In late 2551, humanity discovers the planet Equis and the Equestrians. So do the Covenant. With no choice, the humans and Equestrians must band together in order to survive.
For the last 26 years, humanity has been fighting a losing battle with an alien collective known as the Covenant. Fleeing a battle, one UNSC ship stumbles upon the planet Equis and makes a discovery that may just change the outcome for the better. As the Covenant closes in on victory, humans and Equestrians must form a tentative alliance in order to survive the onslaught of aliens bent on their total destruction.
Three people looked out of the viewport of the starship. One three, a middle-aged man with a close-cut, polished head and large mustache, looked to the other two.
“This planet looks just like Earth; do you realize that?”
“It can’t be,” said the second man, consulting a small data pad. “According to the ship data, we’re hundreds of lightyears away from the Solar System. This can’t be Earth.”
“So what planet am I looking at, Officer?” demanded Vice Admiral Danforth Whitcomb, rounding on the younger officer.
“Uh,” the young man tapped furiously on his data pad, trying to make sense of the impossible. “I – I don’t know, sir.”
“Well don’t just stand there,” the Vice Admiral said. “Get a team and figure it out!”
“Yes, sir!” the officer snapped to attention then darted off to find other deck officers working to solve the problem and relived he wasn’t scolded for not having the answer.
“We should send a team down to the surface,” the third man spoke. He was seven feet tall and encased in a thick suit of drab green armor. The only other colors present on the suit were the bold 008 stenciled on his chest in white block lettering and the two orange stripes painted on the man’s bicep armor.
Whitcomb looked up at him. He couldn’t read the man’s expression through the bubble-like polarized, gold visor of his helmet.
“Go down?” he asked. “Without any intel? Spartan, I understand you are the best of the best, but we can’t risk lives just to satisfy our curiosity unless we know exactly what we’re walking into. What if this is the homeworld of one of the species in the Covenant? It’s too much of a risk.”
“If it were a Covenant homeworld, we’d most likely be under attack right now,” said Li-008. “And there aren’t any ships around, either. That means there isn’t an outpost here. If we’re the first to discover this planet, we can set up a supply base or outpost here and figure out what’s close by. We could even make this a third base for humanity, like Reach.”
Whitcomb scratched his chin, thinking. The SPARTAN was right. Covenant would have attacked by now if they were around, and the UNSC needed all the outposts they could get, given how quickly they were losing ground in the war. Desperate times called for desperate measures. And someone had to make the call for those desperate measures to be taken.
“Alright,” the Vice Admiral conceded, turning to face the much taller man. “Take a squad of marines with you and head down to the surface. Wherever you think looks like a good spot. Do not take any unnecessary risks and keep in constant radio contact with the ship. Understood?”
Li stood at attention and saluted. “Yes, sir. Right away.”
The seven-foot-tall man turned and swiftly exited the ship’s command center; off to find a squad of marines and a ship to take down to the planet’s surface. As the clunk of the soldier’s boots faded away, Whitcomb turned back to the viewport and stared out at the mysterious planet. He squinted slightly as the planet’s sun came into view.
He knew the decision he just made would either get him commended for discovering a new system in which to place an outpost and possibly gain an advantage in the war, or would give him the reputation as the man who foolishly sent another SPARTAN to their death.
_ _ _
Twilight Sparkle squinted up at the sky. It was the middle of the day, but she thought she had seen a star. She must be imagining things again; whatever she had seen, there was nothing there now.
“Twilight, watch where you’re going!”
“Oof!”
Twilight suddenly found herself sitting on the ground, covered in what seemed to be long pieces of fabric. For a few moments, she wasn’t sure what had happened or where she was, then she felt herself being guided to her feet and the fabric being pulled off her.
Another girl was collecting what Twilight realized to be dresses from both the ground and both of their bodies. She was rather tall, with pure white fur, large, blue eyes and deep purple hair. Her makeup was applied with an expertise that Twilight rarely saw anywhere else, and she was dressed in sleek, expensive-looking clothes.
“Twilight, darling, you really must watch where you’re going when you go outside,” she said. “Now I’m sure all these dresses have dirt on them. What will my clients think? The gala is next week and I must get these out as soon as possible.”
“Oh, I’m sorry Rarity,” Twilight apologized, accepting the other girl’s hand and allowing herself to be pulled to her feet. “I don’t know what happened; something in the sky just caught my eye. I thought I saw a star.”
“A star?” Rarity asked, raising an eyebrow. “In the middle of the day? I hope your fiction books aren’t going to your head. Here, would you mind helping me collect these?”
“Of course,” Twilight said, setting about picking the dresses of various fabrics and colors up off the ground. “I’ll help you clean them too, if you’d like. I know this is a busy time of year for you and I don’t want to make it any more hectic.”
“Oh dear, you’re too kind,” Rarity said, smiling. “I would be delighted for your assistance, as long as it doesn’t interfere with your studies, of course. The Princess won’t mind?”
“Oh, no,” Twilight assured her, waving her hand dismissively. “My lessons have been put on hold until after the gala; she’s busy this time of year too.”
“Excellent,” Rarity said, clapping her hands together excitedly. “Just follow me back to the boutique. While you’re there, I might as well get you fitted for a dress as well. I told the other girls to meet me there sometime today so I could get everything taken care of. We simply must look perfect for an event such as this. Especially after you were granted such a high position!”
Twilight pursed her lips, choosing not to say anything. While it was true that it was an immense honor and privilege being chosen out of so many candidates to study magic under the guidance of Princess Celestia, she had to admit that the one major flaw in the position was all the public attention it got her.
Moving to the small town of Ponyville earlier in the year had helped curb that publicity – not to mention getting her the best group of friends any girl could ask for – but whenever she was spotted with the queen or performing some difficult feat of magic, there was certain to be an article about her in the next day’s paper. She could only imagine how publicized her presence at this year’s Winter Gala was going to be.
All the same, she followed Rarity through the town, her arms full of dresses and black hair ruffled from the fall she’d had. It would certainly be fun to get fitted for dresses with her friends, regardless of where said dress was going to be worn. Rarity always gave them good discounts, too. At least for today, nothing seemed as though it were going to go wrong.
Twilight and Rarity approached her boutique. Well, it wasn’t really Julia’s boutique, but she referred to it as such and she often took the lion’s share of the work.
“Oh, I can’t wait until you see the dresses I have picked out for you and the girls,” Rarity said, looking over her shoulder at Twilight. “I’ve got plenty of options – and a few of my own design! I’m sure you’ll all be able to find something you like.”
“Knowing you, I have no doubt,” Twilight remarked.
Then, something made her stop in her tracks. A distant sound caught her attention; like some sort of creature roaring. Silvia turned in the direction of the forest, her eyes narrowed and scanning the tree line, looking for anything out of place. Everyone knew the forest was full of creatures; it could have been anything. This just seemed . . . different. Twilight couldn’t explain it if she tried, but she knew something out of the ordinary was making that sound.
By this time, Rarity had noticed that Twilight was no longer following her. She stood on the front steps of the boutique – a large, cylindrical building with various circular windows and colored glass – dresses in hand and a puzzled expression on her face.
“Twilight, dear, is something wrong?”
“No, I’m fine,” Twilight said, pausing. “Don’t you hear that?”
“Hear what?” Rarity's gaze flicked to the forest. “Oh, that? It’s probably just some dreadful creature fighting another over food or land. Nothing for us to worry about.”
“No.” Twilight shook her head. “This is something else. I –”
She couldn’t finish her sentence, as at that exact moment, something huge and dark flew out over the forest, the roar getting louder as it approached. It spun in the air, emitting flames from its stiff wings, and descended. After only a few seconds of being in view, it disappeared below the trees, far out into the forest.
Without hesitation, Twilight dropped the dresses she was carrying and bolted for the forest.
“Twilight, the dresses!” Rarity shouted after her. “Where are you going? No, not the forest! It’s too dangerous! Twilight, wait!”
Her cries fell on deaf ears, as Twilight crashed through the undergrowth and onto a dirt path that lead deep into the heart of the forest.
_ _ _
SPARTAN-II Li-008 stared out the viewport of the D77-T Pelican Dropship. As the ship neared the planet’s surface, it was becoming increasingly clear that this planet wasn’t uninhabited, as he had previously assumed. Farm below, he could see towns, cities, and villages dotted across the vast landscape of the continent they were flying over. To make things even more confusing, the architecture had a much closer resemblance to human styles rather than alien.
Li placed a hand to the side of his specialized Extra Vehicular Activity helmet, activating his communications link back to the Pony Express.
“UNSC Pony Express, this is Spartan zero-zero-eight. Do you copy?”
“Yes, Spartan. We read you,” came Vice Admiral Whitcomb’s voice over the link. “What do you see?”
“Civilization, sir,” Li replied. “It looks almost human. Are you sure this star system isn’t in our database?”
There was quiet for a few moments, then the Admiral returned.
“No, Spartan. This system is absolutely not in any of our records. No human has ever set foot on that planet.”
“Well, someone’s here.”
“Looks like you’ll be the ones to find out exactly who they are,” Whitcomb said. “Have you found a landing site?”
“Not yet.”
“Uh,” spoke up the pilot, suddenly sitting up straighter and pointing out of the cockpit. “Sir? I’d say that place looks pretty important.”
Li followed the marine’s finger and saw what she was referring to. Oh, yes. An immense palace sticking out of the side of a huge mountain certainly must be important. Li had never seen anything like it. How could something like that be structurally sound? Who lived there? Why were they important?
“I might be able to set us down in that forest,” said the pilot, gesturing to a large, dense forest in the shadow of the mountain. “But it’ll be a bit of a hike to get to the palace.”
Li nodded. “Do it.” He then returned his attention to the Vice Admiral. “Never mind, sir. We have a landing zone.”
“Excellent,” Whitcomb replied. “Be careful, Spartan. And radio in once you contact the inhabitance. Handle this carefully; the last thing we need is a second war to fight.”
“Understood, sir. Spartan out.” Li terminated the link and strode out of the cockpit, joining the twelve UNSC marines strapped to the seats in the Pelican’s troop bay.
“We settin’ down soon, sir?” piped up one of the marines, a younger man with some brown stubble gracing his chin and upper lip.
“Yes,” Li answered. “Everyone check your weapons; we don’t know what kind of environment we’re landing in.”
As the marines pulled various types and calibers of rifles from the racks above, besides, and below them, Li retrieved an M7/Caseless Submachine Gun from one of the higher racks. The moment Li’s hands made contact with the cold metal of the weapon, the sensors built into the gloves of his suit activated, providing him with a recital and weapon readout in the center and top right of his helmet’s Heads-Up Display, respectively.
Holding the SMG in one hand, Li also grabbed an M6C Magnum pistol and two M9 High-Explosive Dual-Purpose grenades, both of which appeared as icons in his HUD as soon as his fingers touched them. Clipping the grenades to his belt and the pistol and SMG to the magnetic holsters on his thighs, Li turned to face the marine sergeant as he unclipped his harness and stood in the troop bay, addressing the other soldiers.
“Listen up, men,” he bellowed, his voice carrying in the confined space. “We’re walking into a situation no soldier wants to find themselves in. No intel, no map, no direction, no idea of what we’re up against. The only consolation we have is that there doesn’t seem to be any Covenant around. And we can’t even guarantee that.
“Once we land, our goal is to secure the drop zone. After that, we split up into fireteams. Fireteams Alpha and Beta – led by myself and the Spartan – will head into the surrounding area and search for any living beings or signs of what lives around here. Fireteam Gamma will remain with the Pelican and keep the pilots nice and cozy while they wait for us to radio back. Keep communications with the ship and each other alive at all times. Be ready to radio in at a moment’s notice if something goes wrong. We could be making history today, gentlemen. Act like it!”
“Sir, yes sir!” chorused the marines, unclipping themselves from their harnesses and joining Li and the sergeant in standing.
The voice of the pilot came over the intercom in a wash of static. “Alright, boys, we’re coming in for a landing in a clearing. Heavily wooded area. Be ready for anything. I saw a town a couple clicks to the north west, so you might want to try and head there after you secure the landing zone. Opening the hatch now!”
There was a hiss as the pneumatic hatch began to descend, providing the occupants of the troop bay a breathtaking view of the forest and surrounding mountains as the dropship descended ever closer to the earth. The ship rocked a little as the landing gear engaged and the Pelican touched down.
“You’re all clear!” shouted the pilot. “Good luck out there, boys.”
The instant Li’s boots touched the ground, his weapon was at the ready and his eyes were scanning the clearing they had landed in, watching for any sign of movement among the trees.
“Alright, men,” called the sergeant. “Spread out and secure the clearing!”
The thirteen men formed a circle around the dropship and began walking out towards the edge of the clearing. Given the clear sight lines and brightness of the sun, it was quickly made apparent that the men were completely alone. At least for now.
“All clear, sarge!” called the same Marine from earlier who was so eager to land. His Friend-or-Foe tag identified him as Private Jamie Hendricks.
“Good,” replied the sergeant, lowering his rifle and turning to face the rest of the men, who had all assembled before him. “Now we’re dividing into fireteams. Four of you are staying to guard the ship, three of you are with me, and four of you are going with the Spartan. Any volunteers for any of the three teams?”
After a few minutes of hashing things out, the teams were set. Four of the Marines began setting up defensive positions around the Pelican, even bringing out an M247H Heavy Machine Gun and setting it up at the back of the dropship, so that it would be able to cover one entire side of the clearing. Three marines had stuck with the sergeant, and four – including Private Hendricks – had grouped up with Li.
“Alright, men,” the sergeant began, turning to address the two teams going into the forest, “the pilots saw a town on the opposite side of the forest to the west. That’ll be our first target. Our second target is the palace built into the mountain. We might be able to find a path from the town to the palace, if whoever lives there know each other. Remember – we don’t want to start another war, so if you encounter intelligent life, do not engage unless they come after you with deadly force. Keep your safties on unless absolutely necessary.”
The marines shouted their assent before turning and flocking to their respective squad leaders. Four marines crowded somewhat warily around Li, who stood at least a head taller than all of them. He could see them all exchanging looks with one another, clearly nervous about standing – quite literally – in his shadow. Li was used to other soldiers acting cautious around him. Even twenty-six years into the war and Spartans were still a mostly unknown quantity to other humans. Hell, even to the Covenant.
“What’s the plan, Sarge?” asked one marine as Fireteam Alpha came to stand beside Li and his team.
“We’re going to sweep the forest on our way to the town the Spartan saw,” the sergeant, who’s IFF tag identified him as Staff Sergeant Marcus Stacker, replied. “We’ll spread out. One soldier every fifteen meters. Stay on the comms at all times and alert everyone if you see anything that looks like a hostile or friendly. We’re going in blind, boys, so be careful.”
“Let’s move out,” Li said, reaching down and taking his SMG from its holster.
Stacker nodded. “Agreed. Move out everyone. Good luck.”
Li and the eight marines stepped out of the clearing and into the forest. The instant change was jarring and complete. The foliage was so dense that almost no sun from above could penetrate it. The trees grew close together, and were thicker around than the engine of a Pelican. Even with his enhanced night vision, Li could barely see further than fifty feet in front of him.
“Flashlights on, everyone,” came Stacker’s voice, fuzzy with static over the communication link.
As he advanced further into the forest, Li reached up with on hand and flicked on the flashlights that were built into either side of his helmet. The four powerful beams came to life instantly, allowing him to get a more clearly colored view of his surroundings. In his peripheral vision, Li saw other flashlights flick on through the trees.
Their progress was slow and methodical. It had to be, given that they were in an alien environment with no map, backup, or intelligence of any kind. Their approach gave Li time to analyze the environment. This forest looked almost exactly like one found on Earth or Reach. How was it possible that no one had stumbled upon this solar system before now? Especially since it contained a planet that humanity could easily inhabit.
Something that set him on edge, however, was just how completely quiet it was. The only sounds Li heard were his own breathing and footsteps, as well as the footsteps of the marines in the trees around him. There was no breeze, no sounds of leaves rustling, no animals, no birds. Truth be told it was a little unnerving. But Li reasoned that if he could survive almost thirty years of a war with a technologically superior race of aliens, then he could handle exploring what seemed to be a planet almost identical to Reach.
Then, somewhere off to his right, Li heard a panicked scream rip through the silence of the forest. He whipped around, bringing his SMG to bear. He quickly scanned his surroundings, looking for anything out of place, waiting for the blue reticle to turn red to indicate an unfriendly presence. But nothing happened. Li knew he had to find the source of the scream. Marines could be dying while he had wasted precious seconds waiting for an attack on himself.
Without another second’s hesitation, the SPARTAN bolted through the trees in the direction the cry had come from. As he ran, he heard voices start to filter in through his comm link.
“Everyone on me!”
“What is that thing?”
“What’s going on?”
“Hold tight! We’re coming!”
Dirt rustled, greenery crunched, and branches snapped as Li ran. Sounds were becoming louder as he got closer to the source. Gunfire erupted. People were shouting. An inhuman roar seemed to reverberate through the forest. What was going on? That didn’t sound like any Covenant Li had ever encountered before. There was always the possibility it was something new, though.
With that in mind, Li burst through a tough patch of foliage and found himself on a wide dirt path. He turned one hundred and eighty degrees, covering the whole path. Just twenty feet to the left, he saw something that gave him momentary pause. A group of four marines were facing down an enemy taller even than Li himself by at least four feet.
It almost looked like a wolf, with the same shaped head and body as a wolf from Earth. The only differences Li could discern were its immense size and the fact that it seemed to be made of wood. Living wood? There wasn’t time to ponder the particulars of the situation; he needed to act before the creature killed all the marines.
One man was already lying against a tree on the side of the path, one large gash through his green chest plate and two through his green battle dress uniform, right over his stomach. He was already leaking plenty of blood.
Li darted forward, raising his SMG and holding down the trigger, spraying rounds at the creature. His caseless bullets did nothing more than dent the wood that the wolf was made out of. Even the higher caliber assault rifles that the other marines were using only managed to punch nickel-sized holes that didn’t seem to do much more than make the wolf angrier.
“We’re not doing a damn thing!” cried one of the marines, a young woman. “We need heavier weapons!”
Two of the marines backed toward Li, while the third dashed to the other side of the wolf, drawing its attention with his rifle fire.
“Any ideas, Spartan?” asked the second marine, a man with a Canadian accent.
Li eyed the situation, both in reality and on his HUD. The beast would only be distracted by the other marine for a few more seconds, after which it would either get bored of and turn on them or just kill the marine that was currently distracting it. Their bullets weren’t doing any real damage to the creature. They needed to use something else. Li’s eyes darted around his HUD, alighting after a few seconds on his grenades. Those would surely do the trick, but just to be safe, the detonation should occur from within the creature.
Li said, clipping his SMG to his thigh. “Keep it busy.”
“Yes sir!”
Li darted into the woods as the two marines began shouting and firing their rifles at the creature. It turned away from the third trooper, who it had pinned against a tree, and began stalking back toward the others, as if it had no fear of being harmed. With any luck, that would make it overconfident as it tried to finish off its perceived prey.
Li used the trees around the path as cover as he circled behind the creature, his feet making little noise despite the almost one-thousand-pound armor he was wearing. As the hulking creature closed in on the marines, Li stepped out from the tree line, directly behind it. Not wasting another moment, Li leaped onto the back of the beast, hands digging into the bark that made up its hide with enough force to send cracks spiraling out from beneath his clawed fingers.
Howling in pain and rage, the wolf-like beast reared onto its hind legs, its front paws flailing wildly. Li clung onto its back, quickly ascending to the level of its head. With one hand, he grabbed the creature’s jaw, holding it open. With the other, he removed one frag grenade from his belt and primed it, holding it just over the gaping maw of the beast’s mouth. He let go, and the explosive devise fell down its throat.
The instant the grenade disappeared, Li dove off the creature’s back, hitting the ground with his shoulder. The SPARTAN executed a surprisingly acrobatic roll that found him crouched on one knee, SMG drawn and aimed directly at the beast, just in case it tried to get one last swipe of its claws in. He needn’t have worried, as just as its front paws touched the ground again, there was a tremendous explosion as the grenade detonated, ripping apart its torso and causing it to be lifted at least a foot off the ground.
It crashed back down to earth in a heap, limp and unmoving. There was no blood - or anything like it - despite the gaping hole in the creature’s chest cavity. What the hell was going on here?
Slowly, Li got to his feet, weapon still aimed at the supposedly dead foe. In four quick strides he was standing over the corpse. Cautiously, he prodded the creature’s head with one foot, just to see if there was any life left in it. It didn’t move.
He looked up. “Is everyone alright?”
“Willa and I are alright,” reported the marine with the Canadian accent.
“Jones is dead,” muttered the female marine, Willa. She was crouched next to the body of the marine Li had first seen, with numerous claw marks through his chest.
The marine that had been pinned against the tree stumbled over, clutching his left shoulder. “I . . . I think my arm’s broken.”
The was a rustling in the trees and out came the rest of the marines, including sergeant Stacker, who stopped dead in his tracks, taking in the whole scene. Li standing over the dead wolf-creature made of wood, the man with a broken arm, and the dead marine clawed up and bleeding.
“What the hell happened here?”
Before anyone could answer, the sound of running feet drew everyone’s attention down the path. Before the girl had even come into view, Li had drawn his pistol, aiming one-handed towards the sound. There really was no telling what they were going to run into now.
A purple girl with a horn protruding from her forehead, no older then perhaps twenty, turned the corner at top speed and came up short as she took in the eight soldiers staring at her.
Twilight came up short, staring wide-eyed at the eight strangely-dressed, mostly hairless people standing over the corpse of a timber wolf. They seemed to be wearing armor of some sort and were all holding long items that she had never seen before. Behind her, she heard panting.
“Really, Twilight, you can’t go running off into the forest like that! We shouldn’t be here. What could possibly have possessed you to –”
As Rarity rounded the corner, she too stopped, but only because Twilight had put a hand out to keep her friend standing behind her.
“Oh my . . .”
“Don’t move.” The command had come from the person standing by the head of the timber wolf. At least, Twilight assumed it was a person. They were clad head to foot in armor and stood head and shoulders above both her and Rarity. In two quick strides, the being was standing over them, one arm extended and pointing some unknown device directly at Twilight’s chest. “Identify yourselves.”
Neither she nor Rarity spoke.
“Do what the Spartan says, ladies,” advised a gruff-sounding man from the group. “We’re not here to hurt you, but we need to make sure you’re not here to hurt us. We’re from the UNSC.”
“M – My name’s Twilight S – Sparkle.” She hated how her voice shook. She’d faced much more frightening things than this. “I’m a student of P – Princess Celestia. This . . . This is my friend Rarity.”
The man who had spoken walked over to them as the other being – the ‘spartan’ as it had been called – lowered its extended hand. Twilight heard the other men and women break out into muttering.
“Well, at least they’re not Covenant.”
“Princess? There aren’t any princesses in the galaxy.”
“How did we not know about this? Bossman said this place wasn’t on any of our star charts.”
The man extended one hand. “I’m Staff Sergeant Marcus Stacker. This is my team. And this is Spartan Li zero-zero-eight.” He gestured at the hulking figure beside him. “Can you tell me what planet we’re on?”
Twilight and Rarity both glanced at each other. What planet? What could he possibly mean by that? There was no way to reach the other planets in the night sky.
“Er . . . we’re on Equis, of course,” Rarity piped up, her voice perhaps a little squeakier than usual.
“Equis, huh?” The man, Marcus, muttered. “I’ve never heard of it before.”
“What is the UNSC?” Twilight asked, unable to help herself.
Marcus and Li glanced at each other. Though Twilight couldn’t see under the former’s face-mask, surprise was no doubt on his face just as much as Marcus’.
“We should contact the Vice Admiral,” Li said.
“For sure,” Marcus agreed. He turned to the rest of the group. “Wilkes; you’ve got the radio equipment. Get over here.”
One of the men from the group trotted over. He moved gingerly, cradling one of his arms.
“Oh dear,” Rarity said. “Did the timber wolf do that? Come here; I can fix you right up.”
Wilkes paused for a moment, giving Marcus a quizzical look. He didn’t answer for a few seconds, his face unreadable. Then he nodded.
“Go ahead, son.”
As Wilkes came closer, Twilight looked at Marcus. “How did you kill the timber wolf?”
“Grenades,” Li answered.
Twilight raised an eyebrow. What in Celestia's name were 'grenades?'
“Are you sure you can fix my arm?” Wilkes was asking as Rarity placed both her hands gently on the man’s twisted appendage.
“Oh of course, darling,” Rarity said. “I’ve made entire dresses with my eyes closed. I’m quite sure I can handle a broken bone.”
She shut her eyes as a look of serene concentration crossed her features. Her horn glowed a brilliant light blue and her fingers sparked. Wilkes’ entire arm glowed with the same color of Rarity's Magic.
“Ow! What the hell?” Wilkes flinched and stepped away from Rarity, clutching his arm.
“What? Oh now don’t tell me you’ve never felt magic before,” Rarity chided, hands in the air.
Wilkes slowly moved his newly healed arm, a look of absolute shock on his face.
“I . . . I think she fixed it,” he said, dumbfounded as he flexed his fingers.
“We really need to contact the Vice Admiral,” Li said.
_ _ _
Aboard UNSC Pony Express, unknown space
“Sir, the ground team has just made contact again!”
Vice Admiral Whitcomb looked up from the holotable he’d been looking at, trying to figure out exactly where in space they were. He frowned.
“It’s been twenty minutes since their last check in,” he growled. “I told them to keep in constant communication. Whatever they have to say, it better be good. Patch them through.”
“Yes, sir.”
The young technician tapped a few buttons on his data pad and a video screen appeared on the holotable. On it, Whitcomb could see the face of Staff Sergeant Stacker and in the background, the golden visor of Li.
“Staff Sergeant, you have a lot of explaining to do,” Whitcomb began, folding his arms and scowling.
“Sorry sir, but we ran into some trouble. Some of the strangest shit I’ve ever seen.” The Staff Sergeant’s voice came in over a wash of low-level static.
“Explain.”
“We ran into some huge wolf made of wood. Acted just like the real thing too. Wounded one of our guys and killed another. If it hadn’t been for the Spartan, we might’ve lost a whole fireteam.”
“A wolf made out of wood?” Whitcomb wondered aloud. “And here I thought I’d heard everything.
“We found aliens, too,” Li broke in.
That made Whitcomb sit up straight and uncross his arms, leaning closer to the holotable.
“Aliens?”
“We . . . think so, sir,” Stacker replied. “They look . . . kinda like us. But there’s a few things, uh, different about them.”
Whitcomb raised an eyebrow. “What do you mean, ‘different’?”
“Well, they've got fur and tails for one thing," Stacker told him. "The two girls we encountered have horns coming out of their heads. One of them actually fixed our wounded man’s broken arm just by touching him for a second or two.”
Whitcomb had been wrong before. Now he’d heard everything.
“There’s something else, sir,” Li said. “Neither of them seem to know anything about the UNSC, modern weapons, space travel, or the Covenant. We’ve asked about all of it, and they don’t have a clue.”
Things were just getting stranger and stranger, weren’t they?
“Do you have a plan, Staff Sergeant?”
“Yes, sir,” Stacker said. “One of the girls mentioned a 'Princess Celestia' who seems to be the ruler of these people. I’m gonna try and get us a meeting with her so we can start figuring out what the hell is going on around here. In the meantime, the girls have agreed to take us to a nearby town because this forest we’re in is dangerous. I’m going to radio back to our Pelican and send them back up to you.”
“A princess? Well, I suppose that does sound like a good plan. When you’ve made it to the town, contact me again. I’m gong to log this planet in our star maps and try to reach someone else in the fleet to let them know where we are and what’s going on so we aren’t all labeled MIA.”
“Will do sir. Over and out.”
The video feed went dead, and Whitcomb sat back in a chair by the table. A new planet, previously undiscovered humans with strange abilities and no knowledge of the rest of the galaxy, and a wolf made entirely of wood.
He wondered if things could get any stranger.
“Ensign,” he said, pointing to a nearby deck officer. “Divert full power to communications. I want to hear someone else’s voice within the hour.”
_ _ _
“I’m really startin’ to get worried.” Applejack leaned over the railing on the front porch of Rarity's boutique. “They should’ve been here hours ago. And you know how crazy Rarity gets about these galas; if one of us were this late, she’d be havin’ a panic attack.”
“Looks like you’re not the only one who’s worried,” remarked another mare who was standing by the door. She was small and athletic, with a messy, rainbow-colored mane and a concerned expression on her light blue features.
She was pointing at the path leading back toward the town. Following her gaze, Applejack saw something that made her stand up in surprise. Marching toward the boutique was the tall, imposing figure of Princess Celestia, followed closely by eight golden-armored royal guards carrying spears.
Tara turned back to the other girl. “Dash, go back inside and get the others,” she said. “If the Princess's here, something definitely ain’t right.”
Rainbow Dash nodded, turning back into the boutique without another word. Applejack waited on the porch, watching as the princess and her entourage approached. As they neared, Applejack sank to one knee, looking down at the ground.
“Princess Celestia,” she said. “What brings ya all the way out here?”
“Hello, Applejack,” the princess intoned in her low, gentle voice. Yet Applejack noted that there seemed to be some underlying tension. “You may rise.”
She did so. Applejack was tall, but she was nothing compared to the almost seven foot being that was the princess. Even standing on the porch, she had to look up slightly to take in the mare, whose normally serene, white features were clouded with worry. Applejack had only seen that look on her face once or twice before, and those were only during very dire circumstances.
“What’s wrong, your majesty?”
“Have you seen Twilight anywhere?” the princess asked, glancing about as if hoping her student would materialize out of thin air. “I’ve been seeing some . . . strange things recently, and I must confess myself a tad concerned for her safety. As well as all of ours. I've already been to her library, but she is nowhere to be found.”
Now that was certainly no good. For the princess to actually say that she was worried was reason enough for everybody else to be concerned as well.
“Well, ma’am,” Applejack started, glancing back at the boutique. “Twilight and Rarity were actually supposed to be here a couple hours ago, but we ain’t seen either of them since this mornin’.”
The princess appeared to bite her lip. Before either of them could say anything else, however, there was a rustling in the forest beside the boutique. Out stepped ten figures. There were eight bipedal creatures dressed in what seemed to be armor and holding strange looking objects. The other two figures were Twilight and Rarity, right in the middle of the group.
The princess was taken aback. “My word . . . Guards!”
The eight guards that had surrounded Princess Celestia sprang into action, raising their spears and closing in on the group. Within seconds, they had converged on the newcomers in a half circle, weapons raised. The strange beings responded by tightening into a small wall, their backs to the forest, and raising the objects in their hands to point at the Princess' guards.
“Twilight!” Princess Celestia called. “Come over here at once! Get away from them; these creatures could be dangerous.”
“Uh, your majesty,” Twilight called. “I think they’re alright. They don’t want to hurt anyone, they just want to –”
“Do as the princess commands,” asserted one of the guards – probably the leader –waving his spear. “As for the rest of you . . .” He made to move forward, spear pointed directly at one of the shorter creatures.
It was over so quickly that Applejack barely registered what had happened.
The tallest of the group – an imposing figure clad all in green – reacted quicker than anyone Applejack had ever seen. It yanked the spear from the guard’s hand and promptly neutralized all seven of the other soldiers. In no more than a second or two, the figure had one foot on the lead guard’s throat, had another in a headlock, and held the spear in its other hand aimed at another guard that was lying, stunned, on the ground. Everyone else in the Princess' squad had been knocked to the ground in a single sweep on the spear’s blunt end, and were all slowly getting to their feet, rubbing the places in which they had been hit.
“Oh, sweet Celestia,” Applejack breathed. “That was . . .”
The door behind her burst open and out stepped Rainbow Dash, along with the two other mares that had been inside the boutique.
“Holy crap, did you see that?” blurted a short mare with a frizzy, dark pink mane. “That was crazy!”
“Pinkie, shhh,” a mare of a similar stature, with cream colored fur, soft features and a long, light pink mane quieted the other. Fluttershy held one of her arms, preventing Pinkie Pie from running out onto the porch.
One of the males in the group stepped out, his hands raised. “This doesn’t have to get violent! We didn’t come here for a fight.”
“Then what have you come here for?” the Princess demanded. She appeared to be on the edge of intervening; one hand was raised and Applejack could see golden sparks dancing across her fingers and her long horn.
“We found your world by accident; we didn’t know anybody inhabited this planet. We’re just here to explore and make peace.” He muttered something to the tall figure clad in green.
Without a word, it released the guard it held in a headlock and lowered the spear. The guard stumbled back toward his compatriots, rubbing his throat and muttering. The figure also took its foot off of the leader’s neck, who immediately struggled to is knees, gasping and cursing. The figure the broke the spear using nothing other than its hands and dropped the pieces at its feet.
The guard leader looked up at the figure, eyes wide and no longer containing the cockiness they had a minute before. “Wh – What are you?”
The male who had come forth from the group nudged the tall figure.
“Stop lookin’ so damn threatening, Spartan; that’s not going to help relations much,” he said.
The ‘spartan’ nodded and stepped back in line with the rest of the group.
The male stepped forward, joined shortly by Twilight and Rarity. Applejack, curious, stepped down off the porch and moved closer as Princess Celestia did the same. Behind her, she could hear the other three mares following them. This was all so crazy. Who were these things? Where had they come from? Were they telling the truth? Why were Twilight and Rarity with them?
“I’m sure you have a lot of questions,” the man said. “Probably as many as I do. But we’re not gonna get any answers by buttin’ heads right now.”
“Er, Mr. Stacker,” Rarity piped up. “It is customary for subjects to kneel before the princess.”
“All due respect, ma’am,” the man said, extending one hand towards Princess Celestia, “but we aren’t from your planet, so we aren’t subjects.”
Applejack watched on as the male held his hand toward the mare, who was at least half a foot taller than him, if not more. Princess Celestia had her eyes narrowed, and it seemed to be that she was sizing him up.
“Applejack.” Applejack jumped at being addressed directly by the princess. It wasn’t often that they had spoken, and she normally only focused her attention on Twilight. “Do you believe him?”
Not only was the princess speaking to her directly, but she was asking for her advice! On something as important as this, too. She was known for her ability to detect when people weren’t being honest, but she usually used it on ponies she knew, not total strangers. Still, seeing as she was the Element of Honesty, she may as well give it a go.
Applejack narrowed her eyes and looked at the creature; Stacker, Julia had called him. He had a thick build and tan skin. His eyes were shaded by the green cap he wore over his head, which made him hard to read. However, nothing in his body language portrayed anything besides honesty, and he was looking directly up into the princess' eyes. The way he acted reminded Applejack loosely of how members of the royal guard behaved.
“I . . . I think he’s tellin’ us the truth,” she finally said.
“Very well,” the princess nodded, extending her hand and shaking Stacker’s. “My name is Princess Celestia. I am the ruler of the Equestrians. It seems you have already met my student, Twilight Sparkle.”
“That we have,” said Stacker. “I’m Staff Sergeant Marcus Stacker of the UNSC marine corps. It’s good to meet you; we weren’t sure this planet was inhabited.”
“You speak as if you’ve been to many other planets,” the princess remarked. The guards that had surrounded the newcomers gathered themselves and returned to stand behind their ruler. “How is that possible?”
“Ma’am, we invented the means for space travel six centuries ago,” Stacker answered. “The human race has spread out pretty damn far among the stars.”
“Human race?” Twilight asked. “You call yourselves humans? What makes you different than us? Other than not having any fur or tails?”
“That thing you did back there with Wilkes’ arm? Humans can’t do that.”
“None of us have horns or wings, either.” Applejack glanced over to the group of humans and saw the Spartan gesturing in her direction.
Momentarily surprised, Applejack glanced behind her and saw Rainbow Dash using her large, light-blue feathered wings sprouting from her back to shield Pinkie Pie and Fluttershy. She was eyeing the ‘humans’ suspiciously and looked as though she were ready to move at a moment’s notice.
“Listen,” Stacker said. “As much as I think this is a good first step, you should probably be talking to someone higher up the chain of command than me. If you give us a few hours, we can get in contact with our commanding officer and he can come down here to speak with you personally.”
“Are you a military organization?” the Princess asked, raising one eyebrow.
Stacker glanced back at his companions. “Well, yes. Things aren’t going so great out there in the galaxy right now. Like I said: our CO can probably explain it to you better than we can.”
“Very well,” Princess Celestia nodded. “You may come with me to the capitol. Then we may receive your commander in a more formal setting.”
“Yes, ma’am.”
“Uh, your majesty?” Twilight piped up, stepping up to stand in between Stacker and the princess. “May I come with you to the palace? I’d like to see how this plays out. I’m sure it will be beneficial to my studies if I get to see peace negotiations first hand.”
Princess Celestia glanced down at her student, silent for a few moments. “Yes,” she finally said. “In fact, I believe you and all your friends should be present, seeing as you all seem to be involved now.”
Apparently, trying on dresses was not going to be the most exciting thing Applejack did today.
_ _ _
Bridge of DAV-class Light Corvette, slipspace
General Roth ‘Lukomee sat in the command chair of his ship, the Inquisitive Intent. He stared out at the blue and black slipspace through the viewports, wondering if he had made the right decision to follow the human vessel. He knew the key priority of the Covenant to winning the war was to find and decimate the humans’ home world, but no one had seemed to be able to find it.
So many planets glassed. How many worlds did it take to eradicate this plague upon the galaxy? If he became the one to finally find the humans’ home planet and start the end of this long war, he would be hailed as a hero by the whole Covenant. Taking a risk and following a lone human ship into slip space clearly was worth it.
“Shipmaster,” called a subordinate operating a control panel off to his left, “we’re coming out of slip space. No threats detected.”
“Good,” Roth said, leaning forward. “Ready the weapons systems regardless. We must be prepared for an ambush.”
“Yes, shipmaster.” The other Shangheli went back to operating his panel, relaying the order to others that controlled the ship’s weapons systems.
Roth looked on as the blue and black outside the viewport resolved itself into the black of space, with stars dotted randomly throughout the background. Ahead of them, he could see a planet, covered in sea and land. He stood, his long fingers gripping the sides of his seat.
“Is there life on this planet?” he demanded
Another subordinate glanced up. “We’re not sure, shipmaster. We have not encountered this system before. It is in human space.”
Roth sank back into his seat. Before any action could be taken, he must confirm that the planet was both inhabited and done so by humans.
“Shipmaster!” called another operator. “Our scanners are detecting a human vessel, just on the other side of this planet!”
Roth rounded on him. “Only one?”
“Yes, shipmaster. One ship; a small one. I believe it is one of the few that escaped us in the previous battle.”
So, the humans had found this planet first. But they did not seem to have colonized it, or their scans would have detected more of their inferior constructions. They must have found this system through a random jump to escape their last engagement. Perhaps he could strike now and end their involvement permanently. Then he could explore the planet at his leisure, and perhaps uncover some intelligence or even hidden sacred artifacts to help speed the Covenant on their way to the Great Journey.
That was when the operator shouted again. “Shipmaster! Another human ship has entered the system. This one is much larger.”
Roth’s hands curled into fists. More humans. He was only in command of a light corvette. Alone, he could take on a small human ship easily. But that in addition to a large one would make things much harder. There was a larger chance that, while he could defeat the humans, his own ship would suffer great damage in the process. Precautions would have to be taken.
“Log this planet’s coordinates into our systems, then prepare to exit the system,” Roth ordered. “We shall return later with more forces and seize this planet.”
Two Pelican dropships alighted before the front gates of the royal city. The ‘Princess Celestia’ had taken Li, Staff Sergeant Stacker, the marines, and the girls they had met to the city that surrounded the royal palace, where they had all stayed the night. It was very strange to say the least. Li didn’t think he had ever stayed in a nicer place in all his time in the UNSC. Comfort was something a soldier knew little of.
Overnight, Vice Admiral Whitcomb had made contact with another UNSC ship that was relatively close and had decided to wait until they showed up to make an appearance and open negotiations. Now that they were here, things could get underway.
The two Pelicans landed. Out of one stepped Whitcomb and a pair of marines. Out of the other stepped three SPARTANs, all with two orange stripes on their biceps. On their chest plates, Li could make out the bold white numbers that distinguished them. 018, 043, and 137. His team.
As the group approached, SPARTAN-137 – Carris – raised one hand in front of her visor and extended two fingers. It was the SPARTAN gesture for ‘smile.’ As they drew even with Li and the others, SPARTAN-043 – Will – clapped Li on the shoulder.
“Glad to see you’re still alive,” he said. “We weren’t sure what happened after we got separated at Concord.”
“I had to board the Pony Express or I would’ve been overrun,” Li explained. “When we were in space, we executed a random jump and found ourselves here by accident.”
“Well, the jump seems to have paid off,” remarked SPARTAN-018 – Kirk. "We did the same. Ended up in empty space not too far from here."
“Your Majesty.”
Li turned and saw Vice Admiral Whitcomb giving the princess a sharp bow. Evidently, he had been told of the land’s customs. Behind him, both marines gave quick salutes.
“Vice Admiral.” Just behind Celestia, flanking her, was Twilight Sparkle and another tall woman. She was just an inch or two shorter than Celestia, and darker in almost every aspect. While Regalia’s hair was filled with different, light colors, the other woman’s was a deep, sparkling blue. While Celestia's fur was white, the other woman's was dark. While Celestia maintained a kind, open expression, the other woman did not smile and kept her eyes fixed on either the SPARTANs or Danforth at all times, as though she were sizing them up.
Li had yet to be introduced to her, but he already respected her. Analyzing possible opponents was always better than gearing up and starting a fight right off the bat, like Celestia had. He understood that the situation had been confusing and that she was only trying to protect her people, but all the same, he had ended up having to best eight soldiers in order to get her to listen to them. In his book, that didn’t necessarily bode well to negotiations.
He hoped he was wrong.
“Did you recover the body of the marine in the woods?” Li asked.
Kirk nodded. “Just before we flew over. The Pelican is taking him back to the Pony Express now.”
Meanwhile, introductions were being made.
“I take it you’ve met Staff Sergeant Stacker and Spartan zero-zero-eight already,” Danforth said. “I’ve brought with me three more Spartans; zero-one-eight, zero-four-three, and one-three-seven. Together, they’re called Spartan Orange Team. They were separated on our last assignment and I thought it best to bring them back together before too long.”
“Understandable,” Celestia nodded. “I must admit, these Spartans are rather impressive. I’ve never met anyone taller than myself before.” She gestured to Twilight and the other woman behind her. “This is Twilight Sparkle, my finest pupil. And this is my sister, Princess Luna. She and I are the rulers of Equestria - the land on which you now stand.”
“Good to meet both of you.” Danforth gave two more bows before straightening and looking back up at Celestia. “Shall we get to negotiations then? Is there some place you have in mind where we should conduct them?”
“The Royal Palace will do. On the way there through the city we can fill each other in on our respective peoples. I do have some questions, and I imagine you do as well.”
“Yes, ma’am. I do. Lead the way.”
Celestia snapped her fingers and the gates to the city behind her began to slowly open. Li could see soldiers resplendent in golden armor opening the entrance using a crank. Other soldiers were waiting, presumably to escort the group to the castle. They were all unarmed, as was Li and the other UNSC soldiers, as per orders from Danforth and requests from Celestia.
That was fine. Li had already demonstrated that he could take on an entire squad of Equestrian soldiers in unarmed combat. Four SPARTANs could probably take on an army and come out without a scratch.
“Follow me, please," Celestia said, walking back past the city walls.
A few guards detached from the lineup to escort her, and everyone standing outside the gate followed suit – Twilight, her friends, Princess Luna, Stacker, Whitcomb, the Spartans, and the two marines.
Li glanced around at the tall, elegantly carved buildings all around them. This certainly was an affluent area. Everything was made of some solid white material that might have been marble or something like it, with some buildings even having a gold trim. Every now and then he would catch someone in a window staring out at them, and passers by on the street gawked as they walked by. They certainly were making an entrance.
He and the other members of Orange Team fell into step behind the Vice Admiral and the princesses, still able to hear their conversation.
“Why don’t you start?” Whitcomb asked, clasping his hands behind his back and striding forth in a typical military step. “This is your host planet, after all.”
“I suppose that’s fair,” Celestia nodded, thinking. “Equis is home to many creatures, both light and dark. There are us, the griffin clans, the changelings, the dragons, and many more. Most other species respect the ruling of my sister and I. Equestrians have also evolved to have different strengths as well. Normal citizens are generally physically strong, Unicorns have the ability to tap into Magic and cast spells, and Pegasi have wings on their backs that allow them to fly. Some, such as my sister and I, are Alicorns, having both wings and horns, though that only happens to the royal bloodline or by special means.”
“Interesting,” Whitcomb said. “Why is it that you describe your species in, er, horse terminology?"
"Horse?"
"Nevermind. Humans aren’t anything like that. No wings, no . . . uh . . . magic . . . and anyone can be weak or strong. I guess you could say we use technology to compensate for that. We’re advanced enough to have the ability to make ships able to travel through space.”
Off to Li’s right, he saw Kirk give an almost imperceptible flick of his index finger by his helmet. He recognized it instantly as the SPARTAN’s signal to switch to a private communications channel. All the SPARTANs' helmets were sealed, so each had the ability to turn off the external speakers in their helmets and communicate exclusively to others over the radios in their helmets. Li switched off his own speakers and joined his team’s personal voice channel.
Kirk’s voice came in over Li’s helmet comm. “What’s your take on these people, Li?”
“They seem more normal of an alien species than I would’ve guessed,” Li admitted. “One of the girls, Rarity, healed a marine’s broken arm just by touching it for a few seconds. It was strange to watch.”
“Look at the people,” Carris said, nodding to those who were passing them on the streets. “They’re staring.”
“Wouldn’t you?” Will asked. “I certainly am. I’ve never seen anything like this before. At least not until after its been ruined by plasma, explosions, and Covenant.”
Li glanced around. Indeed, it seemed as though anyone currently on the street had stopped and was simply staring at the procession, open mouthed. Some looked on in awe, others in fear. Li saw a few small children cowering behind their mother. Well, public relations were off to a good start.
The group rounded a corner and Li could immediately see their destination.
“Damn,” Kirk remarked, looking up.
The palace clung to the side of the mountain further than the rest of the city, its white towers nearly grazing the snowy peak. It was some of the finest architecture Li had ever seen, and he’d been to human planets all over the galaxy. The sprawling structure must’ve been able to hold hundreds of residents.
“This,” Celestia said, looking over her shoulder at everyone as they passed through a second gate onto the palace grounds, “it the Royal Palace. I believe it would be best to hold our negotiations in the throne room. Come along.”
The group passed down a stone path leading through a finely trimmed garden. On either side, Li saw blooming flowers and verger, as well as hedges taller than himself and some that were even sculpted into various shapes. He recognized various birds, griffins, and a few soldiers holding spears. There were even a few shapes Li couldn’t identify.
At the end of the path, they climbed a short flight of stone steps and ended up in front of a pair of grand double doors. After a second, the doors opened, pulled by a pair of guards from the inside, and admitted the group into the entrance hall. Li didn’t have time to look around before they were shepherded through a series of long passages. Eventually, they ended up in a long room with the ceiling high above their heads. Every ten feet or so, marble pillars flanked a pristine red carpet, leading all the way down to the end of the room, where two elegant thrones sat. Thin, floor-to-ceiling windows also lined the wall, letting an impressive amount of sunlight into the room.
The group crossed to the end of the room and the two queens ascended a small platform before sitting upon the two thrones. Celestia on the right, Luna on the left. Li and the other humans lined up in front of the thrones, and the other Equestrians assembled around the two princesses.
“So,” Vice Admiral Whitcomb said. “Where do we start?”
Princess Luna, who had been silent until that point, leaned forward in her seat. “We would very much like to know why a military outfit was the one to find our planet, if – as you say – you are peaceful and only found us on accident.”
Stacker and Whitcomb shared a quick glance. Li could tell that this was a subject that they had wanted to avoid discussing until the last possible second. But that second was now.
“Have any of you ever heard of ‘the Covenant?’” Danforth asked.
Both princesses shook their heads, as did the other Equestrians. Celestia steepled her fingers and placed her chin against them.
“The Covenant is a collective of alien species looking to spread their religion and control across the entire galaxy. Twenty-six years ago, they offered humanity the chance to join. We said no.”
“Is that why your military is exploring the stars?” Celestia asked. “You’re being defensive because these alien races scared you?”
“Scared?” Stacker scoffed. “We’re damn right to be scared. When we turned the bastards down – pardon my language – and they declared war on us right then and there. Nothing would make them happier than to see all of humanity exterminated. And they’re pretty good at it too. They’ve destroyed entire worlds full of people. Killed millions. Probably more.”
“Oh my.” Rarity covered her mouth with one hand.
“So you are at war,” Luna said, leaning back in her throne, a look of what seemed to be satisfaction on her face. “And if we join you, we will be sucked into it.”
“All due respect, your highness,” Vice Admiral Whitcomb said, stepping forward. “The Covenant is searching for worlds that humans inhabit. If they find this world and discover you and decide you're just as much of an affront to their religion as us, they will try to destroy you. And if they defeat us and have even more control over the galaxy, you will have no chance of fighting back.
“The Covenant is looking to destroy any race that stands up to them. And if you do not want to be ruled by someone other than yourselves, then you will want to resist them too. You’re already in the war. Right now, they do not know your planet exists; your safe. But that might change in the future. We can help each other.”
“How do you believe you can help us?” Celestia questioned.
Under his visor, Li frowned. He knew that the two princesses were questioning them because they wanted to make the best decision for their people, but it was frustrating that they were hesitant to ally with them against the Covenant. They had no idea what they could potentially be up against.
Whitcomb, however, kept his cool. “We have space-faring technology. We can help advance your civilization at a faster rate than you would reach normally. We can offer you greater protection and help bolstering your own military as well as our own. If trade and economic relations work out, both our economies will rise.”
“Uh, your highnesses,” Twilight interjected. “If I may . . .”
“Certainly, Miss Sparkle,” Celestia allowed. “Your council is always welcome.”
“I think we should ally with them,” the girl said. Behind her, Li saw one of the two pegasi - a girl with rainbow colored hair and light blue fur - roll her eyes. “They seem willing to be peaceful with us, and if what they are saying is true, we’ll need all the help we can get.”
There was silence for a long moment. The two rulers shared a look between them. It seemed as though each was silently asking the other to make a decision. After what seemed like an age, Princess Luna was the one to speak.
“We accept your willingness to ally.”
Li thought he saw some small amount of tension leave Vice Admiral Whitcomb’s shoulders.
“Excellent,” he said. “What should we continue to discuss?”
“I believe those are matters we can discuss privately,” Celestia said. “I do not believe we must take up everyone’s time with dull affairs like negotiation. Perhaps my student and her friends may take your sergeant and Spartans on a tour of our capital city. Your guards and mine may stand at the doors while we discuss things.”
Li glanced at his squad. It would be a good way to learn about this new culture and planet that they had seemingly just allied themselves with, not that they would necessarily see much of it given that there was a war to fight elsewhere.
“Yes, ma’am,” Whitcomb said, turning to address Li’s team. “Consider this leave time, soldiers. Let the ladies escort you around the city. Pick up a few things while you’re here. I’ll radio when negotiations have concluded.” He then rounded on Sergeant Stacker. “Staff Sergeant; you head back to the ship and start getting things squared away with the brass. I bet some of our people will want to visit this planet sooner rather than later.”
Each soldier saluted. “Yes, sir,” they chorused in one voice.
“Alright then,” Twilight muttered, stepping forward. “Uh, follow me then, I suppose.”
She began walking back out of the throne room, her friends in tow. Li and the others followed close behind, though the two marines Danforth had brought only tailed them to the doors before stopping and taking up position on either side of it as guards. Two Equestrian guards did the same.
As Li stepped out of the throne room and the doors swung shut behind him, his helmet picked up the first words Celestia said to Whitcomb.
“So, what exactly are those ‘Spartans?’”
_ _ _
Kirk-018 stared out through the visor of his base MJOLNIR Mark IV Operator helmet, almost unable to believe what he was seeing. This city truly was like nothing he nor any of the other SPARTANs had experienced before. Perhaps only Emerald Cove had been this picturesque. But it had been years since he had last seen that place and this was here and now.
Kirk, and his team followed the six girls back off the palace grounds and into the main city.
The girl, Twilight, turned and regarded everyone. “Okay, um, everyone. This is . . . the city center –”
“Come on, Twilight!” interrupted one of the other girls, this one with a dark pink mane and a stocky build. “You’re going to bore everyone to death. Here, let me take over!”
“Okay. Sure, Pinkie.” Twilight's shoulders relaxed noticeably, and she let the other girl, Pinkie, take her spot as she stepped back towards her friends.
“Hello, everyone!” The girl practically bounced as she spoke. “I’m Pinkie Pie: your new tour guide! I get that most of you are new here, but don’t you worry; I’m gonna make you all right at home here in our capital city. Just follow me and we’ll get started.”
Kirk exchanged a sidelong look with Will as the group followed Olivia into the square outside of the palace. Though he couldn’t see the other man’s expression behind his Grenadier helmet, he knew he was grinning.
“This’ll be an interesting trip,” he quipped.
“Should we really be parading ourselves in front of everyone in the city?” Carris asked of the group at large. “Won’t people get nervous? They’ve already seen us once and everyone looked scared.”
“I’m sure people will come around once the princesses formally introduce you and everything,” Pinkie Pie said. “Most people just get nervous around new things; and you all certainly stand out as ‘new.’ Oh; no offense.”
Kirk waved off her apology. “Non taken, ma’am.”
He glanced around at the buildings all around them, noting the stares they were attracting from both passersby and those peeking out from windows or doorways. He felt a sudden urge to itch his back. He tightened his fists in order to keep himself from trying to reach up, even though he knew he wouldn’t be able to scratch himself through the armor.
When Kirk was fourteen, he and all the other SPARTAN trainees underwent numerous medical procedures in order to enhance their physical and mental abilities. Kirk was one of the twelve trainees that ‘washed out.’ The procedures had left him floating inert in a gel buoyancy tank, his bone structure damaged beyond belief. He would’ve spent the rest of his life like that tank if not for cutting edge medical treatments developed by Dr. Catherine Halsey that reversed the negative affects of the program and allowed him to return to active duty, along with some of the other injured SPARTAN trainees.
That didn’t mean there weren’t lingering side-effects, though. His bones ached at night sometimes, and the scars that crisscrossed his body prickled and itched often. The itch always seemed come up in tense situations, and the feeling was so intense that despite Kirk’s discipline, it was always a struggle not to give in.
“You know,” Will said, “it’s kinda funny that we were all a secret to the rest of the galaxy for years, but as soon as we come to this new world, everyone on the planet is gonna know about us.”
“That reminds me,” Twilight said, turning and regarding the four SPARTANs as they walked. “What exactly are you all? You don’t look like the other humans. Are you different?”
“That’s putting it mildly,” Will remarked. He glanced over at Kirk.
Will was a talker; a fairly unusual trait among SPARTANs. Kirk knew he was being looked to in order to decide could and couldn’t be said. Given that they were interacting with an entirely new race of people, He wasn’t sure where the line of red tape should be drawn. They could at least tell them what the human public knew; they’d probably be told that much soon enough anyway.
He nodded.
“Well, if we’re going to get into that, we should probably find a place to sit down,” Carris said, looking around the market square they had just arrived in. All around them were stores, restaurants, and other business bustling with people. Eating, buying, talking, and generally just going about their daily lives.
“Ooh! I know just the place,” Pinkie Pie piped up, pointing across the street a way. “There’s a bakery just over there with outdoor seating. C’mon let’s go!”
With that, she darted across the square. By the time Kirk and the others caught up with her, she was already arranging the iron tables and chairs so that everyone had a seat available and they were all sitting in a circle. The girls sat down.
“Well, do have a seat,” Rarity told the SPARTANs, none of whom had made a move to sit.
They all shared glances.
“We’re too heavy for the seats,” Li said. “The armor weighs almost a ton.”
“Oh my.”
“Hold on a second,” Twilight said. She knitted her eyebrows together and pointed a hand toward one of the chairs. Her horn glowed purple and a similarly colored mist flowed from her fingertips, causing the chair to glow for a moment. “There. That chair should hold your weight now.”
Tentatively, Will lowered himself into the modified chair. It was a tight fit, and Kirk could hear the chair creaking as the SPARTAN put his full weight on it, but nothing happened. Twilight cast the same spell on the three remaining chairs and Kirk, Li, and Carris all took their seats.
“Hello, may I take you ord . . .” Kirk looked up to see a young Unicorn waiter had approached them. He had trailed off as he took in the sight of the four hulking soldiers sitting at the table as well. He paled slightly.
“Oh, yes,” Pinkie Pie said, grabbing the boy’s attention. “We’ll take a coffee for each of us, and a dozen of whatever is on the menu today; surprise me!”
“Y-yes miss,” the boy scribbled on his notepad and quickly retreated into the bakery, looking as though he were about to break into a sweat.
Kirk peered in through the floor to ceiling windows to the interior of the building and saw that many of the patrons – sitting at tables, waiting in line, standing around – had all stopped to stare out at them. He didn’t like attracting this much attention, but what else was there to do? Vice Admiral Whitcomb had told them to head into the city, so here they were.
“So,” Twilight said, leaning forward, “what exactly are you all? And tell us more about this ‘Covenant’ that you’ve been fighting for so long.”
“Well,” Kirk reached up and popped the seals on his helmet, before removing it and setting it on the table. “We’re human, for a start.”
He saw a look of shock pass over all the girl’s faces, perhaps from the numerous scars that lined his pale face, particularly around his jaw, eyes, and nose, where most of the bone reorganization had been done.
Following his example, Li, Will, and Carris removed their helmets as well. Each had a few marks and scars of their own, though none had as many as Kirk.
“If ya’ll are just like other humans, what’s with the armor an’ height an’ all that?” asked the blonde girl with what sounded like a Southern American accent, Applejack.
“We’re genetically enhanced,” Carris explained, her own blonde hair falling from the confines of her CQC helmet to frame her green eyes. Kirk watched her gesture to herself and her squad mates; always one to speak expressively with her hands. “We were put into a special program, trained, and then modified through surgery and other procedures so that we could fight greater threats to humanity. We didn’t expect the Covenant, but now we’re the best hope of stopping them from destroying us.”
“What procedures are you talking about?” Twilight asked.
“That’s classified,” Li said, his lips pressed tight and his narrow eyes stern.
"Classified? Why?" Demanded the Pegasus with rainbow colored hair, looking suspicious.
“Suffice to say were stronger, taller, faster, and more tactically brilliant than any of you will ever be,” Will said with a wink, deflecting the girl's question.
“Hmph.” she scowled, not looking at them. Kirk could tell that she was representative of whatever percent of the population wasn’t going to welcome the humans with open arms. For whatever reason, she distrusted them, and it was going to be hard to change her mind.
“How many of you were, uh, created?” Twilight asked, frowning at her word choice.
“Thirty-three.” Kirk neglected to mention the other thirty that had been outright killed by the surgeries, as well as the twelve that had been ‘permanently’ crippled. He knew that he and a few others had been saved, but he didn’t know for sure how many.
“You’ve been at war for a long time. How many of you are alive?”
SPARTANs didn’t die. They just went missing in action.
Fleet Admiral Terrance Hood strode onto the bridge of the UNSC Feeling Lucky, having just awoken from cryo sleep.
Looking around, he saw a number of SPARTAN-II personnel waiting to be addressed. After Vice Admiral Danforth’s surprising communique informing the UNSC that he had stumbled upon an unknown planet full of human-like creatures that seemed willing to ally with them against the Covenant, the top brass had begun organizing an envoy to introduce humans.
That meant showing them the best of what they had to offer.
That meant showing them more SPARTANs.
There were eight gathered in the bridge of the Marathon-class heavy cruiser in front of Hood. Certainly, there were more arriving to this new planet on other UNSC ships carrying important admirals, fleet commanders, and directors. It wasn’t often that humanity got to show itself off to an unknowing party, and they were determined to make a good impression. Especially if it would gain them an ally in the process.
“Fleet Admiral on deck!” barked one of the SPARTANs, snapping to attention. Everyone else on the bridge did the same, jumping up from various terminals, projections, and maintenance.
“At ease,” said Hood with a small wave of his hand. He stepped forward and drew even with the SPARTANs, who had formed a small semi-circle in front of him. “It’s good to see you, Spartans. I’m glad this occasion isn’t one fraught with peril.”
The SPARTAN who had announced his arrival nodded. “Yes, sir. But I’m confused as to why we were all brought in. Aren’t there more pressing issues we should be deployed to help with?”
The man’s distinctive deep voice caused Hood to glance down at his chest plate, where he saw the number 117 painted, along with two blue bands around his upper arms.
“Ah, Master Chief,” Hood said, nodding respectfully. “To answer your question, the Security Committee has deemed it feasible to recall most SPARTANs for just one night in order to make a good impression. After that, it’ll be back to business as usual for most of you; though I’ll be interested to see what impact these newcomers have on our operations.”
“As long as they help more than they hinder, I guess there’s no problem,” said one of the other SPARTANs, a white 029 stenciled on his chest. “It’ll be good to kick back, at least for one night. Not like we get many chances, anyway.”
“Your comrade is right,” Hood said, looking at the Master Chief. “Though if you truly want something to do, try and learn as much as you can about these people. Their personalities, their names, their cultures. They’re almost a complete mystery to us right now, and I’m sure that High Command would like to know much more about them. Not to mention ONI.”
“Yes, sir,” the Chief nodded.
“Sir,” asked a third SPARTAN, this one with the number 087 on her chest. “Is it true what the reports said? About the far and the wings and the . . . Magic?” The woman’s clipped accent betrayed what seemed to be British heritage.
Hood let out a small huff of breath. “I really don’t know, Spartan. There’s only a few explanations; it’s true, the ground team was hallucinating as part of some mass hysteria, or they’re lying.”
“Li wouldn’t lie. He’s too honest.”
“Neither would anyone else who was on that planet so far. And I doubt they’re all experiencing mass hysteria, either.”
“Then I suppose we’ll find out just how true it is when we get down there,” the Master Chief said, very matter-of-factly.
“That we will,” Hood nodded. He glanced at the other officers and crew on the deck. There were no shipyards on the planet, so much of the crew would be staying on the ship to keep things in order while it stood by. Pelicans would be taking the SPARTANs, higher-ups, and a few select enlisted soldiers from the ships in orbit to the gala below.
All they were waiting on was for the other ships to confirm their arrival and for the all-clear signal from those already on the planet.
_ _ _
[b]Royal Palace, Cantra City, Equis
Twilight looked up into the dusky sky, searching for the ships that the humans had assured her would be arriving any minute.
It had been only a week since first contact had been established between the two species, and Twilight was already starting to warm up to their new guests. Many of the humans had returned to their ship in orbit in order to rest up and prepare for the arrival of other UNSC personnel.
The four SPARTANs, Staff Sergeant Stacker, and two members of his team had chosen to remain behind on Equis, until humanity had been properly introduced to the population. How exactly this was going to happen was a problem. That was, until Pinkie Pie had a brainwave.
“Why don’t we just invite them all to the gala?” she had said, bouncing slightly in anticipation. “I mean the princesses have been planning it for months now, and plenty of ponies are going to be there. The princesses can make a formal announcement and everypony will be talking about it after that, so even ponies who live to far away and can’t go will know about it.”
Twilight had taken this idea to Princess Celestia, who thought it was ‘a simply splendid idea.’
Now, Twilight stood just before the front doors of the palace in her gala dress; a long, sparkling blue number that came with a matching satin shawl. In front of her stretched a line of Equestrians so long it reached back past the main gates of the palace and into the street outside. She heard distinct murmurings among them as she waited for the princesses to arrive and let them inside.
“Do you think those creatures will be here?”
“What about the strange-looking things?”
“I hope not. They freak me out.”
“They are rather frightening.”
“Don’t sound to fond of meeting us, do they?” asked the SPARTAN called Carris-137. The tall woman was standing off to Twilight's left, behind the open palace doors so as not to be seen by the line of ponies. She still wore the imposing green armor with the odd name she had trouble pronouncing, and her arms were crossed over her chest. Her tone betrayed some doubts about whether or not introducing humanity so suddenly at this gala was a good idea. The public had already seen some of them, and rumors had no doubt spread.
Good and bad.
“I’m sure it’ll turn out okay,” Twilight assured her, glancing over but not turning her head in order to not attract attention to the fact that she was speaking with someone who couldn’t be seen. “Where are the other humans?”
Carris tipped her head to one side, not speaking for a few moments. Twilight recognized that the woman was speaking with someone else using the ‘radio’ in her helmet. She still found the concept amazing. That through a device so small one’s voice could be carried over great distances to speak with someone that could not be seen. And it was only one of the many technological marvels that the humans had introduced her to over the last week.
“Kirk and the Staff Sergeant have transmitted the all clear signal,” Carris said. “The first ships will be probably be arriving shortly.”
Even as she spoke, Twilight could hear the low whine of one of the UNSC’s ‘space craft’ as it flew overhead, emerging from behind the palace and shooting towards the city’s entrance. In the distance, she could see it disappear beneath the many towers, walls, and gates as it dropped off its passengers. Twilight's sister-in-law, Princess Cadence, would be waiting at the gates to welcome the first guests and show them to the palace. Two of the other SPARTANs, Li and Will, would wait to welcome those that arrived next, and so on until all the humans were present.
“It seems the first of our new guests have arrived,” said a serene voice from behind Twilight. She turned to look and found Princess Celestia striding toward her, resplendent in a stunning golden dress. Her crown of the same color and material for which it got its name, sat upon her head, with three multicolored jewels inlaid on its front. Princess Luna approached as well, wearing a flowing midnight blue dress and a crown of the same make.
“Yes, your majesty,” Twilight said, giving a short bow.
Beside her, Carris gave a crisp salute. “Yes, ma’am. High ranking UNSC personal are arrive on site as we speak.”
Twilight heard another drop ship fly overhead, as well as murmurings breaking out from the crowd outside.
“Sounds like the ponies are starting to get nervous,” Twilight said, glancing at the doors beside them.
“More nervous than they already were about these humans?” Princess Luna commented. “Is that possible?”
“Perhaps it is time we address that,” her sister said. “Come. You both as well.” She gestured at Twilight and Carris.
“Uh, me, ma’am?” Carris asked, cocking her helmeted head to one side.
“Yes, you as well,” Princess Celestia nodded. “You are a human and my subjects will be seeing plenty more of your kind. It is best they get well acquainted now.” And with that, she stepped out in front of the doors to address the crowd, Princess Luna just beside her.
Twilight looked up at the much taller Carris.
“Time to meet the people,” she said, putting on her best 'confidence-boosting' smile.
_ _ _
Cantra City, Equis
SPARTAN-III Andrew-B170 lay on the roof of a building that overlooked the Cantra Palace. He stared through the scope of an SRS 99 Anti-Matériel sniper rifle at the palace entrance as the two princesses, a girl, and a SPARTAN-II stepped out into the open. He enhanced the scope’s magnification from 4x to 10x, centering the recital between the two princesses.
He was not supposed to kill them, Command just wanted to know every bit of what was going on in that palace from an unbiased source. At least, that was what they said they wanted.
The communications link in Andrews brand new MJOLNIR Mark V helmet buzzed. The new suit really was something else. Better than the experimental SPI suits the SPARTAN-IIIs had originally been issued by far. Personal shield generator, improved radar, the ability to upgrade in the field through armor modifications, and extensive customization.
“Spartan B170, do you read?” It was the voice of Colonel James Ackerson of the UNSC.
“Yes sir. I’m in position.” He made sure his helmet was sealed before answering. Andrew doubted that anyone was around to hear him, but it was better not to take any chances.
“Good,” the colonel said. “I myself am almost on site. Keep an eye on everyone at that celebration. Especially the royalty. Get pictures of the faces of anyone that talks to them so we can add them to our database. When you can, listen in on their conversations. Use the lip-reading software in the helmet.”
“Yes sir.” Andrew stayed silent for a moment, but kept the link open. “If I may ask, sir; why was I selected for this mission? Aren’t there SPARTANs better equipped for a reconnaissance mission like this? I’m a vehicle specialist.”
Ackerson sighed. “Most of our Headhunters are busy pursuing targets or were too far away to be called in. Same with our other, uh, special teams. You were the best we could do on short notice.”
It was nice to know command has such unflagging confidence in his skillset.
“Yes sir,” he said, activating his helmet’s lip-read function.
The taller princess seemed to be in the middle of giving some kind of speech.
“. . . and I expect you all to welcome these new guests to our home,” she said, gesturing to the long line of aliens in front of her. “These humans came to our planet peacefully and intend to seek a formal alliance between our two species. I see no reason to deny them, as they can add much to our society and undoubtedly, we can add much to theirs. There is no reason to fear what we do not know.”
Andrew settled the scope directly on the princess' face and took a picture
_ _ _
Outside Cantra City, Equis
Dr. Catherine Halsey stepped out of the pelican drop ship’s troop bay and onto the dirt path that led right up to the gates of the city. It really was remarkable how much like Earth this planet appeared to be. Even some of the architecture was similar to that of twentieth century humanity, though in a more rustic sense.
As she approached the gates of the city, she saw nine figures waiting by the gates. The closer she got, the better she could make out who they were. One was Lord Terrance Hood; one of the top-ranking Fleet Admirals in the UNSC. The other eight were a handful of her own SPARTAN-IIs.
“Dr. Halsey,” Hood said, turning as he noticed her approach. “I’m surprised to see you here.”
Catherine gave a half-smile. “Yes,” she said. “I know a few officials were against my being here, but I submitted a personal request to ONI so that I could study this new species.”
Civilian consultants were not normally allowed to attend events such as these on newly discovered planets - not that anything on this scale had ever really happened before - but Catherine knew some ONI officials that she still had pull with. After all, she was the brain behind the hugely successful SPARTAN-II Program. She could not pass up an opportunity so see a marvel such as this. She wasn’t sure how she felt about the supposed ‘magic’ that some of these creatures had. Or if she truly believed in it. But she intended to find out.
She turned to the SPARTANs that were gathered with Hood.
“John,” she said, looking at one in particular. “It’s been too long.”
“It has,” came the gruff voice from inside the immense soldier’s helmet. “Last time I saw you, I was rescuing you from a Covenant ship.”
“And now we’re attending a welcome party for humanity on an alien planet,” Catherine said, wryly. “Times do change.”
John nodded.
“Yes, well, we had better not keep these new rulers waiting,” Terrance Hood intervened. He held out his arm for Catherine. “Shall we?”
She gave a small smile and accepted the older man’s arm, allowing him to lead her and her SPARTANs into the walls of the city. She rather liked Hood. He had always been courteous to her, whatever he knew or suspected about her work. Unlike the ever-arrogant James Ackerson and that ONI snoop Margaret Parangosky.
As the group passed into the city, another SPARTAN stepped up to the gate and stopped them.
“Hello, William.”
“Come on, ma’am. You know I don’t like my full name.”
He nodded at the other SPARTANs and gave a crisp salute to Terrance.
“At ease, Spartan,” he said, returning a nod.
“I’m here to escort you all to the palace,” Will informed the group. “If you’ll follow me, please.”
The group fell into step behind Will as he led them through the practically empty city streets. Looking in the windows of the surrounding buildings, Catherine saw almost no lights on and couldn’t catch even a glimpse of anyone in any of the houses or stores.
“Where are all the people?” asked Terrance.
Will glanced back. “Anybody who’s anybody in this country is going to be at the party tonight. Everyone else is apparently catching an early sleep because they know that the later it gets, the louder the city is going to be.”
“Are we the last to arrive?” one of the SPARTANs, Kelly, piped up.
“No,” Will replied. “Gold Team isn’t here yet, and there might be some more officials on the way. Li’s coming back to meet the next group at the gates. He just got done escorting Green Team, some ranking ODSTs, and Commander Jacob Keyes.”
Jacob Keyes. Another face she hadn’t seen in a while. Decades ago, the man had helped her handpick which children should be selected to participate in the SPARTAN-II Program. Later, they’d even had a daughter together.
Running into him again would be . . . interesting.
_ _ _
Twilight stood beside refreshments table, her hands folded in front of her. She watched as the ballroom slowly filled with humans. Some were dressed smartly in officer’s uniforms, others were clad in the armor given to SPARTANs, and others still that wore full body armor that she had not seen before.
Through the crowd, the SPARTANs stood out like sore thumbs, with their matte green armor and the fact that they towered over everyone else in the room.
“Hi, Twilight,” said a voice from just behind her.
She whirled around to see Princess Cadence standing there, radiant as ever, in a slim pink and gold dress.
“Cadence! It’s so good to see you!” Twilight threw her arms around the taller woman and drew her in for a close hug. “I haven’t seen you since we helped save the Crystal Empire! How is Shining doing?”
“Oh, he’s being a wonderful husband as usual,” Cadence assured her, pulling away. “He’s here tonight, all dressed in his royal guard uniform. I think he’s glad to be doing something that doesn’t involve council meetings or listening to bureaucrats for a change.”
“I’ll bet,” Twilight laughed, picturing her tall, strong brother sitting at a small table helping politicians run a city. He was much more suited to doing something active like guarding the royalty. “I heard you were helping to escort the humans to the palace. How was that?”
“They’re interesting beings, for sure,” Cadence told her, glancing around at the humans in the room around them. “Formal. Respectful. Disciplined. Though, we have only met soldiers, leaders, and scientists. I imagine that the everyday citizen is not much different than you and I.”
“Just without fur, tails, hooves, wings, snouts, Cutie Marks, and Magic,” Twilight quipped, smiling.
“Yes. Without all that.”
“Good evening, ladies,” said a voice from beside them. Both girls turned and to see an older woman wearing a long, white gown and chin-length graying hair.
“Hello, Miss . . .” Cadence prompted, giving a short curtsy.
“Halsey,” said the woman, nodding to both of them. “Dr. Catherine Halsey.”
“It’s good to meet you,” Cadence said, ever the gracious host. “I am Princess Cadence Sparkle of the Crystal Empire, and this is Princess Celestia’s prize student, Twilight Sparkle. She's the one who initially met with some of your soldiers when they came here.”
The doctor’s eyebrows raised. “You’re related?”
“By marriage,” Twilight explained.
“I just have a few questions I’d like to ask you,” Dr. Halsey said. “I’ve been hearing some rumors about you way of life, and I wanted to hear the facts from those who actually live here.”
“Oh, o-of course,” Twilight said, somewhat taken aback by the woman’s directness. “Ask away.”
“Excellent.” Dr. Halsey produced a small, metal pad seemingly from nowhere. She tapped it twice, and a blue screen lit up. She held the pad towards the mares. “Simply speak toward this data pad, and it will record what you say.”
“Oh-okay.”
“What is the difference between the peoples here?” asked the doctor, “Why do some get powers that others lack?”
Cadence answered. “That’s simply how it has always been; for Equestrians, at least. Some of us are born Unicorns and can control Magic. Some are born Pegasi and have wings. Some are born without either, but they make up for it with great natural strength. The Princesses, Celestia and Luna, have the powers of all three and are called Alicorns. They are able to raise and lower the moon and sun and have other special powers. I myself have been imbued with some of that power, as I am part of the royal family.”
"Raise and lower the moon and sun?" Halsey asked, her doubt spilling out of her mouth. "Are you certain about that? What about your planet's gravitational pull?"
"Oh, yes," Twilight jumped in, eager to defend the integrity of her mentor. "Princess Celestia and her sister have been around for hundreds of years. They've been using their Magic to raise and lower the sun and moon since before living memory. Princess Celestia is so powerful, she was able to do it herself for a while when . . ."
"When what, exactly?"
She wasn't sure if she should say what had happened to Princess Luna, but she saw no way of directly lying to Halsey, either. "When Princess Luna was banished to the moon after she became corrupted by Dark Magic," she admitted, though she hastily added, "but she's all better now! My friends and I managed to restore her to how she used to be."
"So the two princesses were in conflict for a time. Interesting . . ." Halsey leaned forward slightly. “How exactly does this . . . magic . . . work?” Something glinted in the woman’s eyes, and Twilight couldn’t tell if it was curiosity, doubt, or hunger.
Once again, Cadence answered. “Explaining the ins and outs of Magic and how exactly it works to someone who has never dealt with it before would be difficult to say the least. I must admit my knowledge on the subject is somewhat rusty, but there are certainly rules to how Magic works. It’s a rather lengthy discussion, and one that I think you would be better suited to having with someone like Princess Celestia, Princess Luna, or even Twilight here.”
“What? Me?” Twilight cut in. It was true that she had been studying under the princess for years now – ever since she was a child – but she never pictured herself as an expert on Magic. She knew the rules and laws that governed how most Magic worked, and had even invented some spells of her own, but she knew there was still plenty to learn on the subject.
The doctor glanced at her. Maybe some of her apprehension showed on her face, because the older woman looked about as unsure of Cadence's proposal as she did.
“Perhaps some other time,” she said. Turning back to Cadence, she continued. “What are some of the other species on this planet?”
Twilight suddenly felt the need to contribute something of value to the conversation. Maybe it was due to how dismissive Halsey seemed to be towards her, or it was just her natural chattiness when educational topics were being discussed. “Well, some of the soldiers have already met a timberwolf,” she supplied, “there’s also changelings, griffons, fairies, centaurs, chimeras, dragons, and plenty more.”
“Fascinating,” Halsey remarked. She looked at Twilight once more, though this time, her expression had changed. “You say you are a student of the princess'? I should very much like to study with you sometime. I want a firsthand look at your culture.”
“O-oh!” Twilight said, surprised. “I suppose I could check with the princess and see if that would be alright.” She wasn’t sure how she felt about that. Twilight always got self-conscious when other ponies watched her in her studies. Then again, humans didn’t know anything about Magic, so even if she messed up, the doctor probably wouldn’t know she was being foolish. It all depended on what Princess Celestia had to say.
“Ah. Twilight, Cadence; there you are,” said a voice from behind the two mares.
They both turned around to see Princess Celestia herself approaching them, disengaging herself from a group of Canterlot socialites.
“Celestia,” Cadence said, bowing. “We were just talking about you.”
“Oh? What of me?”
“Uh, this doctor Halsey” Twilight said, gesturing back at Halsey before turning back toward her, “is interested in . . .”
She trailed off. Dr. Halsey had disappeared.
Someone else cleared their throat. “Excuse me, your majesty. I was hoping for a word.”
Twilight turned back to the princess and saw a man standing just beside them. He was of average build, with close-cropped brown hair and small, shrewd eyes. He wore what Silvia was starting to recognize as a human officer’s uniform and held a cider glass in one hand. He gave Princess Celestia a respectful, low bow.
The princess nodded at him. “I don’t believe we’ve met,” she said as he rose. “Your name is . . .?”
“Ackerson,” said the man. “Colonel James Ackerson. Very pleased to meet you, Princess Celestia.”
“And you as well, Colonel Ackerson. What is it you are so interested to talk to me about?”
Colonel Ackerson took a sip from his cider glass. “Your majesty, if you don’t mind me saying so, your people are woefully underprepared to face any of the Covenant forces.”
Twilight’s eyebrows shot up and she glanced toward the princess. She’d never heard anyone openly talk down upon the ponies Princess Celestia governed to her face. For her part, her face remained impassive, though Silvia noticed one corner of her mouth turn down.
“So I have been told,” she said cooly.
“Oh, I mean no offense,” the colonel said, correctly reading the Princess' tone. “I admit that many of our own forces are unprepared as well, even though our weapons and technology are far ahead of yours.”
“I see.”
“I have a proposal for you,” Ackerson told the princess, leaning forward slightly. “What if UNSC personnel trained some of your own soldiers in the use of some of our weapons and vehicles. We could even help you make ships and weapons of your own.”
The princess’ expression changed. Instead of annoyance, her features displayed a look of deep thought. “And what do you get in return?”
Ackerson waved away the notion as though it were absurd. “Oh, this is no offer like that,” he assured the princess. “I just want to make sure your people are as well-armed as possible. This is a dangerous time. Perhaps this new military force of yours could work with us to assist in ending the war. I’m sure your, uh, magic could do much for our own military. I just want to make sure our peoples can help each other.”
Princess Celestia was silent for a moment. Then, she gave a slow nod. “Yes,” she said. “I’m sure we can reach some sort of agreement. We’ll want to discuss this with my sister, Luna. She handles more of our military matters. Do follow me.”
The princess turned and began to walk off, beckoning for Colonel Ackerson to follow her. The colonel ginned, almost to himself, and began to follow her.
“I will catch up with you two later,” the princess said, looking over her shoulder at Twilight and Cadence. “Do enjoy the party.”
Fluttershy had never been a fan of parties. Even royal ones.
The food was great. The dresses were beautiful. Sometimes there was good entertainment or even fireworks. That was all great.
It was everything else that she didn’t like. There were too many people. Too much conversation. On the whole, Fluttershy preferred animals to most people. Animals didn’t care if you were shy and didn’t know what to say or when to say it. Animals didn’t judge you for being unwilling to burst out of your shell or ask you to dance.
Animals just listened.
That was why Fluttershy had slipped away from the party and into the royal gardens, which housed many creatures and plants from around the world. It was her favorite place in the entire city.
She thought back to the last few times she had been to the royal palace. On one occasion – a royal party much like this one – she had gone somewhat stir crazy and caused a huge scene, drawing far too much attention to herself. On the other occasion, the wedding between Princess Cadence and Twilight’s brother Shining Armor, the city had been attacked by Changelings. She hoped this party would be much less crazy than the last few, for her sake.
Presently, she returned her attention to coaxing a shy Jackalope out from under a bush.
“Come on,” she murmured in her sweetest tone, stretching an open hand out towards the little creature. “You can come on out. I won’t hurt you.”
The small, horned rabbit gazed at her warily, tentatively peeking out from its leafy cover. Slowly, it edged out of the bush.
“That’s right,” she told it calmly. “Come here.”
She was a little surprised that the Jackalope actually listened to her and emerged from the bush, cautiously leaning its head forward to sniff her hand. Normally, it would have taken her much longer than that to convince a shy animal to warm up to her. Then again, she normally worked with wilder animals that were not used to Equestrian presence. Here in the Royal Garden, people were probably walking around all the time.
“There,” she said to the jackalope, patting its soft head, “see? I’m not so bad.”
“You have a way with animals.”
The unfamiliar voice made her jump half a foot in the air and startled the poor little Jackalope, which promptly darted back into the undergrowth and out of sight.
“Hey!” she blustered, scrambling to her feet, uncharacteristic anger flashing through her mind. Her wings flared out. Whoever this was, they had just scared the Jackalope away, just after she had coaxed it out of hiding. “What do you think you’re –”
As she turned, she saw one of the SPARTANs leaning against a white wooden archway, staring straight at her, its arms folded.
“O-oh,” she whispered, looking down. “I’m s-sorry. I . . . I didn’t mean. –”
“I don’t like crowds either,” said the SPARTAN in a femminine voice, uncrossing its arms and making its way over toward her through the garden. “If it were up to me, I wouldn’t be here. But the brass insisted.”
Fluttershy didn’t say anything. She just cowered and watched as the seven-foot-tall soldier made its way over until it was standing right above her. In the dim light, she couldn’t make out any distinction on the SPARTAN’s drab green armor. Suddenly, it reached out one hand and held it out to her, offering to pick her up.
“I’m Spartan zero-five-eight,” it said. “Linda.”
“H-hello,” whispered Fluttershy, deciding that the path of least resistance would be to cooperate. “I’m F-F-Fluttershy.” She took the SPARTAN’s hand, feeling the – woman’s? – immense strength in the fact that it only took a light tug to get her to her feet. Not that she weighed much to a normal Equestrian; she was both short and petite.
The SPARTAN glanced around the area; a small, grassy patch hemmed in by tall hedges. All around the clearing were bushes and trees in full bloom, with flowers sprouting from patches of brown earth on a hill in the center of the place. It was a peaceful, quiet place. The woman reached up and removed her green helmet, which looked as though it had some sort of high-tech binoculars attached to the top.
The SPARTAN, Linda, was as pale as Rarity's fur. She had chin-length, ginger hair and intense green eyes that Sophie could feel analyzing her as they both stood there.
“What’s so special about you and your friends?” Linda spoke suddenly.
“Wh-what do you mean?”
“Why does your princess hold you all in high regard? I understand that one of you is her student, but that doesn’t explain her interaction with the rest of you.”
Fluttershy’s mind raced and her wings twitched. What was she supposed to say? It wasn’t exactly a secret that she and the other mares were the Elements of Harmony. That together, they had faced many dangers, like helping Princess Luna return to normal after many years of darkness, saving Princess Cadence and Shining Armor’s wedding after changelings tried to crash it, and most recently, helping save Crystal Empire from being taken over by an ancient evil. But how much of their special bond should she tell the SPARTAN?
“Well,” she started, lamely, “you s-see, we . . . we’re each s-s-special i-in our own way. And, well, together, we can create a special kind of Magic t-t-t-that can’t be called upon o-otherwise. We’re, uh, we . . . we’re called the Elements of Harmony. It’s, uh, Ancient Magic.”
“I see,” said Linda, clearly not seeing. “You and your friends can come together and work powerful magic. So the princess is interested in you all because you’re powerful and she could use you in her military?”
“Wh-what?” Fluttershy blabbered, astonished. Her? In the military? “Oh, no. N-nothing like that! We only use the Magic when there’s no other choice. If there’s something powerful and evil trying to take over.”
“That’s happened here more than once?”
Now Fluttershy really wasn’t sure what she should say. Were evil takeovers something that should be discussed with aliens?
“Uh . . . sometimes?” she said, not meeting Linda’s shrewd gaze. Luckily, she was saved the necessity of having to come up with anything more by a new voice coming from somewhere else in the gardens.
“Linda? Linda are you out here?”
Linda glanced over her shoulder, then back at Fluttershy. “I have to get going,” she said, sliding her helmet back over her head. “It was good meeting you.”
She looked back up at the SPARTAN that was towering over her. “Uh . . . y-you too. See you a-a-around.”
She watched as the soldier strode away, calling out. “I’m over here, Kelly. I’m on my way.”
_ _ _
“Princess Celestia,” said Hood. “This is someone I’d like you to meet.”
SPARTAN John-117 stood beside the admiral and eyed up the two alien princesses. Celestia, the one Hood had referred him to, was just a few inches shorter than him and had a serene, knowing expression. The shorter, darker one had her eyes narrowed as she gazed up at him, as though she were sizing him up as well.
“Another Spartan,” Celestia remarked, holding out one hand. “I am pleased to make your acquaintance . . .”
“Master Chief Petty Officer Spartan one-one-seven,” he said, shaking her hand. “John.”
“It’s good to meet you, John,” the princess said.
“He’s the leader of the Spartans,” Hood told them as John shook the other princess' hand. “He’s served in the Human-Covenant war since it started, and he’s been awarded almost every single medal the UNSC offers.”
“Impressive,” remarked Princess Luna, looking directly into John’s visor. “Tell us, Master Chief: what do you think of all this? Of our possible alliance?” She gestured at the room around them. At the fancy suits and dresses. All the drinks, the dancing, the peace.
John was silent for a moment. What was he supposed to think?
“If you don’t mind me saying, ma’am,” he said. “I think you could be serious danger if the Covenant were to come here. I think an alliance between us could be beneficial on both sides.”
He didn’t know enough about the Equestrians yet to say much more than that. He wasn’t exactly chatty in the first place.
“We’ve been told consistently that this ‘Covenant’ could easily destroy us if they were to ever appear here,” Princess Celestia said. “Could you tell us why you believe that so vehemently?”
Now they were asking him questions he could actually answer. He knew plenty about the Covenant.
“They come in force,” he said. “They invade worlds by the thousand. They hit fast and hard. They don’t take prisoners and they don’t show mercy. Their weapons can cut through ships quicker than they can be evacuated. If they don’t have any strategic interest in a planet, they’ll just glass it from orbit. Something you wouldn’t have any defense against.”
“You’re telling us we should be afraid?” Princess Luna asked. John couldn't read her expression.
“Ma’am, I’m telling you that you would be foolish to not be afraid.”
“I see,” Celestia said, nodding. “Thank you, Spartan. I appreciate your honesty. I hope that by allying with you humans, we may avoid such an outcome.”
“I agree,” Lord Hood said, entering the conversation once more. “And if anything were to happen, you’d now have allies willing to step in and defend you. We could even help augment your defenses with some of our own technology.”
“You know,” Princess Celestia said. “Perhaps that is a good idea. I ran into a colonel earlier tonight who seemed interested in the same thing.”
“Really?” Lord Hood asked. “Who was that?”
_ _ _
“Keyes.”
“Halsey.”
“Ah, splendid! You two know each other.”
“You could say that,” Catherine said to rather bouncy Princess Cadence, who stood between her and a certain Jacob Keyes. “How are you, Jacob? How goes the war?”
The man stood in his crisp, white military officer’s uniform; hands clasped firmly behind his back, posture ramrod straight. Catherine knew that look, and she wasn’t sure what was making him the most nervous: her, all these aliens, or this whole party situation.
“I’m fine,” Keyes said, nodding to her. “As for the war . . . well, I’m sure you’ve managed to read between the lines and the black ink on ONI’s latest report. It’s not going well.”
The princess glanced between the two of them for a few moments. Her eyes seemed to flash momentarily and a strange look of what seemed to be . . . understanding slid onto her features. She grinned.
“Oooh,” she said. “I see what’s going on here. I’ll leave you two be, then.”
And just like that, she brushed passed them to meet up with a tall Equestrian Unicorn just a few feet away, clad in an ornate uniform.
“That was . . . strange,” Jacob remarked, staring after the young princess.
“Yes . . . as are a great many things about this planet,” Catherine said. “Speaking of that and the war, it seems we would not have found this place if not for our latest defeat at Concord. It seems one of our ships, the Pony Express – ironically enough – made a random jump to escape the planet and ended up finding this one.”
“Luck of the draw, I suppose. And very lucky at that, if they really intend to support us.”
“But there’s certainly something off about this planet,” Catherine went on. “It’s populated with various creatures of myth, many of the cities and towns I’ve heard people mention have names similar to those on Earth with the only difference being that they are all horse puns, the Equestrians are some kind of human-horse hybrid, and then there’s this ‘magic’ to be considered. There’s something bigger at play here. I can feel it.”
“I know that look, Catherine.”
“Yes,” she said, looking up into his tense, blue eyes, “I suppose you do.”
“A long time ago.”
“How is Miranda?” Catherine felt inclined to ask about their daughter. She wasn’t sure when the last time she saw her, and she hadn’t heard anything about her in a long time. Perhaps that was good. With the war going on, she wasn’t sure when she was going to see her again. Maybe never.
“She’s a Lieutenant Commander now,” Jacob told her. “She was promoted last year. She’s in command of her own ship now – the UNSC In Amber Clad. I’m not sure where she’s stationed now, but I know she wasn’t able to be recalled for this gala.”
“That’s too bad,” Catherine lamented. “It . . . would’ve been good to see her.”
“I wish she were here too,” Jacob said. He glanced away. “I wish we were all here.”
Catherine raised her eyebrow. “Come now, Jacob. We decided this wouldn’t work. Everything is just too difficult. And we’re too different.”
“I remember,” Jacob said. “I just wish things were different.”
Truth be told, so did Catherine from time to time. But there really wasn’t anything to do about that. She could wish all she wanted, but it wouldn’t change the way things were. She wasn’t naïve. This wasn’t a fairy tale. The time for settling down had long passed for both of them and they knew it.
Jacob had his military service and the war. So did Miranda. Catherine had her research and her curiosity. And she had her SPARTANs.
“Ah, here comes Staff Sergeant Johnson,” Jacob said, turning away from her.
“You go on, Jacob,” Catherine told him, placing a hand on his arm. “I’ll see you some other time.”
_ _ _
Twilight stood beside Rainbow Dash, holding a glass of cider in one hand and shifting uncomfortably.
Rainbow had been in a sour mood the entire evening. Applejack had just stalked off after giving her a scolding for being so aloof. Twilight remembered phrases like ‘what’s your problem?,’ ‘just give them a chance,’ ‘you’re being difficult for no reason,’ and ‘why do you have to be so stubborn?’
None of this had gone on to change Rainbow's mood for the better. If anything, it just made it worse. The thin mare was leaning against one of the room’s many pillars, arms folded over her rainbow-colored dress, and scowling at the humans around the room.
“Er . . . Rainbow Dash?” Twilight said, deciding to try and break the uneasy silence between them.
“What?” she asked, her voice tight, not looking at her.
“Why are you so against the humans allying with us?”
Rainbow Dash rounded on her, her face a mask of what looked like shock. “Can’t you see how risky this is? These guys show up outta nowhere with crazy weapons, have a standoff with Princess Celestia in the middle of Heartsville, ‘warn’ us about some dangerous alien race, and are suddenly our official allies a week later? We don’t know anything about them! We shouldn’t be so quick to trust them.”
Twilight took a step back. She knew Rainbow was often hot-headed and took a while to really trust new ponies, but this was something else.
"Uhh . . . I don’t know, Rainbow,” Twilight said. “Don’t you think that’s a little paranoid? We should always give others the benefit of the doubt. They seem like a good species.”
“I just think we’re moving to fast,” mumbled Rainbow Dash, who was notorious for rushing through everything. “I don’t want us involved in some . . . some ‘space war’ that we’re not prepared for.”
Twilight didn’t get a chance to respond, because at that moment, all three princesses stood up at the front of the ball room. Princess Celestia held up one hand, which suddenly glowed with a bright, golden light that emanated from her palm. It shone upon her similarly colored dress and reflected the bright glow around the room.
“Honored guests,” she called out, waiting for the chatter to die down before continuing, “As I am sure you all have noticed, Equestrians are not the only species in attendance at my party this evening. Earlier this week, another race, known as the humans, discovered our planet in their space-faring travels and made diplomatic contact with me. After many meetings and discussions, our two species have agreed to pursue a formal alliance.”
Murmurs flooded the room. Some excited, some fearful, some curious.
Near where the royalty had assembled, the crowd parted, allowing two figures to step forward. The first was an older human man dressed in an officer’s attire. The other was one of the many hulking SPARTANs. Princess Celestia gestured to the pair.
“This is Lord Admiral Terrance Hood and Master Chief Petty Officer Spartan one-one-seven,” she said. “My sister and I have been with them for much of this evening and can vouch for their authenticity. As respected leaders within the world of humans, they likewise agree that an alliance with our kind shall be beneficial to us both.”
She and the man called Hood both stepped toward each other. Princess Luna, who stood tall with her hands clasped behind her back, addressed the crowd.
“My sister and Admiral Hood will now perform the ancient rite of The Pact,” she said. “They shall gasp each other’s arms, say the vow, and our species will from then on be officially and symbolically linked.”
Twilight watched as Princess Celestia held out her right hand, which Lord Hood gasped with his left. The princess placed her other hand upon their entertained ones and Hood placed his remaining hand upon hers. Princess Celestia began to speak the ancient words.
“I, Princess Celestia of the Equestrian ponies, do solemnly swear to look after your kind as if they were my own, to make sure that you always have a place in our hearts and at our tables, and to always help you if ever you have need of our wisdom or blades.”
Princess Luna turned her gaze upon Lord Hood. “And now you may speak the words.”
The man nodded, then took a moment to clear his throat. “I, Lord Admiral Terrance Hood of the human race, do solemnly swear to look after your kind as if they were my own, to make sure that you always have a place in our hearts and at our tables, and to always help you if ever you have need of our wisdom or blades.”
“It is done,” Princess Luna called. “Our destinies are now as one.”
Twilight studied the darker princess' face. The mare looked as though she were less than thrilled at the prospect of the newly made alliance, but perhaps that was just her formal demeanor masking her actual feelings.
The room erupted in clapping, though Twilight could see that not everypony was doing it. As far as she could tell, all the humans had gotten into it. It seemed as though only some of the Equestrians were much more reserved about their new alliance. Perhaps it was just due to how sudden everything was. Once they got used to the humans, they should warm up quickly.
“Spike, have you seen my copy of The Equestrian Dictionary Volume five?”
Twilight was at home, two weeks after the humans had formally been introduced. Not much had changed. Some humans had elected to stay on Equis – some civilians, some military officers – in order to explore the culture as well as set up a military presence for security reasons. She had also heard rumors of the Equestrian’s own upcoming military expansion, but nothing concrete.
“No, Twilight,” called Spike, her adoptive younger brother. “It was in your room the last time I saw it.”
“My room?”
Twilight pushed her chair back from her desk and stood up. She was in her study, busy writing a report on some of her recent findings in the field of Magic and Friendship. She put one hand on her head, trying to remember if she actually had left her dictionary in her room. It wouldn’t be the first time she’d fallen asleep reading an encyclopedia and left it in bed. It was as good a place to start looking as any.
She stepped out of the study and into the main area, a circular room carved out of the center of an old tree. From her position, she could see into the kitchen, where Spike was making himself breakfast. His purple, scaly skin shining in the light coming in from the window. Steven was part dragon, and a few years younger than her. She was paired with him once she had used her Magic to hatch him when she was little, just before she became Princess Celestia's student. They’d been living together ever since.
There was a knock at the door.
“I got it!”
Both Spike and Twilight went for the door at the same time. Before she knew it, Spike was underfoot, reaching for the front door handle. Twilight's foot caught between Spike’s leg, and down they went. The door swung open, and the duo outside gazed upon the adopted siblings lying on the floor in a tangle of limbs.
“Uh . . . Miss Sparkle?”
Twilight looked up to see Princess Celestia herself standing in the doorway, along with a middle-aged man in a UNSC officer’s uniform with close-cropped, brown hair.
“Oh! Y-You’re majesty!” she said, scrambling to her feet and bowing.
“Princess Celestia!” Spike copied her.
“You may rise,” the princess chuckled, waving her hand.
“I didn’t expect to see you today,” Twilight said, rising. She frowned. “The due date for my report hasn’t been moved up, has it?”
“Oh, nothing of that sort,” said Princess Celestia, shaking her head. “The colonel has simply requested some assistance of the Magical sort, and I thought you would be up to the task.”
“Oh . . . Err . . . what sort of Magical assistance?”
The man regarded her.
"Miss Sparkle,” he nodded, “my name is Colonel Urban Holland. The UNSC is installing a few satellites in your star system in order to further communications and help us monitor the space around your planet for any threats.”
“In space?” Twilight asked. “What exactly do you need my help for?”
“I was hoping we could count on your telekinetic abilities in order to ensure that nothing unexpected goes wrong during the installation process,” the colonel told her. “We have several precautions in place to prevent calamity, but it never hurts to be on the safe side. It wouldn’t be the first time we’d lost a Spartan due to a malfunction.”
“Oh, okay,” Twilight said, glad that she was just going to support people doing dangerous things instead of actually doing the dangerous things herself. There was enough of that in her life already. Besides, military stuff was more Shining Armor’s speed, not her's. “I can do that.”
“Excellent,” Colonel Holland said. “If you’ll follow me, please.” The older man turned and began walking down the dirt path away from the library.
“Hey! Hey! Can I come? It’d be so cool to go to space.”
Twilight turned and saw Spike hurriedly slipping into a light jacket and grabbing her's, a look of excitement clear on his features. She glanced at Princess Celestia, who had one eyebrow raised, the corner of her mouth twitching in an amused smile.
“Oh, let him accompany you,” she said. “It should be completely safe.”
“Yes!” Spike raised a fist in celebration, scrambling to his feet and stepping out the door with Twilight.
“Are you coming with us, Your Majesty?” Twilight asked, glancing at the much taller mare as Spike handed her the deep purple winter coat he'd retrieved.
“Unfortunately, no,” the princess answered, shaking her head. “Today I am to finalize the legislation to create the REM.”
“REM? Like the sleep stage?”
“Oh, no.” The princess gave a small laugh. “If only it were something so simple. It stands for the Royal Equestrian Military. My sister and I have been working closely with the UNSC to develop our own unified military force complete with vehicles and ships, and I believe the time is near when we may allow recruitment to commence.”
“Oh!” Twilight said, surprised that something so momentous would be nearing its completion so soon after the humans’ arrival.
“Yes,” Princess Celestia said, clearly noting Twilight's shock. “I must admit that I myself am rather taken aback at how quickly things are progressing. But the humans are nothing if not determined, and their technology is simply remarkable.”
“What kind of progress have you made?”
“We’ve been trying to get other races on the planet to join us in allying with the humans and join our military force,” the princess told her. “The Crystal Ponies have already agreed to join us, given Princess Cadence's presence at the gala. The Zebras and Minotaurs have also agreed. Predictably, our efforts to contact the Changelings and Dragons have failed, though we had to at least attempt to bring them into the fold. The Griffons have unfortunately refused to help, as have the Diamond Dogs. We decided not to attempt to contact a few of the darker races.”
“We’ve also started supplying large quantities of standard issue UNSC weaponry and equipment in order to help get things underway,” Colonel Holland interjected. Twilight, Spike, and Princess Celestia had caught up to him just as they reached the end of town. “We’re hoping to design and start building space-faring ships by the end of the month.”
“Wow,” Spike said, gazing up admiringly at the colonel. “That’s so cool!”
At that moment, Twilight’s ears picked up a low roar, as if from some kind of unknown creature. Every second, the noise got louder, as though its source was rapidly approaching. Suddenly, a wide, dark green contraption turned a corner and raced down the street, stopping just in front of the group. It was made of metal and sat on four wheels, with a large pane of glass at its front. A human clad in a UNSC uniform sat in the center of the contraption, with both hands on another wheel just in front of him. On the back of the thing sat a gray metal cage of some sort.
“Woah, what is that?” Spike asked, taking a quick step back.
“This,” Colonel Holland said, stepping toward the thing and placing a hand on its side. “Is a variant of the M12 Force Application Vehicle. We call it a Warthog. It’s a type of car.” Holland placed his foot on a metal rail on one side of the vehicle and climbed into a seat just beside the driver. “You and the . . ." Holland glanced at Spike, "boy . . . can take the back with the Staff Sergeant.”
“This is where we part for now, Twilight,” Princess Celestia said, laying a comforting hand on her shoulder. “Do enjoy space – my sister has told me it’s quite wonderous. Don’t worry; I’m sure you’ll do a fine job.”
“Yes, Your Majesty,” Twilight said, giving a small bow. “Thank you. Come on, Spike.”
Twilight lead her adopted brother to the back of the vehicle and began to climb into the back cage.
“Care for a lift, ma’am?”
She looked up to see man with dark skin clad in a UNSC combat uniform. He wore a green cap upon his head and had one hand outstretched to help her up.
“Thank you,” she said, accepting his offer and allowing herself to be pulled upon onto the metal floor. Checking to see that Spike was able to scrambling up behind her, she turned and regarded the staff sergeant. “I don’t –”
“All set back there?” called the driver over the rumble of the car’s engine.
“Best hold onto the rail,” the staff sergeant advised, reaching up to hold the cage’s top rail. “You got it! Good to roll out!”
Twilight grabbed onto the metal beam just in time. The warthog jerked forward, sending Spike – who hadn’t been quick enough – tumbling into her. After a few awkward seconds of untangling themselves from each other, Twilight and Spike positioned themselves on two padded seats on the metal floor and grabbed the upper bar.
“First time in a car?” the Staff Sergeant asked, looking amused. “Ain’t nothing bounces you around like a warthog, but it’s resilient as hell.”
The warthog hit another bump in the road, causing the two siblings to jerk forward once more. When she had recovered, Twilight looked over at the man sitting across from them.
“I don’t believe we’ve met,” she said. “What’s your name?”
“Johnson,” the man said. “Staff Sergeant Avery Junior Johnson at your service, ma’am.”
“It’s good to meet you,” Twilight said, nodding at him. “So, how exactly are we getting to space?”
“There’s a Pelican waiting for us just outside of town,” Johnson told her. “The bird’s gonna take us up to a makeshift station that’s orbiting the planet so you can help a couple of our boys get the satellites goin.’”
“Pelicans are the ships that transport people, right?” Spike asked. “The big green ones?”
“You betcha, kid,” Johnson said, nodding at him.
Suddenly, he produced a thick cigar in one hand and a small, silver metal object in the other. Sticking the cigar in his mouth, Sergeant Johnson held both hands over the end of the cigar. There was a small ‘hiss’ and he lowered his hands, the cigar now lit.
He took a long draw and breathed out a pungent cloud of smoke.
Coughing and squinting, Twilight waved a hand in front of her face to ward off the offending vapor. “So,” she said, after she had recovered, “who exactly am I helping in space?”
“Couple of Spartans,” Johnson replied, taking another puff. “The Colonel mentioned you’d met one of ‘em before. Li zero-zero-eight and Anton zero-four-four.”
“Oh! I remember Li,” Twilight said. In fact, she’d been making a list of all the UNSC personnel she’d encountered; especially the SPARTANs. She wasn’t sure what would come of it, but there were just so many new people to meet that she thought it was better if she had some way to remember them all.
“That’s good,” Johnson remarked. “Truth be told, I sometimes have a hard time matching their names to their numbers. Spartans ain’t exactly the sociable type, and they don’t mention names too much, so the number is usually just what I think of. Especially since it’s printed right on their chests.”
“I suppose . . .” Twilight muttered.
She preferred thinking of their names. Referring to a person by a number designation just seemed . . . wrong somehow. They were still people, even if they were very different. Numbers made them sound more like machines.
They had passed the edge of Ponyville, travelling along a dirt path that was clearly never meant for a car. The path was just wide enough to accommodate the vehicle, but the ride was certainly bumpy. Twilight felt her rear leave the seat on multiple occasions, anchored into the vehicle only by her grip on the rail. She was very glad when the warthog finally slowed and came to a stop, kicking up dirt as it pulled off the trail.
Looking up, Twilight saw one of the ships that was dropping off guests at the gala. It must be a pelican.
“Alright,” Sergeant Johnson said, patting the side of the warthog. “Everybody out. Let’s load up.”
He slunk to the end of the cage and dropped to the ground. Spike followed him, and Twilight after him. The sergeant held out one hand and she took it, allowing the taller man to help her to the ground.
“Thank you, uh, Staff Sergeant,” she said.
“Johnson, ma’am,” he said. “That’s what most call me. Unless I’m their superior.” He smiled mischievously.
“I’m just a civilian,” Twilight said. “I’m no expert on the military, but don’t you outrank me?”
“I guess.” He shrugged. “But from what I hear, you and your friends have plenty of reason to have my respect.”
“Oh.” She wasn’t sure when word of her and her friends exploits and powers would be relayed to the humans by the queens, but apparently it had already happened. “How much do you know about all that?”
“As far as I know most of the troops that are stationed around here have been told,” Johnson said. “I know about your status as Elements of Harmony and I’ve heard the backstory with Princess Luna. A couple of things here and there and run-in with some ancient creature of chaos.”
“I must admit, your record for heroics is rather impressive for an everyday citizen,” said Colonel Holland, appearing from around the side of the car.
“I . . . never really thought about it,” Twilight murmured, looking away. It wasn’t that she wasn’t proud of the things she and her friends had accomplished, but she never really knew how to handle being publicly showered with praise.
“We should get moving,” Sergeant Johnson said, drawing attention back to the mission. “I’m sure the brass wants us to keep a certain time schedule.”
“Right you are,” said Holland, walking toward the waiting pelican. “If you’ll follow me, please.”
Twilight and her adoptive brother followed the two military men into the troop bay of the drop ship. She turned and watched as the ramp they had climbed to enter the ship retracted and shut itself over the entrance to the bay.
Spike was looking up at her, wide-eyed. “That’s so cool!” he whispered reverently.
“We’ll be taking off momentarily,” Colonel Holland said. Twilight turned to see him stepping out from a door on the other side of the bay. “I suggest we all take our seats.”
Spike was currently trying to stand on the edges of his claws in order to see out of the small window at the top of bay door. Twilight placed a hand on his shoulder and guided him toward the row of seats on one side of the aircraft. As she did so, she felt the pit of her stomach drop and her legs wobble a bit. They must have started flying. It was not unlike the sensation she had when visiting the Pegasi’s hometown of Cloudsdale, where a certain spell had to be performed in order to let her and other non-seraphs walk on clouds.
“Woah,” Spike said, stumbling into her. “That feels weird.”
“Taking off always takes some getting used to,” Colonel Holland said, already having strapped himself into one of the seats close to the bay door on the opposite side of the cabin. “After a few times you just take it in stride.”
Twilight and Spike were both seated now, and in the process of figuring out how the straps on the seats were supposed to connect. After a few moments of fumbling each of them seemed to get things under control.
_ _ _
Hanger of UNSC Anchor 4, in orbit above Equis
The ramp lowered and Twilight stepped off the pelican and onto the UNSC’s space station, her hooves clacking on the cold metal floor. She was in a long, high-ceilinged room. She saw various other ships – some were pelicans, others were as of yet unnamed – lined up in rows. Humans dressed in UNSC uniforms milled about, performing repairs, carrying small data pads, checking various terminals, and plenty of other things that weren’t immediately obvious to Twilight.
“Welcome aboard Anchor Four, ma’am,” said a voice.
Directly in front of the pelican’s ramp were two SPARTANs, each standing at attention with their hands clasped behind their backs. She recognized Li immediately, with his helmet that reminded her of some kind of bubble and the white 008 on his chest. The other was unfamiliar, wearing a helmet with a much narrower visor and what looked like binoculars attached to it. The number 044 was stamped on the armor’s chest plate.
“Hi, Li,” Twilight said, waving as she and Spike stepped closer.
If the SPARTANs were tall to her, they towered over Spike. He craned his neck almost vertically to look up at the seven-foot-tall soldiers.
“Woah,” he marveled. “Are you guys Spartans? You’re going out into space, right?”
SPARTAN-044 – Twilight remembered Johnson identifying him as Anton – took a knee and looked Spike in the eyes. “You bet, kid. We’ll be out and back before you even know it.”
“We should head to the command center,” said Colonel Holland stepping up beside Twilight. “We’ll have a better view from up there.”
“How are they getting out there?” Spike asked.
“The pelican is going to get us close to the satellite,” Li explained. “Then we get out, check that everything is operational, and power it up.”
“Just a little milk run,” Sergeant Johnson remarked. “Good luck, boys.”
Li and Anton nodded at him and both walked up the ramp into the same pelican she and the others had just exited. As the ramp closed behind them, Twilight noticed that each SPARTAN had a compact, steel gray pack mounted on the back of their armor.
“What are those?” she asked, indicating the packs.
“Those are T-packs,” Colonel Holland answered as the group turned away from the drop ship and began walking across the room. “They’re special packs designed specifically for zero-g environments. They attach to different kinds of armors and help the user move around in space, assist with navigation, and regulate life support.”
“Fascinating,” Twilight muttered, wondering briefly how all this was possible. She wasn’t even sure that the advanced Magic Princess Celestia knew was capable of replicating such effects. The more she was exposed to it, the more she came to realize just how powerful technology was.
As the group reached one side of the room, part of the wall seemed to slide open, revealing a long metal hallway extending before them. They continued forward, and upon reaching the end of the hall, Johnson reached out and pressed a button on the wall. Another door slid open, revealing a square, metal and glass box inside of a hole.
“Everyone in,” he said, allowing Holland, Twilight, and Spike to enter before following them into the enclosed space. Once inside, he pressed another button and the door closed.
Once more, Twilight felt her stomach drop and knew they were moving.
“What’s going on?” she asked, a little on edge. What new kind of machine was this?
“We’re in an elevator,” Sergeant Johnson explained. “It’s another way to move between floors. It’s the faster version of stairs.”
One elevator ride and three hallways later, they arrived in the space station’s command center. It was a massive room, surrounded on all sides by glass looking out into space. The interior room was a mass of computers, tables, chairs, readouts, and people moving about and doing jobs that Twilight could only guess at.
“That should be all, Staff Sergeant,” Colonel Holland said, looking at Johnson. “I’m sure the Equestrians and I will be fine from here.”
“Yes, sir,” Johnson said. He gave Twilight a crisp salute. “Good to meet you, ma’am.”
“You too.”
And just like that, he was gone.
“Follow me,” Holland said, beckoning for Twilight and Spike to follow him.
The trio walked up a short staircase to a second floor, consisting mostly of a balcony that went right up to glass that looked out into space. Holland grabbed the attention of a nearby officer.
“Raise pelican Alpha-110 on the comms,” he ordered. “And patch through Spartans zero-zero-eight and zero-four-four.”
“Yes, sir,” the officer affirmed, pressing a series of keys at his station. After a few moments, there was a crackling sound and a voice came in clearly from somewhere in the command center, transmitted via the radio – another bit of technology that Twilight had only recently learned about.
“UNSC station Anchor Four, this is Spartan zero-four-four and zero-zero-eight. Can you read us? Over,” The voice wasn’t familiar, so she assumed it must be Anton.
“Look,” Spike said, pointing out the glass. “There they are!”
Twilight followed his claw and saw the Pelican approaching a long metal structure with two fins that was just floating aimlessly in space. What appeared to be a large dish was protruding from one end of the structure, aiming towards the planet below. In the space around the station, Twilight also saw what appeared to be aimlessly floating pieces of metal. Closer inspection, however revealed that various smaller ships were housed within the debris, being repaired by small machines.
“I never knew it was so . . . big,” Silvia muttered.
It wasn’t the most intelligent thing she’d said all day, but she just couldn’t help herself. This was the first time she’d ever seen Equis from above, and it was just breathtaking. The greens of forests, the orange of deserts, the blue of oceans. It was all so much to take in. And space . . . she’d never dreamed of seeing that so close. It just seemed to extend into forever. There were even other planets close by that Twilight had not even known about. She’d have to tell Princess Celestia about all of this.
“Yes, Spartans,” Colonel Holland said. “This is Anchor Four. We read you. Over.”
“Copy that,” came Anton’s voice over the radio. “We’re headed into space now. Over.”
“Be ready, Twilight,” said Colonel Holland as the bay door of the pelican slowly opened.
“Oh, uh, ready for what exactly?” Twilight asked, tearing her eyes away from space to look at the older man.
“For anything to go wrong.”
_ _ _
In space above Equis
Li stepped out of the pelican’s troop bay and into the vacuum of space, his momentum carrying him forward toward the inactive satellite. Behind him, he knew Anton was doing the same.
All the SPARTANs had done zero-gravity simulations as part of their training, and they all knew how to fight and operate efficiently in space. However, none of the other SPARTANs had run as many zero-g programs as Li had. He was a master at navigation, operation, survival, and combat in space.
As he drew closer to the satellite, he stretched his arms and legs in order to get a solid grip on the metal structure. Li and Anton landed at the same time, their combined momentum causing the satellite to turn end over end and sway in space. Not that it mattered much. Without gravity exerting its will over them, up could be down and down could be up. It was all a matter of perspective.
“Anchor four,” Anton said, broadcasting on an open channel, “this is Spartan zero-four-four. We’ve made contact with the satellite. Over.”
“Copy that, Spartan,” said Colonel Holland. “We have visual on you. Over.”
Anton switched to a private channel. Just him and Li.
“Alright Li,” he said. “We’ve got thirty minutes of air. We can do this quick. We just have to power it up, get the fins working, and establish a connection to the UNSC network.”
“Copy that,” Li affirmed. “I’ll get the power on. You get ready to move the fins.”
He’d landed closer to the bottom of the satellite, so he began working his way around to the control box. As he got into position, he saw Anton higher on the structure, grasping one of the fins, ready to manually reset it. Li returned his focus to the small hatch that was now in front of him. He opened the matte gray lid, revealing a control panel full of multicolored wires, blinking buttons, lights, and readouts.
“I’m in,” Li reported, broadcasting on an open channel in order to notify Anchor 4. “Working to restore power.”
He began fiddling with the controls, tapping a few of the buttons to see if any would elicit a response. He leaned in closer to read the labels underneath each button and switch, searching for something to give him a clue. At the very bottom of the panel, he saw a heading: POWER. There was a large, green button labeled ‘PRESS AND HOLD.’ He did so, then followed an arrow drawn next to the button that led to a lever taking up one entire side of the panel. ‘PUSH SLOWLY’ said a print beside it. Obediently, Li grasped the lever with his free hand and steadily pushed it from its position at the bottom of the panel all the way to the top.
As he pushed, there was a low humming sound, and lights all over the satellite began to flicker on.
“Power’s on,” he reported. “Anton, get those fins reset.”
“Copy.”
Li looked up and saw Anton bracing himself against the side of the satellite, pulling the fin into the reset position – parallel with the base. After a moment there was a loud click, signaling that the fin had been reset.
“One down,” Anton said over the radio. “Moving on.”
Carefully, he shifted over to the other side of the satellite, holding onto the rim and the dish as he did so, his T-pack letting off little bursts to keep him stable. As though underwater, the SPARTAN moved gently through space and alighted on the one remaining stabilization fin.
“We’re down to twenty-five minutes of air,” Li advised, taking his eyes off Anton to check his life support systems.
“I’m – ugh – aware of that, Li,” Anton replied, grunting with exertion as he grasped the metal fin and began to pull. “We have plenty of time. I don’t want to rush things in space.”
At that moment, a loud screeching noise emanated from the fin Anton was fixing.
“Shit,” was all he managed to say before the fin spun around and dealt a devastating blow to his back.
Li saw that his T-pack was crushed instantly. Anton was sent flying past Li, who only managed to shift himself out of the careening SPARTAN’s way just in time. He twisted around to watch as his comrade as he tumbled uncontrollably out into empty space.
“Anton!” he called, helpless to attempt any kind of rescue, lest he be lost as well.
_ _ _
Command Center of UNSC Anchor 4, in orbit above Equis
“Sweet Celestia!” Spike exclaimed, his eyes bugging out. “He’s falling into space!”
“If we don’t do something soon, we’re going to lose his signal!” Colonel Holland interjected, rounding on Twilight. “Miss Sparkle, is there anything you can do?”
Twilight’s hands gripped the railing in front of her, a small sheen of sweat breaking out under her fur. This was it. If she didn’t act now, this SPARTAN was going to be left to die out in space. She heard the man’s voice come in over the radio.
“My T-pack is destroyed; I’ve got no control!”
“Pelican on standby; I can’t catch him!”
It was all down to her. She had to save him.
Twilight took a deep breath and raised one arm tentatively. She knitted her eyebrows together, focusing all her energy on the SPARTAN tumbling helplessly through space. She reached out to him. Both her horn and her outstretched hand glowed in a bright purple light.
“I’m slowing,” Anton reported over the radio. “There’s some kind of purple light around me. I’ve come to a stop.”
She could see him all the way out in space, surrounded by her Magic aura and floating very still. The pelican advanced upon him and turned, exposing its open bay door. Slowly, Twilight used her Magic to float Anton into the drop ship’s troop bay. As she watched, the door closed, sealing the SPARTAN inside the protective cabin of the ship.
“Anton, Li; sitrep,” Colonel Holland ordered, his hands gripping the console.
“My T-pack was destroyed, sir,” Anton reported. “I can’t go back out there – I’ll have no mobility.”
“I’m fine, sir. No damage taken,” Li said.
“Li, can you calibrate the satellite on your own?”
“Yes, sir. I’m on it.”
Colonel Holland pressed a button on the console and turned to face Silvia.
“Thank you, Twilight,” he said, letting out a long breath. “You saved that man’s life just now. I don’t know if we would have been able to get a second ship after him quickly enough.”
“Oh, it . . . it was nothing, really,” Twilight said. “Any Unicorn could’ve done that.”
“But you did that! And it was awesome!” Spike gushed.
Holland let a small smirk cross his lips. “Yes. I suppose it was.”
“Sir?” came Li’s voice came once more from the console. “Satellite operational. Commencing uplink now. Over.”
“Sir!” called an officer from the lower level of the command center. “We’ve established contact with the satellite. It’s up and running.”
“Excellent,” Holland said. Then, he turned back to the console. “Copy that, Spartan. You’re cleared for return. Over.”
“What exactly is this satellite for again?” Spike asked.
“It’ll establish communications between UNSC satellites in other regions of space, allowing for communications between your planet and ours,” Holland said. "It’ll also link to other, smaller satellites that we’ve already put in place in this star system, meaning we’ll be able to map Equis and be able to use GPS. On top of that, it’ll help monitor the system for any threats.”
“Cool!”
“Sir!” called an officer. “We’re picking up something on the scanner.”
“Already?” Holland demanded, looking confused. “What is it?”
_ _ _
Bridge of Covenant Stealth Ship Inner Cleansing, in space toward Equis
Roth ‘Lukomee gazed through the viewport onto the unknown planet below. He had elected to personally lead the reconnaissance mission to the planet below – in order to ascertain if there were any holy relics to be found.
“Shipmaster, if I may?”
Roth turned to regard his second-in-command. A young, talented Leader named Toho ‘Rakamee.
“Of course,” Roth nodded. “Speak your mind.”
“Why must we attempt to infiltrate this world?” he asked. “We could simply attack and wipe out the humans and their allies first. Afterward we could explore the planet at our leisure.”
Roth sighed. Toho was a capable warrior, yes. But sometimes he wished the younger soldier would stay his blade and demonstrate more restraint.
“We cannot risk the destruction of any holy relics,” Roth said. “We must discover if any relics exist on this world before we begin our campaign. If we indiscriminately destroy the human forces, we may unknowingly damage the very things week seek.”
“I know this.” Toho dipped his head as a sign of respect. “I simply seek to hasten I conquering of these new beings. For all we know, they may turn the tide of the war!”
Roth understood the younger warrior’s brashness. He himself had once been so bold. But time and war had served to cool his thirst for glory and combat. Now, he knew that patience and cunning were the key to victory rather than brute strength and vicious fighting.
“We are at a disadvantage,” he said. “We know the humans. We do not know these newcomers they have allied themselves with. We must discern the nature of this possible new foe before we act, lest we doom ourselves to a swift and decisive defeat.”
Roth saw Toho’s eyes widen with understanding. He gave another nod, this one not of respect, but agreement.
“I see. I will follow your lead, shipmaster.”
And that was it.
Roth returned his gaze to space. This time not to the planet below, but above, to his ship, the Inquisitive Intent, floating peacefully in space. He did not like having to leave it, even though he knew it was well guarded and, so far, undetected. He felt as though he were leaving a part of himself behind on board. Still duty and honor both called him below.
“What,” said Princess Celestia, staring down from her throne at the hologram before her, “is that?”
Applejack stared nervously at the purple-tinged image intently, doing her best to burn it permanently into her memory.
“That,” said the blue, incorporeal form of Terrance Hood, the Vice Admiral of the UNSC, “is a Covenant battleship. A Corvette, to be exact.”
“What is it doing here?” demanded Princess Luna. “We thought you said they had no way of finding us?”
“Ma’am,” said one of the seven SPARTAN-IIs assembled in the room, “with all due respect, we never said they couldn’t find you. We said that if they did, we would do our best to help you save your planet. That’s exactly what we plan on doing.” There was almost no inflection in his voice, other than a calm sense of certainty.
Applejack saw the princess tense for a moment, and for a moment she thought the taller mare would stand and use her Magic on the soldier. Princess Celestia laid a hand on her sister’s shoulder and the look of anger faded from her eyes.
“What exactly should we do?” Twilight asked, twisting her hair.
The mare looked like a wreck. There were dark circles under her violet eyes and her normally straight black and violet-streaked mane stuck out in odd angles. Applejack had seen her like this only a few times before, and each time was when she had been obsessing over something that consumed every moment of her waking hours. Ever since she and Spike had returned from their trip to space, Twilight had been constantly fretting. It was only now that this meeting had been called that Applejack understood why.
In the room were the two princesses, Applejack, Twilight, Rarity, Rainbow Dash, Fluttershy, Pinkie Pie, Spike, the seven SPARTANs, and an older human woman in a lab coat. Those present in hologram form included Vice Admiral Hood and a couple other UNSC officers that Applejack didn’t know the names of.
“We don’t have the force to take out a whole Covenant Corvette,” offered one of the officers. “Even with seven Spartans, it would be too much for the small amount of troops we have on Equis.”
“How is the Royal Army shaping up?” asked another figure, an elderly woman in what seemed to be a dark uniform.
“We have enough sign-ups to form two battalions as of now,” Princess Luna informed the room. “We have only been recruiting from Canterlot, Ponyville, Appaloosa, and Fillydelphia. Once we open up registration to the rest of the country, we hope volunteers will skyrocket.”
“What about equipment?” asked the same SPARTAN that had spoken before. He had a visor that took up most of his faceplate, and on the forehead area of his helmet there was what looked like something to augment vision. There were two gold stripes on each bicep, and the number 029 on his chest.
“We have sufficient equipment to arm our forces.”
“Space ships?”
“As of now,” Princess Luna said, “there are two Defender-class vessels, a Regenerators, a Transport, and enough of your Longswords and Pelicans to stock each Defender.”
"That was fast," remarked 029.
"Yes, well, Magic has sped up your construction process nicely," Princess Luna explained.
“That . . . could be enough,” Hood mused, one hand stroking his chin. “But it would be foolish to send barely trained soldiers against a Covenant ship. It may be at least a week before troops from our section of space can make it to Equis.”
“A week?” Applejack interjected. “We can’t ‘jus sit here in the meantime! If this thing is as dangerous as y’all say, we gotta act!”
“I’m afraid that young Applejack is correct,” Princess Celestia said. “If death is on our doorstep, then we must be proactive.”
“Maybe we don’t have to yet,” said a different SPARTAN. This one wore a helmet with a rectangular visor and had some sort of short antennae on its right side. There were two white stripes on each bicep and his chest was labeled with the number 039.
All eyes, including Applejack's were trained on him.
“Explain, Spartan,” said the old woman.
“The Corvette has been there for the last four days,” explained SPARTAN-039. “Maybe longer. Nothing has happened. It’s just sitting there. They have to know that we’re here, but they might not know about you Equestrians. If they ran into this planet by accident the same way as we did, they might be conducting recon to determine how best to proceed. That might buy us time to get organized.”
“Yes, but what if they transmit our location to the rest of their army?” Princess Celestia asked.
“Can we jam their ship’s communications without them realizing?” asked Lord Hood.
“We don’t have that kind of technology –” started the hologram of the old woman.
“Actually, I think we might,” interrupted the woman in the lab coat standing beside the SPARTANs.
“Have you come up with some new miracle technology to save us all, Dr. Halsey?”
The woman in the lab coat, Halsey, stepped forward. She was thin, with straight, chin-length gray hair and eyes that roamed the room, taking in every detail.
“Not necessarily,” she said, her voice slow and measured. “I suggest we simply augment our existing equipment with Equestrian Magic.”
“Technology and Magic?” asked Princess Luna, leaning forward in her throne. “Together as one?”
Applejack had to agree with her. All this human ‘technology’ mumbo jumbo was a bit much for her to wrap her head around. Hell, even the Unicorns’ Magic was hard for her to comprehend sometimes. She was a simple farm mare. She understood seasons, weather, how to take care of animals, when the time was right to pick apples. Not Magic. Certainly not technology.
“Would such a thing be possible?”
Applejack instinctively turned her eyes to Twilight. Whenever anyone had a question about Magic, they’d turn to her for answers. Which seemed to be exactly what was happening now. All eyes in the room were now trained on the young Unicorn.
“Uh . . .” Twilight seemed to cast around for a moment, as though searching for the right answer, “Possibly . . . All this technology stuff is too new for me or, well, anyone to properly form an opinion or even test how well those two things will go together.”
“I have a few theories,” said Dr. Halsey. “Perhaps we could work together.”
“By all means,” nodded Princess Celestia. “If you believe you may be able to put together some new strategy to save our home, please do so. You have no objections, Twilight?”
“N-no. Of course not.”
Applejack glanced over at her friend. Twilight might not be voicing her concerns, but she clearly had some. She was twisting her mane again and glancing at Dr. Halsey as though she was afraid that the older woman would turn into a Changeling and attack her at any moment. Maybe she was intimidated by Halsey’s commanding presence. Or maybe she was scared that the human would prove to be a better scientist than her. Twilight was one hell of a perfectionist, and Applejack knew that she liked to be the best at whatever she did.
“We should start scouring the planet for any Covenant activity,” Lord Hood said. “Just because there aren’t more ships doesn’t mean that they haven’t already started invading.”
“An invasion?” Rarity gasped. “Oh my goodness!”
“Shh!” Applejack said. She wanted to hear more. An invasion meant an attack on everything she knew in life, and she wanted to hear what they were going to do about it.
“Perhaps,” said one of the UNSC officers Tara didn’t recognize, “we should keep Spartan teams on the planet to help. At least until the danger has passed.”
“That,” said the hologram of the old woman, “would be a gross misallocation of valuable resourc–”
“That may actually be a good idea,” said Lord Hood.
“Wait a minute!” cut in Rainbow Dash. All eyes now turned to her. “We don’t need them here! We can take care of ourselves!”
“Rainbow,” Twilight said, putting a hand on the mare's shoulder, “they just want to help. We don’t know what we’re up against. We might need their help.”
“Don’t you think it’s a bit much that the humans have a consistent military presence on our planet?” Rainbow Dash demanded. “We shouldn’t be relying on them to solve all our problems!”
“Rainbow Dash!” Rarity gasped. “Don’t be so rude!”
“Dashie, what are you talking about?” Pinkie Pie asked, looking uncharacteristically sober.
“Now just whaddaya mean by that?” Applejack demanded. She knew Rainbow Dash didn’t trust the humans and didn’t think they should be such close allies, but to deny help when their world could be on the brink of destruction? That was just crazy.
Rainbow Dash rounded on them. There wasn’t a single trace of doubt or remorse in her face. “You guys seriously, don’t think it’s crazy how quickly these humans have inserted themselves into our lives? Why are we giving them so much trust?”
Lord Hood’s hologram shifted so that it projected closer to Rainbow Dash. “Miss Dash,” he said, “to an extent, I understand your distrust. In your shoes, I suppose I might be feeling some what you are right now. But you have to believe us. We need allies. Now that the Covenant are here, you need allies as well. We have no choice but to trust each other.”
“How do we know you didn’t lead them to our planet when you found us?” Rainbow Dash demanded, pushing back.
Hood glanced around at the other holograms, then looked Dash directly in the eyes. “In all honesty, there’s no way of knowing if we led them to you or not. If we did, then we want to help you to make things right. If we didn’t, then we still want to help you in order to ensure your survival. It’s as simple as that.”
“That doesn’t sound very simple.”
“Ultimately,” interrupted Twilight , stepping between Rainbow Dash and Lord Hood, “it’s the princesses’ decision to make. Your majesties?”
Applejack looked up towards the thrones. Princess Celestia looked as calm as ever, as though she understood all sides of the dilemma and was willing to do whatever she believed to be right. Her sister, on the other hand, looked somewhat more conflicted. Princess Luna was leaning over her crossed legs, one hand holding her chin. Her head was turned away from the conversation, as though she was thinking of something very far away.
“The humans will remain our allies,” Princess Celestia decreed. “Admiral Hood is correct. If they did not lead these enemies to us, then they are simply holding up their end of our partnership. If they did lead them to us, then they will be making amends for their mistake by assisting us in defending our world. Do you agree, sister?”
Princess Luna took a moment to answer. She blinked a few times and glanced at Rainbow Dash. Then at her sister. “Yes,” she said finally, not looking at anyone in particular. “Yes. The humans will stay. We will face this threat as one.”
“It has been decided then,” Princess Celestia decreed. She glanced at Lord Hood. “Which Spartans did you have in mind, Admiral?”
“Perhaps two teams could be assigned to your planet for the moment,” Hood said. “Both teams would be completely at your disposal. Both Spartan teams White and Gold are already there. They should both be enough to suit your needs and deploy how you see fit. We'll see how that works, and then decide if further resources need to be pulled in.”
Applejack glanced at the SPARTANs that were assembled. White team must mean the SPARTANs with two white stripes on each bicep. She studied the numbers on their chests. 039, 030, 047, and 122. The SPARTANs with gold bands on each arm were numbered 029, 010, and 093.
“Good,” Princess Celestia said. “Now that that is settled –”
The sound of the doors at the other end of the hall opening and running feet drew everyone’s attention. Applejack peered over Pinkie Pie and Fluttershy to see three Equestrians dressed in odd uniforms running toward the throne. Each soldier wore a light brown uniform with dull gold battle armor strapped over various vital parts of their bodies. The lead soldier, a Pegasus, had armor over the bones of her wings.
Each soldier wore a different helmet, though they were all the same dull gold as the body armor. One of the soldiers wore a helmet almost identical helmet to those that Queen Regalia’s royal guards normally wore. However, there was a black visor covering only the stallion's eyes and an opening over his forehead that allowed for his horn to poke through.
The Pegasus’ helmet was very minimalist, hugging the skull closely. It looked somewhat like a smaller version of the UNSC marine helmet, with a clear visor again only covering the eyes.
The last soldier’s helmet was the most protective of all. It was the bulkiest helmet; almost all armor, with a black, T-shaped visor masking his entire face. The stallion that wore it was the biggest of the bunch too, with broad shoulders and a stature that made him tower over the other two. He wasn’t as tall as a SPARTAN or the princesses, but he wasn’t far off.
“You’re Majesties,” said the leader, dropping to one knee before the group. The other two followed suit silently.
“Ah,” said Princess Celestia, rising from her throne and stepping forward. “Excellent timing. Everyone, I present to you some of our finest soldiers in our new army. They still have some ways to go in training, but they’re almost ready to be placed in the field. What is it that you have to report, Commander Spitfire?”
“There’s a protest outside the front gates of the palace,” Spitfire informed the room at large.
Applejack glanced at the SPARTANs. She had a pretty good guess.
“Please, commander,” Princess Luna said, “give us as much detail as you can.”
“Yes, ma’am,” Spitfire nodded. “The three of us were on a patrol around the palace – we’ve been doing that lately to show off our new gear to the public. Anyway, one rotation the gates are totally clear. The next time we come around, there’s a crowd of ponies assembled. They’re still out there as far as I know; shouting, waving signs, and who knows what else. They want the humans gone. They’re saying they don’t trust them and this isn’t their home, so they should leave it. Things haven’t gotten violent yet, but I’m not sure how long before that happens.”
She couldn’t help but agree with the quiet mare. She had never heard of a huge group of ponies gathering to protest outside of the royal palace. There was no precedent for this at all. Maybe they’d underestimated just how uneasy the presence of humans had made some ponies. Unable to help herself, Tara stole a glance back at Rainbow Dash. The rainbow-haired mare’s expression was unreadable. She stood in silence; her eyes narrowed at the three soldiers. Her mouth was a thin line.
“I must go out and see this at once,” Princess Celestia demanded, sweeping forward through the holograms to stand in front of the three Equestrian soldiers.
“If I may, that may not be such a good idea, Your Majesty,” piped up the Unicorn soldier. “We don’t want you to get hurt. These people could be dangerous.”
“You don’t believe that your princess can control those people out there?” asked the hologram of the old woman.
Even through the digital projection, Applejack didn’t like the way that her eyes seemed to glint when she said that. It was as though they showed some sort of hunger that demanded feeding.
“I – I did not say that!” protested the soldier.
“I must go and see my subjects,” Princess Celestia maintained. “Perhaps I can calm the situation.”
There was a moment of hesitation from Commander Spitfire. Applejack could see that she didn’t want to disobey a direct order from her princess, but she also didn’t want to place her in a situation that was potentially dangerous. Eventually, the chain of command won out.
“Yes, Your Majesty.” Spitfire looked down.
All three soldiers rose and turned back toward the other side of the hall. Princess Celestia marched toward the doors, her head held high. Dr. Halsey immediately made to follow her. Out of the corner of her eye, Applejack saw Twilight dart off after the princess. She followed, wanting to see exactly what was going on outside. Behind her, she heard the sound of her other friends trailing behind.
“I believe that will conclude this meeting,” Princess Luna said. “Do keep in contact if any part of the situation changes.”
“Hold on a moment . . . Your Majesty,” came the voice of the old woman. “There’s something I would like to discuss with you.”
Around them, the SPARTANs began to form a semi-circle around the group. Applejack looked up at the SPARTAN closest to her.
“What are y’all doin’ followin’ us?” she asked.
The SPARTAN looked down at her. On their chest was the number 039.
“We’re going to cover you,” said a male voice. “Gold Team is going to protect your queen. We’re going to protect you and the doctor.”
“They’re protesting humans out there,” Rainbow Dash pointed out. “Don’t you think you being there would be a bad thing?”
“Better to inflame the protesters than to have your princess injured or killed, don’t you think?” answered another SPARTAN: 030.
“Oh, come now,” said Rarity. “No one would dare try to harm Princess Celestia. Things like that just don’t happen here.”
“Hmm.”
Applejack just looked straight ahead. Times sure do change.
As soon as the palace’s front doors opened, Applejack's ears were assaulted by a wall of noise as well as the typical cold winds of winter. It was quite a walk from the doors to the front gate, and the crowd sounded as though it was all around her. In the walk from the palace to the gate, the yells and noise from the crowds that had gathered somehow got louder and louder every step they took.
“Open the gates!” Princess Celestia commanded.
“As you wish, Your Majesty.”
Commander Spitfire and the Unicorn soldier moved to carry out her orders, while the third soldier stayed close to Applejack and the others. As the gates opened, Princess Celestia led the tight group out onto a small raised half-circle just on the other side. The three SPARTANs of Gold Team stayed close behind her.
Applejack studied them.
029 had his hands curled into fists and stood directly behind the queen. 010’s arms were folded and they were surveying the crowd intently. 093 looked completely relaxed; hands at their sides, head down. Applejack wondered what must be going through their heads as they looked out upon the furious crowd.
Amidst the shouting, she caught a few key phrases.
“This is our world!”
“Why should we trust them? Who are they?”
“They’re a threat to us!”
“We don’t want humans here!”
Applejack saw a few ponies had brought signs bearing similar messages. The overall feeling was clear. No one here wanted humans to stay on Equis.
“My subjects!” called the princess, raising her arms to the crowd. “What is the meaning of all this?”
Despite the noise of the crowd, her voice was still carried so that everyone could hear her words.
Near silence fell, despite a few mutterings. The tension in the air was palpable.
Applejack glanced at her friends. Twilight stood just behind the princess, wringing her hands and shifting from hoof to hoof. For whatever reason, Dr. Halsey had on hand on her shoulder. Rarity was poised in front of the gate, her hands covering her mouth. Fluttershy's hands covered her eyes. Pinkie Pie was bouncing up and down on her hooves, her hands clasped tightly together. Finally, Rainbow Dash’s hands were clasped into fists so tightly that Applejack wasn't sure blood was flowing to all her fingers. She was leaning forward slightly, as though she wanted to move but couldn’t. The lone, towering soldier stood right next to Applejack, neither moving nor speaking.
“We want them gone!” called a lone voice from the crowd. “We want peace! They come with their technology and their weapons and try to change us! It’s not right!”
Applejack's eyes darted around the crowd, searching for the speaker, but she could not locate him.
“And those . . . things!” cried another voice, another person that Applejack could not see. “They’re unnatural!”
She felt – rather than saw – the four SPARTANs of White Team shift around her.
“My subjects,” began Princess Celestia. “You must –”
“I’m sorry, Princess,” called yet another voice. “But it is you who must.”
This time, Applejack could see the speaker. One stallion had somehow raised himself above the crowd. His face couldn’t be seen, as he had placed the helmet of an ERA soldier over his head. Where he had acquired it, Applejack had no idea, but he’d painted it a deep crimson color.
“What do you mean?” Princess Celestia demanded, focusing on the speaker.
“You have invited this unknown group to our planet without a thought as to what we, the ponies wanted,” the man called. “But we will not be ignored any longer. We have taken control of Crystal Empire, and we will not be releasing it, its inheritance, or Princess Cadence until our demands are met.”
There was dead silence. Applejack couldn’t believe her ears. Taken control of the Crystal Empire? By force? Only the Dark Lord Sombra had ever done such a thing, and only with powerful Magic.
“He . . . he can’t be serious,” Fluttershy whispered. “That can’t be happening.”
“Who are you?” asked the Princess, her eyes wide with surprise.
“We are the Equian Freedom Society,” the lone stallion said. “And we are intent on keeping Equis free of human interference and corruption.”
“Violence against your fellow citizens will not be tolerated,” Princess Celestia said. “I will not stand for such insanity.”
“Then you stand opposed to our freedoms,” said the stallion. “I am truly sorry, your majesty.”
Another member of the crowd closer to the princess stepped up. He also wore a red royal guard helmet and carried – to Applejack's astonishment – what looked like one of the ‘guns’ that UNSC soldiers carried. Sensing the sudden danger, she took a sudden step back, grabbing onto Fluttershy's and Pinkie Pie's jackets to pull them back with her.
In the amount of time it took to blink, SPARTAN-029 leaped in front of Princess Celestia and grabbed the barrel of the gun, forcefully directing it away from the ruler and high into the air. An explosion that popped Applejack’s ears emanated from the gun, along with a small flash from the end pointing in the air.
Fluttershy cried out and covered her ears. Applejack shushed her and pulled all of them further back.
029 wrenched the gun out of the stallion's hands and swung it like a club, catching him on the side of the helmet and sending him sprawling back into the crowd, which swallowed him up like the mouth of some hungry creature. Ponies were screaming now, and running. Applejack saw others rise out of the crowd, all in red helmets and all carrying UNSC guns.
“Bodily harm okay?” inquired 030, wrenching a rifle from a mare's hands and kicking her away.
“Do what you have to do.”
Applejack found herself and her friends enclosed by the four SPARTANs of White Team, as well as Commander Spitfire and the largest of the three ERA soldiers. Even though the crowd was thinning so that only those with red helmets remained, it seemed as though they were closing in on them. A sea of red and black was all Tara could see.
Angry voices rose from the throng, spouting the same phrases as before, in addition to some new material.
“Get the Princess!”
“Close in on the gate!”
“They’re getting away!”
The SPARTANs and ERA soldiers had corralled everyone back behind the gate. Spitfire and SPARTAN-029 were hurriedly closing it.
Just when it seemed as though the ordeal was over, a small, round object flew over the doors of the front gate and landed between Applejack and Rarity; just five feet away. She could see the sudden terror in the other mare's eyes, as if she knew something terrible was about to happen
“Grenade!” barked 039.
Applejack didn’t even have a chance to react on her own. Instantly, she was tackled by some huge mass and pushed to the ground. She felt the fur of her face pressed against the frigid snow and tasted the metallic tang of fresh blood in her mouth. She couldn’t even scream.
The noise that followed was so loud that it drove every other thought from her mind. A shock wave of energy didn’t just hit her, it passed through her. She felt raw heat wash over her and a pain so intense in her leg that she cried out even though she couldn’t hear her own voice.
And then it was over. Just like that.
The weight over her lifted. Applejack struggled to get onto her hands and knees, but the pain in her leg was too strong. Grunting she rolled onto her back and looked down. Red blood pumped onto the grass from a large gash in her lower leg. She could see small blackened fragments of metal protruding from her flesh at sharp angles.
She sucked in her breath at the sight of her mangled limb. She wondered how long she’d have to take off the farm in order to recover. Time during which she wouldn’t be able to work for her family. She looked around to see how the others were doing. What had just happened?
Applejack tried to prop herself up and look around, but suddenly on of the SPARTANs was hovering over her, one hand on her shoulder to stop her from rising.
“– back.”
Her hearing must be returning. Slowly.
“What?” she asked, not understanding him. “No, let me up. I gotta check on the others.”
“Lie back,” the SPARTAN ordered in a male voice. Applejack glanced at the chest plate. 122. He wore a helmet with a thin visor and what looked like binoculars on top of his head. “No one’s been injured too bad. Except that ERA Unicorn. He was too close.”
Applejack looked over without raising her head. She could just make out the slumped form of the shorter of the two unnamed ERA soldiers. Blackened and unmoving.
“He’s –”
“Dead,” said 122. “But no one else is. Just lie still; I’m going to try and get some of this stuff out of your leg.”
He held up a small white kit with a red plus on it.
“What’s your name?” Applejack asked, struck by sudden curiosity.
“Petty Officer Second Class Spartan one-two-two.”
“That’s your name?”
“It’s Joseph,” the SPARTAN said, giving his head a little shake. He set his medical case on the ground beside her, then opened it and began taking out materials. “You’re Applejack.”
It was a statement, not a question.
“Yeah,” she said. “I –”
She broke off as her gaze drifted past Joseph to the large ERA soldier, who was slowly picking himself off the ground. His helmet had been knocked off in the blast, revealing a head of red fur and a shaggy blond mane. Red fur and a shaggy blond mane that Applejack would recognize anywhere.
“Big Macintosh?” she bellowed, instinctively trying to rise to her feet. “Mac! What’n Tartarus d’you think your doin’ here?”
Joseph pressed against her shoulder, pushing her back to the ground.
“You need to stay still,” he ordered.
“That’s my brother!” Tara shouted, pointing at Big Mac.
Joseph paused, glancing back with Applejack. Mac froze, one hand still reaching for his helmet, which had fallen just beside him. He looked up, making direct eye contact with his sister.
Full of fury, Applejack tried to rise again, but Joseph held her down.
“You need to stay still,” he repeated.
“You’re s’pose to be back home!” Tara shouted at Mac. “Whose lookin after the farm?”
“I thought you were,” Big Mac said, grabbing his helmet. “I didn’t know you were gonna be mixed up in all this.”
“’An you didn’t tell me?” Applejack demanded. “Whadda you think yer doin’ playin’ soldier?”
“Can we talk about this later?” Mac asked.
“Yes, can you?” Joseph said. He plucked shrapnel from Applejack's leg, causing a stab of intense pain to shoot up all the way to her thigh.
“What’s going on here?” came a voice. “Big Mac? What’re you doing here?”
Applejack looked up to see Twilight standing over them all, with Dr. Halsey just next to her.
“Your friend has some shrapnel in her calf,” Joseph reported, barely looking up as yanked a second piece of shrapnel out of Applejack's leg, causing her to let out another cry of pain. “I’m working to get it out. Apparently, your friend’s brother didn’t tell her he was looking to be a soldier.”
“A soldier?” Twilight asked, staring at Mac with as much disbelief as Applejack had.
“Can we talk about this later?” Mac repeated, sliding his helmet back over his head, masking his features. “We might not be safe here.”
“No,” Princess Celestia said. She had appeared behind Twilight and Dr. Halsey and was helping a limping Fluttershy along. Her features were the grimmest that Applejack had ever seen her look, and that was counting the time that the Crystal Empire had almost been taken over by Sombra. “I don’t believe we are.”
“Pack it up, everyone,” SPARTAN-039 ordered, motioning for everyone to follow him. “Joseph; carry the girl in. Vinh; take the girl from the princess. Grace, Naomi; watch our backs while we move. We don’t want another grenade to catch us off guard.”
“Now wait a minute –” Applejack began to protest, but Joseph had already scooped her into his arms and lifted her off the ground, causing pain to shoot through her injured leg. She groaned, and saw another SPARTAN – Vinh, she assumed – lift up Fluttershy in a similar fashion.
As the group crossed the grounds towards the palace, the sounds of the angry mob grew fainter; now a low roar instead of a deafening cry.
“This is simply disastrous!” Rarity said. “How can ponies possibly be driven to this sort of barbarity?”
Applejack glanced around to see the mare furtively brushing dust and dirt from her jacket, which was singed and torn in a few places.
“They’re scared,” Dr. Halsey said. “And that makes them dangerous. It happens to people to.”
“What should we do, Your Highness?” Twilight asked, trotting dutifully behind Princess Celestia's heels. “Has anything like this ever happened before?”
“Have I ever been beset upon by a mob of my own subjects before an attempt is made on my life by them?” Princess Celestia asked. “No.”
As they reached the large front doors of the palace, the princess turned and addressed the group at large.
“Things have changed,” she said. There was a steely tone in her voice that Applejack had never heard before. “Spartan zero-three-nine, Spartan zero-two-nine. Isaac, Joshua. Step forward.
The two SPARTANs stepped forward, standing at attention before the princess.
“What do need, ma’am?”
“Isaac,” she said, addressing 039, “you will take your team to the Crystal Empire. If what the rebel said is true, then Princess Cadence and her subjects could be in grave danger. Find out if this is true, and take the city back. Muster any forces you require from the UNSC.”
“What about my brother?” Twilight asked, her eyes wide. “He could be in danger too!”
“If the city has indeed fallen,” Princess Celestia said. “Then he is most certainly in danger.” She turned her attention to SPARTAN-029. “Joshua – you and your team shall remain here and guard both myself, my sister, and the Elements. When the time comes, you shall take our forces to the Covenant Corvette above us and destroy it. Until then, you will remain with me.”
“Yes ma’am,” chorused both soldiers.
A pit seemed to open up in Applejack's stomach. War had come to Equis, and she had a bad feeling that before this was all over, things would get much worse.
Twilight sat in her chair and stared hard at the piece of equipment on the table before her. She was supposed to be studying it and helping Dr. Halsey create a new means of jamming the Covenant cruiser’s communications, but so much had been going on lately that she found she could barely focus.
First, she went to space and saved a SPARTAN’s life. Then she found out that there was an alien spaceship prowling around up there, ready to destroy them at any moment. Then, it turned out that the populous was more riled up than anyone thought and an extremist group rose up trying to take control. On top of that, the Crystal Empire had been taken over, meaning her brother and sister-in-law/childhood friend was in grave danger and –
“Twilight?” asked a far away voice. “Twilight, are you still with us?”
She blinked twice and the room came back into focus.
She was in a room of the Royal Palace, far above the snow-covered city below. At the table with her sat Dr. Halsey and several stacks of notes on both human technology and Equian Magic. On the far side of the room stood one of the SPARTANS of Gold Team: 093 – Grace, she’d been told – holding a shotgun and watching the proceedings impassively.
“Y-Yes,” she stammered. She took a deep breath. “I’m with you.”
Dr. Halsey placed a comforting hand over hers. “I understand why you’re so distracted. What we’re attempting to accomplish today should help us keep your planet safe.”
Twilight sighed, looking away. “I know,” she said. “It’s just . . . it’s a lot to take in. There’s so much going on.”
“There’s always a lot going on,” Halsey told her. “You’ll get used to it eventually, I’m sure. Wars make life complicated. Especially wars on this scale.”
“I suppose,” Twilight nodded, her mouth twisting into a frown. She wasn’t sure if this was something she wanted to get used to.
Halsey glanced around for a moment, as though searching for a change of topic. Then, she seemed to pull something out of the air. “Twilight, have you ever heard of Technomancy?”
“Technomancy?” the woman had her attention now. “No.”
“I would think not, seeing as more advanced technology is mostly nonexistent in your world,” Halsey said. “In our world, it is the stuff of old fantasy novels. Fiction. But this world has proven to me that much of what has been going on in fantasy novels is a reality here. In theory, Magic and technology could have an interesting relationship.”
“Technomancy . . .” Twilight muttered, trailing off into thought. “What exactly do they say about it in your novels?”
Halsey placed a hand over her chin. “There’s a couple supposed uses. It could be possible to attain Magic through technology. Though I highly doubt that, given that no human has accomplished this. It could also be possible to enhance, manipulate, or otherwise influence technology through the use of Magic. I believe that this is what we could possibly recreate with your powers.”
“You’re suggesting we . . . invent an entire branch of Magic?” Twilight asked, her eyebrows disappearing into her bangs. Admittedly, it was something she’d always dreamed of doing, but it was such a daunting task and she had no idea where to start, so she’d never attempted it. But now . . .
“Essentially,” Halsey said, the ghost of a smile passing over her lips. “Yes.”
“Let’s get to work!” Twilight said, her nervousness forgotten in the face of this new academic challenge.
The doctor glanced over towards the door. “Grace – come here.”
The SPARTAN obliged. She set her shotgun against the table and – after Twilight Magically reinforced the remaining chair – sat down.
“Yes ma’am?”
“You’re good with explosive and deconstruction, yes?”
“That’s right.”
“Are you good a building and deconstructing UNSC technology?”
“Yes ma’am.”
“Excellent,” Halsey said. “You may remove your helmet – we’ll be needing your assistance here.”
Grace reached up and removed her Grenadier helmet and placed it upon the table. Grace wasn’t as pale as some of the other SPARTANs that Twilight had seen without helmets. She had a light olive complexion and straight, brown hair pulled back into a very small bun at the back of her head. She had scars on the edges of her jawline and a long, thin one starting at the arch of her right eyebrow and ending at her hairline.
“What do you need, doctor?” Without the helmet on, her voice was low and gentle.
“Help me disassemble this control antennae,” Halsey said.
The two began to take apart the device, setting aside metal pieces, screws, wires, and bits that Twilight didn’t have a name for yet. She half watched them, but was more focused on Halsey’s notes.
“What kind of effect are we looking to come up with?” she asked, her brow furrowing.
“We can use our technology to jam the Covenant’s communications,” Dr. Halsey said. “Grace; hand me that – yes, thank you. However, if they send out a call and repeatedly get no response, they’re bound to realize we’re onto them and will attack. If we can find a way to create a fake response that adapts to what’s being said, we’ll be a step ahead of them.”
“Interesting . . .” Twilight muttered. “Maybe if I could combine spells that create speech and duplication spells . . . I don’t know . . .”
“We’ll need to find out,” Halsey said. “Try a few different things. See what works and what doesn’t. We may be creating a whole new branch of Magic, but we don’t need to do it all today. We just need one spell. Done.”
“Right,” Twilight said. She snapped her fingers. A spark of purple light danced off her fingers and horn, and each piece of the now totally disassembled antennae shot into the air and arranged itself as it was supposed to fit together; each bit floating a few inches away from the others. Twilight stood up and circled the floating tech, Halsey’s notes clutched in her hands.
The three of them spent the next three hours working over the equipment and Magic. Twilight tested various spells and their effects, while Dr. Halsey and Grace managed to tweak the design somewhat to allow better Magic flow throughout the device. They played games of call and response using Grace’s helmet radio in order to see if anything was going according to plan. Unfortunately, whenever Grace sent out a communication, it either didn’t go through, went through, or didn’t go through and received a wash of static as a response.
“Well,” Dr. Halsey sighed, sitting back in her chair and placing a hand over her forehead. “It’s rare for me to say this, but I am officially out of ideas.”
Twilight rubbed her temples with her hands, her eyes closed. “I am too,” she sighed. “I don’t understand. In theory, this should be working! I’ve set up audio spells, I’ve set up barrier spells, I’ve set up counter spells, I’ve done everything that I can think of to make this work.”
“Maybe there’s some sort of interference?” Grace offered. “The signal from our tech and whatever energy your magic gives off might be countering each other out. It’s like linking a detonator and an explosive; if the signals don’t match, nothing works.”
Twilight and Dr. Halsey both stared and the woman for a moment, then looked at each other.
“Maybe . . .” Halsey said.
“Maybe the reason why this isn’t working right is because the energy is too different?”
“And if we found a way for your magic to give off the same electricity that our technology runs on . . .”
“We could get the spells to work! Grace, you’re a genius!”
The SPARTAN mouth twisted for a moment, then settled into a half smile. “Thank you, ma’am.”
“Hold on,” said Twilight, concentrating and focusing all her energy on the device. In order to sync the Magic and electricity to the same kind of energy, she would need all her focus.
She closed her eyes as the Magic flowed through her. She heard the hum of the electricity rushing through the wires within the inner workings of the antennae. She felt the warm, buzzing embrace of Magic as she called to it. Her breathing slowed. She stood very still. She was like that for an entire minute, just concentrating on uniting the two entirely different methods of power.
Then, Grace’s comm. link buzzed.
“I’m getting a response.”
_ _ _
Roth sent his energy sword straight through the gut of one of these . . . things.
What were they?
Not human, no. Thought they spoke their ugly language. Not completely animal, for they had intelligence.
Perhaps they were some kind of mutt.
He wasn’t sure, but at this point what did it really matter?
“Shipmaster,” said a deep voice from behind him.
Roth freed his sword from the belly of the creature and it sank to the ground, limp. He turned. Toho ‘Rakamee stood behind him, placing a new crystalline cartridge into his Needle Rifle. Flanking him were a pair of minors, checking their own weapons.
“Yes?” Roth asked. “Report.”
“We’ve cleared out the settlement,” Toho reported. “Discarded the bodies as you ordered. None shall know of our presence here. We seem to be on a farmstead outside of most civilization.”
“Good,” Roth said, deactivating his sword and placing it at his side. “We must return to the outpost.”
“Shipmaster. Why did we come here?”
“I needed to be sure.”
“Of what, precisely?”
“Sure that they were just like the humans,” Roth said. “And I was correct. On all accounts but one.”
“And that account is what?”
Roth gestured to the body of the creature he had just slain. “Do you see its horn? When I attacked it, the horn glowed. It attempted to fight back with some sort of energy I have not encountered before. Despite their strange nature, perhaps these creatures have access to some ancient rites that we know not.”
“What should we do, shipmaster?” asked Toho.
“We will not be burning this world,” Roth decreed. “We must study and learn from these creatures. We must get word to our ship so that they may call for reinforcements. We must invade.”
SPARTAN-III Andrew-B170 stood at attention in the command center of UNSC carrier, his blue prototype MJOLNIR Mark V Operator helmet tucked under one arm. Across the holotable stood the elderly Admiral Margaret Parangosky – the head of ONI. If ONI was involved in his next assignment, he knew it must be serious business.
Beside him stood another SPARTAN-III that he didn’t recognize. He wore MJLNIR Mark V, just like Andrew did, but his armor was a drab green and black in color. He wore his silver-visored recon helmet with a HUL attachment. His chest plate and right shoulder were both recon-class. He wore a GUNGNIR left shoulder pauldron, FJ/PARA knee guards, and had a Tactical/Soft Case strapped to his left thigh.
The mystery SPARTAN removed his helmet, revealing a man with close-shaved black hair and intense, dark eyes.
Before Andrew could say anything, Admiral Parangosky, cleared her throat, drawing both men’s attention to her.
“Spartan Andrew B one-seven-zero,” she said. “Meet Spartan Kai A zero-one-nine. You two will be serving together for the duration of your new mission.”
Andrew glanced over at Kai, who likewise turned to regard him. There was something in Kai’s eyes that Andrew wasn’t sure he liked. It was as though the other SPARTAN was weighing his usefulness and ability.
“What exactly is our mission?” Kai asked, taking his eyes off Andrew to look at Admiral Parangosky.
“I’ll let the princess fill you in on that,” Parangosky said, stepping to one side. A hologram began to flicker into existence in the spot where she had been standing a moment before.
“The princess?” Kai said, raising an eyebrow. Confusion was written all over his face. Maybe he hadn’t been filled in on Equis yet.
Andrew smirked, smug in the possibility that he knew something that this new SPARTAN didn’t. He had been on assignment on Equis since the ball a few weeks ago; collecting information on the different species that lived there, travelling across the planet to explore different environments, and logging everything he came across in order to add to the UNSC database.
He doubted that any human was more familiar with the planet that he was now.
The hologram in front of them resolved itself, and Andrew was taken aback by who he saw there. It was not Princess Celestia. It was Princess Luna.
“Hello, Spartans,” the princess said, regarding them somewhat haughtily.
“Your majesty,” Andrew said, bowing slightly as he remembered the proper greeting he’d observed. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Kai struggle to follow his lead.
“Have you been informed on your assignment yet?”
“No, ma’am.” Both SPARTANs straightened out of their bows.
“Very well,” the princess said, frowning slightly and folding her arms. “I shall tell you myself. My sister means well, but she does not possess the military know-how or the decisive nature to deal with open revolt by the ponies of our planet. She will want to negotiate. She will want to make peace. But I know that is not how you win with terrorists. You must crush them. Swiftly and without mercy. That is where you come in.”
“Celestia will not want anything of this sort to occur, so I have taken it upon myself to work with you Admiral Parangosky to come up with a solution to this little problem. Your team will be known as Delta-Seven, and you will be responsible for the suppression of terrorists on our planet. Let me make this clear: you are a secret. What you do is not to be known by the general populous. If you are apprehended, no one will come to your rescue. Your existence will be denied and you will be disowned by the UNSC and by the Equestrian royalty.”
“No pressure,” Andrew mumbled.
“There is immense pressure, Spartan,” Luna said, looking directly at him. “I must admit that I do not fully trust you humans, but perhaps this arrangement shall see my opinion change. I will not see my people subjected to acts of violence without putting up a fight. I must do what my sister will not.”
“Yes, ma’am,” Andrew nodded, saluting. The last thing he wanted to do was make the princess angry with him. Especially since it seemed as though he was going to be serving under her from now on.
Admiral Parangosky regarded the two SPARTANs. “Princess Luna has informed me that one of the major Equestrian cities has been taken over by this terrorist organization calling themselves Equestrian Freedom Society. Spartan Team White and several squads of REA soldiers and human marines are to be dispatched to reclaim the city once reconnaissance has been completed. You are going to be doing that reconnaissance.”
“Just the two of us?” Kai asked.
“No,” Admiral Parangosky said. “There are two ODSTs that are assigned to your team. You also have a team member from the REA that has been pulled from active duty to serve on this team.”
Andrew heard the pneumatic doors open behind them. He turned to see two ODST and a tall REA soldier step into the room, remove their helmets, and stand at attention.
“Spartans, meet Private O’Brien and Master Sergeant Cortez; ODST. The REA soldier is Private Big Macintosh.”
Andrew gave the soldiers a once-over. O’Brien was short and slight, with wild, reddish hair and intense blue eyes. Cortez was taller, with brown hair and eyes. His expression was milder; more focused. Finally, the Equestrian, Big Macintosh, was the tallest and most muscular. He had a shaggy, blond mane, red fur and gentle, green eyes.
“This is quite the ragtag group we’ve assembled here,” Kai remarked, his expression unreadable.
“Ragtag and remarkable, we hope,” Admiral Parangosky remarked, pressing a button on the holotable. A map suddenly appeared on the table, showing a sprawling city that appeared to be made out of some sort of crystal.
“Is that . . . Is that the Crystal Empire?” asked Macintosh, stepping forward. His voice revealed that he had an accent almost identical to a Southern American one.
“Have they not been briefed?” Andrew asked, glancing at the admiral.
She shook her head.
“Yes,” Andrew said, turning towards the others. “It’s been taken over by terrorists. We’re going to recon the city and report back so it can be reclaimed by a larger force.”
“But I thought we were treatin’ that as a lie those guys told us,” Big Macintosh said. “At least ‘til we could get in contact with Princess Cadence.”
“It has been two days, Big Macintosh,” Princess Luna said. “My sister is being foolish to wait. We must act now.”
“I’m inclined to agree,” Admiral Parangosky put in. “The Equestrians are now our allies, and standing idly by while civil unrest takes hold would be unwise. Especially given that we have our own insurrection to deal with. We don’t want another.”
“Yes, ma’am,” Macintosh said, though he didn’t look too sure of himself.
“Are there any further questions?” Parangosky asked, looking over all of the assembled soldiers.
“Who’s in charge?” Kai asked.
The admiral paused for a moment, then spoke. “You are in charge, Spartan.”
_ _ _
Hanger bay of UNSC Magellan, in space over Equis
1 hour later
Andrew sat in the pilot’s seat of a Pelican drop ship in the ship’s hanger bay, his helmet resting on the instrument panel before him. He ran a hand through his loosely kept black hair and gazed out of the cockpit. Just a few meters away, he saw the members of his new squad marching in a line toward the back of the drop ship.
“Here we go,” he muttered to himself, picking up his helmet and placing it over his head.
He heard the sounds of movement in the troop bay behind him, and then one of the ODSTs – Cortez – appeared through the open door and climbed into the co-pilot’s seat behind him.
“Kai says we’re taking off,” he said. “Do you have the coordinates?”
“Already uploaded.” Andrew pressed a series of buttons on the instrument panel. From behind him, he heard the bay door sliding shut and felt the engine rev to life. “Strap in back there,” he called. “We’re taking off.”
Andrew slowly lifted the ship off the ground and turned it one-eighty degrees, now facing the bay’s exit. The engine’s flared and the ship shot out of the hanger and into the vacuum of space. As he flew, Andrew felt the tension of the upcoming mission slide off his shoulders.
Andrew liked working on any vehicle, but flying was always a particular joy of his. Falcons, Pelicans, Hawks, Longswords, it didn’t matter. He’d even stolen a Covenant Banshee once. Flying just made him feel truly free. As though he could go anywhere and do anything. But right now, he was going to this Crystal Empire. And he would do whatever the mission required of him.
As they entered the planet’s atmosphere, Cortez spoke up.
“I served with one of you Spartans once.”
“Really? When?”
“Couple of years ago,” the man replied. “O’Brien and I were both on the mission. We were sent out to some planet to assassinate some minor Covenant prophet. Command thought it was important enough to send a Spartan with us – Cal one-four-one. She saved our skins more than once on that op.”
“What happened to her?” Andrew asked. Though he had a sinking feeling he knew the answer.
“Dead,” Cortez said, flatly. “A brute chieftain tried to kill O’Brien right before we were gonna assassinate the prophet. She saw it and threw herself in front of him, taking the blow. We killed the chieftain, but it was too late for her.”
“Spartans never die,” Andrew said, almost automatically, reciting the lie that ONI kept feeding the public.
“Right,” Cortez scoffed. “According to ONI.”
“According to ONI,” Andrew agreed. He glanced at a small view-screen to his left, looking for a reason to change the conversation. “We’re coming up on the Crystal Empire.”
“In all these mountains?”
Andrew looked up to see that they were indeed flying over a vast mountain range filled with gray stone and snow-capped peaks.
“Well,” he said, the view-screen showing him the map that had been created via satellite data. “I suppose it would make sense to find the Crystal Empire in the Crystal Mountains. Damn it. Finding a place to land is going to be a problem.”
“There it is!”
Andrew jerked his head up, stared for a moment, then let out a long, low whistle.
“Shit,” he muttered. “That’s some city.”
He’d thought the ‘Crystal’ in Crystal Empire had just been some funky name. But no, it turned out that the city was literally made of solid, multicolored crystals. In what seemed to be the center of the city was an enormous tower made of shiny blue crystal. It was absolutely breathtaking.
That’s when he noticed the smoke, the fire, and the several badly damaged buildings.
“We missed the party,” said a voice from behind Andrew. He glanced back and saw Kai standing in the door of the cockpit. “Find a safe spot overlooking the city,” he ordered. “Then fire up the transmitter. We’re going to contact the ship.”
“Yes, sir,” Andrew muttered. He didn’t need Kai to tell him how to follow basic procedure.
Making sure to keep his distance from the city’s perimeter, Andrew piloted the drop ship over the nearby mountain tops, scanning the ground below for a relatively flat space that would accommodate the hull.
Eventually, Andrew spied a ridge near the top of one mountain facing away from the city. that was almost exactly the right size. Pointing it out to Cortez, the pair worked in tandem to set the ship down. Andrew let off on the accelerator. Cortez prepped the landing gear. Andrew activated the hover gear. Cortez confirmed that the landing site was green. Andrew set the ship down.
“We’re good,” he called over the comm. link, flicking a switch to lower the exit ramp. “Everybody out.”
Andrew and Cortez left their seats and moved into the troop bay, where the rest of the squad was busy checking their gear and prepping their weapons.
“Conditions on the ground?” Kai asked.
“Probably cold – we’re high in the mountains and it's winter,” Andrew said. “As far as I know, we’re undetected. There’s smoke coming from the city. Unknown number of combatants.”
“What’s the plan then?” asked Big Macintosh. “How close do we need to get to do, uh, recon?”
“Not too close,” Kai said. “As long as we can get some kind of visual and estimate the strength of the enemy force.”
“I can’t believe this sorta thing is happening here,” Mac muttered.
“Believe it,” the ODST called O’Brien said. “This same kind of thing is happening for us, too. There’s insurrection in some of the human colonies. We kinda have a truce while the war is on, though.”
“Wow. You guys have a lot goin’ on, don’t ya?”
“You could say that,” Kai said, stepping onto the pelican’s exit ramp. “C’mon; we need to get a view of the city.”
Andrew and the others followed him and moved around the outside of the ship. Kai led the team up a narrow, rocky pathway that led up the crest of the mountain. Andrew knew it was cold, but he couldn’t feel it. His armor’s hydostatic gel regulated the suit’s temperature to always keep him comfortable. ODST uniforms had similar temperature regulation technology, but Andrew doubted that such considerations had been made for Big Macintosh's new and mostly untested ERA armor.
“Mac,” Andrew said, glancing behind him at the man. “You doing alright in this cold?”
“I–I’ll be fine,” Big Macintosh said, his teeth chattering audibly under his helmet. “L–let’s just g- get this done.”
“Hold up,” Kai ordered, raising one fist into the air. “We can see the city from here. O’Brien; get up here.”
Andrew and Mac moved to the side to allow O’Brien to move past them, pulling his SRS 99 Anti-Matériel sniper rifle from his back. As he joined Kai at the front of the line, the pair of them shifted about on the snow-covered, stony ridge to allow the entire squad to form up and have a line of sight on the city.
O’Brien set his rifle’s bipod on the ridge-line and began scanning what they could see of the city. Andrew activated his helmet’s own binoculars which, while not as powerful as the scope of a sniper rifle, still gave him a decent view of the playing field.
“Start looking at the main tower, then work your way out,” Kai said. “What do you see, O’Brien?”
“The . . . base of the tower is hollow,” O’Brien said, angling his rifle to get a better look at the city center. “It looks like that’s their main staging area.”
Andrew followed the trooper’s gaze and indeed saw a large number of what seemed to be enemies gathered in the large open area underneath the tower. Glancing around the immediate area, he saw groups of other armed individuals milling about.
“They seem pretty well armed,” O’Brien advised. “They’ve got what I think is new ERA armor, but it’s all painted dark red. They’ve got UNSC standard weapons . . . how the hell did they get their hands on that? I see . . . several crates of heavy munitions. No vehicles. Wait . . . I see two civilians being led around the base of the tower. They look like prisoners. I think they’re being led inside.”
“What do they look like?” Mac cut in suddenly.
“There’s a male and female,” O’Brien said. “The male looks like he’s wearing golden royal guard armor. The female is a little taller than average, and she’s got a set of wings and a horn.”
“That must be Princess Cadence and Twilight’s brother!” Mac said.
“I guess we know what happened to the government here,” Kai remarked. “We’ll keep a note of their position. Maybe command’ll authorize their retrieval when the siege starts.”
“Maybe?”
“They probably will,” Andrew assured him. “They’re pretty high priority figures – I’m sure command’ll want to rescue them. Especially if your royalty has anything to say about it.”
“Keep scanning the area,” Kai ordered.
O’Brien was silent for a second, his rifle swaying as he surveyed the city. “This is a big city. I’m seeing a lot of armed rebels, but I can’t see everything. It looks like they actually have anti-air guns to the west . . . the east . . . and the south. No visual on the north.”
“Do you see any civilians?” Kai asked.
“Searching . . . negative.”
“Where could they be?” Mac wondered aloud.
“My guess?” O’Brien said. “They’re either evacuated, held hostage in the tower, or part of the rebels down there.”
“What would you estimate their numbers to be?” Kai asked.
O’Brien shrugged. “I can’t see the entire city. But if I had to guess, I’d say it’s less than a thousand. Maybe in the mid hundreds, but that’s being generous. This movement hasn't been going on for that long.”
“Good,” Kai said. “I’m going to contact command. We’ll see if recon is all they want from us.”
Andrew flicked off his helmet’s binoculars and glanced back at the rest of the squad. O’Brien set down his rifle and mirrored Andrew’s own movement. Kai had one hand on the side of his helmet – the universal sign for sending and receiving a communication.
“Macintosh,” Andrew asked. “Will you be able to hear this?”
“Yeah,” the stallion nodded. “The UNSC sent us technology to put your comm. links in our helmets.”
“Command?” Kai started. “This is Spartan A zero-one-nine. We have a visual on the Crystal Empire. How copy?”
“We read you, Spartan,” came Princess Luna's voice over the link. “Both Admiral Parangosky and I can hear you. What do you see?”
“We have eyes on the city,” Kai reported. “It’s been completely taken over by rebel forces. They’re leveraging ERA armor and UNSC weaponry. Mostly standard issue arms, but we’ve spotted several munitions crates and AA implements around the outskirts and the central tower.”
“My word,” Princess Luna breathed. “How could they have managed to get their hands on such equipment?”
“Spartan, can you estimate the size of their force?” asked Admiral Parangosky.
“A few hundred. Less than a thousand.”
“Good,” Parangosky said. “Perhaps when we attack, we will be able to neutralize the entire rebellion before it begins.”
“There’s . . . something else,” Kai went on. “We spotted two civilian prisoners being led into the main tower. Mac has identified them as Princess Cadence and her husband, the captain of the royal guard. If they were being led into the tower it’s likely that’s where other prisoners are being held.”
“Understood, Spartan,” said Princess Luna. “We must not allow any harm to come to them. A rescue attempt must be performed as soon as possible.”
There was a moment of silence in which Andrew suspected that the other parties had momentarily muted the comm. link. Then, new orders came in.
“Spartan,” Admiral Parangosky said. “You and your team are to remain on site overnight. Once the attack commences tomorrow, you are to infiltrate the enemy defenses, breach the tower, and free the two high priority targets and whatever other civilians you find. Use whatever force you deem necessary.”
Troop Bay of Pelican dropship, en route to Crystal City, Equis
“Why in Tartarus are we supposed to be here?” demanded Rainbow Dash. She and Twilight both sat aboard pelican with four SPARTANs and a mix of fourteen marines and ERA soldiers.
This had to be the fourth time she asked this in the past hour. In that time, they’d been taken from Ponyville to Canterlot, loaded onto a pelican, and began flying to who knows where. No one had bothered to answer her questions thus far. Twilight, far from her usual inquisitiveness, was oddly silent and lost in thought
One of the SPARTANs – 039– tilted his head toward cockpit for a moment, then stood.
“We’re coming up on the city,” he said. “Everybody get ready.”
In unison, all the soldiers stood and began checking their weapons. One of the SPARTANs, 122, glanced at Rainbow Dash and Twilight.
“That insurrectionist that attacked the princess was telling the truth,” he told them. “Your Crystal Empire has been taken over and its leaders have been taken hostage. We’re going to take it back. By force.”
“You mean . . . you’re taking us into a warzone?” Rainbow Dash demanded, her eyes bugging out. First, Applejack's brother loses his mind and signs up to join the military, and now she and Twilight were being taken unknowingly right into a firefight. These humans really were causing every type of trouble imaginable. “What right do you have to take us? Why do you even need us?”
Maybe after a stunt like this, the others would see just how dodgy the humans were and finally take her side.
“The UNSC has been informed about your status as . . . elements,” 039 said, looking at her. “We know you can all handle yourselves in dangerous situations. We’ve already seen what Twilight can do, and Princess Celestia recommended her personally to us. We also wanted another one of you who knew the city, and we decided you were the most likely to be useful in a situation like this.”
Rainbow Dash was silent. She wasn’t really sure how to feel about what was happening. If people were in danger and others thought that she could be of some help to them, she would help in a heartbeat, but she hated all this deception and simply being whisked away with no choice but to comply. Especially by humans, who she didn't trust one bit.
“I still would have appreciated a ‘head’s up’ first,” she grumbled.
“There wasn’t time,” said SPARTAN-030. “We were on a tight schedule, and it was a life-or-death situation. Would you rather us have wasted time?”
Rainbow Dash didn’t like it, but she didn’t exactly have a response for that, either.
The back door of the troop bay opened slowly, revealing the open air and a breathtaking view of the snowy mountains around them. Rainbow Dash could see other Pelicans flying in a loose formation.
She glanced at Twilight. “What’s got you down?”
The other mare’s frown deepened. “They told me the rebels have my brother. And Princess Cadence. They’re in the tower. I’m . . . I’m just really worried. This is a dangerous situation. If something goes wrong, they could die!”
“Oh . . . oh, I . . . I had no idea,” Rainbow Dash said.
“Don’t worry,” said another SPARTAN – 047. “Part of our mandate is to make sure your brother and the princess make it out of this and are freed. Everything’ll be fine.”
Rainbow Dash looked between the hulking SPARTAN and her taller friend. As much as she didn't like rooting for the humans, for Twilight's sake, she hoped the SPARTAN was right.
_ _ _
Isaac-039 pressed one finger against the hardened uplink module attached to the side of his Commando helmet. A small feed materialized in his HUD, displaying the formation and position of each of the twenty-five pelicans as they approached the city. Command had sent two full companies to take the city back from the rebels. No chances were being taken. Deadly force had been authorized and everything short of explosives had been provided – they were fighting in ponies’ homes, after all.
“White Team, all ready?” Isaac asked, speaking over a private comm. channel to his squad.
“Spartan zero-four-seven locked and loaded,” said Keiichi.
“I’m ready,” said Vinh.
“I’m weapons ready and good to go,” Joseph reported.
“Good,” Isaac said. “When we get –”
He was suddenly cut off as a deafening explosion coming from somewhere in front of the ship, rocking them violently. Isaac, unprepared, momentarily lost his footing and grabbed for the ship’s hull, steadying himself.
“What’s going on?” screeched one of the mares, Twilight.
Isaac glanced at his HUD and saw that the icon of the lead pelican had disappeared. A vivid, red ‘X’ now took its place.
“We’re taking fire,” he bellowed over the comm. “Take evasive maneuvers!”
Below, he actually saw the fiery wreckage of the first pelican hit the ground and burst into metal pieces of varying sizes. Several other loud booms sounded, and Isaac saw anti-aircraft rounds flying past their own ship at high speeds. He knew that even a glancing blow to their hull could be fatal, and could only hope that the pilots were skilled enough to avoid a deadly blow. He and White Team would be okay, but he doubted that he would be able to save the two mares. If they died, that would certainly be the end of any relations between Equestrians and humans.
Isaac shielded his eyes as one of the pelicans trailing close to their own drop ship took a direct hit to its cockpit, causing the front of the ship to erupt into a ball of flame before falling from the sky like a load of bricks.
“Oh, sweet Celestia,” muttered Twilight in awe and horror. “Those ponies . . .”
“We’re comin’ in hot!” called the pilot over the intercom. “We’re trying to shoot the guns, but it’s not easy with all this maneuvering. I wish we had Longswords.”
Secretly, Isaac wished they had Longswords too. But they had been deemed ‘too destructive’ for the city environment. They were going to have to take the city the hard way.
“Do what you have to do, pilot, just get us down there!” Isaac ordered. He turned to address the troop bay at large. “Expect heavy resistance on the ground. Lock and load, marines.”
The pilot clearly took Isaac’s words to heart, because he saw the ground coming up rapidly to meet him. Isaac reached onto his back, removed his M392 Designated Marksman Rifle from its magnetic clip and held it at the ready.
“Stay close to me,” Joseph was telling the two Equestrian mares, pulling the bolt back on his sniper rifle. “I’ll be further from the action than the others.”
“Y-yes, sir,” Twilight murmured.
“I hear you,” Rainbow Dash affirmed, all the defiance gone from her voice.
The ship swayed from side to side, the ground just below them. “We’ve landed,” the pilot shouted. “Go! Go! Go!”
Isaac bolted from the ship, his rifle ready to fire. As he ran around to the front, he heard the sounds of other troopers just behind him. Blue and pink crystalline buildings flanked the ship on either side. The Pelican actually had to float somewhat so that its wingspan cleared a few of the shorter houses. Just ahead, Isaac could see a two M95 Guided Missile Weapon Systems mounted on the tops of houses on either side of the street. Rebel soldiers clad in their characteristic red armor lined the roofs, firing down upon the UNSC forces.
A bullet glanced off Isaac’s left shoulder, and instinctively he dove into an alley between two buildings. He looked up into the sky. The remaining pelicans were circling above, avoiding the AA fire as best they could. Apparently, none of them wanted to risk landing yet. Isaac knew there were other AA batteries to the west, south, and possibly the north, but if he could just neutralize these two, perhaps enough of the flak would be cut to allow the ships to set down and let off their troops.
“Vinh,” he said over the comm. link.
“Isaac?” she answered.
“Take a squad of marines into the building and take out the AA gun to the left. I’ll do the same with the right.”
“Copy that. Let’s go, marines!”
As Vinh charged into the building with eight marines, her M45D Tactical Shotgun blasting open the door for them. Isaac looked back at the pelican. It was in a strange sweet spot where its nose-mounted chain gun could not aim high enough to fire at the AA guns, and the AA guns could not aim low enough to fire at the pelican. He opened a separate comm. channel.
“Beta squad, on me!” he ordered. “We’re taking out the AA turret on my position!”
Eight UNSC marines bolted from the pelican towards him, dodging incoming fire from above. All eight made it to Isaac unscathed and formed up around him.
“Follow my lead; we’re breaching the building and clearing every floor until we get to the top,” Isaac said.
As the marines nodded, he stepped back out onto the main street. He raised one leg and kicked the building’s door hard enough to split it in two and send the pieces flying into the interior. As it turned out, two rebels were getting ready to rush outside. The debris from the door collided with on, knocking him to the ground where he lay in a heap, motionless. Before the other could even raise his weapon, Isaac put a bullet straight through his visor.
He and the marines rushed into the room, immediately taking shelter out of the way of the door, so as not to be shot from behind. They began breach and clear procedures; sweeping the bottom floor of what appeared to be a tailor’s shop, judging from the sewing equipment and thread that lined a few tables and drawers.
“Two of you clear the floor,” Isaac ordered, signaling with his left hand for the marines to sweep the house. “The rest with me; move onto the second story.”
He moved up the stairway just in front of the door, DMR raised and ready to fire at a moment’s notice. Turning left on a small landing, Isaac hugged the wall, exposing as little of his hulking frame as he could manage. Almost as soon as he emerged into the large, single room that was the second story, a volley of bullets from an assault rifle flew at him, causing him to leap back into the cover of the stairway.
“Down here!” shrieked a voice from in front of him. “It’s one of those spartan thi –”
The rebel was cut off when a marine leaned around Isaac and shot him in the exposed throat with a pistol. As the rebel collapsed to the floor, drowning in a pool of his own blood, Isaac led the six marines into the second floor, taken up mostly by more desks, file cabinets, and tables set up with what appeared to be old sewing equipment.
“We’re clear,” one of the marines reported. “Let’s head to the top floor before more show up.” He and the other marines began crossing the room towards another set of stairs that appeared to lead to the roof.
Isaac followed, but briefly turned his attention to his comm. link. “Vinh. Status?”
The muffled sound of gunfire rang in his ear, followed by Vinh’s voice. “Encountering moderate resistance. We’re almost on the roof. AA turret will be down in another minute or two.”
“Copy. See you in a minute.”
Isaac disengaged the link and caught up with the marines – all waiting on the stairs.
“What’s the holdup?” Isaac asked.
“Door’s locked, sir,” reported one of the two marines at the top of the stairway. “We’re trying to force the lock.”
“Here; let me.”
Isaac stepped forward, but there was nothing he could do. The door blew open, sending shards of crystal flying down the stairway. Both marines by the door were certainly dead; scorched by flames and punctured by crystals. A third marine fell down the stairs screaming and clutching at several crystals embedded in weak points in his armor.
The UNSC and ERA might be limited with their ‘no explosives’ rule, but apparently the rebels were taking no such limitations.
Isaac leapt up the stairs in three quick steps and burst out onto the roof. It was a wide, mostly flat surface. In the center was the AA turret, and facing him down were six rebels, waving around assault rifles, DMRs, and pistols. Two of the remaining uninjured marines joined him on the roof.
Nobody moved.
“Give up!” shouted one of the rebels. “We’ve got you outnumbered.”
One of the marines gave a small chuckle.
“Something funny, human?”
In the split second that the rebel turned his attention toward the marine, Isaac rushed forward, removing a combat knife from its sheath. He tackled the lead rebel and plunged the knife into his throat. As the pair hit the ground, he rolled, pulling the spasming body close to him. The one rebel that reacted quickly enough turned her pistol on him and fired, but hit only the chest of the now limp body Isaac held in front of him.
In one swift motion, he yanked the combat knife from the corpse and threw it at the woman, impaling her right in the center of her chest. In the confusion, the marines opened fire, killing the four remaining rebels in seconds. Isaac pushed the rebel’s body off of him and got to his feet. He strode over to the woman he’d thrown his knife at. She lay against the side of the roof, feebly stirring.
He leaned down and removed the knife. She gave a weak spasm, groaning slightly before her wide eyes glazed over. Isaac wiped the blade off on the woman’s pant leg before sheathing it and standing again. He walked over to the AA turret and powered up the keypad before glancing back at the two marines. The four remaining members of the squad had joined them on the roof – one supporting the marine that had been impaled by crystal shrapnel when the door exploded.
“AA turret deactivated,” Vinh reported over the comm. “Status?”
Isaac returned his attention to the turret and typed in the universal shut down code. “AA turret deactivated.”
_ _ _
“Alright, we’ve given it long enough. Let’s go,” Kai ordered the group.
They had spent the night inside the Pelican they had arrived in, and then crept down to the city limits in the morning. Kai had decided to make them wait until the attack on the city really ramped up before they attempted insertion.
Andrew placed his knife, which he had been sharpening on a stray crystal he’d found, back into its sheath on his HP/PARAFOIL chest plate and stood up, removing a DMR from its magnetic holster on his back.
“What’s the plan, again?” Mac piped up, gingerly holding a shotgun, as though he was worried it would go off at any second.
Kai glanced back at the Equestrian, and though Andrew couldn’t see his expression through the bronze visor on his UA/HUL[3] Recon helmet, the tilt of his head told him that he was rolling his eyes. He could tell that Kai wasn’t the type to take a liking to any soldier that wasn’t on his level. Mac was new to this life – there was a certain level of slack that he needed to be cut. Andrew knew that.
“We’re gonna make our way to the central tower as quietly as possible,” Kai started. “Most of the rebels’ll probably be busy with the other forces attacking the city to the east. We’ll ascend the tower, locate civilians and our two high-priority targets and free them. We’ll neutralize any hostiles we find and then exfil before we draw too much attention to ourselves.”
“Ya make it sound so easy,” Mac remarked.
“That’s kinda our job,” Andrew remarked. “Just stick to the plan. Everything should be fine.”
“Let’s move out – standard formation,” Kai ordered, pulling the action on his assault rifle. “Cortez and I in the front. Mac in the middle. Andrew and O’Brien in the back. Move quick and keep a lookout. The tower’s in the middle of the city – it won’t be that hard to find.”
The squad quickly got into formation, and Andrew fell into step beside the younger ODST – O’Brien. They set down the city streets at a smart pace, advancing toward the tower without trying to draw attention to themselves. To the east, Andrew could make out the sounds of intermittent gunfire as the UNSC and ERA forces engaged the rebels while establishing a foothold in on the city’s border.
“How long do you think it’ll take them to set up a Forward Operating Base and take the city?” Andrew asked.
“Another hour – if that – for an FOB,” O’Brien said. “A day for the city. Maybe two. There aren’t that many rebels and they have four Spartans on their side. Not to mention whatever damage we end up doing.”
Andrew studied O’Brien. He, like Cortez, wore a standard black and gray ODST Battle Dress Uniform, with its signature squared chest plate and wide, blue visor. Under the helmet, he’d seen him with a permeant frown and a head of messy, dark red hair. He was a little short for an ODST, but what he lacked in stature, he more than made up for in his skill with a sniper rifle. Andrew had pulled up his and Cortez’s files while waiting in the pelican and read through them and, he had to admit, he was a little impressed.
It was no wonder they’d both been assigned to this team.
After perhaps half an hour of walking down various city streets – and stopping every now and then to hide as rebel troops passed them – the squad arrived at what seemed to be the city center. The large, open area beneath the tower was now empty save for a few munitions crates and some weapons lying about. Now that he got a closer look at the area, Andrew noticed a crystalline pillar in the center of the clearing beneath the tower. Balanced in a small opening between two pillars was a crystal heart. He wasn’t sure of its function, but it looked important.
“Guess everyone else is attending that party we’re throwing,” Kai muttered. “Mac. Do you know the way into the tower?”
“I ain’t been here,” Big Mac said, looking around. “But my sister has – she told me about it. Lemme see . . . Over there! Any one a’ those doors should do.” He was gesturing to the pillars that formed the base of the tower. Each had a door at its base.
The squad hastened toward the pillar closest to them. Andrew saw that a large door was carved into the crystal. Large enough that it should be able to comfortably accommodate the two taller SPARTANs. Andrew and Kai, who had taken lead positions, pushed open the door.
Immediately, they came face-to-face with two red armored Equestrian rebels.
“Wha –”
In the second or two it took for the rebels to fumble with their weapons, the two SPARTANs made simultaneous movements. They each pulled back a fist and sent it flying full force into the enemies’ face plates. Glass shattered and metal bent and the two Equestrians dropped to the floor in a heap, blood oozing out from beneath their crushed helmets.
“C’mon,” Kai ordered. “We need to keep moving.”
“Your armor needs reinforced,” Andrew muttered to Big Macintosh as the group filed into the room, stepping over the two dead bodies.
They found themselves in a circular stairwell and began a quick ascent.
“What’s at the top of these stairs?” Kai asked.
“Uhhh . . . I don’t know,” Mac admitted.
“It would’ve been nice if ‘her majesty’ had provided us with a layout of the building we were assaulting.”
“I’m sure if she coulda, she woulda,” Mac shot back. “We ain’t exactly integrated with all your technology yet.”
“Look, we’re here now,” Andrew said, mediating the debate. “It’s not like we haven’t been trained to deal with insurrectionists before. This is standard breach-and-clear, hostage rescue procedure. We wouldn’t be ‘the best of the best’ if we couldn’t handle it. Let’s just get this over with quick.”
The group reached the top of the stairs and found themselves pausing just before reaching a landing. The doorway was just a few steps up, though there was no actual door present. Just an opening in the wall that led to the room beyond.
Kai held up one fist and everyone halted on the stairs. He tapped the side of his helmet, signaling for everyone to seal their helmets and switch to comms. Andrew and the others did as he said except Mac who was just glancing at them all strangely. Andrew tapped him on the shoulder and the Equestrian turned to face him.
“Seal your helmet,” he whispered. “Comms only.”
Mac nodded and did as he was bid.
“I’ve got some movement on the motion tracker,” Kai reported. He and Andrew were the only two on the team that had them – small radars built into their armor that detected movement up to 25 meters. “I can’t tell if everyone is hostile, though. We’ve gotta do this careful.”
Andrew glanced down to the bottom left corner of his HUD and saw six red dots moving around. “There could be more, too,” he said.
“I know,” said Kai. “Andrew, Cortez. You two’ll head in first. The rest of us will cover you from the doorway. Go in hard and fast. We’ve got the element of surprise – might as well use it.”
The team shifted around on the stairs so that Andrew and Cortez were at the front of the group. “We’re ready.”
“Go.”
The two soldiers leaped up the last few stairs and into the room beyond. Andrew took in his surroundings. They were standing in a room that seemed to take up most of the length of the tower, but not the width. From pictures he’d seen, it was somewhat reminiscent of the throne room in the Royal Palace; long and with a carpet that led to a throne on the other end of the room; carved from multicolored crystal, just like everything else.
Seated on the floor all around the room, heads down, hands folded over the backs of their necks, were what seemed to be civilian hostages. Now that Andrew got a more up-close view of them, he saw that these Equestrians appeared to be partially crystallized themselves. Their skin sparkled in the light and shone in various colors just like the gems everything else around here was made of.
Very strange, to say the least.
Finally, Andrew saw that in front of the throne sat their targets: the princess and her husband, in the same position as the other hostages. Patrolling the room were at least twenty rebels, all armed with standard issue UNSC weapons.
“Intruders!” cried one.
“Open fire!”
Cortez immediately dove for cover, but Andrew raised his DMR and started firing back, knowing he could stand to take more shots before retreating. He found cover behind a large crystal outcropping on one side of the room and went for it. Bullets whizzed past him, a few hitting his shields, causing them to flare up in a bright yellow light around his body.
Once he was mostly sheltered behind the crystal, Andrew saw that the rebels had quickly taken up positions at the other end of the throne room. Wish he had grenades about now, he sighted up and took the helmet off one of the enemies in a single shot.
“Everyone but O’Brien – move up!” Kai ordered. “We need to end this quick before any hostages get killed.”
Andrew sighed and glanced up at his shields – displayed across the top of his visor. Seeing that they’d fully recharged, he darted out from behind cover and pushed ahead, firing all the way. Bullet casings hit bounced of the floor. Andrew’s shields flickered again. Screams came from both civilians and rebels. Blood splattered across the floor.
He ducked behind another crystal for a moment to let his shields recycle. He glanced at his DMR’s ammo counter, which read 02. Ejecting the magazine, he reached for another. At that moment, however, a rebel appeared around the corner and knocked the rifle from Andrew’s grasp. The rebel leveled his assault rifle at his torso and pulled the trigger.
Bullets bounced off Andrew’s shields. They would break at any moment. Thinking fast, he pulled his knife from its sheath, flipped it around, and drove it up underneath the rebel’s helmet. The male Equestrian emitted a low gurgle as the force of Andrew’s blow lifted him off his feet. Andrew yanked his knife from the rebel's skull and he flopped to the ground, stone dead. Andrew retrieved his rifle and finished reloading it. This needed to end.
There was a sudden lull in the noise.
“Enough!” called a male voice. “This is over. Now!”
Andrew slowly peered out from behind the crystal, his rifle raised and trained ahead of him. He was about three fourths of the way toward the end of the room. Before him, civilians sat or lay on the floor, cowering as the firefight ended. Almost all of the rebels lay on the ground, dead and with blood oozing out from under their still corpses.
One rebel stood before the throne. His helmet had either been knocked off or taken off, making the fear and hatred easy to read on his face. He held a magnum pistol up to the temple of an Equestrian mare that he had pinned in the crook of his free arm. She was struggling, though to no avail.
“That’s Princess Cadence!” Big Mac said over the comm. link. “We can’t let him hurt her!”
“Understood,” Andrew said.
Slowly, he walked out into the middle of the room, rifle still trained on what seemed to be the last rebel standing.
“No Magic,” the stallion was ordering the princess. “If I see so much as a flicker, you’re dead.”
“Let the princess go,” Andrew ordered. He didn’t have a plan, but he needed to stall the rebel so things didn’t get any more out of hand. “The fight’s over. You’ve lost here, but you don’t need to die.”
The Equestrian spat at him. “The fight’s not over!” he shouted. “You think because you came here and beat us that this is over? No. People will see what you really are. They’ll see a city full of dead ponies and they’ll see that you’re responsible. Then they’ll wake up and join us!”
“You captured the city and took its residents hostage,” Andrew replied. “We took it back and freed them. That’s what they’ll see.”
“Give it up,” Kai ordered, coming up on Andrew’s right, his assault rifle trained on the rebel. “You’re outnumbered and surrounded.” Cortez flanked Andrew to the left, wielding a silenced SMG. Mac stood beside him; his shotgun pointed at the ground.
Andrew lowered his DMR. “Come on,” he said in what he hoped was a calming voice. “Why don’t you put the pistol down and come with us? We’re not going to hurt you. This fight is over. There’s no point in anymore fighting.”
“Listen to them,” pleaded the princess, her voice strained because of the stallion's grip around her throat. “Do not do this. There’s no point.”
“That’s enough,” the rebel said. “Here’s what’s going to happen: you’re gonna let me walk out of here with the princess. If any of you try anything, she get’s shot. If any of you make a move towards me, she gets shot.”
“You’re not going anywhere,” said a low voice.
Everyone turned. While their attention was elsewhere, one Equestrian Unicorn clad in a royal-looking outfit stood beside the throne, raising a sword to strike the rebel. The rebel turned the pistol on the newcomer, his finger closing around the trigger. Andrew, Kai, and Mac jumped forward. A gunshot rang out.
The rebel fell to the ground, the top part of his forehead missing. His grip on the princess released and she stumbled, though Andrew managed to catch her before she hit the ground. The Equestrian man took a shocked step back; the corpse of the rebel lying at his feet.
“What in –”
“Damn, that was a close one.” Andrew looked back to see O’Brien approaching the group, busying himself by reloading his sniper rifle. “I didn’t have a clean shot until you tried to slash him.”
“It’s over, everyone,” Kai said to the room at large. “No one here is going to hurt you.”
Slowly, the civilians in the room began looking up, picking themselves up off the ground.
“He . . . he almost . . . I could’ve been –”
“It’s alright, ma’am,” Andrew said, helping the petite princess to her feet. “It’s over now. We’re here to help.”
“This is a mess,” Mac muttered, almost to himself, one hand sliding down the face of his helmet.
“What happened here?” Kai asked the two Equestrians. “How did they manage to take over the city so quickly?”
“The city’s been lost for at least a week,” said the stallion. “It started out with protests against humans. Then a riot. Then they got weapons and raided this tower. We couldn’t stop them. We were totally unprepared. After that, it didn’t take long for the city to fall.”
“My husband is right,” the princess said. “Where did they get your weapons? I was under the impression that the UNSC was only giving weapons to the new Royal Military.”
So the Unicorn was the princess’ husband – Shining Armor. Twilight Sparkle’s brother.
“We know what’s happened, ma’am,” Kai assured her. “We’ll handle it after we ensure that the city is insurgent free.”
A lie.
“I see,” the princess nodded, stepping back to allow her husband to place a comforting arm around her.
“Your Majesty?” Mac piped up.
“Yes, soldier?” she asked, fixing him with her pink irises.
“Where are all the other citizens?” he asked. “There’s only twenty people in this room.”
“I don’t know,” she admitted looking down. “Some joined the rebels. Some may be dead from the riots or takeover.”
“I overheard a few the rebels talking about other hostage camps,” Shining Armor said. “I don’t know where, but there must be other places in the city that they took people to.”
“Great,” Kai said, placing his assault rifle on his back. “I’ll have to tell command. We might end up staying here a little while longer.”
The interior of Twilight’s library had been completely transformed. A large, brightly decorated tree stood to one side of the main room. Lights hung over the windows, door, and railing on the stairs. Candles sat on every windowsill. There was even a small table set out in the sitting room with snacks and drinks set out.
She was having a small party that night – planned, of course, by Pinkie Pie– and had invited all her close friends over. Pinkie, Rainbow Dash, Applejack, Fluttershy, Rarity, and Spike were all there. Rarity and Applejack’s younger sisters, Sweetie Belle and Apple Bloom, were also there, as well as Scootaloo, the young filly that followed Rainbow Dash around constantly. Shinging Armor had stopped by, given the fact that his home was currently under siege, and Big Macintosh was also there, though that was making things a little tense.
She and Rainbow Dash had returned to Ponyville the previous day by the UNSC. They had really only needed her and Dash there to help map out the area, and as soon as she'd seen that they had rescued her brother and Princess Cadence, Twilight had been adamant that they had needed to leave as soon as possible. The further away from the Equestrian Freedom Society, the better. Besides, she'd see enough combat to last her for a long time.
They had all been told to keep silent about where they had been and what they had been doing, as it wasn't exactly public knowledge that the UNSC had decided to step in to place an entire Equestrian city under siege, even if it was occupied by a violent rebel group. She and Rainbow Dash hadn't talked about it at all, and she couldn't tell what the obstinate mare was feeling, though that wasn't true for everypony in the room.
From where she sat in an armchair by the warm, lit fireplace, sipping at a glass of cider, Twilight watched the dissonant coldness between Applejack and Big Mac. They were sitting on the couch – each on an opposite end. Not looking at one another.
Twilight knew Applejack was angry with her brother, but she wasn’t sure what to do. She and Shining had never had a falling out like this, and she’d never had to repair any rift like this. Not to mention that it was Hearth's Warming Eve. This was supposed to be a happy time that brought family and friends together. Not one where they were kept apart.
“They’ve been like this all night,” muttered a voice.
Twilight glanced up to see Fluttershy leaning over the top of the chair, staring at the feuding siblings with her big, sad eyes.
“I know,” Twilight sighed, shifting to continue her conversation with the butterscotch-coated mare. “But I’m not sure what to do about it.”
“I’m better with animals,” Fluttershy admitted. “But I can read ponies pretty well, too. I know that if they don’t reconcile soon, this might leave lasting scars.”
“Do you think I should try and intervene?” Twilight asked.
Fluttershy’s mouth twisted, as though she were thinking. “I . . . don’t know . . . Applejack’s too proud to say anything at this point . . . and Mac’s not exactly a big talker. Maybe you should. It’s better than doing nothing.”
Twilight turned her attention back to the two siblings. Sighing, she set her drink on a small table beside her and stood.
She cleared her throat. “Um, guys?”
“Yes?”
“Mm?”
“Is there anything you . . . wanna discuss?” she continued.
“Yeah, c’mon guys,” said Pinkie Pie, suddenly appearing at Twilight’s shoulder. “It’s Hearth's Warming Day! We’re supposed to be merry and all that. Not angry and sad. That’s for some other day.”
Applejack glanced over. She was sitting on the side of the couch further away, while Big Mac was closer to Twilight and the others. “There ain’t much to discuss. ‘Specially since Mac’s been avoiding me for days on end and only showed up here because Twilight invited him. I think it’s mighty clear he ain’t up for discussin’ anythin’.”
“AJ,” Mac said, his deep voice soft. “Ya know that ain’t true.”
Applejack wheeled around to face him, her face contorted in anger. “How could ya do this to the family? To me? Ya lied, Mac. I thought you were away doin’ work for Braeburn, an’ then it turns out ya’ve gone an’ joined up with the military! And ya’ve been gone ever since I found out. I didn’t even know ya were back til ya showed up here!”
Twilight bit her lip, glancing nervously around the room. She had hoped this would be a little talk that could be resolved without making a scene at the party, but apparently that just wouldn’t do. She looked to see how the others were responding.
Spike was frozen; peering in from the main area, a pile of books that he had been about to put back were stacked in his claws and his eyes were wide and glued to the scene. Shining Armor stood near him, arms folded a looking strangely uncomfortable. Rarity was standing by the fireplace had a glass of cider in one hand and had her slightly agape mouth covered with the other, staring as well. Sweetie Belle stood beside her, clutching Rarity's upper arm and looking on in an almost frightened manner. Fluttershy was still leaning over the chair Twilight had vacated, one fist in her mouth. Her wings were rigid and held just beyond her back. Pinkie Pie still stood beside Silvia; her mouth hung in an uncharacteristic frown. Apple Bloom was seated on her knees next to the couch on Mac’s side, her head resting on her arms, staring blankly at Applejack. Rainbow Dash was leaning against the entry way, staring almost expectantly at Applejack, while Scootaloo sat on the step down into the living room, her knees held close to her chest.
It was certainly too late to stop a scene being created, but perhaps that was a good thing. Things could be worked out here and now with the pressure of many onlookers.
“Uh,” Twilight started, casting about for some way to continue the conversation. “Clearly there’s some issues going on here . . . What – uh – what better time to take care of them than now?”
“Yeah, c’mon guys,” Apple Bloom said, giving both of them big puppy-dog eyes. “I don’t like it when you’re fightin’.”
Mac looked between her and Applejack, who had once again turned away from him, her arms folded tightly across her chest.
“AJ?”
“Fine,” she muttered. “I’ll give ya your shot.”
Twilight let out a small breath. This was a start at least. She glanced around the room. Rarity was probably the best with delicate situations like this. Catching her eye, she raised her eyebrows and jerked her head toward the couch. Taking the hint, she quickly swept over to the couch and sat in between Applejack and Big Mac. Glancing back and forth, she haphazardly smoothed the folds in her long blue dress.
“So,” she said. “Applejack, I believe you have already aired your grievances. Big Macintosh . . . what is your side of the story?”
Mac, who was hunched over slightly, staring at the floor, looked up at her. “I’m the oldest. I need to do what I think is right to protect my family. Right now, that meant joinin’ up with the REA. I can tell these are strange times. Dangerous times. We don’t know everythin’ about the world. I need to know that I can protect those close to me, an’ if that means becomin’ a soldier, then so be it.
"Mac," Applejack said, still not looking at him, "I can understand that you wanted to try an' do somethin' to protect us. But soldierin'? Is this some kinda boyhood flight of fancy? Not enough adventure in your life?"
"How can you think that?" Mac shot back. "The job ain't no cake walk. I'm no fool. I know there's plenty 'a risk involved. I've already seen just how ugly things can get! But if this is what I have to do to make sure you 'an Apple Bloom 'an Granny never have to experience it, then I'd do it ten times over!"
"But you lied about it!" Applejack said.
Mac fell silent for a moment. When he spoke again, his voice was much quieter. "I . . . I know I shouldn’t have lied to ya, but . . . well, I was scared you’d think I was abandoning ya for some other cause. But that I ain’t true. I did what I did to stay true to the only cause that means anythin’ to me: my family. I hope ya can at least forgive me for that.”
Twilight found herself somewhat stunned; that was the longest she’d ever heard Mac speak in one sitting. Applejack had looked up. Almost all the traces of anger had left her face. She looked at Mac, mouth slightly open. He looked back.
“That,” interrupted a loud voice next to Twilight’s ear, causing her to jump, “was so sweet!”
Pinkie Pie leaned on her for support, her eyes flooded with tears.
“P-Pinkie!” she protested, stumbling a bit. “Now’s not the time!”
“Mac,” Applejack said, ignoring Pinkie Pie’s outburst, “I ain't gonna pretend that I’m not still mad at ya. But . . . I do understand why ya did what ya did. Though, in your shoes, I don’t think I’d do the same. You’re consistently in danger now, an’ I don’t like it. I know I’ve been in some situations in the past, but not voluntarily and not all the time.”
“I know,” Big Mac said, glancing away. “But I . . . I just felt like I had to do somethin’.If somethin’ is placing everyone here in danger, I wanna help fight it.”
Applejack sighed and shook her head ruefully. “I know, I know. But just ‘cause there’s a fire, it doesn’t mean ya gotta run towards it.”
A slow smile spread across Mac’s face. “Well . . . I always was a slow learner.”
“Ya big idiot.”
Next thing Twilight knew, both siblings had stood and embraced one another. They stood there for a long moment, not speaking, not moving.
Applejack pulled away, frowning a little. “This don’t mean you ain’t on thin ice. No more lyin’. I won’t stand for it,” she warned Mac.
“Yes, ma’am,” Mac said. Silvia noticed his tail flick slightly, almost as though he were nervous.
“Can we exchange presents now?” Apple Bloom asked.
“Sure thing, sugar cube,” Applejack laughed. “Let’s get back to business.”
_ _ _
Under the cover of darkness, Andrew watched the picturesque scene unfold inside the library. His visor was mere inches from the glass as he watched the twelve Equestrians exchange gifts, laugh, and smile warmly at each other.
Delta-seven had been pulled out of the Crystal Empire only yesterday, having raided a total of twenty different hostage locations in three days. As far as he knew, the city was mostly retaken, but several UNSC and REA squads – including White Team – were sweeping the city, rooting out the last few pockets of resistance.
When Andrew had flown them back to friendly territory, Big Mac had requested to be dropped off in this town. Andrew, being curious, had decided to follow him. That led him to this library – or house – built into a large tree near the center of town. He’d stood there, just watching, for the last hour or so. He’d seen and heard the whole exchange between Mac and his sister, Applejack. He recognized everyone in the room, as they were all considered citizens of note and had files in the UNSC database. He’d even started a few of those files himself a few weeks ago at that gala.
Just then, standing there, looking in through the window as the snow fell on and around him, Andrew felt something he hadn’t for as long as he could remember.
“Yes.” SPARTAN Naomi-010, who was leaning on a supply crate, turned to see her squad leader, Joshua-029, addressing a nervous-looking group of Royal Equestrian Navy soldiers standing beside the pelican they were to board momentarily. “We’re going in there. Just stick to your training and follow orders; we’ll make it out alright.”
Naomi pulled the bolt on her assault rifle and stood, walking toward the group. “Are we ready to go?” she asked.
All the Equestrian soldiers turned to look up at her. She didn’t really like the look in their eyes. All the confidence, nervousness, and trust. As though they expected everything to be okay just because she and the rest of Gold Team was there. Some of them were going to die. Badly.
“Just about,” Joshua said. “We’re just waiting on Grace and a squad of marines to get here.”
The ERN soldiers dispersed – talking, checking weapons and armor, glancing about nervously. Still watching them, Naomi flicked one finger beside her standard Mark IV helmet, telling Joshua to switch to a private comm. channel. He obliged.
“What’s up?” he asked.
“Are we sure this is a good idea?” Naomi asked. “Half our team have never faced Covenant before, and we’re taking them with us to board one of their ships. This sounds like a recipe for heavy casualties.”
“I know,” Joshua replied. “But we’ve got our orders and they have theirs. The princesses want their new soldiers exposed to combat. Especially since they have Covenant right on their doorstep. So, here we are. If things go wrong, the three of us’ll have to pick up the slack. You know how it goes.”
Naomi didn’t say anything, but gave a small nod of her head. Orders were orders. Even if those giving them didn’t know what they were getting themselves into. On the other side of the hanger, a pair of pneumatic doors slid open and out walked Grace – carrying a pair of large cases under each arm – and two squads of marines. The group made their way over to where Naomi, Joshua, and the ERN team were gathered.
Grace gave them a short nod. “Sir.”
“Everyone’s present,” Joshua said. “Get ready to move out. Here’s the plan –” he gestured to the two ships behind him “– we’re boarding these two pelicans that’ll take us aboard the Covenant ship. Squadrons of Longswords will escort us, distract the enemy fighters, and neutralize the Corvette’s weapons and thrusters. The Excelsior will do the same. Once we’re inside the ship, we fight to clear out the hanger. Then, we plant and arm the high-yield explosives that Grace brought along, get out, and set off the bombs.”
He pointed to the two cases the other SPARTAN had brought with her. Grace opened one, showing the group gathered the several M168 Demolition Charges housed in the case. “This’ll be enough to crack the ship’s hull from the inside,” she said. “This should be a quick op, provided that anti-communications spell Silvia and Dr. Halsey created is still working.”
“There’s no reason to indicate that it hasn’t,” Joshua said. “Alright, everyone; let’s move out!”
With a chorus of “sir, yes sir,” the various marines and ERN soldiers began filing into the two pelican dropships. Naomi was a bit surprised at how well the two species were mingling. Humans chatted with Equestrians, Equestrians showed off their wings and their Magic. Everyone seemed to be getting along. After hearing from Vinh what had gone down at the Crystal Empire, Naomi hadn’t been sure that bringing together humans and Equestrians for such an important mission was a good idea, but perhaps she was wrong. Maybe it really only was a portion of the population that had a problem with humans after all. That was good, given that she was likely to be spending a good deal of time on the planet now that Gold Team’s new assignment was protection of the Equestrian leadership. She wondered how long that would last.
She ended up in a pelican with the two squads of ERN troopers and Grace, while Joshua and the marines filled the other pelican. The bay door slid shut, sealing them all inside.
“Everyone settled?” came Joshua’s voice over the comm.
The various soldiers in the two dropships began reporting affirmatives. Naomi flicked her acknowledgment light green once and saw Grace do the same.
“Pilots – get us moving.”
In her seat, Naomi felt the floor beneath her move and felt a slight dip in her stomach and knew they had taken off.
“Spartans, do you come in?” came a new voice over the link. “This is REN Excelsior Actual, do you copy?”
“We read you, Excelsior Actual,” Joshua replied. “You ready to see some action?”
Naomi looked out the small window at the top of the bay door and indeed saw the huge, bulky Defender-class ship trailing behind them in space. Longsword fighters were being launched from its two hanger bays and moving to form up around the Pelicans.
“Yes, sir,” said Excelsior Actual. “We may be new at this, but we’re ready to support you.”
“T minus five minutes until we reach the corvette,” called the pilot. “It’s hidden behind a neighboring gas giant.”
All the troopers on the line began to sound off. After she confirmed her ability to hear and be heard, Naomi checked her assault rifle a second time. She knew it was working fine, but she just felt like she needed to do something to keep busy. In a few minutes, she was going to be shooting and getting shot at. She had to somehow prepare for that. All these years she’d been at war and still wasn’t totally comfortable in combat, SPARTAN or not.
Naomi stood and walked up toward the cockpit. She ducked through the narrow doorway and gazed out through the viewport on the front of the ship. They were passing beside a huge planet full of swirling, blue gas. Somewhere ahead of them, she could make out the Covenant ship, standing out blue and purple against the black of space. The radio in the cockpit was buzzing.
“I don’t think they know we’re coming yet.”
“Hold your fire until you see their fighters getting close.”
“Squad one – protect the dropships. Squad two – cripple the ship. Engage all enemy fighters on contact.”
“Copy that.”
As they got closer, Naomi saw purple pinpricks of light shine near the Corvette. They began getting closer and larger.
“Multiple contacts on approach,” she broadcast over an open channel. “Space Banshees and Seraphs!”
“Copy that, ma’am,” one of the pilots replied. “Move into formation, everyone!”
Naomi gripped the side of the doorway she was standing in. If they were lucky, both Pelicans would make it through the battle and land on the Corvette, dropping off all the troops. If not, they were going to be blown to bits in space and there was nothing she or any of the others could do about it.
“You may want to take a seat, ma’am,” said the copilot. “Things are about to get very bumpy.”
Wordlessly, Naomi turned and strode back to her seat in the troop bay and strapped in. No sense in being thrown around the ship when the pilots decided they needed to perform evasive maneuvers.
“We’re on approach?” Joshua asked.
Naomi nodded. “The Covenant’s sent out a few squads of ships to deal with us – we must’ve registered on their scanners. The Longswords are moving to engage now.”
“Then we wait.”
“Then we –”
The ship rocked violently, and Naomi gripped the bottom of her seat to steady herself.
“Is everything alright?” called one of the Equestrians.
“Things are heating up out here,” replied one of the pilots, “but we’re holdin’ together.”
“We just need to wait until the Longswords disable the engines and some of the outer guns,” Joshua said. “Then we can land on top of the ship.”
It was a long wait. The Pelican rocked and shook every few seconds, and Naomi could feel rather than hear the nose-mounted auto-cannon being fired at enemy fighters. All the while, she heard pilots’ voices over the comm. link; shouting, screaming, calling out orders and positions.
Eventually, came the call she desperately wanted to hear.
“Guns and engine are down! I’m setting us down on the roof landing pad.”
After a few seconds there was a slight thump, and everyone was clambering out of their seats, fumbling to get their weapons ready.
“Everyone – pressurize your helmets,” Joshua ordered. “We’re on the upper landing pad; still in space.”
Once it was clear that everyone had done as he’d ordered, a light on the roof of the troop bay flicked green and the bay door slid open. Naomi rushed out and found herself standing on a large, circular pad on the top of the Corvette. Above her, she saw into outer space. Dogfights were still going on all around them. Purple Banshees and Seraphs jetted this way and that, contending with the stingray-like, gray Longswords. In the center of the pad, there was a large, mostly open area covered in a blue light.
“C’mon everyone; follow me,” Joshua ordered over the radio. “We need to get down there and find the main hanger to let the second Pelican in.”
He stood on the edge of the area covered in blue light and stepped onto it, sinking right through it and into the depths of the ship, his fall slowed by the lack of gravity all around them. Naomi followed suit, waving for the Equestrians to follow. She dropped through the blue energy field and was immediately under fire.
Blue and green plasma filled the air, a few bolts glancing over her armor. She leveled her assault rifle and began to return fire, all too aware that as long as she was in the air with no means of propulsion, she was an easy target. Covenant grunts lined the walkway around the perimeter of the room, wearing their signature methane-filled masks and firing plasma pistols at the soldiers descending into the room. Several of the grunts fell, spraying the sloped, purple walls with their neon blue blood, letting out high-pitched yelps of pain.
Naomi’s boots hit the ground, and she took cover behind a sloped half-wall on the circular, raised platform in the center of the room that she had landed on. The first few Equestrians touched down just behind her, mirroring her own actions.
“What in Tartarus are those things?” cried one of the soldiers, glancing around his own cover at the grunts that were still firing at ERN troops dropping in from the roof. “They look like they’re – urk!”
And suddenly a long, pink crystalline shard was protruding from both sides of his neck. Surprised, Naomi whipped around and instantly opened fire on a white-armored, blue-visored Elite Ranger wielding a needle rifle. The remaining ERN soldier beside her grabbed his fallen comrade’s DMR and fired with her. The elite’s shields broke suddenly, and the soldier sent a bullet straight through its visor.
It jerked and floated upward, purple blood spilling from inside its helmet.
“Stay alert,” Naomi urged, rising and firing once more upon the grunts across from them. “Don’t get caught off guard!”
It was a short firefight. The humans and Equestrians had the element of surprise on their side, and it was clear the Covenant was struggling to mount a counter to their sudden appearance and assault. As the final shell casing bounced into the low gravity air and the last Elite floated off, lifeless, Naomi, Joshua, and the remaining soldiers met by a large door on one side of the room.
“We lost six,” reported a marine staff sergeant. “Four Equestrians and two marines.”
“We’re halfway there,” Joshua assured him. “If our scans are correct, the hanger is just down the hallway beyond this door. We just need to secure it, let the Pelicans in, arm the charges, and get the hell out of here.”
“Sir?” piped up one of the ERN soldiers, a Unicorn of slight stature. “Isn’t this asking a bit much? I think we’re in over our heads here.”
Naomi almost felt embarrassed for him. He clearly didn’t understand the severity of the situation. A few of the more veteran marines grumbled among themselves. Joshua turned to look directly down at the Equestrian.
“Of course we’re in over our heads,” he said. “We’re always in over our heads. That’s our job. If we don’t take out this ship, it’ll call its buddies, who will waste no time in destroying your home, your people, and your planet. Do you want to stop that from happening?”
The Unicorn just nodded, taking a step back and bowing his head.
“If that’s settled,” Naomi said, stepping forward and causing the pneumatic door to slide open, “let’s get going.”
She and Joshua took the lead, walking slowly down the curved, purple hallway, weapons raised and ready to fire. The marines and ERN soldiers followed close behind them, showing the same attentiveness as the two SPARTANs. After taking a turn and another twist, another door opened in front of them, revealing a large, circular room.
On either side of the room was a large wall of light blue energy, protecting the interior of the ship from the black vacuum of space. Just in front of the group was a small platform with ramps leading up to the right and left, as well as one leading down into the main area. All throughout the room were Covenant soldiers. Grunts, Jackals, and Elites, all of whom were wearing the Ranger gear associated with Covenant soldiers operating in space-like conditions.
“Hold up!” Joshua ordered over the com. link, holding up one hand to signal to the rest of the team. “We’re here.”
Naomi followed his lead as he took cover beside one of the ramps just ahead of the door. The other troopers formed up around them.
“What’s the plan, sir?” asked a marine. “There’s a lot of aliens out there.”
Joshua and Naomi peeked out over the top of their cover, then glanced at each other. He nodded at her. They had a classic SPARTAN maneuver.
“We’ll set up a killzone,” Naomi told the soldiers. “That way we expose as few soldiers as possible. Are any of you trained snipers?”
Three soldiers raised their hands. Two Equestrians and a human. “Yes, ma’am.”
“Good,” she said. “You three will head up to the platforms above us with three other soldiers. Stay in cover and use your rifles to pick off weak, select targets. If you’re using sniper rifles, they should punch through Elite’s shields and kill them in one hit if you shoot them in the head.”
There was a low murmur as the soldiers all got themselves into position. Each of the snipers took one companion and ascended to the upper platforms. The rest of the group stayed where they were, making sure their weapons were ready and that they themselves were as well. After a minute or two, confirmation came in over the comm. link that everyone was in position and ready to go.
“Snipers,” Joshua said, “pick your targets. We’ll move as soon as you fire.”
In the momentary silence that followed, Naomi glanced around. Milling about, she counted perhaps two dozen Grunts. Maybe less than half as many Jackals. A dozen or so Elites. Dotted around the room, her eyes alighted on several purple crates filled with glowing, blue plasma. She recognized them as crates that were highly explosive when hit with grenades or bullets. Those could come in handy.
Three muffled shots rang out in unison and three Elites fell.
“Open fire!” Joshua ordered, and he, Naomi, and the ragtag band of soldiers that accompanied them stepped out and began unloading hot lead into the aliens in the hanger.
The fight was short and bloody.
Caught off guard, the Covenant made easy prey. The Grunts went down quickly; some before they even managed to fire off a shot. The Elites tried to rally their forces, but they were being shot down left and right. Some from a sniper’s shot, some by either Naomi or Joshua. Blood stained the floors and walls. Blue, purple, and red.
Naomi saw one Equestrian soldier slump to the ground, clutching at several scorched blasts in his armor. A marine disappeared in an explosive pink cloud as several needle rounds combined and reacted in her chest. Naomi shifted her aim and sent several bullets into the plasma crate beside the Jackal that had done it. The crate glowed extra brightly for a moment, then exploded in a blinding blue shower of sparks, killing the bird-like creature.
“Naomi,” Joshua’s voice broke in over her comm. “You’re closest. Hit the switch to power down the shields.”
An orange marker appeared in Naomi’s HUD, directing her gaze upwards. Just above her was a platform similar to the ones on the opposite side of the room where they’d entered.
“On it,” she affirmed. Squaring her legs, she pushed off hard from the ground. Due to both the power of both her armor and muscles, as well as the low gravity of the hanger, she soared upwards, easily reaching the platform. Waiting for her was an Elite ranger wielding a plasma repeater.
Upon seeing her, the Elite let out a barely audible roar and turned the weapon on her. Reacting quickly, Naomi reached out and grabbed the gun, turning it upward; away from her torso. It went off, sending a volley of blue plasma bolts into the ceiling. She kicked out, hitting the alien in the knee and causing its shields to flare. Surprised, it staggered backward, releasing its grip on the rifle. Naomi quickly flipped the weapon around and trained it on the Elite’s face. She pressed down the trigger and emptied round after round into it until if flopped to the floor, lifeless and riddled with plasma burns.
Naomi looked out over the hanger from her elevated position. All combat had ceased.
“Are we all clear?” She asked over the link.
“We’re all clear,” Joshua confirmed. “Hit the switch.”
Naomi turned to a small, holographic control panel just beside her. One button was flashing. She pressed it and it turned a shade of light red. After a second or two of nothing happening, there was a hiss and she felt her suit depressurize. Apparently, pressing the button had activated the local gravity generator. In addition, the blue shields on either side of the room flickered. She supposed that meant that they were safe to pass through now.
“Pelicans,” she reported over the team’s comms, “you’re safe to enter the hanger. But make it fast – we only have a few minutes before reinforcements get sent in here. We need to be gone before that happens.”
“Copy that, on our way.” It was Grace.
Moments later, the pair of dropships glided into the hanger bay, setting down in the middle of the room. Naomi joined Joshua and the remaining marines and ERN soldiers in the main area and waited as Grace and her team disembarked from the second drop ship. Grace set her packages on the floor and opened them.
Inside each case were four M168 Demolition charges. She began handing them out to marines. “Set these around the room. Give them a five-minute timer. Put two on each side of the bay doors, then set the rest wherever you think is best. Look for pillars or anything else that might be load-bearing. The rest of you – set up a perimeter and call at the first sign of any unwanted guests.”
“Yes, ma’am!”
When she had finished, she closed the cases and tossed them back into the Pelican’s troop bay. She looked at Naomi and Joshua.
“Casualties?” she asked.
“Three Equestrians and four marines,” Joshua reported solemnly. “A few wounded on both counts.
“They’re performing better than I expected, these Equestrians,” Grace admitted. “They follow orders well, they fight to the best of their ability, and they have a decent understanding of military protocol.”
“I expect the princesses have been borrowing some training from the UNSC playbook,” Naomi said. There was no way that had adapted this quickly to modern military techniques without some outside assistance.
“Well we can all agree it’s doing them good,” Joshua said.
A marine rushed up to them. “We’re all finished, sir.”
“Alright everyone – pack it in!” Joshua called out.
“Sir! We got contacts in the main hall!”
“Damn it,” Naomi cursed. “We don’t have time for another firefight.”
“Move! Forget about the Covenant, just get on the dropships!”
_ _ _
Covenant Encampment on Equis
Roth ‘Lukomee sat in the command center of their little outpost on this strange new planet. He knew he should be getting some much-needed rest, but something was keeping him awake. He could not say what. So, instead of sleeping, he sat, gazing at the holographic map of the planet that was being projected in front of him using a holotable.
His peace was interrupted when a minor burst into the room. “Shipmaster!” he growled. “I have urgent news!”
Roth sprung to his feet, startled. He leaned over the table. “It had better be, for you to disturb me at this hour.”
The minor rushed forward and began inputting a code into the holotable. “I assure you; this is of the upmost significance!”
The hologram of the planet faded. Instead, a visual of Torr ‘Utzomee, the general he had left in charge of the ship, appeared.
“Shipmaster!” Torr said, urgency apparent in his voice.
“Torr,” Roth said. “What is it that you have to tell me?
“Our ship is under attack, sire,” the general told him. “The humans have launched an assault on us with new ships we have never seen before! We believe they are working with the inhabitants of this planet.”
“Impossible,” Roth said, waving one long-fingered hand. “Nothing we have seen thus far indicates any level of high-technology on their world.”
“Nevertheless, here they are,” Torr said. “I am not sure we can hold them off with our limited forces.”
“Have you attempted to call for reinforcements?”
“Several times,” Torr confirmed. “We keep receiving confirmation, but no one has come!”
Something was wrong.
“Is there anything you can –”
The hologram of Torr suddenly vanished.
“What’s going on?” Roth demanded. “Raise him again!”
“I am trying, sire,” the minor fretted, furiously typing on the holopad. “There is no response!”
“Shipmaster!” called a voice outside the command center. “Come at once! There is something you must see.”
Growling agitatedly, Roth swept past the minor and the holotable and exited the tent. What could possibly be the matter now?
Outside, Toho was waiting for him, looking up into the clear night sky.
“Toho?” Roth asked. “What is it?”
In response, Toho pointed upwards. Roth followed his gaze.
There, visible against the stars and planets, was a purple cloud of energy that almost rivaled the moon in both size and scale. Instantly, Roth knew that the explosion was his ship. Why else would he have suddenly lost contact with Torr? All of his extra vehicles, his equipment, his backup troops, and most importantly, his ship, were all gone.
The Shangheli lifted his head up, opened his mandibles, and let out a furious, breathtaking roar.
Twilight stood to one side of the main entrance to the Royal Palace. Not far in front of her, Princess Celestia and Princess Luna stood at the top of the front steps, addressing an immense crowd of Equestrians. Twilight had to admit she was impressed by the size of the crowd given how cold it was that day. Snow fell lightly around them, and a thick layer had already gathered on the ground. With surprise, Twilight noticed that the faces in the crowd weren’t exclusively those of ponies. Humans were intermixed as well, yet they were not dressed like soldiers in the UNSC. These must be the citizens that had elected to journey to Equis and live there.
Around princesses, the three SPARTANs of Gold Team – Joshua, Naomi, and Grace – were all standing at attention, weapons held loosely in their hands. Other members of the Royal Guard, newly outfitted in ERA uniforms, stood around as well in a similar state of alertness. After the protest a few weeks back, no chances were being taken when it came to the security of the royalty. Princess Celestia had invited all the Elements of Harmony to attend the announcement, though only Twilight, Pinkie Pie, and Rarity had been able to make it.
“Citizens of Equestria,” Princess Celestia began, “I come to you today with an important announcement. Last week, with the help of our new human allies, we discovered an alien ship residing within our very solar system.”
A ripple of murmurs burst out from the crowd. Twilight could almost physically feel the energy of the crowd shift.
“Aliens?”
“More of them?”
“Is this that ‘Covenant’ they’ve been talking about?”
Princess Celestia raised one hand, palm outwards. A calming gesture. Slowly, the murmurs faded and attention once again returned to the Princess.
“There is nothing you need to concern yourselves over,” she continued. “Our new Royal Equestrian Navy has taken care of the problem, with the help of the brave Spartans of Gold Team. The ship has been destroyed. No harm shall come to any of you.”
“However,” Princess Luna began, “this goes to show that we must remain vigilant in the future. Now that we have become a part of the galaxy at large, there are unforeseen dangers waiting for us. We must band together and be strong in this transitional time. With humanity by our side, I believe we can whether this storm together.”
This was a surprising thing for the younger queen to say, in Twilight's opinion. She knew that Princess Luna had been very hesitant to ally with the humans in the beginning. What had happened to change her mind? The handling of the Crystal Empire incident? The Corvette’s destruction? Both? She wasn’t sure, but if the more aggressive Princess Luna was finally warming up to the humans, Silvia supposed this could only be good news.
“I would once again like to bring you the knowledge that the Royal Equestrian Army is currently accepting applications, as always,” Princess Celestia said. “If any of you wish to do your part in protecting our planet from threats within and without, please see your local recruitment office as soon as possible. No one will be turned away; I am sure that any of you have something useful to bring to the table.”
“Are there any questions?” Princess Luna asked.
There was silence for a few moments. Then a hand was raised.
“Yes?”
“Are those Spartans staying here permanently?” asked a male voice.
“Yes,” Princess Celestia nodded. “The Spartans of both Gold and White teams will be staying on Equis for the time being in order to help ensure our planet’s security in this time. A garrison of UNSC soldiers will also be nearby with the help of the ship they call the ‘Pony Express.'”
“They certainly don’t want anything to happen to us,” Rarity whispered. “Don’t you think all that is a bit, er, overkill?”
“Can you blame them?” Twilight asked. “We all saw the Corvette on the hologram. If they actually managed to land here, who knows what could have happened.”
“Yes, but the threat has passed, hasn’t it?” Rarity asked.
“Yes,” Twilight nodded. “But I still don’t think I’d want to face another ship alone if it came along. Especially if it was bigger and more powerful. I heard one of the humans say that even a small group of Covenant ships can take on a group of UNSC ships almost double its size.”
“Oh! That’s crazy!” Pinkie Pie interjected.
“Shh!” Twilight said. “Not so loud – we don’t want to interrupt the conference.”
“Sorry . . .” Pinkie apologized. She continued on at more acceptable volume for a private conversation. “I don’t have a problem with the humans hanging around. Plenty of new faces to meet!”
“It’d be nice if everyone thought that way,” Twilight mused. “I suppose people are just nervous since this is all so new. In time, things’ll work out. I hope.”
“Rainbow Dash seems perhaps a tad less hostile,” Rarity said.
“Yeah . . .” Twilight flashed back to almost two weeks ago, when she and Rainbow Dash had accompanied White Team into the Crystal Empire to retake it. Since then, Rainbow had been much less vocal about her distaste for humans. Perhaps the experience had softened her views a little and she was just too stubborn to say so. Only time would tell. Twilight herself had only just then realized at least some of the danger that the soldiers faced on an almost daily basis. It had been terrifying.
Explosions. Bullets, explosives, and Magic flying every which way. Twilight and Rainbow had been kept away from the fighting as much as possible after the initial landing. They had stayed at the UNSC base camp on the edge of the city, providing information about the Crystal Empire, its residence, and where the best locations for reconnaissance and base set-up could be. She might not have been present for much of the fighting, but that hadn’t stopped her from seeing the wounded that were brought back to the camp for treatment.
Twilight shivered.
She had never seen so much blood in her life. For the most part, the rebels had been using stolen UNSC weapons as well as standard Unicorn Magic. She hadn’t previously appreciated just how messy projectile-based weapons were. She saw more blood that day than she had seen in her entire life. And she was not eager to see anything like that ever again. She knew that efforts were currently underway to clean up the city and do something for the displaced citizens. Humans and Equestrians were working together around the clock with their strange new combination of technology and Magic to repair the damage the ‘Equestrian Freedom Society’ had done.
Silvia hoped it was just another reason for the Equestrians and humans to find common ground and get along. With any luck, this whole rebel thing was past them.
She had a sinking feeling that it wasn’t.
_ _ _
“Don’t tell your sister or Granny anythin’ ‘bout this, ya here?”
Andrew couldn’t help but smirk as Mac gestured vehemently at his little sister, Apple Bloom. He wasn’t quite sure how he, Kai, Cortez, and O’Brien had ended up at Big Mac’s farm, but there was currently no crisis for them to avert or objective for them to accomplish, so the higher-ups had mercifully granted them leave time.
Big Macintosh had invited them all over to his farm for some well-needed downtime. They had all accepted, though Kai had done so somewhat reluctantly. So, now they all sat in Mac’s living room. There was a fire burning in the hearth, and they were all drinking bottles of cider: a drink that was – for whatever reason – exceedingly popular on Equis. Andrew could tell it was slightly fermented, as he could taste the alcohol, but he knew it would take a lot more than what he was being given to get him anywhere near drunk.
“I promise, Big Mac,” Apple Bloom said, giving her brother what seemed to be her best puppy-dog-eyes. “Can I stay and hang out with y’all?”
Mac glanced around as if uncomfortable. Andrew sensed that if he denied his sister, she was definitely going to tell tales on him to the rest of his family. Mac seemed to realize that as well.
“Uhh . . .” he sighed. “Sure, sis.”
“Cool!”
Andrew was grateful that none of them were wearing their armor; choosing instead to dress in civilian clothes. On the other hand, there was no denying that there was something peculiar about him and Kai. Their height, build, and scars would give that much away. The less the filly knew about their little team, the better.
“Did you hear Meridian finally fell?” asked O’Brien. His hand held tight to the bottle he was nursing.
“No,” Andrew said, surprised. Meridian had been a battle ground since 2548. As far as he’d known, the fighting that had been going on there for the past three years had still been a draw. Then again, he’d been stationed almost exclusively on Equis for the past few months. He’d been out-of-the-loop as far as front line news reports went.
“Yeah,” O’Brien said. “They glassed it.”
“Shit,” Andrew breathed, though he immediately regretted it. He glanced over at Mac, who sat on the couch, and Apple Bloom, who had curled up beside him. “Sorry.”
Mac waved his hand. “She don’t know what it means.”
“What does it mean?”
Big Mac groaned. “Don’t worry ‘bout it. ‘An don’t you go repeatin’ nothing like that either; Ganny’ll tan my hide.”
Apple Bloom immediately changed subjects. “Waddaya mean they ‘glassed’ Meridian?”
Everyone hesitated. But if most of them had reservations about explaining glassing, Kai did not.
“It means the Covenant rained plasma on the planet from orbit,” he said, barely looking up. The fire gleamed in his eyes, making him look more dangerous than he already did. “They burn earth and turn it into glass. Water becomes ash. The atmosphere is toxic. Everything dies.”
“Oh . . .” Apple Bloom’s eyes went wide and she shut her mouth.
“The last reports from Meridian say that there were Covenant ‘research teams’ on the ground,” O’Brien said. “They were looking for something. Dunno what though. They better have found it, because there’s nothing left there to find anymore.”
“Research teams?” Mac asked, raising an eyebrow.
“Something like that,” O’Brien said. “They pulled a similar job on Concord. That planet’s theirs, but they haven’t glassed it yet. They want something.”
“ONI have any guesses as to what?” Andrew asked.
Cortez shook his head. “If they do, they’re not telling. Either way, I don’t like it.”
“Ya can say that again,” Mac said. He might not know everything, but he clearly grasped the severity of their situation, even if he was new.
“Think the split-jaws have some kind of master plan?” O’Brien wondered aloud.
“You mean other than wiping us out of existence?” Andrew muttered.
“Yeah,” O’Brien snorted. “Other than that.”
“I have a bad feeling that this whole thing is coming to an end,” Kai admitted, looking away from the group. Andrew followed his gaze and saw he was looking out one of the windows. Outside, the sun was steadily setting, and snow still swirled around in the light wind. “One way or the other.”
“That’s a cheerful thought.”
“Maybe we oughta switch topics,” Mac said.
Andrew glanced over him and saw that Apple Bloom had curled up tightly next to Mac’s side. He had one arm around her protectively, but she still looked nervous.
Andrew cleared his throat. “Right. Something else? Anyone?”
And though the conversation shifted, Andrews thoughts didn’t. Maybe Kai was right. Planets were falling left and right, and it was increasingly obvious that the Covenant’s goal wasn’t just attrition. They had some other motive that no one knew anything about. Part of him felt that this was important somehow, but he didn’t know how.
Whatever it meant, he felt sure that if something didn’t change soon, the war was going to be over. And none of them would be around to see what became of the galaxy.
A young Unicorn named Sparker leaned back in his wooden chair, his hooves crossed and resting on the table in front of him, arms crossed. To his left sat two other Equestrians: one Earth Pony, one Pegasus. Representatives from each of the subspecies of Equestrians. Behind them stood a group of Equestrians, looking somewhat nervous. Some clutched stolen UNSC weapons. Across the table sat three Griffons. Large, imposing, and serious. They looked down their beaks at the Equestrians as though they weren’t sure what to make of them.
“Do we have a deal?” asked the Earth Pony, a stallion named Willey, leaning forward over the table. “We’re willing to agree to your terms.”
The three Griffons stared at them for a moment. Sparker wondered what they would say. For the most part, he had thought their little meeting had gone well. He and the rest of the Equestrian Freedom Society didn’t approve of the humans coming and essentially laying claim to their world. Putting it under their ‘protection’ without so much as a warning and even without asking permission.
Yes, there was all this talk about ‘the Covenant,’ but Sparker had never seen any proof that such a thing existed. There was the information, images, and videos that the humans had provided, but again, that was all information that the humans had given to them. There was nothing as of yet to say that this was just another tool that they were using to gain the upper hand over them. They had even gone so far as to say some kind of alien space ship had been spotted near them and that they had destroyed it. Once again, without any proof.
No, he did not like the humans.
The Griffons – a species known for being fiercely independent and highly proud – also clearly had a large population that had taken offense at how quickly the humans had sucked them into their sphere of influence. As far as Sparker knew, no human civilians had made the trip to attempt to live among the Griffons as they had the Equestrians, but he knew the UNSC was helping to set up a base of operations near Griffonstone; a ‘shipyard’ or something like that.
And many of the Griffons didn’t appreciate that. They too, believed that humanity was asserting itself where it did not belong.
“We agree,” said the lead Griffon in a deep, gravelly voice. His name was Lord Godric, and according to past meetings the EFS had with him over the last month, he was the main leader of the Griffon Resistance Movement – an outfit that had been protesting the arrival and assimilation of the humans in a very similar way to the EFS. They’d attacked convoys, seized weapons, and destroyed human outposts. None of these were things the UNSC and Equestrian Royalty were falling over themselves to address. So, for now, the GRM was fairly under the radar in terms of public knowledge.
That was about to change, though.
“Excellent!” said the Pegasus next to Willey - Flyby - her wings flaring in excitement. “Should we shake on it? Or write up a treaty? Or –”
“A shake will do,” said Lord Godric, waving one clawed hand. “Griffons do not go back their word.”
He held out the same claw that he had waved. Flyby instantly placed her hand over his. Willey went next, and finally, Sparker placed his hand over the others’. They shook. Everyone retracted their hand.
“So . . .” Flyby said. “What now?”
“Now,” Willey said, his jaw set. “We can forge a joint effort to kick the humans off our planet. With more members in our cause we should be able to organize things on a larger scale. Give the Royals a real fight.”
“Yes,” Lord Godric growled. “But do not forget: we are partners. The Griffons are not subservient to your will. We will have equal say in all that we participate in.”
“None of us will use you like that,” Sparker assured him. “We’re not like the Royals. That’s the point.”
“Should we try to expand further?” Flyby asked. “Get the Yaks involved? The Dragons? The Changelings?”
Lord Godric frowned. “I will not work with Changelings.”
“I know that the Yaks are too peaceful to get involved,” said Willey, shaking his head, “and the dragons have not responded to either side thus far, so we can only assume we will get no help from them.”
“Maybe we should look elsewhere,” Sparker suggested. “There’s plenty of other species.”
“Maybe,” Willey nodded. “For now, we should focus on building stability between us and the Griffons. We can expand later if we need to.”
“I agree,” nodded Lord Godric, his stern eyes focused. “Perhaps we should discuss our next move.”
“Yes, we actually –”
There was a sudden fizzle and the lights cut out.
“Oh, Tartarus,” someone swore.
Sparker sucked in a startled breath. Uh-oh. Even the faint light of the moon shining in rays from the few windows around them weren’t enough to provide sufficient light. Slowly, small lights of varying colors winked on as Unicorns' horns blinked on.
Sparker kicked himself mentally for not thinking of that. He concentrated for a moment and his own yellow light blinked to life on his forehead. In the new relief that had been thrown onto the scene, he saw that everyone had stood and was looking around the room, jittery.
“This isn’t good,” Willey said, his voice low and worried. “Something’s wrong.”
“You don’t say,” Sparker heard one of the other Earth Ponies mutter.
“Shut up, Soil,” Sparker admonished. Now wasn’t the time for backtalk. They needed to do something fast.
“Firefly, Red Cross,” Willey ordered. “Go with the Griffons and make sure they get out of here.”
“Yes, sir!”
One of the other lights winked off and Sparker saw the two in question move over to the Griffons and start to leave the room. On the way out, Lord Godric nodded at them.
“We shall not forget this, Pony,” he said in his low voice. “We will find a way to contact you once we are safe.”
And they were gone.
“What do we do, sir?” asked one of the Pegasi.
“We need to go out a different way,” Willey said. “We can’t draw too much attention to ourselves, or –”
There was a sound like a small explosion and suddenly one of the windows shattered. There was a spray of blood and one of the Unicorns fell to the ground. A thin contrail of smoke hung in the air for just a moment before dissipating.
“Oh!”
“She’s dead!”
“Turn the lights off!” Willey ordered.
They’d been so stupid – the lights had made them bright targets for anyone to see. Sparker concentrated for a second time and his light flickered off.
“We need to move,” he said. “Everyone, keep your weapons up!”
The door on one side of the room burst open, revealing two hulking figures with human rifles pointed into the room.
“Everyone freeze!” ordered a gruff voice. “It’s over.”
“Fire!” shouted Willey.
The sudden, deafening burst of weapons fire erupted in the small space. The two figures in the door, jumped backwards. To Sparker's shock, several rounds connected with them, and yet the figures just flashed a bright yellow and the bullets bounced off toward the ceiling and ground.
“What in Tartarus?” he shouted.
“Fall back!” Willey ordered. “We have to get out of here.”
At that moment, another window shattered and this time a Pegasus fell to the ground, twitching and bleeding as the contrail of smoke dissipated.
“They can see in the dark now?”
“Get to the back door!”
Sparker and the rest of the remaining ten or so rebels scrambled to the opposite side of the room. They had, of course, been smart enough to prepare an escape route in the event of something such as this coming up. Ambushes were just part of the deal when you were trying to ‘illegally’ fight to free your country. It had simply been the norm for the past few months. Of course they were prepared.
Sparker surged through the door ahead of the others and was the first to break into the small, cramped hallway on the other side. He bolted, his hooves echoing on the tile floor beneath him. From behind, he was sure he could hear Willey’s much heavier Earth Pony strides. He couldn’t worry about the others. There wasn’t time and he would only put himself in more danger going back to make sure everyone made it out. They all had to fend for themselves in the event of an ambush. That’s just how it was. That didn’t mean that Sparker had to like it.
The door just ahead of them – their way out – burst open and in stepped another one of those tall, menacing soldiers; a SPARTAN, no doubt. Uh-oh. That meant that their escape was compromised. Still, they had no choice. They had to get out and this was the only way.
Before the SPARTAN even half-realized they are there, Sparker had raised his hand. For a moment, he collected all his focus, then released. A sharp, bright light jolted out from his hand and struck the soldier, knocking them backwards off their feet, and sending them further down the hallway.
“Keep moving!” he urged, and rocketed into the doorway that the SPARTAN had just emerged from.
The face of Death was waiting for him, bright and reflective in the dim lighting.
“Boo.”
There was a deafening explosion.
Sparker lost consciousness.
_ _ _
[b]Undisclosed location, Fillydelphia, Equis
“Four, Six; report.”
It was hard to think. What ever he had been hit with passed right through his shields; they hadn’t even activated until he’d hit the floor ten feet from where he’d been standing. God damn Magic. SPARTANs didn’t train to fight that.
“Four, Six. Do you copy?”
“Four here,” came a second voice. “We got ‘em. One dead. One unconscious. A bunch cornered. Gave up when they saw we had their exit covered and made an example of one of their leaders.”
“Solid copy. We're on our way. Keep the prisoners guarded. We need to hold position until others get here to clean up the mess.”
“Copy. Four out.”
And then he was standing above him, one arm outstretched for him to take, easily recognizable by the imposing skull he’d carved into his own visor.
“C’mon, Thom. Get up. We gotta take these clowns back to the main area.”
SPARTAN-III Thom-A293 reached up and took Emile’s hand, allowing himself to be pulled to his feet. “Thanks,” he said, nodding at him. His head felt a little clearer now that he was standing upright. He glanced up at his shield indicator to see that they had already fully recharged. “Son of a bitch got me good. My shields didn’t even react.”
Emile-A239 turned away from Thom, lazily keeping his shotgun trained on the group of ten or so prisoners they had suddenly acquired. “Magic,” he said, his voice dripping with distain. “Our equipment doesn’t know how to handle it . . . yet.”
“Can’t wait ‘til they figure that one out,” Thom quipped, mirroring the other SPARTAN by keeping his assault rifle pointed at the Equestrians.
At that moment, the lights in the building flickered back to life and the door on the opposite side of the hallway – the one through which the rebels had entered – swung open. Two other SPARTANs stepped through. The first was Carter-A259, the leader of Noble Team. The second was the huge-even-by-SPARTAN-standards form of Jorge-052, carrying his signature chain-gun.
“What’s the situation, sir?” Emile asked, keeping the conversation on a private radio channel so as not to alert the rebels in front of them.
“Kat’s almost finished rewiring the light system; she’ll be joining us shortly,” Carter reported. “Jun’s keeping overwatch to make sure no one pays us a surprise visit. I’ve already called in for evac and a prisoner transport. We just need to babysit until they show up.”
“Jun see what happened to the Griffons?” Thom asked. Part of the reason they had been pulled in for this exact op was because it sounded like the Equestrian rebels were trying to expand their operations – something that the UNSC and Equestrian Royalty were not eager to allow. So, they called in the best of the best.
Them.
“Negative.” Carter shook his head. “There must be some passage out of here that we didn’t know about. Command’s not gonna happy about that.”
“There might be some consolation,” Emile said. He gestured to the body on the ground. “That’s Willey; one of their leaders.” He was a little hard to recognize with half his torso missing. “That’s Sparker, another one.” Sparker was a Unicorn, and he lay on the floor as well, though he appeared to simply be unconscious. “And that’s Flyby, their third leader.” Flyby stood with the other prisoners, hands raised slightly in a gesture of surrender but still looking mutinous.
“Sparker and Flyby’ll be good for interrogation,” Thom supplied. “I’m sure ONI or the Royal’s will be . . . persuasive.”
“They wanted all three,” said Jorge, his tone flat. “If I recall correctly.”
“Two outta three ain’t bad,” Emile said, matching him. “Better than none. Besides, the only good rebel is a dead rebel.”
Thom grinned inside his helmet. That was Emile, alright. He might be callous, but he did have a point. They’d all read the reports on what happened in the Crystal Empire. These rebels were just as bad as their innies. They should be dealt with accordingly.
“They’re still people,” Jorge said.
“Strictly speaking?” Thom asked.
“You know what I mean.”
“We can have this discussion later,” Carter said. Thom buttoned up. He was only willing to put a toe over the line of ‘acceptable’ conversation. Unlike Emile. “What’s done is done. It’s better we captured two and killed a third than captured none at all. If this happens again though, Emile, we might be bringing Rosenda next time.”
“Sir.” Emile nodded, clearly knowing better than to argue.
“Now let’s clean this mess up. I’m sure there’s more important work we could be doing.”
