The Protectors of Harmony

by Delta Blade

Chapters

Chapter 13: Training Day (Part 2)
Chapter 14: Training Day (Part 3)
Chapter 15: Unexpected Adversaries
Chapter 16: Manehattan C.Q.B.
Chapter 17: P.O.W.
Chapter 18: Mild West Meets the Wild West
Chapter 19: Am I Not Welcome Here?
Chapter 20: Abducted
Chapter 21: Ultimatum
Chapter 22: Torture
Chapter 23: Reunion
Chapter 24: Rescue
Chapter 25: One minute earlier…
Chapter 26: Breathe...Just...Breathe…
Chapter 27: The Storm
Chapter 28: Forest Misadventures (Part 1)
Chapter 29: Forest Misadventures (Part 2)
Chapter 30: Ashfall
Chapter 31: Rookie’s Last Stand
Chapter 32: Unexpected Allies
Chapter 7: Q and A
Chapter 8: The Crisis at Hand/Hoof
Chapter 9: A Slight Change in Plans
Chapter 10: A Strange Day
Chapter 11: Dreams and Nightmares
Chapter 12: Training Day (Part 1)
Chapter 1: Back for Blood
Chapter 2: No Other Choice
Chapter 3: Six for One?
Chapter 4: First Contact
Chapter 5: First Meetings
Chapter 6: Why We Fight for You

Chapter 13: Training Day (Part 2)

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Chapter 14: Training Day (Part 3)

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Chapter 15: Unexpected Adversaries

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Chapter 16: Manehattan C.Q.B.

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Chapter 17: P.O.W.

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Chapter 18: Mild West Meets the Wild West

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Chapter 19: Am I Not Welcome Here?

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Chapter 20: Abducted

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Chapter 21: Ultimatum

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Chapter 22: Torture

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Chapter 23: Reunion

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Chapter 24: Rescue

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Chapter 25: One minute earlier…

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Chapter 26: Breathe...Just...Breathe…

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Chapter 27: The Storm

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Chapter 28: Forest Misadventures (Part 1)

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Chapter 29: Forest Misadventures (Part 2)

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Chapter 30: Ashfall

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Chapter 31: Rookie’s Last Stand

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Chapter 32: Unexpected Allies

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Chapter 7: Q and A

Chapter 7: Q and A

August 5, 2558

0927 hours (five minutes earlier)

Ponyville

The Golden Oaks Library

The marines of Fireteam Icebreaker were standing around inside the library, answering Twilight Sparkle`s various questions while she wrote down their responses on a levitating sheet of paper with a levitating quill.

“So, how many colonies does humanity own?” asked the lavender alicorn, jotting down the last response. “And as a follow-up question, on which colony were each of you born on?”

“My, my,” said Corporal Marcus Williams. “For a princess, you are quite curious.”

“And apparently you like to read,” said Private Eugene Phillips, seemingly mesmerized by all the shelves of books in the room. “A lot.”

“Thank you both for stating the obvious,” said Sergeant Alex Thompson sarcastically.

“As of now, I believe the UNSC owns well over a hundred colony worlds,” said Gunnery Sergeant David Alvarez. “Ironically, none of us were born on a colony. We were all born on our home world, called Earth. Alex, Eugene, and I were all born in a country called the United States of America, USA, or US for short. Jenkins was born in a country just north of the US, called Canada. Marcus over there was born in a country called England.”

“And I was born in Australia,” said Private Oscar Morgan. “`s why all my mates call me Sidney.”

“Yeah, uh, the capital of Australia is called Sydney,” gunny explained. “Since it can also be a name, we thought that it`d only be fitting to call him that.”

“Which leads me to my next question,” said Twilight. “Why did you all give each other such peculiar nicknames in the first place?”

“Its partially because weve become such good friends with each other, brothers almost,” said gunny. “I'm sure your friends have given you at least one nickname.”

Twilight thought about this and realized that her friends had given her, as well as each other, nicknames.

“Yeah, my friends sometimes call me Twi,” said Twilight.

“See? Thats what I mean,” said gunny. “Although, I'm pretty sure its mostly because when we`re in combat, a short nickname can help us call on each other quickly.”

“Combat, huh? Interesting,” said Twilight as she scribbled more notes on her paper. “Very interesting.”

“I have a question,” said Spike who, up until now, had been completely silent. “How do we know that we can trust you?”

“My god,” said Alex. “Does everything on this planet speak English?”

“You mean Equestrian,” said Spike.

“Oh, whatever you call it.”

Suddenly, David brought his hand up to his helmet communicator.

“Yes sir…” he said as he stepped away from the group and began pacing the floor. All eyes were silently fixated on him. “…You mean her tree?... Then yeah, we`re still here, sir…Yes sir, I'll tell them, sir…Yes sir, I'll ask her, sir…Yes sir…Aye, aye, sir.”

“Who was it?” asked Private First Class Ogden Jenkins.

“The Captain,” gunny answered. “Hes on his way here with the other princess. Turns out, the artifacts are here in this tre- er, I mean, house, and Twilight here knows where theyre at.”

“Artifacts?” said Twilight.

“Yeah, he said to ask you where they are and what they look like.”

“Oh! You must be talking about the Elements of Harmony.”

“Elements of Harmony?” said gunny.

“Yeah, they`re right over there.”

Twilight pointed a hoof across the room to a glass case containing five necklaces and a tiara. They were all seemingly made out of gold and each had its own unique symbol.

“*whistle*Damn,” said Private Eugene Phillips as he walked over to them. “How much did these babies cost?”

He began to reach out to touch the glass casing before gunny added, “And, Shifty, Captain Laskey also made it very clear to not touch the artifacts until he arrives with the princess. Am I clear?”

“Yessir,” said Shifty, quickly pulling his hand away and sheepishly placing it behind his head.

“Good.”

Suddenly, a frantic knocking was heard at the door.

“That might be the Captain,” said Jenkins as he began walking up to the door. “I'll get it.”

However, as the Private First Class opened the scarlet red, wooden door, the sight that greeted him was not that of the Infinity`s Captain, but of the stunned faces of five more ponies.

The cyan one with rainbow-colored mane suddenly tackled him onto his back.

“I've got the alien!” she exclaimed as she pinned Ogden to the floor with her hooves on his forearms. “Get Twilight and go!”

Suddenly, Ogden quickly wrestled his right arm free, grabbed the hoof that held his left, lifted it, grabbed it with both hands, went under Rainbow`s armpit as he stood up on a knee, and forced Rainbow to the floor on her face, thus subduing her. He placed his left knee on her back for good measure.

“Rainbow, they`re not here to hurt us!” said Twilight.

“Oh, yeah? Well then how do you explain this?!” said Rainbow, referring to the awkward position that Ogden now held her in.

“Jenkins, stand down,” said gunny as he walked up to them and the other ponies that were filing in.

“Yes sir,” said the PFC, letting go of R.D.

As she stood back up, he said to her, “Sorry, but you really can’t expect me to not react to an assault like that.”

“Yeah, well…you just got lucky!” said an irritated Rainbow before trotting back over to her friends.

Then the orange-colored pony wearing a cowboy hat approached Ogden.

“Don’ mind her,” she said. “She just don’t ‘preciate bein’ embarrassed is all.”

“I didn’t want to embarrass her,” said Ogden. “I was just focused on subduing her.”

“You think she`ll see it the same way? Wha don’ you talk to her abat it later?”

Jenkins looked over at Rainbow Dash with a look of sorrow.

I hope the Captain doesn’t make me too busy, he thought. There were so many things he had done in his past that he wasn’t forgiven for, but this was the first time in a while that he wanted forgiveness. He couldn’t tell what it was, but there was something about this pony…

Suddenly, a familiar humming could be heard outside the library, followed by a knock at the door.

“Now that must be the Captain,” said gunny as he, once again, walked up to the door.

Upon opening the door he saw the Captain with the alicorn princess at his side.

“Sir,” said gunny, saluting his commanding officer before ushering them both in.

As Laskey walked inside gunny announced, “Marines! Captain on deck!”

All the marines of Fireteam Icebreaker saluted to their ship commander.

“At ease,” said Laskey.

When gunny had lowered his arm, he gave the princess a nod, “Your highness.”

“Alvarez?” said Laskey.

“Yes sir!” said David.

“Have you located the artifacts?”

“Right over there, sir,” said gunny, pointing to the glass case across the room. “Twilight called them the ‘Elements of Harmony’ sir.”

“Elements of Harmony?” said Laskey as he approached the six golden pieces of apparel.

“Yes,” said Celestia. “This is why we need your help, for within these artifacts lies the magical power to fix any problem too big to be solved on our own, such as unimaginable chaos, great evil, and even war.”

“If it can solve war,” said Laskey. “Then why do you need our help?”

“They can only do these things if close enough to the threat. I have considered this to be far too dangerous considering the Changeling`s ranged weaponry, technology that has never been seen before on this planet.”

The Captain thought for a moment before asking, “How are the Elements used exactly?”

“They are worn and powered by the living embodiments of the Elements themselves,” said the Alicorn Princess before gesturing with a hoof to the other six ponies in the room. “Which, as luck may have it, are the mares standing right before you.”

“So…do you want us to escort them to an area close enough to the changelings so that they can use the Elements?”

“No.”

“No?”

“It`s too risky. I have already seen what they have done to my own troops. If just one of the projectiles makes contact with bare skin, it will incinerate anypony down to their bare bones.”

“Wow, sounds like not even a Spartan escort would be enough.”

“Precisely. This is why we need humanity to fight the war that the changelings wanted Equestria to fight.”

“So you`re using us as cannon fodder?”

“I completely understand if you feel that this is mistreatment, and I wish that there was another way, but if you don’t, humanity will lose it`s only chance of achieving harmony.”

“And I also suppose that FLEETCOM wouldn’t be too happy about me allowing the destruction of not one, but six forerunner artifacts.”

“Exactly. So, either way, I really don’t think you have a choice.”

Laskey thought for a moment before saying, “You saw that humanity has faced this same genocidal threat before in the past, the only difference here is that you can`t defend yourself.”

He then looked the Sun Princess in the eye, “Your species doesn’t deserve that fate.”

Chapter 8: The Crisis at Hand/Hoof

Chapter 8: The Crisis at Hand/Hoof

August 5, 2558

2200 hours

Canterlot

The Royal Castle Throne Room

Nighttime in Canterlot, and Pinkie Pie had finally gotten around to throwing a party for the interstellar visitors; the lights of which were bright enough to render the stars of Luna`s night invisible. The party was raging in Canterlot Square, humans and ponies alike dancing, drinking cider, and even taking turns singing on the erected stage.

Their leaders, however, were in the palace overlooking the festivities, discussing what should be done about the coming threat.

“Two countries in a day?!” exclaimed Celestia.

“I am afraid so my sister,” said Luna solemnly. “Canida has fallen to the changeling army.”

“Damn,” said Lasky. “So its possible that their armies are superior and that their opponents are behind in technology. Either way, I have no intel; if you two know anything about their troops, like how they operate, what weapons theyre using, how many of them there are, etc, tell me now.”

“Well they…actually, how about we just show you?” said Celestia. “Luna? Would you please?”

Luna then proceeded to show Lasky the same recording sent to her by the Equestrian soldier when Boardor fell.

After the recording had finished, there was, once again, a familiar stunned silence; this time, however, it was broken by the only human in the room.

“They have a vendetta against you,” Lasky stated flatly. “Why?”

Both princesses proceeded to tell the story of the changeling attack on Canterlot. Lasky quietly listened to it. When it was over, the Captain`s first spoken thought was a question.

“So, you were barely able to hold them off even when they were using their bare hooves?” asked Thomas.

“Along with weaker, but still somewhat effective, magic from their horns, yes,” confirmed Celestia.

“And from what we saw from that soldiers recording, I'd bet that theyve found a way to amplify that magic with those spears. If we could only get our hands on one of them, then I'm sure that Infinity Science would be able to figure something out for us.

“Also, I'm pretty sure that their main advantage is their ability to spy. That’s what made you so vulnerable that day, the fact that they could magically disguise themselves and look exactly like anypony they choose; that is, anypony, not anything, meaning that they can`t disguise themselves as one of us humans. Speaking of which, what is stopping them from spying on us right now?”

“There is no way,” said Luna. “Not only was every changeling in Equestria driven out of Equestria when Shining Armor and Cadence used their magic of love to scatter them, but now the shield has been modified so that it is now invisible, encompasses all of Equestria, and will not allow any changeling to pass through whether they are disguised or not.”

“And when exactly was that shield put up?” said Lasky. “What if a few changelings managed to get within your borders before it was?”

“It was put up the moment the spell was cast that day,” said Celestia. “Thankfully, though, with the assistance of Cadences magic, Captain Armor no longer needs to think about nor replenish the shield. However, we fear that the changelings new weapon will allow them to break through.”

“Okay, but I still think that security should be increased around here,” said Lasky. “I think the best option would be to have a few of our SPARTAN-IV fireteams replace your royal guard.”

“Why? Haven’t we just established that there are presently no changelings in Equestria?”

“Celestia, wouldn’t you agree that humanity`s lack of trust can sometimes be its greatest asset?”

“I, guess so.”

“Then you understand why I wouldn’t trust our established enemy to stay out when potentially getting in could potentially give them every advantage?”

“You just said the word potentially twice; aren’t you inadvertently saying that the odds of this are very slim?”

“Yes, but you`re missing the point here, I'm saying that even though the odds of a changeling being put here are slim, aren’t the profits of doing so too great for them to not risk it?”

“Well, I suppose you do have a valid point there,” said Celestia. “So, what should we do about it?”

“Well the first thing we should do is get all royalty in one place, this palace looks like our best option as of now. If any royalty is too far from here, then, with your permission, well use human transport to get them here, because if changelings can only disguise themselves as other ponies, then we cant risk using any royal guards for exfil; now its nothing personal, its just a precaution.”

“Very well, you have my authorization.”

“Good, now if you`d be so kind as to tell me where any royalty that isn’t in Canterlot is so that we can go get them?”

Putting a hoof to her chin, Celestia said, “Let me see, along with Luna and I, Shining Armor is here in this palace as well; Princess Cadence is over in the crystal empire; and Princess Twilight Sparkle is down at the party.”

“I'll send a Pelican to pick up Cadence,” said Lasky. “Maybe Captain Armor should go there with the transport; that way she`ll know that we can be trusted.”

“Good idea, I will send for him,” said the princess of the night as she walked towards the throne room`s exit.

“Got it,” said the Ship Captain to the departing alicorn before returning his attention to the other. “And as for Twilight, I'll get Fireteam Icebreaker to escort her inside.”

Captain Lasky and Princess Celestia then went out onto and looked over the throne room`s balcony to observe the party once again.

“Although,” Lasky started. “They do seem to be having a good time down there…”

Suddenly, multiple humans came on stage and their lead singer announced, “This next song is dedicated to why we humans will fight for you wonderful ponies. Hit it Vinyl!"

Thomas and Celestia were surprised by this, and curiosity got the better of them.

“Okay,” said the ship commander. “I'll contact them after this one.”

Nobody here knocking at my door

The sound of silence I can’t take anymore

Nobody ringing my telephone now

Oh how I miss such a beautiful sound

And I don’t even know how I survive

I won’t make it to the shore without your light

No I don’t even know if I’m alive

Oh, oh, oh without you now

This is what it feels like

Nothing to hold but the memories and frames

Oh they remind me of the battle I face

without your love, without you I drown

Somebody save me I’m going down

And I don’t even know how I survive

I won’t make it to the shore without your light

No I don’t even know if I’m alive

Oh, oh, oh without you now

This is what it feels like

And I don’t even know how I survive

I won’t make it down the road with one headlight

No I don’t even know if I’m alive

Oh, oh, oh without you now

This is what it feels like

As the song ended, and the mixed crowd of humans and ponies erupted into their thunderous applause, the Captain found himself momentarily shocked at the amount of preparation that must have been done within a single day to put on such a show. But then he remembered that many of the marines and naval crewman were, in some form or another, very artistically inclined. Also, that Vinyl Scratch character really seemed to have a way with modern-sounding music.

“Umm, Captain?” said Celestia as she placed a hoof on Lasky`s shoulder, interrupting his thoughts. “Weren't you going to contact your men?”

Suddenly, thoughts of the crisis at hand re-flooded Lasky`s mind, and he remembered what he supposed to do after the song.

“Oh yeah, right” he said as he brought his wrist communicator to his mouth. “Gunnery Sergeant David Alvarez? Do you read?”

. . .

August 5, 2558

2231 hours

Canterlot Square

The thing about apple cider is that its basically ponys alcohol; therefore, the harder it is, the more it hurts their tongues and the drunker they become. For humans however, the sensation is much more different; for them it`s just sweet, like drinking a non-carbonated bottle of soda.

Therefore, the bartender at the party`s bar, as well as anypony at or around the bar, was impressed (to say the least) when all six of the marines of Fireteam Icebreaker each began to chug down a full bottle of the hardest cider that the bartender could give out (it was what the bartender said was so hard, that he was only allowed to mix it with other drinks and not give it out by itself).

Everypony continued to watch in awe as the six humans finished their bottles in synchronous, at which point they and every being around them, whether a pony or a human, gave out enthusiastic cheers and then proceeded to continue partying to Vinyl`s looping tune.

This was one of the biggest and brightest parties that the marines of Gypsy Company had been to in a long time. There was rarely any partying aboard the ship, so they were determined to make the best of it. So, Fireteam Icebreaker decided to scatter after their little show of cider to meet some ponies and other marines.

However, there was one marine out of the six who`s main goal that night was to meet (and apologize to) just one, particular young pegasus with rainbow-colored mane.

You`d think that with hair like that, thought PFC Ogden Jenkins. She`d be easier to pick out in this crowd.

As he wandered through said crowd with another bottle of cider, he concluded that it must be the various colors reflecting off of the magically floating disco ball and bathing the square in rainbow-colored light that must be making it so hard. It was at this point that the young soldier wished that he had found out her name earlier so he could at least try calling out to her through the noise of the music and partygoers.

He finally struck luck when he reached the edge of the crowd and saw her sitting at a table talking to her purple princess alicorn friend, Twilight Sparkle. As he approached, he could hear them gossiping about somepony who was apparently named “Flash Sentry.”

Setting his bottle on the table, he said, “So, some party, eh?” as he thumbed at the fray behind him. As he sat down with them, he took off his helmet and placed it on the table as well, revealing his short, black hair. Looking to the rainbow-maned pegasus in front of him, he said, “Look I'm sorry if I hurt you or made you feel humiliated today. I was only doing what I was ordered to, attack if attacked, or subdue, in that case.”

“Oh, its alright,” said the cyan mare with a smile, much to the marines surprise.

“Wow,” said Jenkins. “That was…fast.”

“What do you mean?”

“Well, I don’t know, it-its just the way you looked as I left Twilights tree-house; I mean it mustve been the look in your eyes or something, I just didn’t think youd be this quick to forgive me.”

“Oh, please, I don’t hold grudges; especially not after that song one of you just sung, apparently you`re going to fight the changelings for us? Anyway, I still want a good rematch!”

“Pff, bring it!” said Ogden jokingly, throwing up his arms in challenge before waving it off. “Not now though, we don’t want to crash this party now do we?”

The three shared a quick laugh, glad that there were no more hard feelings.

“By the way,” started Jenkins as he pointed a finger at the cyan pegasus. “I never got your name.”

“I'm Rainbow Dash!” said Rainbow Dash as she struck a proud pose. “Fastest flyer in all of Equestria!”

“Ogden Jenkins, Private First Class of the UNSC marine corps,” said Jenkins, holding out his hand for a handshake. “Pleasure to meet you miss Dash.”

Dash stared at the hand awkwardly for a few seconds before holding up a hoof for Ogden to see. Ogden realized what she was trying to get across and made his hand into a fist. They both chuckled as they fist/hoof-bumped.

Twilight however, remained silent, deep in thought as she observed Ogden`s fist change back into a hand, seemingly in slow motion, as he retracted the gloved appendage back to himself.

Where have I seen that before? she thought to herself.

A sudden tap on her shoulder ripped her from her thoughts.

“Princess Twilight?!” called a voice from behind her.

The purple alicorn turned to see the leader of the six humans that had come to her house earlier that day.

“Oh hi!” said Twilight, having to now shout over the music as Vinyl raised the volume. “Mr. David Alvarez isn’t it?!”

“Yeah! That`s me!” said gunny with a smile. “Listen, uh, my Captain has just ordered me to take my squad and escort you back to the castle!”

“Why?!”

“I dunno! He just said that it was for security reasons and that hed brief us when we got there!” gunny then pointed at the PFC. “Jenkins! Callem in!”

“Aye, aye, sir! Let`s hope they still have their helmets on!” said Jenkins as he put on his and adjusted the helmet mike. “Icebreaker, Icebreaker, this is Jenkins!”

As he was saying this, he spotted Sgt. Alex Thompson in the crowd. He was standing next to Private Oscar Morgan while talking with the cowgirl pony with an orange coat and blond mane named Applejack while the private was speaking with a pegasus pony with a yellow coat and pink mane named Fluttershy. Since Alex had his helmet on, he heard the incoming transmission. He began to look around and quickly spotted Jenkins and gunny at the table.

The PFC beckoned him over with his arm as he continued, “Fall in on gunny`s position over!”

Ogden then observed as Alex tapped on Sidney`s shoulder and told him to follow him. They then quickly said their goodbyes and jogged over to the table. Corporal Marcus Williams and Private Eugene Phillips soon joined them as well.

“What`s going on?” asked the Corporal.

“We need to escort Princess Twilight to the castle,” said gunny. “Captain`s orders.”

“Aw man!” complained Eugene. “I hate to have to leave such an awesome party so soon.”

“Yeah come on, gunny,” said Alex. “Its the first party hes ever been to!”

“What?! No it isn’t!”

“Then quit complaining!”

“Aye, aye, sir.”

“Come on, marines,” said gunny. “Let`s load up and get this done.”

“Aye, aye, sir!” said the rest of the marines in unison.

They then proceeded to walk toward the castle. At the edge of the party/concert area there was an exit leading towards the castle; just outside of it, Fireteam Icebreaker found the ammo dump where every marine at the party had dropped their gear, weapons, and, well, ammo.

Any marine in the squad that didn’t have on a helmet grabbed one. They then proceeded to each take and load a M6H handgun and then take a combat knife and place it in the knife sleeves on their shoulders.

There were a few other marines guarding the dump who struck up a conversation as Icebreaker began to leave it.

“Leaving so soon?” one of them joked. “Where`re you headed?”

“The Castle,” said gunny. “Captain wants her up there but had to call for some protection. Don’t worry, though, we`ll be back.”

“Alright, see ya round!”

“See ya.”

As they walked away from the party, two mares were still in it, sitting at another table, watching them leave from a distance. Their names were Lyra and Bon Bon.

Except, they weren't Lyra and Bon Bon.

“They`re leaving!” said “Bon Bon”.

“I have an idea,” said “Lyra” before getting out of her chair. “Follow me.”

They both walked into a nearby alleyway where they changed into their true form, two changeling soldiers.

As they walked past a dumpster, they could hear the muffled screams of the real Lyra and Bon Bon coming from it.

“Sir,” wispered the changeling that had recently been disguised as Bon Bon. “They`re awake!”

“Don’t worry,” whispered back the other, higher ranking changeling. “Once you`ve tied up, gagged, and blindfolded a pony, they just can never seem to find a way out!”

“Combine that with putting them in a place where nopony will think to look and they`re doomed!”

“Right you are. Another reason why changelings are superior!”

“Heh heh, yes sir!”

The two continued to quietly giggle manically as they exited on the other side of the alleyway, the sounds of the party now sounding much more distant though only behind one building.

“So, what`s your plan?” asked the subordinate. “And what will we do about these, humans, that have come to help the infernal ponies?”

“Don’t worry about the humans, whatever they are, for we have already managed to topple the countries of two other species today! We`ll just kill them like the rest. As for my plan…”

The changeling then shape-shifted into one of Celestia`s royal guards, armor and everything.

Disclaimer: The song sung in this chapter is This is What It Feels Like by Armin van Buuren and the looping song that Vinyl Scratch was playing is called Beyond the Night by Loopmasters + VJ Loops Remix. Look them up. I do not own anything!

Chapter 9: A Slight Change in Plans

Chapter 9: A Slight Change in Plans

August 5, 2558

2300 hours

Canterlot

Fireteam Icebreaker was now about halfway to the Royal Castle; they had formed a makeshift “convoy” in which each man was about three meters apart from each other in a hexagonal defensive perimeter around the princess, and up until this point, everyone in the group had yet to say a single word. The only sounds heard were the sounds of footsteps and hoofsteps combined with the evermore distant sounds of music from the party. The only pony in the group was the one to break the silence.

“So,” said Princess Twilight Sparkle, trying to strike up a conversation. “How was the party? Did any of you get to meet anypony?”

Finding themselves bored as well, due to a lack of something to keep their minds occupied, the six-man group around the alicorn decided to grant her request for a discussion.

“Oh, yeah,” said Private Oscar Morgan. “I got to talk to that pegasus named Fluttershy. Strange how her name seems to match her personality, ‘cause I'll tell you mate, in all that noise, it was a miracle that I was even able to hear her name when she told it to me. I don’t think I've ever met anyone as soft-spoken as her.”

“Well there`s Fluttershy for you,” said Twilight with a chuckle.

“Yeah, but I don’t care, I like her. She seems really kind and caring. I don’t see why anyone wouldn’t be friends with someone like her. How ‘bout you, Shifty? Who`d you meet?”

“I got to meet the one who orchestrated the entire party,” said Private Eugene Phillips. “That silly pink mare ironically named Pinkie Pie. I like her too, but I just don’t get her sometimes. Shes very naïve, she seems to have a thing for saying entire speeches in one breath, and then she starts defying the laws of physics. One moment shes here, another moment shes over there, then shes suddenly right behind me! And then there`s the fact that she always bounces around everywhere; she never seems to run out of energy.”

“Oh that Pinkie Pie,” said Twilight. “She is quite eccentric.”

“Yeah, but strangely, it`s that eccentricity that I really like about her.”

“Hah! No wonder you could never find a woman back home,” teased Sergeant Alex Thompson.

“Oh yeah, sarge?” challenged Shifty playfully. “Who`d you meet then? Huh?”

“I got to meet that Applejack character. Seems that she grew up on a farm like I did, still works there too. She also really seems to like food, mostly anything apple based. I swear, if she wasn’t selling all those apple pies at her stand, shed be stuffing her face with ‘em! Also, I don’t know where she went to school, but she had some pretty broken English-er Equestrian, if thats what you prefer to call it. Jenkins? I believe you met that Rainbow-haired pegasus for the second time today? You were sitting at the same table she was at when you called us over. She still mad about what happened?”

“No actually,” said Jenkins. “She said she was fine and that she doesn’t hold grudges, which I find kind of weird, given how boastful she is by nature. The first thing she said about herself to me was a proud claim that shes the fastest flyer in Equestria. Seriously though, wheres the proof there?”

“You`ll believe it when you see it,” said Twilight.

“Oh sure,” said Jenkins sarcastically. “Ooh! She should totally race one of our F-41s!”

“A Broadsword? Please,” said Corporal Marcus Williams. “Thats the fastest multipurpose strike fighter ever created by the Misriah Armory. Itd leave her in the dust.”

“Well, if shes as fast as she claims to be, then shell at least keep up with it. By the way Corporal, did you meet anyone tonight?”

“Yes actually, tonight I met the acquaintance of miss Rarity. Shes a fashion designer at Ponyvilles Carousel Boutique, reminds me of my mother.”

“Your mother was a fashion designer?!” teased the Sergeant once again. “How`d you end up the military?”

“Oh, I don’t know Sergeant,” said Marcus indignantly. “Maybe the only planet humanity had left was under siege by an alien alliance that wanted nothing more than to see us burn?!”

“Okay, okay! Calm down, I know,” said a now serious Alex as he looked at the ground. “I'm sorry I said that. That`s why we all joined, and became ODSTs.”

“Then why`d you stay?” asked Gunnery Sergeant David Alvarez who, up until now, had been completely silent. “After the war had ended, you could have all gone home to your families; instead you stuck around, signed up to work on the Infinity as marines. Why?”

“Well, I had had friends before the war,” started Jenkins. “But when I joined the ODSTs, got assigned to this squad, and dropped into our first mission, we became so close that, I realized that none of my friends back home were true friends like you guys. I mean if they saw me drowning and were under fire at the same time, they would`ve run away to save their own asses, but you saved me. I just couldn’t leave you guys. I mean, I love my family and all, but I also found that there was no other paying job that I was good at than being a soldier.”

“You know what?” said Corporal Williams. “I think that`s why we all stayed.”

The rest of the marines spoke out in agreement.

“Well, your friendship seemed to have started in a, strange way,” said Twilight. “But I hope this bond lasts as long as possible.”

“Thank you, Twilight,” said gunny.

Before they knew it, they had arrived at their destination. Canterlot castle loomed overhead. In front of the main doorway stood two royal guards.

“We`ll take it from here humans,” said the one on the left.

“Alright,” said Alvarez as he stopped to let the alicorn princess trot past him. “We`ll see you tomorrow Twilight. It was nice meeting you!”

“You too,” said Twilight as she walked between the two guards. “See ya!”

The guards then proceeded to turn around and follow the princess close behind. Gunnery Sergeant Alvarez and his team then turned around and began their journey back to the party.

They had no idea of what was currently happening inside.

. . .

As Twilight trotted through Canterlot Castle, flanked by her two guards, she couldn’t help but think about the humans` peculiar story of how their friendship was started. She also found it hard to believe that the five men of that Fireteam under the command of that Alvarez soldier had, seemingly by coincidence, individually met each of her five friends.

Humans are so strange, she thought. Yet so interesting. Ugh, theres my inner scientist coming out again. But theres something else, I feel like I've seen their species befo-

Her thoughts were suddenly interrupted when she entered the throne room, for the sight that greeted her left her too stunned to think, or move.

. . .

August 5, 2558

2250 hours (20 minutes earlier)

Canterlot

The Royal Castle

Princess Luna had just entered the main castle barracks and was about to call out for Shining Armor before two guards stopped her.

“Captain Armor is needed at once,” ordered Luna.

“Of course, your highness,” said the guard on the right. “Right this way.”

Luna followed the guards for about five minutes before reaching Shining Armor`s private quarters.

The princess of the moon wasted no time.

“Captain Armor!” called Luna before knocking on the door. “It is Luna! You are needed fo-”

She stopped mid-sentence as the door creaked open in response to her knocks.

“Shini-? *gasp!*” said Luna as she opened the door fully to reveal a gagged Captain of the Royal Guard, with a magic-restraining ring on his horn, struggling with sticky, green goo that restrained his forehooves.

This was the last thing Luna saw before the royal guard behind her knocked her unconscious with the blunt end of his spear.

As the princess of the night fell face-first onto the floor, the two guards materialized into the true forms of the changelings they were.

“Good hit sir,” said one. “Why`s this happening now?”

“I dunno,” responded the other. “Ten minutes ago, the commander telepathically ordered me to do this. You can ask him when he gets here with the purple one.”

Shining Armor froze at the mentioning of his little sister, but all he could do was give both changelings an angry stare that failed to faze either of them.

“Yes sir. So, what about these two?”

“Commander`s orders are to get all Equestrian Royalty tied up in the throne room. So get the princess here restrained with goo and put a ring on her horn while I carry the Captain over there.”

“Yes sir.”

. . .

August 5, 2558

2210 hours (one hour earlier)

Northern Equestria

The Crystal Empire

The Crystal Palace Throne Room

“Your majesty,” said a high ranking crystal guard. “An urgent message from Canterlot. Your presence is needed in the Capital.”

“Why?” asked Princess Cadence with much concern in her voice. “Is something wrong?”

“I'm afraid so princess. From what I hear, the changelings have returned.”

“Oh dear!” said Cadence, remembering her encounter with their queen. “Then it must be a security issue.”

“Yes indeed, we`ve already prepared a chariot for you. Follow me.”

She got off her throne and followed the crystal guard out of the throne room into the adjacent hallway. The hallway then led to a set of doors that opened to a large balcony revealing a chariot with two guards in front of it.

She walked up to the chariot`s side door, but when she reached to open it, there were suddenly three flashes of bright green light behind her.

Cadence froze. When she turned around, she saw that she was no longer flanked by three crystal guards, but by three changeling soldiers. They each pulled out a foot-long black rod that mechanically extended into their spears.

“Alright princess,” said the changeling in the center. “Turn around, open that chariot`s door, then get on your knees in front of it.”

Terrified and seeing no way out, as the three changelings could impale her if she tried to make a break for it and that they would be immune to her magic because they wielded their own, she unwittingly did so.

Once on her knees, facing the inside of her chariot with her hooves behind her head, the center changeling that had spoken to her collapsed his spear back into a foot-long black rod, attached it onto his back, walked up to the now surrendering pink alicorn, and spat a sticky, green goo out of his mouth and onto both of her front hooves.

“Ugh,” said Cadence, in disgust for the goo, as the changeling placed both her hooves behind her back and glued them both together with more of the green, gooey adhesive.

The changeling then glued her wings together (Cadence mentally facehooffing having not even thought to use them) before he finally placed the magic-restraining ring on her horn and stripped her of her crown.

A hoof placed on the back of her head was the last thing Cadence felt before her face was shoved into the chariot`s floor-fabric.

. . .

August 5, 2558

2310 hours

Canterlot

The Royal Castle Throne Room

In front of Twilight lay the sight of all Equestrian royalty on their knees, their forehooves glued behind their backs with some sticky, green goo and magic-restraining rings on their horns.

Before she could react, she was grabbed from behind and shoved to the ground by one of her royal guards.

“Twily! Nooo!” cried her older brother, who could only watch helplessly as the guard materialized into the changeling he was and restrained her hooves and wings with goo.

The other guard that was behind Twilight shape-shifted into the changelings` squad leader.

“Where is the human?!” he demanded as he walked up to the changelings standing by the sun princess.

“We don’t know commander,” one of them responded. “When we jumped Celestia, he was standing right next to her; but then when we had her on the ground, he was nowhere to be seen.”

“Gaaahh!” exclaimed the squad leader in frustration. “What will I ever do with you bums?!”

In desperation, Twilight`s horn began to glow as she tried using her magic to do something, anything, before yelping as the changeling soldier standing over shoved her head, face-first, onto the scarlet-colored floor carpet.

Her horn still glowing, the changeling said, “Don’t you dare! If you do anything with your magic, we`ll randomly vaporize one of your royal friends!”

The glow of Twilight`s horn faded, and the shape-shifter placed a ring on it.

“Good girl,” he said before lifting her to her knees, tears streaming down her face.

“I'm sorry princess,” she sobbed.

“It`s okay Twilight,” said Celestia, sympathizing with the lavender alicorn, even though they both knew it wasn’t.

All the while, Captain Lasky was in fact hiding right behind the throne itself. He concealed himself there when he and the princess were ambushed. He mentally thanked fate that these changelings weren't bright enough to search the room for him. Lasky was outnumbered, and out gunned; the changelings were ten soldiers strong, and wielding spears that could incinerate anything in the room, while all he had on his person was his M6H, which he now had armed in his right hand.

He needed backup, and fast.

He brought his wrist communicator to his mouth and whispered, “Fireteam Icebreaker! Come in Icebreaker!”

. . .

August 5, 2558

2312 hours

Canterlot

Halfway Between the Castle and the Party

“Fireteam Icebreaker! Come in Icebreaker!”

“Captain?” said Alvarez. “Is that you? And why are you whispering?”

“The changelings have infiltrated the city and have all Equestrian Royalty at gunpoint in the throne room! Get over here now! I'll contact Spartan Palmer to send additional support, hurry!”

The Gunnery Sergeant looked to his men and asked if they all got that message via their own helmet mikes. When they all nodded their heads, all six men immediately turned around and began their sprint back towards the Castle.

. . .

Meanwhile, back in the throne room, the situation was deteriorating quickly.

“Sir? Why are we doing this now?” asked one of the changeling soldiers. “I thought we were supposed to wait until the main forces got closer.”

“Well, I've decided to change the plan,” the commander responded. “By killing off all Equestrian leaders, we`ll throw Equestria into complete anarchy! By the time the main forces get here, Equestria will be in complete chaos, and takeover will be a breeze.”

“We`ll be heroes!” exclaimed the insubordinate.

“Precisely! The changeling empire will idolize us for its victory!” said the commander as he walked up to Celestia and placed the tip of his spear on her nose. “And now, such fame is but seconds away.”

BANG!

A bullet hit the commander right between the eyes; his head snapped back as green blood splattered onto the changelings behind him.

All at once, things went into slow-motion as his stunned comrades and their royal hostages watched as his body fell to the ground; Princess Celestia looked behind her to see that Lasky had broken his cover from behind the throne, the barrel of his weapon smoking.

Both Cadence and Twilight squealed in absolute shock as the doors of the throne room opened to reveal Fireteam Icebreaker with their M6Hs drawn level, PFC Ogden spearheading their breach.

“Targets front! Targets front!” he barked.

When Jenkins spoke, the changeling insubordinate that the commander had been talking to immediately spun to face the human with his spear; in response, the PFC shot him in the face without hesitation.

Each man in the Fireteam managed to headshot one changeling in the room (gunny managed to kill the one holding Twilight) before three Spartan IVs burst through the stained glass window right next to Twilight.

It seemed as if the changeling soldiers were done for, when something completely unexpected happened.

As the Spartans landed around Twilight, they were all hit by the fiery projectiles fired from the changelings` spears. When their shots made contact with their shields, they began to glow bright green.

Then, all at once, all three Spartans vaporized into thin air, their weapons clattering to the floor.

While every pony and live changeling had expected this, every human was utterly dumbfounded.

While they were stunned, the changelings then pointed their spears at the marines and fired.

But this time, to everyone`s surprise, when the marines were hit in their abdomens, their armor actually absorbed the projectiles and then blew them off their feet a few meters back. The breath may have been knocked out of them, but they were still alive.

When Alvarez became the only marine left standing, he immediately shook himself out of his trance and went to work.

“What the fuck is going on?!” he yelled as he and Lasky shot the final three changelings to death.

Author`s Note: And on that bombshell, I give you chapter 9! Hope you enjoyed my little (gigantic) plot twist!

Chapter 10: A Strange Day

Chapter 10: A Strange Day

August 5, 2558

2330 hours

Canterlot

The Royal Castle Throne Room

“Owww…” groaned Ogden as he lay dazed on the floor. “What just happened?”

“I dunno Jenkins,” said Gunnery Sergeant Alvarez solemnly. “First we land on a planet filled with talking ponies, then find that they need our help, and now three Spartan-IVs just got vaporized before our very eyes!”

“B-but, but*cough*,” stuttered Private Eugene Phillips. “Spartans don’t die! I-I thought that…*cough* ju-Spartans don’t fucking die goddammit!”

“Oh god*cough*,” said Sergeant Alex Thompson. “Shifty, lets just get something straight here. Now I know you’ve grown up to be brainwashed into thinking Spartans are invincible, but heres the thing: Spartans die. They do, alright?! They aren’t completely invulnerable! But they only die physically. When people say that ‘Spartans don’t die,’ they mean that their legacy lives on, that they`re never forgotten.”

“Oh,” Shifty responded nonchalantly. “That makes a lot more sense.”

“But how this happened remains a mystery,” said Captain Lasky as he walked away from the throne towards the Spartans` remains, pointing his pistol at the glowing green ashes. “We need to get Infinity Science on this right away. For now, get these ponies untied Icebreaker.”

“You mean unglued sir?” said Alvarez.

“Yeah.”

Gunny pulled out his combat knife. “Aye, aye, sir,” he said.

He walked over to unglue Twilight as the rest of his marines went to unglue the others. All the while Captain Lasky was radioing the Infinity to send down Dr. Halsey and Dr. Glassman.

“How?” Twilight nearly whispered as she stared at the body of the dead changeling behind her.

“Excuse me?” said gunny.

“How could you? How can you just effortlessly end a life without thinking?”

“Cause weve been doing this for a long time sweetheart,” said Sergeant Thompson as he cut the green goo binding Celestia`s front hooves and began working on freeing her wings. The marines all chuckling in agreement.

“Yeah,” said gunny as he got behind Twilight and started cutting her front hooves free. “All our lives we`ve been shooting at and killing alien life forms. These guys were no different to us.”

“What were these things anyway?” asked PFC Jenkins as he finished freeing Cadence and Shining Armor.

“They call them changelings,” said Lasky.

“Oh! These are the changelings that every pony out there was talking about,” said Shifty. “Wait, but how`d you know that sir?”

“Private, what did you think I was doing this whole time up here in the Princesses` palace?” the Captain responded. “Don’t answer that.”

All the humans exchanged whole-hearted laughter, Celestia and Luna both blushing, while Twilight remained silent, deep in scolding thought.

They just killed ten living things, thought Twilight. And they`re laughing. Laughing as if something so tragic never happened.

She then looked down at the dead and bleeding bodies of the changeling soldiers, the stench of their rotting flesh beginning to surface.

Its as if they had never lived at all. I know I should be grateful to them for saving my life, but still…it just seems wrong; it just doesn’t feel right to me that theyre acting this way.

She then looked back up to the humans and noticed something.

“Wait!” she said, now relieved of any green goo restraining her limbs. “I remember now! I have seen your species before!”

“What?!” said all seven humans in unified response to her claim.

She had, in fact, seen humans before, in her quest to find and take back her crown from Sunset Shimmer.

The lavender alicorn now knew why she hadn’t recognized the human species before: they simply looked different. The humans she had encountered at Canterlot High School were young, skinny adolescents, most of them female; on top of that, their skin color varied through virtually every color of the rainbow, their hair more elongated and fashioned. These humans were mostly male adult soldiers covered in combat gear and armor, their hair in crew cuts. They were also more muscular than the Canterlot High teenagers, and their skin color only varied through black, white, and various shades of brown with the occasional red.

“Uh, marines?” said Lasky. “I think youd better head back to the party; youve earned it.”

“Aye, aye, sir,” said gunny. “Come on men. Good work.”

“Also, while youre there, spread the word about this. All marines need to be notified right away: theyre going to the front lines now, not the Spartans.”

“You got it sir.”

As they left, Lasky radioed for a pelican from the Infinity.

“Its already been too long,” he said. “Three of my Spartans are dead and FLEETCOM still has yet to be informed of this planets existence. Also, I'm not sure if I can convince them on my own to let me utilize any military force on this planet.”

“So, how do you plan to convince them?” asked Luna.

“Well, I'm going to need all of you with me talking to them as well.”

“You want us to go up there?!” asked Cadence incredulously.

“I can only radio them from my ship; so yes, you`re going up there.”

“Oh boy,” said Shining Armor. “Here we go.”

. . .

August 5, 2558

2342 hours

Canterlot Square

As Icebreaker reentered the party, it seemed crystal clear to them that it would continue on well after midnight. The music was still just as loud and the partiers were still just as lively as ever before.

The six-man Fireteam broke up once again, and Ogden decided to revisit the table where he thought Rainbow Dash would still be sitting at. When he found that she wasn’t there, he resolved to just go and sit at the bar, order a few drinks of cider maybe, for he was far too tired to go looking for her. Fortunately for him, he wouldn’t need to, for Rainbow Dash had already beaten him there.

“Hey there,” said Ogden as he sat down on the stool next to the one she was sitting on.

“Hey,” she responded with but a cursory glance in his direction. “Did Twilight make it safely to the castle? Like I already don’t know the answer.”

Realizing that she had no idea of what had just happened up there, Jenkins decided to change the subject while putting her mind to ease.

“Oh yeah. Don’t worry, she made it,” he said back. “Uh, how`s the cider?”

“Strong as ever,” she responded before taking a sip of her glass, grimacing as she struggled to swallow. “Ugh, how is it so easy for you to just scarf this stuff down?!”

“I dunno. Evolution?” he said as the bartender passed him another bottle of the strong cider.

As he opened the bottle, two male pegasi walked up to the cyan mare from behind. One was covered in a brown coat with a dumbbell cutie mark while the other had a tan coat showcasing a cutie mark of three basketballs.

“Well, well, well, look who we have here,” said the brown one.

“Oh Celestia no,” groaned Rainbow.

“Flirting with a human Rainbow Crash?” joked the other before they both burst into a bullying laughter.

Rainbow could only hang her head and ears as she let bullies harass her. Meanwhile, Jenkins faced towards the front of the bar, pretending not to listen.

“Hey bartender,” he said. “Get me a glass.”

As the bartender passed it to him, the brown-coated pegasus trotted up next to him, between him and Rainbow.

“Who is this human anyway?” scoffed the stallion. “Interact with your own kind, alien.”

Ogden casually poured some of the cider from his bottle into the glass.

“Hey?!” continued the pegasus as he thumped an arm down onto the bar table in front of the marine. “Didn’t you hear me? Get off my seat.”

The marine then firmly pushed him a few inches back, holding his hand on the stallion`s chest and then looking up to his face.

“Hold your horses,” Jenkins said. “I'll get up.”

“Horse?!” exclaimed the pegasus as Jenkins began to drink the cider from his glass. “For your information, alien, I'm a pony.”

At the word alien, Jenkins accelerated his drinking and in half a second the cider was gone from the glass. Then at the word pony he stood up and smashed the now empty glass against the brown stallion`s temple.

It had all happened in a flash, and now Jenkins stood towering above the once pompous now bleeding and groaning pegasus; his tan-coated partner having stepped back in shock, the look on his face matched only by that of Rainbow`s (and everypony watching as well).

“Her name,” said the PFC slowly. “Is Rainbow Dash. And you will NOT, speak to either me or her in that way do you understand?”

“Okay! Okay!” pleaded the brown one, continuing to hold a hoof to his head as he backed away on the floor and began to stand.

Once he was up, Jenkins got right up into the stallions` face.

“I suggest you show a little more respect next time. We`re here to save your asses, so the least you can do is be a little more grateful! Understand?!”

“Y-yes! Yes! Okay!” stuttered the bleeding stallion.

“Just leave us alone!” said his buddy before they both ran away through the crowd.

As Jenkins sat back down, Rainbow finally managed to shake her trance and speak.

“Wow,” she said. “Noponys ever stood up for me like that. In fact I don’t think anyponys ever stood up to those two before!”

She then stared at the drink in her hoof and consumed it like a shot of beer.

Wiping her mouth, and with a drunken smile, she said, “Thank you.”

“Yeah,” said the bartender. “Though that was kind of violent, I like what you did human. You`re the first I've ever seen stand up to those two.”

“Oh don’t mention it guys,” said Ogden. “I hate bullies, and there were a lot where I grew up.”

“You poor thing,” Rainbow slurred slightly. “But you know, you're a pretty cool guy, Ogden. I like you.”

“Aw, you don't mean that,” Jenkins replied, a faint shade of red coming to his cheeks.

“No, I do. You're really cool,” Dash reaffirmed, making sure the PFC got it this time.

“Thanks, that means a lot coming from you.”

“Of course it does! I`m the coolest pony in Ponyville, after all,” the Pegasus boasted once more.

“Yeah, uh, you said that already.”

“You know what? Why don’t you rest at my place tonight?”

Now recognizing her new demeanor, Ogden turned his head to look straight into her eyes.

“Are you drunk?” he asked.

“Well yeah,” she responded, well, drunkenly. “Didn’t you know this stuff made us tipsy all the time?”

“I should probably walk you home, then. Just in case.”

“Hah, you think I walk home?” she said as she flared her wings.

“Wait, what? Where`s your house?”

“It`s a cloud-house. Only pegasi like me can get there.”

“So, you want me to ride on your back?”

“Uh-huh.”

“But you`re drunk.”

“So?! Theres nothin I can run into in thair, and I aint that impaired.”

“You`d better hope so, you and me both actually.”

“Cmon, its gettin` late.”

Rainbow hopped off her seat at the bar and began her long trek to the party exit, stumbling drunkenly back and forth as she slowly made her way. Jenkins got off his own stool and walked after her. Once he had caught up he tried to keep her trotting in as much of a straight line as possible. All the while he wondered how non-alcoholic cider could intoxicate any living thing this much.

Once out, Rainbow spread her wings and beckoned for Ogden to climb aboard. Once on, he proceeded to cross himself and then bend down and hug her neck tightly.

“All good back here,” he said as he patted her side.

“O-kay, here we go!”

With one, big flap of her powerful wings, she took to the air, flying near mach-1. Ogden had to duck his head down to keep the wind and G-forces from tearing his face off. He kept his helmet on his head with one hand while holding onto the rainbow-maned pegasus with the other.

“Hah HAAA!!! THIS IS UNREAL!!!!!” yelled the young marine happily over the roar of the planet`s atmosphere rushing past his ears as he and the young mare rocketed toward Cloudsdale.

. . .

August 5, 2558

2350 hours

The UNSC Infinity

Aboard the Infinity, all Canterlot royalty marveled at all the advanced technology that surrounded them, particularly the young, lavender alicorn, whose scientific origins were putting her in seventh-heaven right now.

“This technology is amazing!” she exclaimed. “And I see how it works now: because you don’t have magic, you used electricity instead! However, I find it unbelievable that you could go farther with electricity that we could go with magic.”

“Well, you see,” said Lasky. “And me and Celestia have been over this, correct me if I'm wrong, but due to relativity, our species has existed longer than yours. Therefore, we had the time to do all this.”

“Ah,” said Twilight in understanding.

“So you said you’ve seen humans before. How?”

“Well,” started Twilight before speaking of her journey through the mirror.

“Wow. That is just incredible,” said Lasky. “But why would there be humans, or at least humanoids, beyond the portal?”

“Beats me,” Twilight responded. “It must have been a sign.”

“Maybe,” said Thomas as they entered through the doors to the bridge.

“Captain on deck!” barked a naval officer before everyone in the room stopped what they were doing to stand up and salute their ship commander. They all then briefly looked strangely at the entering group of equines following their Captain before his signal of “at ease” sat them all back down to continue their work.

“Well here we are,” said the Captain to everypony as they walked to the front of the room, where a large window lay between them and the endless vacuum beyond. “This is the bridge, where I command everything that goes on both in and outside the ship.”

As he spoke, Roland`s hologram appeared above the turquoise-blue hologram table just behind the group.

“Ah,” said Lasky. “Everypony, this is Roland, the ship`s artificial intelligence program, or A.I. for short.”

“Pleasure to mee-” he started before giving a confused look. “Wait, sir? Did you just say everypony?”

“Well, yeah,” said Thomas as he gestured to the equines behind him.

“Uhhhhmmmmmm…Oh, kay? Pleasure to meet you all,” he said, before turning his attention back to Lasky. “Captain, Admiral Osmond from FLEETCOM is on the line.”

“Oh really? I was just about to call her myself; I guess it has been too long. Put her through, Roland.”

“Yes Captain.”

As Lasky turned to the window, straightening his shirt collar, it doubled up into its own TV screen as the symbol of the UNSC appeared in the center. The image then melted away digitally to reveal a woman in her early thirties sitting at a desk in an office of some kind. This was Admiral Osmond, and she was not happy.

“Captain Thomas Lasky!” said Osmond on screen. “I have been trying to reach you fo– what the hell are those things behind you?! What have you been keeping from me Captain?!”

“Kind of pushy isn’t she?” said Celestia as Twilight hid behind her.

“Oh yes,” said Lasky.

“Wait, what? D-did it just speak?” said the surprised Admiral. “And did you just respond to it?!”

“Maam, I know this must be coming as quite a shock to you,” Lasky responded. “Everything will be explained in due time. I realize that I've kept quiet for a time longer than what was expected of me and kept a lot of information from you, and I apologize for that. But right now I need to explain myself; thats why you called isn’t it?”

“Very well,” said Osmond, still clearly in a slight state of shock at the talking creatures on her screen as she shakily sat back in her chair. “The floor is yours, but I'd like you to start by telling me what in the universe these creatures are.”

“Yes maam, let me introduce you to Princess Celestia, Princess Luna, Princess Cadence and her husband Prince Shining Armor, and Princess Twilight Sparkle,” he pointed to each royal equine as he listed their names. “They are all alicorns, except for Shining Armor, hes a unicorn. They are all the royal monarchs who rule over their country, ironically named Equestria.”

“Oh my.”

“I know this is a lot to take in maam,” said Lasky. “But don’t worry, its been a weird day for all of us.”

“Well alright, I guess we`ve all seen our fair share of aliens.”

“I agree ma`am.”

“But what about the forerunner artifacts? What about the mission?”

“Well, we warped to this planet because the Janus Key identified six forerunner artifacts on it.”

“Yes, I was informed of that. I'd like to hear more about them.”

“Yes maam. They call them the ‘Elements of Harmony,’ and the good news is that theyve agreed to share them with us. However, before they do so, we have to do them a small favor.”

“What kind of favor?”

“Princess?” said Lasky as he stepped aside to allow Celestia the floor. “Would you please?”

. . .

As Rainbow stumbled towards her bed, Ogden followed close behind, still reeling from his ride up here.

“That was amazing,” he exclaimed as he took off his helmet, revealing his black hair. “You ponies are all just…amazing! Really, you are!”

“Thanks,” said Rainbow, putting her bedcovers over herself before beckoning for the marine to follow. “C`mon in.”

Jenkins immediately started backing away, once again realizing just how drunk the cyan pegasus was.

“Oh no, I can`t,” he said.

“Why not?” asked Rainbow playfully.

“Well, I can, but I, just, thought I'd sleep on the floor tonight.”

“Oh come on now!” she laughed. “You`re hurting my feelings.”

Realizing that she most likely wasn’t going to give in, Ogden decided to give her what she wanted.

“*sigh*Okay,” he said as he reluctantly walked up to the bed. “If you say so.”

. . .

Captain Thomas Lasky exited the bridge through its electronic sliding doors with an enthusiastic fist-pump.

“Yes! Score!” he almost shouted. “I now have full military jurisdiction in Equestria, time to do whatever it takes to protect this place from the changelings. Thank you all so much for talking to her; you did great!”

“’Twas no problem at all,” said Luna.

“I'm actually quite surprised that Osmond was so lenient about my losing three of my Spartain IVs,” said Lasky. “Maybe what happened on Requiem made this look like a smaller mishap.”

“So what`s your plan?” asked Celestia.

“Well, first things first,” started Lasky. “Since I can`t use Spartans anymore, I'll have to resort to using only my marines. I'll have Castle Company be on 24/7 guard of Canterlot along with your royal guard, Shadow Company on the front lines 24/7, and Gypsy Company split half-and-half: part-time guarding Cloudsdale and Ponyville, and part-time on the front lines.”

“Sounds like a plan,” said Shining Armor.

“But before I send any marines out to fight, they need to be trained.”

“Trained? What do you mean?” asked Twilight. “Haven’t they already been trained and combat experienced?”

“Yes, but they still need to get used to this planets gravity. I've noticed that its slightly less than our norm and needs a little more getting used to. I'll have my men run a few combat training exercises against each other, so they can get used to fighting under this planet`s conditions.”

“But where exactly?”

“Well, before we were ambushed, Celestia and I were talking about what you call the ‘Everfree Forest’ near Ponyville. Apparently you`re all scared of it because the plants grow all on their own, the animals care for themselves all on their own, and the clouds move, all on their own.”

“Well yeah, most ponies are going to be scared of that because that`s just not natural around here. In Equestrian borders, excluding the Everfree Forest of course, plants don’t grow unless earthponies water them, clouds are moved around by weatherponies, and, at least in Ponyville, Fluttershy has to take care of all the animals.”

“Wait, so you`re saying that outside of Equestria, things thrive independently as well? Similar to the Everfree Forest?”

“Yes.”

“Okay then. Well, heres the thing. Where humans come from, places like the Everfree Forest are natural. The clouds that move on their own water the plants which then grow on their own. Those plants are then eaten by the animals themselves. Its all its own cycle.”

“Wow. You humans really are the warriors we need.”

“You said it sister. Also, my men only know how to fight humanoid alien species as well as other humans. They also need to learn how to fight equines, or an equinoid species if you will. From what I've seen, that`s what these changelings are aren’t they? Equinoid?”

“You hold a valid point,” said Luna. “What are you proposing?”

“Well, these changelings are basically equines with spears aren’t they?”

“Correct.”

“So I thought, well, aren’t your royal guards equines with spears as well?”

“Ah.”

“Exactly, so I'd like your permission to allow my marines to train with your royal guards in hand-to-hoof combat, so that I can be sure that if they ever get into close quarters with the changelings, that they`ll still be confident enough to take them on.”

“Permission granted,” said the alicorn princesses of the sun and moon in unison.

. . .

August 6, 2558

0050 hours

Canterlot

The Royal Castle Throne Room

Captain Lasky had finally come back down from the ship to see what Infinity Science had come up with regarding the Spartan`s greater vulnerability than that of the marines.

By the time he had reached the place, there were already about a dozen scientists in white lab coats analyzing the scene, utilizing all sorts of different gadgets and gismos, the radiation detection equipment being amongst the many. Dr. Catherine Halsey and Dr. Henry Glassman were among the scientists, both hard at work analyzing the still glowing green ashes of the three super soldiers that once were.

“Sorry for keeping you all up so late,” was the first thing to exit Laskys mouth as he walked in through the throne rooms two massive double doors, the princesses trailing behind.

“Oh it`s no problem, sir,” said Dr. Glassman. “All our internal alarm clocks were screwed up from the start anyway. Although, *yawn*it is pretty dark out.”

“Have you reached a verdict?” asked Lasky.

“Yes sir. I think we`ve figured it out. Care to explain Halsey?”

“Well,” started the elderly scientist. “Our radiation equipment seems to have picked up some sort of ambient or radiant energy left over from the attack; I can only guess, as much as I hate to admit it, that this energy is some sort of magic. I'm sure one of the Captains pony friends can attest to this. Moving on, the Spartans must have been affected by this magic because their energy shields were also a fine source of a similar radiant energy which then mixed well with the changelings projectiles. This leads me to assume that, since the magic is under the changelingscontrol and the changelings wanted the Spartans dead, well, lets just say the magic had no choice but to give the changelings what they wanted. The marines however, have no recumbent or ambient energy of the kind that this projectile can affect to cause this Vaporization, because, unlike the Spartans, their armor isn't powered by any energy; it's just plain Kevlar armor with crystal coated and imbedded Titanium. This means that the marines had armor that not only deflected the magic, but also dispersed the searing heat of the fireball that would have otherwise burnt them to a crisp had the projectile made contact with bare skin. I'm sure that ODSTs, with their similar armor, will also have similar resistance.”

“This is a lot of useful information Halsey,” said Lasky, kneeling down next to the ashes. “Good work team. Why don’t you all go get some rest back on the ship? You`ve earned it."

. . .

August 6, 2558

0600 hours

575 miles southwest of Equestrian borders

The Changeling Grand Palace

“My queen,” said General Hives as his leader groggily sat up in her bed. “Sorry to wake you so early.”

“What is it Hives?” said Chrysalis as she rubbed her eyes. “What could it be that is so important as to interrupt my beauty sleep?”

“We have lost contact with our spies.”

“What?! How?!”

“I don’t know, your highness, but before they went they gave me information that is all that we`ll ever need.”

“What?”

“They told me the plan is falling into place. Our approaching troops are serving as the perfect distraction. The foolish equines and their ally have no idea that–”

“Wait,” Chrysalis cut off. “What ally?”

“Some alien species my queen. They said that the ponies called them humans, but our spies informed me that they shouldn’t be a challenge.”

“Very well, continue.”

“As I was saying, your majesty, the foolish equines have no idea that they currently have more than one enemy.”

Chapter 11: Dreams and Nightmares

Chapter 11: Dreams and Nightmares

August 6, 2558

0730 hours

Canterlot Castle

Princess Luna`s Bedroom

Luna stood on the balcony just outside her private quarters, staring up at the behemoth of a floating vessel that was the UNSC Infinity hovering just above the outskirts of Ponyville.

“What is your story?” she wondered aloud to nopony in particular, before trotting back inside, closing the doors, and finally resting her legs by sitting down on her haunches.

She closed her eyes, and her horn began to glow its shade of sapphire.

. . .

October 20, 2552

2210 hours

Earth

Africa

Kenya

New Mombasa streets

Upon entering the dream of Gunnery Sergeant David Alvarez, the human that had saved her life, Luna found herself standing in what appeared to be a human city. Apart from the burning buildings in the distance, this section of the city seemed calm and peaceful.

For the most part at least.

Suddenly, a large, blue and purple aircraft emanating an eerie hovering sound flew overhead; a spotlight coming off of it, searching, searching for any signs of human resistance.

At that moment, Luna felt something. She knew this feeling all too well; it was what told her the location of the dreamer every time she entered a dream. But something wasn’t right. For some reason she sensed his presence above her.

“That does not make sense,” said the midnight blue alicorn to herself. “Humans cannot fly.”

She took to the air regardless; quieter than the breeze was her takeoff, all the while looking for Alvarez.

Finally her eyes came to rest on what looked like some kind of pod large enough to fit one human, lodged into the side of one of the buildings. Hovering just beside it with her wings, she peeked inside to discover a human soldier sitting unconscious within. Though he was wearing a helmet with a visor that obscured his entire face, Luna knew that this had to be him.

Suddenly, he began to move. As soon as he did so, Luna instinctively flew to a hovering position just above the pod to avoid being seen.

Inside, he began to speak.

“Ah fuck,” he began. “Its dark out! I mustve been knocked unconscious for a few hours.”

Though he was inside the pod, Luna could hear every word crystal clear, as this was somepony else`s dream that she had entered, her mind could hear every thought of the dreamer.

“I gotta get outta this thing ASAP,” he said before punching four green buttons.

Suddenly, the front end of the pod burst off and clattered to the ground nearly one-hundred feet below. Holstering his silenced M6C sidearm and grabbing his silenced M7 submachine gun, he jumped out. Seconds later he landed with an audible thud and yelp of pain.

Concerned for him, Luna quietly descended to aching human, activating an invisibility spell on her way down.

“Ooowwwwww…” he groaned before looking around; his eyes finally landing on a pair of medpacks on the other side of the street. “Medpacks…gotta fix myself up quick.”

He stumbled over to them, grunting against the pain the entire agonizing way. Once there, he picked one of them up, the machine beginning an automated advertisement as he did so.

“Fast, accurate diagnosis,” It said in its computer-like voice. “Or your money back.”

“ONI covered up the majority of my identity and faked the rest for this shit?” said David to no one in particular, seeming to ignore the machine as he treated himself back to health. “Somehow I was born on Luna now, Earths moon instead of Earth itself for gods sake!”

They call their moon Luna? Thought Luna. Interesting.

“And apparently my names John Doe now,” said the ODST, now finished healing himself. “Man, I gotta stop complaining; I gotta focus. My squads out there somewhere. Hell, they could all be dead, but I still gotta try.”

He raised his weapon and began to move.

“And something tells me that there`s more to this mission,” he said as he moved into the night. “I hope we weren't just desperate measures…”

Luna looked on until Alvarez had disappeared into the darkness of the city streets, then she deactivated her invisibility spell. She looked on for another moment at the burning city in the distance before activating her horn and disappearing herself as she left David`s dream to enter another.

. . .

April 27, 2526

0034 hours

Circinius IV

3 miles outside of Corbulo Academy of Military Science

It was nighttime again, but this time Luna found herself in the middle of a woodland area that reminded her of the Everfree Forest. She was in a clearing, standing next to some concrete structure. Off in the distance, she heard the roar of some creature followed closely by a distant green light.

Suddenly, she heard voices and saw flashlights coming ever closer at an alarmingly fast rate. She instinctively activated her invisibility spell once again just as four young humans burst into the clearing. They were wearing armor similar to the marines that were currently in Equestria.

The midnight blue alicorn once again felt the presence of the dreamer, this time right in front of her.

One of them had been helping another to walk and was setting him down underneath the structure. Luna walked up to the wounded human and the one kneeling next to him. Upon closer inspection as he pulled his helmet off she found that the wounded one was actually female. She was coughing violently and seemed to be in a lot of pain.

“We`re gunna get you outta here okay?” said the young soldier beside her.

“April! Stun rounds,” said the only other male in the group.

The one named April did as she was told; she got the stun rounds and broke them in half as she walked back to her wounded comrade.

“This will numb the pain,” said April as she poured out the contents of the bullet onto the wounds of her friend. It only seemed to make it worse as the wounded one flinched in agony.

“Hang in there Chyler, c`mon hang in there,” said the male soldier beside the one named Chyler.

After a few moments of the two looking almost lovingly into each other`s eyes, the male reached out to her neck and pulled off a metal object of some kind that looked something like a necklace.

He began to shake his head violently as if he refused to believe something, as if he refused to believe what was happening.

“It`s okay, Tom,” said Chyler.

Realizing who it was next to her, holding her necklace object, tearing up, and shaking his head violently, Luna`s eyes began to tear up as well as she pieced together what was happening.

“I'm sorry,” she croaked.

The young Thomas Lasky barely managed to whisper back his desperate response, “No, please.”

A few moments later, Chyler Silva gave her last breath and grew still.

She was gone.

“Oh Chyler,” sobbed Lasky.

Luna could barely take it anymore, as she was on the verge of tears herself. Knowing that sobbing could give away her position, she covered her mouth and quietly mourned.

Suddenly, Lasky screamed to the heavens, “Chiiiiiiiiiiiiiyleeeeeeeeeeeeerrr!!!”

And then the world around them collapsed.

. . .

August 6, 2558

0800 hours

UNSC Infinity

The Captain`s Quarters

Nearly five miles above Equestria, Captain Thomas Lasky woke with a start and sat upright in his bed. He was in a cold sweat and breathing hard from his memories of that fateful night.

Once he had regained his composure, he moved to the side of his bed and turned on the room lights with a small remote. The resulting light illuminated the once dark room, but just barely. He had set the lights to a dim setting, only enough light to allow him to see his hands. Using said hands, he wiped the sweat off his face and forehead before reaching over to his bedside compartment.

Unlocking it and reaching in, he pulled out a pair of dog tags with Chyler Silva`s name on them.

For the first time in years, a tear ran down his cheek.

“I don’t know how I ended up in this situation,” he said. “But this just got more personal than I ever thought possible. I cant believe I'm saying this, but I cant let these ponies down.”

Author`s Note: This chapter was a request from Brotherbeam. Sorry about this being incredibly short again. I promise the next one will be as long as the previous one. Hope you enjoyed it!

Chapter 12: Training Day (Part 1)

Author`s Note: Hey guys! Just so you know, in this chapter Fireteam Icebreaker is going to change uniforms. Click here to see what theyre going to wear. Up until this point, they had all been wearing Infantry 2. This is what theyre going to change into:

Gunnery Sergeant David “gunny” Alvarez: Infantry 3

Sergeant Alex “sarge” Thompson: Infantry 3

Corporal Marcus Williams: Infantry 3

Private First Class Ogden Jenkins: Communications

Private Oscar “Sidney” Morgan: Infantry 4

Private Eugene “Shifty” Phillips: Infantry 4

In this story, all uniforms have a shoulder knife of some kind fitted on them like Infantry 2, 3, and 4. Also, every helmet in the picture can be fitted with a Hazop mask (this fact will become very important later on in the story!). Hope you enjoy the chapter!

. . .

Chapter 12: Training Day (Part 1)

August 6, 2558

0823 hours

Cloudsdale

Rainbow Dash`s cloud-house

Rainbow Dash awoke to the headache of a hangover. She sat up dizzily and put her head in her hooves.

“Ahhh…” she groaned. “Too much cider. Maybe if I get up, walk arou-”

She froze, for as she moved to exit off her mattress, she felt the slightest tug on her abdomen. Someponys hoof was there, but whos hoof? She lifted the blankets.

It wasn’t a hoof.

It was the arm of some unknown creature with five more little appendages coming off the end of it.

She looked behind her and saw the face of the alien that was holding her.

It began to move.

In shock, she gave a small squeal as she fell off her bed, wings flapping uncontrollably. The alien awoke to her squeal and the sound of her hitting the floor.

Rainbow backed away a little as the extraterrestrial sat up in her bed. It wore some sort of armor, had black mane, and had tan-colored skin. They made eye contact, and instantly the events of the previous day flooded back into their minds.

“That wasn’t a dream?!” the human exclaimed.

“I wasn’t dreaming?” asked Rainbow as though she hadn’t heard the human in front of her.

“Oh my god.”

“Oh my Celestia.”

They made eye contact once more, and Private First Class Ogden Jenkins got off the bed and slowly walked over to the cyan mare. He knelt down to her, and after a few more seconds of looking into her large, magenta eyes, he reached out and gently put a hand on her cheek.

Rainbow shut her eyes and softly gasped at his touch.

“Easy,” said Jenkins soothingly. “I not gunna hurt you.”

He then put his other hand behind her head and brought her in for a hug.

“Sorry for startling you,” he said.

“S`okay,” Rainbow responded as she returned the embrace. “I wasn’t scared though.”

“Sure you weren't,” said the PFC sarcastically.

“I wasn’t!”

“Are you kidding? You should’ve seen the look on your face! It was hilarious!”

The two began laughing jovially as they let go of each other, glad to have their disquieting morning encounter with each other behind them.

“By the way,” started the cyan pegasus, her headache now having been startled out of her. “About that rematch.”

Before the marine could react, she grabbed him by his arms, flew him over onto the bed, and started tickling his neck.

“Ahahahaha-quit it! HeheHAhaha!”

“Oh? Are humans the ticklish kind?” said Rainbow as she continued her torture.

“Hahahokay, alright, that’s it! Game on!” said Jenkins before he quickly turned the tables on his cyan tormenter by grabbing the front of her neck and using his legs to flip the two of them over.

Now Jenkins was on top of her.

“Rainbow, you’re about to learn one of the many things that fingers can be useful for. This one being that they`re good for TICKLING!”

The marine began his torture by attacking her neck, just as she had attacked his.

“Gahahahahaha! Oh Celestehahaha! Stop Stahahap PLEASE!”

“Who`s the ticklish one now?” boasted the PFC as he moved one hand down to her belly.

“No NO nahat there! Anywhere but there!” said the cyan pegasus as she as she rolled over onto her face.

Rainbow was having a wonderful time, despite what she was saying (and the fact that she was losing).

“Do you surrender?” asked Jenkins.

“Never!” shouted Rainbow into her bedcovers.

The human then went for her armpits.

“GAAhahahahokay! Okay! I give, I GIHIHIVE!”

Only then did Jenkins finally stop. He got off of her and lay down next to her. Rainbow brought her face out of her bed covers and laid her cheek on them, now smiling playfully at the human next to her as she audibly breathed in and out, trying to catch her breath. Jenkins smiled back as he felt her breath on his face. He reached over and stroked her rainbow mane.

“You know,” started Jenkins. “You`re the only one of your kind that I've seen with this rainbow-colored hair.”

“It`s called mane,” said Rainbow. “And rainbow-mane is extremely rare.”

“I could imagine. Who were your parents?”

“Oh they both had rainbow-colored mane too,” she said. “It runs in the family, and I really don’t know where it started. I feel its been something thats made my family really unique.”

“Sounds like somepony had a happy childhood,” said Jenkins. “Can`t say the same for myself though.”

“Why not? Didn’t you have nice parents?”

“Not really.”

“Did you even know your parents?” said Dash in sarcastic disbelief.

“Unfortunately yes.”

“What d`ya mean?”

“Well, just my father mostly. You see, my mom died giving birth to me.”

“*gasp*”

“I know, and as a result it was pretty rough growing up, as you could probably imagine.”

“Why? Didn’t he try to take care of you?”

“Oh absolutely, it`s just that, he was a bit of a jerk. Okay, a lot a bit.”

“What?”

“It must have been the death of his wife that had gotten him so naturally riled up. I'm pretty sure he blamed me for her passing, and he wasn’t gunna blame himself. By the time I'd turned 17 I had grown so sick of the guy that I couldn’t have been happier when I was forced to enlist into the UNSC.”

"Why were you forced?”

“Obviously because of my father…partially. ‘Why don’t you join with me?!’ I asked,” Jenkins made a grumpy face, and in a gruff, old mans voice said, “‘Cause I'm too old!’ he responded. ‘Ya know theres an age limit! And youre just old enough to sign up!’”

Rainbow giggled slightly at his impression.

The marine returned to his normal voice, “‘Well I was going to enlist anyway! `Cause guess what?’ I said. “I'm too old for your shit!’ and I ran out the door.”

“Wow. You were pretty rebellious.”

“As if you weren't; I can tell.”

“But what was the big rush? Why was there so much urgency to join?”

“Because the Covenant had reached Earth, my homeworld, and people everywhere were enlisting to defend it.”

“Ah, so you had to do it, huh?”

“Yep.”

The two sat in silence for another minute.

“So about your rainbow mane again,” said Ogden. “You said it was rare?”

“Oh yeah,” Dash responded. “I said it`s one of the things that make me feel special.”

“As if you weren't already,” flirted Jenkins. “You know I've also noticed how your ears twitch as they pick up sounds. I think that`s really cute.”

“Thanks,” said the cyan pegasus as she wrapped her hooves around the PFC`s arm, closing the gap between her and her new, interstellar friend.

“Rainbow, I wanna thank you for your hospitality. We may not have a whole lot in common, but you`re real nice for letting me stay anyway.”

“No problem,” said Dash, snuggling a little closer. “No problem at all.”

The two stared at the ceiling in silence for another minute, until a crackle from Jenkins` helmet radio sitting on the nightstand disturbed the stillness.

“…Jenkins, come in…”

“Sorry,” said the marine as he got off the bed. “I gotta get that.”

“What is it?” asked Rainbow.

“Its my squad,” the human responded as he put the helmet on. “Theyre probably wondering where I am.”

“Oh.”

“…Come on marine, answer me…”

Jenkins knew that voice, he`d heard it through helmet microphones long enough to identify it anytime he heard it.

“Go Sergeant.”

“…Goddammit marine! You gave us a scare…”

“Aww, did you actually miss me Sarge?”

“…Shut up Jenkins, and tell us where the hell you are…”

“Is gunny there?”

“…Yeah, and reading you loud and clear…Where are ya?”

“Umm…Hold on,” he turned to the cyan mare. “Rainbow, what`d you call this place again?”

“Cloudsdale.”

“I'm in a floating cloud city called Cloudsdale, sir. One of the equines was kind enough to show it to me.”

“…Ya mean that flying one with the Rainbow-colored hair? Looks like you made things up with her after all…”

“…Shifty, get off the line…”

“…Aye sir…”

“…You too, Sidney…”

“…Aww, c`mon mate…”

“…Sid-ney!...”

“…Aye sir…”

“Sounds like youre all together. I assume the Corporals there too?”

“…Oh damn, you got me…”

“Where are you guys, gunny?”

“…In a pelican, now heading for this cloud city youre in. Weve been looking for you all morning! Since 0600 actually…”

“What for?”

“…Were heading to Ponyville to train with the Princess royal guard…”

“What? Why?”

“…Hell if I know. All I do know is that we`ve gotta head back to the Infinity and change out of these Hazop Uniforms and into our regular infantry uniforms before heading to the training area…”

“Understood sir.”

“…And Jenkins?...”

“Yes, sir?”

“…What were you doing with that pegasus?...”

“Oh, um, well, I uhhh…ahem, what I mean to say is–”

“…Out with it Jenkins! It`s awkward already, so you might as well say it…”

“I slept with her, sir.”

Laughter erupted on the other end.

“Okay, I know what you`re thinking, and in my defense–”

“…Jenkins, I don’t want to know…”

“…Looks like they made up a little more than I thought!...”

“…Shifty? Remember when I told you to stay off the line?...”

“…Yeah?…”

“…Well consider that a standing order…”

“…Aye sir…”

“Well, looks like someone`s pissed this morning.”

“…Please, who doesn’t get a little cranky in the morning? I'll just be happy once you’re on board. I want your things together by the time we arrive…”

“Aye sir.”

Turning off his microphone, Jenkins turned around to face Rainbow.

“Hey Dash? I'm gunna have to leave soo–” Now realizing that the cyan mare was nowhere to be seen, “Dash?”

“In here!” she called from a closet at the end of the room.

“I gotta go soon. My guys are coming to pick me up.”

“Really?” said Rainbow as she came out wearing a blue and yellow colored suit with a pair of goggles strapped to her forehead. “I gotta leave too. How about that?”

“Whoa, where are you going?”

“To Wonderbolt practice.”

“Wonderbolt?”

“The Wonderbolts are only the greatest flyers in all of Equestria,” said Rainbow as she trotted up to Jenkins. “And I recently became one of their Captains!”

“Wow, congrats! You must be quite the athlete.”

The sound of a pelican`s engines came, coming ever closer.

“Oh! Sorry, wish I could stay and chat but,” he leaned down and kissed her on the nose. “Gotta go!”

Dash brought a hoof up to the spot on her nose where Jenkins had just kissed her moments before, watching him as he jogged to the door and leaped into the pelican. As the aircraft pulled away, the marine turned back and gave her a quick, two-fingered salute in her direction. When it had left, Rainbow finally realized that she had been blushing. She gave a sassy smile to herself before flying outside.

. . .

August 6, 2558

0830 hours

Aboard Pelican Delta 337

Five miles outside of Ponyville

Fireteam Icebreaker was strapped in their seats inside their pelican transport, now changed into their regular infantry uniforms. Gunnery Sergeant David Alvarez, Sergeant Alex Thompson, and Corporal Marcus Williams wore the white chest-plates, shoulder pads, leggings, and helmets worn by all Noncommissioned Officers, while Private Oscar Morgan and Private Eugene Phillips bore the grey, green, and tan uniforms of regular infantry. Only PFC Ogden Jenkins stood out among his comrades; he wore a large radio on his back, used for contacting fire support teams in the area, along with grey helmet with a white stripe going down the middle of it. He was the first to break the all encompassing silence that had befallen the inside of the pelican.

“So you guys all slept on the Infinity last night?” asked Jenkins.

“Nah, we were just giving you a hard time,” said Corporal Marcus Williams. “Truth is, we all slept with somepony.”

“Really?”

“Well, all of us except for gunny. He actually was on the Infinity.”

“Okay, so lets go down the line here. Whod each of you sleep with?”

“The one named Rarity invited me into her boutique in Ponyville,” said Corporal Williams.

“Fluttershy brought me to her cottage,” said Sidney.

“Pinkie Pie, god that name is way too cheesy,” said Shifty. “She took me to her home in this bakery called, I think it was ‘Sugar Cube Corner?’ Yeah, that was it.”

“And the orange one named Applejack took me over to her farmhouse over at ‘Sweet Apple Acres,” said Sergeant Alex Thompson. “Was nice to be back on a farm again.”

“So what were you picking on me for Sarge?” asked Jenkins. “You basically did the same thing I did.”

“Yeah I know, I know. Like we said, we were just givin` you a hard time is all. I mean, they were all so drunk! How does non-alcoholic cider make anything so intoxicated?”

“I know right?” said Jenkins before his whole Fireteam joined him in buoyant laughter.

“So the reason gunny`s so pissed is because he had to spend all morning flying this pelican around to pick us all up,” whispered Shifty to Jenkins, as they were strapped in right next to each other. “Also, I think he might have had another dream last night about that drop he made six years ago.”

“New Mombasa?” Jenkins whispered back.

“That`s the one. I'm starting to think that memories like those keep him up at night.”

“How do you think he made it outta there?”

Just then, the two marines suddenly became aware that gunny had heard almost every word. He was strapped in the seat across from them. They looked at him, glanced back at each other for a moment, and then looked back at his face again.

“In a captured phantom,” he said, answering Jenkins` question. “Made it out just before a Covenant assault cruiser glassed the whole damn coastal highway.”

Jenkins and Shifty looked back at each other, and then decided to just shrug it off and continue looking straight ahead.

“Were here,” came the pilots voice over the helmet radios as the pelican`s ramp began to come down.

The sight that greeted them was a large, hilly landscape covered in bright green grass. In the distance ran a modestly large river, Ponyville looming just beyond. In the sky rose Celestia`s bright, yellow sun and, seeming only mere inches away, one could just make out the cluster of clouds known as Cloudsdale. As the pelican touched down, the sight of Gypsy Company, as well as an equally large force of Royal Guardsponies lay before the marines.

As Fireteam Icebreaker dismounted from their pelican, along with a few other fireteams from other pelicans, Gypsy Company Commander Captain Robert Peterson arrived in the passenger seat of a Warthog, which stopped near the edge of the congregation. The Captain Stood up on his seat and faced his marines. From his elevated position, he began his briefing.

“Alright men! Listen Up!” he began in his authoritative voice. “Castle and Shadow Companies are currently training up in Canterlot. Castle has been assigned 24/7 guard duty of the Capital, while Shadow will be on the front line 24/7. As for us, weve been split half-and-half. Only half of our company will be out fighting at a time, the time of which we are not sure of just yet. During this time, the other half will be guarding both Ponyville and Cloudsdale. After todays training, you will find out which platoons will be assigned guard duty, and which will be shipping out, understood?”

“AYE SIR!”

“Good. Now I suppose you`re wondering why you need this training. The reason, is that Captain Lasky wants to make sure that we are comfortable fighting what is known as an Equinoid species, or horse-like species, in what is now about to be known as hand-to-hoof combat. These royal guardsme–er guardsponies, are here to instruct you on how to handle yourself the event that a changeling catches you without a weapon or with just your knife. Listen to what they say, and we can all come out of this a little more confident in our abilities.”

“AYE SIR!”

“Alright, now youll be doing hand-to-hoof combat training until 1300 hours. At that time,” he pointed to the woodland area to the north. “Youll all need to head over to the Everfree forest. Once there, all platoon commanders are to meet me at the tree line for a briefing on the field training exercise that we are going to do there. Everyone understand?”

“AYE SIR!”

“Good. Now get to it marines!” said Captain Peterson before sitting back down in his seat.

“AYE SIR!”

The Warthog then sped off toward the Everfree forest tree line.

“Alright Alpha Platoon!” called Lieutenant Daniel Dietz, who was standing about one-hundred feet away next to a royal guard officer, and an entire platoon of royal guardspony subordinates right behind the two of them. “Fall in around us!”

Alpha gathered in front of the group as Bravo through Delta Platoons did the same in front of other royal guard platoons throughout the field. Lieutenant Dietz was wearing his officer`s cap and had his M6D holstered on his hip.

“Men, today marks the first and last day of your hand-to-hoof combat training,” said the young LT. “So pay attention and learn well.”

“AYE SIR!”

. . .

August 6, 2558

1254 hours

Outskirts of Ponyville

Hand-to-Hoof Combat Training Grounds

“Man!” said Jenkins as he took a moment to catch his breath, beads of sweat visibly rolling down his face. “Hard to believe we`ve been doing this for almost four and a half hours, huh?”

“You think you`ve got this down?” said his unicorn trainer.

“Yeah.”

“Good, `cause here comes your final test.”

Noticing that the unicorn was looking past him, Jenkins looked over his shoulder to see a royal guard sergeant and the Lieutenant Dietz walking over to them. The LT held in his hands a digital clipboard to check off the progress of his marines; due to the look on his face, it seemed that all was going well.

“How`s his progress Corporal?” said the Sergeant.

“Oh it`s great, sir,” said the Corporal. “I have to say, you humans are really fast learners!”

“Good,” said the LT. “Cause the Captain wants us over by the Everfree Forest in–” checking his digital wristwatch, “–literally five minutes! So lets get this examination through with quickly.”

“Alright,” started the sergeant. “Heres what were going to do. In the next five minutes, you will have to perform for us six different takedowns; two with your knife, two with your gun, and two with you bare hands. Got it?”

“Yes sir,” said Jenkins.

“Let`s start with bare hands,” said the Lieutenant.

“Aye, sir.”

“Okay,” started the sergeant. “He tries to buck you in the chest, how do you react?!”

Ogdens royal guard trainer immediately spun one-eighty degrees and let his two hind legs loose, but the PFC had already sidestepped to the right, following up by swiping the unicorns two front hooves out from under him.

“That`s one,” said the royal guard sergeant. “Now if he comes at you with his spear?”

The downed guard got back on his hooves and grabbed his spear that was off to the side and got in a ready stance. He then thrust it forward at Ogdens chest, but the human had sidestepped again, this time to the left. He moved forward past the spearhead and grabbed the unicorns horn and pulled it forward, off-balancing the royal guard. Immediately after, Jenkins used his right leg to trip the unicorn onto the ground and on his back. The marine held him there with a hand clasping his horn to the ground and his right knee on the royal guard`s chest-plate, his left hand raised in a fist, ready to strike if the subdued pony made any sudden move to escape.

It had all happened within mere seconds.

“And thats two,” said the LT. “Well done Private. Now take out your knife. Its time for your two knife takedowns.”

“Wait,” said the sergeant. “What`s that?”

Everyone looked to where the sergeant was pointing, which was at Jenkinshand, currently grasping the unicorns horn. The corporal was apparently trying to cast some magic spell, but Ogden`s hand appeared to be blocking the magical flow through the horn.

“Whoa,” said the LT, who then began to take a quick video of the phenomenon with his digital clipboard. “Now that`s interesting. Let me just save that real quick…there! I'll send that to the Captain later, see if he can get Infinity Science on that. Now pull out your knife Private.”

“Aye, sir,” said the PFC, standing up and pulling his combat knife out of its shoulder harness.

“Okay,” said the sergeant. “He tries whacking you with his spear.”

The royal guard corporal swung his weapon from the right, but Jenkins caught it with his arm before it struck his head. He then quickly pulled on the spear, pulling its royal guard handler with it, as he brought the handle-end of his knife on the spot where the corporals heart would be, due to safety reasons, and thereby avoiding any fatal puncture of the royal guards hide.

“Good, very good,” said the sergeant. “I like you humans; you`re fast, agile, and sharp. Personally, I don’t think the changelings stand a chance.”

“Assuming they even get the chance to stand,” said the LT.

“Hah! Good one.”

“Okay private, on to your next one.”

“Aye sir.”

The guard then came at Jenkins, attempting to stab him in the chest with the spear. Jenkins, with his free left hand, deflected the oncoming spearhead to the right while his opponents momentum continued to force the unfortunate guard forward. Jenkins sidestepped to the left and stopped the royal guard in his tracks by placing the blunt end of the knife blade on his foes neck, covering his throat.

“And that`s a kill,” said Lieutenant Dietz. “Good work, now with a gun. First, your pistol.”

“What do you do in a situation where a changeling is trying to choke you from behind?” said the royal guard sergeant.

Jenkins and his trainer got into position; the royal guard corporal wrapped his two front hooves around the marines neck. Because hooves cant grip each other very easily, it was almost effortless for Jenkins to pull them apart, thus releasing the guards grip on his neck. Ogden then sidestepped to the left and then put his right leg as far between the guards two legs and elbowed the equine to the ground. The marine then pulled his M6D out of its holster as he turned to face his downed opponent. With the royal guard corporal on his back and Jenkins now pointing his pistol at him, the first of Jenkins` two gun-takedowns was complete.

“Okay private,” said the LT. “Well done. Now get your rifle and do one more.”

Jenkins then helped the corporal to his feet before picking up his MA5D assault rifle.

“Now, in this situation,” said LT Dietz. “Youre in close quarters, and just as youre about to round a corner, he grabs your rifle and starts trying to wrestle it out of your hands. What do you do?”

Jenkins then raised his rifle, and then his royal guard trainer came in from his right and grabbed the barrel of the weapon with his two bare hooves. The marine then elbowed the unicorn across the face with his right arm, grabbed his horn yet again with his right hand, and pulled it straight down, thus tripping the equine over the human`s leg and flipping him over onto his back. Jenkins then stepped away from his downed adversary while pointing his rifle at him.

His test was over.

“Well done soldier!” praised Lieutenant Dietz. “You got him off of your weapon, subdued on the ground, and got back to your tool. You made space for your weapon so you could shoot him.”

“Thank you sir,” said Jenkins.

“That technique of making space for your weapon,” said the royal guard sergeant. “Is actually more effective than any other martial arts technique I've ever seen. It`s just so fast and simple.”

“Yeah, well centuries upon centuries of warfare will teach you a thing or two,” said the LT.

“I can see that.”

The LT then regarded his digital wristwatch once again.

“Right on time,” he said before shouting to everyone. “Time! Time! Time! Fall in men! Time to start heading over to the forest!”

“AYE SIR!”

“Alright, let`s move.”

Jenkins, the royal guard sergeant and corporal, and Lieutenant Dietz then began their march towards the Everfree Forest.

“Jenkins, go form up with your squad,” said the LT. “Were going to jog over to the forest. Spread the word that were going to be singing the UNSC marine corps cadence.”

“Aye sir,” said the PFC as he turned and headed back toward the congregation of humans and ponies following close behind.

“And you two,” said Dietz, referring to the guardsmen grunts before him. “You guys should probably head back to your royal guard regiment as well.”

“You got it,” said the sergeant. “C`mon corporal.”

“Yessir,” said the subordinate, following his superior back to their formation like a terrier follows his master.

Chapter 1: Back for Blood

Hey guys! This is just an author`s note. There is a map that my story requires you to refer to throughout my story.

To access this map: Go to http://fc07.deviantart.net/fs71/f/2011/248/b/d/equestria\_and\_beyond\_\_rev\_7\_by\_hlissner-d46wmzm.jpg

Disclaimer: I did NOT make this map. All credit for making this map goes to Deviantart.

.................................................................................................................................................................

Chapter 1: Back for Blood

August 4, 2558

1800 hours

The Scorchedlands (575 miles southwest of Equestrian borders)

The Changeling Grand Palace/Military Training Grounds

Queen Chrysalis sat on her throne. She was silently fuming, her face a contorted screen of rage. It had been almost a year since she and her army were defeated in Canterlot; and she was determined to have her revenge.

They will rue the day… she thought.

Her anger turned to joy however, as her most trusted General trotted through the grand gates into her throne room. He wore a dark purple helmet, a hole through the top to allow his horn to protrude, as well as the flowing dark blue robe used to identify all non-combat officers. He marched about three-fourths of the way between the doors and the Queen`s throne before he stopped, and then spoke.

"My Queen," said the General before bowing to his superior.

"General Hives," said Chrysalis coolly. "What news do you have for me?"

"Our armies are ready your highness," said General Hives. "Just give us the word."

"Excellent!" said the ecstatic monarch. "May I observe?"

"Of course, your highness."

They then proceeded to walk out into a long hallway; making their way to a balcony that overlooked the training grounds. When they reached said balcony, the General was once again the first to speak.

"I trust you will be pleased with our progress my Queen," said Hives smugly as they both looked down upon their troops in training. "Our weaponry has advanced well beyond that of the Equestrian armed forces. Observe our training exercise."

Hives pointed to a changeling trooper in front of three pony combat training mannequins. He was holding a black spear with an emerald green point in his two front hooves, and was standing on his hind legs. Suddenly, the drill instructor used his magic to make the central mannequin bolt forward. In a flash, the changeling spun left and sliced the poor mannequin`s head right off. The instructor then levitated the mannequin that was now in front of the changeling soldier forward. He quickly decapitated his second adversary by performing the same technique as before, but to the right that time. Then, before the instructor could move the third one, the trainee sliced it in two; the head and forelegs on one half, and the hind legs and tail on the other.

"Very impressive dance show General," said a now unimpressed and indignant Chrysalis. "But I see no new weaponry at all! I specifically remember soldiers of Celestia`s Royal Guard wielding spears that look almost exactly like those!"

"Patience my Queen," said the changeling General. "The demonstration is not yet over."

Suddenly, the drill instructor used his magic to levitate over twenty pony mannequins over a hill in an all out charge on the changeling soldier.

"You are about to see, your majesty, that our spears aren`t, exactly like those of the Royal Guard," said Hives.

What happened next caught Chrysalis off guard: the changeling soldier took a knee and held his spear at his waist, the tip pointed directly at the oncoming charge. Then the changeling`s horn and spear began to glow bright green; as he was clearly using his magic to make the spear do something.

What that something was however, would leave the changeling Queen nearly speechless.

The spear`s tip began to not only glow, but shine bright green before a brilliant beam of green-colored energy burst from the tip, incinerating the lead mannequin instantaneously.

Queen Chrysalis could only let her jaw drop as the trainee managed to keep the beam going, aiming it left and right through his crowd of targets; it incinerated every pony mannequin that was unfortunate enough to get caught in its linear maelstrom of burning destruction.

"Theyll never see it coming," General Hives said smugly. "We designed the spear to channel the energy of the users magic into the tip and then amplify its power tenfold. It then holds it there until the user wishes to fire. The magic is under the users control during the whole process; it is the users magic after all. Also, a single beam isnt the only thing that can be fired; the spear can throw anything the users mind can think of: from the single beam you saw, to explosive balls of fire, to even a siphoning beam that can siphon a unicorn`s magic."

"General," Chrysalis began. "If Ive ever told you that youve outdone yourself, I was sadly mistaken. Now, you`ve outdone yourself!"

"Thank you, my Queen."

"You said the troops were ready?"

"Yes, my Queen, they`re right down there actually."

He pointed straight down off the balcony, and when Chrysalis looked, she saw what must have been entire battalions of troops right below her; each and every one of them wielding the same type of spear that was just demonstrated to her.

"How did I not notice them?" said the incredulous monarch.

"First, second, and third divisions are ready for deployment you highness," said Hives. "The amassment of fourth division will soon be complete."

"Outstanding! We will hold the fourth in reserve," said Chrysalis before pointing straight down at the troops below her. "Right now, see to it that they start cutting a path to the north, straight to Equestria!"

"Yes, your highness," said General Hives before he moved to the very edge of the balcony and placed both his front hooves over the railing. The division leaders below saw him and gave crisp salutes.

"Gentlecolts! Preseeeeeeaaant hooves!" commanded each division leader. Immediately, every changeling on the ground put their spears in their left hooves and gave crisp salutes to their General above.

Hives then used his magic to increase the volume of his voice to the point where he was his own loudspeaker.

"Our Queen has given us the word!" he announced before pointing to the northeast. "Move north to Equestria, and obliterate everything that stands in your way! For the Queen!"

"FOR THE QUEEN!" shouted the troops in a powerful battle cry before taking to the sky.

Any ray of the waning sun that wasnt already blocked out by the smoke coming from surrounding volcanoes was almost entirely blocked out by the changelings numbers.

After a minute of watching his troops fly away, General Hives then used his magic to contact the division leaders telepathically.

"All division leaders, report," he said out loud.

"Leader of first is ready to receive orders."

"Leader of second reporting."

"Leader of third hears you loud and clear."

"Gentlecolts," said the general. "Here are your orders: first division is to fly north across the water to Canida; your objective is to capture its capital of Ottapaw. When those dogs surrender, have the entire division occupy the country until further orders arrive. Understood?"

"Yes sir!"

"Second and third, you two are to head east to Boardor. Your job is to capture that territory from the boars; leave two platoons from second behind for the occupation. The rest of you are to then fly north to Canida to regroup with first. Understood?"

"Yes sir!"

On those last set of commands, Queen Chrysalis saw two-thirds of the group break away from the full force, changing their headings eastward.

"And so it begins," she said smugly.

"Even if they do see us coming," said the General after disconnecting with his troops. "Theres no way theyll be able to stop us!"

The two shared a maniacal laugh as they headed back inside.

Disclaimer: Yes, I know the changelings` spears work like the rings of the Green Lantern Corps. I do not own any rights for The Green Lantern, Halo, or My Little Pony Friendship is Magic. Don't forget to comment and favorite! Thanks! :)

Chapter 2: No Other Choice

Chapter 2: No Other Choice

August 5, 2558

0900 hours

Canterlot

The Royal Castle

Princess Celestia sat on her throne, her face calm and relaxed; reflecting the same feelings she had within. Her faithful student, Twilight Sparkle, recently became an alicorn. She was no longer her student, but a fellow princess (put in charge of Ponyville). Overall, Equestria was enjoying an era of peace and prosperity and the light of harmony seemed to hit every corner of this wonderful land.

It would never last.

Celestia was surprised when her sister, Princess Luna, trotted in. Celestia had recently appointed her the commander in chief of all Equestrian military forces across the known world (she was still to take orders from Celestia herself though). The distressed look on her face along with the quickened pace of her trotting told Celestia that she was nervous; and that meant she definitely didn't have good news for her. As Celestia stood, Luna spoke.

"My sister," said Luna as both princesses moved toward each other. "News from Pretuskria."

"Boardor?" asked Celestia. "Whats wrong with them? Nothing those boars cant handle I'm hoping."

"I'm afraid to say that you are mistaken my sister. I recently received this recorded message from the Equestrian embassy there."

Luna`s horn then lit up and her eyes began to glow. She used her magic to darken the room and project a rectangular image on the wall. Suddenly, the image began to move; the message was playing. There was a white unicorn on the screen wearing the silver armor plating of the Royal Equestrian Army, his horn lit with the magic used to send the message; he seemed out of breath and there were burn marks on his face.

Burn marks? Thought the sun princess. What`s going on?

"Princess!" said the stallion on screen. "I don't know if youre receiving this, hell, I don't even know if anypony will ever see this recording, but the changelings are back! They just came straight out of the mountains at 0600, a whole swarm ofem! And thats not the worst part. I don't know how, but theyre shooting at us! I don't know how theyre able to do that but theyre shooting at us! With beams that can incinerate a whole pony and…and balls of fire! They shoot those from above while theyre flying. We can barely get close toem without getting our flanks burned!"

He paused to catch his breath, for he had been rambling with only two.

"We can`t hold out for much longer, and I don't think I can sur-"

He would never finish that thought, as a door opened off-screen and the unicorn`s eyes widened in fear as he looked towards it.

"Gotcha!" said an unknown voice from off-screen before a blast of green energy grazed the stallion`s face.

He fell off-screen screaming in pain.

"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHH! AAAAAHHH! AHHH MY FACE IS BURNING! I CAN FEEL IT MELTING!"

A changeling soldier holding a black spear with a green tip walked into view on his hind legs, laughing at the agony of his newest victim; suddenly, his laughter ceased.

"Hold on, this one`s Equestrian!" said the changeling. "A unicorn huh?"

He looked straight at Celestia.

"And hes sending a message to his people. I suppose it will end when he wants it to…or when hes dead. Listen closely, whoever this is, the changelings are back! And it is us who are dominant above all other species on this earth! We are superior to all! We are the ones meant to rule the world!"

He then moved over to the dying pony at his feet, still writhing in pain.

"See how weak you are…how inferior! Whatever Equestrian is watching this, pray to Celestia, and watch how she will finally fail you. Equestria. Will. FALL!"

And on that last note, he lifted his spear up, and brought the tip down off-screen, presumably into his victim`s head.

Suddenly, the room filled itself with light once again as the message ended, cut short by the sender`s sudden death.

The stunned silence that followed was finally broken by Celestia.

"How long ago did you receive that message?" she asked.

"Around five minutes ago," Luna answered. "I'm guessing that, by now, Pretuskria has fallen and Boardor has surrendered to the changeling army; and by the time we figure out how to make projectile weapons that can match those of the changelings` it will be too late."

"They managed to conquer a city that big in only three hours?!"

"I'm afraid so, my sister."

Celestia began to pace back and forth, trying desperately to think of a solution. Her search seemed to be in vain, when she suddenly looked up at the ceiling with a gasp.

"Yes! Thatll do it! Theres still hope."

"How? I hate to sound so negative my sister but, how is there any hope for Equestria now? What hope could there possibly be?"

"Humans."

Luna`s eyes widened in fear.

"You`re not serious are you?" said Luna incredulously.

"My sister," said Celestia calmly. "We have no other choice if Equestria is to survive."

"No! There`s always a choice!" said Luna as she and her sister took their discussion outside onto a balcony. "Besides, the humans are too dangerous and you know it!"

"True, there are other choices," said Celestia as she looked up at the sky. "Other species that are just as powerful. But of all the most powerful out there, humanity is one of the few that would do anything to protect harmony. I know there is good in them! Plus, we need help now; and, as destiny may have it, the humans are the closest ones to us."

"How close?"

Celestia looked back at her solar counterpart; and as her horn began to glow, she smiled and answered, "They`re already here."

Chapter 3: Six for One?

Chapter 3: Six for One?

August 5, 2558

0900 hours (Equestrian Time)

The Milky Way Galaxy: Cygnus arm

The bridge of the UNSC Infinity

Captain Thomas Lasky had never been so exited in all his life; a rare smile stretched across his face. In his right hand he held the one half of the Librarian`s Janus Key that Spartan Fireteam Majestic had recovered on Requiem; in his left, the other half that Dr. Halsey had just handed to him with her new, prosthetic left arm; she had lost her left arm during the battle that had raged on said planet.

"Uhh…Doc?" said Roland, the ships A.I. "You sure you know what youre doing?"

"Hey, I still don't trust her," said Spartan Commander Sarah Palmer.

"You never trusted me," said Dr. Catherine Halsey. "But I'm afraid that you have no choice but to Spartan, given that I`m the only one in here who actually saw the Librarian use the key."

"Palmer, curiosity may have killed the cat-" Captain Lasky started.

"-and salted the snail," said Roland.

"Thank you Roland," said Lasky, slightly annoyed.

"No problem, sir," said the yellow, WW2 fighter pilot hologram of Roland.

The Captain returned his attention to the Spartan Commander.

"But how would the rest of the cats and snails have learned from their comrade`s mistake?"

"Fine," said an irritated Palmer. "Let`s just get this over with."

"Okay," said Lasky before he looked to Doctor Halsey. "So, how exactly did the Librarian do this?"

"She just," said Halsey before pausing and then clapping her hands together. "Slapped them together."

"Really?" said Lasky in disbelief. "That`s it?"

"They should feel like magnetic puzzle pieces…or something like that."

"Okay," said the Captain before taking a deep breath. "Here goes nothing."

He held the two pieces out in front of him and slowly brought them together. Suddenly, he felt the magnetic attraction between them, and they pulled each other together.

With a metallic *clang* and a small flash of light, the room was instantly filled with a three-dimensional hologram of what seemed like a bunch of floating, blue gyroscopes.

Lasky realized that he had closed his eyes out of fear. He first opened one eye, to see if he was still alive, and then opened the other to find them both greeted with the sight of the bridge full of astonished faces; except for Dr. Halsey, who was looking at the Captain with an amused smile. A moment later, Lasky broke the stunned silence.

"So," said Lasky. "This is the map?"

"Yes," Halsey responded. "This is it. Although I must admit, I'd forgotten how big it was."

"Captain," said Roland. "If the map is too big for you, I can shrink it down if you place it on the hologram table."

Lasky looked at the table in the center of the room; the grid atop it glowing a turquoise blue shade.

"Alright," he said.

As he walked, the entire map moved with him.

"So I guess this explains why I was only seeing half of it," said Dr. Henry Glassman, the Infinity`s Chief Engineer and head scientist as he dodged one of the blue gyroscopes.

"Yeah," Lasky responded as he centered the Janus Key on the grid. "No wonder."

Suddenly, every floating gyroscope on the bridge flew towards the hologram table as Roland condensed the map into a holographic picture of the Milky Way Galaxy.

"There you have it Captain," said Roland. "The locations of every piece of Forerunner tech in the galaxy right in front of you."

"Outstanding Roland," said the Captain, all resentful feelings of the A.I. forgotten. Lasky gazed at the map for a moment before continuing. "How `bout we start small? Roland, locate the nearest artifact to our current location."

"Way ahead of ya boss, I've already located the nearest six artifacts for you."

"Six? That`s a…strange, number to stop at. Zoom in on them."

"Yessir," said Roland as the map began to expand. Since the map was now contained within the hologram table`s borders, anything that passed them was dropped off and no longer displayed.

Roland continued to zoom until only one big gyroscope was displayed on the table.

"All six artifacts are located on this planet, sir," he said.

"Six for one?" said Lasky excitedly. "And this ones close, its still in the Cygnus arm. Take us there, Roland."

"You got it, boss," said Roland as he got on the ship`s main intercom. "Attention all hands, prep for slip-space jump!"

. . .

August 5, 2558

0905 hours (Equestrian Time)

The Milky Way Galaxy: Cygnus arm

1500 miles above Equestria

The bridge of the UNSC Infinity

The Infinity emerged from a blue portal in orbit above a surprisingly Earth-like planet. Although Dr. Glassman wasn`t the first one to notice this fact, no one was surprised that he was the first to mention it.

"By the looks of it sir," said Glassman as he and a few others were looking out the window on the Bridge`s observation deck. "I'd say this planet is eligible to support life."

"Great," said Palmer sarcastically. "More aliens. Just what we need…again."

"You know," started Dr. Halsey. "Due to the sheer mathematical odds, there has to be another species out there that isn't as hostile as the Covenant."

"All we can do is hope that theres at least one on this planet thats a little nicer," said Roland.

"If there are any, we should try contacting them," Lasky declared. "See if they know about the artifacts."

"Umm…sir?" said Roland. "I don't think that will be necessary."

All eyes turned to the A.I.`s yellow, holographic Avatar.

"And why`s that, Roland?" Lasky inquired.

"Because the Infinity appears to be receiving a signal," said Roland, looking around as if there was a fly in the room and he was following it with his eyes, before looking directly at his Captain. "From the planet itself."

Chapter 4: First Contact

Chapter 4: First Contact

August 5, 2558

0905 hours

Canterlot

The Royal Castle

Princess Celestia and her sister Princess Luna stood on a balcony overlooking the palace courtyard. Celestia was looking at the sky, her horn glowing bright yellow, and Luna did NOT seem to like what her sister was doing.

"What are you doing?!" asked Princess Luna. "Don`t contact them!"

"Do you have a better idea?" Celestia retorted.

"We could get the griffons to help us."

"Please, you and I both know that they wouldn't be as much help to us; their weaponry is just as far behind the changelings` as ours is. And griffons aren't very fond of us ponies anyway."

"And both you and I also know how primitive and dangerous humans can be."

Celestia took a deep breath and looked at her sister with a smile.

"I know my sister," said Celestia. "I know how dangerous they can be; I've been observing them for quite some time now, longer than you have I'm sure. I've seen the wars they`ve fought with each other, the kind of evil they were capable of, but most importantly, I've seen the capacity for good in their hearts.

"If there is one thing I have truly seen in humanity, it`s that there will always be humans who fight the right fight and that the good in them always conquers the evil that took up the same space.

"Humans have always been seeking some form of harmony with each other; it`s just that they always seem to go about it in the wrong way. But just the fact that they are, by nature, seeking out harmony, tells me that they would do anything to protect it when they found it."

Before Luna could respond, Celestia suddenly picked up a voice on the other end of her signal.

"This is Captain Thomas Lasky of the UNSC Infinity. We are receiving your signal, if you are hearing this, please respond."

. . .

August 5, 2558

0905 hours (Equestrian Time)

The Milky Way Galaxy: Cygnus arm

1500 miles above Equestria

The bridge of the UNSC Infinity

"So they`re contacting us," said Lasky with subtle astonishment. "Can you put it through, Roland?"

"Yes sir," said Roland.

Lasky walked over to the center of the observation deck and cleared his throat. Though he knew it was unlikely that these aliens spoke English, he didn't know any other options.

"Okay," said Roland. "I think that should do it. Go ahead, Captain."

"This is Captain Thomas Lasky of the UNSC Infinity," he announced."We are receiving your signal, if you are hearing this, please respond."

To everyone`s surprise, not only was there an immediate response, but it was, in fact, spoken in clear English.

"This is Princess Celestia, ruler of Equestria. Our species is in dire need of help from yours."

"Whoa, wait, hold on," said Lasky, quite stunned. "Your species? Where did…how did…whoa!"

"Wow," said an incredulous Roland. "I did not see that coming."

"I know this probably wasn`t what you were expecting, and that your species has serious trust issues, but please, you must trust us. We desperately need your help."

"Who is we?" said Lasky.

"We are a race of intelligent and peaceful equines who inhabit a land of love, happiness, and harmony. My sister and I rule over it. We haven`t fought a war in almost a thousand years and now face a more technologically advanced species that wants nothing more than our slaughter. Please, we need your help! Please help us!"

"The crew of my ship and I came here only to find a number of forerunner artifacts on your planet."

"Forerunner artifacts?"

"Yes, but I suppose your situation is worth looking in to."

There was a moment of silence before the Princess continued, her tone now one of more composure and less desperation.

"Thank you. Come down to the planet surface so we may discuss our negotiation."

"Looking forward to it, ma`am. Lasky out."

"Uhh…Captain?" said Roland as soon as the conversation ceased. "I'm not sure how but, that signal broadcasted this over the intercom and, the entire ship just heard your little tête-à-tête."

"God dammit Roland!" said an irritated Lasky.

"It was the signals fault! I couldn't control it," said Roland, throwing his holographic hands up in innocence. "And look on the bright side, this will save you the speech, wont it?"

The Captain took a deep breath before continuing. "I suppose you`re right. But I'll still have to deal with whatever complaints start coming my way, like a mutiny, hopefully not."

"I'd agree it`s not too likely, sir."

"Yeah, but going back to business now. Roland, I need you to take us down through the atmosphere. Then call in Fireteam Icebreaker and tell them to meet me in hangar bay C. I want a pelican prepped and ready for launch as soon as were below this planets troposphere."

"Yes sir!" said Roland before his avatar disappeared with a crisp salute.

"Wait! Captain," said Palmer. "What about Halsey? I know weve agreed not to kill her, but doesn't FLEETCOM already think shes dead?"

"Probably," said Dr. Halsey.

"Don't worry about her, I`ll handle FLEETCOM," said Lasky. "Right now, it seems that I need to meet with a certain princess."

Chapter 5: First Meetings

Chapter 5: First Meetings

August 5, 2558

0906 hours

Canterlot

The Royal Castle

Luna stared at her sister in utter disbelief for what she had just done. Then she thought for a moment, and then sighed before giving her response.

"Okay, I understand your reasoning, and I agree that we should recruit them." she said. "But you do know youre going to have to tell them that youve been watching them."

"You know as well as I do that that should be the least of our worries," said Celestia. "For one thing, we`ll have to tell the public something about all this."

"Princess!" called a royal guard from within.

Both alicorns looked, and then ran, back inside the throne room to meet him. The guard was sweating profusely and, to their surprise, was holding a newspaper with his magic.

He held it out to his two leaders before speaking.

"This is today`s issue of the Canterlot Times, your highness," he said. "I don't know how the press got a hold of this information but…Oh! Just look at the front page headline!"

Both princesses did so, and what they saw made them gasp inside.

The Changelings Declare War!

Is Equestria Safe? The Destruction of Boardor leaves an uneasy answer to this question.

"How could this happen?!" demanded Celestia.

"I just told you! I don't know!" the guard responded.

"Actually, my sister," Luna interjected. "I should have probably told you this earlier, but the message sent to me from the soldier in Boardor was automatically sent to his family as well."

"What?!" asked Celestia. "Why?"

"I'm not sure, maybe he also wanted to say goodbye to his family, but forgot to in his haste. And also, the family that owns the Canterlot Times was the family of that soldier."

"So that would explain how this information got out so quickly," said the guard. "The crowd is in a frenzy."

"And then there`s that," said Celestia. "What crowd?!"

"Oh yeah, I was going to tell you both about this crowd thats gathered out in front of the palace, but then you two got caught up in your little banter," said the guard as he pointed at the newspaper in his magical grip. "Anyway, theyre all demanding an explanation for this."

"You couldn`t have told her that first?!" Luna yelled at the guard as her sister walked towards the exit. "Tia, what will you do?"

"They deserve to know," declared Celestia. "Plus the best alibi for a massive human ship coming down from space would be that they`ve come here to protect us."

"You know what? That alibi might actually increase public morale!"

"Exactly, so if you`ll excuse me," said Celestia as she exited the throne room through its massive double doors.

The white alicorn moved towards the balcony at the front of the palace to address the crowd. When she reached it, she saw that the looks on everypony`s faces were those of absolute terror.

She then used her magic to increase the volume of her voice so that even the ponies in the far back of the crowd could hear her. She took a deep breath and began her speech.

"My fellow Equestrians," she began. "I'm sure you`ve all heard the news. The changelings have indeed returned and are heading this way."

Celestia felt a knot of guilt form in her stomach as gasps and shrieks pop-corned their way around the crowd.

Nevertheless, she kept her composure, and continued.

"The changelings` weapons technology is far superior to ours and every civilization that stands in their way."

The knot tightened as more ponies began to shriek while others started hugging each other and sobbing into one another`s shoulders.

All the same, she retained her composure and continued further.

"However, there is still hope. My sister and I have recruited a powerful ally to aid us."

At the sound of hope, the mood of the crowd immediately changed: the sobbing and shrieking stopped; everything became eerily silent, as everypony was now eager to hear who this ally was.

"They call themselves humans. They are an alien race that has endured great hardship in the past; a species that always tries to find harmony, but never goes about it in the right way. They know how to fight a war better than we do, and certainly better than the changelings. Their weapons technology can match that of the changeling arsenal. They will save us from the changeling threat, and in return, we will show them the path to true harmony. These humans can be trusted, although it may take time for them to trust you. They are a good species at heart. They deserve our friendship. And thankfully, they have come to us at the best time. Now."

Celestia pointed at the sky behind the crowd, and everypony followed her hoof.

What everypony saw caused more shrieks and apprehensive mumbling to ripple through the crowd.

A giant, blackish grey cylinder hovered eerily, and almost menacingly, above Ponyville. It had a pattern on one end that glowed blue. On its side read the words UNSC INFINITY.

"Do not be alarmed, for that is their spaceship," said Celestia. "As long as you see that ship, we will be safe. Be as hospitable as you can to the humans on board, for they are here to save our lives."

Suddenly, Celestia saw a single, small craft of some sort emerge from the distant ship; it was heading towards Ponyville.

The alicorn princess used her magic to bring her voice back down to its normal volume before saying to herself, "Oh dear, I forgot to tell them where to land!"

. . .

August 5, 2558

0910 hours

Ponyville

The Golden Oaks Library

It was a quiet day in Ponyville. That was, of course, until the news got out that the changelings had returned. The Foal Free Press, no longer just a school newspaper but the newspaper for all of Ponyville, had come out with a story regarding the family that owns the Canterlot Times, saying how their son had sent them a recorded message of his death and of the changeling soldier that condemned Equestria.

Princess Twilight Sparkle was in her library, pacing back and forth. Spike was on her back, holding that very newspaper in his claws, reading and rereading that same article. Neither Twilight nor Spike could believe that any of this was happening.

"How could the changelings be back?" asked the incredulous purple dragon. "I thought they were all destroyed in that magical blast made by your brother and Cadence."

"That wouldn`t nearly be enough to destroy them," said the lavender alicorn. "It was only enough to banish their queen all the way to the Scorched Lands.

"That volcanic area just west of Boardor?" said Spike as he hopped off of Twilight`s back.

"That`s the one."

"Well, that explains how they were able to reach Boardor so quickly."

Spike then headed towards the red door to exit his tree home.

"Oh my Celestia," he said. "I need some air."

At the sound of the sun princess's name, Twilight trotted over to her desk.

"That reminds me," she said. "I should probably inform the princess that I know of this predicament."

"Uhh, that may have to wait," said Spike, now looking up at the sky through the open door. "We`ve got bigger problems than sending a letter."

"But its Princess Celestia were talking about here," said Twilight as the trotted over to the open door. "What could possibly be more important than tha…?"

Twilight trailed off as she looked to the sky. Above Ponyville loomed an object that the lavender unicorn could only describe as some sort of enormous, dark grey, cylindrically shaped rock that could somehow float on its own. She could tell that it wasn`t being lifted by some powerful unicorn because there was no magical aura surrounding it.

"What in Equestria is that?!" Twilight asked, nearly speechless.

"More importantly," said Spike, failing to conceal his fear. "What`s that coming towards us?!"

Twilight suddenly realized, she was so busy looking at the big object, that she didn't notice the smaller one coming off it.

It headed straight for Ponyville.

"Spike, get back inside," said Twilight

"What`re you gunna do?" asked Spike.

"I'm the princess here, I might as well be the first to talk to whatever`s coming down here."

"Twilight, whatever`s coming down could be here to kill you for all you know!"

"If they wanted to destroy ponykind, they`d have come down here with a larger force."

"You don`t know that!"

"Spike, we have to at least try to see if they`re friendly."

"And if they're not?"

"Then I'll think of something. Now get inside!"

Spike reluctantly did so, the alicorn watching him as he closed the door.

A faint humming caught Twilight`s attention, making her turn back around towards the street and look up at the sky. The object had now gotten much closer; she concluded that it must have been some kind of flying, metal aircraft. She saw it turn parallel to the street and swoop to a stop in front of the library, flames jetting out some tubes on the wings and back flaps, scorching the grass under it.

Suddenly, a ramp on the back of the craft dropped and a group of bipedal creatures thundered out, leveling large devices in what must have been hands. Their bodies were a combination of black, dark green, and dark gray. On top were green heads with white faces.

Five of them were in front, kneeling. They had created some kind of semicircle formation around the backside of the craft. Then a sixth one descended from the ramp, holding a much smaller device in one hand, lifting it up, down, left, and right as if trying to get a better look at it in different shades of light.

And then what was most unexpected, was not that Twilight heard the sixth creature speak, but that it spoke in perfect Equestrian.

"Scanning," it said with an accent that reminded Twilight of Rarity. "This atmosphere is 78% nitrogen, 21% oxygen, and 1% water vapor, carbon dioxide, and other trace amounts of gaseous particles."

Then the one closest to Twilight spoke, also in perfect Equestrian.

"Get to the point, corporal," it said, now looking back at the sixth one. Its accent was more like Twilights, apart from the fact that it was masculine. "Whats the verdict?"

"Somehow, the air is perfectly breathable," said the sixth one, the one called Corporal. "We can take our HAZOP masks off."

What happened next made the lavender alicorn shriek inside. All six creatures reached for their faces and pulled them off. She would have shrieked out loud if she hadn`t realized that they were only taking off their masks.

Underneath those masks were their actual faces, made of what seemed to be smooth, rubbery skin, two eyes, a nose, and a mouthful of teeth.

Corporal then turned and looked back inside the craft.

"Captain!" it said, doing what Twilight concluded was beckoning for something inside to come out.

And come out it did. It gave its mask to Corporal as it walked forward. Other than the metal pad on its left shoulder, this one wore only cloth coverings: on his left and right arms were three golden yellow stripes pointing downward with a sunburst star of the same color on top. It had short, brown mane that seemed natural and not cut.

"Thank you, Corporal Williams," said the cloth covered one. "Now let`s figure out where we are."

. . .

August 5, 2558

0914 hours

In the L.Z. on an unknown planet

In the middle of an unknown town

"You know, she never told us where to land," said Private First Class Ogden Jenkins as he handed his mask to Corporal Marcus Williams to stow back inside the Pelican.

"I know, right? Youd think shed be a little more specific," said the corporal as he jogged back inside with all the masks.

"Maybe she`ll come to us," said Sergeant Alex Thompson.

"Yeah right, sarge," said Private Eugene Phillips. "Or maybe she just ain`t thinking today."

"Hey! Lock that tone down, Shifty," said Gunnery Sergeant David Alvarez. "We want to make a good impression on the equines of this planet, and insulting their leader isn`t going to help."

"Aye, aye, gunny," said Shifty.

"Uhh…sir?" said Private Oscar Morgan. "That purple one`s moving toward us."

"We`ve gone over the rules of engagement, Sidney," gunny whispered. "Shoot only if attacked."

Gunny then turned to Captain Laskey.

"Captain?" he said. "What should we do?"

As Laskey walked past the line of marines, he smiled and said, "Ask for directions."

As he approached the horned and winged animal, it was the first to speak.

"Umm…hello," it said in a feminine voice. "My name is Twilight Sparkle, Princess Twilight Sparkle. Welcome to Equestria."

Twilight Sparkle?! thought Laskey. Oh, I'll just ask it later.

It held out a hoof to Laskey, who hesitantly shook it and responded.

"Captain Thomas Laskey of the UNSC Infinity. So you must be the monarch who rules this country," said Laskey. "I'll be frank, I thought you`re tree-house would be more of a palace if you know what I mean."

"Oh! Sorry, there seems to be a misunderstanding," said Twilight Sparkle. "I don't rule this country. Thats Princess Celestias job."

"Wait, but, you just said that you were the princess."

"Yeah? And?"

"How can there be two princesses from the same country?"

"There are actually three."

"What?! Oh, Jesus."

"Excuse me?"

"Oh! Nothing, uhh…would you happen to know where I could find this Princess Celestia?"

Twilight briefly and silently debated with herself on whether or not she should disclose Celestia`s location to this alien. In the end, she figured that they seemed nice enough.

"She should be up in Canterl-"

Twilight would never finish that thought, as a sudden flash of light blinded everyone.

Laskey turned to Fireteam Icebreaker and saw them raising their rifles.

"Men!" he shouted as he ran over to them. "Hold your fire! Hold your fire!"

The Captain looked back and held a hand to his face to shield his eyes. As the light dissipated, he saw that a white alicorn, taller than Twilight, had materialized next to the lavender pony.

"So," said Laskey. "I'm guessing that you must be Princess Celestia?"

"I am," said the sun princess.

"The one who contacted my ship?"

"Yes."

"You know, you never told me where to land."

"I know. I give you my deepest apologies Captain Thomas Laskey."

"Wait!" interjected Twilight. "Princess, how do you know its name? He never told it to you yet."

"Oh yes he has," said the white alicorn. "And Twilight, you`re a princess now. You can call me Celestia. Also, it is a he, and you will refer to him as such."

"Oh…uhh…"

"Sorry Twilight. I know this must be quite a bit to take in, but Laskey and I need to talk privately. I'll explain everything later."

Celestia then turned her attention back to Laskey.

"Captain, do you mind leaving your men in Twilight`s care before we depart? I'm sure they can answer all her questions."

"Ooh!" said Twilight excitedly. "I'd love to learn about a newly discovered species!"

"I'm sure we would too…" Thomas responded as he turned and looked back up at his ship, a thoughtful expression on his face. "…some of us anyway."

He then began walking back to his men.

"Captain, sir," said gunny, snapping a salute to his Captain.

The rest of the squad did the same.

"At ease. Okay marines, here`s the deal," Laskey started. "I have to make what I'm guessing are 'peace' negotiations with the princess over there, the white one, not the lavender one. The lavender one would however, like to get to know our species a little better. While I'm out, I'd like you six to stay at her house while she asks you all some questions about the human race. Understood?"

"Aye, aye, sir!" said all six in unison.

Then gunny raised his hand and said, "Permission to speak, sir."

"Granted," said his Captain.

"Id love to go into that tree-house, sir. But doesnt this sound like something the scientists would want to do? Namely Halsey or Glassman? Or both for that matter?"

"Oh don't worry, theyll get their chance. Don't tell anyone, but as soon as I'm absolutely sure that the equines of this planet are trustworthy, I'll bring them on the ship. Bring them to the scientists as a special treat. Plus, all the equipments stuck up in the ship anyway; they`d be able to study them in better detail up there than down here. Does that make sense?"

"Yes sir."

"Okay. Just remember not to tell anybody, understand?"

"Yessir."

"Good. Now get to it marines!"

"Aye, aye, sir!" said all six in unison as they jogged over to the tree-house.

Once they were all inside, Laskey made his way over to Princess Celestia.

"So," the Captain started. "Guess it`s just you and me now, huh?"

"So it would seem…" said Celestia as she observed pony bystanders gawking at Laskey, the aircraft behind him, or his ship up above. "This isn't the most private place to talk."

"Oh yeah. Why don't you tell me where your palace is, and I'll fly there in my pelican."

"Actually, why don't you tell the pilot of your, 'pelican,' to fly back to your ship. I know a quicker route."

"You sure about that?"

"Positively."

"You have seen how fast this thing was going, right?"

"Trust me, it`s faster."

"Oh-kay," said Laskey, bringing his wrist communicator to his mouth. "Echo 419, head back to the ship. I'm gunna be down here for a while. No need to waste fuel."

"Yes sir!" came a female voice from Laskey`s communicator. "Rolling out."

On that last note, the pelican rose upward, turned, and thundered back towards its gargantuan mastership.

"So," said Laskey. "What`s this route of yours?"

"Take my hoof," said Celestia as she extended her hoof to the Captain.

Laskey did so. Then the princess`s horn began to glow.

And in another bright flash of light, they were both gone.

Chapter 6: Why We Fight for You

Chapter 6: Why We Fight for You

August 5, 2558

0918 hours

Canterlot

The Royal Castle

Inside Princess Celestia`s throne room, there was a bright flash of light. Out of it materialized the alicorn princess and Captain Thomas Laskey.

Immediately the human barfed out his breakfast out onto the scarlet colored carpet.

"*cough*Oh god," said the dazed and kneeling Captain, staring down at his mess. "I am so sorry. *cough*I don't think my body was made*cough*for that kind of travel. *cough*That, or I just wasn't ready."

"Oh it`s quite alright," said Princess Celestia. "You humans have always been so, resistant to magic."

"That reminds me," said Laskey as he stood up and regained his composure. "How do you know so much about humanity? You somehow knew about how powerful we`ve become, then you mentioned our 'trust issues,' and now this."

Thomas motioned to his puddle of puke on the ground.

"Your species has been of great interest to me for quite some time now," said Celestia as she used her magic to toss the mess out an open window. "That shouldn't hit anypony."

"So you`ve been watching us," said Laskey. "How?"

"Like this," said Celestia as her horn began to glow again.

Suddenly, Laskey`s vision blurred, then refocused. He was in a blue, cloudy landscape with stars floating around everywhere, like distant light bulbs suspended on tiny, invisible cables.

Celestia stood before him; they were both standing on a solid, yet invisible surface of some sort. Laskey was the first to speak.

"Where are we?" he asked.

"Everywhere," responded the sun princess. "And nowhere."

"That doesn't even make any sense."

"It shouldn't. All you need to know is that this is where I go to observe what happens throughout the universe."

"How`d you find this place?"

"The Librarian showed it to me, so that I could watch over the universe after the rings were activated."

"Those rings wiped out every sentient being in the universe. How`d you survive?"

"The forerunners knew of the magic that my sister and I possessed; they knew the rings wouldn't be able to touch us if we didn't want them to, but they didn't care. The only reason they built the rings in the first place was because they were desperate to wipe out the flood. Since the Librarian knew my sister and I would survive, she thought it best for us to be the new supervisors of the universe."

"Supervisors, but not protectors? If you saw that something in the universe was wrong, you wouldn't do a thing about it?"

"No, that's where you come in."

"Me?"

"Your species I mean. As you may know, the human race existed before the rings were activated. Up until then, your species was second only to the forerunners in terms of power."

"What kind of power?"

"The power of your mind and your military, especially your military. In terms of that, I believe you and the forerunners were almost equal."

"Wow, we were really that powerful?"

"Yes, your species was almost twice as technologically advanced as you are now, from what I've seen at least."

"Alright, so what does power have to do with it?"

"Before the rings were activated, the forerunners were the most powerful species in the galaxy and they could see the universe by the simple means of coming to this place. Therefore, they held the mantle of responsibility to protect the galaxy."

"And if they were ever destroyed, we would be next in line?"

"Correct, the mantle would fall upon humanity`s shoulders. When both the forerunners and humanity were destroyed by the rings, humans came back because some of their D.N.A. was cataloged by the forerunners."

"Wait, hold on. How does an entire species come out of a catalogue?"

"Forerunner catalogues work a little differently from how you think human catalogues work. If the forerunners catalogue D.N.A. for example, they put it in a device that could regenerate the tissue, and therefore the entire being, back into existence at any specified time."

"Then they must`ve set it to sometime after the rings had done their work."

"Right you are, Captain. After humanity came back, I still firmly believed that you were the rightful inheritors of the mantle. Come, walk with me."

Celestia began walking to Laskey`s left; he followed.

Suddenly, from some focal point in the distance, shot out squares of light to Laskey`s left and right, forming a kind of hallway with walls made of moving images.

On the images were just about everything, from scenes of a happy family sitting at home to scenes of war and destruction.

"I have observed and recorded everything humanity has done since your resurfacing after the rings," said Celestia. "Though you may have started off quite primitive…"

The two walked past a square showing a caveman playing with a rock.

"…you began to grow back to your former glory. Countries began to be formed, and wars began to be fought amongst yourselves…"

The duo then walked past another square, this one screening a sword battle being fought in a field by two opposing armies sometime in the middle ages.

"…soon, you started wanting to gain the upper hand on your enemies. You began advancing your weapons technology to new levels of destruction…"

They then strode past another square depicting a trench battle being fought with guns and artillery.

"…you kept trying to invent new ways to kill each other in order to win wars. It nearly got out of hand…"

They then passed by a square portraying a nuclear explosion in the middle of a desert.

"…thankfully though, you were able to stop your own madness at the end of your second world war. You formed the United Nations, and then you looked to the stars. Humans were soon able to put their heads together to form the United Nations Space Command."

"How come none of this ever happened to your species?" asked Laskey. "The wars I mean?"

"The equines of Equestria abolished the very idea of warfare at the end of the first one we ever fought; I can barely even remember what it was like. Even to this day, I`m still not entirely sure why your species, or any other species for that matter, didn't abolish war as well."

"I guess some wars need to be fought."

"True, but the wars that needed to be fought, sometimes never even had to start. Not even the war you fought with the Covenant had to happen."

They stopped at a multiple squares all flicking through multiple battle scenes of human and Covenant forces clashing with one another, both on the ground and in space.

"The Covenant could have gone and activated the rings without getting humanity involved," said Celestia. "Humans would have never even known what the Covenant was doing had they not attacked you."

"I lost my girlfriend in that war," said Laskey.

"Yes, you know all too well that war cannot come without a cost; that victory cannot come without sacrifice. And that reminds me, if there's one thing that I've learnt about your species in all the time that I've been watching you, it`s that you know how to bounce back. After everything that you suffer and survive through, you don't just bounce back to where you were before, you bounce even higher. Your species was almost completely annihilated after the Human-Covenant War, and just look where you are now. You may not be the humans I knew before the rings, but you are, once again, the giants of this galaxy."

"Hey, I thought that same thing when I became Captain of the Infinity."

"See? That's how prevalent that fact is."

"So what now?"

The square in front of them then switched to a scene depicting the Librarian handing the Janus Key over to Dr. Halsey.

"When the Librarian gave the Janus Key to Dr. Catherine Halsey, she henceforth conceded the mantle to humanity."

"Halsey told me about this; we`re supposed to be the protectors of the galaxy now, right?"

"Yes."

"And now you want us to protect you? Also, am I going to puke again when we leave this place?"

Celestia smiled as her horn began to glow once again.

"No," she said. "You should be fine this time."

Laskey`s vision blurred once again; when it had refocused, both he and the alicorn princess were back in the throne room.

"That was a very nice revelation, princess," said the Captain. "But somethings telling me that theres more to this than meets the eye. You`re making it sound like you can offer us something in return."

"Humans have always been searching for harmony, but have never gone about it in the right way; that revelation was meant to show you that," said the monarch. "We can show you the path."

"How?"

"I understand that you`ve come here looking for six forerunner artifacts, am I correct?"

"Yeah, how…how`d you know that?"

"Oh, just a lucky guess," said the princess sarcastically.

Both she and Laskey walked out onto a balcony, the Infinity looming in the distance.

"I'm guessing you know where they are?" said Thomas.

"They`re closer than you think," said Celestia. "You remember Twilight Sparkle?"

"That purple alicorn that lives in a tree?"

"Yes. That tree is what houses the artifacts."

"Oh," said Laskey as he looked at the Princess. "Wait! My marines are in there!"

"Is there some concern?"

"Well, no. I doubt that theyll do anything stupid, but I should still get down there before theres some kind of miscommunication. I don't want anything happening to those artifacts."

"Would you like to me to teleport you again?"

"No offense, your majesty, but I think it`d be safer for me if I took my pelican this time."

"None taken," said the sun princess as she looked at the spot where Laskey had puked. "It`s quite understandable."

The Captain brought his communicator to his mouth and said, "Echo 419, this is Captain Laskey. I need pickup ASAP."

"Aye, aye, sir," came the same female voice. "Rolling in."

"You didn't even tell her where you were," said Celestia as Thomas brought the communicator down from his mouth.

"I didn't need to," said Laskey. "She can just pinpoint the source of my signal to find me; it helps to keep us from disclosing our locations over the radio."

"How come you couldn't pinpoint my signal?"

"Well, you see, you have to keep the signal going so it can be traced. You had shut yours off."

"Oh," said the princess as she saw the pelican approaching in the distance. "My mistake I guess."

Laskey brought his wrist communicator back up to his mouth.

"Gunnery Sergeant David Alvarez," said Laskey. "Do you read?"

"Yes sir," came David's voice from the communicator.

"Are you still in Twilight`s house?"

"You mean her tree?"

"Yes."

"Then yeah, we`re still here, sir."

"The artifacts are in that house. Be sure to let your men know."

"Yes sir, I'll tell them, sir."

"And be sure to ask Twilight where these artifacts are and what they look like."

"Yes sir, I'll ask her, sir."

"Once you have that Intel, do NOT touch or do anything of the sort to the artifacts; just make sure they don't go anywhere until I arrive, understood?"

"Yes sir."

At this point, the pelican had arrived, turned 180 degrees, and was lowering the ramp onto the balcony for Laskey to get on.

"Alright, I'm on my way with the princess. Laskey out," said Thomas before ending the transmission.

Laskey looked at the equine monarch and gestured to the inside of the pelican.

"After you, your highness," said the Captain.

"You want me to go in there?" said an incredulous princess, looking into the pelican`s cargo bay.

"Yeah, I came here by your means of transportation first. Now it`s my turn."

"Well," said Celestia before stepping into the aircraft. "I suppose it`s only fair."