body saw fit.
The Dalepony couldn’t remember a time when she’d felt this well rested. She slowly sat up and scanned the room, smelling breakfast downstairs. She hadn’t gone under the bedsheets, since it was so warm both inside and outside, and so was able to simply scooch herself over to the bedside when she heard hoofsteps approaching her door.
“Abigail?” came Applejack’s voice after three knocks from the other side.
“Come in,” said Greyblade.
The orange mare opened the door and walked in, not wearing her signature Stetson hat.
“Ya sleep aight?” she asked. “How’ya feelin’?”
Her demeanor was very different from the previous night, much softer and more empathetic.
“Fine,” was all Greyblade could say, looking away as she was unsure of what AJ was getting at. She crossed her arms and hugged them tight, almost like she was pouting, except she wasn’t.
“Listen, I wanted to apologize for yesterday,” said Applejack, causing the Dalepony’s ears to perk up. “You have ta understand that I ain’t used ta strangers livin’ in my house, ya feel?”
Greyblade was about to retort when she realized that Applejack really didn’t know a thing about her, where she came from, or what she did; otherwise she would have told her off and that she neither needed nor deserved her sympathy.
“I-I heard you cryin’ last night,” AJ continued as she came and sat on the edge of the bed with Greyblade. “An’ I felt mighty guilty fer it. I didn’t make ya feel welcome, and that ain’t what a friend should be doing ta anypony.”
The blue-eyed earth pony simply stared back at her in silence, unsure of what to say.
“Fer that, I’m sorry,” said Applejack finally.
After some time, Greyblade gently placed a hoof on one of the cowpony’s legs.
“It’s okay,” she said with a calm smile. “Apology accepted.”
This mare really knew how to get the truth out of somepony, as the grey earth pony had decided the truth should come out now rather than later; she was about to tell her that she needed not feel guilty, that it was her own fault that she cried, that she was not even Equestrian, everything!
That is, until Big Mac burst into the room yelling, “Sis!”
Both mares whipped their heads around to look at him, sweat rolling past his wider-than-usual eyes.
“Wha-?! Big Mac? What’s got ya so worked up brother?” asked Applejack.
Alarmedly, he delivered the bad news, simply stating, “Rainbow’s gone missin’!”
Rainbow Dash awoke to a green flash and the sound of the door to her house creaking open. The silence that followed as she sat up in her bed was unnerving.
“Hello?” she called into the dark after clearing her dry throat.
No answer.
She felt her heartrate rising as she realized somepony must have just broken into her house!
Deciding to confront whoever it was, she took a sip of water from the cup on her nightstand before removing her sheets and hopping off the bed.
“I know you’re in here!” she called a little louder, trying to sound tougher. “Somewhere…”
Having moved some distance from the foot of her bed, a stillness enraptured the space, like the calm before a storm.
Suddenly, a changeling swooped in and grabbed Rainbow Dash from behind by putting a hoof around her neck. She bent down and thrust her hips up, sending the shape-shifter careening over her back.
Dash turned and bolted for the door, but as she lifted off and was about to fly out, one of the changelings tackled her to the floor right in front of the entrance to her house. He lifted her onto her knees and held her in place by her neck and one of her hooves.
Another changeling landed in front of her, just before the doorway’s threshold, and started walking towards her. Instinctively, the cyan pegasus attempted to wrestle herself free, to which the changeling holding her then released her neck and grabbed the other hoof, placing both behind her back.
Rainbow continued to struggle and fight, but the changeling’s grip was too strong. She began to panic as the one in front of her closed the door behind him with his hind leg. She desperately began to flap her wings, for maybe she could fly out of this creature’s grasp.
Seeing this, a third changeling came up from behind on her left, grabbed her left wing, and swiftly snapped the bone inside, causing Rainbow to shriek loudly as agonizing, white-hot pain seared through her appendage.
Her scream was cut short as the changeling in front of her sent a swift blow from his hoof into her throat. He then gave another, similar blow to her gut before punching her across the face with his other hoof, and then punching her straight in her left eye.
Stars were now flying across Rainbow Dash’s vision. So much pain radiated through her body and all she could focus on was trying to breath. She made out a dozen more changelings surrounding her, and there was nothing she could do.
She was helpless, and she knew it.
She wanted to scream for help, call for anypony that may be close by. But all that came out was a soft squeak as the changelings behind her released their grip on her and the changeling in front of her grabbed her and threw her out the door.
She landed softly on the cloud outside, though having tumbled and rag-dolled to a stop. She attempted to get up, but a changeling landed on her back before she could get the chance, flattening her face and body into the cloud. The changeling on top of her proceeded to slap both her hooves behind her head, before gluing them one at a time behind her back. Her muzzle remained in the cloud.
She was too weak to resist anymore.
The changeling then pulled out a black bag as another changeling landed in front of the two, lifted Rainbow’s head out of the clouds by her mane, and quickly cast a sleep spell on her by touching his horn to her forehead.
The effects weren’t immediate, but Rainbow could feel the sleep coming on.
In her panic, her last conscious thoughts were of a black bag being put over her head, drowning out her scream before she slowly passed out.
. . .
August 10, 2558 0830 hours Ponyville Sweet Apple Acres Greyblade and the rest of Applejack’s Ponyville family all waved goodbye as she was escorted away upon a UNSC pelican. After some time, Granny Smith and Greyblade were the only two left outside on the porch, sitting in rocking chairs and looking on at the distant, rising sun.
“Ah’m so prouda that girl,” said the elderly pony.
“I’m sure you are,” Greyblade responded with a smile. “I definitely would be.”
Granny smiled back.
“I don’t understand something though,” the younger pony continued. “Why does she care so much about a pegasus?”
Granny now seemed taken aback.
“She’s her friend,” she said simply. “What more reason does she need?”
“But she’s a pegasus,” Greyblade pushed.
Granny just stared.
“Abigail? Where’re ya really from?” she asked calmly. “‘Cause you sure as haystacks ain’t from Equestria…”
Only now did the gray earth pony realize the mistake she’d made, and seeing it pointless to try correcting herself, she only sighed in defeat, knowing the gig was up.
“I was going to tell her,” she said as she looked at the floor. “My name isn’t Abigail, it’s Greyblade, and I’m from Gildedale.”
“Shoot, I was only pulling yer leg!” Granny replied, drawing a surprised look from the Dalepony. “Figures though: that there name explains yer cutie mark way better than Abigail.”
Greyblade looked down at her flank, seeing the imprinted dagger she’d received all those years ago.
“Does nopony else here have a cutie mark like this?” she asked earnestly.
“Wha would we?” she asked in response. “We’d given up on fightin’ long before ma own granny was born.”
“…Makes sense…”
“So wha come ta Equestria? And wha hide tha truth?”
“I-I was on a mission…to secure Manehattan for the glory of my country…”
She couldn’t bring herself to look up at Granny.
“I led the army that attacked the city,” she continued with misty eyes. “…a-nd…I lost…all of them…”
Her breaths were shallow as she subtly shook her head, her emotions too riled up to figure out how she could tell an Equestrian the truth about one of their princesses; but she wouldn’t have to find the words, because Granny had simply placed a sympathetic hoof on her upper arm.
“Ya don’ hafta finish,” said Granny calmly, Greyblade now managing to look up at her. “Whatever yer feelin’ right now, that’s why we left war behind.”
The Dalepony only sniffled and nodded in understanding, quietly glad to have narrowly avoided having to tell the elderly Apple of her ruler’s cruel act.
“I don’t deserve sympathy for what I tried to do,” said Greyblade as more tears began rolling down her cheeks. “But thank you anyway.”
Granny remained silent.
“So, you understand now,” the grey earth pony continued. “I can’t go back home…I’m a disgrace!”
“Oh, don’ go sayin’ that nonsense about yerself!” Granny rebutted. “Everypony makes mistakes! Surely yer family knows that at least. They hafta understand eventually.”
“No, no, it-it goes deeper than that.”
“How d’ya mean?”
“Well, you see…I may, or may not be, the King’s daughter…”
. . .
Unknown Date Unknown Time Unknown Location
Rainbow Dash jolted awake in cold sweat.
Soon after, looking around with adjusting eyes, she could see that the changelings had locked her in one of their prison cells. It was cold and dark, she was almost completely sapped of energy, and everything hurt (especially her throbbing black eye). Her wings were tied together, and her two front hooves were chained behind her back.
Her last waking memories flooded back to her, and fear overtook her every emotion and rational thought in an instant as her breath became shallow; she began struggling uncontrollably for a moment, despite how tired she was, until a familiar, white-hot pain burned down her left wing. The pain stiffened her, causing her to stop moving, and soon after, forced her to begin calming herself with deeper breaths through her nostrils so that she could assess the situation as best as she could; but she was simply too exhausted for some reason.
Perhaps the changeling’s sleep spell hadn’t entirely worn off?
She was about to doze off again when the loud clanging of the cell doors opening shocked her back into alertness with a gasp, allowing dim light to flood into the small room. She saw three changelings standing in the doorway.
As they walked forward, Rainbow was able to tell that the lead one in the middle was much more highly ranked than the two at his flanks, for he was wearing a more official-looking purple robe-and-helmet combination that none of the other changelings wore.
“Rise and shine, peach!” he said just before grabbing her by her mane and chin, lifting her face up to his own and grinning menacingly. “It’s time for the show to start…”
He released her before turning his back and saying, “Make it quick! We don’t want to keep our viewers waiting!”
He walked between two changelings that had followed him in.
“Wha-what viewe-? AhOOf!” Rainbow stuttered as one of them pinned her to the floor.
The other detached her chains from the wall before they both lifted her by the armpits.
“Wait, where’re you taking me?! What’s going on?!” she asked. “Please! Somepony please tell me WHAT THE HAY IS HAPPENI-AAh!”
Her voice had quickly gone from sounding somewhat tough, to sounding like the frightened foal that she currently was, before getting backhoofed across her cheek by the lead changeling.
“Shut it! Equestrian scum,” he shouted. “We’ll be the ones asking the questions around here. Not you!”
He then pointed an authoritative hoof at one of the changelings holding her.
“Gag her mouth and put a bag on her head already!” he ordered before about-facing and heading back towards the open cell door. “Quickly!”
“Yes, General Hives,” said the subordinate, momentarily releasing her. “Right away, sir!”
“Ge…genera–ACK?!” was all the cyan pegasus could say before a piece of cloth was tied over her mouth.
She gave a muffled squeak as the gag was pulled tight, the black bag being placed over her head for the second time soon after.
. . .
August 10, 2558 0830 hours UNSC Infinity Bridge
Aboard the UNSC Infinity, Captain Lasky stood with the princesses on the bridge once again.
“Back here again,” Celestia deadpanned.
“Neither of us expected to be back here so soon,” said Luna.
“Honestly, I don’t think anyone did,” said Thomas. “But emergencies happen, you know?”
“At least in most of these emergencies, there are already some reliable leads,” said Roland, reviewing a file footage hologram. “In this case, this is all we have.”
The uncertainty in the AI’s voice drew the eyes of his Captain and both princesses.
“What is this?” asked Luna.
“This is a recording from last night,” said Roland, matter-of-factly. “Helmet-camera footage from a patrolling Broadsword pilot. He and his squadron seemed to be giving chase to what, at first, appeared to be quite darkly colored pegasi. That is, until he zoomed in…”
When the pilot focused in on the group they were chasing, it became clear that these were no pegasus ponies; in fact, there was only one in the group, and she appeared unconscious, her cyan form limp as one of the others carried her on his back.
“Changelings!” said Celestia. “And they’ve got Rainbow Dash!”
Suddenly, the whole group onscreen disappeared in a flash of green.
“The unidentified group appeared to have teleported before the Broadswords could intercept,” Roland said, closing the recording with his virtual hands.
“’Course, now we know what they are, and who they’re carrying,” said Lasky. “As you’ve just pointed out, your highness.”
“The problem is, though we know they were traveling to a location somewhere behind enemy lines, as their heading was southwest,” Roland continued, opening a world map hologram in the shape of a globe before centering it in the middle of the table. “That puts her location somewhere in all of this!”
“As you can see,” said Roland, holding up one hand and making a circle with his thumb and index finger while keeping the other three fully extended. “We’ve really narrowed it down.”
It was at this time that Fireteam Icebreaker entered the room, followed closely behind by Rainbow’s five best friends.
“Ah, just the people I needed to see,” said Captain Lasky. “I hope you don’t mind, princesses, but I took the liberty to bring the five other Elements of Harmony here, where we can keep a better eye on them.”
Jenkins, having noticed that his rainbow-maned friend was not present, was the first other human to speak up.
“Sir? What’s going on?” he asked, a hint of worry in his voice.
“Dashie’s gone missing!” Pinky Pie responded immediately.
“What?!” said Jenkins back to Pinky.
“Were you not told?” said Rarity.
“Uhh, no,” said gunny. “None of us were. We’ve been kept in the dark about all this until just now.”
“How…how are they aware of this, but our own men aren’t?” Roland interjected. “That’s gotta get addressed at some point, no? And do I have to say everything again just to fill in the gaps?”
“However that happened, we’ll address it later. The issue at hand right now is priority,” said Lasky. “Just give ‘em the short version, Roland.”
The AI pulled up the recording once again before saying, “Okay, in short: we know the changelings abducted Rainbow Dash, but we don’t know where they took her.”
“And that’s why I made the decision to keep the rest of you where we can easily see you,” said Lasky.
“Because if they could take her,” said Twilight.
“They could take any one of us!” completed Fluttershy, horrified at the thought that any of the animals under her care might currently be a changeling in disguise.
“Exactly,” said Lasky. “So, you five will all be staying on board the Infinity until further notice. Icebreaker, since you all are, by coincidence, the most acquainted with these equines, would you volunteer to house them in your quarters if need be?”
“I mean, you’re kind of putting us on the spot here, sir,” said Gunny.
“You can say no,” Lasky reminded him.
The marine then looked down at Twilight to find her giving him the puppy-dog face.
“Well, you've housed me already, so I guess I owe you one,” he said, to which the purple alicorn smiled, before looking back to his men. “We all do.”
As the rest of Icebreaker nodded in agreement, Luna’s horn suddenly began to glow bright.
“Luna?!” said Celestia, a tad shocked at the spark flowing from her sister’s horn.
“It’s a message!” she said, eyes consumed in light. “I’m receiving a message!”
“Strange, it’s normally not this bright!” Celestia explained to the others in the room. “Or this loud!”
“This one might be in real time!” said Twilight. “That could be why!”
“A livestream?!” said Roland.
“Luna! Can you project it?!” asked Lasky.
“Yes! I can try, but I won’t know where I’m shooting it!” she responded.
At this, Roland’s avatar moved to the center of the holo-table.
“Aim at the sound of my voice!” said Roland.
Without a second thought, Luna shot her magic directly over the holo-table at the AI’s projection. In apparent reflex, Roland held his virtual hands up in front of his face, as if to block the blast, causing a holo-screen pop-up perpendicular to the holo-table; the cone of magic struck the screen before becoming transparent, displaying the streaming message.
“Holy shit, that actually worked!” Roland exclaimed. “Glassman and Halsey always miss the cool stuff…”
Everyone in the room, even junior officers by the wayside, had now stopped what they were doing to look at the screen; on it, they saw a changeling dressed in a robe and wearing a purple helmet.
“Good morning princess Luna, and whoever else may be watching,” he began. “Don’t bother responding to anything I say, as this is a one-way, real-time message.”
“Livestream,” Roland corrected, even though he knew the changeling wouldn’t hear him.
“My name is Hives,” he continued. “I am the Queen’s top General, and I’ve come to you with an urgent ultimatum.”
"Hives?" said Roland. "Real freakin' origin-oh, my god..."
Quiet murmurs of shock and horror filled the room as a chained, cyan mare with a broken left wing and a bag over her head was dragged onscreen behind General Hives.
“Shit,” said Lasky under his breath.
“Cease any and all further advancement into changeling-held territory,” Hives began.
“No!” Celestia exclaimed quietly as the black bag was ripped off of Rainbow Dash’s head, revealing one frightened, magenta eye, one black eye, and the gag over her mouth.
“Or we torture your precious, Element of Loyalty, for every step you take!” he finished.
Behind him, one of the changeling guards extended his spear and laid its point upon Rainbow’s cheek.
“Oh, and just to prove to you that she isn’t one of us in disguise,” said the general before turning and nodding to the guard.
With a squeal of pain from the cyan pegasus, the guard then sliced a moderately deep cut across her cheek, causing red blood, not green, to begin dripping from her chin; but he had also accidentally sliced through her gag, freeing her to speak.
On instinct, she looked in the vicinity of where Hives was looking and yelled, “Don’t do it Celestia!”
Of course she would. Almost everyone watching knew that was just the way she was. Before she knew it, the changeling guard that cut her had already whacked her across the face with the butt-end of his spear, knocking her to the floor; everyone watching had either gasped in horror or audibly recoiled at the perceived pain.
That is, everyone but Jenkins, who simply clenched his fist tight in anger.
Both changelings then picked her back up onto her knees, revealing the newly created bruise on the side of her mouth, and the increased rate of blood flow out of her lips.
As the black bag was being tied over her head again in the background, General Hives spoke for the last time onscreen.
“Those are our demands,” he stated simply. “I await your compliance.”
He ended the livestream there, prompting Luna’s eyes and horn to stop glowing and the cone of magic to stop flowing, and leaving everyone in momentary stunned silence.
Breaking the silence, Lasky simply turned to Luna and asked, “Could you trace where that signal came from?”
“It wasn’t easy, nor may it be entirely reliable,” she said, on the verge of crying tears of terror. “But yes.”
Seconds after Fireteam Icebreaker and the rest of the mane six had left the room, Princess Celestia watched as Captain Lasky’s subordinates’ attention went back to their screens, a bit shaken, but focused nonetheless.
“Roland, get this ship moving southwest,” Lasky ordered solemnly. “I want it parked over Eternity’s Crossing yesterday.”
“Aye Captain,” said Roland with a quick salute. “You gunna be alright, sir?”
“…Yeah…I just need a minute is all…”
“Understood sir.”
Roland’s avatar disappeared before Lasky stepped away from the table. He had looked distant and hadn’t been making eye contact with anyone since the livestream had ended; he went up to the window and stared out at the world, arms crossed with a hand up to his lips in a thoughtful, yet concerned, pose. Celestia walked up beside him after watching him simply lean back onto the railing.
“Well, something’s clearly bothering you about all this,” she said, now observing the view with him.
“What gave it away?” said Lasky.
“I know we’ve only met a few days ago, but you normally seem more, steely, in situations like this.”
The Captain remained quiet.
“Is it about…her?”
Lasky remained unfazed, remembering that he’d told Celestia about how he’d lost his first love to the Covenant.
“Luna told me you’d still been having nightmares about that incident,” Celestia continued. “Given that she can enter anypony’s, and I guess now anyone’s, dreams.”
“That’s not creepy at all,” said Lasky sarcastically. “But yeah, it’s kind of about her.”
“…Do you want to talk about it?...”
“…I…I saw it Jenkins’ eyes before the stream ended. He’s feeling the same thing I felt as I watched Chyler die.”
Celestia continued to listen patiently.
“Gunnery Sergeant Alvarez’s after-action report from our little training exercise the other day stated that Jenkins had spent the night with Rainbow,” Lasky continued. “I knew that the twelve of them were already familiar with each other, the Elements let us know that they considered Icebreaker friends during the training exercise the next day, but after reading Alvarez’s report, it’s clear to me that he has feelings for her.”
Lasky crossed his arms in front of his chest as the land below gave way to a large body of water.
“He’s in denial about losing her,” he said before looking up at Celestia. “I don’t doubt that we won’t, but I don’t know how he’ll take it if we do.”
“Thomas?” called the lunar princess from behind.
Both Lasky and Celestia looked over their shoulder to see Luna standing next to the holo-table, upon which stood Roland’s avatar once again, along with the 3-D map of the planet.
“Roland and I may have just found where they’re keeping her,” Luna finished.
Celestia looked back at the ship Captain.
“You may be able to inspire him yet,” she said.
. . .
August 10, 2558 0845 hours UNSC Infinity Sgt. Alex Thompson’s Sleeping Quarters
“Well, it ain’t no farm,” said Sgt. Alex Thompson in his southern accent. “But it’s home.”
Applejack simply trotted in front of him as he stood at the entrance to his sleeping quarters; she took a look around her at the small room, containing a standard locker on one side and a cot with a mattress at the far end.
“It’ll hafta do,” she said acceptingly.
“I don’t have another mattress, but I do have an extra pillow and blanket,” Alex continued. “Hope you don’t mind the cold, hard floor.”
“Ya can’t jus’ lemme sleep on that?”
“Uhh, it’s dirty?”
“Oh yeah, Right…it’s fine, I’ll jus’ sleep on the blanket. Not like it’s cold in here anyway.”
Noticing Applejack’s demeanor as a mix of sadness and anxiety, Alex sat down on his cot and brought himself to eye-level with the cowpony before sighing.
“Look, I’m sorry about your friend,” he started. “And I know this situation ain’t ideal, but it’s not like this is your first rodeo, right? We’ll find her, and we’ll get her out, whatever it takes. That I can promise.”
“I appreciate the kind words,” said Applejack, still looking down.
“Is sometin’ else going on?”
“Well, yeah actually. See, there’s this pony I’d never seen before who shown up ta ma home yesterday mornin’; she said she’d lost everything, an’ she probably hates me fer not makin ‘er feel welcome, an’, I apologized an’ everything but, then I had ta leave ta come here before she could tell me about herself an-”
“Wait, hold on. You say she’s a stranger?”
“Yeah, why? Why’s that important?”
“I mean, it just seems like everyone in Ponyville knows each other. Am I wrong about that? Or was she actually from outta town?”
“Heh, that’s more’a Pinky Pie’s job ta know everypony. But now that you mention it, she definitely did seem from outta town.”
“Who would travel around Equestria after it had just been attacked? I guess news didn’t spread that quickly?”
“Equestria’s also pretty big, ya know?”
“Right…umm, just outta curiosity: what did she look like?”
“Well, she was blonde, kinda like me, and ‘er mane was in a single braid; she has this dull, grey coat and eyes as blue as the sky on a clear day.”
When AJ looked back at the marine, his face was a mix of concern and confusion.
“What is it Alex?” asked the cowpony. “Have ya seen ‘er before?”
“…What’d she say her name was?” answered Thomson with another question.
“Abigail…Grey I think she said, but that may or may not be her real name. I ain’t sure jus’ yet.”
Alex simply looked to the side at nothing in particular. Could it be? The same mare he had pinned the floor just two days earlier had showed up at Applejack’s doorstep the next morning? A lot of ponies could have been displaced from either Manehattan or Stalliongrad that day.
“Why’s all that so important to ya?” asked Applejack, interrupting his thoughts.
“Oh, no reason, the name an’ look jus’ rung a bell is all,” said Alex. “Prolly jus’ coincidence.”
. . .
August 10, 2558 0845 hours UNSC Infinity GySgt. David Alvarez’s Sleeping Quarters
“A far-cry from your treehouse, yeah?” asked Gunnery Sergeant David Alvarez, standing in the doorway next to Twilight Sparkle.
“Yeah,” was her only reply.
Gunny walked in after a moment and began setting up a sheet and pillow on the floor.
“I gotta go check on Jenkins after I set this up,” he said. “Poor guy’s gotta be taking this real hard.”
He then paused and looked back at the purple alicorn.
“Not that any of you aren’t, of course,” he said bashfully.
“It’s fine,” said Twilight. “I’m not surprised you’d think of your men before any of us.”
Alvarez dusted off the sheets on the floor with his hands as he finished up, before looking back at Twilight again as he knelt.
“You know we’d do anything for each other,” he said before pointing at her. “But make no mistake that we’re all prioritizing you guys.”
Twilight nodded as gunny stood up.
“Thanks for making my bed, by the way,” she said as he walked past her and out the door.
“Oh, yours was already made,” said gunny, pointing at his more comfortable-looking cot. “I’d just forgotten to make mine, your highness.”
“Oh! No, you didn’t have to-”
Gunnery Sergeant Alvarez? The Captain is requesting that you and your squad return to the bridge immediately for a mission briefing. interjected Roland’s voice over the room’s intercom. Oh, and make sure you all bring the Elements of Harmony back with you.
“Shit, looks like Jenkins will have to wait,” said Gunny.
“So soon?” was all Twilight could ask.
“Gunny!” said Sgt. Thompson, suddenly appearing at the door.
“Alex? Why’d you come to my room?” asked a mildly incredulous Gunnery Sergeant before pointing up at the ceiling. “Did you get that message too?”
“Yeah, we all got it, but before we go, I thought it best to send this up the chain,” said Alex, noticing Twilight and deciding to be more discreet with his words. “A…particular pony that we’d met a couple days ago, may’ve shown up at Applejack’s farm yesterday.”
. . .
August 10, 2558 0833 hours Ponyville Sweet Apple Acres
“Yer a PRINCESS?!” said Granny Smith in astonishment.
“Shh! Keep it down!” hissed Greyblade.
“No wonder yer so gorgeous!” Granny exclaimed, more quietly this time.
Greyblade blushed slightly.
“Oh! Well, th-thank you,” she stuttered.
“But if yer what you say ya are,” said Granny. “Then ain’t it more important that ya go back?”
“No! My father made it very clear that if I failed, I’d be exiled.”
“That makes not a drip’o sense! Your country wud need leaders now more than ever!”
“I’m no leader…”
Greyblade looked back down at the ground.
“…Them ponies you led, they followed you,” said Granny. “That don’t mean nothin’?”
At this, Greyblade remade eye contact with the elderly pony, before simply looking back at the horizon.
. . .
August 10, 2558 0850 hours UNSC Infinity Bridge
“Glad you could all make it back on such short notice,” said Lasky. “Roland?”
“Bringing up the map now, sir,” said the AI, his avatar standing on the holo-table between the Captain and the rest of the gathering.
The globe zoomed in on a patch of land highlighted in transparent red.
“We may not have found an exact building or complex, but we have found the next best thing,” started Lasky. “Both Luna and Roland have managed to narrow down Rainbow Dash’s location to a twenty square-mile area in the northernmost part of the Boarean Tundra, west of this mountain range here.”
Lasky pointed at the area on the map he was referring to.
“At the moment, we’re moving into orbit above this location,” he continued as he looked at Fireteam Icebreaker. “Where the six of you will be dropping in to rescue her.”
At this, Private Shifty held up a fist to Private Sidney, to which he bumped without looking; the rest of Icebreaker simply looked at each other with apprehensive glares.
“But sir, we haven’t dropped in years!” said gunny. “Aren’t there ODSTs onboard who are fresh?”
“No one else can know of Rainbow’s abduction,” Lasky stated. “As far as any marine or ODST on the frontline knows, this is just a rumor, assuming they’ve heard anything about it at all; the goal here is to get in and out as quickly and as quietly as possible.”
“Permission to speak, sir?” perked up Jenkins.
“Granted,” Lasky responded.
“If that’s true, then why not call up another ODST squad in the first place?” asked the PFC. “Why us?”
“Well, it’s because of you, Private,” Thomas answered. “Full disclosure, I know you and Rainbow have, a connection, on some level.”
Jenkins, was taken aback. Even the Captain knew?!
“Correct me if I’m wrong about that,” said Lasky. “Now’s probably your best time to do so.”
“No sir,” said Ogden simply. “You’re not wrong…you’re really not.”
While everyone was looking at Jenkins, Lasky looked back at the holo-map to see a yellow dot, indicating the ship’s current position, heading towards the area in red.
“We’re still some time away from the drop-point,” he said. “I hope none of you mind a quick story?”
“Ooh! Ooh! Story time!” yelled an exited Pinky Pie as she hopped into the air three times in a row.
No one else had any complaints.
“Way back in 2526,” Lasky started. “I was enrolled at the Corbulo Academy of Military Science on Circinius IV to begin my officer training. There, I met the love of my life. I’ll never forget her name for as long as I live, Chyler Silva.”
Right after Lasky said this, the ponies in the room began to “awww” him. He smiled at this before continuing.
“She was smart, kind, beautiful, and our squad’s best shot. She really inspired me to bear through the tough training,” said Thomas as he smiled at the fond memory of his friend. “But as we all know, at that time the Human-Covenant war had entered its first year; however, for reasons of security, the entire school had been left in the dark about it. So when the attack came, none of us were prepared.”
Lasky paused, his face darkened before stating his next point.
“I barely made it out with my life,” he said. “Chyler wasn’t so lucky.”
Everypony’s mood changed instantly with a simultaneous *gasp* from each of them. Fluttershy soon could be heard sobbing.
“I remember it like it was yesterday,” he continued solemnly. “She had taken a needler round to the stomach. I remember desperately wondering where it had come from, and holding her hands as she slowly slipped away from me…Ogden…”
The Private First Class immediately lifted his head at the Captain addressing him by his first name.
As Lasky walked up to him he said, “I lost my girl to that war.”
He then placed both his hands on each of Ogden’s shoulders, looked him straight in the eyes, and said, “Do everyone here a favor, and don’t lose yours to this one.”
Jenkins looked right back into his Captain`s eyes.
“Aye, aye, SIR!”
. . .
August 10, 2558 0839 hours Somewhere 200 miles southeast of Ottapaw
Rainbow Dash was thrown into her cell after its door was burst open; she landed on her face and slid a small distance, before her legs finally fell flat with the rest of her body. The black bag was removed, but the gag was not.
While struggling to sit back up, she was quickly pinned back down onto one side of her face by a changeling.
“We'll teach you to speak out of turn, maggot!” he hissed into her ear.
He then kneed her in the gut, prompting a muffled squeal from Rainbow.
“Take that gag off!” said another changeling. “I want to hear those pathetic screams! It’s not like she can call for help anyways.”
The sky blue pegasus breathed shortened breaths as her bloodied mouth was relieved of its former restriction.
“P-pleas-AAH!” she attempted to beg as she was stomped on.
The two changelings continued to punch, kick, even bite her for about a minute before General Hives, who had been watching the whole time, ordered them to stop.
“Chain her back to the wall,” he commanded soon after.
One changeling gave Rainbow a final, swift kick to the lungs before he and his partner both obliged.
They left her on her knees, her sagging form breathing slowly out of exhaustion; the other changeling grabbed her by her multi-colored mane and started kissing her.
Her eyes quickly grew wide in shock and disgust as their mouths made contact, until he spat normal saliva down her throat. She immediately fell to the floor, coughing and squirming as that last changeling left; Hives waited until she had caught her breath (after swallowing of course).
“You heard my ultimatum,” said Hives as he forcefully lifted up Rainbow’s chin, making her broken face look at his own. “I almost hope your alien friends don’t stop, so that we can have all the fun we want with you!”
“B-Buck you!” she spat with blood. “I don’t know anything!”
“Don’t act tough,” he said, turning her around and shoving her into an adjacent corner. “And do you really think I want information from you? This isn’t about proving that one of Equestria’s best is weaker than a changeling.”
She could be heard sobbing softly as he held her on the corner by the back of her head.
“This isn’t even about you being the element of Loyalty, not that we’re testing it anyway,” said Hives before grabbing and squeezing her broken wing with his free hoof.
“AAAah! Aah!” squealed the shivering pegasus, keeping her mouth agape in pain as said wing was brought up to her face.
They locked eyes for a moment, and Rainbow witnessed one the most evil grins she’d ever seen as her captor stated his true intent.
“We just wanna watch you suffer!” he said before releasing her wing, leaving her on the corner to catch her breath.
He left Rainbow on that horrific note as he wordlessly exited her cell, motioning a subordinate to slam the door shut, leaving her quivering form whimpering quietly in the darkness.
Chapter 22: Torture August 10, 2558 0915 hours 50 miles outside of Appleloosa Gypsy Company
Captain Robert Peterson stood in a foxhole with Lieutenant Daniel Dietz and another Sergeant, and all the way up and down the line, the rest of the marines of Gypsy Company had built foxholes of their own as well; all were just behind a tree line overlooking a clearing and an opposing tree line.
“They’ve started their retreat sir,” the NCO responded, looking up from his radio. “Changelings’ll be coming right at us!”
“Shit! Already?!” said the Lieutenant. “The Scorpions are still 5 mikes out.”
“Looks like we gotta defend the old-fashioned way,” said Captain Peterson, bringing a hand up to the side of his helmet. “Gypsy Company, prepare to hold this line; Shadow Company decided to fake their retreat a little early. You all have defended against worse alien attacks, so you know the drill!”
As the line of entrenched marines began loading their guns, including some M739 Light Machine Gun emplacements, Shadow Company began running out from the tree line in the distance. Seconds later, a horde of changelings followed, charging and flying across the clearing! Marines began shouting at their comrades to hurry and get behind their line, not wanting to risk shooting past them.
The second every marine had crossed over, thousands of bullets began to be fired downrange. Every other M739 would be firing at any one time, switching off when their neighbors had to reload, while marines holding DMR’s would pick off the airborne changelings; shotguns were used if any got to close, but none managed to get into a single foxhole. Bodies and guts covered in green blood began to pile up all over the once pristine clearing as the marines tore their foes to shreds.
Five minutes felt like an hour, but eventually the scorpions arrived, bursting through the forest behind the marines; some climbed aboard the dozen tanks while others jumped out of their foxholes and started chasing the now retreating changelings. Many of the already wounded shapeshifters were crushed under the tracks of the advancing armor; if they were fleeing, most were shot in the back before receiving the same fate if a marine didn’t execute them in the head first.
. . .
August 10, 2558 1015 hours Somewhere 200 miles southeast of Ottapaw
General Hives entered Rainbow Dash’s cell and had one of his subordinates put her back against the wall and put his horn up to her face. In a flash of green, the pegasus violently stirred into a half-awakened state to the feeling of her facial bones and some of her ribs shifting back into place.
The changeling who had just healed her then released her, before saying something that caught her completely off guard.
“Sorry,” he said earnestly. “I should’ve warned you that would hur-”
“Thorax! Stop apologizing for everything!” interrupted the General. “It’s humiliating!”
“Y-yes sir!”
As the drowsy pegasus was attempting to make something of the duo before her, she couldn’t help but notice how her face barely hurt at all anymore, nor was her eye blackened.
“Leave us,” said Hives after a moment.
“Right away, sir!” said Thorax right before scampering off.
The robed changeling walked up to and knelt before Rainbow.
“That was our healer, if your tiny Equestrian brain hadn’t figured that out already,” he said condescendingly. “But don’t think of him as helpful to you, I’m only having him fix your body parts so that we can keep breaking them over, and over again.”
“You’re twisted!” she responded after a shaky inhalation.
Hives simply grinned before calling over three changeling guards, two of which carried a bucket full of water.
“You don’t know the half of it,” he said simply before trotting out of her cell.
“Your human friends ignored our request, and have made another advancement on our turf,” said one changeling as he took solo ownership of the bucket. “We warned them.”
At this, he poured the bucket of ice-cold water over the pegasus, shocking awake the parts of her that weren’t already.
Another changeling almost immediately smacked her across the face, punched her in the gut, and grabbed her by her mane before shoving her face onto the small puddle that had been forming underneath her.
“Think this is water? Think again!” he whispered into her ear. “Or are Equestrians incapable?”
Before Rainbow could figure out what he meant, he began biting her ear, shortly after which he kneed her in the lungs.
Once again, her three captors stomped, punched, kicked, and bit her for the next five agonizing minutes before finally leaving her on her back, wishing she could clutch her chest. As she laid there, writhing in pain, her thoughts went back to the changeling’s comment about the water, and it was then that she noticed the smell.
This wasn’t water, it was somepony else’s blood!
Her eyes widened and her pupils shrank as she tasted it; earlier, the blood had been too cold for the smell to be prevalent, plus the adrenaline wouldn’t have helped her notice it either.
As soon as the pegasus had mustered up the strength, she shrieked in shock and disgust.
. . .
August 10, 2558 1649 hours 100 miles outside of Appleloosa Changeling Army 1st Division
Some scorpions were lined up, facing the mountain range between them and the Broken Leylands, forming a kind of makeshift artillery battery; the changelings had retreated into those mountains by mid-afternoon, and were now being pelted by a barrage of shells from both the line of scorpion tanks, as well as the rest which moved uphill towards their enemy’s entrenched positions.
Along with the advancing tanks were hundreds of UNSC marines, still wearing their gas masks as facial protection.
Up on the ridge, the changelings shot back at the advancing human force from their trenches; though they had just taken a beating, they were still numerous, and they held the high-ground.
The marines then formed up behind their scorpions, using them as cover in order to move up the hill; when they had gotten close enough, they charged out from behind their advancing armor and directly at their enemy’s trenches, aiming to jump in and seize control of them.
Realizing that their spears’ projectiles were ineffective, the changelings decided to attempt a frantic, last-second experiment to see if the marines’ body armor was stab-proof.
“Are you cowards? Or are you changelings?!” yelled a superior changeling officer. “Charge! CHAAAAAARGE!”
“FOR THE HIIIIVE!” the changeling line cried as they leaped from their entrenched positions downhill to meet their human opposition.
Within seconds, the whole scene devolved into a chaotic maelstrom of hand-to-hoof combat. Like most changelings, one attempted to stab a marine in the gut, but was unable to penetrate the armor; the marine quickly smacked the changeling across the face with the butt of his rifle, before his friend behind him shot him full of bullets. All seemed lost until another changeling managed to slash a large gash through that marine’s leg.
“The legs! Go for the leeegs!” he shouted before promptly stabbing back into the wound and firing his spear, disintegrating the human inside.
“Noooo!” yelled his teammate. “Motherfucker! That was my friend!”
He avenged his fallen comrade, shooting the changeling as he was pulling his spear out of the now empty husk. The marine then proceeded to rampage through at least a dozen more changelings before one managed to get to his exposed leg too, instantly disintegrating him from the inside as well.
Skirmishes like this were happening all across the hillside, proving to the changeling’s shock and horror, that their experiment had backfired, only invigorating the humans even more! So, despite their newfound strategy, they soon found themselves being completely overrun by the now very angry UNSC marines.
In all the violence and death, a lone, wounded changeling managed to dive back into the trench; he then used his magic to send a telepathic message.
“General Hives!” he said aloud over the noise. “First Division has been overrun, and the humans are headed into the Broken Leylands! I repeat, First Divis-AAAAAH!”
A marine had stabbed him in the back before he could finish; the human then proceeded to slit the changeling’s throat before shanking him in the gut, continuing to communicate his screams telepathically to his leader, cutting out only when he had passed out from blood loss.
. . .
August 10, 2558 1721 hours Somewhere 200 miles southeast of Ottapaw
To maximize Rainbow Dash’s suffering, General Hives would keep Thorax from healing the Equestrian until just before her torture began; in another flash of green, her face and body was healed once more, wordlessly this time.
The already traumatized pegasus then had yet another bucket of blood poured over her by a changeling that had walked in as Thorax had walked out.
“We’ll try our best not to focus on your face this time around,” said Hives to his shivering prisoner. “This time, we’ve got a special treat for you.” What in Equestria could be more “special”?! thought Rainbow in terror.
As if on cue, two more changelings appeared in the doorway; each held a branding iron, the ends of which were in the shape of an aperture contained within a circle large enough to contain her entire cutie mark! The moment she noticed the glowing red tips, she knew immediately what Hives’ plan was.
“No! Please! N-not that!” she begged as she backed up into the wall behind her, vainly attempting to delay the inevitable.
As the tearful pegasus continued to plead, the only changeling subordinate not holding a branding iron turned her around and pinned her, from her chest down to her knees, onto the wall.
“Don’t do this,” she sobbed as he held her there. “PLEAhehehese!”
Without another word, the other two changelings simultaneously stuck their red-hot, metal prods onto both her cutie marks.
One, long screech followed as Rainbow felt the heat searing away at her flanks, both from the physical pain and the mental anguish of losing her special mark; the changeling holding her had to hold her chained hooves in place behind her back to keep them from knocking away one of the branding irons, and her wings pulled at the ropes that tied them together as Rainbow instinctively tried flapping them.
The white-hot pain from her strained and broken wing barely compared to the burning sensation at her flanks.
Though it felt like an eternity for Rainbow, the irons were pulled off just as she ran out of breath from screaming. She took another breath as she laid upon the wall in exhaustion before bawling onto it; she was a mix of sadness at her loss and relief that it was over, until she saw both changelings reheating their irons with their horns.
Still crying, but now out of regenerated fear, the changeling holding her pulled her off the wall and dragged her on her knees to face her cell’s entrance. Hives grabbed her mane and forced eye-contact.
“You didn’t think we were done, did you?” he said playfully.
He released her and took some steps back as one of his subordinates walked in front of her, holding his reheated branding iron. Rainbow simply gazed at it with wide and fearful eyes, still wheezing from the first onslaught of heat; said wheezes increased in frequency as the other two changelings held her in place the shoulders before the one in front of her stuck the iron’s end onto her chest.
She let out a guttural scream this time, as her throat was already damaged from seconds earlier, until the changeling finally pulled it off of her. Quivering uncontrollably when they let go of her, she simply fell flat on her face, almost welcoming the pain of the impact on her nose over the burning sensation at her chest as she tried to catch her breath for the hundredth time.
Without warning, the other changeling holding a branding iron, who had been holding her shoulder, stuck the end of his straight onto her back.
Outside, Thorax winced at the blood-curdling scream behind him as he slowly walked away from Rainbow’s cell.
. . .
August 10, 2558 1950 hours UNSC Infinity SOEIV Launch Bay Fireteam Icebreaker
Five out of the six marines stood in the drop-pod launch bay, now wearing their ODST armor, as they watched a live video feed from a drone displaying the aftermath of a recent battle; strewn about were changeling corpses, green blood on and around each of them, along with what seemed like the bodies of dead marines.
“M-mate? W-why isn’t there any red blood?” asked Private Oscar ‘Sidney’ Morgan, clearly rattled at seeing dead humans en masse for the first time in a long time. “That’s eerie as fuck!”
“It’s ‘cause they’re just husks of armor,” said PFC Ogden Jenkins, pointing at one marine’s body as the drone camera zoomed in. “See? They must’ve gone for the legs and fired a bolt straight inside.”
“Poor bastards,” said Private Eugene ‘Shifty’ Phillips.
“Calm down fellas, at least our legs are protected this time,” said Sergeant Alex Thompson. “They try to stab us anywhere, we’ll be safe enough to rip’em a new one!”
BEEEEEEP-BEEEEEEP- BEEEEEEP
As yellow warning lights began to whir above their heads, Gunnery Sergeant David Alvarez walked in with a familiar, purple alicorn. The squad leader now wore standard ODST battle armor, albeit with a blue stripe going down the middle and a little blue fire design on the chest-plate; his helmet, which he held like a soccer ball, had the same blue stripe down the middle with a blue visor to compliment it.
“You know the music,” he said to his marines. “Time to dance.”
He then turned to Twilight.
“I always wanted to say that,” he mused.
“Huh,” was all she could say, tilting her head to one side.
She then looked at the rest of Fireteam Icebreaker as Gunny donned his helmet and walked to the nearest pod.
“Just be careful,” she said. “And please bring her back in one piece!”
“No worries your highness,” said Sergeant Alex as he donned his own helmet. “You got six of the best professionals on the job. We’ll bring her home.”
She smiled, seemingly content with that answer, before Alex’s visor obscured his face; he, along with the rest of Icebreaker, got into their pods, Twilight leaving the room once they were all fully encapsulated.
. . .
Jenkins’ pod was carried out into a large hangar with no floor. Just as all six of the squad’s pods were shifted into position, live feed from Gunny’s pod was transmitted onto everyone’s screens.
“Okay Icebreaker, intel says there’ll be some mild atmospheric turbulence on the way in,” he briefed. “We’ve all been sent a waypoint to a rendezvous location, just in case it splits us up. Now, let’s get our girl back! Oorah?!”
“Oorah!” said the other five ODST’s in unison.
With that, all Jenkins heard next was a pause, followed by three quick beeps, followed by a longer, louder third, as one after the other, his and everyone else’s pods were rocketed toward the ground.
Ogden’s cage rattled as the gravitational pull of the planet below took near full control over it; he then took hold of the two joysticks to steer as Corporal Marcus William’s live feed got transmitted to his second screen.
“Uh, sir?” the Brit said nervously. “That looks like more than just ‘mild’ turbulence!”
“Relax,” said Sergeant Alex. “It probably looks worse than it is.”
“Intel couldn’t be that wrong, could it?” asked PFC Jenkins rhetorically.
It was then that their pods penetrated the clouds, and a few moments of smooth descent followed before a series of rapid lightning strikes burst all around them; suddenly, as he saw his teammate's pods get heaved out of his view, Jenkins felt his pod get tossed around like a softball!
“Oh shiiiiiiiiiiiiiit!” he yelled, now holding on for dear life.
“Brace! Braaa-!” came Gunny’s voice before it was consumed by static.
Chapter 23: Reunion August 10, 2558 2015 hours Apple Family Farm
Greyblade, finishing up work on the farm, was putting away some tools beside the barn when yet another stranger appeared at the entrance; he had a brown coat, with black and green colored mane. She noticed only when she heard Big Mac start talking to him.
“Well howdy there stranger!” Big Mac called as he approached the newcomer. “What brings ya to Sweet Apple Acres?”
“Just looking for work, brother,” said the anonymous, brown earthpony, who’s voice caused Greyblade’s ears to perk up. “I’ve probably spent half of my life on a farm, so I don’t know what else I’d be qualified for in this town."
That voice, it couldn’t be! She looked over again and had to rub her eyes at the sight of the new arrival.
“Sorry, I forgot to introduce myself,” he said as he extended a hoof to shake with Big Mac.
Greyblade now looked as though she’d seen a ghost. She couldn’t believe it. It was him. It was-
“Cinder Pine,” he said, still holding out his hoof. “I’m from Gildedale. I-I know our two countries have just had a bit of a quarrel, but I want you to know that I have no hostilities with any of you.”
“It’s all good, Cinder, we hold no grudges on this farm,” said Big Mac, now shaking hooves with the brown stallion. “Tha name’s Big Macintosh, but Big Mac, or Mac, is also fine.”
“Pleasure to meet you Mac,” said Cinder Pine. “This is such a relief to hear! You’ve no idea how long I’ve been walki-”
Big Mac held up a hoof, interrupting the newcomer.
“Na hold on,” he said. “I’ll have you know, we’re not doin’ too well on living space at tha moment. We only had one guest room, and it’s already taken!”
“I mean, I don’t need a bed or anything. In fact, that barn over there would be plenty! We’re not the wealthiest nation ever, so I’d be used to it.”
“Ah, no worries. If you’d like ta start settin’ up in there, ya can.”
“Sure, thank you much!”
Cinder began trotting up the hill towards the barn, when a realization struck him. He turned around to face the red stallion again.
“Um, just out of curiosity, you said somepony else took the guest room?” he asked.
“Oh yeah, we picked her up the other day,” said Big Mac. “That’s her, right there actually.”
“C-Ci-Cinder?” came a shaky, feminine voice from behind the brown earth pony.
Cinder Pine turned around to see a grey earth pony, with familiar blonde mane, on the verge of tears before him.
“Greyblade?!” he muttered under his breath.
“It’s funny that ya ask, ‘cause she’s also from Gildedale,” Big Mac continued. “Do y’all two know each other?”
“…Yeah…” was all Cinder Pine could say.
“C-can I borrow him for a moment?” asked Greyblade, wiping away her misty eyes with a sniff.
“Sure thang!” said Big Mac as he cheerfully trotted off. “You two go ‘head an’ git acquainted now!”
The two just continued to stare at each other for a moment, before coming together in the warmest, tightest embrace they’d ever experienced in their lives.
“What are you doing here?” he asked. “And how-?”
“I watched you die!” she interrupted through her sobs. “How are you alive?!”
His expression changed from one of relief to one of concern, as he realized how many questions the both of them must have had.
“Cinder,” she continued. “I am so, so sorry! I should’ve…I couldn’t–”
This time, she was the one interrupted, via a long, passionate kiss from him. Her heart now racing, Greyblade only listened when they both had finished having their moment.
“Hey, I’m here now,” said Cinder Pine soothingly. “Come on, why don’t we answer each other’s questions somewhere private?”
. . .
August 10, 2558 2013 hours Somewhere 200 miles southeast of Ottapaw Five Minutes After Drop
…Hey. Rookie. You out there?... came Buck’s voice in distant memory. …Respond! That’s an order!…
David slowly regained consciousness within his pod. Acting on a mix of training and experienced instinct, he didn’t move a muscle aside from his eyes, checking the outside of his pod to be sure no hostiles were looking in.
Seeing none, he readied his 8-guage shotgun before manually releasing the pod door, now only having to flip a small switch to do so.
As soon as the cover was flung from his vehicle, he shouldered his weapon and swept out the area in front of him with his eyes; stepping out of the pod, he turned around and aimed his gun up and over the top of his pod, making sure no changelings were waiting to pounce from above.
He had landed in the middle of a small clearing, meaning behind the pod was the only place for an enemy to hide and still be near the trooper; Alvarez, realizing this, quietly moved around his one-time-use vehicle, aiming down the sight of his weapon while carefully shifting his weight to avoid making noise as he moved.
Nothing. The coast was clear.
Can never be too careful in this line of work, thought Gunny as he came back over to the front of his pod.
He reached in to grab his M6C/SOCOM when, suddenly, he heard all sorts of hoots, hollers, and barked orders from the trees around him, and they were closing in fast!
“Shit!” he muttered under his breath, yanking loose his silenced sidearm. It was all he needed to say, realizing just how much attention he must have attracted by crashing out of the sky; he wasn’t going to take any chances, as any voice that didn’t sound like one of his squad-mates’ was not to be trusted.
Before leaving his pod behind however, he flipped a small switch on the side console and pulled out a small detonator.
He ran towards the widest and nearest tree that he could find and put his back to it; luckily, that spot was dark enough to conceal his still form as a company-sized force of changelings burst into the clearing.
None of them looked his way, as they were too focused on the flashing red lights coming from inside the pod; as they approached to inspect it, Alvarez shuffled his way around the tree until he was fully out of their sight.
He took one more, cursory glance around the tree trunk to see that the changelings were now fully surrounding and on top of the pod, before promptly whipping his head back behind the trunk and pushing the button on his detonator.
The ensuing explosion was blocked by the tree trunk, but what it couldn’t block were the dying screams of his foes as heat, shrapnel, and body parts went flying past him on either side.
As soon as it began, it was over; deafening silence now surrounded the stone-faced squad-leader as he walked out from behind the tree. The half of it that had faced the blast was now fully blackened, flames licking at its surface, just like the charred remains of the former changeling company; Alvarez took his first and final look at the scorched clearing, before tossing the used detonator aside, turning, and running into the darkness of the trees.
. . .
August 10, 2558 2028 hours Somewhere 200 miles southeast of Ottapaw Emergency Rendezvous Location Twenty Minutes After Drop
“Well, at least half the squad is together,” said Corporal Marcus Williams. “In theory, we could complete the mission ourselves if the others are dead.”
“Shouldn’t we radio them?” asked Private Oscar Morgan. “You know? Just to check in?”
“We’ll keep radio silence for just a few more minutes, Sidney,” said Sergeant Alex. “They know where this rendezvous location is, just giv’em a little more time to get here. If they seem like their taking too long, then we’ll radio in.”
“Understood sir,” said Sidney.
Just then, Gunnery Sergeant Alvarez crept into the clearing; he was greeted by an enthusiastic arm-shake from Sergeant Alex.
“Good to see ya made it, sir!” said the second-in-command. “Was your drop not too rough?”
“Let’s just say, I’ve had better welcoming committees,” said Gunny.
“Ha!” said Corporal Marcus. “So, a typical day at the office, eh?”
“Sure, you could say that.”
Everyone silenced themselves when they heard rustling in the bushes. Gunny immediately turned and pointed his shotgun at the sound behind him, right before Jenkins parted the greenery with Shifty right behind him; the PFC took one step forward before halting at the sight of weapons being pointed his way.
Thankfully, no one shot.
“Fuck’s sake, Ogden,” said Gunny, lowering his weapon. “What would I have told Rainbow?”
“Why not get behind me so you don’t have to find out?” was Jenkins’ response.
“Noted.”
“Ya know if you two weren’t such good friends,” said Sergeant Alex. “He’da court-martialed ya for saying that, Ogden.”
“Yeah, I know,” said Jenkins. “That’s why I said it.”
“Okay, focus up gang! We need to get moving,” Gunny ordered calmly. “We got a lot of ground to cover and god-knows how little time we have to cover it.”
With silent acknowledgement, Fireteam Icebreaker then moved as a unit into the foliage.
. . .
August 11, 2558 0056 hours Somewhere 200 miles southeast of Ottapaw
Rainbow Dash struggled and fought in her chair as a damp cloth was held over her face while water was being poured onto it. Her desperate protests came out only as muffled squeaks.
Finally, the flow of water ceased and the veil was lifted, but not before she was punched right in the gut, causing her to violently spit out some of the water that had been choking her.
She then spent the next few seconds loudly coughing out the rest. Her head spinning, she couldn’t remember a time when she was more dizzy!
Her dampened mane continued to drip water as her forehooves were lifted up behind her, allowing a changeling to pull the chair out from under her. He released her and she fell onto her back with another yelp of pain.
As General Hives approached her writhing form, another changeling guard pointed his spear at her.
“Get up!” he ordered. “Sit with your hind-legs crossed!”
The pegasus did as she was told, still shivering from the pain and from being soaking wet. Her breathing was also uncontrollably shallow.
She naturally hung her head as Hives knelt down to her.
“Uck!” she gasped as he firmly grabbed her throat and lifted her chin.
He looked into her terrified magenta eyes for a few moments before smirking.
“I think that’s enough for tonight,” he said, looking away and slapping the same hoof on top of her head. “Everyone out.”
Rainbow briefly squealed as he shoved her entire upper-body down over herself until she was practically kissing the floor!
“Let’s leave our Equestrian scum to writhe in pain until next session,” Hives finished before he and his subordinates left the room, chair and all.
Slowly, she turned and lay on her side, trying in vain to fall asleep as her breath kept escaping her, and as her burns kept burning!
She began to cry again.
Is this how I die? she thought. At this point, she knew the humans weren’t going to stop for her, nor did she want them to; she’d rather have the changelings be defeated that live, if that’s what it took.
But that didn’t make things any less scary.
What was death even like? A few days ago, she would have never guessed she’d be answering that question so soon, and it was terrifying! But in her helplessness about it all, the only thing she could do was cry, accepting that it was going to happen anyway.
There was fear, yes, but mostly sadness. She knew, as a lone changeling opened and entered her cell, that the next blow to her face could be it (if the hypothermia didn’t get to her first).
But instead of the harsh clout she was expecting, the pegasus felt him gently pull her to her knees before hugging her tightly. She was confused until she realized he was trying to warm her back up with his own body heat. After some time, he released her and began untying her wings.
She only knew of one changeling that would help her.
“Thorax?” a confused Rainbow Dash asked. “Why?”
Not answering, he seemed more hurried all of a sudden, finishing the untying and pulling out a set of keys. The chained pegasus looked at them in shock.
“Where did-?” she began to ask as he unlocked her restraints.
“There’s no time to explain!” he said, a look of pure terror in his eyes, as if unable to comprehend what he was currently doing.
Without warning, he pushed her onto her stomach, the pegasus grunting weakly on impact.
“Brace yourself and try not to make noise, this might hurt,” he said, putting his horn on her broken wing and healing it with his magic.
Rainbow Dash winced and slapped both hooves over her mouth to keep from screaming as her bones were put back into place.
“I can’t heal your burns,” said Thorax upon finishing. “But that should be enough to get yourself out. Listen carefully, okay? The hive is located between the two largest volcanoes in the Scorchedlands. Can you remember that?”
The sky-blue pegasus froze; shocked at what she was hearing, she began shaking her head. This was all happening so fast!
“Okay, the changeling hive is located-”
“No, no! I got all that, but why?”
“Why what?”
“Why are you helping me?”
Thorax paused for a moment, quickly glancing at Rainbow’s cell entrance before looking back at her.
“I hate what I am,” he said uneasily. “Nothing we changelings have done was justified, you know that; I wouldn’t want us all to die, but we sure don’t deserve a happy ending. You need to tell the humans this information, but you have to leave now!”
As he said those final words, he began levitating with his wings before pushing her towards the cell entrance.
“W-wait! But, I-I don’t know where to go!” she stuttered. “How do I get out?!”
“Turn right down this hall and run!” said the changeling, pointing with a hoof. “You’ll reach a wide opening. Fly out of it and don’t look back! Go!”
Rainbow Dash didn’t hesitate after that, she turned her back to Thorax and ran out into the hall to the right, not even stopping when she realized that she hadn’t said, “Thank you” and how that might be the last she’d ever see him.
No time for that now, got to run, must escape; these were the thoughts that flowed through her head now. The hallway seemed to stretch on for forever, but she could see the end, a curve off to the left, and that was enough to keep her going against the exhaustion.
This could be her one and only chance, and she was going to take it.
After what seemed like an eternity, she reached the left turn. It was a gradual, yet sudden transition from the flat and angled prison hallway to a more rounded and rockier tunnel, which immediately opened into a spacious cave with a wide opening to the right.
Thinking she was home-free she began galloping into flight, but as she extended her wings, General Hives appeared in a blind-spot on the ceiling to her right; he was holding another green-tipped spear, and before she could react, he had already flown over her and stabbed her left wing with it.
Rainbow screamed in agony, clutching her re-injured wing as blood discharged out of it, tumbling back to the floor before coming to rest near the cave’s mouth. She got to her knees and looked at her wound as some reddened feathers had already come off; the rate of blood coming out was decreasing by the second, but the white-hot pain was also returning once again. She collapsed onto her side.
It was then that she saw multiple squads of changelings converging on her. Struggling against the onset of slight dizziness, Rainbow mustered all the strength she could and began dragging herself with one of her bloodied hooves, while the other continued to clutch her left wing. Pure and blind desperation now filled her every waking moment, and against all odds, she reached the mouth of the cave, but the moment she looked up, her heart sank.
A cliff. A sheer drop-off!
Rainbow’s eyes widened and her pupils shrank in response to her instinctual panic before she started crying again, shaking her head in denial.
“No!” she squeaked weakly, pounding her hoof on the floor beside her.
“Oh please, you can be louder than that!” said General Hives behind her.
Slowly realizing that no changelings had yet grabbed her, Rainbow looked behind her to see the contingent of shapeshifters all waiting in a radius around her, boxing her in. She shakily got back on all fours and faced the General, who stood in front of his subordinates.
He took a few steps toward her, to which she instinctively backed up; the wounded pegasus gasped when one of her back hooves didn’t step on anything, immediately righting herself to keep from falling to her death.
“Go on,” he said menacingly. “Scream. Call out for help. None will hear your plea.”
Wanting nothing more than to believe she wasn’t left for dead, Rainbow took a deep breath and turned around.
“HEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEAAAAAAALP!!!”
. . .
Like meerkats, the marines of Fireteam Icebreaker all turned their heads towards a distant, feminine-sounding cry for help.
“Did y’all hear that?” asked Sergeant Alex Thompson.
“That sounded like her!” exclaimed PFC Ogden Jenkins.
“Shh! Everyone keep it down!” hissed Gunnery Sergeant David Alvarez. “Keep listening…”
. . .
“Please,” Rainbow softly whimpered to herself, as though praying now. “Somepony please help meeheheheee…”
She shut her eyes and let the tears roll off her cheeks as General Hives leaned in and spoke into her ear.
“No one, human, or pony, or any creature,” he said. “Is coming to rescue you.”
The bleeding pegasus began sobbing softly.
“Yet, even after all this,” Hives continued. “I doubt you’ll be willing to off yourself.”
Rainbow’s eyes shot open before looking down into the abyss. She could end this right now, and the changelings wouldn’t have leverage anymore!
She could escape this torture, and the humans could win.
As if time had slowed down, Rainbow found herself taking a tentative step forward onto nothing, eyes closed and taking the subtlest, shallowest breaths she’d ever taken.
Her friends would never see her again.
In the moment that thought crossed her mind, her eyes shot open and she inhaled massively as she backed out.
Before she could contemplate her own shock at the fact that she’d nearly gone that far, Rainbow found Hives standing right beside her speaking into her ear once again.
She yelped in pain and dropped onto her knees and face. Straightening herself up, grabbing her crotch with mouth agape in pain and fear, she looked up at the changelings in sheer terror as they now surrounded her, hovering with evil grins on their faces; for a moment, Rainbow shook her head at them, as if to say “don’t do it,” before finally taking a breath, to which the changeling’s response was to pounce.
Suddenly, one changeling grabbed her by the neck; she struggled and grunted in vain as another pounced, and another; grabbing her mane, grabbing her hoof and pinning that behind her back, flattening her onto her stomach, and proceeding to chain her up again.
As they held her down, she let out one more, guttural cry of pure anguish before they flew her back to her cell.
. . .
“aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaah!” came another, distant scream.
“That’s gotta be her!” said Jenkins.
“Infinity?” said Gunny into his mic. “Can you triangulate?”
“With what?” asked Corporal Marcus Williams.
“Our helmets picked up that sound,” said Gunny, now off-mic. “All they need are three to pinpoint the source.”
“Is that how geometry works?” said Shifty, prompting the rest of the squad to give him looks of mild disappointment.
After a moment, Gunny touched his hand to his helmet as received his new intel from the Infinity.
“Okay, they used all of our helmets to get the best precision,” he said.
A common waypoint then appeared on the heads-up-displays of the six ODSTs’ visors.
“We have our heading!” said Alvarez, before pointing forward with his open hand. “Move out!”
. . .
General Hives walked into Rainbow Dash’s cell along with one other armed guard, who was levitating a small, waist-high table with his magic, along with another filled bucket.
“I hope you realize,” Hives started as his subordinate placed the table down in the middle of the room. “That attempting escape comes with consequences.”
The sky-blue pegasus, hooves chained behind her back once again, only continued to silently look at the floor. The changeling guard then trotted over to her and, with his magic, placed the bucket just under her nose.
“Smell it,” he said calmly. “It’s not blood this time, just water.”
Taking a small whiff, Rainbow smelled nothing peculiar, as one would when smelling water; he was telling her the truth.
Without warning, he turned the bucket upside-down over her head, instantly soaking her entire body; she immediately stiffened up as well, as he had purposely failed to mention how ice-cold it was. As he continued to pour, Rainbow realized just how parched she was, as she couldn’t recall the last time she’d drank something, before proceeding to tilt her head up and open her mouth.
She didn’t care how dirty it might have been, all she cared about in that moment was the sweet relief of hydration through her mouth! To her surprise, they let her do it, no punches or slaps of discipline, as if they wanted her to.
Once her thirst was quenched, she bowed her head back down and let him pour the rest over her.
After, she sat there on her knees, shivering and blinded by her own damp mane, matted over her eyes. The changeling water bearer then trotted out of the cell with the empty bucket as General Hives parted Rainbow’s mane from her eyes with his magic.
“Hold on now, we wouldn’t want you to miss the big reveal,” said Hives. “Bring him in!”
Rainbow gasped upon seeing Thorax dragged into the cell by the subordinate changeling guard.
“Traitor! You think I wouldn’t notice?!” said General Hives to Thorax. “The keys being levitated out of my robe-pocket, after that obviously forced, and awkward, conversation?!”
Thorax, in a mix of shame and fear, simply looked down and to the left, avoiding eye-contact where he could. Hives looked at Rainbow.
“It was him, wasn’t it?! Yes, your eyes give away everything!” he said before turning back to Thorax and lowering his voice. “I always knew you couldn’t be trusted, but I’ll be gracious to you, just this once.”
In curiosity, Thorax looked up at his superior.
“I’ll give you the chance to redeem yourself,” he said as he then turned to Rainbow.
He stopped halfway over to her and looked her up and down.
“Such a vibrant, blue coat,” he stated calmly.
He then went up to her and forced open one of her eyes.
“Magenta eyes,” he noted as he took a close look around her pupil.
Upon releasing her face and eye, he then began pacing around her until he was behind her, at which point he began running a hoof through her mane.
“And every color legitimately represented in this mane,” he finished as he came back around, lifting a bundle of her damp mane up to the light. “According to Equestrian research, these are perhaps the rarest physical traits a pony could have, kept around only by means of a pure, near-perfect bloodline.”
Releasing her mane, he went back over to Thorax and placed a hoof on his shoulder.
“What’dya say we, impurify that bloodline?” he said, shoving his subordinate towards Rainbow.
“What?!” asked Rainbow in sudden shock and fear.
“Sir?” asked Thorax, now visibly uncomfortable with the current situation.
“Rape her,” he said unequivocally. “That’s an order.”
Thorax simply stared at his superior with a look of fear and uncertainty, before looking at Rainbow, then back at Hives, then at Rainbow again, and finally back at Hives.
“Sir, I-”
“Do it!” shouted the General, cutting him off. “Prove your loyalty to the Queen, or die!”
At this, the changeling slowly and forlornly looked back at the cerulean pegasus to see her on the verge of tears; her mouth had been agape, gawking at the ultimatum she had just heard. He then knelt in front of her so that they could be at eye-level with each other.
“Thorax, don’t do this,” begged Rainbow in a whisper while subtly, yet desperately, shaking her head. “Please! You don’t have to let him keep controlling you! You don’t have to serve him or Chrysalis!”
Thorax only stared sorrowfully and self-loathingly at her before saying, “I-I’m so sorry…”
Rainbow’s ears drooped as her heart sank, breaths shortening at the egregious comprehension that her pleading had been in vain.
Without another word, Thorax lifted Rainbow by her mane and one of her arms, before pushing her crotch against the table.
“Thorax PLEASE!” squealed the pegasus desperately as she was shoved onto her stomach. “They’re gunna kill you anyway!”
Ignoring her, the changeling parted her legs in rough fashion, before pressing onto her shivering body.
“No! NO! STOP! Get off!” she yelled, now in full-panic mode as Thorax held a hoof between her shoulder blades, tears beginning to flow from her eyes. “GET OHOFF! Pleeheease!”
She began howling incoherently as the changeling began inserting his penis into her marehood; Hives grabbed his subordinate’s spear and placed its point in front of Rainbow’s face, prompting both her and Thorax to freeze.
“One more peep,” he said sternly. “And I blast you right here and now.”
Still in the midst of crying, Rainbow squeezed her eyes shut and slammed her forehead down onto the table with clenched teeth. Hives only raised a grin upon his face as his prisoner was wordlessly fucked from then on.
It took all her willpower to stop herself from even squeaking softly, not to say a delicate squeal wouldn’t slip out every so often.
After some time, Thorax finally climaxed and thumped semen into the sky-blue pegasus. She grimaced and gasped in pain as the changeling pulled out. He then dragged her off the table and shoved her back against the wall behind him, before guiding her back down onto her knees.
The bawling, traumatized mare watched helplessly as Thorax leaned over her, keeping hold of the wall behind her with one hoof and grabbing his penis with the other.
Holding it in front of her face, he squirted cum into her eye, causing her head to momentarily recoil backwards late before ending up sticking further forward out to him than before. Her shivering had ceased in utter shock.
Thorax then stuck his erect and slimy cock into her mouth, pinning the back of her head to the wall.
“Suck,” Thorax ordered, placing a hoof on top of her head.
Eyes closed shut from the cum on her face, she subtly shook her head, silently continuing to protest.
“Please?!” he hissed desperately.
No longer seeing any way to convince him that it was probably pointless, she slowly and reluctantly began sucking the remaining cum off of his dick, very audibly whimpering the whole time.
At the very least, she could be glad that he hadn’t yet asked her to swallow.
Finally, after what felt like an eternity of suffering, Thorax pulled his dick out of her mouth; Rainbow, attempting to breathe deeply the moment she was released, ultimately began coughing and choking on the sticky substance now coating the inside of her orifice.
Thorax knelt back down to eye-level with the sky-blue pegasus and used his magic to pull his cum off her face and out of her mouth, along with some of her saliva. As he tossed the ball of cum off to the side, she could only look on at him with pain, disgust, and disappointment in her eyes; as if in response, he leaned in and gave what felt like an apologetic kiss to Rainbow.
Not seeing anything else she could do, she slowly closed her eyes and prepared to kiss him back.
*CHUNK!*
Rainbow’s eyes snapped back open almost immediately. She froze as she felt Thorax’s final breath go inside of her, his suddenly limp body being pulled off of her shortly after.
*SCHUNK!*
She yelped as green blood was spurted all over her from Thorax’s mouth, a sharp object now clearly having been violently pulled from his back, before the wielder behind him whipped his spear around and smacked Thorax’s paralyzed body to the ground with the butt-end of the weapon.
Thorax now out of the way, Rainbow could see that it was General Hives who had stabbed him, still holding his subordinate’s spear. He grinned maliciously at the shocked pegasus as both his horn and the spear’s tip began to glow green, and before she knew it, he had vaporized the only good changeling she’d ever known.
“NOOO!” shouted the even further traumatized mare, as the ashes of her former friend fell to the cold, metal floor.
“Clever girl,” said Hives. “You guessed right! He was dead anyway.”
She just looked at him with the same pained look she had been giving Thorax just moments earlier.
“I would leave you alone to let all that sink in,” he continued as he trotted out the door. “But I think it’s best if we just resume your normal activities.”
As he left, two more changelings entered the room, one carrying a fresh bucket of blood, both looking ready to beat the living daylights out of Rainbow.
She screamed in fear and agony as the blood was poured over her once again.
Greyblade finally managed to collect her thoughts and ask her lover the burning question bouncing around in her head.
“How did you survive?” was all that came out.
Greyblade and Cinder Pine were sitting on their haunches beneath a tree in the Apple Family Orchard; the area was private enough for them, so that’s where they decided to settle.
Cinder took a deep breath as he prepared to recite his recent ordeal.
“I…we had nowhere else to go, so we jumped into the water behind us,” he began. “They started shooting at us as we tried to swim away; to be honest, those who weren’t shot had to have drowned, since our armor was causing us to sink.
“I’d thought of this as they were lining us up, so I unhooked all of the latches on my armor, and as I jumped in I held my breath and let it carry me down far enough for them to not see me, before taking it all off and swimming away.”
He looked up to see his lover’s misty eyes and hoof up to her mouth in shock; he could tell this was incredibly hard for her to hear.
“I should be apologizing to you!” he continued. “I could’ve saved at least some of the others, but instead I kept my mouth shut! I’m the spineless coward!”
“No! No! Don’t you dare say that about yourself!” said Greyblade immediately. “It was a difficult situation to begin with, and I apologize for putting you in it! You thought on your hooves and did as much as you could. I couldn’t ask for a better soldier…or a better friend.”
She took his hoof in hers.
“We’ve both just lost so much at the hooves of something out of our control, but at the very least,” she continued. “We’re back together again! Just seeing you reminded me to look on the bright side, even after all that!”
“I…was always the optimistic one I guess,” Cinder Pine confessed as he looked back up at her and smiled. “How else would the two of us have gotten together in the first place? You, a proud and beautiful warrior princess–”
“–and you, a mere peasant soldier who had the guts to talk sweet to her,” said Greyblade, finishing his sentence. “Exactly. Now, more than ever, we have to stay positive!”
“Agreed,” said Cinder. “But, where do we go from here exactly? The humans didn’t give chase at all, so Gildedale can’t be in much danger from the outside. Do we just…go home?”
“I’ve been debating that with myself actually.”
“Why? The people will be thrilled that their princess is still alive! And our country needs all the leadership it can get right now, especially after a defeat like that. This should be a no-brainer!”
“It’s not that simple, Pine!”
“How so?”
Greyblade pursed her lips for a moment.
“I know it may sound silly,” she started. “But I don’t think they’ll accept me back.”
“What?!”
“My dad is going to think I’m a disgrace! What if nopony forgives my failure? You must understand?”
“Our king would never–”
“You don’t know him like I know him!”
This caught Cinder off-guard, as he hadn’t considered that he might not know what Gildedale’s king was like behind closed doors.
“That may be true,” said Cinder after a brief pause. “But now is not the time for ‘what if’s!’”
Greyblade was going to retort, but instead took a pause herself. Her lover had a point.
“Surely you understand that,” he finished.
Greyblade sat in quiet agreement for some time, and she was about to speak again when a gamboge, and rather anxious-looking, filly appeared from behind an apple tree, briefly stunning both Daleponies.
“Uhh, hi…” the anonymous filly said tentatively. “M-my name’s Babs Seed.”
“H-hi there!” said Greyblade as she regained composure.
She recognized the filly’s accent, recounting how the ponies native to Manehattan spoke during the attack.
“I-I recognize you,” said Babs, causing Greblade’s heart to sink slightly.
Suddenly it made sense why the young mare looked so nervous.
“D-did…w-we-were you the one leading that big attack?” she asked finally. “Y-ya’know? In Manehattan?”
“…Yes,” said Greyblade awkwardly. “And, I’m sorry…”
Without another word, Babs Seed darted off back towards the farm, a massively frightened look now adorned on her face.
The blonde Dalepony simply hung her head.
“Oh horseapples!” she said in dismay.
“What else could you have said?” Cinder said in attempted encouragement. “I’m just glad your trying to be honest.”
“It must be something about this farm,” said Greyblade, still not looking up.
Unexpectedly, Cinder Pine began cracking-up; Greyblade only looked up at him in slight disbelief as he burst into full-on laughter. Before she knew it, she was laughing along with him!
All of a sudden, it felt as though a huge weight had been lifted off her chest; she felt as though she could finally stop being so hard on herself.
She then silently thanked her lucky stars for giving her such a supporting partner in life.
“You’re right,” she said finally. “Our situation right now overrides any personal issues I might possibly have.”
“That’s the spirit!” Cinder responded.
“Whether or not it’s worth facing my father right now, I have to try!”
Cinder smiled.
“By your word, Princess,” he said.
“Let’s get moving!”
...
August 11, 2558 0126 hours Somewhere 200 miles southeast of Ottapaw
Beheld before Fireteam Icebreaker wasn’t just a mere compound or discrete POW camp, but a fortress. A singular, massive complex built into the side of the mountain.
“They’re keeping her in there?!” exclaimed Shifty.
The squad was huddled together inside the undergrowth, overlooking the changeling prison.
“Where the fuck else?” said Ogden.
“Calm down Jenkins,” Sgt. Alex ordered. “We ain’t savin’er with that attitude!”
“I’m calm,” said Jenkins. “I won’t do anything stupid...not today at least.”
“That’d best be so,” said an authoritative Gunnery Sergeant David Alvarez. “Because we can’t go in guns blazing. The moment they sound the alarm, they kill her! So, we need everyone’s head in gear if we’re gunna make this work!”
“Aye Gunny,” said Ogden.
“Now, here’s the plan,” started Alvarez. “We go floor by floor, search every cell, leaving no stone unturned, understood?”
Everyone nodded their heads.
“And Jenkins,” he said as he grinned. “I want you on point.”
The PFC only smiled back.
“Let’s go save our girl!” Gunny finished.
...
As Rainbow Dash came to, the loud clanging of the cell doors opening shocked her awake. She saw General Hives and two of his minions standing in the doorway.
“You,” he said, pointing to the one on his left. “Wait out here, and you, follow me.”
“Yes sir!” they said in unison.
Hives and the one on his right walked inside.
The doors closed shut, once again leaving the room in near darkness. As the two changelings walked forward, Rainbow not only saw the General’s smooth purple helmet and uniquely official-looking purple robe, but she was also able to see a small axe hinged at his hip.
“I’m glad Queen Chrysalis allowed me to design these prison cells so that they can double up as torture chambers,” he said. “It saves money.”
In a panic, Rainbow began backing up into a corner in a vain attempt to get away from the two changelings coming towards her.
“Lay her on her stomach,” the officer ordered.
“Yes sir,” said his subordinate as he walked up to a trembling Rainbow Dash.
Unable to fight him in her “tied up” state, Rainbow could only let the changeling guard grab her by her left shoulder and her left arm and pin her to the ground. Rainbow let out a small squeal on impact as the air in her lungs was knocked out of her.
“Untie her wings.”
“Sir?”
The General face-hoofed before saying, “She can`t fly away if you`re holding her down!” He then said under his breath: “Now I know why they put me in charge.”
His subordinate obeyed. As soon as the last knot was undone, he put one hoof on her head and centered the other on her back. Despite being held down, she could only feel the relief of two wings freed.
But as she began to flap them, her right wing was pinned to the floor by the Hives’ left hoof.
“It’s about time I went after these,” he said menacingly.
“Y-you wouldn’t,” Rainbow responded weakly.
“Oh, I think you know I would,” he said.
He added pressure to Rainbow’s wing and began to twist.
“*gasp* AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!” screamed Rainbow as instant, white-hot pain seared through her wing.
“Having fun yet, peach?!” asked the Hives.
“N-No.”
He twisted again, but with more pressure this time.
“AAAAAHAHAHA!!!” shrieked Rainbow into the floor, the pain worsening and eyes now misty.
“How ’bout now?”
“B-b-bu-buck you!” said Rainbow through tears and clenched teeth.
He twisted again, this time with even more pressure, and Rainbow let out yet another blood-curdling scream as she felt a few feathers pop out on that one.
...
Fireteam Icebreaker had silently made their way up through the complex, sneaking by some guards here, slitting some changeling throats there…
They had only just arrived at the top floor when they heard the first scream.
“She's right around the corner!” said Ogden. But as he rounded the corner he saw a lone changeling guard. He immediately snapped back out of sight, halting the other five humans behind him. He looked to them with his index finger over the lower part of his visor.
“Changeling,” he whispered. “One of `em. He's guarding only one cell.”
He took a quick glance back around the corner before turning back.
“It’s also unlike all the other cells,” the PFC continued. “This one doesn’t have bars. It’s a solid, metal wall, like they’re trying to contain someone more important.”
“Good observation,” said Gunny.
He turned to Sgt. Alex. “Thompson, double-peak that bastard with Jenkins.”
“You got it, sir!” he whispered back.
...
The lone changeling guard sighed as he heard the blood-curdling scream come from inside the room behind him.
Shifting his weight uncomfortably, he looked to his left and saw nothing.
As if I’d expect anything to come from there. he thought.
He looked to his right and then, just as he looked back over to his left, two humans had appeared from around the corner, one standing and the other crouching just in front, both with their weapons trained on him.
Within the same half-second, he was struck by two bullets, one in the chest and one in the head!
...
Rainbow could barely see anymore, the pain was becoming too much!
General Hives twisted one last time, and though she only let out a soft whimper, he knew she was experiencing the worst physical pain in her life.
“Stahahap, please,” she begged. “Oh, my, Celestiahahaha! *gasp* The PAIN!”
“Would you please stop praying to that old MULE?!?!” said Hives, clearly annoyed.
He turned her head and punched her already blackened eye.
“AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!” she squealed.
Then the General turned her head back around and looked her straight in her good eye.
“She can't help you here and you know it!” he said in finality.
THUD!
Every creature went silent and looked towards the cell entrance.
“Shit! No keys,” came a voice on the other side.
“Aww, how sweet,” said Hives as he unhooked his small axe from its belt. “I guess I was wrong. Too bad they won’t recover all of you.”
Rainbow was shocked by this sudden prospect.
“No,” she breathed as she began to hyperventilate.
“Hold the door, will ya?!” ordered the General to his subordinate.
“Noho…please,” pleaded a sobbing Rainbow Dash as the Hives aimed the axe.
“HAVE MERCEY!!!”
As the changeling guard approached the door, a sudden blast blew it into his face and flattened him! The same blast momentarily stunned Hives as well, before he quickly regained his composure and raised his axe once again, aiming for what Rainbow could only assume was her head!
But as his arm reached its apex, a bullet careened into the back of his helmet and drilled through his head, before finally exiting out of his face, splattering green blood over the back wall!
Upon getting shot, the axe slipped backwards out of his hoof, causing it to tumble downward, end-over-end, towards Rainbow’s face. She shut her eyes, preparing for the worst, when the thud of the axe lodging itself in the floor made her shudder.
She peaked with one eye to find that the weapon had landed just before her nose! The cerulean pegasus then simply stared in blank shock, with both eyes now, at the blade directly in front of her face.
How she hadn’t fainted by this point, she could not know.
“NOO!” shouted the changeling guard as shoved the door off of himself and towards Sidney, only to be promptly riddled with bullets from Corporal William’s silenced SMG.
“Thank god we brought explosives!” said Shifty as Jenkins pulled the axe off the floor and away from Rainbow’s face.
In an instant, every part of her body relaxed. Jenkins simply looked on at her cerulean, breathing form: battered, bloodied, bruised, and wings clearly broken.
But still alive.
“Sid? Marcus, we’ve just made a ton of noise, so watch behind us. Shifty and Thompson, you two check the bodies for anything useful,” ordered Gunny as he grabbed the keys off of General Hives’ body. “That includes the one we left just outside! Be sure to drag’em in here first.”
As everyone got to work, Jenkins knelt down to Rainbow.
While he waited for Gunny to finish unlocking her chains, the PFC simply leaned over to his left towards Hives’ body and ripped off a sizeable piece of fabric from his robe.
Once her hooves were unrestrained, Jenkins gently helped her up onto her knees.
“What did they do to you?” he asked.
She just stared at him for a moment through her tears, before tightly hugging him.
“Thank you!” she said through her relief and anguish.
The PFC just hugged her back. As he did so however, Gunny silently motioned for him to make things quick, to which Jenkins nodded before putting away the ripped piece of cloth.
“Rainbow, I am so glad to see you too!” he said before separating from the embrace and holding his pegasus friend at arm’s-length. “But right now, I need you to focus, because we’re not out of the woods yet. Can you walk?”
She sniffed while rubbing away her tears before nodding rapidly.
“Ye-yeah! Yes!” she said frantically.
“Can you run?”
“I-I think so.”
“Good enough. I know your wings don’t look too hot right now, so the plan is to fly you out. Is this making sense?”
“On a pelican, right?”
“Yeah! That’s it!" he said with a smile. "You remembered!”
Alex simply gave Ogden a stern look from behind.
“Aight, we’ve been here long enough gang!” said Alvarez.
“Ok, we’ve gotta go!” said Jenkins to Rainbow. “I assume you’re ready to leave this hell-hole?”
She just rapidly nodded like before.
“Alright, then c’mon!” he said, standing up and holding out his hand. “We can stitch you up later!”
...
The ODSTs of Icebreaker jogged down the hall toward the spacious cave opening Rainbow had tried to escape from earlier, with the pegasus in question running with them in the middle of their six-man formation.
Though, it was less that she was running with them and more like she was having to be pushed.
She was so exhausted. The words, and shoves, of encouragement from the ODSTs trailing her were the only thing keeping her from falling behind.
She saw Gunnery Sergeant David Alvarez put two of his fingers onto the side of his helmet and keep them there for a few moments, before removing them and looking behind him.
“Our bird left Infinity and entered the atmosphere about fifteen minutes ago,” he briefed as they ran. “That means it should be at the cave opening right when we get there!”
The hallway once again fell away from its corners, transitioning into the rocky tunnel Rainbow now knew all too well. Two changelings rounded the corner, heading in the opposite direction to investigate the blast.
“But the moment we enter the cave, prepare to fight your way through!” he finished after he and Corporal Marcus shot them dead.
“Wh-what about me?!” squeaked the injured pegasus.
“Just stay behind us Rainbow!” said Jenkins reassuringly. “We’ll get you to the pelican!”
With that, all six ODSTs entered the cave with their weapons raised and with Rainbow Dash in tow. They prioritized any and all changelings on the ceiling first, followed by the ones directly in their way. Jenkins and Shifty, who were taking up the rear, shot at any changelings trying to give chase.
After nearly tripping over the dead bodies of these bug-like creatures for what felt like an eternity, the group had finally reached the cave entrance; and just like Gunny said, the pelican was lowering itself into view just as they arrived!
“Everyone on! HVT first!” barked Gunny. “That means you, Rainbow! Sergeant! Man the turret!”
“Aye sir!” said Alex, immediately following the pegasus onboard.
He waited until everyone else had gotten on before firing. Meanwhile, Gunny ran to the cockpit.
“We’re all on!” he told the pilot. “Let’s book it!”
As the vehicle began to speed away, the ramp started to rise, eventually shutting out the outside world and allowing silence to fill the passenger compartment. Jenkins had already strapped himself in and was helping Rainbow to do the same.
While buckling her in, he couldn’t help but notice the look on her face: she was looking past him, towards the now closed-off entrance, her frazzled mane slightly covering her eyes, which were wide in shock with pupils that were far smaller than he’d ever seen before.
Combine that with her shallow breathing and well, she was really carrying her heart on her sleeve!
“Hey! Hey! It’s over,” he told her reassuringly, influencing her to make eye-contact. “You’re safe now.”
She only stared at him with a disbelieving look, to which Jenkins took off his helmet and decided to take a more serious tone.
“Look, I’m not going to ask you if you’re alright, because clearly you aren’t,” he said.
This caught Rainbow off-guard. She thought he’d keep talking kindly after what she’d been though?
“I don’t know what you’ve been through,” he continued, seemingly answering her question. “Though, I guarantee it wasn’t pleasant!”
He placed a hand on her shoulder.
“But I can say this: you are going home,” he said in his most assuring voice. “You’re going to see your friends and family again, and you’re going to be okay!”
She cracked a smile at the thought of seeing her friends again. She recalled how it wasn’t too long ago when she was considering that an impossibility!
“See? See?!” said Jenkins, smiling himself and giving Rainbow a mild nuggie. “There’s a smile!”
Rainbow could only giggle, now recalling the tickle-fight she’d had with him just a few days prior.
“If you can crack a smile after all that shit,” said Jenkins reassuringly. “Anything is possible!”
The pegasus wiped the tears away from her eyes and put a hoof over the hand Jenkins had placed upon her shoulder.
“Thank you-AAH!”
The entire cabin rattled violently as the pelican was struck by something!
“Shit!” Jenkins exclaimed before putting his helmet back on.
One of their green bolts hit the left wing engine! he heard the pilot say over the radio. We can still hold, but we’ll need-
Two sudden rounds of wild shaking in rapid succession interrupted her.
FUCK! They got the right-wing and rear-left engines too! We’re going down!
She didn’t need to say it, as the group of seven could already feel the g-forces kicking in!
Brace for impact!
...
August 11, 2558 0156 hours Somewhere 200 miles southeast of Ottapaw Biome: Semi-Arid Desert with Much Undergrowth
The stillness of night just northwest of the mountainous tundra was shattered by a flaming UNSC pelican dropship smashing through what little shrubs and trees existed in its way.
It finally came to rest when the front end smashed directly into a large, dead desert tree.
As the ramp began to lower, a squadron of four changelings landed near the wreckage to investigate.
All four were cut down in an instant the moment Sgt. Alex Thompson and Corporal Marcus Williams appeared from inside the pelican. The two hopped out and began to survey the area.
The two ODSTs had the night-vision setting turned on behind their visors; Alex scanned the area in front of them while Marcus had turned around and scanned the area behind the fallen, burning aircraft.
“The coast is clear,” said the British Corporal into his helmet mic. “For now…”
Rainbow shook her head violently with panicked breaths, ridding herself of oppressive dizziness. She squirmed in her seat unable to unbuckle herself and leave! Thankfully, Jenkins was there to do it for her, since he had been less fazed by the impact.
Stumbling onto the warming metal floor, she made her way to the cockpit and shoved the door open. The scene nearly made her barf.
“Hey! *cough**cough* The pilot alri-? Aww FUCK!” Ogden shrieked as he too viewed the grisly scene before Rainbow.
The former aviator had been impaled through the chest by the now burning trunk of a desert tree, her head impaled by a smaller, secondary branch through her visor.
“At least she didn’t suffer,” said Jenkins somberly a moment later, prompting the pegasus in front of him to experience a pang of guilt.
“Well, we can’t stay in here,” said Gunny from behind as everyone felt the cabin start cooking them alive. “Sidney, grab that medkit. Marcus, Alex, clear a perimeter outside. Jenkins?! How’s the pilot?!”
“The pilot’s down!” the PFC called back.
“Shit,” was Gunny’s only response. “Shifty, you’re with me. Help me configure the fail-safes in this thing so we don’t blow up!”
“How do you know what to do?” asked Shifty as he and Gunny ran past Ogden Jenkins and Rainbow Dash before seeing the body. “Jesus!”
“I used to pilot various aircraft myself back in the day,” Gunny answered stoically as he got to work on the touchscreens. “Mostly some stolen Covenant Banshees here and there, but it’s all the same you know? Can you unhook that compressor for me?”
“Shit…I’ll just take your word for it I guess,” the still repulsed Private responded as he went over to the panel his superior was pointing at. “Sir.”
The coast is clear. came Marcus’ voice over their helmet radios. For now…
Rainbow Dash was now really starting to sweat from the heat.
“Jenkins, get Rainbow outside,” ordered Gunny. “For the time being, she’s safer out there than she is in here.”
“Aye, sir! C’mon Dashie,” said Ogden, pulling at her shoulder. “Let’s go!”
“Wait!” she said, teary-eyed and pointing at the pilot’s maimed corpse. “What about-?”
“She’s dead Rainbow!” he interrupted, practically yanking her towards the exit. “We gotta leave ’er! C’mon!”
Too shocked at the ease with which he uttered those words, the cerulean pegasus reluctantly obeyed, sobbing the whole way out.
...
Shifty exited the pelican after a few minutes and approached the rest of his squad. In doing so, he couldn’t help but overhear the conversation Ogden Jenkins and Rainbow Dash were having with each other.
“She’s dead because of me!” cried Rainbow as she rocked back and forth in the fetal position. “Tell me that wasn’t our only way out!”
Sidney had tossed the medkit over to Jenkins, who was now using its contents to treat Rainbow’s injured wings. He slowly and methodically wrapped white athletic tape around her chest.
“It was not our only ride!” said Jenkins matter-of-factly from behind. “The Infinity can always send another, it’ll just take a little longer. We’ll find you another way out!”
“And damn right she died for you!” Sgt. Alex interjected. “She understood how important you are, and was willing to accept that risk.”
By then, Jenkins had finished tying the white tape into a bow. The pegasus gave a small squeak when he pulled it tight.
He then packed up the medkit and stowed it away inside his backpack before kneeling down in front of Rainbow.
“That’s right,” said Jenkins, holding her by her shoulders once again. “This is all for you! You hear me?”
She just looked at the ground, still trying to process it all.
“Just do what we say, and try not to worry! We’ll all make it outta this!” he finished. “You don’t see any of us freaking out, do you?”
“Well, not on the outside at least,” said Sidney.
“What he said,” agreed Shifty.
Jenkins simply gave them both a look through his visor as if to say, “You’re not helping…”
In the meantime, Gunny hopped out of the burning pelican and walked over to the group of six.
“Electronics are mostly fried, but the fail-safes have all been activated,” he briefed. “The flames should eventually die down and what’s left of it can be recovered when the war’s over.”
“Good stuff, sir!” said Sidney, to which Gunny nodded.
“It looks like we’re still clear somehow,” said Marcus, continuing to scan the darkened horizon with night-vision.
“Yeah, but soon they’ll find the bodies and the pelican completely empty,” said Sgt. Alex. “Then they’ll be back on our asses! But, for the moment, sure: somehow they think we’re all dead.”
“Good,” Gunny responded as he looked at the ground, pointing behind himself with his thumb. “A moment of silence then, for the pilot.”
All six humans simply hung their heads for a few seconds, the soft rumble of fire licking away at the downed pelican filling the silence. Rainbow Dash only watched on at them, observing their quiet requiem.
“Infinity’s trying to contact me,” said Gunny somberly, finally breaking the silence. “Excuse me while I take this…”
Jenkins pulled out the piece of purple cloth he’d ripped from General Hive’s robe, turning to the rest of the group as his squad leader pulled himself off to the side.
“I was going to wrap this around one of your injured wings,” he said to Rainbow as everyone else listened. “But, I’m thinking now there’d be a better use for it.”
With that, he rolled the piece of purple cloth into a ball and chucked it into the flames.
Everyone slowly stood around him, watching as the fire consumed the ripped piece of purple robe in a glowing blaze. Rainbow just came and sat beside the PFC.
Wordlessly, he just rested a hand atop her dome and started stroking the mane. A now mutual understanding overcame them both: they must move on, for it’s either that or they all perish here and now.
...
August 11, 2558 0205 hours Somewhere 200 miles southeast of Ottapaw
Sometime later, Gunny had huddled everyone into a circle.
“Lasky says he doesn’t want to risk another pelican flying into changeling airspace, so we’ll just have to hoof it,” he briefed before looking over at Rainbow. “No pun intended.”
“I didn’t know humans used that phrase,” she mused.
“If we can escape under the cover of darkness,” Alvarez continued. “We can, in theory, reach a point where they can send one in safely. If worse comes to worst, Shadow Company and our half of Gypsy Company should be through the Broken Leylands by noon tomorrow on their way to liberate Canida, and we’ll just link up with them.”
“How long would that take?” asked Alex.
The Gunnery Sergeant just shook his head and shrugged.
“God knows,” he answered, locking his shotgun onto his back. “That all depends on how much resistance they encounter the closer they get to Ottapaw.”
“Why are these city names so similar to the ones back on Earth?” asked Jenkins, a Canadian himself. “I guess only god knows that too?”
“Indeed,” said Gunny, looking back at Rainbow once again. “In any case, your home ain’t gettin' any closer. So, if north is where it’s at, then that’s the direction we start walking! Oorah?”
The rest of the group nodded in agreement as he stood up.
“Then let’s get moving, ‘cause it ain’t gettin' darker either!” he finished, shouldering his silenced SMG.
“Oorah!” said the other five ODSTs in unison as they and their singular, cerulean pegasus companion began to fade into the shadows.
...
August 11, 2558 0200 hours Outskirts of Manehattan
One stop before it would enter the city, Greyblade and Cinder Pine debarked from the train that had left Ponyville a half-hour ago.
There it was in the distance: Manehattan, still somewhat crumbling in some parts, still burning in others, but still as alive and bustling as ever.
“There’s the city,” said Cinder. “C’mon! If we hurry, we’ll make it to the docks by sunrise!”
Their eyes were nearly bloodshot from how exhausted they felt. They had both been travelling all night, since they had left Sweet Apple Acres the afternoon before.
Still, Cinder felt on-edge. He trotted uneasily for some ways, for he was headed to where his traumatic experience had happened not even three days ago! However, it wasn’t too long before he realized the only hoofsteps he was hearing were his own.
He stopped and turned around to see that his marefriend hadn’t even moved from her original spot, nervously rubbing her left hoof with her right. She’d probably be shivering from the land-breeze coming from the lake was it not for the tan jacket she was wearing over her white t-shirt.
Come to think of it, he might’ve been shivering too was it not for the scarf she’d lent him. He sighed an exhausted breath, then trotted back over to the princess.
“Look, whatever it is your feeling right now, I guarantee it’s the same thing I’m feeling,” he said before pointing at the skyscrapers behind him. “We both just had the worst day of our lives in that city, but right now, it’s our best way out. We discussed this, remember?”
“Well, you got part of the story right,” Greyblade responded, looking up past him at the city. “I also feel guilty for just…leaving.”
Now she looked at him, and he could once again see tears coming from her sky-blue eyes. This time however, they appeared to be tears of anger and frustration.
“We just got up and left without even saying goodbye!” she said angrily. “Who the hay does that?!”
“We left a note,” said the brown stallion, as if that solved all their problems.
“Oh come on, Cinder! You know it’s still rude, especially after how much hospitality they showed us…”
Cinder said nothing for a while.
“You’ve changed,” he said finally. “You know that right?”
Greyblade just stared back at the cityscape. They were alone on the platform, having been the only two to get off at this stop.
“What if one of them recognizes me?” she asked finally. “Just like that little filly back on the farm?”
Cinder simply looked at her, before wordlessly taking her blonde braid in his hoof.
“Ow! Hey!” she protested. “What the-?! What are you doing?!”
“There are plenty of blonde ponies around here,” he said as he fiddled with her mane. “But not many with a braid like yours.”
After a few moments, Cinder pulled out a plastic braid holder from Greyblade’s mane, and her blonde locks fell around her visage once again.
“There! We just needed to loosen up a little!” said Cinder, then looking at the fashion tool in his hoof. “This is a thing?!”
“How would you like it if I just started tugging at your mane?!” said Greyblade, annoyed. “And yeah, Granny Smith let me borrow one. I mean, it just seemed way more convenient than doing it manually, so…”
“Huh,” was all Cinder Pine could say as he tossed it aside. “I suppose she won’t miss it. You feelin’ better now? ‘Bout going in there?”
Greyblade thought about this for a moment. Now that he mentioned it, untying her mane felt like it had released a lot of bent-up anxiety!
She then reached into her saddlebag and pulled out the plain-black sports hat she was given when she was released from captivity.
“Just one last touch,” she said before putting it on. “That’s better.”
Cinder and Greyblade exchanged almost childlike smiles. Looking towards the distant, tall buildings, the grey mare took a tentative breath as her mane blew in the breeze.
“This is it then?” she asked.
“We’ve just gotta make our way to the docks,” Cinder responded. “Then we’ll never, ever visit this city again!”
Greyblade just giggled like a foal when he said that.
“I’d like that,” she said before she started trotting. “I’d like that a lot…”
...
August 11, 2558 0600 hours Somewhere 185 miles southeast of Ottapaw Biome: Semi-Arid Desert with Little Undergrowth
As the sun began to rise, Gunnery Sergeant David Alvarez raised a fist to stop the group.
“My map’s telling me we’ve gone about fifteen miles on foot,” he said. “There’s little vegetation around to give us cover, so we’ll start digging foxholes by those bushes.”
“Fifteen miles in four hours?” said PFC Ogden Jenkins. “Damn right we need a break!”
“We’ll just dig three,” Gunny continued. “Two men per foxhole. Rainbow, you’ll be with me and Jenkins.”
“Okay,” said Rainbow exhaustedly.
“Alright, you heard the man!” said Sgt. Alex Thompson. “Everyone get out your shovels and hop to it!”
Alvarez pulled out his canteen and took a sip before tossing it to Jenkins.
“Make sure she gets some,” he ordered, smiling. “She definitely needs it more than you!”
He didn’t have to him twice, Jenkins could see the first leg of their journey had already taken its toll on Rainbow: her mane was matted to her fur with sweat and she was panting hard.
He knew she was being forced to undertake this long hike off the back of brutal torture, the likes of which he couldn’t even fathom, yet somehow she seemed more exhausted than she should have been.
Regardless, he handed her the canteen without taking a sip himself. She pointed at him instead of taking it.
“Wha-what about-?” she started.
“I have my own,” he interrupted, thrusting the canteen into her hoof. “You need to drink up. We should be worrying about you way more than you should be worrying about us!”
With that, Rainbow sat on her haunches and wordlessly began gulping down the water. She hadn’t thought about it much until now, but aside from the bucket of ice-cold water that got poured over her one time, the changelings had just barely been feeding her food and drink the whole time she was held captive.
As a result, this was by far the freshest and tastiest water she’d consumed in a long time!
“We’ll have to search for another source of water soon,” said Corporal Marcus Williams. “Our canteens won’t last us forever.”
“Agreed,” said Gunny, looking towards the horizon. “I was just thinking: that clump of vegetation over that way could be an oasis.”
“I can go check it out later,” Jenkins volunteered. “Once we’re finished digging, right?”
“Why don’t you go now, yeah? It doesn’t look like there are changelings too close by, so let’s prioritize the water situation,” said Gunny. “And take Sidney with you, so you’ve got a combat buddy. Rainbow Dash too, she still looks parched.”
Sidney grabbed his silenced SMG as he stood up, before showing some stunned body language when he looked at the pegasus.
“Oh, shit…” was all he said.
Jenkins turned to see Rainbow sheepishly holding Gunny’s canteen upside-down with no water coming out of it.
“And you can take my canteen with you, too,” Alvarez finished.
“Aye, sir,” said Jenkins.
...
August 11, 2558 0610 hours UNSC Infinity Bridge
Captain Thomas Lasky joined Dr. Glassman and Dr. Halsey on the bridge.
“You’re lucky I don't need to sleep, sir,” said Roland, having observed Fireteam Icebreaker’s movements all night.
“Or what? You’d self-destruct the whole ship?” said Captain Thomas Lasky jokingly as he approached the holo-table while stretching. “Or fly us all into Eternity’s Crossing?”
“Is that what they call that ocean over there?...And yeah...probably…”
“How’s their progress?”
“They’ve managed about fifteen miles since 0200, and it looks like Private Morgan and PFC Jenkins are about to discover that oasis.”
“Probably to get extra water, right?”
“My thoughts exactly. Strange that they would send Rainbow with them…”
“We have no clue what kind of tourture she had to endure, and she had to walk basically twenty-four klicks on top of all that? She’ll be extremely dehydrated.”
“That reminds me: I can’t read her vitals from here. I sent them down with an instrument that can run the scan, but they still haven’t used it!”
“Perhaps it broke during the drop?” asked Dr. Glassman.
“It’s possible,” said Halsey.
“We could just extract them now,” Lasky suggested. “Send down another pelican? Skip the middleman and run the bioscan up here?”
“If the coast is clear we might as well,” said Roland. “Lemme check.”
...
August 11, 2558 0612 hours Somewhere 185 miles southeast of Ottapaw
“With any luck, they’ll just send the next pelican down before we even finish,” said Sgt. Alex after heaving a hefty pile of dirt to the side.
“They’d better!” said Private Eugene Phillips. “These uniforms didn’t come with air-conditioning, you know?”
“We’re all painfully aware, Shifty,” said Gunny. “I still haven’t seen a single changeling, despite being behind enemy lines. A quick in-and-out should do the job.”
As if on cue, Roland’s voice filled their headsets.
Icebreaker, this is Infinity! Come in Icebreaker!”
“Go Roland,” Gunny responded.
You’ve got a squadron of twelve changelings incoming from the south!
...
August 11, 2558 0611 hours Somewhere 185 miles southeast of Ottapaw
Rainbow Dash and her two human guardians emerged from the greenery into the oasis. The mare nearly collapsed as she knelt down take huge gulps of water.
“God damn, Rainbow!” said Jenkins. “What if it was poisoned?”
She didn’t respond. It tasted clean enough for her.
She drank and drank, periodically splashing water over her face and head as that was her only means of efficiently bathing herself for the time being.
The marines simply watched on as they refilled their canteens.
“Why didn’t we just bring everyone’s canteens?” asked Sidney.
“We’re in no rush,” Jenkins responded. “Gunny says we weren’t pursued, so…”
Hearing this, Rainbow slowly brought herself to a stop and just sat on all fours by the pond, eyes closed and trying her hardest to relax.
In fact, she was almost about to lose track of time! But what snapped out of her trance was the concerned gaze on each ODST’s face. They both looked like they’d just seen a ghost.
“Changelings!” hissed Sidney.
“Shit!” said Jenkins grabbing Rainbow by the neck and chest. “Everyone into the water!”
“What?!” Rainbow squeaked as Sidney dived in. “Wait! Aah!”
The PFC had already dragged her in waist-deep!
“Just take a deep breath and try to stay calm!” he told her, now neck-deep.
Seeing no other option, Rainbow Dash took in the biggest gulp of air she could muster before covering her mouth and nose with her hooves. The next thing she knew, she was dragged under, the lukewarm water now surrounding her head.
She had held her breath underwater before, but never when she couldn’t control when she would come up! She knew it wouldn’t be long before she would want nothing more than to surface, but it was then that three changelings flew into view and stopped just above the water.
...
Meanwhile, the other four members of Fireteam Icebreaker rested on their backs inside of their half-finished foxholes, aiming up at the hovering changelings. The remaining nine had yet to spot them, but it wouldn’t be long until that changed and the four humans knew it.
“If this is a full squadron, then they’ve got four flights of three,” said Sgt. Alex. “See? Those three are checking the oasis. That means they must be grouped together.”
“Ooh...I didn’t know you read up on Air Force terminology, Sarge,” teased Shifty.
“Shut up Private,” said Alex good-naturedly. “You know it pays to know that stuff!...I’m not embarrassed to admit that…”
“Sure ya aren’t,” Shifty continued.
“Can it you two! God damn,” Gunny hissed, not taking his eyes off the hovering hostiles. “Some airpower would be hella useful right now. We could use the cover, since I’ve been told this is just a scouting party.”
“There’s gunna be more?!” said Shifty.
“Way more,” Alvarez responded, his gaze unwavering. “These guys are just part of a reinforcement wave headed towards Canida, so regardless of whether or not they spot us, a swarm of changelings will control this area in the next few minutes.”
“This is fucked!” whispered Marcus. “We’ll need to keep moving to avoid them, but we’ve also gotta rest! What do we do?”
“We’re resting here tonight, that much is final,” said Gunny. “The best we can do right now is hide in these bushes.”
His eyes finally shifted from the sky to the group.
“If they spot us, we shoot ’em, then hide the bodies and hope the rest don’t sniff us out later…”
With that, he returned to aiming at one changeling’s head.
...
Please leave... thought Rainbow, feeling the discomfort start to set in. Please!
But the three changelings just wouldn’t. And as if they were intentionally trying to drown her, two of them slowly began to drift downward as she and Jenkins looked up at them.
Come on Rainbow! Push yourself! said the athletic part of her. You have to push yourself! You just have to!
The water was barely murkey enough to hide them. As the two hostiles landed on the spot where Rainbow and the two ODSTs were just seconds prior, they began scanning the ground; perhaps they were examining the footprints?
Hold your breath! she practically screamed in her mind.
She shut her eyes in desperation and began to tremble violently in Jenkins’ arms, to the point where he had to hold her across her chest with one arm, and across her full waist with the other, just to hold her back!
It was at this point that the two ODSTs noticed the two changelings start squinting at the water’s surface.
Jenkins looked over to Sidney, who acknowledged that they were both seeing the same thing, before Jenkins released Rainbow Dash just a moment later.
If they see me and kill me, then they kill me. she thought ironically, as those were her survival instincts finally winning out
But I need to breath, NOW!
The pegasus mare burst from the water, taking a few massively deep breaths before coughing and spitting everywhere. Thankfully for her, the changelings were taken aback by her sudden appearance more than anything.
This gave the ODSTs the time they needed.
Jenkins swiftly burst out of the water in front of Rainbow Dash, brandishing his silenced M6C pistol, and shot both changelings square in the face between their blue, reflectionless eyes.
Sidney meanwhile had burst out as well, pre-aiming at the third changeling providing overwatch and shooting him in the gut multiple times from below.
The changeling dropped his spear as he fell, but as Sidney attempted to get out of the way, he slipped on a rock and the Australian fell on his back underwater. Rainbow looked over to where he was just in time to see it happen.
She screamed for a brief moment, stopping only when she covered her mouth with her hooves, as she watched the tip of the spear pierce the water’s surface and get lodged in something below.
...
“They’ve been made!” said Sgt. Alex. “Engage! Engage!”
The silenced rounds from Icebreaker’s SMGs tore into the changelings like they were Covenant Drones, and in seconds the other nine changeling bodies hit the sand in pools of green blood.
“Each of you drag one back here, then cover the rest with sand,” ordered Gunny, practically jumping to his feet. “The sand itself should absorb the blood. Go!”
...
Rainbow Dash remained frozen in place, she was too shocked to move. She saw a red mist rising from under the spear, which was stuck in the now calm water almost vertically. Tears began to flow from her eyes.
Still breathing hard from having to hold her breath for so long, she instinctively began to swim over to Sidney with a kind of morbid curiosity. The moment she looked through the clear water however, she immediately regretted her decision.
She fell to her knees, the water still shallow enough to keep her upper chest out of the water. The spear had broken through his visor, and through the semi-transparent red blood slowly oozing out she could see his mangled face.
The worst part were his eyes, wide in shock and forever a snapshot of his final moments.
Despite being out of breath just moments ago, she was suddenly finding it impossible to simply inhale once! It wasn’t until Jenkins waded over next to her that she finally broke from her trauma-induced trance.
“God dammit, FUCK!” Ogden exclaimed as Rainbow finally took one massively deep breath before bawling into his armor.
The two of them stayed like that for a few moments, Rainbow continuing to grieve as the PFC just looked on at his fallen friend, until Jenkins finally brought the pegasus mare back to their piece of sand.
Rainbow just crawled out of the water and laid flat on the sand, still wailing loudly in heartbreak as Jenkins activated his helmet microphone.
“Gunny? We’ve go-we’ve got a man down,” he reported. “Sidney, sir he’s...he’s gone…”
...
August 11, 2558 0700 hours UNSC Infinity Bridge
“At least Private Morgan did his job keeping Rainbow safe,” said Lasky somberly.
“She’s the only one who can power the ‘loyalty’ Forerunner artifact,” said Glassman. “Need we remind ourselves…”
“It could have certainly been worse,” said Halsey.
“Yeah, I mean, can you imagine if that news had arrived just one minute later?!” Roland speculated.
“Let’s not. Just leave the past where it is: in the past,” said Lasky, before he put a fist up to his mouth and spoke under his breath. “Thank goodness Fluttershy isn’t here to see this…”
August 11, 2558 0710 hours Somewhere 185 miles southeast of Ottapaw
The team had hid Rainbow Dash in the brush of the oasis as they hid the bodies. Jenkins was dragging the last one under a large, low-lying plant when he saw her on her knees facing a tree trunk, clutching her head with her hooves and rocking back-and-forth.
“They’ll never stop,” Rainbow repeated between sobs. “They’ll never stop…they’ll never stop…they’ll never stop…”
Jenkins just placed a hand on her shoulder.
“I hate seeing you like this,” was all he said.
“I’m sorry.”
“For what? You have nothing to be sorry for.”
“Yes I do!”
She spun to face him, eyes clearly full of tears.
“Your friend died because of me!” she cried. “I’m just a burden on all of you!”
“Hey! Stop that! That isn’t fair to you,” he said, grabbing her face. “It is not your fault that you were captured! So how in the universe could it be your fault that he’s dead? Huh?!”
The traumatized mare just continued to stare.
“Listen to me,” the PFC continued. “Breathe!”
She started to inhale.
“As deep as you can, in through your nose and out your mouth, like you’re blowing into a straw,” he continued in a more soothing voice. “Just focus on your breath and follow me back to our foxholes. Alright?”
She nodded feverishly, shakily breathing in-and-out as instructed. Jenkins wasn’t sure if this would work on a pony, but by this point he knew he had to try!
She did appear to start calming down though, indicating that it was probably working. So with that, he stood up and began walking out of the oasis with the pegasus in tow.
When they reached their makeshift encampment, they were met with some angry faces.
“How?! How did it happen?!” said Shifty. “I swear I’m gunna kill’em all!”
Though the entire squad was feeling the same way, they could understand Eugene’s distinctly high levels of frustration. Everyone knew that the two Privates in particular were quite close.
“I should’ve gone with him!” he continued. “I should’ve-OW!”
Sergeant Alex Thompson hit him over the head with one hand before his subordinate could finish.
“Quit thinking about what-ifs for fuck’s sake!” Alex barked at him. “You were following orders and there was nothing you could do! What? You think Ogden over there didn’t try his best?!”
“No sir,” said Shifty somberly.
“The last thing we need right now is to be pointing fingers. Now focus the fuck up, man!”
“The Sergeant’s right,” said Alvarez. “Changelings will be swarming this area any minute now.”
He then looked directly at Shifty while still addressing everyone present.
“We lost a good warrior,” Gunny continued. “But he wouldn’t want us to lose our focus over him! We’ve still got a mission to complete and he’d want us to see it through, do you all understand that?”
“Aye sir,” said Corporal Marcus Williams as the rest of the team nodded.
“Good. Now, taking inventory of our situation, we’ve hidden the bodies as best we could. Yes, the changelings will be here soon, but our priority is still to rest-up. We had a long trek last night and it won’t be our last. Are we all tracking on that?”
Everyone nodded again.
“Okay, so we’re going to try and sleep through the day. We’ve at least got a little bit of shade to work with, so definitely try to get proper rest. Marcus? Were all three foxholes finished?”
“Only two out of the three, sir,” the Brit responded.
“That’s fine. That means then that we’ll have three men per completed foxhole, or rather mine will have two men and one pegasus. Keep your heads down, asses lower, and rotate watch amongst yourselves, but make sure only one of you is awake at any given time. Oorah?”
“Oorah!” came the ODSTs’ unified voices.
...
August 11, 2558 0730 hours Manehattan Streets
8 A.M.
They had to wait until 8 in the morning for the docks to reopen, and it was painful.
The two of them sat together on a roadside bench, overlooking the very space where hundreds of their own kin were slaughtered less than three days prior.
Cinder Pine, straight-faced and exhausted, solemnly munched away at one of the few apples he and Greyblade had “borrowed” from Applejack’s farm. He looked to his right to see his companion holding hers virtually untouched.
“C’mon Princess,” said the black-and-green-maned earth pony. “We’ve been travelling all night with no sleep. You should eat something!”
The Dalepony mare slowly took a bite without looking his way.
“I may be your princess,” she said after swallowing. “But you don’t need to keep addressing me as such. I’m also just your friend.”
“Would you prefer ‘Grey’ instead, your highness?” he said endearingly.
She smiled, still looking at the lake.
“That one I’ve reserved just for you,” she said.
Their lightened mood didn’t last long, as their thoughts once again went to the trauma they now associated with the very spot they were now looking at.
Cinder suddenly heard a sob choke up from his right. He looked to see Greyblade starting to tear up.
“Can we walk to another bench?” she asked though her tears.
“Sure! Yeah,” the brown-coated stallion replied almost instantly.
“I-I just don’t think I can be here right now.”
“Yeah, whatever you need.”
The two of them got up from the bench and began walking into the city. Greyblade had to practically lean on Cinder Pine as they went.
Cinder knew her combat skills were far superior to his, but he also knew that, despite having been taught by the best professors in the known world and trained by Gildedale’s best warriors, she lacked the most important piece of the puzzle: experience.
Experience is always the best teacher, which explained why, despite the disparity in training and skill, he was still taking the loss of their battalion far better than her. He had watched many of his own kin be killed by Prairie Drakes in front of him before, but she had not, at least not to the same extent.
He was battle-hardened. She was not.
It wasn’t long until they found another roadside bench to sit on, this time surrounded by the tall Manehattan buildings. Some still had their lights on, still anticipating morning.
Though the cityscape around them was quite beautiful, the grey earth pony mare and her brown stallion companion were only aware of each other.
They held each other, keeping warm against both the chill of dawn and the chill of the sea-breeze coming off the lake, as Greyblade continued to cry softly in front of Cinder Pine.
“Bad things happen, Grey,” said Cinder after some time. “It’s okay.”
“How are the deaths of so many of our own okay to you?!” she replied, just above a whisper.
“Because,” he started with an assertive tone. “Our people are killed all the time, to the Komaga! Hundreds every year. You’ve just been too sheltered your whole life to see it.”
Her blue eyes locked with his brown ones.
“We don’t normally go out in these numbers, but it’s all the same to me,” he continued, brushing aside some of her blonde mane. “As cold-hearted as that may sound, that’s the truth.”
She didn’t want to admit it, but he was right. In fact, she hadn’t just grown up sheltered: she grew up privileged!
“It wasn’t fair for you to be thrown into that,” he finished.
She ripped her gaze away from him, pulling the brim of her cap down in front of her face with her hoof. Cinder took no offense, as he could tell she wasn’t trying to be rude.
She was feeling shameful. He placed a consoling hoof on top of her head and let her have her moment.
“Everything alright here?” asked a passer-by.
“Yes,” said Cinder before looking up. “We’re alrigh-”
He trailed off. This caused Greyblade to look up at him, then towards whoever he was talking to.
She froze. A human, a patrolling UNSC marine, was standing before them.
The very species that had wrought destruction upon their countrymen.
“You sure?” he pressed, showing a smile. “You look like you’ve seen a ghost!”
He was an older-looking human, wrinkles adorning his face, but still looked as tough, if not tougher, than the rest!
“Wha-what do you want?” asked Cinder fearfully.
The marine gave him the benefit of the doubt, seeing as it was a little chilly out. He shook his head.
“Nothin’. I just saw that you two looked distraught about somthin’,” he said plainly. “Is there anything I can do to help?”
“N-not really,” said Greyblade dismissively. “My coltfriend and I have just been through a lot recently and…”
“And that’s all you need to know,” Cinder Pine completed. “We’d rather not discuss the details of it.”
Greyblade nodded at this, noticing the subtle blush on Cinder’s cheek, probably because she’d just called him her “coltfriend”.
“Fine by me,” said the human, shrugging. “I didn’t ask.”
After saying that, the marine did something unexpected: he sat down on the ground beside the bench and placed his rifle in his lap.
“But d’ya know what helps me get through tough times, tough situations?” he continued. “If you don’t mind my askin’?”
As weird as this was, the two Daleponies were curious, and this human’s timing was almost too perfect.
“Not at all,” said Greyblade with a forced smile.
“No,” said Cinder. “What?”
“I breathe,” he said simply. “Except, I think about it.”
Now the two Daleponies showed their genuine intrigue, physically leaning in to listen.
“Rapidly in through your nose and mouth, then out through the mouth like you’re blowing through a straw. You can do it at any time, no matter how you’re feeling,” the human continued. “Like a form of...meditation.”
“It’s that simple?” asked Greyblade.
“Yeah! Though, I mean you may not feel happy after a few breaths, but you’ll at least stop feeling sad, mad, or anxious…because now you’re not focused on whatever it was that made you feel that way in the first place!”
After guiding them through the technique a couple times, the Greyblade and Cinder Pine did it on their own for about half a minute.
To their surprise, it was actually working! As the human stood up, Cinder came to an amusing realization.
“What’s your name, kind sir?” he asked with a smile. “I don’t think we even asked!”
“Master Sergeant Mark Stacker,” said the marine with an informal bow. “At your service.”
“Thank you,” said Greyblade.
“Don't mention it. I just thought I’d add a little bit of value to your day,” said Mark with a wink. “Free of charge!”
He then began to run back to his patrolling squad.
“It should warm up soon by the way,” he finished. “Don’t you worry!”
The two Daleponies now sat in what they could only discern as shock, but in a good way.
“Weren’t we taught something like that in training?” asked Cinder, finally breaking the silence.
“I’d be lying if I told you I remembered everything from mine,” said Greyblade.
Another pause. They had to admit, they were feeling different, better if anything.
“Maybe, humans aren’t all bad?” Greyblade posed after some time and thought.
“Yeah, I agree,” responded Cinder with a nod. “And I was the one they tried to kill!”
“Kind of like how we attacked Equestria, but we’re not all bad…”
Cinder Pine looked over at Greyblade with a sly smile.
“You know, Grey,” said Cinder. “Now you’re starting to sound like a princess!”
She smiled back at him.
“Thanks,” she said.
She took one more breath before hopping off the bench.
“We should start walking back to the docks,” she suggested. “They should open soon.”
“Good Idea,” said Cinder with a nod.
As they walked, the brown stallion thought he’d acknowledge something.
“You know, Grey,” he started. “I’m glad you recognized and admitted that you were quite spoiled in your youth!”
“You’re right. I was only there because my dad’s the King!” she deadpanned. “I wasn’t qualified.”
“No you weren’t,” he said. “But give yourself some credit! Based on the orders we were getting, it didn’t seem like you were totally incompetant! You were the one who figured out that the human's faces were the only exposed part of their body, after all...”
“Stop!” said Greyblade, breaking a small smile. “I’m no General or Field Marshal.”
“Well, probably not anymore.”
This cracked her up, soon breaking the blonde mare into laughter. She leaned on him slightly, continuing to giggle while giving Cinder a few love-taps on the chest.
Finally, they reached the docks yet again, except this time they were no longer bothered by their memories. The human named Mark had given them a trick that actually worked!
They both then looked past the water toward the horizon. In the morning light of Celestia’s sun rising behind them, they could just barely see the golden fields in the distance, fields that were so familiar to them.
“You can almost see it from here,” said Cinder. “Home.”
When Greyblade heard this, she unexpectedly felt a wave of relief come over her. After a moment of thought while still looking at the distant fields, she realized: whether a grand welcoming party awaited her, or punishment for treason, she was ready.
She looked over to a small boat where a fishing-pony was reading his boat.
“Looks like that one’s ready to set sail,” she said, pointing.
“We still have bits to pay him, don’t we?” asked Cinder.
“Yeah,” said Greyblade with a nod. “Let’s go home.”
...
August 11, 2558 1031 hours Somewhere 185 miles southeast of Ottapaw
Rainbow was lying down on all fours in the newly made foxhole across from Gunny and Jenkins. She sat quietly, expressionless.
The two across from her were fiddling with some kind of device with a screen on it.
“So,” she started. “When do I stay up?”
“Excuse me?” asked Gunny.
“For the watch?” she continued with feigned eagerness in her voice.
“Oh no, we’ll handle that,” said Jenkins. “You get as much rest as you possibly can. You need it the most out of any of us.”
“I’m overjoyed to hear that you’re so willing to do that,” said Gunny. “But no, you get your sleep, you hear?”
Rainbow just rested her head on her forehooves in silent agreement.
“So, Rainbow,” said Gunny tentatively after some time. “We just need to run a quick scan so we can analyze your vitals.”
“What does that mean?” the mare asked.
“We need to see how healthy you are, so we’re going to point this thing at you for about a minute.”
Unexpectedly, Rainbow’s eyes widened and her pupils shrank, indicating fear.
“What’s wrong?” asked Jenkins, holding up the device. “It won’t hurt, if that’s what you’re wondering?”
“Oh no, nothing’s wrong!” said Rainbow, quickly shaking the look off her face. “You guys do what you need to do.”
Jenkins held a mildly skeptical look. He was aware that Rainbow was withholding some truth and the mare knew it.
Regardless, he seemed to shrug it off as he activated the device. Gunny sat behind him, holding a PDA and a stylus to take notes to send up to the Infinity.
“Oh-kay then,” he said, pointing the device at the ground. “We’ll just need you sit up before we can get started.”
There’s no way it’ll find out, right? she silently dreaded as she sat up onto her haunches. Right?
As the gadget continued to whirr and buzz to life, Jenkins first held it up to her face.
“Alrighty,” he said, beginning to read off the screen. “Brain-waves look pretty hyperactive, but I’d say that’s normal given the situation you’re in.”
He slowly began to move downwards.
Oh gosh! thought Rainbow, getting even more nervous.
“Blood pressure is higher than normal,” the PFC continued. “But again, I’m pretty sure that’s okay for the same reasons. I think we inputted Equestrian data into this thing, so that’s how we’d know what’s normal and what isn’t normal for a pony.”
“So, vital signs normal?” asked Gunny behind him.
“Yes sir,” Jenkins answered.
Rainbow then coughed up some flem.
“Apart from an unhealthy buildup of bacteria in her system, she’s alright so far,” he continued. “Those burn marks don’t seem to be healing very quickly though, but there’s not much we can do about that.”
“How many are there?” asked Alvarez. “Two?”
“No, four. There’s two underneath the bandage I wrapped around her, one on her chest and one on her back, while the other two are on her...flanks.”
He held his hand up in shocked realization.
“Oh god! What did they do?!” he asked, attempting to be tactful. “Isn't that…where your cutie marks are supposed to be?”
“Yes,” she said sadly. “They, had these branding irons-”
She held a hoof up to her mouth, interrupting herself.
“I’m sorry,” said Jenkins after a moment. “I didn’t mean to make you relive that.”
“It’s okay,” she said, still anxious for what was about to come next.
The PFC then moved the device down to her crotch.
Rainbow watched his face through his helmet visor as it shifted from mere worry to outright horror. He looked past the screen to see that the area between her legs was still bruised and reddened, and she knew exactly was he was deducing in his head.
She shut her eyes as tears began to roll once again. All she could do was scream on the inside as Jenkins asked her the very question she dreaded having to answer.
“Rainbow…were you…” he started, genuine concern in his voice. “...raped?...”
She continued to breathe anguished and shaky breaths with a disturbed look on her face as her human friend just looked on.
She finally gave into her emotions as her controlled breathing once again became uncontrollable sobbs.
“Oh my god,” said Jenkins. “How did I not notice earlier?”
The PFC tried to pull her into an embrace, but she smacked his hands away, instead opting to face the wall of the foxhole and bury her face in her forehooves.
Still Jenkins placed a hand on her shoulder, the pegasus not resisting this time.
“Rainbow,” he started slowly. “I’m...so sorry...I don’t know what to say…”
“Then just leave me alone!” she snapped.
“We can’t do that, Rainbow.”
“Bucking leave!”
She showed her angry face, eyes bloodshot in rage. Jenkins was taken aback by this.
“Ogden! It’s alright,” said Gunny as he hit ‘send’ on his PDA before stowing it away. “Let her be.”
Jenkins slowly crouch walked away, looking almost dazed.
“I don’t know what to say,” he whispered to Gunny as they both climbed out of the foxhole.
“You will,” Alvarez responded. “In time.”
“But I’ve never had to deal with something like this before!”
“Jenkins, we both know she’s been through a lot. Give her some time, and give yourself some time. You will know what to say. Trust me!”
“...Aye, sir…”
“I know you. You’ll be fine man, both of you will.”
...
Alone now, Rainbow continued to sob into the wall of the foxhole. Finally, she managed to calm herself enough to catch her breath.
Pulling her face out of the dirt, still teary-eyed and breathing hard, she looked down at one of her forehooves and watched as her tears slowly dripped onto it, saturating the fur.
She shut her eyes again and let her hoof hang at her side, before resting the top of her head on the dirt wall.
A sudden, loud hum coming from behind her caused her to shoot her eyes back open.
She saw a green glow reflecting off the wall she was resting on, and that was enough for panic to start setting in.
Still facing the dirt wall, she slapped her hooves onto the back of her head to protect herself, now regretting having told Jenkins to buck off!
“Turn around!” said the changeling behind her.
She obliged slowly, nearly hyperventilating as she began to face him.
But when she had gotten halfway, the hostile used his staff to force her all the way around, before pinning her back against the wall with it nearly on her neck.
Because her hooves were already up, she could attempt to push the staff off of her, but as she tried resisting, her attacker let off and punched her in the crotch. She squealed and grabbed the area with both hooves.
“Not there,” she croaked. “Not now!”
The changeling then pinned his staff on her neck and pushed her back against the wall yet again. However, due to the circular geometry of the foxhole, the two ends of his staff dug themselves into the dirt, leaving the cerulean mare stuck with the rod just under her chin, but still able to breathe.
The two were now locked in a staring contest for a few moments, before Rainbow acted first.
“Jenkiiiiins!” she yelled. “Heeelp! Help meee!”
No response.
“Fool! You drove him away!” the changeling chuckled.
Rainbow’s heart sank. He was right, and to her horror, his next words were spoken in General Hives’ voice.
“No one, human, or pony, or any creature,” he said as more changelings began to appear behind him. “Is coming to rescue you.”
With that, his snake-like tongue slithered out of his mouth and stuck itself down Rainbow’s throat!
“No! No! Aah! Aaaaaaaaaaa-uck! Ack! Uhhhck!” she choked as her main airway was blocked.
Before she could try breathing through her nose, the changeling placed a forehoof over her nose, then slowly started sliding her down into the corner.
Squirming in resistance and pure panic, she tried multiple times to slap his face with one hoof while pushing back at his staff with the other.
It was no use. The world began to fade to black, and the last thing she felt was her hooves falling limp as the darkness and silence engulfed her.
...rainbow?...
...
“Rainbow?” said Jenkins, shaking his pegasus friend awake. “Wake up! You’re having a nightmare!”
With a long, drawn-out gasp, Rainbow Dash awoke in a cold sweat. She felt her chest with her hooves, then her crotch, then her neck, and finally her face as if checking that her body parts all still existed, before looking at Jenkins with the most sorrowful look he’d ever seen.
“Hey! Hey! Calm down!” he said before she grabbed his helmet, making sure that he was real too. “You were squirming and whimpering, so I-”
He was interrupted by the mare hugging him tightly.
“Oh my gosh! I’m sorry for what I said!” she cried. “Never leave me alone again...please…”
“Whoa, whoa, whoa, slow down,” said Jenkins. “None of us would ever abandon you!”
He returned the hug.
“I’m the one who should be apologizing,” the ODST continued. “I was being too confrontational about the whole thing.”
Rainbow just looked up at him.
“I’ll never ask you about it again, ok?” he finished.
“Thank you,” she said, smiling.
Jenkins could tell her smile was pained, but it was a smile nonetheless.
August 11, 2558 2031 hours Somewhere 185 miles southeast of Ottapaw
As dusk began to overtake the land, Rainbow Dash and the remaining five members of Fireteam Icebreaker were bringing their slumber to a close.
Rainbow dash awoke to find herself resting on Jenkins’ shoulder-pad. One of her arms was nested between him and her while the other rested in his lap. She quickly retracted herself off of him, before looking him up-and-down awkwardly.
He was still fast asleep, and still feeling drowsy herself, the pegasus mare decided not to wake him by moving to rest on the ground next to him.
But as she began to move, a sharp pain shot up her back and through all of her appendages! She audibly gasped as she tensed-up.
“AAH! Ow!” she shrieked as she came to rest on her knees, forehooves brought up near her face and eyes wide in shock.
Every breath that was even remotely too deep resulted in a lightning-bolt of pain up and down her spine, forcing the cerulean pegasus to resort to quick, shallow breathing.
What’s happening to me?! she thought in genuine fear.
She momentarily shut her eyes and loudly inhaled and exhaled through clenched teeth, stirring Jenkins awake.
“Ah! Good evening Rainbow,” he said as he stretched out his arms. “I guess we move out soon, huh?”
He soon noticed the pegasus still had her back to him, sitting in place and quivering as if possessed.
“You alright?” he asked.
“No!” she said in a higher octave as yet more tears began to stream from her eyes, unwilling to even turn her neck. “E-everything hurts! Everything hurts and I can’t move!”
“Oh shit, you must be insanely sore after yesterday,” said Jenkins. “Here, let me help. Where does it hurt the most?”
“It-It s-started at m-my lower back,” she stuttered.
She breathed sharply in her pain as Jenkins began to massage her abdomen.
“Remember what I taught you earlier?” he asked.
“It hurts if I breathe too deep!” she croaked.
“Doesn’t matter. The extra oxygen helps. C’mon.”
Rainbow shakily began to slow her breathing, inhaling quickly before exhaling more slowly as if blowing through a straw.
“Ow!” she squeaked.
“That feel better?” Jenkins asked.
“A little,” she said, slightly lowering her forehooves. “C-can you get my neck too? I don’t know if I can turn it!”
As Jenkins moved his hands up to her neck, Gunny came over with the scanner.
“All of her major muscle groups are hella stiff,” he said. “And it’s not just from the long walk yesterday: this is from all her past few days of torture!”
“H-how do you know that?! AAH!” Rainbow stuttered and squeaked. “Stop! Stop!”
She rotated her neck a couple of times, which felt fine until she winced again with another sharp intake of breath.
“Aahow! Upper back! Upper back!” she said to Jenkins behind him, who then got right on it.
“It’s telling me your muscles haven’t had sufficient time to repair themselves for a couple of days,” Gunny answered finally. “Since we only rescued you this morning, I can only presume…”
“Right,” she said tensely, still wincing. “BUCK!”
“Hey! Keep it down!” Jenkins hissed, still rubbing her clavicle and upper back. “Geeze, I know it’s gotta hurt, but there are still changelings nearby!”
“S-sorry...I-I think that’s enough. Now my legs?”
“Ooooh yeah, those would be sore from yesterday alone! Can you lower yourself? Or do you need help?”
“I got it.”
Rainbow shakily dropped to all fours before lowering herself onto her stomach. As Jenkins began to massage her hind legs, Gunny took this opportunity to state the obvious.
“Rainbow, your...coloration, is waaay to obvious from above,” he said tactfully. “I know we’ll be moving in the dark, but changelings could potentially still spot you from the air and start taking pot-shots.”
“I was born this way!” Dash protested. “What am I supposed to do about that?!”
“Well, for starters,” Gunny said as he pointed at the dirt in front of her. “You could rub that stuff into your mane. If we ever come across mud, that’d be ideal.”
“You can’t be serious,” she deadpanned. “You want me to rub dirt on my head?”
“Actually all over yourself! But hey, it’s your choice, unless you’d actually rather be vaporized by a changeling’s magic fireball tonight?...”
Rainbow scoffed in disgust, but she knew he was right. Without another word, she began throwing the dry soil on top of herself.
“That’s what I thought,” said Gunny.
“Hey! Watch it!” said Jenkins as some of it hit him.
Her frustrated slathering of dirt slowed, until her arms appeared to become limp. It wasn’t long before the two ODSTs began to hear sobs again.
Jenkins slowly stopped massaging her legs as her sobs became her bawling into her forehooves, at which point he quietly motioned to Gunny as if to say, “I can handle it”.
Nodding in understanding, Alvarez quietly climbed out of the foxhole, leaving Jenkins and Rainbow alone.
Jenkins tugged on her shoulder, lifting her back to her knees. It was the ugly kind of crying, the kind where it felt like each of your previous sobs weren’t hard enough.
He warmly embraced her from behind, and she wordlessly held his arms with her forehooves as she struggled for breath.
“Remember what I taught you,” Jenkins said simply as he held her. “Breath.”
Once again she slowed her breathing, focusing on deep inhalation and slow, as if through a straw, exhalation. The Canadian ODST just stroked the mane atop her head as she shakily did so.
“It’s okay,” Jenkins said soothingly. “You’re okay.”
“I saw his face again,” she tried explaining. “I’m not normally like this!”
“I know.”
“I’m not! I’m not! I-I just keep seeing his f-face!”
She buried her face into his arm. So much trauma in such a short period of time. How her little heart was able to take it, he could not know.
“You said we’d all make it out of this,” she finished softly. “Together.”
Oddly enough, it was then that Jenkins finally figured out what he needed to say, what he needed to tell her.
“Rainbow, lemme tell you something: Sidney is fine, and you are fine,” he said, looking down at her. “Here’s why…”
He let go of Rainbow and laid back on the wall of the foxhole. The cerulean blue pegasus turned to look at him, listening intently with tears still quietly streaming down her face.
“You know how you can’t see your own eyes without a mirror?” he started.
Rainbow thought about it for a moment before nodding.
“Well, has that consciousness, which looks through your eyes, ever changed throughout your life?” Jenkins continued. “Through thick and thin? Ever?”
“No,” she said inquisitively, sniffing and rubbing her last tears away. “I don’t think so.”
“And does it change depending on how you feel?”
“Yeah, kind of. Like how a few moments ago I could barely see my own hands because I was crying so much. Or how when I’m angry, I can get a kind of tunnel vision.”
“Well sure, but does the fact that your consciousness looks through your eyes change regardless?”
“No? Maybe? I’m not sure. Why are we talking about this?”
“There’s a point to it, just bare with me! It doesn’t change does it? No matter if you’re sad, happy, or angry, there’s always something looking through your eyes. An experiencer that’s almost, unique to you, right?”
“Yeah?”
“I have one, you have one, and Sidney had one when he was alive, but it doesn’t feel anything. It's just a cold, hard observer. Here’s the thing: that’s you!”
“But, what if I’m killed? Won’t it change then? Won’t it go away? Disappear...forever?”
“No. Actually, in my belief, it just goes to a different body and continues to exist there.”
“You believe in reincarnation?”
“Hey! You know that word. Cool!...And yeah, I do.”
“How do you know that’s true? Where’s your proof?”
“To be honest, I don’t have any. I just have faith that it’s true. Also, it’s the belief system I grew up with, so…I guess the only reason I still believe in it is because, to me, it makes logical sense; it’s how I make sense of where that observer goes if this physical body gives out. Gunny, Marcus, Shifty, all the others?”
He pointed closely at Rainbow’s eyes with two fingers.
“They all have their own faiths,” he said. “Their own beliefs on where this observer goes when we die.”
He retracted his hand and laid back once again.
“But that’s not the point,” he continued. “The point here is: this detached observer, which you can agree is undoubtedly there and which is you, never changes. No matter what!”
Rainbow just stared, almost shocked by this revelation.
“I know it’s a lot to take in,” said Jenkins. “But don’t get too bogged down by the details. Do you think you can repeat what I just told you? In your own words?”
“Uh, maaaybe later?” said Rainbow, looking slightly confused. “But I think I get the gist of it...are you basically trying to tell me I’m indestructible?”
“Kinda, yeah! I mean, how do you think I’ve been able to run and jump into battle without hesitation for all these years?”
The cerulean pegasus nodded wordlessly.
“Exactly. I felt invincible. In fact, I still do!” said the PFC before lightly punching Rainbow on her shoulder. “And right now, we need you to feel invincible too!”
“Right!” said Rainbow confidently.
“Awesome sauce!” said Jenkins before putting up cautious hands. “But remember, your body isn’t invincible! And to complete the mission, we’re gunna need that to come home in one piece alright?”
Rainbow breathed out a focused breath from her mouth.
“Right,” she said more nervously, but still with confidence.
The two then shared a laugh, glad to have relieved some stress.
“So don’t you worry about Sidney either,” Jenkins said finally. “His body is just useless to him now, but his observer is still with us in spirit.”
“I thought he’d be born somewhere else?” asked Rainbow, now smiling at the thought.
“Nah, he’d wanna see this mission through first. I’m sure of it!”
...
August 11, 2558 2056 hours Gildedale Shoreline
Greyblade wordlessly hopped out of the Equestrian fishing boat as Cinder Pine tried to pay off its owner.
“This is for the trip,” said the brown Dalepony, holding some bits. “I know you didn’t have to travel all this way.”
“No need to pay me just to send to ponies home,” said the skipper.
“You knew?”
“O’course! Who else in their right mind would wanna visit Gildedale after that? Plus yer cutie marks ain’t very typical o’ Equestria either.”
Cinder just looked behind him at his dagger cutie mark as his marefriend leaned over the boat.
“Yes Cinder, it’s that obvious,” said Greyblade.
“You took the words right out of my mouth,” Cinder mumbled in response.
“Heh, she’s a keeper alright!” the skipper told him.
The two Daleponies mildly blushed at this.
“Anyways, you can keep yer bits,” the fisherman continued. “It’s been a trying time for both o’ us ya hear?”
“Thank you,” said Greyblade as Cinder hopped off the boat. “We appreciate everything you’ve done for us!”
“Ma pleasure ma’am.”
He tipped his fishing hat as she let go of the boat.
“You both take it easy now!” he finished after pushing his vehicle off the sand and began sailing away.
The grey and brown earthponies waved him goodbye before turning to face inland. Before them, just as the sand ended, lay the seemingly infinite golden fields of their country.
Both of them just took one more deep breath as they stared ahead, both with their mane and tail drifting with the wind.
“Let’s just hope they don’t arrest us on sight for desertion,” said Greyblade anxiously. “Or high treason.”
“They probably will,” Cinder Pine deadpanned. “Though they’ll mainly be mad with you.”
The mare just rolled her eyes.
“Thanks Cinder,” she said. “Real motivating!”
“Hey! I’m just trying to be realistic, Grey. We shouldn’t expect a royal welcome after what happened. Princess or no.”
Greyblade then gave a long, drawn-out sigh of disgust.
“At least I forgive you,” he said somberly.
She gave him a smile on that sentiment.
“Well, there’s only one way to find out,” she started as she began to trot towards the grass. “Let’s get moving.”
...
August 11, 2558 2109 hours Gildedale
To non-natives, the endless fields of grass would be dizzying, and said unfortunate souls would soon find themselves lost and without hope. But luckily for Greyblade and Cinder Pine, this was their home, and they knew exactly where they were going.
Thatchholm, their capital city (or barn, as most outsiders would call it).
“Should we still be wearing these clothes?” Cinder asked, breaking the silence between them. “I mean, we look like Equestrian tourists or something!”
Because he was only wearing a scarf, Greyblade knew he was really just referring to her outfit: she still wore her tan jacket over a white t-shirt, along with her plain-black sports cap.
“You can toss away your scarf if you want,” she responded, shaking her head. “It won’t make a difference. They’ll still know who we are.”
The couple froze when they felt the ground rumble, paired with the sound of many distant hoofsteps, knowing it could only mean one thing.
The sound was emanating from the very same direction in which they were traveling, indicating that their “welcoming committee” had been dispatched from the capital itself.
Over the distant and gradual rise, they finally appeared: a platoon of Gildedale earthponies, all clad in armor and running in formation toward them!
Cinder, standing behind Greyblade, looked down and saw her hind legs quivering in fear. This was it.
The moment of truth.
Less than a minute had passed before the contingent of warriors had surrounded them. The standard procedure that the two of them were all too familiar with.
Speaking of familiarity, the one leading the group, a dark red stallion with deep blue eyes, stepped forward with a stern look on his face.
“Good evening Ashtail,” Cinder greeted formally.
“Shut your mouth, Cinder!” the superior officer barked, clearly not happy.
“Yes sir,” he replied.
Ashtail hadn’t once taken his eyes off of Greyblade as he continued walking up to her. She and him had never liked each other, and it was because of that fact that she knew this was only going to end one way.
“M’lady,” he said, still being professional even though he clearly rather wouldn’t be.
“Captain,” she responded, holding his glare with her own steely gaze. Her mane continuing to silently flow with the calm breeze.
They stood in silence for a few more moments, his deep blue eyes and her sky blue ones continuing to stare the other down, before Ashtail’s mouth slowly grew into a smirk.
“I knew you’d fail,” he said simply.
“At least I went to war,” she replied. “Coward.”
They spoke just above a whisper, so that they were the only ponies who could hear each other.
“Hmph! Well, I’m still under orders from the Lord of the Dale to bring all who return empty-hooved to justice.”
“Typical. You don’t think I know my father? Those are your orders, not his!”
She pointed an accusational hoof at him when she said this, before her eyes finally revealed how vulnerable she felt.
“You don’t think I feel guilty for what happened?” she continued as her ears flopped. “For all those young stallions and mares? And their families? I can never take it back…”
Ashtail just chuckled quietly.
“Ah princess, still spoiled as ever,” he said condescendingly. “You think your feelings entitle you to avoid punishment? As though they themselves serve that purpose?”
Greyblade hung her head, breaking eye contact. Deep down, she knew he was right.
“No, you will serve your punishment just like everypony else,” he continued.
He let the blonde mare stand there in silence for a few more moments, anxiously holding one hoof with the other. Letting it all sink in.
“What about Cinder?” she asked finally.
“He will be the one detaining you,” he said with a malicious grin.
“What?!”
Her ears perked back up as she raised her head.
She looked behind him to see Cinder Pine get a pair of shackles tossed to him. Then the two of them made eye contact, wearing equally shocked looks on their faces.
“Cinder Pine, you have served your country honorably,” said Ashtail. “Greyblade is the one who made the error, not you. Arrest her and you will be free.”
“S-sir?” the brown stallion stammered. “W-with all due respect-”
“That’s an order, soldier!” Ashtail interrupted.
Cinder looked nervously back at Greyblade, shrugging nervously.
Greyblade looked back at Ashtail with a pleading look, at which he continued to smirk confidently as he backed out of the circle.
The mare looked behind her once again to see the guilt on his face as he held up the pair of shackles, before turning and walking towards him.
“Guess I was right, huh?” he said remorsefully.
“It’s okay Cinder,” she told him. “I know you don’t want to be doing this. That's all that matters.”
Calmly, she turned her back to him and got down on her knees, placing her forehooves behind her back.
“Sorry Grey, but I’m gunna have to make this look convincing!” he whispered into her ear as he locked the shackles to her.
“Do what you have to,” she replied, keeping a stoic look on her face.
Without warning, he swiftly yanked and spun her onto her stomach, before shoving one knee between her shoulder-blades.
“He never liked the idea of a mare holding more power than him,” he said, whispering into her ear once again.
“You think?!” she wheezed back angrily as he held her head down with a hoof.
...
August 11, 2558 2200 hours Changeling Grand Palace
Queen Chrysalis stood on the balcony that overlooked the now empty training grounds. She had received the news earlier in the day:
General Hives, her second in command, was dead, and Rainbow Dash was on the run.
Though to the humans it looked like a reinforcement wave, the changeling leader had actually ordered her last remaining battalion to hunt her down and kill her.
But it wasn’t enough for Chrysalis. She wanted to do more, something extra, just for good measure.
Her eyes and horn began to glow their bright shade of green as she flapped her bug-like wings and raised her hooves to the sky.
In the far distance, violent thunderclaps could be heard.
The foolish humans and Equestrians were about to witness her true power, for she hadn’t just been sitting idly-by all these years.
No...she had been practicing…
...
August 11, 2558 2200 hours Somewhere 180 miles southeast of Ottapaw
“You almost done, sweetheart?” asked Private Eugene Phillips.
The group had traveled another five miles northwest towards their destination, but the group had paused to give Rainbow Dash a bathroom-break out in the open. Well, sort of out in the open, as they had at least found another shrub for her to hide behind.
“Don’t call me that!” she called back as Shifty just laughed. “And there’s nothing to wipe with!”
“Are you kiddin’ me?” said Sgt. Alex Thompson. “That’s why this is takin’ so long?”
“You’ll be fine,” said Jenkins. “It’s only for a little while longer. Plus you wouldn’t want fecal-matter all over your hooves, now would you?”
“Ugh, I guess not,” said Rainbow, finally coming out from behind the shrub.
“We’re nearing a safe LZ,” said Gunny. “If we get moving now, won’t have to travel all the way to Canida!”
“Hey, does anyone else notice how the sky is overcast?” said Corporal Marcus Williams. “And getting darker by the second?”
Rainbow Dash’s face twisted into one of extreme terror as the sudden sound of thunder filled the air.
“AAH!” she screamed, instantly curling into a ball next to Jenkins.
Private First Class Ogden Jenkins knelt down next to her and placed a consoling hand on her back.
“What the hay?!” she said quietly and shakily.
“How are you the first one to notice Corporal?” asked Sergeant Alex Thompson. “I thought you’d be used to this kind of weather, growin’ up in England and whatnot?”
“Yeah, but it’s the desert,” Marcus deadpanned. “How the fuck?...”
“You’re not used to hearing sudden thunderclaps, are you?” Jenkins asked Rainbow in the meantime. “For you it’s always been planned ahead of time with the weatherponies, right?”
“Yeah,” said Rainbow, shivering in fear.
“But, how is this happening?” said Gunny calmly. “Marcus is right: there shouldn’t be a storm like this in the desert!”
...Gunnery Sergeant Alvarez? Come in Alvarez!...
“Go Roland,” said the squad leader.
...We’re observing an unusual weather anomaly above your location…
“Yeah, we see it.”
...Storms do appear in deserts from time to time, but never this large…
“Really?”
...Yes, and Twilight tells me some powerful magic must be behind it, giving it purpose…
“Purpose? The hell is that supposed to mean?”
...Twilight? You wanna take over? You could probably explain this better than me…
...David? Can you hear me?...
“Loud and clear, ma’am.”
...There are only a few creatures powerful enough to conjure up a storm like this: potentially myself and Cadence, along with Celestia and Luna, but as far as I’m aware, none of us are using are magic at all right now! Which leaves just one other likely candidate…
“Don’t tell me: it’s Chrysalis isn’t it?”
...Bingo, and I think it’s possible that the purpose she gave to this storm may make the lightning avoid her changeling troops and target any Pelican we send down to pick you all up…
“Great. So pick us up before the storm hits.”
...No can do Alvarez…
“Captain! Apologies sir, I didn’t realize you were on the line. How do you mean?”
...I mean the storm is accelerating, and it’s already too late. It’s unlike anything we’ve ever seen, and we won’t be able to send a pelican in time. I’m sorry, but you, Rainbow Dash, and your squad are going to have to survive the night...
Gunny was unsure how to process what he was hearing. One moment they’re home free, the next they’re deep in the soup!
“Aye, sir,” he said into his helmet mic. “We’ll check in tomorrow morning, then?”
...Hopefully. We aren’t yet sure how long Chrysalis is going to make this last, though Twilight tells me she can’t keep it up forever; she’ll have to take a break at some point…
“Roger.”
...And speaking of Twilight, she has a request for you before we disconnect…
Twilight Sparkle’s voice came over the radio once again.
...May I speak with Rainbow? I think it’d be good for her to at least hear my voice…
“Uh, sure. I’ll see what I can do real quick.”
Gunny then pulled out a small, disk-like object.
“Roland?” he started. “Could you patch her hologram through to my mini-projector?”
Some moments later, as Gunny held the device in front of Rainbow Dash, a small and holographic blue projection in the figure of Twilight appeared just above it.
...Rainbow?...
“Tw-Twilight?” said Rainbow shakily, the rest of Icebreaker supportively gathering around her.
...Hey there! How-how are you?...
A few tears rolled down the cerulean pegasus’ cheeks as her friend spoke as though everything were fine.
“I’m...alive,” she responded softly, smiling. “So I guess I’m doing alright.”
She let out a small sob as her smile faded as quickly as it had arrived. Jenkins placed an encouraging hand on her shoulder.
“I-I’m scared Twi,” she said finally. “I didn’t think I’d ever see you again.”
Twilight’s hologram appeared to be tearing-up as well, though she was also smiled, suggesting they were tears of joy.
...Well we were never scared. None of us had our doubts, because the humans standing around you now? We knew they would keep you safe!...
“I figured as much,” said Rainbow as her smile returned.
...And I couldn’t be happier to see you too, but it looks like you all are going to need to hold out for a little while longer…
Rainbow’s face turned to panic once more.
“What?!” she said, shocked. “But-but I was so ready to see you again! All of you!”
...I know Rainbow! I don’t like it either. But trust these humans, they know what they’re doing. Do everything they say and you’ll be fine!...
“But-!”
...It’s only for a little longer Rainbow! I promise we’ll all be together again soon…
The pegasus mare only remained wide-eyed in shock, before slowly nodding in understanding with a gloomy expression on her face.
“I hope so too,” she said somberly.
Twilight’s image just nodded before the transmission cut out.
“Sir?” asked Sgt. Alex as Gunny simply hung his head. “What was she talkin’ about?”
“The storm,” said David as he stowed the hologram device away. “She thinks Chrysalis is powering it with her magic.”
“Shit,” said Alex under his breath as he turned away.
“And she’s pretty sure that overgrown bug can control what the lightning hits, so Pelicans can be targeted while her changeling soldiers are avoided.”
“Wha-what do we do?” asked Rainbow.
“There’s no shelter around, is there?” asked Jenkins.
“Hang on,” said Marcus, looking away from the group. “I just got a waypoint.”
“Me too,” said Jenkins.
“I see it,” said Gunny.
“It’s telling me there’s a cave, just over the crest of that dune,” said the Brit, pointing. “If we hurry, we can make it!”
“Infinity must have routed that info to us,” said Gunny. “Let’s move Icebreaker!”
The group ran as the electricity and rain from the darkened sky came ever closer. Thankfully though, they soon crested the hill of sand and saw their new home for the night:
“It’s elevated as well,” said Corporal Williams. “So hopefully it won’t flood!”
“Everyone inside!” ordered Gunny. “We’ll eat some leftover MREs and wait out the storm!”
...
August 12, 2558 0630 hours Somewhere 180 miles southeast of Ottapaw
This time, Jenkins woke up before Rainbow did. She had laid down next to him like usual, and could still be heard breathing deeply and regularly, fast asleep.
He was amazed that she was able to sleep through the storm at all, given she had never experienced weather that was fully out of her control. Perhaps she was just that exhausted?
The ODST pulled out his MRE bag, which held what remained of last night’s dinner, and unobtrusively prepared her breakfast.
He watched as her eyes quietly fluttered open, her face remaining expressionless as she raised her head and looked around her.
Slowly, she began giving off the same air of anxiety she’d had for the past couple of days, realizing once again that: yes, the nightmare is still real, and yes, today will probably suck.
Ogden, noticing her familiar and primal demeanor, smiled and held out a cracker.
“Morning!” he said. “Breakfast?”
“When will this end?” she asked forlornly, seeming to ignore Jenkins’ positivity.
The human simply frowned and sighed, looking away.
“I don’t know,” he replied finally, looking back at her. “But, look on the bright side! Literally.”
He pointed at the sunlight coming in through the cave entrance.
“Storm’s over!” he told her. “And with any luck, today will be the day.”
He held out the cracker once again.
“Now, are you gunna eat this or not?”
Rainbow Dash smiled weakly before grabbing the snack with her mouth. She and Jenkins chewed on their meal wordlessly for some time as the rest of the squad awakened.
Behind Jenkins, Private Eugene Phillips could be seen stretching as he walked over to the cave entrance, just to see a nice view in the morning.
His body-language changed almost the instant he looked out, appearing to freeze in shock before rubbing his eyes and slowly lowering his arms.
“Guys!” said Shifty in astonishment, now beckoning to everyone with his full arm. ”Come look at this!”
Curious, everyone got to their feet/hooves and and headed towards the opening. What they saw stunned them all:
King Ironaxe, the Lord of the Dale, sat upon a wooden throne, which was draped in the scaly skin of once living Komaga.
Said throne was situated on the far side of the large, barn-like structure that was his country’s capitol.
He awaited the return of Ashtail and the rest of his guard, as he had received word that his right-hoof stallion was bringing the first returning soldiers from the lost battalion.
One of which was his daughter.
“My King? You look nervous,” said his royal advisor. “Is everything alright?”
“I’m just excited is all,” Ironaxe replied. “I haven’t seen my daughter in a few days and...to be honest, I wasn’t sure if she’d survived!”
“The news hit us all very hard,” said his wife, also eagerly awaiting her daughter’s return. “But you never gave up hope! And now you’re faith has been rewarded!”
“Right you are, m’lady!” said Ironaxe’s advisor.
“My love,” said Ironaxe. “When she arrives, I would like some time alone to speak with her.”
The shield-maiden seemed taken aback by this, before slowly nodding in understanding.
A few more minutes passed before the doors to the hut opened, revealing a procession of Gildedale soldiers.
In the lead was Ashtail, who greeted his only superiors.
“My Lord, I present to you,” he started, gesturing behind him. “The traitor!”
“What?!” Ironaxe exclaimed.
The procession halted, then parted, revealing Greyblade in shackles and on Cinder Pine’s back. As ordered, he unceremoniously dropped her to the ground.
Without warning, Ironaxe dashed over to Greyblade, lifted her up onto her knees, and embraced her in a tight hug.
“Daughter!” he exclaimed. “I’m so glad you’re okay!”
He then turned to his guard commander in disgust and anger.
“Ashtail! What is the meaning of this?!” he demanded.
“My King, she’s the reason so many of our own are dead!” said Ashtail. “She’s a traitor to our nation!”
“How dare you treat one of our own soldiers this way!” snapped Ironaxe. “Let alone MY daughter?!”
“But...my King-?”
The Lord of the Dale then spoke in a low voice to Ashtail.
“The deaths of all those who were under her command is on me and me alone. Release her, now!”
After a moment of awkward silence, Ashtail reluctantly bowed his head.
“As you wish, my Lord,” he said. “Cinder Pine, you have the key.”
The brown-coated stallion wordlessly unlocked her shackles, afraid to say anything before his King.
He didn’t have to however, as Greyblade immediately kissed him on the cheek in front of everypony present, before giving him a warm hug.
“Thank you,” she whispered to him as he returned the embrace.
"Anything for you," he whispered back.
Soon, she was walking back up the steps to rejoin her family.
As he watched her leave, Cinder pine noticed Ashtail giving him a ride look. The brown stallion was suddenly aware that he was blushing!
...
"Father, this isn't your fault!" said Greyblade.
She lay on her haunches before her father as he sat on his throne.
"Are you not grateful?" he asked.
"Of course I am! But someday you'll have to let me deal with the consequences of my actions!"
The Lord of the Dale simply sighed at this.
"I can’t be your little girl forever,” Greyblade finished.
“I know,” he said. “But that’s why I sent you out in the first place.”
"What?”
“Yes! I didn’t want you to suffer such a horrible loss, but the arrival of the humans proved to be far more deadly than I’d anticipated.”
Ironaxe then reached down and lovingly held his daughter’s face in his hooves.
“I wanted you go out into the world and learn,” he told her. “See and experience another land, something I never did, so that when you take ownership of this throne one day, you’ll be a better ruler than I ever could be!”
He then kissed her on her forehead before releasing her.
“I’m just glad you’re alive! And safe,” he continued. “You’ve already been through enough, served your imprisonment in Equestria. No Gildedale soldier who may or may not return will be punished for serving their country.”
“I understand,” said Greyblade before a question came to mind. “Father? How did you know what they’re called?”
“What who are called?”
“The humans?”
“Oh! See this other, alien, arrived at our doorstep yesterday. Said he came in peace and that he knew the humans well.”
Ironaxe then pointed behind Greyblade, who then turned her head to see a rather tall, armored creature sitting at the long table, having some discussion with the town elders.
It ate with not a mouth, but monstrous-looking mandibles!
“He could tell you better than I,” Ironaxe continued. “But I think he calls himself a, uh-a Sang-heal-ee?”
“Did his kind give him a name?” asked Greyblade.
“He said we could just call him the Arbiter.”
“That’s an, interesting name.”
“Funny you should ask about him, as he heard about your story and wanted to personally meet you…”
...
Greyblade and her new Alien friend walked alone together toward the Princess’ private hut.
His golden armor shone in the moonlight, reminding her much of her own armor.
“Do the humans know you’re here too?” she asked.
“No,” he said in a deep voice. “I came alone, and in a private ship that can hide me from their detectors.”
“Oh.”
She walked in silence with him again for a brief time.
“Why? Are you following them?” she prodded. “Are you...spying on them?”
“In a sense, yes,” said the Arbiter. “In case I need them in the future.”
Finally, they arrived at her hut.
“Why me?” Greyblade asked. “Why now?”
She stepped in front of him before the entrance.
“And who are you anyway?!” she questioned confrontationally. “What’s your story?”
“I was once in your position,” said the Elite calmly. “I too suffered a great loss at the hands of humanity.”
Her tense demeanor immediately loosened.
“All I am offering is the help you seek,” he said. “Nothing more.”
Greyblade nodded.
“Come in,” she said, pushing open the door to her hut.
Arbiter went in first, ducking in order to make it through the wooden frame.
“Well, it is clear this place wasn’t meant for tall creatures,” he said, still ducking. “Do you mind?”
He pointed at her bed.
“Yeah, go ahead,” said Greyblade, putting up her black sports-cap next to the doorway. “Sit.”
She shut the door as the Elite straightened his back upon sitting down. His head tracked the blonde princess warrior as she crossed the room over to a coat hanger, taking off her tan jacket as she moved.
After hanging it up with her mouth, she unexpectedly stood in that one spot, looking forlornly past the hanger.
“I don’t know what to do,” she said finally. “I failed to keep my soldiers safe.”
She walked over to her wardrobe, where a brand new set of gold-painted leather armor hung next to an assortment of dresses.
“All but one of them are dead and I barely made a dent in Equestria’s defenses.”
She looked at her reflection in the emerald on her helmet.
“I’m a failure and a disgrace, but my dad tried to play it off!”
Behind her, the Arbiter nodded in understanding.
“You still feel deserving of punishment,” he interpreted. “Don’t you?”
Greyblade simply turned to him with an understanding, yet solemn look.
“If there is anyone here who understands your pain, it is me,” he stated.
“Yeah?” said the Dalepony princess. “And what’s your story?”
Arbiter just leaned forward, staring at nothing in particular.
“I was once supreme commander of the largest space fleet in the galaxy,” he started.
Greyblade’s blue eyes blinked twice, stunned.
“But, when I let a very sacred place get destroyed by the humans, my hierarchs at the time deemed me a heretic,” the Arbiter continued. “I lost everything: my fleet, my command, my armor...my pride.”
“...Horseapples!…” she breathed.
The Elite only nodded solemnly.
“They were going to have me executed, and I would have gladly accepted it,” he said.
“I’d gladly be imprisoned to be honest,” said Greyblade, shrugging. “But executed? Probably not!”
Arbiter just gave her a mildly annoyed look.
“Sorry! Go on…”
“But instead of hanging me by my entrails, the hierarchs decided to spare me,” he went on. “Since I had served them so faithfully in the past, they gave me this armor, sending me on secret suicide missions.”
“Some leaders you had,” said Greyblade.
“Ha! Tell me about it!”
“So, what are you trying to say? What’s your advice?”
“Given such a predicament, I let go of the past, focusing only on the missions given to me; working through them honestly and with sincerity.”
He stood up, ducking once again, and walked over to Greyblade’s armor.
“It was the most enlightening decision I ever made,” he finished.
“How?” she asked.
“I won’t bore you with the details, because this is about you, not me.”
The Arbiter lifted the Dalepony’s helmet off its hook and began inspecting it.
“Focus only on the situations before you in the present, with sincerity, doing the work as honestly as you can,” he said. “That is my advice.”
“Are you saying I should focus on my punishment?” Greyblade asked in confusion.
“I’m saying there is another way,” said the Arbiter.
He then held out her helmet in front of her face.
“Redemption.”
Greyblade took the helmet in her hooves.
“But, how?” she asked. “I’m not being given missions by some, hierarchs!”
“No, you’re being offered a mission by me.”
Her eyes widened in realization.
“Your mission, should you choose to accept it,” the Arbiter started. “Is to rescue a very important pegasus from the clutches of your former ally.”
“From...the changelings?” she asked nervously.
He nodded in response before continuing.
“Her name is Rainbow Dash, and like her name suggests, you can identify her by her rainbow-colored mane. She is currently being escorted by five highly trained and experienced human warriors. They are trying their best, but I doubt they’ll make it.”
“I can take you there, along with one other, in my ship, but I cannot help you. I do not wish to be detected by humanity at this time.”
“But I-I can’t fight the changelings alone! Their technology is far beyond anything I have-”
“You want redemption? This is it. I never said it would be easy.”
There was a pause.
“Why is she so important to you?” asked Greyblade.
“Through means I do not yet understand, she has been endowed with the ability to use one of six ancient and powerful relics on this world,” said the Arbiter. “Tools that the humans need if they are to be of use to me in the future.”
The Dalepony Princess simply looked into the emerald on her helmet, before a sly grin crept across her face.
“I may have a plan,” she started. “You never said I had to engage the changelings directly.”
Arbiter gave what passed as a smile for Sangheili.
“Now you’re following my advice!” he said.
...
August 12, 2558 0639 hours Somewhere 180 miles southeast of Ottapaw
“That all...wasn’t there before,” said Rainbow Dash. “Was it?”
The rest of the squad shook themselves out of their stunned stupor.
“I knew it sounded noisy outside last night,” started Shifty. “But god-DAMN!”
“Gunny?” said Alex. “Can you radio Infinity? See if they’re gettin’ this?”
“Already on it,” said Alvarez, before speaking under his breath. “What the hell?”
“We were prepared to drop into a forest anyway weren’t we?” asked Corporal Marcus Williams. “This just means we’re in even better shape now than we were before, right?”
“It’s not that that’s got me worried,” said Alex. “It’s the fact that a forest grew in a desert overnight! This literally defies all known laws of physics!”
“So...what now?” asked Jenkins. “Couldn’t they just pick us up right her-oh FUCK me! Everyone hide!”
The PFC pointed out at yet another flight of patrolling changelings before ducking down and running to the back of the cavern. Everyone else followed suit, scurrying as quietly as they could.
“Jesus!” he exclaimed as he hurriedly put on his helmet.
“Good you all came back when you did,” said Gunny, who had been at the back of their alcove nearly the entire time. “I was going to tell you to check your radar.”
Activating their heads-up-displays, numerous red dots appeared within the circle on the bottom-left of their visors.
“Blimey!” was all Williams could say.
“Yeah, they ain’t picking us up here,” said Alvarez.
“Why couldn’t our Pelicans just fly through lightning?” asked Shifty frustratedly. “Didn’t aircraft become immune to lightning like, five or six-hundred years ago?”
“Yeah? Then they lower the ramp to let us on and BOOM!” said Sergeant Alex Thompson. “One lightning strike and we’d have all been fried!”
“Basically, it was never gunna work Private,” said Gunny.
“Oh, Celestia help me!” said Rainbow as she curled into a cerulean ball. “Chrysalis did this…”
The now five-man fireteam looked at her shivering form.
“...just for me!” she finished.
“Damn right it’s just for you,” said Jenkins. “She knows how important you are, so she’s pulling out every stop!”
“But if they’re gunna take you, they’ve gotta go through us first!” said Marcus.
Rainbow simply nodded at the Corporal, but without losing her distressed and jittery demeanor.
“Well, what’s the plan from here?” asked Jenkins, addressing his squad-leader. “Does Infinity have any useful intel?”
Gunny just shook his head.
“Only that if we’re going to leave this cave, we’re gunna have to do it soon,” he said. “I have a plan though: each of our suits has a one-time-use-only cloaking device, tech courtesy of the forerunners.
“If we activate them right at the mouth of the cave, we’ll have plenty of time to make it all the way to a safe-spot in the valley before they time out. From there, we can look for a clearing and call in that pelican.”
“Question,” said Alex, raising a hand. “How do you know there’s a safe-spot down there?”
“These guys move in small pockets. We’ll use our radar to slip between them.”
The Sergeant just nodded his head in response.
“What...what’s a cloaking device?” Rainbow piped-up.
“It turns us invisible for a short time,” said Jenkins. “We would’ve used it earlier but, like you heard, if we use it once we can’t ever use it again.”
“Unless, you know, we restock another one when back on the Infinity,” Shifty finished.
“But, I can’t do that!” said Rainbow. “How am I supposed to turn invisible?!”
“I was just about to get to that,” said Gunny. “Remember when I asked you to rub dirt in your mane, and I said mud would be ideal?”
The pegasus just laid a hoof on her frazzled mane, eyes widening in realization.
“Well,” Alvarez continued, pointing outside. “It just rained.”
As Rainbow Dash started shaking her head in protest, PFC Ogden Jenkins unexpectedly stood up and walked over to his squad leader.
“Gunny?” he asked. “A word please?”
“What? This can’t be said in front of everyone?” Alvarez replied.
“It’s about Rainbow,” Jenkins whispered into his ear. “But I’d rather not tell you this in front of her.”
“...Ah...excuse us...”
The two of them then walked over to another corner of the cave, leaving the others with confused looks.
“What’s this about Private?” Gunny asked.
“Sir, when I read off the scanner’s readings of Rainbow’s vital signs to you, I withheld some information,” said Jenkins.
“Christ! Why?! You know I have to re-report this to Infinity now, right? And they aren’t gunna like it!”
“I know! I know! This is my fault, I should’ve told you earlier, and I'm sorry for putting you through this, sir. But at the time I couldn’t say it in front of Rainbow.”
“You were content to tell her she was raped.”
“She knew that already! Look, this is something she doesn’t know, and I think it’s best that she isn’t aware of it now, because I don’t know what’ll happen if she finds out…”
“Well, spit it out already!”
“You know when I told you how she had an unhealthy buildup of bacteria in her system?”
“Yeah?”
“Well, it was more than that...she should’ve been dead already.”
“What?!”
“I don’t understand it either, but there should be too much for her immune system to handle! Something else, something the scanner couldn’t pick up, is keeping her alive.”
“So, you’re worried that rubbing mud all over her is gunna push it over the edge?”
“Exactly.”
“Look, I get your concern, but you realize not doing that is guaranteed to put her life in danger. We just pointed out that she doesn’t have a cloaking device! What else are we supposed to do?”
Jenkins held onto his pensive and worried demeanor as Alvarez placed a hand on his shoulder.
“I appreciate the information, but I’m sorry. We have to take the risk!”
Finally, Jenkins sighed.
“Understood sir,” he said.
“If they ask about this conversation,” Gunny started. “Just play it off for now. The two of us, mainly you, will let the rest of the squad know about Rainbow’s condition in private later.”
“Aye, Gunny.”
They then made their way back to the rest of Fireteam Icebreaker.
“What was that all about?” asked Shifty.
“We’ll let you know at the bottom of the hill,” said Alvarez bluntly. “But only after we get there! Dash, let’s go.”
“Aww!” she moaned.
“Rainbow. Outside. Now!”
...
With a yelp, RD was thrust face-first into thick mud.
Everyone was just outside the cave, getting ready to sprint down the hill.
“What the HAY?!” she squeaked.
“Sshhh! Keep it down!” hissed Jenkins. “This is for your own good, Rainbow!”
“But I already feel sick!”
“You’ll recover. It’s either this or you die outright, so choose already!”
With a heavy sigh, the pegasus began to rub the disgusting material all over herself, starting with her chest and thighs.
“Why’d you have to shove me in?” she asked after a moment.
“You were going to hesitate,” said Jenkins. “And we literally don’t have that kind of time! Here, let me get your back.”
Rainbow dash laid down onto her stomach in the puddle of mud, proceeding to vigorously rub the substance into her mane as Jenkins spread it across her back, neck, legs, and tail.
“Hopefully the tape wrapped around your wings stays in place,” he said to her once he finished.
“Yeah,” she croaked as she stood up.
“Let’s go!” said Gunny. “And try not to slip, Rainbow!”
“Yeah, no kidding…”
Jenkins held out a hand, which was still dirty, to the cerulean pegasus.
“You’ll need to hold on to me,” he said.
“Why?” she asked, placing her hoof in his hand.
The ODST responded by activating his cloaking device, disappearing from sight along with the rest of his squad. However, she was still able to feel his grip.
“That’s why,” he said. “You’ll lose us otherwise.”
Rainbow only nodded.
“Okay, valley’s one-and-a-half klicks down the hill and our five minutes has already started!” said Alvarez, his shimmering form already starting to run. “Let’s move people! Let’s really move!”
Suddenly Rainbow felt her hoof get yanked forward. Her heart rate climbed rapidly as she nearly stumbled trying to match their pace!
Past trees and various greenery she ran, guided only by the tug of a ghost, when she suddenly tripped over a rock and felt Jenkins’ hand slip away!
She fell on her face and stomach before rolling some ways. Quickly she got up on one knee, but of course, she couldn’t see him.
“Ogden?!” she called. “OGDAAAN?!”
“I think I heard something!” she heard a voice call from behind her.
Accompanying that voice was the sound of buzzing, bug-like wings!
“I’m here,” came Jenkins’ whispering voice. “I’m right here! Take my hand!”
Looking in the general direction, the pegasus barely made out the shimmering form of his arm reaching out.
Slowly, she reached out to grab it, but not before a green fireball flew between them!
Rainbow shrieked as the projectile exploded not too far down the hill from where she was. She then spun around to see a full platoon of changelings staring her down.
“Dang it! Missed!” said one of them. “I think that’s her, sir!”
“After her!” said their leader. “Move!”
“Rainbow! RUN!” said Jenkins, his voice receding.
“Wait!” she squeaked. “Don’t leave me!”
“Just head straight down the hill, we’ll meet you there!”
Seeing no other option, the injured pegasus bolted down the incline, eyes full of tears from the stress and newfound adrenaline.
The minutes felt like hours as she ran. Explosive green bolts nearly missing her over and over again.
Every time she began to feel fatigue taking over, the fear of what could happen to her if she stopped replaced it, momentarily giving her a small energy boost.
How long this would last, she could not know, but she had to keep going!
Finally, the incline leveled out. She was in the valley, but she still had yet to escape the changelings’ sightline.
Another green explosion, another boost of energy.
In and out of bushes, ducking under branches and around trees, she tried everything she could to do so, but her own vision was starting to blur from sheer exhaustion.
She had to stop soon and she knew it!
Finally, Rainbow dashed behind a tree and hoped for the best.
She listened as the beating of insect-like wings came ever closer, shutting her eyes in dread as the sound came the closest it ever had.
Unable to stop her own loud gasps for air after having ran for so long, she cupped both her hooves over her mouth and tightened her eyelids!
But as soon as the sound crescendoed, it began to fade.
She opened her eyes as the humming of changeling wings became softer and softer, before tentatively taking a look around the tree trunk.
The cerulean pegasus watched as her pursuers disappeared into the foliage, before relaxing and shutting her eyes once more to breathe a sigh of relief.
Letting her guard down.
She screamed the moment she opened her eyes, as she was greeted by the green tip of a changeling’s spear right in front of her nose! A lone changeling soldier now had her cornered.
She flattened her back against the tree as if she wanted to melt into it, panting in terror and desperately clutching at the bark, all the while darting her eyes back and forth between the changeling and the business-end of his weapon.
It wasn’t glowing, though.
Is he going to kill me or not?! she thought panickedly.
“You slippery bitch!” he said finally. “We’ve got you now!”
“What?!” squeaked Rainbow.
“The Queen will be pleased to hear that she has her leverage back!”
“No,” said the pegasus under her breath.
He then placed the tip of his spear onto her nose.
“Turn around,” he ordered.
Rainbow slowly started raising her hooves in surrender.
“Turn around!” he snapped.
“Okay! Okay!” she replied in fright as she hastily turned her body to face the tree.
She then felt the spear poke her in the back, pushing her against the bark.
I can’t go back! she screamed internally. I CAN’T!
“Get down on your knees and put your hooves behind you back,” the changeling ordered behind her. “Nice and easy-”
“NO!” Rainbow shrieked as she spun around, knocking the spear to the side, before closing the distance on the changeling and punching him in the face.
Though she had knocked him to the ground, he was not out; before the exhausted pegasus could react, the changeling took flight and tackled her!
“Alright,” he said, flattening Rainbow onto her stomach. “Have it your way!”
On that, he shoved her face into the mud, cutting off both of her airways.
Realizing what he was trying to do, Rainbow reached up above her head and began violently trying to pull his hooves off so that she could breath.
But her hooves just weakly slapped onto his in vain. She couldn’t stop the suffocation!
And as if her lungs weren't already in a rough spot, the changeling repeatedly kept kneeing them!
The rest of her body struggled and writhed under him as her nightmare manifested. Her grunts and screams all muffled under the mud.
Suddenly, the changeling shuddered violently as a bullet careened through his head, causing him to release his hold on her head.
Just as he keeled over, Rainbow’s head burst from the mud and she took a massive breath.
She then shakily took a look at the changeling’s corpse beside her as she desperately attempted to catch her breath.
Without warning from her own gut, she puked!
She crawled away from it, her pained breathing slowly turning into quiet sobs, as she heard a human's footsteps running towards her.
“Rainbow?!” called Jenkins. “Rainbow! Are you okay?”
When she heard him run up behind her, she raised herself onto her knees and held her stomach as though she were trying to hug herself. The shivering pegasus just shook her head.
“No,” she croaked.
The ODST gently placed a consoling hand on her back as her face tightly contorted into one of pure anguish, trying in vain to hold back her sobs.
“I am so sorry,” he said softly.
“He...he tried to kill me!” she whimpered.
“Don’t worry, he won’t be bothering you anytime soon.”
“Hold me!” she wheezed, still clutching her aching stomach.
Jenkins gave her a big hug from behind, allowing her to let her sobs go, and the two simply sat there, rocking back-and-forth under the canopy.
“It’s alright,” he told her. “You’re okay. You’re always okay…"
August 12, 2558 0720 hours Somewhere 179 miles southeast of Ottapaw
Rainbow Dash leaned on PFC Ogden Jenkins as the two of them arrived back to the group.
“Jesus Jenkins, you left her to die?” asked Shifty.
“I agree, that was not smart,” said Jenkins. “I didn’t anticipate the mud loosening our grip.”
“Time was short on our cloak and the changelings were already in range of her,” Gunny reassured, firmly placing a hand on the PFC’s shoulder. “She was going to run faster on her own anyway. Just say, ‘follow the sound of my voice’ next time!”
“Aye sir.”
“Right now, we should get moving while we’re all together. This valley runs north-south with minor curvature, so we’re gunna follow it north until we’re out of the forest.”
“How big is the forest?” asked Shifty. “Do we even know?”
“Infinity tells me it’s a 20 mile hike if we follow the valley, and I don’t need astute observation to know that none of us want to travel up-and-down these hills.”
“Fuck,” said Sergeant Alex.
“Just follow the path, move as fast as we need to for Rainbow, and stay low. I want everyone’s head on a swivel! We stop and duck every time we hear changelings fly overhead, you hear?”
“Aye gunny,” said Marcus.
“Let’s get moving.”
...
As a flight of four changelings disappeared behind the trees above them, Icebreaker un-crouched and continued their silent walk. Rainbow Dash mirrored their movements as best as she could.
Shifty coolly swung his silenced SMG around to look behind the group.
“Geeze, eighteen miles and we must’ve stopped like, three-dozen times for that?” he said.
Seeing nothing, he turned back around.
“At least some of those were water breaks,” said Sgt. Alex, checking to the group’s right.
“Hey, we’re nearly there at least,” said Alvarez as he briefly checked left.
“Thank Celestia!” breathed Rainbow Dash.
“We’ll be outta the woods but not outta the woods I guess,” said Jenkins, checking behind the group. “Hope no one’s confu-SHIT! Contacts behind!”
Everyone stopped dead and crouched once again.
“They close?” whispered Gunny.
“Five, Medium range,” Jenkins responded. “And headed this way. They don’t see us just yet.”
“Well, take the shot then!”
The PFC began tapping away at the distant equinoids, nailing one in the head and another in the chest before the last three ducked out of sight.
“Got two! The rest went to cover!” he called-out.
“I’ll flank!” said Alex as he charged into the bushes.
“Go! We’ll cover you!” said Gunny, sliding on his knee up to Jenkins before raising his gun. “Shifty, go with’em! We’ll protect Rainbow!”
“Aye sir!” said the Private, following the Sargent’s path into the brush as his two teammates fired rapidly at the hostile squad.
...
30 seconds earlier...
“These footprints are fresh,” said one changeling to another.
The two of them were the lead soldiers of five in their patrol.
“We must be getting close! Keep your eyes ope-”
Before he could finish, a bullet tore through his head! And before the one next to him could react, two more struck him in the chest.
“What the-?!” said their squad leader from behind, ducking behind a bush as the second victim fell to the ground.
A hail of bullets followed as they heard the humans begin shouting orders at each other in the distance.
“What now, sir?!” called one of his subordinates. “We’ve got another squad pincering from behind them! Do we just wait for’em?!”
“Those human scum have killed too many of us!” he shouted back. “Cover me! I don’t care what Chrysalis says anymore, I’m killing that bucking pegasus!”
With that, he charged into the brush.
...
Rainbow Dash was on the ground, cowering in the same spot.
“Moving!” said Jenkins before patting Gunny’s shoulder.
He then shifted position towards a tree to Rainbow’s left. By now, she had begun to stand.
As the PFC continued firing silenced rounds at the changelings, a squad of four more appeared behind him, directly into the view of Marcus, who hadn’t stopped looking forward.
“Contacts front!” shouted Marcus, diving into a nearby ditch to his right.
RD froze.
She looked to her left to see Ogden start sprinting at her.
“Rainbow! Look out!” Jenkins yelled as he lunged at her.
He tackled her out of the way just in time as a bolt of green whizzed past where she had just been standing!
Jenkins landed hard on Rainbow Dash’s lungs inside of Marcus’ ditch as the Corporal was firing away at the newly manifested targets.
Her vision was dizzying from the impact as the PFC got off of her, as it was suddenly impossible to inhale; it felt as though the space inside of her lungs were permanently squished like a flattened balloon!
“Stay right here,” Jenkins told her. “I’ll be right back. Marcus! Keep her safe will ya?!”
“You got it!” said Corporal Williams.
Rainbow simply held out a feeble hoof towards Ogden as he moved away from her blurry view, panickedly whimpering as if to say, “Don’t go!…”
As he disappeared from view, she continued struggling to find the breath that was knocked out of her, still holding out her hoof, until finally her lungs opened.
She took the most desperate gasp for air she’d ever taken, cut short by some dirt particles flying into her throat. Her hoof fell flat as she started coughing hard.
The British ODST, still in her view, was continuing to shoot at unseen changelings outside of the ditch when two of them hopped inside between him and her.
The moment the changelings landed inside the ditch, Rainbow inhaled a panicked breath, getting her coughing under control as she hurriedly sat up and put her back against the dirt wall.
The changelings were facing the unaware human while keeping their backs to her.
Unaware of their Equestrian target behind them, the bug-like creatures quietly began to creep up behind the Corporal. Finally, Rainbow found her words.
“Marcus! Behind you!” she shrieked.
One of them continued to move in for the kill as the other spun around, now aware of Dash’s presence. She realized her mistake as the second one raised its spear at her.
Without looking, the Brit pulled out his sidearm and shot the advancing changeling point-blank between the eyes.
Realizing their were two hostiles behind him on his radar, Marcus dropped both of his guns and turned to face the changeling aiming at Rainbow Dash.
He then swiftly grabbed it from behind in a choke-hold and pulled backwards, causing the creature to drop its magic-induced weapon.
The entire exchange happened in an instant from Rainbow’s perspective, causing her to cover her mouth with both hooves in fright!
She continued to watch as the ODST slammed himself onto his side of the ditch as the changeling tried grabbing at the arms around its throat and elbowing the human in the stomach behind him.
Corporal Williams pulled out the combat knife on his shoulder and stuck the blade into the hostile’s neck.
As the changeling in his arms died, Marcus looked up, pulled out the knife, and threw it over Rainbow, striking yet another changeling before it could jump in and join the frey!
As its body tumbled down and landed limp in front of the pegasus, another hostile jumped in and attempted to stab the human, to which he deflected the spear and punched the creature across the face.
It landed on its chest in front of Rainbow as the ODST dived for his silenced pistol. To give the Brit more time, Rainbow turned and kicked the changeling in the face with her hind legs.
By the time it landed face-up on the other side of the ditch, Marcus had picked up his sidearm and promptly executed the bug-like equanoid.
The Corporal, still on his back, then looked over at Rainbow and gave her a quick nod before three more changelings charged at him.
He swiftly shot and killed two before the third knocked the weapon out of his hand and shattered his visor with the butt-end of its spear. Rainbow froze when she heard his crippling screams, as the glass from his visor was now undoubtedly penetrating his entire face!
She could only watch in horror as the changeling finished Marcus off by firing a small, green fireball into his exposed face, vaporizing the human within, and leaving an empty husk of ODST armor lying motionless in the mud.
...
One of the remaining changelings turned around just in time to watch Sgt. Alex put a salvo of bullets into its own chest.
As it shrieked and died, two more popped out from behind a mossy rock, aiming at the ODST, before being cut down by an advancing PFC and Gunnery Sergeant.
“Guys! I had them!” said Alex.
“You’re welcome,” said Alvarez.
Shifty then appeared out of the bushes behind the Sergeant.
“Goddammit, I’m late!” was all he said.
“Did you guys leave Rainbow alone again?” asked the second-in-command.
“No, I left her with Marcus,” said Jenkins, pointing. “Just back where we were.”
“Marcus, come in,” said Alex into his helmet mic. “Is Rainbow safe?...Corporal?”
The four humans just looked at each other.
“Shit!” said Ogden as he sprinted towards the ditch, the rest of his squad immediately following suit.
...
Still frozen in fear after witnessing the death of another one of her protectors, Rainbow Dash merely watched as the killer turned towards her.
“Buck the Queen’s orders!” the changeling spat in anger. “I’m killing you right here and now! And ENDING THIS!”
The bug-like creature indignantly began to stomp towards her, she could only whimper and back herself into the nearest corner of the ditch.
Time seemed to slow down as the changeling continued to move her way, until finally he was close enough to thrust his spear directly at her chest!
“AAH!” she screamed as she sidestepped out of the way, narrowly avoiding the tip. “Ack!”
The changeling had released his weapon and had snatched her throat, before yanking her around and down onto her back.
She struggled and fought against his grip on her neck as he straddled her and attempted to choke her to death!
In desperation, the pegasus tried holding her hooves on his face, but it was to no avail. Instead he smacked her forehooves away before placing one of his own onto her blackened eye and applying pressure.
Rainbow could only hold her mouth agape, trying to scream in agony but unable to with her airway cut-off!
Desperately, she looked to the side with her good eye for something, anything, to grab and hit him with.
A rock! A small one, but just within reach!
She held out her hoof towards it and just barely managed to grip it, before mustering up all the strength she had left to bring it up and smack it onto his temple.
Again, she inhaled a massive gasp of air as the changeling came off of her.
The two of them laid there in agony for a few more moments, before Rainbow slowly got back to her hooves.
She stood up, dazed and exhausted, staring at the changeling still on the ground, clutching the side of his head and groaning in pain.
Fearing he would get back up, she grabbed the rock again and straddled the changeling before repeatedly pummeling his face with the stone.
Again and again she raised it above her head before sending it crashing down onto her victim’s face, every impact making her angrier and angrier. Soon, she found herself literally screaming in rage at the creature.
She no longer cared who heard her. She was tired of having to be quiet and tired of having to contain her internal turmoil.
Soon, green blood was splattered everywhere. Rainbow no was no longer screaming, but still audibly grunting with every hit, the emerald fluid dripping from the rock as she continued to bring her weapon down on his face over and over again.
Until finally, a familiar voice snapped her out of it.
“Rainbow?” said Jenkins behind her.
The rate at which she kept hitting the changeling slowly came to a halt, stopping while holding the stone above her head as if to strike with it once again.
She looked behind her to see the shocked faces of four humans staring down at her. She looked back to see that she had been smashing the stone into a bowl of green blood, that being the changeling’s caved-in skull!
Rainbow suddenly became acutely aware of how much she was shaking, and she dropped the stone as she began to realize what she had just done.
She had just taken a life.
She backed away from the dead body with her arms, wide-eyed and disgusted as the tears began to flow once again.
“Oh no,” she wheezed while on her haunches, bringing her forehooves up to her face. “Oh no, oh no, ohnoohnoohnoohno-!”
“Nice work Rainbow!” said Shifty as he jumped in and examined the body.
The private received a prompt slap on the back of his helmet from Jenkins.
“Ah! What the heck man?!”
“What do you mean, ‘what the heck?!'" asked Jenkins, pointing at Rainbow. “Have a little social awareness you fuck!”
“Okay, sorry! Geez…”
Jenkins shook his head in disgust before walking over to the quivering pegasus. He knelt down and held out his arms to give her a hug.
“Don’t, don’t worry. Just come here,” he said softly.
“Don’t touch me!” spat Rainbow, attempting to smack his arms away.
One of her hooves got caught on his forearm however, as she continued whimpering and staring wide-eyed at nothing in particular, clearly disgusted with herself.
Finally, she gave in and embraced the ODST fully.
“I-I didn’t mean to kill him!” Rainbow stuttered through sobs. “I thought that would just knock him out!”
“You smashed a rock into his face thirty times,” said Sgt. Alex. “I think that does more than just knock ‘em out!”
This only made her cry harder.
“Hey! Let’s give her some room,” ordered Gunny. “Jenkins, you stay with her. Shifty, keep a lookout for more hostiles, and Sergeant...help me out with this?”
Alex looked over to see his squad-leader standing by the empty husk of Corporal William’s armor.
“Shit,” he said under his breath before speaking at normal volume. “Aye, sir.”
Meanwhile, Jenkins was tightly hugging his bawling pegasus friend.
“Hey! Hey! You weren’t thinking,” Jenkins consoled. “You weren’t you.”
Slowly, her crying turned into more manageable sobs, and they let go of each other. With one hoof, Rainbow wiped away her tears and boogers with a sniff.
They both sat in silence for a few moments before she spoke up.
“It felt good.”
“What?”
“Killing him. It felt...good...and that makes me sick.”
“It was either you or him. You did what you had to.”
“...That doesn’t make it right...”
“Which part? You knew you had to attack him or you were dead, but you don’t think it had to feel good.”
Rainbow’s look of terror contorted back into one of pure sorrow and anguish, as though she were going to cry yet again.
“Sound about right?” the Canadian continued.
She just nodded solemnly.
“That’s completely normal,” said Ogden. “Listen, we all feel the same way every time we kill a changeling, but afterwards it never feels right to have ended so many lives.”
“That’s what Sidney said to Fluttershy,” said Rainbow. “Back in Canterlot.”
“Is that what you overheard?”
She nodded again.
“War brings out the worst in us, Rainbow,” Ogden finished.
The pegasus just curled into a trembling, cerulean ball, painfully crying through a runny nose and a Phlegm-filled throat.
The PFC just stroked her mane consolingly as she coughed through her sobs.
“It’s alright,” he said again. “Soon this nightmare will be over...for both of us…”
He looked behind him to see Gunny beckoning.
“Come on,” said Jenkins. “We’ve gotta keep moving.”
August 12, 2558 1226 hours Somewhere 160 miles southeast of Ottapaw
"Good news," said Gunnery Sergeant David Alvarez. "Gypsy and Shadow plan to lay siege to Ottapaw tomorrow morning."
Fireteam Icebreaker sat crouched in defilade amongst the trees and bushes, waiting to finally move out of the forest.
"Should we be surprised?" asked Private Eugene Phillips. "I mean, they never had a chance anyway. You know?"
"No Shifty, we shouldn't," Gunny said back. "I just hope we drive 'em back before they find more creative ways to kill us."
"Or more creative ways to torture and kill ponies," added PFC Ogden Jenkins.
Rainbow Dash only shivered at that comment.
Jenkins took a hand off his silenced SMG and consolingly placed it on her shoulder, not looking away from where his gun was pointed.
Suddenly, a cacophony of rustling leaves filled the air.
"Hold!" ordered Gunny. "Everyone down! That means you Rainbow!"
Slowly, the pegasus lowered herself onto her stomach and rested her head on one cheek as the remaining squad members either crouched lower or went full prone.
The sound only got louder and closer.
"Stay close together!" Alvarez whispered into his helmet mic.
The group huddled around Rainbow the best they could as two full companies of changelings passed right by them in the woods!
Gradually, the sound receded into the background.
The team of ODSTs then patently waited in the silence until they were certain they were all gone.
"Clear!" said Jenkins.
"For now," said Sgt. Alex.
"Horseapples, that was close!" said Rainbow.
"You said it," said Gunny.
"How did none of them see us?!" asked Shifty.
"Fuck if I know. But if I had to take a guess, I'd just say they were in a hurry...running from something…"
"What's there to retreat from?" asked Alex. "The nearest human presence is still dozens of miles north."
"I don't think that was it," said Jenkins. "They had an air about them, and I know that feeling…"
"What was it?" asked Shifty.
"It's from back during my desperate youth, as a thief," the PFC continued.
Everyone listened in.
"They're running from a crime scene."
...
Finally, Rainbow Dash and the rest of Icebreaker had exited from the woods into a wide-open desert clearing.
"Looks like Chrysalis' spell didn't reach out this far," said the Equestrian.
Seeing no need for her mud-cover anymore, the pegasus shook most of it off of herself like a wet dog.
“You mind warnin’ us next time?” said Sergeant Alex after casually being hit by several clumps.
“Sorry! I thought you wouldn’t mind,” said Rainbow. “You know, ‘caus’ve your armor?”
“True,” said Jenkins, wiping off some mud himself. “Still kinda gross though.”
“Hey, are you guys seeing this?” said Shifty, holding out his hand. “Is it…snowing?!”
The group turned their attention to the sky. Sure enough, greyish-white flakes had been falling from above for some time.
“But, it’s not even cold!” said Jenkins.
“Well cold or not, I’m parched!” said Rainbow.
She then held out her tongue and waited for some flakes to fall upon it. Once they had, she gulped them down, only to violently cough them back up almost instantly.
“WHAT THE HAY?! Why does it taste like ash?!” she squeaked.
“That’s ‘cause it is ash,” Gunny deadpanned.
He wasn’t even looking towards the group; instead he stood at the crest of a small mound, frozen as he looked over it, stunned.
Curious as to what he was witnessing, everyone came up behind him to look over the mound with him.
In the distance was a thick column of smoke rising into the sky, creating overcast cloud cover. It was billowing up from a large, fenced-off area.
“What in the world could be burning that hard?” asked Jenkins.
“I fear the answer,” said Gunny.
"We gunna check it out?"
"Might as well. Whatever's over there looks like something Infinity should know about."
With that, the ODST squad leader headed down the hill.
"You heard the man," said Sergeant Alex in an uncharacteristically quiet tone. "Let's move."
...
The gateway into the fenced-off site was bolted shut, so Alex had to break it with his bolt-cutters.
As he dragged the gate open, Shifty and Jenkins moved inside, guns raised.
"Where did you get that?" asked Rainbow.
"We brought it," Alex replied.
He swung his backpack around and began to re-stow the hefty tool.
"We were going to use it to help free you," he continued. "You know, in case your cell was bolted shut, or if we couldn't find the keys to unlock your chains."
"Guess it still came in handy…"
“Guys! The coast is clear!” called Shifty from inside.
The closer they got to the sound of violent burning, the thicker the ashes became. Rainbow Dash was finding it ever harder to breathe in with every hoofstep.
Worse than the growing concentration of ashes was her sense of dread doing the same.
What could the changelings be burning? And why?
Jenkins’ tone as he crested the hill confirmed the warrant for her fears.
“Ho-ley fffuuuuuck…”
Even in knowing she would regret looking, nothing could have prepared her for what she was about to see.
The very instant she laid her magenta eyes upon it, she shrieked uncontrollably!
To say that what she saw before her was egregious would have been an understatement: four piles of bodies, two of them burning and flanked by two made of rotting corpses ready to be thrown into one of the raging infernos.
Ogden just dropped his gun and fell to his knees, while the rest of Icebreaker handled it in their own ways.
The ODST looked back at Rainbow when he heard her panting and sobbing. Her face was once again torn in anguish as she stared wide-eyed at the horrendous scene.
She subtly shook her head before unexpectedly sprinting down the hill towards the death camp!
“Wait, Rainbow! STOP!” Ogden yelled after her.
It was no use. She kept running.
“Fuck,” he said under his breath. “C’mon Shifty! We’ve gotta go after her!”
“Ugh, I dunno man,” said the Private, visibly reeling from the sight as he leaned on his gun and clutched his stomach.
“SHIFTY!”
“Alright! ALRIGHT!...I’m comin’!...”
...
Rainbow’s magenta eyes filled with tears once again.
No way this is happening, she thought. No way!
As the sound of burning crescendoed,
as the smell of burning became evermore prevalent,
with every hoofstep, reality only set in more and more.
But her denial continued.
This isn’t real! she screamed to herself.
Finally, she reached the site, and no longer could she deny what was before her.
Four piles of bodies: boars from Boardor, dogs from Canida, and worst of all…ponies from Equestria.
Her own kin…dead and in flames before her very eyes.
She slowly walked forward until she was in the middle of it all.
Suddenly, the roar of the fire faded to silence and her tears ceased.
Rainbow couldn’t move. The scene around her was becoming too much to process!
She looked right and saw a bloody well with a sharp squeezing contraption suspended over it; the well was located directly between one of the burning piles and one of the rotting ones.
She looked left and saw the same thing. The contraption appeared large enough for a pony to fit in, and beside each well were…some buckets.
In horror, she realized that changelings would take ponies’ bodies and place them inside to crunch the blood out of them!
This was where the buckets of blood poured over her came from!
...
“Rainbow! You can’t just sprint away from us like that!” said Ogden as he finally caught up with the pegasus.
She didn’t react. Instead, she just seemed distant; standing motionless.
Ogden, taking notice, walked up behind her.
"Animals!" he exclaimed. "We should've killed them when they passed us by…"
The pegasus didn't respond. Her legs just began to quiver.
"Rainbow?" said the Canadian. "Are you feeling okay?"
"I-I" she stuttered. "I think I'm gonna be sick!"
She dropped to her elbows, expressionless, before unceremoniously barfing up yesterday's crackers!
Slowly, the pegasus curled into a ball, a soft moan turning into a wail. Soon, she was screaming in emotional pain at the heavens!
Tears streamed down her face until there were no tears left to cry.
Then she just gagged as though she'd forgotten how to breath!
Only then did Jenkins come up to her with a small towel.
"Rainbow?" he started. "You shouldn't be breathing this stuff in. Okay?"
As the PFC was talking with the pegasus, Sgt. Alex Thomson had found an unusually familiar stallion lying dead in the pile.
Burned, maimed, motionless, and yet his blond mane, green eyes, and golden coat were still on full display.
When the ODST saw a cowboy hat lying nearby, that’s when it hit him like a ton of bricks.
The photo! Applejack had given him a photo of her cousin! Said to look for him in Appleloosa if he could!
Upon realizing this, Alex hurriedly dug into his rig, trying desperately to remember where he’d put it.
Finally, he pulled out a folded and slightly crumpled picture of the stallion, taken with AJ by his side.
Back and forth he looked, from the body to the photograph and back to the body.
Just to be sure, he grabbed the cowboy hat and placed it on the corpse’s head. It was him alright.
“Shit…he wasn’t in Appleloosa AJ,” the human said quietly. “He was here.”
His face became twisted in anger before he slammed the picture onto the ground in frustration.
“He was right FUCKIN’ here!” he spat in disgust.
He did a double-take when he looked up, as everyone else had heard him.
He took a deep, aggravated breath before taking off his helmet just to wipe his face.
“He was right fuckin’ here,” he repeated after putting it back on, not allowing himself to look their way.
“Who was right here?” asked Rainbow. “Wha-what d’you mean?!”
“I MEAN-!” Alex paused to lower his voice. “I mean that there’s a reason no Equestrians were in Appleloosa when we got there.”
He pointed at the mass of corpses around them.
“It’s because they were all brought here,” he finished darkly. “We fuckin’ found’em…”
“Wh-wh-who are you looking at?” asked Rainbow, apprehensively approaching the Texan.
“One of Applejack’s…cousins.”
“No.”
She rushed over to Alex and looked down, audibly gasping. His body, once full of life and energy, now motionless and rotting.
“NO!” she screamed.
“You-? You knew him?” asked the squad’s second-in-command.
Without answering, she reached out to touch him, unsure of what that would even accomplish, but not before Alex could push her back into Ogden, who then pulled her away.
“NO! NO, BREABURN! NOHO!” she kept screaming as she blindly wrestled against the human’s grip.
“Rainbow! He’s gotta be diseased!” Ogden tried rationalizing. “You can’t touch the body!”
She just kept fighting against his grasp until the two of them were far enough away, at which point Ogden let go and the pegasus slipped onto the ground.
She laid there for a few moments on her knees and elbows, breathing a few pained sobs, before releasing a long, gut-wrenching screech at the ground.
When she stopped, she simply placed her forehead onto the ground and put her hooves above her head, breathing yet more pained sobs as she simply crumpled into a cerulean ball of pure grief.
Ogden then tugged at her, trying to get her to sit up. She was now wheezing out her sobs.
"What the hay?!" was all she could say or think.
The image had been burned into her memory, etched by the pure shock now causing her to tremble!
Ogden placed the towel on her muzzle.
"Come on, you need to step away from this!" he said, tugging at her arm.
She violently shook her head.
"I ca-I can't!" she gasped, on the verge of hyperventilation. "I...can't move!"
"Just look at me!" he said, physically turning her head away from the flaming carcasses. "Focus. On. Me! Remember to breathe and don't look away!"
She just stared, wide eyed, at the PFC before slowly dragging herself onto her hooves.
"That's it," said Jenkins. "One step at a time!"
As she slowly limped with him away from the scene, Gunny could be heard taking pictures with his helmet visor.
Finally, the two of them were far enough away to stop; the distraught pegasus had practically been wheezing the entire way, still failing to contain her sobs.
She weakly fell to the dirt, back onto her knees and elbows.
Shaking as though possessed, she blindly grabbed at his chest rig, practically pulling herself up.
She just looked up at him for a moment with a blank, yet pained expression, before slowly hugging him tightly.
"*gasp*Oh, Braeburhurhurhurn!" she wailed. "Whahahahahy?!"
"You're too innocent, Rainbow, nobody deserves to see this," Jenkins said softly. "Not even us…”
"My heart," Rainbow croaked. “I-I don't wanna die…”
Silence.
“Every last one of them,” she continued. “Every boar, dog, and p-pony…they all had a life! A story…B-Breaburn reminded me of that…"
“You’re absolutely right…That group that’d passed us by…GOD I wish I’d just killed ‘em all!”
Rainbow looked up at him. Though she couldn’t currently see his face through his visor, she could guess how angry and resentful his face was.
“T-that…that doesn’t sound like you,” she said. “N-normally, s-stuff doesn’t bother you so much…but this?…Why?...I thought you didn’t like killing?...”
Jenkins was quiet for a moment, clearly gathering his thoughts for a response.
“We...humans, that is...did something like this to ourselves at one point,” he said finally.
“What?!” said Rainbow in disgust. “How? Why? You’re the same species! Why would you ever do this to yourselves?!”
“It was over five-hundred years ago; we hadn’t yet colonized a world other than Earth,” the Canadian justified. “We were…confused back then, but the concept was still the same.”
He glanced back over to the flames and his squad.
“One group of us thought they were a superior race to all others, and convinced themselves that the rest should all be…cleansed from the world.”
Rainbow then followed his gaze towards the inferno.
“And what better way to cleanse…than to burn?” Ogden finished.
“That’s…h-horrible!”
“This is why we need you alive, Rainbow. This. Right here! We weren’t united back then. Hell, we still aren’t, at least not entirely. You and your kind, the elements together, you can unify this world! Unify the universe and prevent this kind of thing from happening ever again!”
He grabbed her face, lowering the tint on his visor, and he looked into her eyes.
She put her hooves onto his forearms and looked back into his.
“It’s you, Rainbow! You are the key to ending all of this!”
It took her a moment to realize that he was crying too, which oddly made her feel a little bit better.
“Listen to me,” he continued. “You’ve been through some shit, okay? One of your eyes is blacked-out, your cutie-marks have been burned away, you’ve been raped and beaten, you’re feeling sick as a dog, you’ve been forced to kill a living thing, and now this!”
He gestured towards the burning pile of bodies as Rainbow donned a look that was even more stressed.
“How is this supposed to make me feel better?!” she moaned.
“Because guess what?” Ogden replied. “You’re still alive! Through all of that, you’re still here!”
The pegasus was taken aback by this. As unwelcome as his prior sentiments were, she had to admit: he was right.
“Think about it,” Ogden continued. “In so many ways, you could not be here right now…alive.”
“In so many ways I could be dead,” said Rainbow.
“Exactly. Yet here you are. I don’t know if it’s destiny or what, but you are meant to live Rainbow Dash! The universe fucking needs you! So we’re gunna make that happen.”
Once again, he pointed at the massive fireball.
“For their sake, if nothing else,” he finished.
“You’re right,” said Rainbow, still crying. “We have to move on.”
Those last words were spoken with heartbreaking sadness. She wiped her face with a hoof.
“No matter how difficult,” she finished.
“That’s the fucking spirit,” Jenkins spurred.
...
August 12, 2558 1500 hours Somewhere 160 miles southeast of Ottapaw
“I’ve sent the images and video up to the Infinity,” said Gunny to the group. “History will know what they did here today.”
A solemn silence filled the air, accompanied only by the flames in the background.
“The patrol that passed us by has turned around,” he continued after some time.
“What?!” said Sgt. Alex.
“Oh no!” squeaked a wide-eyed Rainbow Dash.
“Infinity’s best guess is that they’re moving to reinforce Ottapaw, because they’re the closest asset that they have,” said the squad-leader.
“Fuck yeah!” said Shifty. “Hey Jenkins? I guess your wish has been granted!”
“Oh, we’re gunna fuck’em up so bad!” said Ogden.
“The hell you are!” said Alvarez.
“Aww, come on Gunny,” said Shifty. “You can’t hog’em all to yourself!”
“I mean it,” he replied stoically.
Everyone just stared at him, their faces quickly contorting into those of great concern.
“Wait,” said Jenkins. “Gunny? You don’t mean-?”
“I do, Jenkins,” Gunny interrupted.
“What?!” chimed Rainbow. “What does he mean?!”
“We still have a mission to protect Rainow,” Gunny continued, speaking to everyone. “The three of you are gunna continue to head north to Ottapaw. Imma stay behind and hold’em off-”
“No. NO! Sir, you can’t!” said Alex. “It’s suicide!”
“This isn’t up for discussion Sergeant.”
Alex visually backed off as Gunny stood up.
“You’re in charge now, Alex,” said Alvarez.
“No,” said the hardened marine once again. “This ain’t right!”
“And this. Ain’t. A discussion,” Gunny replied as he grabbed Alex’s shoulder. “Look around you! There’s nothing much, if anything, to hide behind anymore! You’ll be sitting ducks either way. At least this way, you’ll be bought some time!”
The two of them just stared at each other for a few moments.
“You all have to go, now!” said Gunny, ending the conversation as he pointed behind himself. “There’s literally no time!”
“A-aye sir,” said Alex uneasily.
After everyone had gathered their things, the remaining three ODSTs, and the pegasus they were assigned to escort, began their long march into the desert.
Alex, taking one last look behind him at his former squad-leader, shouted, “Godspeed sir!”
“Likewise!” came the reply. “I’ll see you on the other side!”
The Texan Sergeant rarely teared-up, but today he made an exception.
“You’d better fuckin’ be!” he said.
And with that, he turned and ran, just as he was ordered to.
August 12, 2558 1529 hours Somewhere 160 miles southeast of Ottapaw
Silenced SMG in hand, shotgun on his back, and silenced pistol at his hip, Gunnery Sergeant David Alvarez ran alone through the desert undergrowth.
“Come on motherfuckers,” he said under his breath. “Come on! I’m right fuckin’ here!”
Finding a decent spot where the ground dropped off a short distance, forming a low but steep hillside, the lone ODST stopped and pulled out a green smoke grenade.
He turned around, and the moment he spotted the first changeling flying over a distant rise, he pulled the pin without hesitation.
“Come and get me!” he said quietly through clenched teeth as he tossed the billowing green can to the side. “Let’s fuckin’ go!”
...
Less than a minute later, dozens of changelings were swarming the scene, clustering around the source of the smoke.
But there was no human in sight, only a backpack next to the now petering-out smoke grenade.
Two squads of changelings stood over it, while one of them reached out to examine it. The moment he began to lift it however, an audible click was heard.
It was sitting on top of a frag grenade.
The resounding explosion shattered the changelings’ eardrums and sent shards piercing all throughout their bodies. Nearby changelings who were physically unaffected were stunned by the sound and spun to face splattered blood and screams of pain.
Suddenly, silent bullets began ripping through their heads one-by-one!
Some two-hundred feet away, Gunny was in cover behind the low ridge, calmly tapping away with his silenced SMG.
It wasn’t long before they spotted him. Some began firing back, only to be cut down shortly thereafter, while others took to the air.
Time to move position. David kept firing until the mag ran dry, then ducked as a green bolt landed near where his face was, kicking up sand and dirt.
He reloaded as he ran along his cover, using the kicked-up mist to hide his escape, until he found his next, pre-planned angle behind a large rock. He used this new cover to start shooting up at the airborne changelings.
One-by-one they dropped out of the sky like flies, like he was bursting at covenant drones again, as bolt after magically-charged bolt struck the other side of the rock.
After some minutes, he was nearly out of ammo for his SMG.
Alvarez grunted loudly in pain as he was suddenly struck by a green fireball from behind! He flipped onto his back to see that he was getting flanked by a duo of changeling fighters.
He calmly put a burst into each of them before turning around and firing his final burst into one more. When he heard the click of his final mag emptied, he took one last cursory glance at the SMG before tossing it aside and sprinting towards a deep ditch some thirty feet away.
Explosions of green erupted in his wake as he pulled out his shotgun and dived in.
One airborne changeling attempted to dive in after the ODST, receiving a shell to its chest and neck and blowing it backwards, tumbling into the sand as the human ran in the opposite direction.
Jogging quickly through the narrow trench, he shot another shell into a changeling that landed at the edge of the ditch above him to the right. Another to the next one that landed to his left.
When that changeling got blown away, the one right behind him managed to dive in. Alvarez swifty pushed the bug-like equanoid’s spear to the side and threw the creature against the opposite wall of the ditch, before aiming and firing his fourth shell.
The ODST loaded in more shells early whenever he could get even just a sliver of time to do so. He made certain to make every shot count.
Finally, he fired his last shell, killing two with it before throwing the weapon aside and sprinting towards the corner of the ditch, where a lone desert tree stood.
One changeling jumped into his way and tried to stab him, to which David deflected the spear and pulled out his combat knife, slitting the bug-like creature’s throat before stabbing it between the eyes and throwing it to the ground.
Alvarez pulled out the knife and threw it at the next changeling to hop in front of him, nailing it in the face as well!
But before he could go and recover it, two more hostiles jumped in on either side of the ODST. He promptly deflected one of their impaling thrusts into the other, before knocking the first one unconscious.
Without thinking, Alvarez then pulled that spear out of its body and slammed the butt-end of the weapon into another changeling’s face, then tossing it like a javelin into a changeling who looked like he’d wanted to jump in too!
Finally, one changeling’s projectile exploded next to David, sending him flying into the corner he’d wanted to get to!
He grunted on impact, before quickly refocusing and pulling out his silenced pistol.
There he sat for Celestia-knew-how-long, killing changeling after never-ending changeling as his bullets slowly began to disappear.
Finally, the moment he knew would come had arrived.
*CLICK*
He tried searching for another clip.
Nothing. That was it.
This was it.
He dropped the empty, smoking gun as dozens of changelings landed around him. At first he appeared to raise his hands in surrender, until he flipped them around, brandishing two middle fingers.
Inside his helmet, he was smiling.
“Fuck you guys!” Alvarez chuckled, knowing he’d bought plenty of time.
Those would be his last words, as the changeling standing directly in front of him angrily thrust his spear into his neck, piercing the skin and reaching all the way into his spinal-cord, before frying him from the inside with a bolt from its magical tip.
His body flailed as green light brightly glowed from inside his visor, before his armor came to rest, now merely an empty husk.
Oddly, the changeling who’d just gotten the kill, along with his comrades around him, did not feel satisfied, having lost so much just to kill this one human.
That was, until he noticed the shining pin around the middle finger of one of Alvarez’s gloves. The changeling now only felt terror, if for just a moment, as its eyes went to one of the grenades on David’s belt, bright yellow and adorned with a simple smiley face.
One final explosion rocked the desert, accompanied by a massive, green mist of changeling blood, before the old desert tree it had erupted under keeled over into the ditch, as though cementing the grave.
...
August X, 2558 1536 hours UNSC Infinity Bridge
“Perfect,” said Roland, audibly kissing his fingers like an artist. “Just, perfect! Rest in pieces friend.”
“Roland, that better have been genuine monody,” said Lasky.
“It was sir,” said the A.I. somberly, not looking away from the screen. “It most definitely was..."
August 12, 2558 1641 hours Somewhere 158 miles southeast of Ottapaw
The afternoon desert sun beat-down upon Rainbow Dash and the three remaining ODSTs of Fireteam Icebreaker.
The new air-conditioning units built into the humans’ helmets were helping, but they weren’t enough to keep them from periodically taking big swigs out of their canteens.
It was no better for the young pegasus, trudging through the sandy and sparse undergrowth, desperately hoping for another oasis over the next rise, yet coming up short each and every time.
She had always pushed her body to the peak of physical fitness, but nothing in her world could have made her mentally fit enough to endure this!
She began to feel herself becoming sore from all the walking and dehydration, specifically in one particular spot.
The marines stopped dead when they heard her collapse behind them.
“Oh, shit!” Shifty exclaimed as Ogden went up to her and knelt down by her side. “What’s wrong?!”
“Is she havin’ heat-stroke?!” asked Sgt. Alex.
As Ogden got a closer look, he could see that she was holding her crotch in pain.
“C’mon Jenkins, answer me!” the Texan pushed.
“No, it’s not heat-stroke,” Ogden finally replied. “She would’ve passed out otherwise. She’s holding her…crotch…and I think we know the reason.”
“S-sports doctors in Equestria said to never work-out after sex,” said Rainbow. “Heh, I guess this is why.”
Jenkins put a hand on her face.
“Don’t sell yourself short, Rainbow,” he said. “It’s amazing you got this far before feeling pain down there, you know?”
She smiled back, resting her head on the ground.
“What now?” she asked darkly.
“I would carry you, except I can’t,” Ogden replied. “You’re just too big for one person to carry. Maybe two of us could, but then we’d be short two guns outta three, and it’d still be a struggle!”
He then fully and defeatedly sat down beside her.
“I feel bad, because you could carry me-no, fly me to your house with me on your back,” he started. “But now I can’t carry you!”
“It’s okay,” she said weakly, wincing as she placed a hoof on his shoulder. “It’s the thought that counts.”
“But we can’t just give up!” said Shifty. “Not after we’ve come so far!”
“We may have to, Private,” said Alex. “We’re still in changeling-occupied territory, and Infinity may still be unwilling to send down a Pelican.”
“Well it’s now or never, Sarge!” said Jenkins. “Either we lose ten Pelicans, or the Element of Loyalty dies!”
“I’ll call ‘em up and try to make the case,” said Alex, bringing a hand up to his ear. “But no guarantees.”
“They’d better,” said Shifty. “I don’t want Equestria to fall because we pussyed-out!”
Rainbow Dash gave Eugene a mild glare.
“No offense!” the young Private retracted. “Sorry!”
“The fuck?!” exclaimed Sgt. Alex.
He was facing away from the group, who then looked in the direction he was looking as he raised his SMG to firing position.
In response, Jenkins and Shifty immediately did the same.
There before them stood a familiar armored mare, accompanied by one of her guards. She quickly raised a cautionary hoof.
“Please!” she called out. “We mean you no harm!”
Jenkins positioned himself between Rainbow Dash and Greyblade, body-blocking her just in case.
“How the FUCK are you even free?!” Sgt. Alex shouted back. “We captured you!”
Field Marshal Greyblade cringed slightly.
“I caved-in and told them what they wanted to know,” she replied, approaching more slowly. “Then they let me go.”
“Bullshit!” Alex spat as he and Shifty walked towards them. “On the ground! Now!”
Before either Dalepony could do so, the two humans had already pinned them flat onto the sand. Alex then pulled out his knife as he held down her head with his other hand.
“Your blood better not be green!” he hissed. “Shifty, check him the same way!”
“Aye, sir,” Eugene replied.
Greyblade softly squealed as the Sergeant made a small incision on her cheek, the Private doing the same to Cinder Pine shortly thereafter.
Alex slowly relaxed as a drop of red fluid rolled away from the wound, before glancing at Greyblade’s terrified blue iris looking back up at him. Looking over at Cinder Pine, he saw the same color red coming from his wound.
“Their clear,” said Sgt. Alex somberly as he stood up.
Ogden, from afar, lowered his weapon in response (if only slightly) as the two equines before him got back to their hooves.
“Now how did you get here?” asked Alex. “And why are you here?”
“How we got here isn’t important,” said Greyblade, unsteadiness in her voice as she then pointed at Jenkins. “What’s important is that we came to help her.”
The cerulean pegasus timidly peeked her head out from behind Jenkins, getting a good look at the newcomers for herself.
“M-me?” she stammered.
Greyblade then approached, pulling out a leather bota bag.
“Yes! Here,” she replied. “We brought water, and food!”
“Tell me this ain’t a mirage,” said Private Eugene Phillips.
“They’re too close to be a mirage, Shifty,” said Jenkins. “Plus we’re all seeing them at the same time, so…”
“Well, you’re just in time then, I guess,” said Alex. “Our canteens were starting to run low.”
The three marines watched the two newcomers like hawks as they knelt down around Rainbow Dash.
Greyblade then held her bota bag out to her, and the cerulean pegasus immediately began to drink from it like a baby lamb being fed milk.
“Oh, you have no idea how good that feels!” breathed Rainbow the moment she finished. “It’s like it’s been forever since I’ve seen another pony.”
“Well, then we’re glad to be the first,” said Cinder Pine as he pulled out a small, round container. “Here, you should smell this too.”
He opened it, revealing a butter-yellow substance with a thin and shiny film on top.
“What is that?” asked Rainbow.
“It’s a special balm that we make in Gildedale, we used to sell it to Equestrian supermarkets not too long ago,” Cinder replied. “Smell it.”
He held it out to her, insisting, and Rainbow cautiously obliged. She took one small whiff, which inadvertently became a rather large and loud one, before gasping in shock and nearly keeling over!
Catching herself, she instantly looked back up at Cinder Pine.
“Whoa!” she squeaked.
“Feel better?” asked the brown-coated stallion.
“...Kinda…what did it just do?”
“It acts as a kind of...painkiller, if you will. It tricks your body into retaining water a little better too, keeping you hydrated for longer. It’s how me and Greyblade were able to cross the desert.”
He then gave his marefriend a quick wink, before she subtly mouthed, “thank you” in response.
“Uhh, could we get some of that?” asked Shifty.
Cinder turned around, took one look at his mechanical suit of armor, and said simply, “You’re fine.”
Private Eugene Phillips just snapped his fingers.
“Darn!” he said.
“Can you walk?” Greyblade asked the beaten pegasus. “We can carry you if you need rest.”
“I-I’m not sure,” said Rainbow, looking down and pushing her mane aside. “I’ve been walking for a while now, and-”
Greyblade put a hoof up.
“Say no more,” she said. “Cinder?”
“Climb on my back,” he said.
“Are-are you sure?” asked Rainbow.
“I wouldn’t offer you a ride if I couldn’t.”
“...Okay...”
...
It had not been more than ten minutes since Rainbow Dash had laid her head down on Cinder Pine’s neck as he carried her, and she could already feel herself dozing-off.
She could feel the subtle up-and-down motion of his body as he trotted along.
But the moment she closed her eyes, he became still.
“Wha-? Why did we sto-?” she started as she opened her eyes.
She cut herself off when she saw that she was resting upon a rock, her companions suddenly nowhere in sight.
“Guys?” she called weakly. “G-guys?!”
Then she began hearing a faint buzzing from behind. She turned and widened her eyes in shock: the changeling swarm had caught up to her!
Before she knew it, they had surrounded her once again; some had landed on the ground, while the rest kept to the sky, all pointing their weapons at her.
She raised slowly herself onto her knees and placed her hooves behind her head as they closed in.
“Please,” she whimpered, putting her tail between her legs. “Don’t make me go back!”
No response. Instead, a changeling kicked her onto her stomach from behind, knocking the breath out of her before kicking her onto her back and straddling her waist.
In panic, Rainbow covered her crotch, but her aggressor simply grabbed one of her forehooves and pinned it to the sand at her side, before stepping on her throat with his other hoof.
The pegasus could only look helplessly up at the changeling as he leaned in, beginning to laugh maniacally, when suddenly he turned himself into...Pinky Pie?!
Rainbow just looked up at her with both terror and confusion, now hearing the maniacal laughter in Pinky’s voice, before a forked tongue shot deep into the pagasus’ mouth.
...
Rainbow Dash lay splayed upon Cinder Pine’s back as she slept, motionless except for the occasional wag of her multicolored tail. Greyblade walked beside them as the remnants of Fireteam Icebreaker pulled security around the three, regularly scanning the sky all around them.
Suddenly, Rainbow awoke, coughing as though choking on something! Trying to avoid coughing on her ride, she accidentally slipped off!
The rest of the group stopped in their tracks as she briefly rolled in the sand, stopping on her stomach, before she delicately raised herself to a sitting position, coughing the whole time.
“What’s wrong?!” asked a concerned Greyblade as Jenkins rushed up to Rainbow.
“She good?” asked Sgt. Alex Thompson.
“Flem get stuck in your throat again?” the PFC asked the pegasus.
Rainbow nodded rapidly as she caught her breath.
“Yeah,” she breathed. “Just flem…”
Jenkins began looking over the rest of her. Her breathing, though deep, still sounded partially blocked by excess mucus, causing more coughs every so often.
“Anything else hurt?” asked Jenkins. “That was quite a fall.”
“No,” she croaked, starting to tear up again. “I-*cough*-I’m f-fine…”
Out of nowhere, she began bawling; every other sob being choked by the flem in her throat. She pulled herself into Jenkins’ chest and cried into it.
“Goodness!” said Cinder. “The fall wasn’t that bad, was it?”
“It wasn’t,” said Jenkins, returning Rainbow’s hug. “She’s just...been through a lot, is all…”
“Ah, right…”
“Let’s take a short break,” said Sgt. Alex. “Changelings likely have lost our trail for the time being, so there ain’t no reason ta not eat somethin’.”
“Agreed,” said Greyblade.
Everyone knew what Alex really meant: Rainbow needed her space...again.
“Rainbow?” Jenkins started. “If some disease was infecting the world, and the only way to avoid spreading it was to stay in your house indefinitely, would you?”
“...I would fly around every so often,” she replied.
“Sure.”
“I-I’d go crazy otherwise!”
“Would you avoid visiting your friends?”
“If that kept them safe, then yeah! Of course!”
“But, what if one of them suddenly needed surgery or something? A trusted friend or family member would need to be present right?”
Rainbow took a few moments to think that one over.
“If they couldn’t do their normal activities without help,” she started. “Then I would take every precaution in the book just to be by their side!”
“Really?” said Jenkins. “Even if you might infect them?”
“Isn’t that what loyalty is all about? I did say I’d take every precaution.”
“Well, I guess you’re the expert on loyalty, not me!”
The two shared a laugh at that, glad to have released some of the negative energy, if not for just a moment.
“Where did that question even come from, by the way?” asked the pegasus.
“Nowhere really,” said the PFC. “Just some hypothetical scenario that came to mind I guess.”
“I...had a nightmare.”
“Really? Choking on mucus isn’t what woke you up?”
“No...it was…”
Suddenly, she resumed sobbing softly and rapidly.
“It-it…was…”
Jenkins could see it in her eyes: she was beginning to lose control emotionally.
“Oh my gosh!” she said, on the verge of hyperventilation. “I’m gunna die! We’re all gunna die!”
“Hey, hey! Cool it!” said Jenkins as he grabbed her by the shoulders.
“First Sydney, then Marcus, now David! We’re all gunna dihihiii-AAH!”
Rainbow snapped her head back in shock, back in the present. Jenkins had just smacked her!
“HEY! SNAP OUT OF IT!” he said upon grasping her head with both hands. “You are NOT gunna die!”
Rainbow was speechless, simply staring back at the human with eyes full of tears, mouth agape, and face in a pained expression.
She was unsure whether to be afraid of him for slapping her upside the head, or thankful that he’d somehow managed to calm her down just a little bit.
“We promise: You’ll be okay,” he continued before pulling her into a tight embrace. “I promise.”
Sergeant Alex, watching from afar, took a deep breath before finally looking away; in the distance, he could see a pile of sandstone rocks that could be used as cover.
“Keep moving people!” he ordered. “We can rest over by that rock formation!”
...
“Thank god for a little shade!” said Shifty. “Didn’t think I’d miss the forest…”
“You can say that again,” said Jenkins.
The two of them were sitting together while their Sergeant was standing some ways away, alone and looking back the way they came through a pair of binoculars.
“Imma go check on him,” said Jenkins as he stood up.
“Hey,” said Shifty, grabbing Jenkins’ arm. “For the record: I think smacking ‘er upside the head was the right call…not that I endorse hitting women.”
The PFC gave a small chuckle.
“Duly noted,” he said back. “Thanks bud.”
“Don’t mention it.”
Jenkins walked over to his squad leader, already knowing what he wanted to ask.
“Sir? You doing ok?”
“No.”
The Canadian was taken aback by Alex’s honesty.
“But I’ll be alright,” he continued. “Do Rainbow a favor, and take those bandages off her wings.”
“What if they haven’t fully healed?”
“Applejack knows Rainbow pretty well. We spoke for a bit before the drop, and she told me pegasi wings, apart from the eyes, are the quickest-healing part of their bodies. It’s been more than a couple of days, I think they’ll be mostly ok.”
Jenkins started to walk away.
“I assume we’re still keeping her grounded though?” he asked after a few steps.
“You know it,” said Alex. “She’d still be too vulnerable up there, and we wouldn’t want her putting stress on those things too soon anyways.”
“Roger that.”
Jenkins very cautiously approached Rainbow Dash. She was sitting on her haunches just staring out into the void. He could tell she heard him when she turned her head slightly, but she said nothing.
Neither did he.
The PFC simply knelt down behind her and wordlessly began undoing the bandages binding her wings.
She looked back at him with surprise, before softly gasping when the final binding was released.
“Oh, that feels so good!” said Rainbow, giving her feathered appendages a few flaps. “Thank you!”
“We were going to take it off when you got back,” said Jenkins. “But...well, you know what happened.”
She just gave him a somber look.
“It’s been that long, huh?” was all she could say.
“Yeah,” Ogden replied with a sigh.
They watched the sand blow by in silence together.
“I’m sorry for hitting you earlier,” he said finally.
Rainbow turned to look at him again.
“I know,” she said after a moment. “I was kinda freaking out, though.”
“Heh.”
He started stroking her mane. Apart from that one time, his hands were gentle for the most part; she knew this.
“You’re forgiven,” she said with a small smile.
They sat in silence for some time...until a familiar buzzing could be heard in the distance.
It was coming from where they had just been! Both looked over towards the sound just as Shifty came running over.
“Uhh, guys? Sorry to interrupt your little moment but,” he started. “We’ve got incoming!"
