Broken Mirror: Side Stories

Canterlot Castle, One Hour Post-Battle of Dodge City

"Alright, where's that medic?" Yelled one of the marines as a battered and dusty Pelican landed in the courtyard.

"Right here boss!" Called the medic as she ran out of the castle.

Once the ramp hit the ground, Dusk walked off with an unconscious Spartan in his arms. "Is the infirmary still in the same place?"

The medic ran up, checking the Spartan's pulse through a tear in the undersuit by her neck. "Alright, I’ve got a pulse."

"I could've told you that!" Yelled Dusk. "Now is the infirmary still in the east wing?"

"It is, but why does that-"

"Palmer will crush a stretcher. I'm carrying her." Dusk's visor lit up with a pale glow as he stared down at the medic. "Now are you going to get out of my way?" The medic silently stepped aside, and the glow from Dusk's visor died out. "Thank you." The stallion quickly broke into a brisk stride, and was already in the castle by the time the guards caught up to him. "Did any of you numbskulls miss the lesson I gave your friend outside?"

"I'm sorry sir, but we have orders to escort you to the throne room." Replied the guard.

"And I honestly don't give a damn."

"I have my orders-"

Dusk slowed down and allowed the guard to pass him. "Then go tell sun butt that she'll need to get in line, Palmer comes first." At the next intersecting hall, Dusk bore a hard right and broke into a mad dash, clearing the corridor in a matter of moments and leaving behind the stunned guards.

As he neared the infirmary, he blew the door open with a bolt of magic from his armored horn. The entrance was shocking to say the least, with doctors and orderlies taking cover behind overturned cots and counters. “I need a doctor who knows human physiology, now!”

One of the few humans rose from behind the main counter. “I should be able to help. Just please, don’t hurt-”

Dusk groaned. “I’m on your side damn it!” Dusk pressed over to the counter, laying Palmer down as it groaned under the weight of the armored soldier. “Palmer took a direct hit from a tank. Can you help her or not?”

“Not with that armor in the way.”

Dusk immediately went to work tearing off the shattered pieces of armor, starting with the remains of the chestplate and helmet before moving to the arms and legs. “Now can you do anything?”

The doctor pushed Dusk out of the way and motioned for some of the orderlies to approach. “Where did this happen?”

“Dodge City. Roughly an hour ago.”

The doctor nodded silently as she put on a stethoscope, checking Palmer’s heartbeat through one of the many tears in her bodysuit. “Alright, heart sounds normal… Breathing is a bit labored…” The doctor pulled her hand out of the suit and examined the blood that stained the once white glove. “She’s bleeding from the bottom right hand side of her ribcage.” The doctor stuck her hand back in, this time with a small piece of gauze. “Doesn’t feel too deep… Probably just a good gash.”

“Is that a good thing or not?” Asked Dusk.

“Just means she’ll need a few stitches.” Retorted the doctor. “Alright, let’s get a gurney over here!” As the orderlies slid Palmer’s unconscious body onto the fresh gurney, the doctor returned her attention to Dusk. “We’ll take care of your friend. Are you alright?”

Dusk nodded. “I’m fine. Is there anything else you’re planning on doing?”

“Probably a few x-rays to see if there’s any broken bones or internal bleeding.”

Dusk let out a sigh of relief. “So she’ll be OK then?” The doctor nodded. “Alright, I’ll be back in a little bit to check on Palmer then.”

The stallion walked out of the infirmary and leaned up against the wall, sliding down to the floor as he took his helmet off. “That could’ve gone better.”

“Freeze!”

The sounds of rifles cocking attracted Dusk’s attention, and he looked up to see a face full of assault rifles pointed right at his cranium. “Look, I already went over it with the doc. I’m on your side!”

“Guards, lower your weapons!” Immediately the rifles dropped away and the guards stepped aside for an approaching blue alicorn.

“Good to see you again Princess.” Dusk sat back against the wall. “Hey, have you lost weight?”

Luna rolled her eyes before she grabbed Dusk and hauled him to his feet. “I’d counter by asking if you gained any.”

Dusk tapped his chestplate. “Eh… Maybe half a ton? I’m not positive.”

“Small talk aside you do realize I need you to come with me, right?”

Dusk nodded. “I guess I don’t have a choice.”

______________________________________________________________________________

Canterlot Castle Throne Room, Ten Minutes Later

Celestia sat back in her throne as she drummed her fingers on the armrest. She sat up once the door to the throne room opened, allowing Luna and Dusk entrance. “Dusk, it’s good to see you again.”

“I could say the same.”

Celestia nodded. “You do understand that I’m a bit skeptical to simply hand out free passage to you without understanding the circumstance behind your return. Would you care to elaborate?”

Dusk shuddered. “How about I give you a quick recap instead?”

“Dusk, it’s been three years. I have no guarantee that you’re of sound mind, let alone where you’ve been.”

“I’ve spent the last three years as an ONI pincushion while one of their political prisoners was used to conduct their experiments and operations. About two days ago, the head honcho thought it would be a great idea to put me in charge of a few hundred super soldiers so she could keep me under her thumb, but that’s what’s great about having copies of damning evidence. I’ll give you three guesses on how that worked out for ONI.”

“And now one of those soldiers is in our infirmary?” Asked Celestia.

Dusk nodded. “And judging by your tone I’d say you aren’t entirely comfortable with that.”

“You’d be correct in your assumption.” Retorted the Princess. “Now, help me understand why I should trust this new group of humans?”

The doors to the throne room opened and two Lunar Guards escorted a human male before the dias. “Princess, this one says he’s here to speak with you.”

Celestia waved off the guards and stared down at the new arrival. “Dusk, do you know this human?”

“Tom you’re up.” Muttered Dusk.

“I’m Captain Tom-”

“I wasn’t asking you, human.”

Dusk and Captain Lasky exchanged confused looks for a moment. “Princess, I do know Captain Lasky. Thanks to his help, I managed to stare down the head of ONI and expose her actions to her superiors.”

“Is that so?” Celestia rose from the throne and approached the two, staring down Lasky the entire time she approached. As she stared down at the slightly shorter Captain, her scowl softened and broke into a sad smile. “Then you have my thanks.”

Lasky sighed in relief. “You’re welcome.”

“I take it you thought that this meeting would go far worse?”

The Captain nodded. “My past experiences with diplomacy tend to end with getting caught in a shootout.”

“A good reason to be concerned.” Assured Celestia. “But trust me, you have nothing to worry about.”

“Then let’s cut to something to worry about.” Injected Dusk. “Where’s my team?”

“We’re back Sunny!” yelled Strike as he threw the throne room doors open. “And I’ve got…” Dusk and Strike stared each other down once they made eye contact. “Hey… Glad you’re not dead?”

“Do you have to make it sound like a question?” Asked Dusk.

Strike shrugged. “Nope, but why not?”

Steeljack, Dart and Comet pushed past the overly energetic Pegasus and moved to corner Dusk.

“Nice to see you guys too?”

Steeljack rolled his eyes and punched Dusk’s shoulder. “Good to see you again.”

After a quick fist bump with Comet, Dusk slapped Steeljack’s shoulder and stared down at Dart. “Miss me kiddo?”

Dart stared down at her feet and sighed. As she looked up, she had a more serious look plastered across her face. “Look, we’ll talk later. Right now I’ve got business with the Princess.”

“Then let’s hear it Dart.” Insisted Celestia.

“The run on Pioneer was a wash.” She groaned. “There was a bug in the computer that started a reactor overload once we took the bridge. It vaporized the ship once it hit the upper atmosphere.”

“Were you able to salvage anything worth noting?”

“There wasn’t anything to salvage.” Added Steeljack. “ONI was running with a stripped down ship. Bare essentials, no furnishings or supplies, and only the main computer to control the ship.”

“Odds are that their boss knew it was a suicide run.” Dart crossed her arms and sighed.

“But Euclid’s Anvil is a brand new heavy crusier.” Pointed out Lasky. “If Osman has been sending stripped down ships, why was it in a standard configuration?”

“Maybe this Osman character has a reason to commit more expensive assets.” The group turned to face Comet. “Just how many of their ships have we managed to kill at this point? Ten?” The lack of a response pushed Comet to roll his eyes. “If their cheap investments couldn’t do the job, then maybe they thought that the higher quality equipment was more likely to knock out our ships.”

“As of now, the point is moot.” Celestia walked back up the dais and sat down on her throne. “But everypony came home safe. Considering the circumstances, I’d consider that a victory.”

Steeljack nodded and led the group out of the throne room. Dart stole one last glance at Dusk, almost one of concern, before the doors closed and concealed her expression. “Now where’s Sarah?” Asked Captain Lasky.

“Docs in the infirmary are patching her up.” Replied Dusk.

Lasky nodded. “You mind showing me how to get there?”

______________________________________________________________________________

Three Hours Later, Castle Infirmary

It took Dusk roughly an hour to get out of his armor and gather some decent clothing. He and Lasky managed to reach the infirmary just in time to see Palmer get rolled into one of the recovery wards with Lasky close behind. He strode in just in time to watch as the Doctor finished hooking up an IV. “How is she doc?”

“Just out cold at the moment. We dealt with that cut on her chest, cleaned her up-”

“But she’ll live?” Asked Dusk.

The doctor nodded. “Give her a week and she should be fine.”

“I can live with that.”

The doctor strolled out of the room, and Lasky slumped down in a chair opposite Palmer’s bed. “Talk about a long day.”

Dusk sat down on the foot of Palmer’s hospital bed and nodded in agreement. “And it isn’t even time for dinner.” The room was silent for a moment before a soft snore broke it like glass, punctuated by the beep of a heart monitor. “Figures…”

“Dusk, you got a minute?”

Dusk turned to the door and crept over to Dart, slowly shutting it behind him. He looked down at the mare and smiled. “Miss me?”

“Miss you?” Growled Dart. “You’ve been gone for three years. While we’ve been getting our asses handed to us, you were off-”

“Now hold on, is it my fault I became an ONI pincushion?”

“You obviously had some sort of friend?” Dusk glanced down at his feet, leading to Dart groaning. “Did you ever think of sending us something, or did you forget that we all could’ve thought you were dead?”

“At risk of pissing you off, it really wasn’t one of my top priorities.”

“So you had the ability to reassure all of us that you were ok… And not once did you even try to send us some sort of message you pedantic asshole!”

Dusk put his hands up in defeat. “Well I’m sorry that I was-” the stallion was interrupted when the mare mashed her lips into his. ‘Holy shit!’ He thought. Pushing her back, Dusk cocked an eyebrow. “Where the hell did that come from?”

“Probably hormones.” Came a voice from off to the side

Dart turned to face the newcomer, a dreadfully shocked expression plastered across her face.

“Eh, makes sense.” Dusk had to do a double-take after he spoke. “Palmer, you’re awake! And you saw-”

“Yes, and I’ll gladly forget that little display at the first opportunity.” The Spartan clutched at the lower part of her chest. “So, want to tell me what happened?”

“Receiving end of a Scorpion.” Said Dart. “Can’t say I’ve seen anyone survive a direct hit from one before.”

“Palmer, this is Dart.” noted Dusk. “Anyway, odds are the ribcage is my fault. CPR and and all that jazz tends to leave some bruises.”

“Well then thanks for all of this wonderful discomfort.” snarked Palmer. “So, when can I leave?”

“You can leave now Palmer.” Assured Dusk.

“Good. And get a room while you’re at it.”

As Palmer walked down the hall, Dart looked up at Dusk with lidded eyes. “My room, now!”

“I’m sorry, but what?” Dusk didn’t have to wait long for his answer before Dart teleported the two to a decent sized bedroom in another part of the castle. “Look, can you just-” Dusk was cut off once more as Dart dragged the stallion into an impassioned kiss and pulled him down onto her bed.

Dart pushed Dusk back so the two could breathe. “You have no idea how long I’ve waited to do that.”

“Then enlighten me.” Whispered Dusk.

______________________________________________________________________________

Five Years Ago, Manehattan Wire

Dart stood outside Dusk’s office and sighed. She had spent the better part of the afternoon trying to find a decent low-cut tanktop. After a quick burger run into the city, she had everything she needed to make her move. “Alright, show time.” Dart swung the door open and spotted Dusk pouring over paperwork at his desk. “Figured you might be a bit hungry.”

Dusk never looked up from his paperwork, scribbling in numbers on what appeared to be a set of blueprints. “Thanks.”

Dart leaned forward on the desk, making sure her collar was hanging low. “What you working on?”

Dusk got up from his desk, grabbing his papers and the burger that Dart had brought him. “Just some stuff for the Guardian project.” He made for the door, wolfing down the hayburger as he went and tossed the wrapper in the trashcan by the door. “Oh, and thanks for the burger!”

______________________________________________________________________________

Canterlot Castle, Present Day

Dusk cocked an eyebrow at the mare under him on the bed. “Was I really that dense?”

Dart nodded. “Granted I was a bit too young, but anypony with a brain should’ve been able to see what I was doing.”

“Guess that makes me brainless?”

Dart sighed and teleported out from under the stallion, reappearing near the bathroom door. “I’ll give you a chance to make up for it then.” The mare turned around, tossing her shirt to the side and unbuckling her cargo pants, letting them fall to the ground and leaving her in nothing but a pair of black panties. “You coming?”

Dusk’s face turned red, and he couldn’t help but stare as Dart sashayed into the bathroom and turned on the shower. “Fuck it, you only live once.” He muttered. Dusk scrambled off the bed, tossing his own shirt off to the side and kicking away his pants in time to rush into the bathroom, slamming the door shut and locking it with a silent click.