(Original) Chapter 13: Battle of Canterlot

Gliese 411 System

Planet Equis

Canterlot, Empire of Equestria

Friday, August 13th, 2551

9:55 AM

"Soldier, that's the damn finest bit of news I've heard all morning."

John Forge, now the acting General of Imperial Equestria's Marine Corps, carefully examined the two silver-armored commandos standing at attention in front of him. Both were the exact same height, but of opposing genders and wore matching Mjolnir semi-powered infiltration armor. Forge looked at them sternly for a few moments as he sized them up. As expected, the two UNSC soldiers were likewise appraising him as well. Another second or two past, before the General gave them a friendly grin of approval.

"Spartans. You're the ones who freed Discord, like everyone said huh?"

Spartan B312, the female Spartan, nodded. "That's...right...sir." She said hesitantly.

Judging by their body language, Forge had already theorized in his mind that whomever in the UNSC had ordered them to free the Draconequus must have done so without approval from the Admirals. He also theorized that the commandos now in front of him had not approved of the Op either, but were far too loyal-or too pragmatic-to refuse their potentially rogue superior officer.

"Ease up Spartans. I don't personally dislike you for whatever type of crime that may be considered here." Forge declared lightheartedly. "What rank are you two?"

"Lieutenant" The pair said simultaneously. This was the first word the male Spartan, B313, had said all morning.

Letting his hands fall from his chest to his sides, Forge rubbed at his neatly- shaven head. "Officers? Well what do you know! I could use a few more able-bodied people to fill up some leadership roles. You guys use to commanding squads?"

"Afraid not, sir." B313 replied tersely.

"We usually work alone, or together as a pair, General Forge." B312 added.

Forge nodded to them. He could relate to wanting to work alone at times; to Forge, it helps a soldier build insight on their skills and place within the larger fighting force.

"Fair enough." Forge replied with a quick shrug. "Onto the matter at hand, the Imperial B-Net is telling me that we have Covie grunt squads not very far from here, and Insurrectionist Insurgents are known to be holed up in the IBI building, as the Director so obviously pointed out."

For a brief moment, Forge glanced over his shoulder at the IBI-occupied flower shop. The agents outside looked back at him attentively under their fedoras, as if they were living surveillance cameras, more machine than pony or man. It all secretly gave him the creeps.

John Forge quickly shrugged it off in a microsecond, however. "If you're here to help, you could either go for the grunts and elites while me and the Army slowly secure the building. Or, you two could lead the taking of the Bureau, under my supervision of course, while the cops and agents out here mop up the incoming Covenant." He paused dramatically. "It's your call." General Forge concluded.

Without hesitation, both replied in tandem. "The IBI building is the most tactically important."

Forge grinned again. That's what I was hoping to hear. He mused to himself. "Alright then, the Bureau building it is! Empress Celestia and the Pegasi have made us a beautiful morning today. Let's make sure these scumbags no longer spoil it for us! And most importantly, we have innocents to save around the city! LET'S HUSTLE UP PEOPLE!"

Despite being Army regulars, and not Marines, the Imperial soldiers all responded to the General's words with a resounding chorus of "HURRAH!"

Picking up two MA5B assault rifles, Forge tossed them to the SPARTAN III's, who expertly caught and shouldered the weapons. "Orders of engagement sir?" B312 inquired.

"There may be civvies still inside being held by the mysterious Innies. If you have confirmed them to be hostile and are unable to subdue them, you know what to do. If they're Covies, or anything not even vaguely human or pony-shaped, shoot on sight."

Nearby Alleyway

Citizens!

Remember, the Empire is Law. And the Law, dear Citizens, is sacred!

Just as our brave Military fights to protect your freedom, so do the Ministries fight to maintain your way of life! Here, at the Ministry of State, that is no different.

As any citizen would know, the courts strive to ensure that Empress Celestia's laws are enforced and properly adhered two. The Imperial Guard works to keep our towns, cities, and skies safe and free of crime.

The diplomats venture out and keep cooperation with our UNSC allies warm and beneficial for the entire Galaxy, and lastly, the Imperial Bureau of Intelligence operates in the shadows to ensure Equestria is strong and able to hold her ground against the Empire's enemies.

Such critical work, we perform on a daily basis. However...

We cannot do it alone!

That's right loyal citizens, your government needs your help!

The Empress asks that any and all information pertaining to the ongoing attack against Canterlot, should be reported to your nearest Police or IBI representative immediately! Vile individuals lurk among us that threaten to undo everything human and ponykind has sought to achieve together in our two decades of unity, prosperity, and peace!

Now is your chance, average citizen, to serve your Empire, to serve Her Imperial Majesty Celestia! Be a hero!

Only together can we stand and resist the forces of darkness!

From all of us here at the Ministry of State and Justice, we wish you well and safe in these turbulent days!

Justice is Magic, Order is Might!

A Covenant Elite officer glared at the large holographic billboard with distaste, fringed by slight amusement. Growling, the alien fired a plasma bolt into the Guard trooper he was standing on. The downed stallion emitted a torturous  yelp as his coat, unshielded armor, and skin were fried from the impact.

"Wort! Wort! Wort!" The Elite major exclaimed. Raising a slender reptilian finger, the Sangheili pointed towards an Imperial barricade just up the city street. "Charge that position!"

Laughing cruelly, their high-pitched voices dripping with ill intent, the 'defector' grunts marched forwards, ignited their plasma grenades in their stubby hands, and bellowed, all before breaking into a suicidal sprint.

These group of Unggoy planned to take the Great Journey directly.

Exterior the IBI Headquarters

The two Spartans nodded, gave General Forge quick salutes, and quickly sprinted up near where the Army soldiers had taken position. Over two dozen Imperial rifleman and their commanding centurions stood a safe distance outside the building's front doors. The Commandos exchanged brief words with the three centurions in charge, and together, the infantry force cautiously advanced toward the apparently Insurrectionist-held government structure.

In the meantime, Forge observed the Spartans' progress as they went. Through the Imperial Battlenet, he could connect to B312 and B313's helmet cams, allowing him to see the battle from their perspective in a little window in the upper left hand side of his armor's heads up display.

Suddenly, a cry of alarm and the loud report of a plasma rifle being fired drew Forge's attention to the barricade just down the street.

The area they were at was a V-shaped intersection, with the IBI building and its front courtyard in the center of it. The intersection was just one part of a sizable district of the city known as Star Swirl Plaza, named after the most premier Equestrian spell caster of Equis' pre-classical era.

Along the other sides were the various shops, restaurants, warehouses, apartments and three to four story office buildings complete with graceful spires and minarets. These normally peaceful establishments and abodes were now being used as over watch and command posts by the Imperial Army. as well as sniper nests.

Thanks to the Imperial Guard's overzealous fear of what they dubbed 'criminal scum' within the Empire, barricades and similar police hardware were in ample supply. Per this abundance, they have now been put to use cordon off the entire area surrounding the Bureau of Intelligence HQ, and the Plaza itself. This was done with the intent of trapping the Insurgents and lurking Covenant goon squads inside, while keeping evacuating civilians out of the fighting.

Furthermore, barricades were also placed within the Star Swirl Plaza district, creating a honeycomb-shaped maze that should isolate and whittle down Insurrectionist forces that may be dug in around captured government property. It would seem one such group of 'goons' had encountered one of their Police barricades.

General Forge sprinted over and manned the top of the barricade, which consisted mainly of a titanium-framed armored catwalk.

The temporary structure boasted a fully powered arcano-tech shield barrier, and three turrets: two vulcans for infantry and light vehicles, and one light magical laser cannon for dealing with heavy armor. Several Guard troopers were now manning the turret emplacements, awaiting a possible enemy charge from the street or adjacent alleyways.

Together, the weapons were rather overkill for the current attack force, or so it seemed.

General Forge spied what appeared to be a single Covenant grunt squad near an alleyway over which the frame of a large holo billboard stood atop an office building's roof. The short, stocky little aliens were slowly marching ahead, with their commanding Elite officer in tow, his Covenant Carbine at the ready.

This looks easy... Too easy. Forge thought with worry. "Guards, hold your fire! There may be more. Wait until the little freaks bunch into a tight group, then mow em' down!"

The Imperial Guardsponies complied, and tensely held their fire, weapons at the ready. One earth pony mare held the large trigger of her vulcan chain gun with her hoof, her sense of trepidation growing.

In a single heartbeat, everything unfolded at once.

The elite commanding the grunts, after having arrogantly turned his back to the troopers so as to glare at the message displayed on the billboard, some kind of service announcement from the Ministry of State, pointed a finger at them all. He issued an order Forge could not possibly hope hear at such a range, and the grunts started going psychopathic. They raved and wailed with insanity.

With reckless abandon, the Covenant Unggoys charged at the barricade, their plasma grenades in hand and ready to detonate. As they began to close in, 15 more of the crazed aliens joined them from the dark alleyways nearby. A horde of moving, living plasma grenades was now rolling down the street at them.

General Forge had seen this tactic before. The sight of it chilled him to the bone. "Covie suicide squads! FIRE EVERYTHING WE GOT PEOPLE!" Forge shouted.

Instantly, the vulcans, MA5C rifles, and M6G magnums opened up with deadly precision. The street became an abattoir as luminescent alien blood flowed down the polished surface of the pavement.

The stained stone was soon burned almost to glass as the slain grunts' explosives detonated in a cloud of blue fire.

The elite, standing a safe distance away, growled in fury. He took cover behind the corner of the nearest building. Now joined by a second elite, this one denoted as a major by his crimson red armor, the pair returned fire with their carbines, exposing as little of their own forms as they could. Behind them, a lance of shield-bearing jackals wielding needlers and plasma pistols marched up the street, firing as they went.

The Guardsmare manning the right vulcan turret was struck not twice, but thrice. The first two shots pinged off her shield, whilst the third by one chance in a million, managed to strike the gemstone powering the shields on her riot armor. The loss of the gem caused the shield matrix to collapse in an instant A fourth carbine round found its mark in the muscle of her now exposed neck, forcing the mare into a violent tumble down off the catwalk.

"Dammit, MEDIC! Guard down, guard down!" Another trooper cried out. A unicorn medic rushed up and gently pulled the still-breathing cop away with his telekinetic magic.

The second of the vulcan chain gunners was also struck, this time by a Kig Yar's beam rifle. The man fell lifeless as his head was vaporized into nonexistence. "Celestia, curse you all!" Another guard swore as she gazed at her fallen comrade, before emptying her clip at the nearest hostile.

The Elite major shouted "Wort, wort, wort!" In triumph. Forge was beginning to feel rage stir in his gut, but he resisted it, for the sake of clarity. Blind fury would cause him to make a critical mistake, and these soldiers' lives were in his hands.

Besides, it was swiftly replaced by relief as not one, but all of the elites present were simultaneously impacted by 50 cal. Anti-Materiel rounds to their helmeted craniums. The results were rather... messy.  A stallion's voice issued through General Forge's comm channel as the Kig-Yar sniper wielding the guard-cursed beam rifle was similarly lobotomized by the mysterious long-distance killer.

"General Forge?" The voice inquired.

"Yeah? Kinda busy here!" Forge replied as he and the Imperial Guards opened fire on the still advancing jackals. He paused to put in a fresh magazine.

"Ah, thank the Gods! Archon Spectra Dash here. Empress Celestia would like me to inform you that with Discord's help, we have successfully secured the Palace!"

A needler round buzzed past his head. "Terrific!" Forge replied with only half enthusiasm as he would normally exhibit.

"In addition, Captain Flash Sentry and his Royal Guards have secured a sniping position in the Observatory tower

"Is that so. Say, Spectra..." Forge fired a burst from his secondary BR-55, dropping three grunts that had peaked around one of the damn alleyways. "Remind me to thank Flash when this is all over. Maybe we can all share our victory stories over some ice cold beers, eh?"

"Hmm, I prefer a couple shots of draconic fire-brandy, or some San 'Shyuum wine straight from the vineyards of Janqur Qom myself. Vintage, with that nice 100,000 year old aged taste." The Archon replied with a light, dry chuckle.

"My oh my, how ever could you forget about that most exhilarating rush from Ehlnofey Skooma. That stuff was so powerful, I remember some of the other, boring senators tried to have it banned from leaving Nirn on the trading ships. Ha! Ha! They're all dust piles now, those old goodie-two-shoes!" A second, crazy voice added.

"Boy, you ancients sure do have weird tastes in alcohol." General Forge remarked.

"You're telling me. Hey Senator Discord, you do realize what that trash had been doing to our subjects, right?"

"Dear Spectra, what was it more than just spreading the joy around? We needed plenty of joy, if we had hoped to defeat the Doucherunners, after all." Discord replied in a suave tone of voice.

"The Forerunners were the ones spreading it around! It weakened some our greatest front-line fighters. By the Emperor, may the Gods bless His soul, if Honoria and Aurelius weren't still on Reach with the other leaders, they'd tear you a new one for that, draconequus!"

Discord responded with a 'tsk-tsk' noise. The brief silence that followed over the channel was quickly broken by Princess Luna's voice. A video feed of her also appeared in Forge's HUD beside the twin Spartan III's, who were still finding a way to breach the main entrance of the IBI building.

For the record, the Princess did not look at all happy. Jerome, Alice, and Douglas all stood behind her, holding their hands at their backs, and standing at attention in their sleek Imperial FOTUS armor."Please cease this frivolous talk of intoxicating swill, and the history thereof, and continue thine efforts to secure our Capital, knaves! Princess Luna commands thee!"

Trying to contain her myriad emotions of anger, frustration, and worry, Luna paused and took breath. Likely unbeknownst to her, this pause only served to make her admonishment all the more imposing.

"Take heart however, for we have secured the Imperial Palace, but those who would dare defy our sister's grand authority still linger in our fair city. DO NOT lax in your duties to the throne! We are all counting on you now, our little ponies and humans! Fight with honor, with skill, and without fear!"

Swiftly, Luna's angry, yet beautiful face disappeared from view. General Forge personally did not take any of it to be a positive sign. "Did her Majesty get that Kusovai bastard, or did he manage to escape somehow? It take it's the latter. She didn't seem too happy..." Forge wondered.

Discord responded just before Spectra, cutting him off."Yes, yes, it's all true. Our Sangheili fellow got away on one of your stolen aircraft, but not before he got one nasty burn wound I hear. Apparently the scar was shaped like Lulu's cutie mark, of all things. Talk about being mooned." The ancient draconequus cracked up at his own pun.

"This is serious, Discord. If we had not caught this whole crisis when we did, one of the Imperial Sisters could have been..." Spectra cut himself off, letting out a deep sigh.

"You know. Well, ah... Let's get back to work everypony. Excellent work holding the barricade thus far, General Forge."

Forge opened his mouth to reply, but was summarily interrupted."Yes, before you ask, I can see you. I'm up here with Sentry and his snipers. I better go now and check on the Empress. She's currently consulting with Admirals Hood and Cutter I believe, regarding Discord and the Spartans under your watch."

"Oh! Why do I seem so popular today? Is it because I've been trapped within a rock for a thousand years? Oh wait, now that I think about it..." Discord finally left the channel, leaving behind a chorus of laughter in his wake that could cause someone to leave the Draconequus' sanity in question, for good reason.

"Erm... Forge? You've got a pair of M'Galekgolo coming your way!"

"Hunters?!" The General exclaimed. In no time, Forge mounted the arctech laser cannon himself and aimed the barrel down the street at the large, heavily armored Covenant shock troops lumbering ever closer.

Noticing his intent, a unicorn Guardspony approached him. "Allow me to amplify that, General!" The stallion declared.

"Do what ya need to do!" Forge replied.

The Guard trooper lit up his horn and focused a spell on the laser turret's battery. The barrel glowed an unfriendly, almost angry red. Forge could practically feel the compacted arcane energy pulsate in his hands as he gripped the trigger. Lining up the sights to target the Hunter pair, the General took the shot. He was met with a loud whirring sound as a violet-colored beam erupted from the barrel.

The beam hit right in between the two juggernauts, causing an explosion matching that of likely two simultaneous land mine detonations. The M'Galekgolo were quickly reduced to mere writhing Lekgolo worms as their armor fell all around them, now only half-melted shrapnel. Storefront windows shattered, and all that remained of the street now was charred stone and glass.

"Damn fine work Guardspony!" General Forge exclaimed. The unicorn gave Forge a quick half bow, before resuming his position, rifle in hoof, scanning the street ahead. Fortunately, it appeared the Covenant had given up their attack. "Man, I'd really like to figure out just where these Covies are based at." Forge mused aloud, observing the distance as well. As if on cue, his radio crackled back to life.

"Forge?"

"Spectra, that you?"

"No sir, Flash Sentry here. The Archon had to return to the Empress' side. It would seem Admiral Hood is infuriated to no end, just like the Princess."

"Is that so?"

"Apparently. Colonel Ackerson is under military arrest for his ordering Spartans B312 and B313 to deploy onto Imperial territory without permission from UNSC HIGHCOM. They're also nabbing him under the 'misuse of valuable military assets' and the 'endangering of allied forces' clauses."

Forge nodded. From what he had seen of James Ackerson's conduct at the Gala, the General was not surprised by these turn of events. "So the UNSC and the Empire are cool with each other now?"

"Ayep."

"Do you have any intel on where the Covies are based at?"

There was a pause, before Flash Sentry replied. "We think they might be the ones who personally took over the Ministry of State, while the Insurrectionist Insurgents have moved into the IBI near you, and the Ministry of Technology building some distance away."

"Well then, looks like the Ministry of Tech is next on my list of structures to reclaim. We'll save the Covenant for last, give the alien freaks a beating to remember, This is gonna..." Just when General Forge had thought the Covenant finally finished, one stray elite appeared out of another, previously unknown alleyway.

Clad in a white combat harness, this one wielded a heavy fuel rod cannon, which the Sangheili now pointed at the barricade. The elite commander raised his free hand, chortling in amusement. Just before he could fire his deadly explosive volley, he found his brain no longer able to process the task of firing the mechanism.

Before Forge had a chance to shout at the guards around him to get the hell off the barricade, more long-distance brain surgery played out before his very eyes. A sharp cracking sound, followed by a distinct whistling noise, marked a fifty caliber round's long path as it bisected the Spec-Ops Elite's head. The tall reptilian alien toppled over with a pained gurgling noise.

"Buck you, HINGE HEADS! We've got your back, General!"

Forge felt a grin grace his face once again. "Some damn fine shooting, Captain! Damn fine."

"Forge, I have a new proposition... Tell you what, whomever tallies the least Covie kills, or Innie captures, buys everypony the drinks tonight." Sentry replied.

"A challenge, Flash? Alright, you're on!"

"See you later then, General."

John Forge said his goodbyes, then returned his focus on the two Spartans he was monitoring. They had finally decided to place breaching charges on the doors. Forge saw what they are doing, and approved. "Give those cowards a grand tour of the Bureau, won't you Spartans?!"

"Affirmative sir. We'll deal with them accordingly." Spartan B312 replied through her radio.

Turning his gaze from the street back to the Imperial Guards surrounding him, Forge folded his arms again. "Continue to hold this barricade. If you spot targets moving away in the distance, mark em' for Sentry's marksman up in the Observatory." He made a thumb gesture up towards the Imperial Palace, which towered over much of the city. They gave him salutes, and he hopped of the catwalk, rushing back to the Intelligence Bureau-held flower shop back down the street.

Entering the building, whilst receiving nods from the ever-watchful Bureau operatives, Forge took a seat at a tactical view screen alongside the Director, and an earth pony stallion.The stallion had a dusty-colored coat and possessed a grumpy-looking aura about him. He was wearing Imperial Guard trooper armor, but with the exception of a golden star emblazoned on his breast-plate. In addition, the stallion had a large, well groomed mustache. Both turned to greet the General.

"Commandant Wexley, how are you doing this turbulent morning?" Forge greeted with mildly sarcastic pleasantness.

Wexley nodded at him, while the Director observed the two quietly. "To tell ya the truth General, not so fine. First we hear that Discord is free and already causing mishap in the region, then I learn that I've got at least two-fifths of my Guard garrison here in Canterlot wounded or killed already. Sometimes I get the feeling we aren't doing enough to stop this, here and now."

The Commandant snorted through his nostrils in disdain. Forge was no stranger to dealing with casualties, they were a part of war, after all. But when it came to being the leader of a police force, it's not everyday one is prepared for a full out military-scale threat. Especially in a major metropolitan area, Canterlot no less. This was Wexley's hometown, and backyard. Sacred ground.

Forge put a hand on the Commandant's shoulder. "Hey, don't beat yourself up over it! We're all out here doing our best, and each and every Guard Trooper, Army soldier, and Royal Guard fighting in the city right now are heroes in their own right!"

Wexley nodded sadly, and a ghost of a smile appeared underneath his mustache. "Huh, heroes indeed. I suppose you're right, mister Forge. At least we know the Palace is secure and Her Imperial Majesty is safe. I suppose that's what counts."

Under his hat, the Director nodded approvingly at the two. "Very good gentleman and gentlecolt, very good indeed. The Empress would be most pleased to hear ya say such patriotic words of inspiration right now. But there's still the matter of getting muh Bureau back from the Enemy!" Folding his arms behind his back, the Director silently left the two and took to presiding over some documents his fellow agents were peering at.

Suddenly, an urgent thought broke into Forge's mind. "Hey Wexley, what's the status of Ponyville, Twilight Sparkle and the others? Do we know the current status of the Ministers of Technology and State?"

Wexley just shrugged. "The Ministry Intranets have been clogged up and temporarily shut down due to potential Insurrectionist Hackers... or should I say, "The New Sovereignty" Hackers." He stroked his mustache. "Ministers, Minister Anders hasn't reported her status over at IMTECH, and Minister of State, Princess Cadence, has reported she's safely in the Palace with the Empress and Commander Luna. As for Ponyville, no attacks have been reported anywhere outside of here in Canterlot, and Ponyville is under heavy Guard occupation. The Bearers of the Elements of Harmony should be perfectly safe."

For Forge, this bit of news brought some measure of relief to him. Try as he might however, Forge couldn't help but worry about Dr. Anders. She may be one of the most important Equestrians in the Empire, but he kept feeling an odd need to personally ensure the Minister's safety. For the moment, he couldn't quite place his finger on it. He recalled one brief exchange of words he had shared with Ellen, many, many years ago.

"Lady, there's no way in hell you're coming down here on the first bird!"

"I can look after myself, Sergeant Forge."

Ah hell, it's complicated. Let's just leave it at that.

"General Forge, sir?"

Forge shook his head vigorously, as a would a large dog after a bath. "Er... wha...yes?" He sputtered. "Are you guys about to enter the Bureau building?"

"Affirmative, General." Spartan B312 reported.

"Cracking the front entrance of the IBI in 3...2...1, MARK!" B313 confirmed.

Forge could see them triggering the explosives from his HUD, but he figured he'd get a front row view himself.

The SPARTAN III'S, gathered near the Imperial centurions, hit the ignition. The front doors of the building practically evaporated in purple, green, and orange maelstroms of magical and conventional flame. At the order of a centurion, the human members of the battalion deployed their magical energy gauntlets, SMG's, and magnums, cautiously advancing in a manner similar to Covenant Kig-Yar troops. Their pony comrades, wielding battle rifles, holstered shotguns, and DMR's, covered their advanced from the rear.

Taking a look at the Insurrectionist graffiti defiling the IBI government seal adorning the building's facade, Forge felt a pang of frustration. Putting his hand to his earpiece, he gave the Spartan commandos and their charges some final words of encouragement as they began to storm the building. "Imperials, I don't know who or what these 'New Sovereignty' bastards are, and for the moment, I don't care. All I care about, is that you bring the hurt to em', and save as many civvies as you can!" Forge cupped his hands over his mouth, and shouted, "Kick some ass!"

"For the Empress, Celestia!"

"For Canterlot!"

"For, the EMPIRE!"

As everypony chorused their agreement, they poured into the entry lobby of the Imperial Bureau of Intelligence HQ. With their veins pulsing full of righteous fury and adrenaline, they advance against the Insurgents.

In the front window of the flower shop, still watching the now smoking front side of his HQ, the Director took a sip of his remaining coffee, and chuckled to himself. "It's 'bout time we unveil to our enemies a few of our new toys." He said under his breath, sinking his hands into the pockets of his trench coat.

"Toys of war, that is!"

IBI Headquarters, Star Swirl Plaza

10:07 AM

Spartans B312 and B313 rushed in alongside their Imperial allies, finally confronting the Insurrectionist threat that had been plaguing the city of Canterlot all morning. The Equestrian soldiers, uncertain of what to expect from the currently mysterious New Sovereignty insurgents, were completely taken aback at what they saw as they charged into the lobby of the Imperial Bureau of Intelligence.

Dozens of furious, scowling faces greeted the heavily armed newcomers as they took cover around the entrance doors. Standing around the hastily fortified central information desks, was an entire contingent of insurgents that belonged to the terrorist group currently attacking Star Swirl Plaza.

Despite the makeshift sandbags, haphazardly placed magical energy barriers, and re-purposed desks strewn about it, the lobby was still a grand, if not exquisite piece of Imperial Equestrian craftsmanship. Marble pillars and vaulted ceilings shared the visage with statues and elegant murals of ponies, humans, and other graceful animals standing in the backdrops of forests, meadows, mountain ranges, and shining city skylines.

To the Equestrian soldiers' shock and outrage, the faces of the Insurrectionists they glimpsed belonged to various ponies, humans, and three other individuals; a griffon, a psychotic-looking unicorn stallion, and a fully body-armored unicorn mare who all stood at the head of the group of insurgents. In addition to the insurgents, many of the statues had been dismembered or defaced by the very same individuals, and the murals had obscenities addressed at the Empress and the Ministries scrawled across them, accompanied by the same wand and glitter symbol that now adorned the outside logo of the IBI building.

Expecting hostile engagement at any moment, the shield gauntlet-wielding Imperial humans stood tensely in their formation near the doors with their M7 SMG's at the ready, awaiting the word of their centurion officers. The pony soldiers supporting them took position around the various marble pillars flanking the entryway. They all remained this way for a full tense minute, as Imperial stood face to face with Insurrectionist. The atmosphere of the room was alight with the animosity issuing from both sides.

"A Griffon?! The nation of Griffonia is supporting you damn Innies now?" One of the three centurions, an earth pony, exclaimed in exasperation.

The unidentified griffon stared at the three centurions, and her sneer turned into a cruel-looking smirk. She was a rather young-looking griffon wearing hardened leather and fur armor covering a layer of titanium chain mail. Her gear included various bandoliers and pouches, and a belt full of fragmentation grenades. Her feathers were a light blonde color, and strapped to the side of her neck was a sheath for a rather wicked-looking titanium shaped in the form of a sickle. The weapon itself was brandished in the griffon's right talon, which she twirled around playfully as she grinned at her enemy.

"Imperial sobaka!" The griffon declared in a mocking tone. "I see ze Empress' Imperial lap dogs have come to play a little game with da real voiny, da real warriors." Her thick Griffonian accent only loaned more power to her already threatening voice and figure as she nodded in disdainful greeting at the centurion. "Major Autumn Wing, Griffonian Red Army, or at least until some time ago. Now, Lieutenant Autumn Wing, of the New Sovereignty Liberation Front, it's a pleasure, Equestrians." Autumn Wing waved her dagger in a mockery of a polite greeting.

"Liberation Front? What the hell does she mean?!"General Forge said through the Spartans' radios.

Another centurion, the sole human of the three, holstered his MA5B rifle, and returned the Insurrectionist Griffon's smirk with a furious scowl of his own. "By Empress Celestia's holy name, you have but one chance to lay down your arms Griffon, and turn yourselves over to Imperial custody!" The blonde-feathered Insurrectionist continued to smirk at the human, completely unmoved by his words of authority.

Skillfully, she tossed her sickle dagger into the surface of the information desk, straight through the top of an IBI agent's lost, bloodied fedora. "Alright sobaka. You vant to apprehend us so badly, go on ahead. Just come on up here, and ve'll hand over our weapons to your soldiers."

"Smart choice rebel. Forward advance gentlemen!" With one hand resting on his energy saber, the centurion and his column of shield-equipped humans slowly strode towards the Insurrectionists.

"Sir, I do not recommend you approach the Insurrectionists, they're clearly toying with us!" Spartan B312 shouted from her position around a marble pillar. "I agree with the Spartan, we can't trust these damn Innies anymore than we can toss around Covie Hunters with our telekinesis!" The third centurion, a unicorn, agreed.

"Supreme Commander Luna, our Princess, and General Forge, have ordered that as many Insurrectionists be taken alive as possible. These ones are offering themselves to us, we must honor Her Majesty's wishes." The human centurion countered, still moving forward.

Watching the proceedings between the two forces via Spartan B312 and 13's helmet cams, General Forge's face contorted in worry as the brash centurion and his group got closer to the Insurrectionists."Centurion, STOP!" Forge shouted through his headset. "IT'S A TRAP!"

Unfortunately, the man did not hear the General's voice until it was too late. At the desk, Autumn looked to her still silent unicorn companions, and grinned. Turning back to the Imperials, she placed her talon on a small device on the surface of the desk. "Just a little closer, sobaka dweebs." She whispered, her grinning beak opening ever wider.

"All of you, put your hands, hooves, and talons where we can see them, no sudden..."

The Equestrian soldiers took one final step forward, and then over half of them erupted into a torrent of green magical fire that exploded out from a concealed spherical capsule underneath an overturned desk nearby. "Eat a balefire spell, pridurki!" Autumn Wing nearly spat.

The Imperial soldiers screamed as a magical, unholy looking radioactive fire enveloped them, burning first through their armor and shields, and then through flesh. The result were far more than gruesome; all of the soldiers caught in the green maelstrom were either turned to ash piles or charred remains barely recognizable as having been human. The remaining two centurions trotted backwards in abject horror, drawing their rifles into their forehooves and training them on the New Sovereignty Insurgents. The few remaining shield gauntlet-wielding men took careful position, nearly reeling back in shock from what they had just witnessed.

"Otkryt' ogon'!"The Griffon roared as the last human soldiers caught in the mini detonation dropped to the ground, their bodies partially dissolving away. The griffon and her two unicorn accomplices took cover. Simultaneously, the doorways on the mezzanine tops above them opened up to admit dozens more of the NS insurgents into the lobby from deeper within the building.

Obeying Autumn Wing's command like obedient hounds, the Insurrectionists aimed their weapons-mostly Griffon-made rifles and machine pistols mixed with stolen Equestrian armament-and opened fire. The earth pony centurion took several hits on his shielding as he and the unicorn centurion dove for cover. His shield collapsed and one of the rifle rounds managed to find themselves in the stallion's chest, perforating a lung.

"Re...Return fire, everypony...NOW! Give the Spartans... Backup!" The centurion wheezed. He was being treated by a medic who was in the middle of deploying a medi-grenade and pulling out their biofoam, which would help to seal off the lung and restore the stallion's breathing to normal after several agonizing seconds.

In the meantime, his unicorn colleague took command of the remaining Imperials troops, ordering them to distract the tactically devious Insurrectionists while the Spartan III's flanked them from the sides. Small arms fire echoed across the vast lobby as the firefight commenced. With the benefit of magically shielded armor, something the Innie soldiers largely lacked, the Imperials began to cut a swath ever so slowly through the insurgents' ranks.

With the aid of sprinting modules installed on their newer model Mark V Mjolnir suits, the twin commandos made short work of their own targets, closing in with their knives before the Innies could scarcely lift a hand or hoof to defend themselves.

The closer the Spartans got to the barricades Autumn Wing and her odd associates were hiding behind, the more difficult the fight against the surviving insurgents became. While the Army contingent made short work of the more inexperienced thugs that shot at them from the front desks, these were more seasoned, and not to mention burlier.

When Spartan B313 managed to near the left side of Autumn's barricade, his sister took the right, but B313 found himself suddenly grabbed by his neck. His assailant, an immensely built human with crazed looking eyes and a tattered-looking uniform, was utilizing his own inhuman strength to actually lift the one-ton Spartan into the air. Even more alarming, the giant had appeared to have discarded his own firearms, deciding to use his own two fists instead.

"General Forge..." The Spartan groaned under the man's grip as he spoke through his helmet's radio. "The Innies...have got to be using... Rumble Drugs!"

"Spartan, help him out! Goddammit I need both of you alive, you hear me?!" Forge shouted.

"Sir, I can't get to him, the Griffon and her compatriots have me pinned with a damn 50 cal. Anti Materiel! One shot and I'd be too dead to help anyone!" B312 could only watch helplessly from her cover as the mad man held fast to her brother as if he were nothing more than a rag doll.

"Shit." Forge muttered back over the comm.

The ultra-drugged 'super' human was just about to use his fist to turn B313's helmet into nothing more than a bowl of thick red paste, before the drugs fortunately wore off. As they did so, the true strain on the human's muscular and cardiovascular systems from lifting the Spartan's weight became apparent. The man let out a deep animalistic howl of pain as his arm and shoulder bones shattered when he dropped the Spartan to the tiled floor. His hulking mass toppled over in a similar fashion to a Brute Chieftain, blood welling up out of his mouth from catastrophic internal hemorrhaging.

Getting back onto his feet, B313 retrieved his fallen combat knife and refocused on the battle brewing. B312 gave him a relieved wave, before she silently pointed at the Griffon Lieutenant's barricade. He nodded to her, and both equipped their assault rifles.

Just before they could charge Autumn Wings' position and hopefully take out the Griffon officer, Autumn's rifle sounded loudly across the lobby as it fired off a round. The Spartans turned to see that the Imperial Army contingent, suffering minor casualties, had managed to push as far ahead as they did. They were now keeping the Lieutenant and company busy whilst the Twins now had their opening to incapacitate or neutralize the New Sovereignty VIP's.

Wasting no time, B313 sprinted up to the barricaded desk, while his sister followed suit on the opposite end. Just before the siblings could vault over and overpower their targets, the psychotic-looking unicorn stallion, noticed them.

"Spartans?! Time to play!" He shouted in a sing-song voice. The unicorn had a pitch-black coat, spiked titanium armor and a mane that B312 seriously doubted was scarlet red from genetics alone. Autumn Wing looked to the unicorn as he stared hungrily in the Spartan III's direction. She hit him on the shoulder with a talon. "Go get em' Ripper!"

"Ha. Ha, ha! It's killin' time!" Ripper declared, laughing like a deranged court jester. "What the's order today? A rack of ribs, a bit of that good ol' pony stew? How about some brain pot pies?"

"Spartan, look out!" Forge shouted, trying to alert her of the looming threat.

Before B313 could silence the insane unicorn, he had already closed the gap between, teleporting in a zig-zag pattern before appearing right in front of her. Grinning, his mouth revealed two rows of vicious filed-down teeth, indicating this pony actually consumed meat on a regular basis. The unicorn looked from B312's visor to her armor. "Ya know, I actually prefer my meat fresh, rather than canned, but I suppose you'll have to do!"

Ripper was now three inches from the Spartan's face, his arrival momentarily shocking her into hesitation. This was all the unicorn needed. He grinned savagely as eight very sharp looking cleavers and daggers were pulled from sheaths all across his armor, and moved in Ripper's telekinesis field, a sickly red aura, towards the Spartan's back and neck. Just before he could end the commando's life, Ripper let out a grunt of pain as something interrupted him, causing his telekinesis spell to implode. The blades clattered loudly to the floor. Behind Ripper's pain wracked body, a figure B312 could not make out bellowed in triumph.

"Go Reaper Team! That one was straight from the IBI Section Seven with love, you psychotic son of a bitch!" To B312, the voice sounded feminine, Hispanic. Regardless, the figure had run Ripper through his shoulder with an energy broadsword.

Diving away from the unicorn, B312 finally got a glimpse of her guardian angel. She was a tough looking, olive-skinned, dark haired human woman wearing matte-black ODST armor with the IBI seal stamped prominently on the chest plate.

"Got you're back Spartan!" She waved at B312 with encouraging wink. The Spartan silently nodded her thanks, and now surveyed the situation. Her brother had witnessed the event, and had retreated to where the Equestrians were now storming across the room at the trio of Insurrectionist VIP's, one of which was apparently now felled by an Imperial blade, the woman's no less.

B312 mused briefly about how quickly her and her sibling could enter life threatening encounters like that so quickly on the battlefield. Setting the thought aside, she joined her brother in knifing and filling the Insurrectionists full of lead, all from the shadows of the lobby's far corners.

"Corporal Mira Vantos!" An authoritative voice issued from the figure on the top of the Eastern mezzanine of the lobby, which the voice's owner had cleaned out of insurgents. "Stop trying to play the Lone Wolf act, form up on us, and get ready to assist the Army brigade working to retake our HQ!"

Despite Autumn Wing and the armored unicorn being mere feet from her, she turned her back to them and flashed the figure a grin and a playful salute. "At your orders, Commander Thunderlane sir!"

The figure emerged from the mezzanine with a unicorn, earth pony, and another human at his side, all wearing similar ODST armor but with differing color variants denoting rank and specialization. Several more fully armored and helmeted soldiers stood behind them, all bearing the IBI insignias. Commander Thunderlane himself had a gray coat that could only be seen on his helmet-less face. His mane was a cropped mohawk the color of burnt charcoal.

He sneered venomously at the Griffon Insurrectionist as she drove her sickle sword across a charging Imperial's neck, causing the mare to fall to the ground with a gurgling noise, her shielded armor helpless to stop the razor-sharp titanium blade. Vantos looked back at the mare as she moved to her team's side, anguished at the thought that she could have prevented her death, had she moved only thirty seconds later.

"Reaper One, Reaper Two, engage that Gryphon! The Director wants her head on a bucking silver platter, served with fine wine straight from Her Majesty's cellars!"

"Hurrah!" They roared. Using jump packs originally developed by the pegasi to aid humans in living amongst the airborne city of Cloudsdale, Reaper Two descended down from the mezzanine like a horde of locust on crops. They swiftly engaged the few Insurrectionist militants that remained.

Noticing both the Imperial Army contingent and now the IBI bearing down on her besieged position, Autumn Wing finished strangling an Imperial stallion caught in her sharp talons and bellowed another order.

"This position's jacked up! Everypony get ze hell out of here, before these Imperial sviney overrun us!"

Like lighting, the heavily armored unicorn mare snatched up Ripper's wounded form in her magic, and teleported herself, Lieutenant Autumn Wing, and Ripper out of harm's way. Spartans B312 and 13 fired their entire clips at the New Sovereignty VIP's former position, killing all the remaining insurgents too slow to flee. Unfortunately, none of the bullets found their mark in the VIP's who had long since vanished into thin air.

"Dammit! General Forge, Director, sirs! The enemy officers escaped, but the main entrance to the HQ is now fully secure! We've suffered only about thirty three percent casualties, but the NS Insurrectionists were completely routed!" Thunderlane reported furiously.

"We... Are great and powerful! You Equestrians will know the truth, but when you... When you do, it will be too late!" A downed pony insurgent whispered, slowly dying from two bullet wounds to his flank and chest.

"Here's some cold hard truth for you, murdering Innie scum. Hope you like lead-flavored." Thunderlane finished off the last Insurrectionist near him with a single burst of his BR55. The massive room had finally gone quiet as the final insurgents were eliminated, or had already fled deeper into the building.

Flo's Flower Shop, Star Swirl Plaza.

Imperial Army Temporary Command Post

10:32 AM

The Imperial Guard troopers, Commandant included, burst into applause, a few of the less stoic IBI operatives even joining in. John Forge couldn't help but smile at them, even in spite of the number of fatalities they had to suffer in accomplishing it.

Thunderlane's voice issued again from the radio. "I repeat, the HQ lobby has been liberated, and the Insurrectionist leaders have escaped! We're now getting ready to move deeper into the building."

"Excellent work soldiers, operatives, and Spartans! Those goon leaders may have gotten away, but at least we've taught them not to tangle with Equestria's Finest!" The General declared.

Wexley gave the human an indignant harrumph. "That title is reserved for only the distinguished Imperial Guards of Canterlot alone." Quickly, his frown shifted to a pleasant grin beneath his mustache before Forge could scarcely blink. "But, the Army has truly earned it this day. Now we know we can not only beat back the Covenant, but these Terrorist criminal scum as well!"

Forge returned the Commandant's grin with a sunny smile, before turning to the Director. "You hear that Director, your boys and my boys are getting along just fine! We'll have your building secure in no time." The Director peered back at him under the shadow cast by his trench coat and fedora, his facial expression unreadable.

"Forgive me if Ah withhold muh enthusiasm, General Forge. We still have critical rooms to clear, and I shudder to think how many of them Insurrectionist trash are trying to access state secrets with their filthy little hooves." He let out a sigh, finishing the last of his coffee for the morning. "Nevertheless, I thank ya for your work thus far. I think these Spartan III's of yours have earned themselves the rights to access some new toys muh eggheads have whipped up." Forge still couldn't get himself used to the Director's oddly smooth yet rural-like accent.

Noticing the General's odd stare, the Director smirked casually. "What? Your girlfriend, the Minister of IMTECH is not the only one working on tech projects for the Empire, ma friend."

The General felt his face burning up in spite of himself. He frowned. "I knew that! But Doctor Anders is...were just... She's not my girlfriend! Besides, because of my being in stasis, Anders has to be like what, eighteen...nineteen years older than me by now!"

Nearby, a group of IBI agents and Imperial Guards were casually chatting, and a few even sharing idle gossip. "So, you guys remember that official statement the Ministry of Health made back at the Grand Galloping Gala a few weeks back?" A human guard inquired. A present IBI agent, an earth pony, shrugged his forelegs. "Yeah, what about it?"

"Well, what do you think about, ugh, you know... Humans, Ponies, and maybe even dragons...doing..." The guardsman made a suggestive gesture with his fingers. This caused the Agent to outright laugh at him.

"Sure, sure, I don't think much of that. It's not unheard of. We do marry each other sometimes after all, and we're all Equestrians, am I right?" The stallion grinned.

"But now, the separate species having children together... Well doesn't that just sound a little too far fetched to you guys?" A second Imperial Guard, added.

"You don't see humans walking around with pointy ears, horns, or wings do ya? What about ponies with scales, short muzzles, or no tails? Didn't think so. I think the Ministry of Health was just trying to pull a publicity stunt so it will be easier for them to sell their overpriced pharmaceuticals around the Empire." A Guardsmare replied.

"Quite frankly, I'd rather not have my kids end up looking like Discord...whoa nelly, would you look at that fella's body. It's as if whoever or whatever made him couldn't make up its own damn mind and just figured 'oh, lets throw in a little bit of everything!'" The mare threw her hooves dramatically in the air. "What could possibly go wrong?"

The whole group broke into jubilant laughter.

As his agents mingled with the police present, the Director chuckled at General Forge's awkward discomfort. "Ah'm just yanking your chain, Forge. Tell ya what, Ah'll finally take over command of this here reclamation of muh HQ, while you take as many men and stallions as you need, and go after the Ministry HQ's held by the terrorist and Covenant attackers. Somethin' tells me that you're eager to do that, might Ah be wrong?"

Forge regained his usual smile. "That sounds like a cake walk. Do you need B312 and B313?"

"Nope, Reaper Team shall suffice, now that Ah know they're still kicking. The Spartans are of course, all yours. But first, the toys Ah mentioned." The Director typed something into a nearby holo screen.

"General, we got something going on in the lobby... The floor is opening up!" Spartan B313 reported over the radio.

"Don't worry Spartans. The Director says it's just a little gift of thanks for helping to retake the IBI. He and his men are going to sweep and clear the rest of this place. You two, are with me. So grab what you need, and meet me by the Eastern Barricade. We're taking the fight to the Ministries!"

"Affirmative, sir!" B312 responded.

Imperial Bureau of Intelligence HQ

IBI Lobby

The floor in the middle of the central information desk, now slick with blood, slid open with a mechanical whir. It revealed a vault door made of the same material used in the manufacturing of warship battle plating.

Without further ado, the vault door slid open in kind, revealing a set of concrete stairs, leading to a small but well-lit sub-basement of the building.

Following the hallway down, the Spartans passed a locked, unmanned security office. While it was locked, the main door ahead was not. Opening this door, produced a sight that would make any true soldier's body quiver with desire and mirth.

All around the super soldiers, sat row upon row, rack upon rack of confiscated Covenant, and imported UNSC, heavy armament. Jackhammer rocket launchers, Grenade Launchers, Fuel Rod Cannons, Concussion rifles, and grenades of every model beckoned to them.

They however, were not the showcase of this armory room. Rather, four glowing glass canisters in the far edge of the room. The canisters had the Sun Banner proudly stamped into them, and contained within, were weapons of neither Human or Covenant design. Instead, the weapons, two rifles and two heavy shotgun-like devices, were sleek and angular. Clearly they were designed with a pony user in mind, given the alteration of the bullpup stocks to be enlarged for hooves.

The guns were a dull gold color with smooth, glossy surfaces that pulsated with stored magic energy, likely enchantments of some kind. The rifles boasted full electronic suites detailing weapon status, the user's geomagnetic direction, and the weapon's ammo count. Or, to be more accurate, battery charge.

"Energy weapons?! The Empire had developed Directed Energy Weapons, like the Covenant?" Forge exclaimed as he saw the weapons through the Spartans' cameras.

"Indeed. A little pet project o' Luna's. She sent us treasure troves of Covenant weapons to us for study from the Assault Carrier she and her forces captured. Do please be careful with em', their brand new!" The Director added.

"Yessir!" B312 responded. The two commandos made their way to the glass canisters as the Director left the comm channel. The containers opened with a friendly sounding beeping noise. As she grasped the rifle in her hands, her HUD lit up with new intel detailing the weapon's design, recorded performance data, and battlefield applications.

-IBI DATABASE ENTRY no. 0157-

Weapon Designation: GSM-01 DER Solar Pulse Rifle/Magic Augmented

Experimental weapon. Part of the new GSM Guided Solar Munitions line, developed and laboratory tested by Imperial Intelligence for potential usage in Equestrian Armed Forces. Capable of both single, burst, and full automatic firing modes. Close to mid range weapon recommended for mainline infantrymen and light special forces groups. Designed to mimic the effects of laser and fire-based combat magic in a easy to use rifle format for non-magic capable military personnel.

Secondary functions include enhanced optical zoom with accommodations for low light scenarios, an overload feature allowing for the weapon to be improvised as a grenade if desperately needed, and an integrated heat sync system allowing for sustained fire longer than observed Covenant plasma weapons. Finally, power is provided by the Prometheus micro-fusion battery, courtesy of IMTECH, making the weapon self-sustaining, with a regenerative ammo supply.

-END DATABASE ENTRY no. 0143-

"Impressive." B313 remarked, scanning over the data for the GSM-08 DES Close Combat Solar Particle Mitigator as well.

"Plasma shotguns?! I'm starting to like Equestria more and more!" B312 replied gleefully.

B313 chuckled as he grabbed his own Solar Pulse Rifle from its container, holding it approvingly in his hands. "Hey, don't go gaga over the shiny weapons quite yet, we still have a mission to do sis! And responsibilities elsewhere." Aiming the rifle, the Spartan felt satisfaction.

The weapon felt like was the perfect weight, balance, and it didn't even require magazines. That, was something he would have to get used to, as reloading is done almost instinctively. While ergonomic to ponies' hooves in general, it seemed almost as if any species capable of manipulating objects could wield the rifle into battle. As far as he was concerned, it was just one more thing to put on the ever-expanding list of things B313 liked about the exotic-looking guns.

"This all reminds me of our shared birthdays from our times in the orphanage, eh Edward?" B312 said dreamily as she fetched her pulse rifle, as well as the particle mitigator. "Always the same presents, same cake, same goofy home-made party hats!"

Her brother passed up the energy shotgun in favor of a heavier weapon. He perused between the Covenant and UNSC explosives, his back turned to her. He let loose a largely dry chuckle, nostalgia washing over him. "Those days, were some of the only meaningful days of my life in that wretched place, Liz."

"What about the time when the..."

"When ONI agents appeared and offered to give us a chance to fight and avenge the deaths of our parents?" Edward finished for her, and nodded. "Yeah, I remember. The rain so infamous to Eridanus II, the black suits and hushed voices in the early morning." His voice dropping in tone, possibly denoting sadness.

Elizabeth sighed as she holstered the solar shotgun, took off her helmet with a hiss of air, and sat on a nearby crate. Her pulse rifle rested against her knee, while her free hand sat on her lap.

"I especially remember how us joining to fight the Covenant, becoming SPARTAN III's, felt like, like..." He continued, further inspecting his new rifle.

"The greatest decisions we ever made in our lives?" Elizabeth offered.

Letting loose a deeper sigh than his sibling, Edward turned to face her, his pulse rifle and a fuel rod cannon strapped securely to his back. "Yeah, that."

Getting up and strapping her weapons to the magnetic clips on her armor, she returned Edward's gaze. "Look. We were given the chance to make a difference, to help save human lives, turn the tide of this horrible war. We should all be so lucky, Eddy. Now I know you may feel loyalty to Ackerson, but still, the way he's been treating our Equestrian allies, its inexcusable."

Edward put his armored hand to his helmet, already knowing where his twin sister was going with this. "Liz, we owe Ackerson everything for what he did for us! Were it not for him..."

"No." Elizabeth shouted, cutting him off. "You and I have both seen what that man truly is, good deeds or not, he is a snake who's only looking out for his own career. Think about why he sent us here in the first place! We're his personal Grim Reapers. His bishops, knights, pawns, and queen, all rolled into one, and nothing more! If I can't get the Navy to reassign us to another superior officer once this battle is over, I'm joining up with the Imperial Army!"

"Liz, you can't be serious! Allies with the Empire or not, you're bordering on treason with words like that!" Edward admonished. Elizabeth shook her head, and silently stormed past her twin brother. His fists clenched in frustration as he neared the exit of the room, hurrying after her.

"Spartans! You all equipped and ready? We're waiting by the barricade." General Forge inquired.

"Ugh, yes sir!" Edward stammered as he hurried after his sister. "Spartans B312 and B313 moving to assist General!" Elizabeth added hastily. The pair were trying rapidly to regain their usually stoic composure.

As they made their way to the exit of the Lobby, which was now under fortification and clean up by the IBI and the Army, the Director looked at the pair knowingly. He was recalling something Archon Spectra's friends had informed him of the Spartan III's commanding officer, Ackerson, and the twins commandos' reasons for being deployed clandestinely to Equis.

"Y'all be sure to tell me what you think of our new weapons now, won't you?" He said as they hurried past him." Edward gave him an affirmative nod, before both Spartans disappeared into the courtyard outside.

Canterlot Palace

Imperial Grand Assembly Chambers

10:48 AM

Princess Luna stood at her massive desk next to Empress Celestia, Archon Spectra Dash, Princess Cadence, and the ever present Spartan trio of Jerome, Alice, and Douglas, who each took position at their own desks.

Everypony stared at the center of the room, where a large holographic presentation projector was situated. Discord was the exception to this, as always. The exception being, Discord was one of the desks themselves,in the room. To be specific-the large gold and ruby one where Celestia would normally sit to oversee the Assembly. The gilded surface now had crazy eyes and a mouth.

For this very reason, the Empress instead elected to stand by her younger sister, rather than at her usual place.

All around the room itself, which was adjacent to the throne room, were dozens more pf the polished marble and granite desks complete with fine velvet upholstery, personal holo terminals, and spaces for meals during rather the more prolonged Assembly sessions. These served as seating for the various heads of the Ministries, as well as other important officials throughout the Equestrian Empire.

In a bard or poet's mind, if Empress Celestia were the heart, and the citizens the soul of the Empire, then the Grand Assembly Chambers and her usual occupants, were Equestria's brain and brawn. Indeed, the sheer opulence of the room conveyed that figurative fact to all who beheld its glorious grandeur.

Every sleek, polished surface of the room,was adorned with gold and silver filigree. like most things in the Palace and indeed, much of Canterlot. On the half of the room Celestia would normally occupy, the marble was accented by a mural of Philomena and the Imperial Sun Banner. Luna's half, where everyone was centered, was similarly accented by a mural of a crescent moon gripped by a snowy white owl with piercing yellow eyes, who gave the impression that it was a watchful sentinel of the empire.

Completing the large exquisite room was a rotunda ceiling in the middle with the original Equestrian Flag depicting the Regal Sisters painted as a mural on the dome.

"Captain Sentry, whilst thou give thine status report please!" Luna ordered.

Flash Sentry, still based in the observatory tower, appeared in full body on the display adjacent to a three-dimensional map of the Capital City. Saluting, he bowed. "Of course, your highness."

"General Forge and the two Spartans who freed Discord have assisted the Director in retaking the IBI Head Quarters, but I'm still waiting to hear back from them on their current status. And as far as I can tell from the continued media blackout from somepony's magical interference, the other Ministries are in full lock-down, and IMTECH and the Ministry of State are still under occupation by the Insurrectionists and Covenant respectively."

Back in the Observatory, Sentry rested his rifle for a moment, and continued on. "Finally, the IBI reports three New Sovereignty officers, two healthy one wounded, managed to escape capture or assassination via teleportation."

The golden desk giggled at the media blackout part of Flash's report. "Thank you, Captain." Celestia said. "Someone establish encrypted communications with everypony please, on account of the continued lapsing of the Global Network."

"I'm on it your majesty!" A tech-savvy unicorn guard replied. He cast a spell at the projector, and it came to life in a spectacular show of swirling blue energy.

Within moments, several more figures appeared in the center of the room as holographic projections. Forge and the Spartan III's were in a running motion, whilst their holographic images remained stationary. The fourth figure was the IBI Director, standing with his arms folded at his back, while the fifth was Dr. Hooves, Minister of Information. The others alongside Hooves were Admiral Sir Terrence Hood, Lord General Shining Armor, Admiral Cutter, Air Commander Spitfire, and the various Imperial Ministers and other officials. They all greeted each other's images before turning to face the alicorns and their present entourage.

Shining Armor waved happily at Princess Cadence, who returned his wave with a kiss she blew with her forehoof. Smiling at the two, heart warmed by the sight, Celestia cleared her throat, and commenced the opening of the emergency meeting of the Assembly. "All to attention, please! May we rise now, to the meeting of this Imperial Assembly on the morning of the thirteenth day of August, twenty five hundred and fifty one ."

Everyone in the room, both physically and virtually, bowed their heads, with the obvious exception of Forge and company. Almost at once, the Empress ceased her formalities and trained her regal magenta eyes on the Senior General and the Spartans with concern. "General Forge, are your forces engaged with the enemy? What is happening?"

Forge raised his rifle and fired at unseen enemies, while Edward and Elizabeth opened up with their experimental rifles, the projections unable to display the weapons' discharges.

"Affirmative your majesty! A larger group of Insurrectionists escaped from the IBI than we thought." He rolled out-of-the-way as an armed stallion in ragged armor approached him with an old Griffon-made shotgun. The General swerved around his assailant with breathtaking speed, overpowering the thug and knocking him out cold with the butt of his MA5B. A few feet from him, the Spartan III commandos similarly dispatched Insurgents who appeared on screen.

"Is that... Is that a Griffon drobovik rifle?" Doctor Hooves inquired in surprise. Luna's face fell into a venomous scowl at the moment it dawned on her. "Griffons!" She spat. "Thou art supporting these terrorists? We must have dialogue with the Griffonian Premier at once my sister!"

Empress Celestia held up her hoof to the younger Princess. "One thing at a time, Lulu. One thing at a time." Luna sighed.

Beside her, Spectra laid a wing on her shoulder. "Fear not, Princess. I'll see to getting into contact with the Gryphon head of state as soon as I can."

"See to it that thou do so quickly, Archon." Luna replied, before returning her gaze to the Assembly.

Silently, Jerome Alice and Douglas observed the twin commandos' fighting techniques, filing the data away for future reference.

Panting, General Forge continued his own status report. "We spotted a massive contingent of them fleeing towards the Covenant position at the State Ministry place as we were making our way to the Ministry of Technology. A small fork of em' broke off from the rest and are attacking us at the eastern police barricade!"

Luna pounded a hoof on her desk loudly. "Vermin! They know they cannot escape the city that way, they are merely trying to buy time and distract us!"

Suddenly, another projection appeared, this time of the Minister of Technology herself. "Empress Celestia, occupants of the Assembly! We are safe and the Ministry of Technology is secure, as the insurgents have fled en masse towards the Ministry of State!"

Corresponding with Anders' words, on the map were crowds of red-shaded ragtag infantry, with the occasional Covenant grunt squad or jackal squad, who were amassing down a large deserted street towards one of the largest of the Ministry HQ's. Abandoned Imperial Guard barricades indicated where parts of the Plaza had changed hands and hooves between the Empire and the New Sovereignty.

Cadence stood up at her desk, outraged. "Why must my Ministry be the gathering places for these uncouth traitors?! Are the Covenant not enough?" Shining Armor appeared distraught at his love's distress, before focusing his attention on the tactical map. "My thoughts are that this New Sovereignty group are intent on making their final stand at your HQ, Cady."

"There are never enough enemies it seems. Now we have to go and throw rebel groups into this mess of a war, huh?" Air Commander Spitfire interjected, rolling her eyes at the unicorn and alicorn's love bird business. "Don't lose too much sleep over the New Sovereignty, everypony." Spitfire's projection turned to face Luna specifically.

"Our pegasi and the flyboys have one of their leaders, the Elite Toyah Kusovai's exact location. He's hiding on a stolen civilian freighter we have pinned down in low orbit. The idiot never even considered the Orbital Defense Grid, the Imperial Air Force, and the Imperial Navy when he planned his escape, did he?" She chuckled confidently, her wings outstretched for emphasis.

"I already have my Wonderbolts on station in the high stratosphere ready to swoop down and nab em'!'

"We see, thank you Air Commander. We should have personally considered the Air Force sooner, but We favor the Navy, surely thou understands?"

"Of course, no harm done your majesty." Spitfire replied casually, conveying no signs of disappointment.

"Thank thee. We shall now go out and ensure the apprehension of the cursed Kusovai"

Before the Princess of the Night could continue, a warning notification appeared with a resounding chorus of urgent beeping sounds. A planet-wide model of Equis materialized, with nav points marking disturbances just outside the planet's unfinished orbital defense grid. The active holo screen monitors flashed red with tactical alerts, casting much of the room in a crimson aura. An alarm klaxon accompanied them.

"MAYDAY! MAYDAY! RECON GROUP GAMMA OF THE IMPERIAL NAVY SECOND FLEET REPORTING! COVENANT NAVAL FORCES HAVE BEEN DETECTED IN THE GLIESE SYSTEM AND ARE APPROACHING EQUIS ON SUBORBITAL TRAJECTORIES!"

Admiral Cutter and Admiral Hood, as well as General Shining Armor and Spitfire, actually grinned at each other in spite of the shocking developments, much to everyone else's complete and absolute shock. Even stranger, all of their eyes began glowing a slight pink color, in contrast to the normal blue of the projector.

"What is happening here? Did you all know about this beforehand?" Celestia looked to each of them desperately, morbid thoughts and suspicions quickly formulating in the monarch's mind.

Augmenting the bizarrity of the moment, Discord chose that moment to finally revert to his usual tall and slender body. He stretched leisurely, before looking at the globe of the world, with a grin matching the Admirals' exactly. "Oh my! The Covenant have come in full force now!" Rubbing his mismatched hands together, the Draconequus grinned at the Empress, who was currently in turmoil over her now mixed emotions.

"Looks like it will be show time, soon Celly! We don't want to keep our alien guests waiting for the main entertainment, do we?" Stuck in her analysis of the situation, the Sun alicorn scarcely noticed her old nemesis at all. That would prove to be a near-fatal error.

"CAN ANYBODY HEAR US? EQUIS' LOCATION HAS BEEN COMPROMISED BY THE COVENANT EMPIRE!" The klaxon continued to blare in the backdrop of the radioman's transmission. "I SAY AGAIN, THE COVENANT HAVE FOUND OUR HOME WORLD! ENEMY FLEET INBOUND, JUST OUTSIDE THE GREAT EXPANSE!"

"Someone turn off zat Gods-awful racket! It's driving us all crazi!" Fleur De Lis, Minister of Culture pleaded, holding her hooves to her ears and trying to drown out the constant repeating warning.

Hastily, the more technically adept Royal Guards deactivated the klaxon aspect of the system. This returned the room to a kind of quiet serenity, tense overly charged air notwithstanding.

While the notifications finally went silent, the Admirals' projections, still grinning like maniacs, took time to study the diagram of Equis near them. Scores of Covenant vessels were coming out of slipspace near the planet in various formations. Then without any prior warning, all the holo screen monitors cut out, before quickly booting back on.

They now displayed the image of a Covenant San 'Shyuum Hierarch. From the screens, as well as his large floating image now hanging just below the rotunda, the Prophet of Regret sneered down at them all with contempt from his gravity throne.

"Behold Equestrians, the might of Our Holy Covenant descends upon your pitiful world." Everyone phsically there returned his sneer with stares of anger, defiance, fear, and courage. Nevertheless, the Prophet of Regret continued.

"You desecrate the technological relics of the Forerunners with your filth-ridden, corrupting touch. Poking and prodding at things you can never hope to truly comprehend."

Spectra Dash, knowing the majority of the San 'Shyuum race's true history, could scarcely prevent himself from face-hoofing at the sight of the Covenant Hierarch's sheer delusion and ignorance of his people's true history.

"You have aligned yourselves with Heretics, and have knowingly and willfully slain Covenant warriors. For this blasphemy, your world, your entire species, will burn! The Great Journey is almost nigh, and all of you vermin shall be left behind in the ashes that remain, whilst we take our place, as Gods!"

The Prophet of Regret outstretched his arms dramatically, before vanishing as swiftly as he had come.

With the dramatic San 'Shyuum finally gone, Admiral Cutter and Lord Hood suddenly, inexplicably, burst out laughing. Discord laughed as well, approaching them and somehow laying his hands on their holographic shoulders, sharing in the mania. Like a virus, the laughing soon spread to Shining Armor and Spitfire as well.

The present Ministers, as well as Spectra, Flash Sentry, and Anders all gawked at the laughing holograms. Forge and the Spartan Twins were too distracted by battle to notice.

The Empress shared her civilian subjects' reactions. Celestia now looked at the five, her jaw dropping in bewilderment. The Sun Empress was now thoroughly convinced she had eaten something bad this morning, and she was sick and hallucinating. Maybe the whole morning, the attacks, everything has been nothing more than another one of Celestia's terrible recurring nightmares?

Luna's voice breaking into the alicorn's mind was the prime indication that everything around her was in fact, based in reality. "Tia! Are you okay? Look Tia! You aren't going to believe this, Cutter has arrived in person, the entire might of the First and Second Fleets are bearing down on Regret's invasion armada as I speak!"

"I... What?" Celestia sputtered back, still partly in shock.

The Crown Princess and Archon Spectra were now standing in front of her, gazing at the Empress with deep concern."Look, your majesty!" Spectra echoed Luna. "It is not as we feared!"

"Or so I hope..." he concluded under his breath, with an odd feeling of dread creeping over him.

Finally looking back up to the middle of the Assembly Chambers, Celestia saw what they were talking about. Hundreds of yellow friendly warships were surrounding the red swarms of Covenant warships. In front of the projected battle, Cutter and Hood smiled at her, though their strangely wild-looking eyes wordlessly conveyed their apparent concern.

"Empress Celestia, on behalf of the entire UNSC, I deeply apologize for royally pushing your buttons like this." Hood said in a manner suspiciously uncharacteristic of his usual behaviour. He smiled nervously at the tall alicorn.

"But freeing Discord, and forcing Kusovai's true scheming to light was the only way to not only reveal to you the Insurrectionist threat growing on your planet, but to also lure in an actual Covenant Hierarch."

Discord teleported next to Celestia, casually putting an arm around the monarch's neck, causing nearby Royal Guards to tense up ever so slightly as they glared at him for his lack of polite formality, but nevertheless allowed him to stay like that.

"You see dear Tia? It's just as little Luna said." Luna snorted at Discord. "I do have a role in possibly ending your conflict. Oh! And to think I was part of a plot to root out one of the Enemy's head honchos themselves!" He released Celestia and teleported back to the Admirals' images, who stared at the Draconequus warily.

"You honor me for giving to me such a major role in the Grand Play of this Great War against the Covenant, gentlemen." He gave the military leaders an overly dramatic bow, satirizing how formal Imperial Equestrian culture can be, especially when the occasion involves royalty.

Cutter and Hood nodded, bowing in kind while Shining Armor's image approached them. "Run along Discord. We have serious business to attend to with the Empress now. Why don't you find some way to magically turn a Covie cruiser into a giant space banana or something?"

Walking away from the holo projector, Discord smirked at Shining as he passed him, heading towards the (real) golden desk of Celestia's. "Now, now, Lord General Armor, why turn them into space bananas when I can simply turn the crews into space bananas and the ship into a gigantic, hungry space ape?!"

Shining Armor face hoofed comically as the Draconequus cackled behind him cheerfully.

Together, the three military leaders approached the Celestia and Luna. "Your majesties," Cutter announced. "We are dropping some very elite groups of ODST's into Star Swirl Plaza from orbit. They should be able to help us reclaim the Ministry of State from the Enemy momentarily."

"Princess Luna, I think you may remember one of them from the Gala." Hood added.

Despite his suspiciously odd behaviour, Luna felt a surge of delight at Lord Hood's words, her ears perking up. Shining Armor became excited as well, his inner fanboy apparently coming to the surface of his mind. A new image appeared on everyone's holo screens, and on the main projector as well.

"Admiral Hood, sir." A deep voice said.

"Yes soldier?"

"This is Spartan Sierra 117, reporting for duty. My team and I are prepped and ready for Operation: RED FLAG as you requested, sir." The screens revealed the ever-helmeted Spartan was in the confined quarters of an Orbital Drop Shock Trooper SOEIV.

"Music to my ears son." Hood and the Master Chief saluted each other before Hood rejoined Cutter and Celestia in conversation. Celestia could scarcely snap out of her shock. "This whole... Operation of yours, all to catch a Covenant Hierarch, Admiral I thought you had this planned only in the event Reach is threatened. You caught me completely off guard!"

Lord Hood chuckled lightly, almost uncaringly and took off his hat, rubbing his shaven head. "Yeah, about that. I know it's ungodly risky, but this late in the war, we all have to take risks, as you know." Celestia nodded in affirmation.

The Admiral held out his holographic hands, made solid by the projector's new hard light technology, to Celestia. "Once again, your entire Empire has my most sincere apologies for the Equestrian lives lost today in making all this possible."

Celestia took his hand in her hoof without hesitation, smiling slightly at the human. "I understand your need for risks, and ours for sacrifice. While I disapprove of the direction you took in enacting this...operation, your people have sacrificed enough, and in light of our revealed history, it is indeed now our turn to bear the brunt of the burden in this war."

With a sigh, she continued. "While the shedding of blood should not ever be taken lightly, there are many times when it proves necessary, to secure the greater good of all. I accept your apologies, Lord Hood. Equestria, the UNSC, and the United Earth Government stand together here now as friends, now and forever."

Hood stared at Celestia with quiet awe, although his odd-looking eyes threatened to ruin the image. The Empress merely assumed everyone's weird eyes was simply a matter of the projector acting up again. Putting his hat back on his head, he smiled warmly at her. "Your majesty, you and your people may have just restored my faith in this Galaxy someday being a better place."

"Admiral Hood... This is Gunnery Sergeant Edward Buck of the 105th ODST's. Ready for deployment." Following Buck's lead, dozens of other UNSC and Imperial ODST squads announced their readiness states and eagerness to join into the Canterlot firefight that was about to commence.

"The Cavalry's inbound people!"

"Feet first into hell!"

"Helljumpers..."

"GET SOME!" The ODST's collectively roared over the radios.

Nearby, the diagrams portraying the ship-to-ship engagements shown green with multiple confirmed enemy kills. The Forerunner and Ancient Equestrian vessels unearthed on Aurora alone were making mince meat out of some of the Covenant's more nimble, light warships.

Archon Spectra cheered like a filly as one of the Equestrian ships from his own time rammed straight through the bow of a fully shielded Covenant CCS-Battlecruiser with all the fury of souls of the prehistoric crew now long dead. The ancient warship pummeled more nearby alien vessels with heavy laser fire as it slipped through the battlecruiser's debris field.

"As my ultra-great, great Granddaughter would say, the Covies need to be twenty percent cooler, if they hope to survive this for long!" He remarked. Shining Armor's hologram flashed the old warrior a smile, but like Hood, the expression was marred by the odd looking eye effect all the leaders' holograms possessed.

He was going to try to talk to the Master Chief before he vanished off screen. He saw Luna already moving ahead of him, and he gave up the aspiration. No sense trying to fight a Princess over something that could be done another time. Not even he, a Lord General, could stand against an angry alicorn for long.

Luna trotted to the nearest terminal screen, catching the Spartan II's attention. "Chief! Tis good to see you again, fellow warrior! I take it we will finally be fighting side by side for the first time then?"

"You're a welcome sight as well, your majesty. I expect if you choose to join us, yes, we will encounter one another." Chief replied.

"Well then Chief, what doth thou say we go into the Ministry of State together and crash the celebrations the rebels and Covenant are throwing?"

"You know I'm not one for parties." Master Chief said, echoing his first arrival on Equis during the Gala.

The Princess of the Night grinned at the Spartan II on-screen. "Tis settled then, we crush two enemies at once, in a blaze of glory. You and me, side by side, warrior!"

"I look forward to it Princess. You remind me of a Spartan in alicorn form, ma'am. The Covenant will not realize what they're fighting until its too late."

"Chief, thou art far too kind."

As the Assembly had been conducting its meeting and dialogue between the members and various guests, Forge and Spartans Edward and Elizabeth had been busy dealing with rogue groups of Innies that attempted to distract them from the larger force.

Now that he heard all about the supposed nature of the developing situation, he was understandably very anxious to wrap things up. Panting, he broke into their conversation.

"Master Chief, your majesty, will all due respect, we're gettin' pretty busy out here, ya mind saving the flirting for after the battle?" Spartan 117 chuckled lightly to himself, as Luna changed from her usual dark blue and black, to an almost red color. "Forge! I... Pardon thine self...We.. Never mind! We're mustering out now, post haste!"

Taking position near Celestia, Luna slammed her hoof on the surface of her elegant sapphire desk like a gavel, catching the Grand Assembly's attention. In an instant, she transformed from Princess of the Night, to Supreme Commander of the Empire's military, just like that.

The sight of her determination made Spectra prideful, to say the least. Even highly endangered, Luna and Celestia's noble, ancient race still commanded loyalty, obedience, and admiration from all.

"Here me. Imperial officials, and Admiral Lord Hood of the UNSC! Allow me for a minute to lay out our finalized plan of engagement to end this crisis here today! Our result is intended to be the decimation of the Insurrectionist presence in Canterlot, the apprehension of the Prophet of Regret, and if possible, the complete annihilation of the Covenant fleet outside of Regret's Flagship."

Luna looked to Alice, Douglas, and Jerome. "My loyal Imperial Spartans! Thou art to take the task of ensuring the safety of all Equestria and Ponyville. The bearers of the Elements of Harmony could potentially be targets for New Sovereignty cells operating from without Canterlot." All three bowed to her.

The Princess then turned towards her sister. "Tia, we understand now the Griffons are likely supporting and harboring the New Sovereignty within their own borders, supplying them with military equipment from Griffonia."

"This knowledge, combined with the Covenant fleet in orbit makes this crisis here today not just Equestria's issue, but an international issue."

The Empress nodded. "While you all work to secure Canterlot, I'll look into convincing the heads of state of the other major nations of Equis to meet with me once this is all over. I have been eager to open dialogue with our overseas neighbors the moment our Empire had been founded, but this war is just far too taxing of time."

Nodded, Luna turned her regal gaze on the remaining military leaders in the room. Forge and company had finally ceased running and had taken position at a new Imperial Guard barricade set up near the Ministry of State. The barricades had been moved in as the terrorists retreated, causing a turtle-like shell of temporary fortifications to crop up around the entirety of the Ministry building. They enemy was trapped, evidently with their backs against the walls.

"Everypony and everyone! Forge, Master Chief, Shining Armor, and Ourselves will be leading the assault on the Ministry of State personally! Captain Flash Sentry, continue to provide us cover with thine marksman! Cutter and Lord Hood, I of course leave RED FLAG and the battle in orbit up to you both. Once we have toppled all hostile resistance in our fair city, I and the Master Chief along with Discord, will join you in apprehending this Prophet of Regret." She looked into each and every face paying attention.

"Art thou any questions? Any other ideas?"

The Chambers stayed quiet, and Discord summoned some crickets to emphasize that fact.

Luna nodded in satisfaction, looking first to the image of the Chief on screen, then back to the Assembly. "Very good, then. TO BATTLE!"

"For the Empire!" A Royal Guard declared.

"For friendship, honor, and glory!" Another of the Guard agreed nearby. Numerous other officials echoed similar sentiments throughout the massive room.

"For Order." The Director declared quietly, standing with his hands folded behind his back.

"For Justice!"

"For Canterlot!"

His over zealous devotion to the royalty getting the better of him, Spectra raised his wings and shouted above all the others. "FOR OUR SOVEREIGNS, MIGHTY LUNA, AND WISE, BENEVOLENT CELESTIA!"

Everyone cheered in unison, even Discord, who turned the crickets swarming the ground into little noisemakers playing a sound track of an applauding audience, like the ones used in human sitcoms on UEG television broadcasts.

As they cheered, in space other events were stirring into motion.  The inbound ODST reinforcements began their rapid descent down to the city as Covenant and UNSC ships burned and fired above them. Onward the ODST's in their SOEIV's went, always feet first into hell. The legendary Covenant-killing 'demons' of Spartan II Blue Team following closely behind them.

Turning away from the cheering politicians and the noisemakers on the floor, Discord moved out of the alicorns' sights. His ever crazy eyes lit up with a light that wasn't quite his own, matching the odd lights in the eyes of the holographic versions of Cutter, Hood and the others.

Rubbing his paw and talon together again, he chuckled. His voice was seemingly normal, or what passed for normal with Discord, but there was a secondary cadence to it, a deeper intonation, as if two beings were speaking in one body.

"The art of grand manipulation is so difficult, it has become easy!" He mumbled.

Still cheering and rather oblivious, neither guard, minister, nor monarch present could notice the lights in the eyes of the holographic Shining, Hood, Cutter, and Spitfire glowing brighter, appearing nearly blood-red. While not noticing it either, Archon Spectra still sensed a presence, increasing the dread he had ominously been feeling earlier.

I've sensed this type of presence before, long ago... Something about all this, just isn't quite right. Please let Rainbow Dash and the others be safe out there.

Turning back to stare at the ancient Equestrian, who had his back to him, Discord sneered with pure malice, his normal mischievous expression abandoned.