> Serenity, Courage, Wisdom > by Flutter-Sparks > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- > Chapter 1 (Rerwite) > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- Chapter 1 I sat there fiddling with the shells on my plate carrier as I made sure they were secure for the umpteenth time. I had gone to one of my favorite airsoft and paintball field a ways up north, in hopes of having fun with the small milsim they had set up. But my unit as well as another were tasked to hang back as a couple of our smaller groups scouted ahead. It's been a little over half an hour since, and I've just been sitting here in muddy slush from some snowfall a couple days ago. I'd honestly rather have a wet ass than stand around for 30 minute. Since I was a designated medic (as indicated by the two red crosses on each side of my helmet and middle of my chest rig), I was used to hanging back since I would be needed if any of our guys got downed. But this is getting on my nerves for a little. I begrudgingly listened to the sounds of AEGs and the pops of smokes or thunderbees in the distance. Looking over as I saw one of the others shift around out of the corner of my eyes, I adjusted myself when I just realized that my ass was starting to go numb. After I was in a more comfortable position I let out a long sigh which caught the attention of the guy next to me. "You okay?" "Yeah" I breathed out, my gaze aimed in front of me as I watched my breath appear, "Just bored." "Shouldn't you be used to this?" I looked at him, "Kinda. I'm used to hanging back, but we're usually engaged and someone is downed at one point or another." He let out a quiet "ah" and looked back over the trench. We shared a pregnant pause until I spoke up. I looked over and stuck my arm out, "I'm Nicholas by the way." He looked at me with a small smiled, grabbed my hand and gave it a firm shake, "Bobby." Bobby looked like a sturdy guy in 30s - 40s who's been playing airsoft for a few years. He gave off a family man who goes out to play airsoft every other weekend kinda vibe. I wouldn't be surprised if he had his son and/or daughter out here with him today. I couldn't really make out much of his facial features through his two-piece goggles and lower mesh setup, aside from his brown eyes. We separated and he continued his gaze over the trench. I got up and kneeled down so I could peek over the edge to observe a small "town" with a small field between us. It was small enough to where you could run from end to the other in less than 15 seconds. But that still gives anyone overlooking it enough time to shoot whoever tries to. It doesn't help that the snow adds a slip risk if you were to run across. Bobby glanced over at me and spoke, "Ya know... you kinda look like that one guy from that Battlefield game my son plays." So he does have a son. Is he here? Probably not judging from his tone. "I get that a lot", It was true, I looked very much like the US assault class from Battlefield 4 with a tri-color "chocolate chip" camo. Only differences were that I didn't have the various items like chem lights or the scissors you see on his assault pack. I do, however, have a small American flag with the pole slipped through the molly on my assault pack. I'm telling you now: I am one patriotic motherfucker. I love my country. Not trying to sound cliché, but, under all my gear, I look like your average 21 year old. 150 lbs, 5'10", brown eyes, very short, brown hair with a small black tint to it. Actually, is 150 lbs that average? I cant remember. I can say for certain, though, that I am not easy to move. I may look like a twig compared to most of my friends, but they can agree that I am very sturdy myself. I'd say it was probably another 10 minutes when some came running down the trench from our left. He stopped between me and Bobby, "Eyes up, guys. Our scouting boys are leading the other team right to us. Right into the line of fire." We both gave him a thumbs up as he continued down the trench. "Finally, something!" I cheered in my head. I lifted the lower half of my balaclava over my mouth and nose, and brought my M870 modeled spring shotgun up and rested on the edge of the trench. I knew I wouldn't be very effective at the range we'd be engaging at, and only have ten shots before I would have to load a new shell, but I've had my fair share of moments of "sniping" players with my shotgun. We sat there, waiting. And waiting. And waiting, as the sounds of AEGs a gas blowbacks got closer. Then, we saw three figures break from the town in a full sprint. We held our fire as the tan and black uniforms signified they were our guys. No later when they made it to us, one landing next to me and Bobby, did we see green uniforms fill the buildings across the field. As if everyone had some neurolink, both sides began shooting at the same time. I fired off a couple shots at those who poked there heads out from any windows and doorways, making sure those on the other team couldn't do much to cover their teammates. This continue for sometime before I ducked down as bbs kicked up the loose dirt in front of me. I decided it would be best if I stayed down so I would get hit and we lose a medic. And by chance I heard someone yell "medic!" further down the line. I stayed in a low crouch as I moved behind Bobby, patting his shoulder, telling him I was moving. I didn't need to go far as I saw one of our guys waving me down. I pulled up next to him and asked for whoever got hit was. "Fox hole, just ahead!" he tells me. I peek over and see one of our guys 10 feet - maybe 15 feet ahead in a shallow fox hole with some low sandbags in front. He had a "dead rag" over his helmet to signify he was out. He was on his back with his rifle lying on his chest, he was trying to make himself as small, and as low to the ground as possible. The fox hole looked like it was just big enough for two people, but it still looked like a tight fit. My options were limited in terms of getting to him. Someone can either climb the trench wall, run over and drag him back to the trench, I could run up into the hole with him, or we could wait until we make a push or the refs call something. While the latter option is the safest, the first two would allow for one of our guys to get back in the action and contribute to the fight again faster. I look back to the guy who called me over and pat his shoulder to get his attention, "Someone needs to run up and drag him back over here!" I say. "Can't you just run in with him and revive him?" "I can try," I say hesitantly, "but if I do manage to get to him, there's the issue of getting back. Once I'm there, It'll be a tricky situation getting back." He looked down and pondered what I said. I took that moment to look over the trench again and at our downed teammate. I wasn't opposed to the idea of running up to him, I've taken similar risks in the past. Even if I do get hit it's not like it's with real bullets. They're just small BBs that will just make the area sting for a bit. ... Fuck it. I climb over the trench wall, staying in a low crouch, I rush over to the fox hole. The guy there is still on his back looking a bit tense. I dove onto my belly from just a foot away and then rolled onto my side as I got up next to him. He had a white bandanna out for me to wrap around his arm to show he's been hit and revived once. Our team had began to push to the town by the time I had revived and helped up my teammate. It surprised me a bit but that was pushed back as my teammate and I began to make our way over to help secure the town. We were probably about 50ft from the edge when the hairs on the back of my neck stood up and I got goose bumps. I paid no mind and brushed it off as a chill from the cold air since it was late winter after all. I began to hear a sound like that of glass cracking and it continued all the way to the first building in front of me. As I was about to enter it, all hell broke lose. GGGGGAAAAAAAAHHHHHHH!!!!!!! I froze and screamed in agony as the feeling of being electrocuted and burned alive encompassed my body. I stood there frozen with my gun pointed down at an angle in my right hand while my left was locked in a fist at my side. The horrid feeling continued for what felt like hours but was only probably a minute at most. Once it finished I stood there in the same frozen pose as I trembled and panted. Tears blurred my vision and began to fog my goggles. I tried to move but I could barely feel my arms and legs, and when I looked down I found my body encompassed in some blue aura aside from my head. It seemed to be what was holding me in place. I could only stand there and frantically look around as my mind scrambled to figure what the hell was happening. I hadn't noticed the crowd gathering until a few refs I didn't know ran up to me, yelling at every one to get back. I looked up and saw two approach me and two more trying to keep the other players at a distance. They stopped just arms length from me. The ref on my left spoke, "Hey - hey! You ok there bud?" His tone was calm and he spoke slow; doing his best to not escalate anything. I could only give a small nod and a weak "Ye-yeah." He nodded slowly and continued, "Ok, well I'm Joe and my partner here is John" he says gesturing to the other ref, John. "Can you tell me what happened?" I briefly told him about the odd feeling while I crossed the field and when this strange force grabbed me. He only nodded and brought his hand to his chin in thought while I noticed John, and a few players I think, calling what I can only hope is the police and emergency services. Joe walks closer to me and carefully inspects the field encasing my body. I can only move my head little without restriction and follow him with my eyes. He moves back in front of me an looks me in the eye, "Ok, I'm going see if I can move you and figure out what we're working with further." I only nod which he acknowledges with his own. He moves into a better position and brings his left hand up and toward my shoulder. This proved to be a bad idea. Once he made contact I closed my eyes as there was a loud *pop* and I felt Joe's hand leave my shoulder followed quickly by a loud *THWACK* and a searing pain along the right side of my neck and just below my ear. I could only gritted my teeth and groan as the pain flared for a few seconds before fading just a bit. When I opened my eyes Joe was lying on his stomach just a few feet in front of me, writhing in pain. Others flocked to him to see if he was ok. I caught a glimpse of his hand and saw it was badly burned. I easily deduced that his contact with the field holding me reacted negatively. ..... I don't know how long it was, but emergency services finally arrived. First a fire crew, ambulance and a just a couple officers. It went how you would expect, I was asked what happened, as well as those who were still around when I was caught and when Joe tried helping me. When the medical crew came to help, the other players and I were quick to advise them to not make contact with me at all. So they merely observed. I was told part of the side of my balaclava was burned away, and that I had second degree burns running from the bottom of my ear to the top of my shoulder. I was not happy but I didn't voice it. Other than that they said I was fine from what they could tell. It didn't take long before the whole area was basically a crime scene with the yellow tape, detectives and news crews on the sidelines. It was dark out, cold and I was tired. The police continued to move about and figure out what to do, my parents were notified and the emergency crews continued to voice their concerns of infection of my burns since they cant get close to treat it. But that was the least of my worries. My biggest concern being: what the fuck is happing and how will this end. Dozens of thoughts of what will happen ranging from me being atomized to the field dissipating and letting me go. I didn't know and I don't think I wanted to. Even if I did manage to make it out of this I wasn't sure if I would have some sort of traumatic backlash or something. And then there was my concern for my burn... I stood there with my head down and eyes closed trying to get some rest. But it wasn't proving easy, what with all the lights from the emergency vehicles and noise from every person around me. It didn't help that someone just set up a generator or something next to me as well. It didn't sound like any generator I've heard before, though. It didn't sound mechanical or electrical from what I could tell. It gave off an odd humming. When I opened my eyes to get a look at the odd sounding object, the first thing I noticed was that I was glowing - no the field was glowing brighter. My focus on the field led me to realize that the humming was coming from me. I looked up to see everyone running around in a panic. Then I panicked. I began to struggle against the field. I could feel myself shift some within the field, but I was still rooted to the same spot on the ground. I turned my head to my left and saw an officer running up to me. My eyes widened as I realized what he was going to do. I didn't get a chance to tell him not to, he was already upon me as he then grabbed my arm, only to meet the same result as Joe from earlier. I could only curse at the brave, yet stupid, attempt, as well as the two new burns on my upper arm. The glowing got brighter and the humming got louder. My eyes began to water and I trembled as I feared the worse. I don't want to die like this. I'm only 21, I still have so much to live for - to experience and learn. What are my friends and family going think when they're told I was vaporized or that I imploded, or something. What happened next, I wouldn't be able to process fast enough at that time. Without warning, the air in front of me crackled with electricity before a large, black, swirling hole opened in front of me. I barely had a chance to react when I felt myself yanked forward and into the hole. ..... I tumbled around in an inky blackness, pulled in seemingly random directions. Gravity felt nonexistent, and I quickly lost bearing. The whole experience didn't even last ten seconds, though it felt longer, before I was spat out head first. The first thing saw as I exited airborne, was a dining table full of various foods. Said table was directly in my flight path as I closed my eyes and braced myself as I promptly made contact and slid across it lengthwise, taking most if not all the food with me. I hit the floor on my belly as the various foods and tableware fell and clattered around me. I lied there for a short moment, still trembling, to gain my bearing. Opening my eyes I noticed the mess around me, and a wall just in front of me. Shakily and with heavy breaths, I stood up and leaned against the wall with my left shoulder. Taking another moment to let my racing heart and mind to calm down. Okay, o-okay. A floor, v-v-various food items and a wall. I take a deep breath, I'm still alive. I looked down at my still trembling hands and clenched them a few times, helping to calm and, still, reassure myself that I was still here and alive. As I calmed down some more, my heavy breathing began to make it hotter with my balaclava on. With that, I reached up, undid the buckle on my helmet strap, and took it off; letting it hang to my side in my right hand by the straps while I used my left hand to pull off my ruined balaclava then run it through my short hair while taking some more deep breaths. I chuckled after realizing what the hell just happened, and yet I'm still standing. My smile quickly disappeared when I looked up and to my right to get a better look at where I was. What I saw was the last thing I expected. Standing before me in this apparent kitchen/dining room setting were three beings looking very much like that of a griffin, albeit they were standing upright and wearing clothes. All three appeared to be female due to the more feminine physique they seemed to have, and shared the same brown fur with golden brown feathers. They also appeared to be that of a mother and her two daughters, one looking to be about high school/college age, and the other looked to be no more than that of an elementary schooler. They were all looking at me with varying levels of shock and fear that would level my own. We could only stand there and stare at each other as the gears in our heads, respectively, tried to process what we were looking at. I didn't have much time to think, unfortunately, as I suddenly felt a presence behind me and for a big talon-ed arm and hand suddenly enter my vision and wrap itself around my neck. My helmet clattered on the floor as my hands flew up in weak attempts to dislodge the arm from around my neck. My first instinct as I began to struggle and kick against my assailant, was to try and get my chin down and between their arm and my neck. Something one of my friends had shown me. Try as I must, I couldn't as my assailant was very strong and continued to put more pressure into the hold as I desperately struggled and clawed at their arm. As I began to feel it get even harder to breath, I suddenly remembered something. My right hand shot down to a pocket on my carrier and pulled out a small, two and a half inch handle. My index finger found the notch on the side and put just enough pressure on it. Just as I was hoping, a sharp, two inch blade flipped out. I then flipped the knife so that the blade was on the bottom end of my fist and gripped the handle tightly. I heard a collective gasp from the trio across the room as I raised my right arm. "Dad!" "Daddy!" It was too late. I swung my arm down and just behind me. I met my mark as felt the knife pierce into my assailant, followed by a pained scream. Instantly their arm removed itself from around my neck, making me let go of my knife as I fell to the floor, gasping for much needed air in between coughing fits. I brought my hands to my neck in an attempt to help ease the pain. No doubt a bruise will form shortly. Still trying to manage my coughing fits, I look up at the three females still standing where they were. None of them had moved an inch, but looking at their faces I noticed that their expressions had evolved into horror, and the looks of fear only seemed worse. It was the youngest one that caught my attention, however. Looking at her, more specifically her large, emerald eyes, I could see tears forming. The fear in her eyes was what really had my focus. That's because I could see that I was not the source of that fear - not anymore at least. No, her eyes and the source of that fear were focused on what was behind me. I slowly turned my head 180 degrees and part of me shattered after taking in the sight before me and realizing what I had just done. Sat just five feet from me, back against the wall was my attacker with labored breaths as his face (it looked like a male judging from the broader and more muscular stature) expressing immense pain, and his hands shakily trying to put pressure on and stop the bleeding from where my knife was still sticking out of his side. I just stabbed a father right in front his family... came my internal realization. Oh my God, I just stabbed a man in front of his family! Why... Why, why, why?! He had you in a headlock, dip shit. What else were you supposed to do? No! I don't need you butting in right now- But its true! Your fight-or-flight instinct kicked in and this is what happened. You can't deny it! Question is: what are you gonna do now? Fuck! I hate it when you'e right... As much as I don't like my "rational" voice in my head, it almost always makes sense. And as much as I hate it, things would only ever get worse if I argued or fought it. But it's question still stood: what a will I do now? Without another thought I quickly turned the rest of my body and crawled the short distance to his right side. His eyes were closed and he didn't react to my moving towards him. He must be in more pain to not notice me. Taking off my back pack I quickly analyzed the situation. It was difficult to determine exactly were I stabbed him but it I appeared to have gotten him around his midsection. There was a lot off blood soaking his brown shirt and the hem of his blue jeans, and a lot more still coming out. Fuck, fuck, fuck! I internally panicked as I put my hands around the wound to put pressure on it, God damn it! Its possible I might of hit his liver or kidney! Fuck, I don't know how to go about this! Yes you do. You need to calm down first, and do your best to stop the bleeding, then get help. Right! You're right! Taking a deep breath, I cleared my mind of as much panic as possible. Once that was sorted I quickly snapped my head to the three females still standing where they were, and point my right index finger at them. "Quick! Someone needs to go get a paramedic. I also need one of you over here to help me." There was a moment of hesitation from them all, but the oldest looking daughter quickly ran over and knelt on her dad's left. My focus was on her as she moved while I heard the quick shuffle of the others' feet go off somewhere and then a door open and close. With that now done my focus was back to my "patient" and "assistant". Time to get to work. "Here, put pressure on the wound, just like this!" I instructed, the daughter hesitantly reached over and placed her talons around the wound like I had once I removed mine so that I could go through my bag. Opening one of the pockets I began to rummage through what basic medical supplies I had, and take out what I needed: scissors, gauze pads, cotton pads, wrapping and disinfecting wipes. Once I had what I needed I first used the scissors to cut the brown shirt from the bottom, gently around and through the tear made by my knife, and to the top effectively splitting it in half. The fur around the would was matted with blood as more still came out, albeit not as bad as a few minutes ago. Next I got to using the cotton pads to soak up and clean as much of the blood around the wound as possible. During all this I was aware of the daughter staring at me, hesitantly. It's because she doesn't trust you. No shit, Sherlock! I retorted to myself, I just stabbed her father! Internal argument aside, I had started using some of the cotton pads to dab up as much of the blood around the wound as I could. Throwing the bloodied cotton aside I grabbed a disinfecting wipe and was about to start disinfecting around the wound when I stopped myself. I had almost forgot that it would sting and this guy would either jerk around or bite his fucking tongue off. Thinking quickly I put down the wipe, grabbed my gloves and folded them over each other. I didn't bother asking the father to open his beak as I just used one hand to open it, and the other to put my gloves in and then close his beak, all while muttering: "Now this is going to hurt, and I don't need you biting your fucking tongue off." Once done I picked the wipe back up and made the first gentle wipe around the wound. The father immediately tensed up and craned his neck up into a muffled scream. Luckily it didn't last and I was able to wipe around the rest of the wound, only eliciting a handful of grunts. Finally done with that I grabbed the gauze pads so that I could place them to minimize the bleeding before wrapping the wound. But before I could place the first pad, the daughter stopped me. "Aren't you going to pull it out?" It took me a second to process that she meant my knife. "No," I replied, "If w-" "Why not!?" she yelled, interrupting me. "Because if we do he'll bleed out faster!" She seemed taken aback and was about to say something, but I stopped her, "That knife is the only thing stopping him from bleeding to death right now. If we were to pull it out it would only open up the wound even more." She closed her beak and stayed silent. I used this as my chance to place the gauze pads, asking the daughter to hold them in place once in place. Once placed, I grabbed the gauze wrap to wrap around and hold the pads down. Luckily he was already sitting upright against the wall, so that made it easier for me to work the wrapping around his midsection without having him move to an upright position. I took extra caution as I worked around the knife and the daughter's talons that held the pads in place. I managed to finish wrapping and taping down the gauze wrap in just a couple minutes. "Here, help me lie him down?" I asked as I moved to support his back as we rotated him on his behind 90 degrees clockwise. His head now rest supported in his daughter's lap while I sat down to their immediate right with my back to the wall. The adrenaline from the situation began leaving and I let out a deep sigh as I put my back against the wall. This whole situation has just been so surreal. I wish it was just a very vivid nightmare, but looking at my blood stained hands and thinking back on all that has happened, this is no dream. This is real... So? what now? We wait, obviously. I sat there, observing the scene in front of me as we waited. The daughter gently caressing her father's head as it lay in her lap. It was clear he was still in a lot of pain as I listened to his grunts and pained breaths. The daughter obviously doing her best to comfort him until help arrives. I laid my head back and closed my eyes as I tried to gather my thoughts some more. Trying my best to prevent any senses of dread and horror for what I had just done from taking hold, but without losing focus at the same time. It had been a moment before a deep, hoarse voice broke the silence, "W-Why?" It wasn't hard to figure out who had spoken and who the question was directed towards. I opened my eyes and saw that both had turned their heads in my direction. I sighed, "You're going to need to be more specific." It was the daughter spoke this time, "Why stab my father, only to help him seconds later? It doesn't make sense." She wasn't wrong, her question was quite valid. Why would I help only after having just stabbed someone? "Because my fight or flight instincts kicked in, I acted in self defense when your father put me in a head lock, and only after did I realize I couldn't live with myself knowing I would've killed a father who was just trying to protect his family." I paused and sat up strait, "I imagined myself in your position with my father. The empathy was overwhelming..." The daughter look down at her father then back at me, "But-" "It's not like I wanted to end up in this situation." My tone was deflated and tired. I turned my head and saw a living room to my right with a window on the far wall. The curtains were pulled back and I could see the moon from my position on the floor. "I was enjoying my day off and then the next thing I know, the universe or whatever plucks me from my home and throws me into yours... I don't know why all this is happening, but I wish this was all just a vivid nightmare..." I could wish all I wanted to, but I knew it was all real. It felt all too real... The daughter and father didn't say anything, and I just continued to look out the window at the moon. It was several minutes before the sound of a door opening and hurried footsteps running up stairs broke the silence. The sound continued to get closer until the mother, daughter, and three other individuals came into view in the living room. Now, I was expecting the other individuals to be the same humanoid gryphons like the family here. No. They were, instead, a trio of humanoid, very technicolored equines. One of them head a fucking horn protruding from its forehead like a unicorn, albeit it looked fairly short compared to the pictures of the mythological creature that I've seen. They were all dressed in white hospital uniforms, and one had a folded stretcher in their arms. They had all stopped and just stared as they came into view, most likely confused as looked upon the scene. I was still very tired but it was clear someone needed to say something to get them out of their stupor. "Hey, wake up!" I spoke, "He still needs to get to a hospital." That broke their stupor and two of the paramedics rushed over with the stretcher and began moving the father onto. After he was loaded on and a quick count, he was lifted on up and they made their way out of the room and I could hear their foot... hoof? hoof steps, headed down the stairs and out of earshot. The equine with the horn (I'm just call it a unicorn) and the mother had a quiet word that I paid no attention to as I was more relieved that the father is on his way to get better help. I genuinely hope he survives. The mom and unicorn had finished their chat and the mom looked at the oldest daughter, "Take your sister and go to the hospital. I'll meet you there later." The daughter stood up, walk over and picked up her sister from next to their mom. She took a couple steps before stopping and turning, concern plastered on both daughters' faces. "I'll be fine, go." the mom reassured. The daughter reluctantly continued on with the unicorn following behind her. Once I heard the door from downstairs close the mother turned to look at me. I was still sat down against the wall, I looked at her, still exhausted. She folded her arms and stared at me for several minutes, she then moved from the living room to the kitchen where she pulled up a chair and sat down. She hadn't taken her eyes off of me as she walked, and neither had I. I was too tired at this point to try and think about what she might be thinking, but her expression made it clear she didn't trust me and was trying to figure me out. I was at the the point where I just didn't care because of how tired, physically and mentally, I was. I was just gonna play the waiting game considering my situation. I didn't want to risk making things worse. I eventually found the floor to be more interesting as the silence dragged on, I could still see the mom staring at me just out of my peripherals. "You know," The mom broke the silence, "I was honestly expecting to come back to find my husband dead and you gone." I flinched a little at her words as they felt like an insult, and my eyes shifted to her. "But my husband is still alive and you're still here. Tell me, why is that?" I lifted my head up and looked her in the eyes as I gave my response, "Because I'm not heartless bastard. My fight-or-flight instinct kicked in, and only after realizing that he was your husband and the father of your daughters, did I know I couldn't live with myself knowing I killed him. In front of his family, no less..." "Do you regret stabbing my husband?" "Yes and No." My response was immediate, "Yes: because I realize I nearly killed someone who was just trying protect his family. No: because I feel my actions were justified in self defense." Her brow furrowed, "Justified how?" Her tone suggested I choose my words wisely. "Well, think about it this way: how would you react if you were out enjoying your day when all of a sudden you're electrocuted, sucked into some trans-dimensional portal, spat out into a world that isn't yours, and just as you're getting your bearing back together you're suddenly put into a headlock from an unknown attacker from behind?" I didn't realize that had accidently risen my voice until I had finished. She averted her eyes for a moment in thought, the look on her face told me she realized her follow-up question may have been bit stupid. I did mention fight-or-flight instinct kicking in, so I hope that helps make some sense at least. The room fell silent once again. The mother had a look of ponder upon her face. It's odd how the expressions from a mythological creature seem so human for me to recognize; it has to be the eyes. The silence didn't last a moment before a blinding flash appeared in the middle of the living room. I had to close my eyes and shield them with my arm from the intensity. Once it subsided and I lowered my arm and opened my eyes, my heart skipped a beat and I sat up straighter against the wall in mild panic. Why? Mere inches from my face were half a dozen golden spearheads, all pointed at me. They were being held by six identical equines clad in gold armor. From their exposed hands and muzzles, I could see they all had the same bright, white fur. Looking at their eyes, they were serious. But a couple almost seemed to show fear and hesitation. Likely because of the unknown alien that currently sat before them. It had become a 6 v 1 staring contest for several minutes, although I could here a muffled conversation between what sounded like the mother and an unknown female voice. I didn't pay much attention to it however as I was far more focused on the ones who could likely skewer me if they so pleased. Before long I began to hear footsteps approaching and stop just behind the line of armored equines. If it weren't for the spears currently being pointed at me, I would have been aw-struck seeing the being that had just walked into my view. It was another equine that stood a full two heads above the others. It had snow white fur and it's facial features looked soft and feminine. What threw me was that she had a long horn protruding from her forehead and her hair was multicolored and seemed to blow in a non-existent wind. She radiated power and authority, which only served to make the hairs on the back of my neck stand up. She stared at me. No real expression to make out upon her facial features. Looking at her eyes I couldn't any expression in them either, aside from the way they moved around ever so slightly, making it clear that she was visually studying me. The way she's able to hide any expression and emotion, especially in her eyes, scared me. The eyes say a lot about a person, and if this being can seamlessly hide any emotion from showing through her eyes, then I should be very, very careful. "Stand." What felt like an eternity of her staring at me, which was likely only a minute or two, was broken with one word carrying a lot of authority behind it. Yet, it felt more like a request than a demand for some reason. It'd be best to listen. Not one to risk upsetting her or her entourage, I slowly stood up using one hand to support myself while I kept the other up with my palm out. The armored ones had brought their spears back a few inches to give me some room as I stood, but still showed no hesitation to run me through if they so pleased. Once I stood at my full height I brought my hand I used to support myself up the same as my other to show I wasn't going to try or reach for anything. "Now, please remove any weapons you have in your possession." Came her next command. Complying, I used my right hand to slowly undo the buckle on my single-point sling that my shotgun was attached to, and slowly bending over, lowered it to the floor. After I stood back up I then brought my right hand down to the holster on my hip and removed my airsoft pistol and slowly lowered it to the floor just like my shotgun. Now, my next item would be an issue. Something I'm not comfortable with giving up, but I don't think they would be to happy later as I'm sure they would find it, or I'd have to give it to them eventually. Regardless, I lifted my desert multi-cam combat jack to revile my EDC, a small, black, single-stack 9mm in its inside waistband holster. Now some of you would yell at me for bringing, and wearing, a real firearm to an airsoft field. And you have every right to, but it became a precaution for me when I had two too many close calls with venomous snakes at my local field by my house. The equines tensed up once I lifted my jacket, probably because I had just made it clear that I had a concealed weapon, even though I'm sure they don't know what a firearm is. Slowly I removed it from its holster and gently set it on the floor next to my airsoft guns. I then stood there as the tall equine briefly looked at my guns then looked back to me, her tone turning slightly apologetic, "Thank you. Now, I do apologize, but I do hope you understand and I do hope that we can talk later." She looked around the room, "In a more relaxed environment." With that, in a split second, a bright flash came from her horn and the next thing I new I was out like a light.