Halo:battle for Equis

A Reunion (part 1), A Fleet's Arrival and Unexpected Allies

October 19th, 2552, 1400 hours

Viper looked at the two figures in shock as he got a good look at them. The female Earth Pony had light brown fur color and Apple Bloom's mane, but a bit more on the red side. The male Earth Pony looked like Applejack, if you replaced her mane and tail with Big Macareina’s fur color. The two wore outfits that showed they were farmers.

"Uhh... what happened?" the mare asked in a southern accent as she started to look around and started to freak out.

"Where are we!?" she yelled as the stallion looked around, until he saw the mare.

"Orchid Star, are you alright?" the stallion asked in an equally southern accent as Orchid Star immediately hugged him.

"I am, Apple Specter, but I don't know where we are," she replied as the two saw Viper standing right in front of them.

"Who are you and what do you want with us?" Specter yelled as the two stared at the large being in front of them. The two started to shake in fear as Viper began to walk towards them.

"Stay back, I'm warning you!" Specter yelled as he was in a kicking position as he pushed his wife behind his back. Apple Specter was about to kick until the tall armored being in front of him pressed a button on its neck and its helmet started to fold inside the armor and the two gasped at who they saw as the helmet completely went into the armor.

"Viper... is that you?" Orchid Star asked as tears started to form in her eyes. Viper didn't do anything but nod as she ran to him and hugged him, albeit due to his 7'6" height and her being 6'3", she was only able to hug his lower chest, but she didn't care.

"We thought you died," she said between sobs as Viper wrapped his arms slowly around her as he comforted her.

"Sweet Celestia, Viper, what happened to you?" Apple Specter asked Viper as the man in question started to form different answers until his train of thought was interrupted by Apple Specter.

"You know what? I don't really care, I'm happy that you're here, whatever this place is," Specter said as he looked around the room.

"Where are we exactly?" Orchid asked as Viper was about to give an answer until another voice with a slight British accent spoke.

"You're in forerunner facility number 17 of this solar system, now tell me, why are you in he... Oh, a reclaimer!" A bulbous floating object with a green light started to head towards the three as Viper readied his pistol.

"Please, reclaimer, I mean no harm!" the floating ball said as the green light lit up slightly as it 'spoke'.

"Who the hell are you?" Viper growled as his voice scared Apple Specter and Orchid Star. Viper's voice, to them, sounded he gargled glass before speaking.

"Oh, pardon me Reclaimer, I'm  Melancholy Object, monitor of Forerunner facility 17 on the planet Equis, third planet from the..." Melancholy Object was saying all of the information about him, until Viper stopped him.

"I know all of that. I'm wondering why you are here and why were they here?" Viper asked, a bit annoyed at Melancholy’s talking.

"Sorry Reclaimer! I was created by my makers to watch over the inhabitants of the planet. As for the second question, these two were near death when I found them. I had them filled with nanomites to repair their damaged organs and placed them into cryosleep," Object said as Viper took it all in.

"Another question, why are there humans on this planet, when most were from Earth?" Viper asked. Before Melancholy could answer, Viper got a comm officer from the UNSC Spirit of Fire. He transformed his helmet as he listened to the comms officer.

"Commander Viper, Captain Cutter wants you and Dr. Anders to meet him on the Spirit of Fire."

"Copy that, Viper out." Viper cut off the link as he looked at Apple Specter and Orchid Star, along with Melancholy Object.

"I just received orders that I, along with Dr. Anders, have to return to the Spirit of Fire for a meeting. Do you want to go with me?" Viper explained as he asked the two ponies in front of him. Apple Specter looked at his wife as she nodded to him.

"We'll go with you," Apple Specter said as Melancholy Object said he would go as well. As they agreed, Viper started to escort them back to the surface.

Meanwhile in Canterlot

Celestia, along with her sister, sat on their thrones in the throne room with most of the Canterlot's elite nobles when four Royal Guards, two being bandaged up, had entered the room.

"Your majesties," the guard stallion said bowing to the two alicorns.

"Your majesties, something terrible happened in the Appleloosa military base," the first one said

"What has happened?" asked Princess Luna, her face now full of concern.

"They attacked the base, only these two got out," the second Guard said.

"Who attacked our base?" Celestia asked.

"The humans, they attacked us without any warning and killed everypony without mercy," one of the surviving Guards, who had a gauze wrapped over his forehead, said.

"What?!" the two mares shouted.

"They killed every single pony that was wearing guard armor or carrying a weapon of any kind," the second survivor, a mare Pegasus with her arm in a cast, said as she remembered how they didn't even stand a chance against them.

"How many where there?" Luna asked.

"Just five," the stallion said.

"Five? I think they are a bit overconfident in that attack," Luna said.

"We know that it was five, but the fifth one was...was something else. We’ve seen those Spartans, and their troops, but that, thing, tore right through us like we weren't there, and those Marines had armor or something that stopped their own weapons," the mare stated, her voice shaking as she remembered how the giant figure started to fire its weapons at the horde of Royal Guards, killing most of them and leaving the rest wounded

Celestia and Luna went wide eyed as the Nobles started to talk amongst each other.

"Was that all, Corporal?" Celestia asked, hoping that it was the last of it. Unfortunately, there was one detail left.

"No, Princess. After they started to attack, they left the base. We thought we could set a counterattack, but we never got a chance. Right as soon we got ready, we started to hear whistling in the air, then the air and ground started to burn with a white fading fog over it. The flames started to burn the Guards inside the blast radius to the point their own bones would show. Their flesh and muscles were burned off, like a dragon set them ablaze. We were outside the blast radius. We ran back to the town as fast as possible, but as we did, we saw the bombs hitting the refugee camps inside the base as well. Nothing survived," the now shaky mare said, tears threatening to spill out of her eyes.

After she finished that, the entire room started to feel hotter, as Celestia started to become angrier at the news and the gall that the UNSC, the humans, would kill her and her sister’s subjects, and get away from it.

"Sergeant," Celestia started to speak with contained anger that sounded like it wanted out. "I want you to send every Royal Guard Barracks a message to meet at Ponyville in the next twenty four hours, is that understood?"

"Y-yes, your majesty," the Guard said as he left as quickly as possible, not wanting to be a victim of Celestia’s rage. Now the UNSC and Equestria are going to war, and nothing can stop it.

Back on the Spirit of Fire, thirty minutes later

Viper, along with Apple Specter, Orchid Star, Dr.Anders, and Melancholy Object, were back on the Spirit of Fire, but earlier before, he had two Pelicans go pick up his team, his herd mates, his daughter and the CMC, but had Apple Bloom blindfolded, along with Apple Specter and Orchid Star.

The two ponies were beyond shocked when they found out they were going to space, something that was impossible for their species, but not for the UNSC. Melancholy Object was more curious in how far humanity gotten on the 'Technological Achievement Tier' scale, from what Viper heard from Object muttering.

"Why do we have to wear these blindfolds again, Viper?" Orchid Star asked as they started to walk to where the two Pelicans are at in the hanger.

"It's a surprise, trust me," Viper told them as he saw Callie, with Apple Bloom in front of her. As Viper got the two in position, some Marines decided to start their built-in camera on their helmets to record the scene, as everyone in the hanger in the room started to form a circle around them.

"On the count of three, we remove their blindfolds. Ready?" Viper said, via helmet radio, to Callie as he started to count.

"One, two, three!"

As Viper reached three, he and Callie removed the blindfolds and the two parents gasped as they saw their youngest child in front of them. The three didn't move for two whole minutes, until Apple Bloom ran up to them and hugged both of them, in which her parents hugged her back.

The three started to cry, as Apple Bloom was finally reunited with her once thought dead parents. As the three had their small reunion, the soldiers surrounding them either smiled or shed a single tear, as most of them lost their families and friends to the Covenant.

As the group watched the three, Viper cleared his throat, catching everyone's attention.

"While this is a very heartwarming scene, I think they should be given room, don't you think?" Viper asked. The soldiers and other military personnel started to go back to what they were doing, as Apple Bloom released her hug from her parents.

"Now that's over with, I want you to meet my team," Viper said as Callie, Marcus, Blake, Brandon, Luke, Alex, Jaeden, Andrew, Ryan, and Parker were in attention behind him.

"The first two are my second and third in command, Callie and Marcus." The two mentioned Spartans waved. "Next is the sniper and weapons expert, Brandon and Blake. The next three are Luke, Alex and our grenadier, Jaeden. The next two are my demolition and hacking team, Andrew and Ryan. And the last one is a former ODST and Centurion, Parker."

Apple Specter and Orchid Star looked at the ten soldiers, looking as they (excluding Parker) were as tall as Celestia herself.

"What are they?" Apple Specter asked.

"They, along with me, are super soldiers known as Spartans," Viper replied to Apple Specter’s question.

"Wait, you're saying that you are a soldier, but why?" Orchid asked.

"Well, after I 'disappeared' from Equis, I was taken in by a rich couple and raised by them for two years, until the Covenant attacked and killed them and I was taken off world. After that, I was filled with anger and rage, I joined the Spartan three program and at the age of fourteen, I was given my augmentation and armor before being sent out to fight," Viper told them as he remembered every single detail about the program, including the argument with Colonel Ackerson about a certain someone in the program.

"But, why join when you could have gone somewhere else?" Specter asked again.

"I had nowhere to go, or anyone to go to, so what was I supposed to do, hide?" Viper explained, sadness and sorrow filling him, but before the two could ask any more questions, they noticed a familiar flowing mane that looked like the night sky behind Viper's team. As they looked, they were immediately alarmed as only one pony had that mane.

"Get behind me!" Apple Specter said to his wife and child as Nightmare Moon made her presence known.

"Calm down, she or her sister aren't here to wreak havoc on us, and yes, she has a sister. I actually brought them to tell you something," Viper told them as Molestia made herself known as well.

"I've called them here because... they are pregnant with my children and are my herd mates," Viper told them as Apple Specter and Orchid Star were shocked that Viper, the person that they would call son, is a super soldier and have the two most known legends that were thought of as myth, as herd mates.

"Also, before I forget, here's my daughter and, in extension, your granddaughter, Maria," Viper said as he picked up his four year old daughter. What happened scared the Spartans and the two alicorns. Orchid Star ran towards Viper and his daughter, at speed only Kelly-087 could achieve, as she grabbed her and started to hug her.

"Guess she took that well," Viper said as he watched Orchid Star cuddle with his daughter. But as they all watched the scene, the klaxon alarms started as pilots started to run to the Longsword, Broadsword, Sabers and Hornets.

"Hey, what the hel... heck is happening?" Blake asked a pilot, curbing his language because of a child.

"Slipspace probes picked up thirty two possible Covenant ships that are about to enter the system. All the cruisers and frigates are moving to a defensive position and all fighters are to protect those ships," a pilot told the Spartan as he entered the Broadsword.

Viper looked at his team before heading to a Hornet. But as he entered the cockpit, he heard knocking on the window. Viper turned and saw Scootaloo, dressed up in her pilot outfit.

"Scootaloo, what are you doing?" Viper asked.

"I'm going with you!" Scootaloo said happily.

That started alarms in his head.

"No, there's no way you're going to enter this ship!" Viper told the young Pegasus filly sternly. Scootaloo had a frown on her face.

"Why not?" She whined.

"Because, this is a real fight, not those flight checks we do, people die in fights, especially when live ammunition is used," Viper explained to her, but she didn't move.

"I want to come with!" Scootaloo yelled.

"You're not coming with, you know why? I am a soldier, who had eight years of combat under my belt, my entire life ruined and nothing else for me and you are a nine year old child who has her entire life ahead of her, and want to throw it away? I think not. My decision is final, you are not coming with," Viper said as he started to prep the fighter as he heard Scootaloo yell something at him, something that would hit home.

"Fine, then I hate you! I never want to see you again!" Scootaloo screamed in anger, as she removed her helmet and tossed it to the side of the hanger.

Viper couldn't help but shed a tear, as he completed his system check and headed towards the twelve ships that are forming a defensive line beyond Equis moon.

Viper got a good look at the fighters that are with the ships. He counted at least a hundred Longsword interceptor/bombers, possibly outfitted with Shiva-nukes, two hundred Broadsword fighters, about half the amount in Sabres, and fifty Hornets. With that, he counted at the most of four hundred and fifty fighters, no doubt half came from the different launch stations on various moons or established bases on Equis.

'This is barely a fighting force when it came to defending colonies. Every naval battle there would have been at least over thirty ships and ten times that of fighters and still we would lose.' Viper thought as he then connected to the ship and fighters communication system as he started to relay orders.

"All Longswords, your objective is to deliver your payload to the Covenant ships, aim for the engines or the center of the ship, that's where the bridge is located, if not, knock out their shields to give the frigates and cruisers a shot to destroy them. All Broadswords escort the bombers or we'll have a harder time taking them out. Sabres, engage any fighters or boarding craft that attempt to attack the ships and all Hornets, draw any flak from the Corvettes or battlecruisers," Viper told the ragtag fleet.

As soon as his orders were relayed, two Broadswords went with one Longsword bomber and the Sabres were flying around the twelve ships and the Hornets broke into groups of ten, each prepping their mini drones for the inevitable fight.

Viper sighed, as he looked at the planet they were protecting against the Covenant war machine, out of all the fifteen ships in the system, only the frigates, Omaha, Blitzkrieg, and Summer Solstice were given Covenant upgrades, especially the frigates, because they were the fastest ships they had, along with the shields stolen from destroyed battlecruisers, giving them an advantage against the largest of Covenant ships.

"Slipspace rupture in three, two, one!"

As soon the ensign said one, thirty two holes ripping through space and time itself and the ships inside the ruptures started to come out of them, but what they saw made them fill up with hope.

The twenty one ships that came first were the long lost ships that were left in the outer colonies, which were made up of six Hillsborough-class Destroyer, four Punic-class supercarrier, one Valiant-class super heavy cruiser and, what really got everyone scratching their heads, ten heavily modified London class civilian transport ships that were acting like frigates, with amount of weapons that were bristling from the hull, and all were giving off readings of that of Covenant shields and slipspace drives, the civilian transport ships having battlecruisers shields and the rest having assault carrier shields.

Speaking of Covenant tech, the next eleven ships were Covenant ships, one being a CAS-Assault Carrier, three CCS-Battlecruiser and the rest Corvettes, all of them covering the Assault Carrier. As Viper looked on, he received a transmission from the Covenant ship.

"Hail and greetings to you," the golden armored elite said giving a respectful salute.  The elite's voice was different from the others as it sounded almost female in nature. "I am Shipmaster Koma 'Davumee of the Separatist fleet Pennant Retribution and whom am I speaking to?" the Ship Master, now identified as Koma 'Davumee, asked Viper.

"This is Commander Viper-198 of the UNSC ground forces and temporary leader of the small attack force. Now give me a good damn reason not to blow your eleven ships off the face of the galaxy," Viper told over the comms. But before Koma got to respond, another transmission came from one of the UNSC ships.

"This is Rear Admiral McKay of UNSC Valiant of the small battlegroup. Shipmaster Koma 'Davumee has joined us three years ago after breaking off from the Covenant, hence why they called their fleet 'Separatists'," Rear Admiral McKay said as Viper heard chatter on the local comms.

"Holy shit, it's the UNSC Atlas!"

"I thought the Musashi was lost back in the outer colonies?"

"Holy fuck! It's a Hillsborough-class Destroyer! I thought they were all destroyed!"

"How the hell did they modify the London civilian transport ships?"

From the amount of talking, Viper knew that the troops were motivated by the site of the once thought destroyed ships.

"Alright, but if her fleet even thinks about attacking the planet, I'll be the one destroying the fleet my damn self, got it?" Viper threatened the Rear Admiral, who chuckled.

"Don't worry, she won't go back on her word," McKay said as Viper ordered the ships to escort the fleet to the others as he flew back. Viper then heard another voice come over his radio.

"Also, I want any Spartan twos or threes aboard the UNSC Atlas in the hour, that is all."

Viper silently nodded as he sped towards the Summer Solstice.

One hour later

After Viper landed back in the Summer Solstice hangar and informed his team to get ready to head to the UNSC Atlas and left without saying anything else. As soon as he left, his team started to call Red team and Rusty up to the Summer Solstice for something. Once the four arrived, the fourteen Spartans (excluding Parker) headed towards the Atlas, which got the attention of the S-II, who thought it was gone.

As soon they entered the Atlas hangar, Viper went up to the Rear Admiral, before saluting to him.

"OK sir, we're all here, what did you want to show us?" Viper asked, now irritated that a simple mission to a forerunner facility turned into this.

"Follow me," McKay said as the fourteen followed him to another hangar of the ship. As soon as they entered, the fourteen stopped as they saw what was in front of them

In attention were three hundred armored clad soldiers, bearing the Greek word Alpha on their shoulder plates and in front of them, were six soldiers with the letters and numbers, which is shown as: S-005, S-029, S-030, S-039, S-122, and S-137.

"Wait a minute, are they..." Blake was about to ask, but McKay interrupted him.

"Yes. Right here in front of you, are the Alpha Company of the Spartan-IIIs and the six presumed 'KIA' Spartan-IIs from Reach."

The Spartans were looking at the company in awe, until Viper broke the silence.

"Fuck this, I'm going to go get a damn drink."