Baptism By Fire
“Solar Flare, this is Sun Ray two one. We are at the specified grid coordinate and beginning our sweep. Break. No contact so far, over.”
“Roger Sun Ray two one, keep an eye out. Enemy movement has been increased in this area over the last few days, break. We need to know what they are up to. Over.”
“Tracking, Solar Flare. Celestia willing. Out.”
Bright Eyes clicked off the mic, and nudged the stick downward, putting his helicopter into a slow, swooping dive. The weather was surprisingly good today, and he took a moment to indulge in the wind that was blowing through his feathers before leveling out and instructing the co-pilot to ready her camera. Today was going to be simple. Fly around a bit, take some pictures of anything suspicious, go back and enjoy a few cold drinks. Easy money. It was days like these that made Bright Eyes glad to have joined the Solar Army.
“See anything Windy?”
“Nothing out of the ordinary so far, just a few ponies farming and milling about. Has the trail bird had any more luck?”
Wind Walker adjusted the picture on the Focused Ley Energy Sight System that their helicopter was equipped with, slewing it around to get a better look at the area.
“Let’s see.” Bright Eyes hit the trigger switch on the stick and contacted their counterpart. “Sun Ray three six, you guys got anything?”
“Negative, Brights, nothing to see here. We’ll let you know if something comes up.”
“Roger. Don’t get lost back there. Out”
The sandy coated Pegasus adjusted the controls and started a figure eight pattern above the lush farmland. It was a peaceful sight, all the ponies working the fields and orchards, wandering about the central marketplace buying all manner of wares, some just loafing about, taking in the cool spring breeze and sunlight. However, Bright Eyes knew better. He knew that among all of those ponies, there were elements of Lunar Republic insurgents and infantry, biding their time until an opportunity to strike presented itself. Solar Army convoys, carrying vital supplies to the western front lines had been ambushed in this seemingly innocent area recently, leaving troops wanting in terms of ammunition and food. Bright Eyes snorted in disgust. Cowards. Wind Walker’s voice cut through his thoughts.
“Hey Brights, take a look at this. Looks like somepony thinks that the road is a good place to dig a hole. Celestia knows what for, eh? I’ll keep the sight on him to see if he does anything stupid.”
“Gotcha Windy. Solar Flare, this is Sun Ray two one. We have a pony digging a hole in the roadway. Possible hostile planting explosives, break. We have an eye on them, over.”
“Sun Ray two one, roger. Keep us posted, we need that roadway clear, over”
“Roger that Solar Flare, Out”
Bright Eyes took a breath, slowly letting it out to calm his growing heart rate. “Windy, arm the rockets and recock the gun. I have a feeling that this might not turn out well for that stallion.”
“Roger, Brights. Hold on a minute, I see something else. Yep, just like we thought. Mr. Dig down there is putting a large package in the ground. Get main on the horn, we need to get this one before he leaves the area to try and kill more of our comrades.”
Bright Eyes’ heart raced. This was it! His first engagement. After weeks of nothing but briefings and turning up nothing out of the ordinary, finally some action! “Solar Flare, the stallion is planting an explosive. Request permission to engage, over!”
“Sun Ray two one, roger. You are cleared to fire on the enemy.”
“Roger that Solar Flare. For Celestia! Out!”
His blue eyes widened, his forelegs trembling slightly. “Windy, let’s get the sorry fucker. Three six, we are rolling in to engage the emplacer. Cover us, over”
“Two one, roger. We have your back.”
Bright Eyes increased altitude and shifted the directional pedals, slewing the helicopter around and nosing downward, swooping in after the lone stallion as a bird of prey would. There didn't seem to be any other ponies around him, a clean shot. “Take this, you bastard.” He armed the gun, and let loose a stream of blinding bolts.
“Fuck!” The burst of rounds had missed completely. Swearing under his breath, he tried a different approach.
“Brights, he is getting away! Do something quick!”
“Yeah, yeah Windy, I know! Let’s head him off.”
Bright Eyes knew that he would most likely catch flak for what he was about to do, but he committed to it. He increased speed and overtook the fleeing stallion. Making quick adjustments, he brought the helicopter down low to the ground.
“Windy, you have the controls.”
“I have the controls. Brights, what the hell are you doing?”
“I got this, trust me. Bring us down to a hover right above the ground.”
His co-pilot did as instructed and brought the helicopter to a hover not two meters above the grass.
Bright Eyes unlatched his rifle from the dashboard and braced his right foreleg on the doorframe, resting his rifle on his leg. His breathing slowed. The enemy stallion had been galloping straight towards them, but stopped in shock when the helicopter suddenly came down in front of him. Bright Eyes flipped the selector switch to “semi” on his rifle. There he was. The Enemy. The embodiment of everything that was wrong in Equestria. The great evil. Bright Eyes drew a bead on the stallion, who was staring straight back at him. Was that fear on his face? He hesitated, a bead of sweat working its way down his cheek. One squeeze, that is all it would take. One less bad pony to kill his friends. One that was currently cowering, eyes wide in fear. The stallion stretched a hoof out in a beseeching gesture, almost begging to live. Bright Eyes drew in a sharp breath and gritted his teeth. He was vaguely aware of his co pilot shouting at him from his left. He exhaled and looked into the stallion’s eyes once more. His hoof tightened on the trigger. The rifle bucked twice. The stallion crumpled to the ground, two wounds pouring blood onto the ground. He managed to raise a hoof, before the light in his eyes dimmed, and the stallion went limp.
“--- BRIGHTS! Fucking finally! Why the fuck did you wait so damn long? Take the fucking controls and get us altitude!”
Bright Eyes took the controls and pulled on the collective, causing the helicopter to rise higher into the sky. He stole one last look at the body in the road, before increasing his rate of climb. His previously excited demeanor was gone, replaced now with a blank look. He numbly clicked on the radio.
“Solar Flare, enemy KIA, over.”
“Sun Ray two one, good job, one less lunie for us to worry about. We are sending an infantry element to secure the site and confirm your kill. RTB and debrief. Out.”
Author's Note
This is my first foray into writing fiction. I started writing this when I was in Afghanistan, and had a little bit of downtime. If you have questions, comments or concerns about my work, feel free to post them in the comments. I will do my best to address them, and hopefully provide a great piece of entertainment for y'all to enjoy.
