From here on the story will be in first person. I just ask that you at least withhold judgment until at least giving it a shot. For the health and longevity of the fic, I’ve decided first person would be the best as it’s my main form of writing style. Plus, the third person before was mostly to get the beginning of the story started anyway and more freely bounce perspectives around.

Chapter 13: The Celestial Sisters

The silence was so strong it was almost malleable as Twilight, Spike and I stood outside of Ponyville, waiting for the Princesses. We weren't in the field next to the forest I’d crashed in, instead on the other side of the town where a castle could be seen perched atop a mountain. The letter they’d replied with apparently told us to come here and wait… but I could tell by the look in Twilight's eyes there was more to it.

I couldn’t help but feel a wave of unease wash over me, these things may look harmless… but she took a sizable chunk out of my shield last time.

’That probably wasn’t even that strong of an attack’ I thought to myself as I looked up to the twinkling stars. ‘Also… how did the sun fall so fast…’

My brow furrowed as I took in the night sky, glancing at the clock displaying ‘6:05’ in my hud. ’Spent a few hours at Twilight’s… but I’m sure it was as bright as midday at 5:30…’ As I thought this, an image of Twilight looking back at me with a floating quill appeared.

“Correct.” Lucy chimed, her voice ringing through my helmet as the photo zoomed into nearby window and the rays casting through it. “The direction of light indicates the sun was still positioned quite high in the sky… I’m finding it difficult to accurately display the time now.” She concluded, the time in the bottom updating again to say ‘Night’ instead of a specific hour.

‘irregular orbit?’ I thought back.

”Possible, but unlikely.” Lucy answered as I shuffled in place a bit.

We stood there waiting as I glanced over to ‘Spike’, scanning him and taking in his features. He looked like an overgrown lizard…

Turning away, I noticed a speck in the distance pulling away from the large fortress. I pressed a button on the right of my helmet and my visor zoomed in, revealing a carriage pulled by two Pegasi. I couldn't see the inside, the vehicle sporting a closed roof. Turning to Twilight, she glanced back at me with a look of courage.

I couldn't really say I felt the same way.

Minutes passed in silence as the carriage slowly neared, just a hundred feet or so feet away now. I could feel my breath tighten as they neared, my thoughts starting to race.

'What if they're really tough rulers? What if they just want to be rid of me?' I shook my head. ‘, they couldn’t. They’re no match for me in this suit… right?’

My thoughts cut off as the carriage wheels hit dirt, the pegasi flapping their wings to slow down as they landed. Silence followed as the pegasi watched us in silence. Turning to Twilight, I could see her beaming smile as Spike timidly fidgeted his claws and hid behind her.

Then finally, the back carriage doors glowed a soft yellow as the same piercing noise from before started blaring into my senses. My hand flew up on reflex as I strained against the painful sound. Realizing it wasn’t quite as bad as before, I shook it off.

‘Lucy, what the hell?! I thought you said-’

“Sorry!” The AI replied following a beep. “This source is several times more potent than any we’ve encountered… naturally I’ll update the parsers.” She added as I relaxed, the awful noise finally stopping.

I watched as the doors on the back opened, two unicorn ponies walking out and wearing different sets of armor. One shone a brilliant gold, and the other a dark blue.

Behind them followed two more Alicorns, much like Twilight, but with very clear differences. The one on the left seemingly glowed with power, a warmth radiating from her bright complexion. She was a pure white, standing the same height as me if you included her horn to the tip, without my armor on I'd probably be a bit shorter though. Her hair flowed in a nonexistent wind in a prism of colors as she gracefully made her way towards me.

The one on the right was a completely different story. She had a dark blue hue and stood about neck height, maybe a bit shorter, with hair that also flowed through the air like the other. But keeping in theme with her darker tone, it was filled with a captivating sight of the night sky and all it's beauty. I found myself staring for a few moments, just remembering where I should be, before I heard one clear their throat.

The one on the left, which I had to guess was the ‘Celestia’ Twilight had mentioned, was watching me closely with a scrutinizing gaze. Meanwhile the other, Luna, looked my armor up and down with much more analytical focus.

Why wouldn't they? I was either an ally or a potentially powerful threat…

Celestia tried her best to maintain a regal posture, even though she had to tilt her head up slightly to address me. "...I Celestia, co-ruler of Equestria, wish to welcome you to our home, traveler from the stars." She finally stated after a moment of silence, a small nod punctuating her speech.

Luna spoke up next, trying to stand tall like Celestia albeit failing due to her smaller stature. "And I, Luna, welcome you as well… though we hope you bring with good intentions." She added, her voice carrying a tone of assertiveness that Celestia’s lacked.

After a few tense moments I let out a breath, calming my tingling nerves as I mentally prepared myself for the next step.

'Whooo... okay, here it is. the big one'

A few taps on my wrist elected a hissing sound as my helmet’s front plating retracted back, revealing my face to the new group of ponies as I knelt down onto one knee.

The two guard ponies seemed a bit perterbed by the action, while the princesses were intrigued. Especially the blue one as she looked over the armor with newfound interest.

Clearing my throat, I brought my arm across my chest and balled my fist as I bowed my head slightly. "My name is First Lieutenant Jake Carson, a soldier of mother Earth’s special forces Military." I explained, giving them a moment to soak that in before standing up and locking my legs together.

The guards eyes widened, now they looked really tense, though now the white alicorn dawned a new emotion… worry.

"Military?" Celestia asked with an unsure tone.

Nodding, I looked her in the eyes and tried to be as sincere as possible. "Yes, your highness. And I know what you’re thinking, and no, I am not here to cause any trouble." I paused, looking between the two princesses. "I… crashed here."

They exchanged looks for a moment, before Luna looked back at me first. "Would thou be willing to come with us, answer some questions?" She asked, a slight glint of curiosity in her eyes.

Nodding back, I stood back to full height. "Of course. I'd be willing to exchange information, will we be taking that?" I asked pointing to the carriage.

Celestia gave the carriage a single glance, before raising her brow towards me. “Is that a problem?”

I shuffled in place a bit. “Well, my suit is pretty heavy. Im not sure it’d be a good idea.”

Celestia just nodded, giving a wave of her hoof to the carriage as ponies pulling it nodded and took off

Smiling, the white Alicorn motioned forward. "Please, accompany us to the library."

The late hour should've brought with it a lot less townsfolk, but despite the time curious onlookers continued to gawk at us as we went. It also seems that when you're walking behind the two rulers of the land, the populace isn’t as timid anymore. Instead of looking on in fear, they stared back at me with… anger? A few even started shouting insults at me, I almost had half a mind to shut off external sound if it wasn’t for the bizarreness of some complaints.

"Go back to the Everfree!” One pony yelled from the crowd.

“Take your monsters back with you!" Another added.

Suddenly a tomato came soaring over from the gathering crowd.

As it made contact the fruit exploded in a puff of purple flame, quickly disintegrating as the tomato-turned-ash fell to the ground.

I stopped and looked them all over, casting my gaze over them all and silently daring them to throw another. The town fell silent again as that Rainbow pony from before flew over and whispered something into Twilight’s ear. Her features filled with terror as she turned to the princesses and myself.

“She says some timberwolves just attacked the town a few minutes ago…” Twilight began with a shake of her head. “-but, they've never ventured this far from the forest before!”

“It was me.” I spoke up, getting the ponies to all look my way. “I think I ran into a few of those things… and considering the crash, I probably disturbed the whole forest.”

Celestia looked at me for a second, before nodding. “We can speak about it more in the library… I trust there are no more in Ponyville, miss Dash?” The alicorn asked the pegasus.

Rainbow shook her head, throwing up a quick salute. “No ma’am! I double checked each alley, but who knows how long until they come back.” She answered, sparing one last glance at me before shooting off.

We made our way to the library, the guard in golden armor leading in front and the blue one at the back. The princesses, Celestia specifically, seemed to have almost as much trouble as I did bending down through the door. But just like before, after we got inside the spacious interior is a welcome surprise. The two guards stayed outside, allowing us time to talk alone. It felt it a bit strange… that they’d leave their rulers alone like this.

’I assume they must be confident their rulers can handle themselves…’ I thought to myself.

A small beep sounded off. “Considering the last princess of vastly smaller size could perform telekinesis... it is perhaps wise to assume they can” Lucy quipped before falling silent again.

As I walked through the main lobby, passing the princesses and moving towards a nearby table, I sat down my rifle and pistol carefully while making sure they were off. After feeling content with the weapons, I moved towards the nearby wall and turned my back to it, disengaging the suit. The process was much the same as before as my helmet’s visor covered my face again before a moment later the whole suit cracked open down the middle.

“See you soon, sir.” Lucy voiced through the com just as I reached forward.

Pulling myself out, I climbed up from the suit and into the room. I quickly pat my body down, it did feel good to get out after a while of being bound to it. That’s when I noticed something was off, the small group of ponies all looking my way with surprised looks, even Twilight. But what was really off, was how one of them was missing!

Turning back to look at the suit, I saw Luna up next to it as she hovered closely, her face inches away from the metal as she looked it all over.

I couldn't help but stifle a slight chuckle. “Like it?” I asked, getting a hesitant glance from the princess.

“So, it’s armor?” She asked, pulling her head back and turning to face me again. “Thou must have mighty enchantments weaved upon it, it looks quite refined.”

Crossing my arms, I nodded to the suit. "It's… quite literally one of a kind. She was discontinued, too much money for something that can be replaced with cheap soldiers I guess.”

Luna examined it again, taking in its every curve and flicker of light on the wrist. "It looks… dangerous." She admitted, reaching forward to touch it.

"Cause it is,” I stated, causing her to stop just before contact. “…its still a prototype. The suit binds to your genetic code, can do all sorts of stuff for you." I added, taking a seat on the nearby couch.

'Hm… not bad. Wow… I’m exhausted.'

I wasn’t sure if it was the approaching night, fatigue from the armor or a side-effect of the healing mutation… but whatever it was had hit me and it hit me hard. Rubbing my eyes with my right hand, I pinched the bridge of my nose before shaking my head. It temporarily pushed the drowsy feeling back as I looked up, just in time to see Luna come up to me and glance once more at the suit.

“What… kind of things?" She asked, Celestia now having taken the same interest as she approached the armor to study.

Thinking for a moment, I shrugged. "Well... it’s a full bond type. Jacks straight into your nervous system-“ I paused, turning my head a bit to show them the last diode at the base of my neck. “-gives you super human endurance, stamina and strength thanks to the powered limbs. It also gives you a dynamic heads up display." I finished with a nod, getting confused looks from everyone present. “Uh… like, windows with information that only you can see.” I added, trying to gesture infront of me as an example.

Celestia looked unsure of the explanation, while Twilight’s eyes sparkled.

Luna however, looked taken aback by what it was capable of. "Certainly is a different kind of magic." She stated, eliciting a sigh from me.

Noticing her look, I motioned to the dormant armor. "No magic. Where I come from, magic isn't real, or at least no one can do… your kind,” I paused, motioning to the Mk. III. “-that baby there is Human Technology and stubbornness at its finest."

Luna looked on at the suit in a new light as Celestia cleared her throat to get my attention. "Alright, while this is quite facinating and I wouldn’t mind learning more another time… I think it's time we got down to business." She stated while walking back towards Luna and I.

Smirking a bit, I leaned back in the couch and sighed. “I couldn’t agree more…”

"So as you can see, I'm in a very dire situation..." I continue, leaning forward and setting my hands on my knees. "I’m very limited on time and have to get that ship fixed, more than just my life is at stake here..."

Celestia sat nearby on a cushion that matched her color scheme, deep in thought. Luna just stood nearby, staring at me like she wanted to say something.

Sighing, I leaned back and ran a hand through my hair. "Look, I know its sudden and sounds… ridiculous, but I have very limited options." I finished, letting that statement sink in as Celestia’s look hardened.

I could tell what she was thinking… what she was worried about. The risk doesn’t just lie with the Verix… she has to consider if I’m lying just to get some help before returning with a conquering force.

My leg bounced a bit in impatience. I’ve gotta get them to trust me somehow…’

Before I could think on it any further an ear shattering roar echoed from outside, rattling all the windows and small items in the library.

Taking my hands off my ears, I looked around at the bewildered group. "What... the fuck... was that?" I asked slowly, standing up and glancing towards the nearby window.

Twilight moved to join me, a confused look on her face. "That sounded like a-" She began, but cut off as another roar ripped through the night. "...an Ursa minor..." She finished, galloping towards the door.

I opt for jumping back into my suit, its layer of cushioned metal clasping around me as the HUD lit back up. Just as I started moving, I glanced to my radar and my heart sank.

Reaching for the rifle on the table, I gripped it in both hands and yelled. “Twilight get down!”

As she opened the front door she turned to me, reacting a moment later as here eyes widened and she hit the deck. My rifle kicked, plasma fire sailing over her and hitting the mid-pounce timberwolf right in the face. It landed in the library with a loud THUD, breaking apart into half burnt sticks. There was a moment of silence, until suddenly everyone began moving at once.

Luna flared her wings, her horn igniting a cool blue as she aimed toward the door.

Celestia stood from her cushion, taking a step back and flaring her wings partially.

And Twilight, pulling her head out from under her hooves, quickly scrambled away from the open door.

A beep sounded off, and Lucy rang through my head. ”Sorry sir, I had no way to contact you but I've been detecting dozens of targets coming your way from the forest!”

Gritting my teeth, I grabbed my pistol and strapped it back onto my hip before bolting to the entrance and peeking through rifle first, just in time to confirm what was already on radar. A pack of three timberwolves gnawed and bit towards the two pony guards out front, but would jump back with a yelp each time as one of the ponies would thrust a spear in response.

The pair glanced my way as I exited, the blue one speaking up first after swiping away another bite. “One got by! Is the princess-“

“They’re fine!” I yelled, lining up my first shot.

A single tap sent a glob of plasma fire into the middle wolf, turning his head to ash. The two pony guards flinched as I moved my aim to the next target as the wolves both growled and turned to me.

“Move!” I yelled, getting the two guards to part directions as I flicked the fire mode switch.

The wolves tried to scurry back to avoid getting surrounded, but a moment later yelped in pain as the rifle burst to life. The plasma ripped into the wolves, quickly reducing them to rubble in only a few short moments. Pointing at the pile for a second longer, I let my rifle slack before glancing at the ammo counter... 39 left. Just then the two guards kicked into gear, galloping past me and into the treehouse.

"Princesses, are you alright!?" I could hear one of them shout as they ran in.

I moved, running out into the open town square and taking stock of the situation. I could see a few straggler ponies, all trying to scurry away into buildings as the occasional lupine figure would dash between the shadows.

I singled one out amongst the craze, taking aim and downing it with two perfect shots. In an instant the atmosphere changed as the shadows seemingly stopped moving. Then I could see signatures all over the rader, all over Ponyville, turn and begin racing my way. So, I turned and ran too. Booking it to the edge of town, I could hear the sounds of claws and snapping twigs behind me as a small panel showed up in my hud... a live feed directly behind me!

There were at least a dozen wolves, all equally nasty looking with their splintered teeth and yellow eyes as they scrambled over eachother to chase me. The border of town came and went quickly and I ran across the empty field towards the forest. They all followed without hesitation, bursting from the town just behind me and spreading out into the open grassland to give chase.

Even with the enhancements, and the suit, I couldn’t outrun wolves. Not forever. They quickly gained ground, their long strides covering distance much faster than myself.

’So close... just a bit further and maybe I can lose them inside the forest and get back to my ship!’

My plan was cut short as a terrifying sound ripped through the night for the third time. The top of something could be seen just above the trees ahead as it approached at breakneck speeds. The forest ahead of me suddenly exploded as a huge bear charged through, its massive body a striking blue and dotted with small little star-like freckles.

I blinked once, before diving out of the way as it charged past. It ignored me, bowling by and crashing into the hoard of timberwolves. Those who didn't disintegrate on impact were destroyed soon after as it swung and bit every last one until they were nothing more than twigs.

I slowly stood, looking at the beast as it huffed angrily and looked around. Its gaze slowly drift over me, and my body tensed up. Then, even worse, it turned away and looked at the nearby town.

'No!' I took off in a run, just as the beast started moving towards the town.

My feet beat like drums as each step dug into the soft earth, throwing up chunks with every stride. My eyes burned on my target as I tried to reach it before it was too late. However, the monster had already pushed it's way through the town gate, the overhead banner ripping off it's poles as it barreled past.

Shaking my head, I looked for the best spot to target on its body. 'There's no way my weapons could pierce that hide... a grenade maybe but they’re at the ship...'

Then I got an idea.

I passed the wrecked entrance to town and saw the ursa rearing onto it's hind legs, staring down at a lonesome house below. 'Lucy, analyze this thing and tell me any major pressure points you find. How long will it take?' I asked, coming to a stop and drawing my pistol from its hip holster.

"About a minute, you might want to start distracting." She replied as I took aim and pulled the trigger.

The weak plasma hit the bears shoulder, causing it to flinch and let out a low moan of pain. Swaying to the right, it stared me down with anger as it fell back to all fours and charged. It swung down hard at me with its right paw as I leapt back, the cobble road under my feet cracking from the force. The bear’s paw struck the ground where I was a moment prior, making a nicely sized crater. Turning in place, I took off into a sprint. I tried to lead it back out of town, but every time I got close it’d lose interest and move further in. Part of me wondered where the princesses were... in fact, where was anyone? There was plenty of noise now…

I ignored it for now, weaving through town as I watched some poor defenseless shop stalls get crushed underfoot.

They never stood a chance.

A few seconds later I heard a beep, my vision pulsing as the ursa's body lit up all over in the rearview display. A few dots appeared over, and were fixed to, various points with one on the back of its neck glowing a nice shade of red.

"Scan complete Sir. Happy hunting."

Nodding, I put my plan into action and turned into an alleyway. Immediately after doing so I jumped at the wall, digging my fingers into the brick and leaping again to reach the roof. Just as I did the ursa looked in, scanning the empty path for its prey. I quietly scurried across the roof until I reached the end. Just then the ursa turned it's head the opposite direction, and I did something really stupid.

Leaping off, I latched onto it’s back causing it to rear up with a roar. Immediately it began trying to shake me off, violently twisting its body and spinning around. I grabbed onto its fur and hung on as I plant my feet on its back. I clumsily climbed my way to the base of its neck over the glowing spot and raised both my fists. Just before I swung the ursa reared up and crushed me against a wall.

My shields fizzled loudly, their integrity dropping all the way from maximum to 23% as I silently cursed to myself. Landing on the ground, I quickly righted myself and took off running again.

I shook my head, looking at the beast now following me full speed just behind. "Can't take another hit like that or I'm fucked."

"Sir, I may have a suggestion." Lucy spoke up as I bound over barrels and crates in the town square.

“I'd appreciate it," I began, hearing it rear up for another strike as I dove away and continued running. “-quickly please!”

Multiple windows popped into my vision, pointing out key details on a 3d recreation of the bear. “Multiple characteristics, most notably the underdeveloped retinas, indicate a heightened sensitivity to light.”

My hands flew up for a second as I ran. “And?!”

“What if I diverted system power to shields, overloading them and creating a static flare.” Lucy explained as the ‘23’ on the shield counter blinked.

Nodding, I let my visor retract so I could still see when power cut out.

"See Lucy, couldn’t do this without you."

I stopped and faced the ursa causing it to skid to a stop and eye me down, as if trying to figure me out. Then, it’s patience dried up, and it roared mightily as it went for a strike. Just then my shields brightened, my hand shooting up and shielding my own eyes from the nova.

The armor sagged against my figure, its self powered assistance sucked away with it’s battery. Opening my eyes I could see the ursa, pawing at it’s eyes and pulling back in shock. Wasting no time I ran, taking a few long strides before jumping as high I could. The suit, now drained of batteries, still ‘functioned’ to a basic degree so it didn’t feel like a suit of lead… but the only power it had left was what it soaked from organic functions and the nervous system link, which wasn’t a lot. Just enough to keep actuators from seizing.

But I grit my teeth and jumped anyway, grasping the fur on it’s left shoulder and hefting myself behind it’s neck. The ursa whined slightly, looking around with disorientation as I positioned above the spot from before. Lifting my arm, I delivered a crushing elbow to the base of its neck, electing a pained growl as the creature collapsed slightly. Bringing down my elbow again it coughed, weakly trying to shake me off. One last time, lifting both my fists, I pound them into it’s neck and caused the entire beast to shudder once before collapsing on it’s stomach. After a long pause it’s breathing began, slow and ragged, but there.

Jumping off and landing on the dirt below, I collapsed to my knees as the armor spit me out and left me panting on the ground. 'Jeez that unpowered suit really drains you...' I thought to myself, shaking my head and trying to quell the lightheaded feeling.

But before I could dwell on the feeling any longer I began to hear something, behind me... something that started so quiet I'd barely noticed it but couldn't ignore as it roared around me.

Cheering.

Author's Note

REMEMBER TO LEAVE A LIKE/FAV IF YOU ENJOYED!

Click here for the stories ask.fm page! Ask the characters whatever you wish!