Author's Note

The age of the ponies and dragon will follow human years:
Mane 6: 18-21 (from oldest to youngest: Rarity [21], Fluttershy[20], Applejack and Rainbow Dash [19], Twilight [18.5], Pinkie [18])
Big Mac: 25
Granny Smith: 68
Spike: 15

Edits: More details

Fixed some mistakes

Chapter 1: Touchdown (Edited)

Equestria
18 Feet from the Ground

The man opened his eyes and took the last few moments to look at where he would soon be landing. Instead of the desert floor, there were trees. Instincts and his airborne training took over as he tried to move himself toward the thickest bunch he could see, hoping they would cushion his fall.

Wait, why are there apple trees in Afghanistan? He thought before he hit the top branches.

His RAV body armor took a large portion of the impact and he could feel his armor plate crack as he smashed through the top branches. His Kevlar bounced off another branch and threw his head back, rotating his body so that his side would take the remaining impacts as he made his way to the ground. He felt his body slam into the ground as he tried rolling into the fall. He knew he cracked a few ribs, but that didn't matter to him at the moment. He stared at the sky as he started to laugh as his vision faded to black.

I'm alive...

3 Hours Later
Sweet Apple Acres

Jensen awoke to the sound of birds chirping and leaves blowing. His eyes flickered open as he felt a warm, wet substance running down his face. Upon touching it, a sharp, stinging sensation caused him to wince.

"Ow..."

Looking at his hand, he noticed that it was covered in blood.

Thinking quickly, he took off his cracked goggles before reached into his med pack and retrieved a roll of gauze and his scissors. After wrapping his head, he took stock of the situation.

Gingerly, he sat up and checked himself over. Aside from the previously mentioned injury, he had a few small shrapnel wounds in his legs and arms which he quickly wrapped along with his ribs. His rucksack was still attached to his vest and noticed that it seemed largely unscathed aside from a few rips.

Alright... I should've been paste on the desert floor....Why am I in an orchard? He pondered.

He started searching through the compartments, finding various items still where he put them, such as: some rations, his med and field surgery kits, a small short wave radio, a few maintenance tools for his weapons, some batteries of various sizes, a lighter and even some spare ammunition for his sidearm and rifle, and his Monocular NVG. The most exciting discovery was that his Zune was still in the chest pocket that he liked to use it on long trips. Even the fold-out solar panel was there. He could use it to re-charge his mp3 and also the batteries for his radio. He then checked his tac vest and found his weapons and ammo still attached, his pistol in his holster. The tactical combat knife he always wore was still in its sheath on his belt. His helmet and radio was still around his head, seemingly whole and undamaged. He quickly reloaded his weapons and took in his surroundings. He then stripped off his PCU coat and goggles before placed them in his assault bag before replacing it with an ACU jacket and tied his shemagh around his neck.

The large, apple tree filled valley came into the Ranger’s view as he looked around. Getting up, he moved further until he spotted a large red barn just a few meters away, he crouched and scanned the area looking for anyone or thing that could spot him. His eyes flickered down the path as the faint noise of an old, wooden cart being driven reached his ears. Thinking quickly, he ran to the side of the path and jumped behind a tree and drew his knife and pistol. He looked down the open path, waiting for the cart. Soon enough, a red humanoid with a large yolk around his neck came into view of the man. The red bipedal humanoid, and a huge one at that, was pushing a cart full of apples, he got closer to the man’s position behind the tree as he pushed the cart. Then, the stallion snorted and stopped short, he tipped his head upwards and flared his nostrils, sniffing the air. He turned his head and look around suspiciously, then his gaze shifted directly to the Ranger.

The man’s heart stopped as he felt the stallion’s gaze fall on his position, hoping that he wasn’t spotted. Jensen held his breath as the stallion stared for a moment, one of them completely unaware of the others’ existence. The red humanoid knitted his eyebrows and then shrugged, he looked away and continued his journey down the path. Breathing a sigh of relief, the man snuck around the tree once he was sure the pony had left. He decided to walk deep into the orchard in order to avoid any more unwanted encounters.

20 Minutes Later

The apples.

Oh the amazing apples.

The godlike deliciousness the apples withheld behind their crimson coat baffled the man. The Ranger sat inside a small wooden house he had found whilst walking through the orchards. After picking a fair share of apples, he had stumbled upon this little house nestle in a crook of a tree. The front door was open, which was strange, but he really didn't care, he was hungry as hell and need some sort of shelter while he feasted on his red bounty. The man had already eaten 3 of his 15 apples and was working on his fourth when a distant giggling sounded out from the orchard. Putting down his half eaten apple, he quickly got up and made his way to a nearby window. As he slowly peered out the aperture, he could see a trio of fillies coming his way, straight for the tree house.

"That was AWESOME!" The orange and magenta filly yelled in a tomboyish voice.

"Okay, I guess it was, but I told you not to touch Twilight's blue potion thingy. She already said that it would explode if you shook it, do you ever listen Scootaloo?" The small white unicorn scolded.

"Hey, ah thought it was kinda' cool." Said the yellow filly.

"SEE! Even Applebloom says it was awesome! I told you chemistry would get us our cutie mark."

The white filly pointed to Scootaloo shoulder,

"You didn't get a chemistry cutie mark, or even one at all for that matter."

"Neither did you Sweetie Belle, nor Applebloom." Scootaloo pouted.

"Hey, ah still think tha' exploshin' was epic, Anywho! Do y'all wanna hang out some more at tha' club house?" Applebloom suggested.

"Sure! But only for a bit I gotta get back to the Boutique to help Rarity with some coat hems."

"I'll come to, but I've got flying lesson with Rainbow today." Stated Scootaloo with excitement.

"All right'y then, lets go!" Applebloom cheered as they walked to their tree house. The fillies turned to the club house and began to make their way up the steps of the tree house.

"Shit!" The Ranger muttered as he heard the fillies' hoofsteps getting closer to the door.

Frantically, he searched for a way out of the club house, finally he found one way to exit the premises without the fillies spotting him. The same window he had been observing the girls was his only escape. With the extremely close sound of hoofsteps closing in on him, he acted on instinct and dove out the window,

And directly onto a rose bush.

"Fuuuuccck..." he groaned internally as the thorns on the plant jabbed at him while he sank further into the shrub. Thankfully, the window didn't have a glass pane on it. It that where the case, he would have had a lot more problems than just a few thorns in his side.

The girls was in the building just as fast as the Ranger had jumped out and landed in the bush. The moment they walked in, Applebloom saw a brief, blur of movement by the window. Curious, she walked to the windowsill and looked out, trying to see if she could catch whatever caused the movement with her gaze. She stood there, searching for the phantom for a second longer, she then shrugged and walked back inside. She joined her friends at the small table within the club house and picked up a note pad rest on it. The note pad was for her to record every attempt she and her friends had done at getting cutie marks, this was to ensure they didn't do the same activity twice.

While writing down the day’s events, her and her friend's eyes shifted to a half eating apple on the floor.

"Looks like we got fruit bats again," Scootaloo grumbled.

Looking at the apple, she could see that there was odd looking teeth marks within the apple. No pony could have made those indents, the filly then remembered the strange moment blur in the club house when she entered. The theorized that there must have been an animal of some-sort in the tree house eating and apple, and she probably scared it away when she walked in.

Applebloom sighed and face hoofed.

"We should start closing the front door, and get that window some glass..." She trailed off.

She then returned to tossing ideas around with her friends and jotting them down on her note pad, seemingly unaware of the Ranger getting out of his thorny tomb and running away from the club house and into the woods.

The man had climbed out of his "Prickly Situation" and brushed himself off. Seeing the sun was close to setting, he checked himself over before heading out for the trail and moved further into the orchards.

As he moved, his mind started to wander to his past…

5 Years Ago

Back inside of his two story home, 14 year old Jensen ran up to his room and locked the door behind him, jumped onto his ‘bed’ and began to cry. The bed was just a mattress on the floor without a box spring or covers, he pulled out the small necklace and held it in his palm. Jensen looked out the window and saw that it began to rain, he then heard them yelling and started to pound on the door. He looked in horror as they broke down his door. They had an angry look on their faces.

“WHO THE FUCK IS THAT!?”

“She’s no one! She’s just a friend! That’s-” he was cut off when she struck his face. She then proceeded to grab him by his hair and smack him in the face. The force was enough for his hair to rip in the woman’s grip.

Jensen began to wail in pain as the two continued to beat him.

After she let go of him, he threw Jensen against the wall and zip-tied him to the radiator and left the room. Jensen tried to get to his feet but found no strength left in his body, as he looked over to his cuffed hand, he realized that he was still holding the necklace that his friend had given him. He held it close to him, as he looked out the window he could have sworn he saw a rough outline of a winged figure outside of his window. As a bolt of lightning lit up the sky… it vanished. But he knew his grandparents were watching over him.

15 Minutes Later

As Jensen sat against the radiator, he had stopped crying only because he thought that he had run out of tears. He heard heavy footsteps approaching his door and merely gave a dead gaze at him, who was glaring at him. He stumbled over and kicked Jensen in the ribs before stumbling back out of the room and slamming the door and dead bolting it. Jensen felt his ribs break upon impact from his steel toed boot as he started to cough up blood and soon, his vision started to fade. Before he finally succumbed to the darkness, the words of his friend’s father came through his mind:

“Recognizing that I volunteered as a Ranger, fully knowing the hazards of my chosen profession, I will always endeavor to uphold the prestige, honor, and high esprit de corps of the Rangers.

Acknowledging the fact that a Ranger is a more elite soldier who arrives at the cutting edge of battle by land, sea, or air, I accept the fact that as a Ranger my country expects me to move further, faster and fight harder than any other soldier.

Never shall I fail my comrades. I will always keep myself mentally alert, physically strong and morally straight and I will shoulder more than my share of the task whatever it may be, one-hundred-percent and then some.

Gallantly, will I show the world that I am a specially selected and well-trained soldier. My courtesy to superior officers, neatness of dress and care of equipment shall set the example for others to follow.

Energetically will I meet the enemies of my country. I shall defeat them on the field of battle for I am better trained and will fight with all my might. Surrender is not a Ranger word. I will never leave a fallen comrade to fall into the hands of the enemy and under no circumstances will I ever embarrass my country.

Readily will I display the intestinal fortitude required to fight on to the Ranger objective and complete the mission though I be the lone survivor.

Rangers Lead The Way!!!”

“Rangers… lead…the…wa….”

Present Time

As the man’s past resurfaced, he felt hot tears streak down his face. He backhanding them away and moved on.

However, before he was more than 25 meters away he heard the screams of a certain yellow filly.