ODST: Shock and Awe

With a large yawn, I woke up in the soft bed that I've gotten used to for the last few days. I've noticed that the princesses have gotten more nervous around me, so I was planning on asking them about. I got up from the bed, heading in the general direction of the bathroom. I finally opened my eyes, seeing the door to the left a bit, but straight ahead, and quickened my pace. I reached the bathroom door and swung it open with a hoof, then walked in, seeing the large bathroom with an equally large shower, and walked over to the shower. I turned on the water, the momentary jet of cold water waking me up, with the hot water to follow behind. I washed myself up quickly, turned off the water, jumped out and dried myself. I looked myself in the mirror, seeing the nerve racking darkness just waving in the light.

"Guess I never have to comb this." I said to myself, touching the darkness mane. Although it was only a few seconds that I stepped out of the shower, it was near freezing cold. I brushed my teeth, then stepped out of the bathroom. I counted thirty minutes before dinner, so I decided to grab a book I pulled out from the library and read. A few minutes later, the door burst open with a guard standing there.

"Your majesty, Nightmare Moon and Discord are fighting once more." He said. I put down the book and growled. I switched over to my human form and ran out, hearing faint crashes. I followed the crashes for a few minutes until I was on the correct hallway, and a vase came flying out of a side room. I walked to the door, seeing the two combatants throwing things at each other.

"YOU TWO MAGGOTS GET YOURSELVES TOGETHER!" I yelled at the top of my lungs. They stopped immediately and looked at me, not seeing my angry expression behind my visor.

"Oh look, it's Fading. Come to join us in our little fun?" Discord said.

"CAN IT MAGGOT! YOU TWO MORONS ARE CONSTANTLY FIGHTING, AND I'M GETTING SICK OF IT! MUST I BEAT SOME SENSE INTO BOTH OF YOU DUMBASSES?" I yelled at them. They quickly shook their heads and dropped the items in their hands. I flicked my wrist and picked up all the shards of glass and other debris and repaired it immediately. I picked both of them up with my magic and slung them out the room through the door, nearly hitting the crowd of guards that watched the verbal assault.

"The next time I hear you two maggots fighting, I'll personally kick your ass around the Equestria and back, do I make myself clear?" I said to them. They murmured agreements, but I decided to be a jackass.

"I SAID, DO I MAKE MYSELF CLEAR?" I yelled at them. They stood up immediately and said.

"Yes sir!" I chuckled on the inside and said.

"DISMISSED!" They scrambled down opposite ways down the hallway, leaving me to stand there with the group of guards.

"Good job sir." A guard complemented.

"Thank you, now back to work." I said, dismissing the crowd. I walked back to my room, closing the door and looking at the clock.

"Five minutes..." I shrugged and walked back out, heading to the dining hall. I reached the dining hall relatively quickly, not even trying to switch my form from human to alicorn, and walked in. I took my seat away from the entire group, as always, with the princesses looking at me with the masked nervousness, and the waiters running around, throwing the occasional glance at me, and I popped off my helmet.

"What will you be having your majesty?" A waiter asked.

"Some bread, cheese, and a glass of water." I said, throwing my attention over towards the three princesses. They all looked away from me, avoiding my gaze, and I turned back to the table. A few minutes later, the same waiter arrived with a two plates and a glass full of ice and water. He put it in front of me and walked away, serving the princesses, and I turned my attention to the two plates, one full of different breads and the other with different blocks of cheese.

I took a knife and sliced a block of american cheese, then took some white bread and made a cheese sandwich. I took a bite, chewing slowly. I continued eating until I ate my fill, picked up my helmet and put it back on, then got up and walked back to my room. I opened the door and walked in, closing the door behind me with a leg, and walked over to the table. I picked up the book from earlier and continued reading.

-One hour later-

I finished the thick tome, and put the book back onto the table, looking at the stack of books I took from the library that I've already finished. I sighed, then flicked my wrist and shot it at the ceiling. It struck the ceiling, and the room started wobbling like it does when it's hot, and the room disappeared. The room was replaced with an endless library, with a couch with two nightstands with lamps on each one. I flicked my wrist once more and took a number of books from the endless amount of shelves, mostly non-fiction, and started with the uppermost book. I sat on the couch and turned on the lamp, then started reading.

-Thirty minutes later-

Luna sighed as she walked to Fading's room. Night court was starting soon, and he hasn't shown his face since dinner. She knocked on his door, only for it to sound like it was echoing on the other side. She opened the door and found the largest library she has ever seen, with a faint light shining a little ways away. She started walking, looking at each section of books.

'There are countless books here! These could supply every library in Equestria and still have enough knowledge to last an eon.' Luna thought as she continued walking. The light got brighter, revealing an oddly shaped couch with two stands next to it, and a stack of books next to the couch.

"Fading, it's time for night court." Luna said. She heard him grunt, a book being closed, and saw his hand replace the book on top of the stack, and him get up.

"Alright. I have a question for you and Celestia though." He said.

"What's your question?" She asked. He started walking towards the door.

"Why are you, Twilight, and Celestia acting so nervous around me? I haven't done anything recently that'll change your opinions about, now have I?" He asked. Luna stopped for a second, then opened her mouth.

"After night court, can you go to my sisters room? We have something to discuss. There, you'll get your answer." She answered. He just shrugged and opened the door to the hallway, leaving behind the endless library. He switched back to his alicorn form, then they started for the throne room. They reached the throne room, taking their seats, and started night court.

-Five hours later-

With night court done, I made my way to Celestia's room.

'All of this strange behaviors is suspicious... Something's up.' I thought as I reached her door, the two guards giving me a look, then stood aside, allowing me to enter. I knocked on the door.

"Come in." Celestia's voice called out on the other side. I opened the door and walked in, closing it behind me. I looked around her room, seeing her sitting in front of a fireplace, and walked over.

"Luna said that she wanted me to meet you here." I said.

"For a few days, as you may have noticed, we've been a little nervous. We wanted to ask you a question, although, it is completely understandable if you say no." She said, looking up at me.

"What's the question?" I asked, cocking an eyebrow.

"Would you allow us to see into your memories?" She asked. I stood there, thinking about the consequences this could possibly bring out. I shook my head, and said.

"I'll allow you to see into my memories, but... what you see in there might shock you." I said.

"Now we must wait for Luna and Twilight to show." Celestia said. Luna showed up with Twilight five minutes later, and they got situated.

"He has allowed us to see into his memories, but first, be ready for the worst." Celestia warned. Her horn lit up, and I felt a prick at the back of my head, and I blacked out. I woke up in my human form, with three females standing before.

"So this is what it feels like to be human..." Luna said, looking herself over. She had some sort of dark blue armor covering most of her body, her ethereal mane swishing in the non-existent wind.

"It feels very... strange." Celestia commented. She wore a large white dress, her tiara in her hair, the same as Luna's.

"This form is so very weird." Twilight said, cupping her breasts. Instead of a dress or armor like Luna and Celestia, she wore a Japanese style school uniform.

"So, where do we start?" I asked, in my ODST armor with my M7S in hands and carbine on my back

. "When you decided to join the marines." Celestia said. The scene turned from darkness to an old farm.

"Felix! Did you feed the horses?" A female voice yelled out.

"Yes, mama!" A young boy's voice answered. A teenage boy walked into the farmhouse, a pair of blue jeans and white t-shirt, a pair of muddy boots with a strange hat on his head.

"Alright, I need you to go to the market and grab these things." A skinny female walked into the living room. She handed him a piece of white paper then walked back into the kitchen.

"Yes, mama!" He repeated, walking back outside. He walked down a dirt trail, eventually reaching a black concrete street with some type of motorized carriage with no ponies pulling them. They roared down the street, picking specs of dirt and dust as they passed. He started walking down the street, towards a large town. He reached the farm a few minutes later and walked into a busy market. They heard some sort of roaring and looked up, seeing a strange purple flying thing heading towards the farmhouse.

"My first contact with the Covenant." The current Fading said, grinding his teeth together. They watched as it lowered itself to the ground, and some figures dropped from the sides of it.

"It's the Covenant!" A female voice yelled, and the entire market burst into panic. The teenage boy was knocked to the ground, but got back up and started running back to the farm. Screams of pain, gunshots, and burning plasma could be heard, but the boy was running back to the farm with no care with anyone else. He reached the farm, except all that was left is a roaring fire with dead bodies all over. He ran to the farmhouse, only to see four burned bodies huddled into the corner.

"NO~!" The boy screamed, running to the burnt bodies. Tears streaming down his face, he hugged each body for a certain amount of time, then walked out of the farm. A gun was lying on the ground next to a bloody body. He picked up the gun, then searched the body for clips of ammo, then grabbed a combat knife from the body. He reloaded the gun, then started walking down the street. A firefight was ensuing in the middle of the street.

"Hey you! Want to help out here?" A big burly man yelled at him. The teenager stayed silent, but ran up to the man and started firing the gun.

"Why are you here?" The man asked.

"My parents and brothers just got killed by the Covenant, I want my revenge." The teenager said.

"I'm sorry kid, maybe you should join the marines after this." The man said. The idea clicked into the teenagers head, and the kid smiled.

"That sounds like a great idea..." The teenager said to himself.

The memory ended, and the three princesses looked at the silent ODST just standing there.

"I'm so sorry, Fading..." Luna said.

"Save it for someone who actually cares for it." He growled. The next memory started, this one with a strangely outlined town. Felix knew that it was boot camp.

"GET YOUR ASSES UP MAGGOTS! YOU AREN'T HERE TO SIT AROUND AND PICK DAISIES, YOU GODDAMN PANSIES! GET UP, GET UP, GET UP!" A loud voice echoed throughout the large room. Lights flicked on and a banging on metal was heard throughout the entire building. The newest recruits were groaning from being woken up so early, while a few were already standing in front of their beds, standing in nothing but a small shirt and boxers.

"I'M GOING TO KICK EACH AND EVERY ONE OF YOUR ASSES IF YOU DON'T GET OUT OF MY BEDS THIS INSTANT!" A large man in full dark green yelled as he walked by each row of bunk beds. More of the recruits were standing in front of their beds at attention, while others shuffled around, fixing their beds and shirts. The large man stopped as he saw a small boy that was still in bed, with a small smile on his face.

"GET YOUR ASS UP MAGGOT!" The man yelled as he flipped the bed over, sending the small boy flying. The small boy got up and rubbed his eyes, then shuffled to the end of the line.

"PICK YOUR FEET UP YOU SACK OF SHIT!" The man said, pushing the boy to the ground, then picking him up and shoving him forward. Only one face was recognizable to the ponies, while the ODST was standing there, lost in memories of his boot camp experience. The one face recognizable was the teenager from earlier, the first one up and stone faced from the beginning. Once all of the teenagers were standing at attention and stopped rubbing their eyes, the man took his position in front of all of them.

"My name is First Sergeant Davidson, and you will address me as sir. let me tell you one thing. Your stay here will be hell. I will work your flabby bodies till I get fine marines from each and every one of you sacks of shit. DO I MAKE MYSELF CLEAR?" He yelled.

"SIR YES SIR!" Came from the teenagers.

"Bullshit, I can't hear you!" He yelled.

"SIR YES SIR!" The teenagers yelled once more, slightly louder than before.

"Get your asses out of my barracks and get yourselves some grub before morning exercises! You go to area 3C!" The man yelled.

"SIR YES SIR!" Came the response.

"GET GOIN'!" The man yelled, waving his hand towards the door. All of the recruits scrambled for the door. The mess hall was hectic, with the hundred teens scrambling around to eat and get outside to the designated area. In ten minutes, only thirty of the recruits arrived at the designated area, which were all standing in one straight line. In an hour, ninety arrived, and with another ten minutes, the last ten arrived.

"It took you an hour and twenty minutes to get your asses to the designated area. ARE YOU ALL FUCKING STUPID?" The man yelled at them.

"SIR NO SIR!" Came the response.

"I THINK YOU ALL MIGHT BE FUCKING STUPID IF IT TOOK YOU AN HOUR AND TWENTY MINUTES TO EAT A SIMPLE BREAKFAST AND ARRIVE AT AN AREA NOT HALF A MILE AWAY FROM THE BARRACKS!" He yelled at them. "TODAY, WE'RE GOING TO HAVE A BIT OF A JOG. FIFTEEN MILES ACTUALLY. GET YOUR ASSES INTO GEAR!" He yelled at them, blowing a whistle. Most of the recruits started sprinting immediately, while only a handful actually jogged.

By three miles, ninety five percent of the recruits had passed out from exhaustion. One of the remaining boys was the recognizable teenager, which was jogging past knocked out recruits on the side of the dirt track. To the ponies, it appeared that he was the only one that was still up. Nearly an hour and a half later, the teenage Felix had arrived at the checkpoint, where the first sergeant was standing with a face of disgust. He passed the finish line and started to stand at attention.

"What's your name son?" The staff sergeant asked, walking up to him.

"Sir, Felix Vanhorn, Sir." He said, saluting.

"I can tell you'll make a fine marine one day son." He said, walking back over to the finish line.

"Thank you Sir." He replied. The teenage Felix stood at attention for another three hours before he saw some more recruits arriving at the finish line. When it finally hit sundown, most of the recruits had arrived.

"ALL OF YOU ARE FAT SACKS OF SHIT! IT TOOK YOU ALL FUCKING DAY TO ACTUALLY JOG FIFTEEN MILES! THE ONLY ONE THAT ARRIVED HERE IN A REASONABLE TIME WAS CADET VANHORN! TOMORROW, I WANT YOUR ASSES IN BETTER SHAPE! DISMISSED!" The staff sergeant said, dismissing the recruits. Most of the recruits shuffled their way to the mess hall, while a few just went straight to showers and bed.

The memory ended with the teenage Felix climbing into his bed and falling asleep.

"How long did you have to put up with that brute?" Luna asked.

"The basic training was thirteen weeks, but I went for double and passed with flying colors." The normal Felix answered.

"Twenty six weeks with a man constantly yelling at you..." Celestia muttered. Felix thought of a marriage joke right there, but kept it to himself, although he allowed a small smirk to appear on his face. The next memory started, this one with a strange looking range with targets at the end of it.

"Today, you will be learning how to shoot a gun." The staff sergeant said, holding a rifle. Each recruit, which looked more tone than before, held the same rifles.

"First, take your positions at an ammo box." The staff sergeant continued. The recruits stepped next to an ammo box, filled with metal cylinders that the ponies were unfamiliar with.

"You can do this crouching, or lying down on your stomach." The staff sergeant said, walking to an individual ammo box and pulling out a clip. He inserted the clip into the gun, which the recruits followed without hesitation. He crouched down and put his eye against the scope, then with a bang, he shot the gun, the target at the top of the hill being hit straight on the small dot in the middle.

"You aim down the sights, line up your shots, and fire the gun when you think you have the shot. Now, practice until you get ten bullseyes." The staff sergeant said, replacing the clip and flipping the safety on the gun on. Most of the recruits crouched down, resting their arms on their leg, then started firing all over the range. The teenage Felix laid down, grabbing a few clips of ammo and putting it into a small pouch on his hip, then aimed down the sights. He lined up the shot in a few seconds, then fired.

He hit the target, but nowhere near close to the bullseye. He grimaced and relined his shot, then fired once more. The bullet was closer to the bullseye, but he only grimaced once more. He fired a few more testing shots, then finally hit the bullseye. He continued firing, almost every time hitting the bullseye until a small alarm sounded behind him.

"Cadet Vanhorn, you're finished!" The staff sergeant yelled to him. He replaced the clips of ammo he took from the box then ran over to the staff sergeant.

"Start jogging, twenty miles, and you have the rest of the day off. Dismissed!" He yelled.

"Sir yes Sir!" The teenage Felix yelled, then started jogging. Four hours later, he arrived back at the mess hall, which was relatively empty besides the cooks cooking food.

"Looks like Vanhorn's the first one again." One of the younger staff commented.

"How are you always the first to arrive back?" He questioned.

"The other recruits don't give two shits about what  punishment they get for not arriving on time back to the mess hall. I take the stuff that Staff Sergeant teaches because it'll help me get my revenge on those bastards." He responded, walking up to the counter. He grabbed a bottle of water and cracked it open, drinking the ice cold water.

"Everything isn't about revenge son. I tried getting revenge for losing my mother to insurrectionists and got my leg blown off because I was careless." An old voice said.

"I want to get my chance to kill those Covenant bastards. They wiped out my entire family, plus they destroyed everything I ever loved." The teenage Felix snapped.

"You've acted all quiet for eight weeks, and that's your reason for joining." The younger staff member whistled.

"That's gotta be tough for you son, but you can't let it mess with your head. You'll get your revenge, but you have to be cautious about it." The older staff member said.

"I'm going to take everything with caution. I told you, I'm actually paying attention to what Staff Sergeant says. The rest of them, they joined for money or benefits, but I was the only one in this batch that has actually lost anything to them." The teenage Felix growled.

"I knew some boys that were just like you, except that they weren't cautious with what they did. The week they get deployed to the front lines, they got themselves killed." The older staff member warned.

"That's why you learn from your and others mistakes." Teenage Felix said, repeating one of Staff Sergeants sayings.

"I'm just saying, don't become obsessed with revenge and you'll live longer then three minutes in a firefight." The older staff member said. The teenager Felix nodded and finished the bottle of water off, throwing it into the trash can.

"I'm a bit famished, would love some food." The young staff member said.

"Cook it yourself then. I gotta get back to cutting the veggies." The older staff member said.

"You want anything Vanhorn?" The younger staff member said.

"I can wait until lunch." The teenage Felix said.

"What're you going to do while waiting?" The young guy said.

"Maybe go to the weight room, build a little muscle." Teenage Felix said with a grin.

"You can already lift two hundred pounds, don't need to push yourself." The older staff member said.

"Plus you need a spotter to be lifting the barbells." The young staff member added.

"That's why I'm not using the barbells. Using dumbbells and going to do push ups." The teenage Felix said smugly.

"How much?" The young guy asked.

"Fifty at the least, maybe push it to seventy five." Teenage Felix responded.

"Any younger with this training kid, and they might just consider you a Spartan and pump you full of chemicals." The older staff member commented.

"Hell no! I wouldn't want to be one of those bastards!" The teenage Felix responded.

"Why not?" The younger staff member asked.

"In the UNSC until they die? Complete property to UNSC? Only one purpose in life and that's war? I'd rather not go crazy from fighting constantly." He named off a few reasons.

"Rather have a life outside of war and destruction?" The older staff member asked.

"Win this damn war, then start a family, get myself a farm, live the simple life." The teenage Felix responded.

"What happens if we lose this war then?" The old man asked.

"I'll be dead before I see this war lost." Teenage Felix said.

"That's deep man, but what if you're still alive and the war is suddenly lost?" The younger staff member asked.

"I'll keep fighting for freedom or whatever happens to humanity, and continue fighting till I either die or I see humanity is finally free from the Covenant's grasp." The teenage Felix responded.

"That's a big goal for a single man. If you were a politician, then that'll get you votes." The older staff member snickered. They all had a chuckle together, then the Teenage Felix walked away.

The memory ended with the ponies staring at the ODST in awe or bewilderment.

"Mighty claims, yet, now... You can't fulfill them." Celestia said.

"That's one of the reasons I didn't like just waking up in a peaceful land." I mumbled.

"You didn't wish for peace until the war was finally won, and you can rest easy knowing that Earth and all of her colonies are safe?" Luna more of stated then questioned. The phrase that Dr. Halsey used rung in my head.

"You sound so much alike to a doctor I knew." I commented.

"Interesting..." Luna said thoughtfully.

"Graduation, or first battle?" I asked, finally turning to the princesses.

"First battle." Twilight said excitedly.

"I would like to how your squad was formed actually." Celestia said. I fell silent, grimacing behind the visor.

"Fading?" Luna asked. I looked up, realizing my silence unnerved them.

"I want to make this clear, this was my first squad, which had been KIA'd on our first real mission." I responded.

"You've had multiple squads?" Twilight asked.

"Yes, three actually." I responded. The memory started, this one a dirt track with the recruits in our first squads.

"These will be your squadmates for boot camp, and maybe afterwards if you sacks of shit get into the marines." The staff sergeant yelled. The Staff Sergeant started calling out names, and after an hour of slow moving cadets and yelling.

"Cadet Vanhorn, Cadet Tracey, Cadet Ticossi, Cadet Aberica, and Cadet Abbott, your squad thirty six!" The staff sergeant yelled out. He called the rest of squads, and all of the recruits moved to meet their new squadmates. The teenage Felix moved to the outlined area where squad thirty six was meeting, and saw one other there. It was a skinny female that was tossing her hair every which way, occasionally smacking the careless recruit that met her torrent of hair. I moved over to the designated spot and stood at attention, with the girl still messing with her hair. He looked straight ahead, seeing out of the corner of his eye another female moving towards the squads meet up spot.

**'A squad full of females... Great...'* I thought as I diverted my attention elsewhere. The next one was a boy with a bit of belly fat on him, and the last one was another female. The staff sergeant was naming off temporary squad leaders, which the recruits went crazy for a place of power. He made it to Felix's squad and grimaced.*

"Cadet Vanhorn, you'll be squad leader!" He said after a quick decision. He moved onto the next squad, which was all talking to each other. I heard whispers from behind me, but didn't do anything.

"Hey Vanhorn!" A loud voice said behind teenage Felix, and he felt a hand on his shoulder. He turned behind himself and saw it was the boy, so he grabbed his hand and crushed it easily.

"Don't touch me." Felix growled, going back to attention. The boy cried out in pain and fell to the ground, clutching his hand.

"The fuck was that for man?" He yelled at me. I just ignored him until I heard him getting up, then I turned around and looked him in the eyes.

"I said don't touch me, fat ass." He growled, giving his best death glare. He swung at me, which was a clumsy throw, but I dodged easily and grabbed his wrist, twisting him over my back and grabbing his other wrist, the put him in a submission hold. The staff sergeant came over.

"WHAT THE FUCK ARE YOU TWO NUMBNUTS DOING?" He yelled at us. I let go of him and went to attention.

"Sir, Cadet Abbott thought it was funny to throw a punch at me, and I acted in self defense, Sir!" I yelled. The staff sergeant looked down at the tubby boy, who was clutching both of his arms.

"Is that true, Cadet Abbott?" The staff sergeant said.

"Sir yes Sir." He said weakly.

"I'll let this one slide, but if I catch you two fighting once more, I'm going to have you scrubbing the latrines with your toothbrushes for a week!" He yelled. Felix snapped into a salute, while the tubby boy was trying to get off of the ground.

"SIR YES SIR!" Felix yelled. The mumbled response came from Abbott a second later.

"GET YOUR FAT ASS OFF OF THE GROUND CADET ABBOTT!" The staff sergeant yelled at the struggling recruit. After a few seconds, the recruit finally pushed himself off of the ground, wiping off the dust.

"GIVE ME FIVE MILES CADET ABBOTT!" The staff sergeant yelled in his face.

"Sir yes Sir." Came the quiet response from the weak cadet, and with that, the cadet started jogging.

"The rest of you, I want you to follow me to a little surprise I have for you." He said, giving a mischievous grin. Some of the recruits grumbled, knowing it was going to be taxing on their bodies.

"GET YOUR ASSES INTO GEAR!" He yelled.

AN: The next chapter will continue this memory, as well as going into so many others. Might have to make a part three to this piece. Depends... Anyway, I want to make sure that I don't try to relate stuff to movies if I can help it, but sometimes it's funnier if I do. I really wanted to put Gunnery Sergeant Hartman in here, but it would basically a rip off. Oh well... You get what you get.

-Ghost