Coastal city of Azura, Concordia.
"Sergeant, thaumic charges are set!" Axel's ears twitched at the sudden audio feed in his full-faced helmet.
"No need to shout, private. I can hear you clearly in this bucket." Axel said while he turned right to look at the source of the voice, his own voice was laced with a growl of irritation. Private Morthil, a blonde-haired and blue-eyed elven mage, shrank as he felt the gaze of his Pantheran sergeant bore through the visor of his helmet.
"S-sorry sir, I-I... got a little too excited,"stuttered the elf as he subconsciously fumbled with his combat staff. Sounds of distant gunfire and explosions were emanating from the business district a kilometer away from their position. Sergeant Axel sighed as he turned back to look down the bridge that his three-manned squad was ordered to hold..at all cost. It was one of the many bridges that connected the suburban areas of Azura to the coastal parts of the city. The bridge was a sea of abandoned vehicles and discarded belongings which Axel's squad found plenty of cover to hide behind.
"It's OK, private. Just keep your voice down, my ears are sensitive."
Axel Cobalt, was a Phanteran. A race of humanoid lions, an expression which was only brought to existence after the appearance of the race called 'Ponies'. Axel could still recall the visiting ponies calling him 'Big Cat' or 'Giant Kitty', both in awe or fear. Although none of the races of Concordia understood the word 'Cat' or "Kitty', the nicknames turned out to be quite popular. They said it sounded cute, somehow.
Cute. Axel remembered that Concordians including himself used to find the ponies adorable and likable. And from there, unsettling to suspicious to downright hostile. All in the span of three short weeks. Equestria had appeared as a landmass in the middle of Concordia's largest ocean, its sudden appearance displaced so much water resulting in tidal waves the height of skyscrapers. If it weren't for the the synergy between the Hydro Elemental Corps and sorcerers of of the Collegium Magica, countless coastal cities and lives would have been lost. The Equestrian monarch had not offered so much as an apology, stating that their arrival was a desperate act to save their race from some unnamed cosmic disaster and that they did not expect the planet to be inhabited. Throughout her public address, she kept the most angelic and innocent smile the world has ever seen.
'We forgave them. They didn't even say sorry and we forgave them. Good thing no one died that day.'Axel thought as he scanned the bridge from behind his cover, an overturned school bus who's driver must have panicked while escaping the enemy. Axel frowned as he imagined the fear the younglings must have felt as it happened. His frown deepened as he recalled seeing small specks of blood on the cushioned seats, no doubt some of the kids had gotten injured in such a horrific accident. The only silver lining was that his squad had not found any bodies, child or not. 'We forgave them. Trusted them. Welcomed them with open arms. But now, THIS.' Axel's paws tightened around his assault rifle and his tail straightened slightly as anger coursed through his veins.
After the Equestrian queen, Celestia was her name, introduced her race to the people of Concordia, she had requested - no, subtly demanded that her ponies to be allowed passage into Concordia as 'refugees' and 'diplomats'. The four races of Concordia had agreed to uphold a one-sided treaty in order to aid the Equestrians in their 'predicament' in the name of Peace and Harmony, the all-time policy of Concordia. He vividly recalled the seemingly innocent grin Celestia had flashed when she heard the Minister of Foreign Relations, a Kanrak elder, utter the word 'Harmony'. Minister Ganamede nearly jumped with joy, his antennae and mandibles clicked with unconcealed elation as the Solar monarch declared that Harmony was their way of life as well. The 'interworld' meeting became a sensation and spread like wildfire through cyber space, with the existence of the ponies and Ganamede's comical reaction becoming all the rage on social networks. Slightly negative topics ranging from 'alien invasion?' to 'how Celestia looked at the human representative strangely' started to spring up all across the web. Who knew that all were to come true?
The very next day after the public address, ponies began flooding into major cities closest to Equestria. Adorable, curious and friendly little creatures who looked at everything and everyone in wonder. Temporary foster family programs were launched to help the ponies settle in and massive welcome parties were held. It was truly the busiest week in Concordian history. The ponies asked questions, so many questions. Culture, history, magic, dietary habits....the questions kept coming, and Concordians answered all of them with honesty like any responsible citizen of Concordia would. Strangely, the ponies never seemed to answer all of ours. They would answer simple questions like their diet, favorite color, favorite celebrity,and so on. Yet, they would deflect or vaguely answer questions about their history, politics, and culture, saying that they were uncomfortable with sharing said information. The public did not mind this, believing that the ponies were in a stage of recovering from whatever calamity they had endured.
In the span of a week, the ponies' inquiries started to become more demanding and intrusive while further avoiding to answer any questions regarding their society. The relationship between Concordians and ponies gradually soured as foster families and welcome staff complained that they were disturbed by the ponies' interrogation-like questionings and aggressive denials to answer questions. Once again, cyber space was filled with vigorous activity, conjuring conspiracies and voicing complaints as many start to doubt the peaceful face the Equestrians initially displayed.
Seven days after the appearance of Equestria, it happened. The Barrier. A pink dome of thaumatic energy appeared overnight, enclosing the landmass known as Equestria within. Its appearance and sheer amount of magical energy baffled even the brightest minds in the Collegium Magica. The appearance of The Barrier was accompanied by the mass migration of Equestrians from Concordia. Foster guests disappeared without a word while unauthorized evacuations via flying chariots occurred throughout the coastal cities. It was an unsettling phenomenon, as if the surprise exodus was rehearsed beforehand. Despite all this, Concordia never lifted a finger to stop them, but it was undeniable that the ponies' actions have seeded suspicion in their hearts.
The next seven days, the barrier began to grow in size, covering more and more of the surrounding ocean. Attempts to communicate with the Equestrians through radio and magical transmissions were met with failure. The Council of Four, unwilling to take any action that might be deemed hostile, ordered Concordia's peacekeeping corps to stand down. The people of Concordia were asked to be tolerant of the Equestria's actions and were promised that answers will be found. Said answers did not come in the way Concordia had hoped for. After countless requests for an explanation, Equestria finally responded.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
"Citizen's of Concordia, I hereby declare you unworthy of Harmony!" The people of Concordia dropped their collective jaws (or mandibles) at the declaration of the Solar Monarch. The message was broadcasted live on GlobalNews from a news-conference in the island city of Uron, hundreds of kilometers off the shores of Azura. "Equestria will not associate itself with those who build their civilizations on violence and bloodshed while spouting words about Harmony!" The journalists on the spot gasped at that and faint voices of protests and outrage began to fill the hall. "Your history is full of conflict and racism. Your cities were built on the suffering and death of others. You pervert magic with vile technology. Yet, you speak of Harmony. You disgust me."
The room instantly burst into outrage. Axel could still remember seeing the faces of rage and disbelief on live news. "Those things were long in the past! Centuries before! Who are you to judge that we couldn't have repented and now live in Harmony?" one of the journalists shouted.
"Because your races are flawed. You do not understand true Harmony! Your nature simply refuses to comprehend it. This Harmony you live in now is merely a facade, made up to fool yourselves as your inner animal desires to kill and destroy! You are all unable to embrace true Harmony since the beginning of your existence!" The world was stumped. The journalists had their jaws hanging as they stared at the source of their bewilderment.
"You said it as if you are perfect," said a shy looking female human in a work dress. "No race is perfect. We are all flawed to begin with, and it is that flaw that drives us to search for Harmony." A silence that felt like hours fell across the world.
"That is where I will prove you wrong, Human," The Solar Monarch spat the word as if it was poison. "My ponies ARE the perfect race and the Barrier is proof! The Barrier is specially tailored to root out elements of chaos, it will expand and disintegrate anything that is an affront to Harmony! The fact that my ponies can live within it has more than established that my race is pure! And to you Concordians, I guarantee that the Barrier will not spare you."
"This is an act of war!"
"Outrageous!"
"You just made the barrier to destroy anything that is not Equestrian!"
"Ungrateful!"
"Who gave you the right to judge us! We have done nothing to harm you! You are no god!"
"I AM EMPRESS CELESTIA OF THE SOLAR EMPIRE! ETERNAL RULER OF EQUESTRIA! GODDESS OF THE SUN! " Celestia's outburst was like the wrath of a banshee, shattering glass and splitting ear drums. The very air visually vibrated as she let loose her proclamation, sending people to their knees. "But I am merciful," she continued as the audience struggled to regain their composure. " I offer you salvation in the form of ponification! Discard your flawed forms and embrace a new life or be destroyed by the Barrier. To those of you who seek salvation..." she looked straight at the cracked lens of the camera,"come to this very island where we, Equestria, will help you ascend to a higher and nobler plane of existence."
"You can't do that! This island is not part of Equestria! Uron is a city of Concordia!" someone shouted in the background.
There was a malicious glint in her eyes as the Solar Monarch said," Not anymore."
Ponies in gold armor could be seen teleporting into the conference hall and advancing towards the journalists before the live feed was cut. Since then, all attempts to communicate with the citizens of Uron or Equestria had failed. Finally, the Peacekeeping Corps was mobilized to fortify all coastal cities. Unsurprisingly, no one had made the attempt to approach Uron. Another seven days later, the Empire struck.
One thing was clear. Concordia was at war.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
"Sergeant, movement detected,twelve o'clock. Estimated distance, five hundred meters out," came a voice through the squad chat. Lance corporal Essiria Flametongue, a red-haired human Fire Elemental, was on over watch twenty meters ahead of the squad's position. Her white combat armor and black SMG were easily noticeable against a lime-green sedan she used for concealment. "Seems like Royal Guards in formation...and..are those pony civvies?" Axel's ears perked up within the confines of his helmet.
"Essie, can you confirm if there are pony civilians?" He stood up from his cover and toggle the zoom function of his HUD, trying to spot the ponies among the sea of automobiles. As he spotted the group, what he saw intrigued him.
"Positive, sarge. There's twenty Royal Guard in gold armor and...around fifty unarmored ponies in the front ranks," Essie reported."All carrying some sort of vial with... purple liquid." Glass vials of sparkling purple liquid hung from bandoleers on the Royal Guards while the unarmored ponies had some held in their mouths and telekinetic grasps.
Private Morthil peered cautiously over his cover, "Civvies? W-why would they be sending civilians? Aren't they... invading us? Are they meat-shields? How barbaric..." Fear and disgust was evident in his voice as he held his staff like a spear.
"Maybe those two-faced backstabbers have their whole civilization committed to enacting their 'Harmonious Crusade'. Who knew it would involve slaughtering us all..." Essie trailed off as she spotted something else,"Sarge! You gotta look at this, marking target on SquadView right now."
A digital marker instantly appeared on Axel's HUD, drawing his attention to one of the ponies in the front ranks. "Is that pony wearing a dress?" Actually it was what's left of a dress, apparently too large for a pony. The torn garment was draped over a yellow-manned unicorn with a pearl white coat, parts of the dress dangling or dragged across the asphalt. Axel's raised an eyebrow as he observed the pony with confusion. A shout broke him from his musings, the ponies scattering at the order of one of the Royal Guards.
"Oh great, I think they spotted us. Sarge, what do we do? Do we really have to engage?" asked Morthil in a panicked voice. "Do we really have to kill them?"
Axel felt a sinking feeling in his gut. Kill. To take the life of another sapient being. Were they ready to kill? Was he ready to kill? Axel looked down at the weapon is his arms, a Logos Tech modular assault rifle loaded with live ammunition. He had never expected to have to use them ever since he signed up for the Corps.
'We are not soldiers. We're just Peacekeepers! We were never trained to use live ammo.' The last army on Concordia had been dissolved centuries ago, all machines of war except small arms, swords and staves were sealed in the underground vaults of Thezaron to be forgotten. The rifle he was holding was nothing more than a glorified stun gun until today. Today, it was a tool of war, for killing.
"Axel! They're advancing on our position! What are your orders?" came the slightly panicked voice of Essie. "Do we fire warning shots or shoot to kill?"
'Do we kill them? Or do we scare them off?' Axel struggled to come to a decision.
"S-sir! I can see them! They're almost in range of the t-thaumic charges! What do I do!?" Morthil was now in a full-blown panic.
'They're invading us, they're probably taking lives too.'
"Three hundred meters!"
'You can hear the gun and spell fire as well as explosion, which means they're engaging. You think we can scare them off?'
"Two hundred meters. Closing in fast!"
"S-Sarge!! Please! Tell us what to do!"
'Hold this bridge at all costs!!'
"One Hundred!"
"T-they're charging spells, SERGEANT!!"
Out of the corner of his vision, he spotted a golden streak rushing towards a distracted Essiria. A Royal Guard Pegasus, undetected before, was now diving towards Essie with a vial of the strange purple fluid. Without further thought, Axel brought up his rifle and pulled the trigger. The rifle jerked against his shoulder as it let loose a burst of magic-infused bullets, accelerated to ridiculous speeds by its gem-lined barrel. The slugs punched through the Guard's helmet as though it was made of paper, splattering its brains across the sedan, giving it a new paint job. The limp body slammed into the ground near Essie's feet, causing her to jerk back in surprise. The vial shattered a few feet away, spilling its contents on the asphalt.
Axel froze on the spot as Morthil looked at him with wide eyes.
'If I falter, I will die. And there's no telling what the Equestrians would do to those I have sworn to protect after they walk over my corpse.'
Axel felt an unnatural calm as he moved to line up his next shot. His gun sights rested on an unarmored unicorn who had an unnatural smile plastered on its face.
"Essie, Morthil. Shoot to kill. Hold the line."
He pulled the trigger.
Author's Note
I've always enjoyed Alternate TCB fics. Naturally my first fic would be on just that. Please be gentle.
Artamiel peered through the blinds covering the window. He had a perfect view of Clearwater Bridge from the tenth floor apartment he had chosen as a temporary shelter. It's former owners had clearly left in a hurry, leaving the once-pristine apartment in complete disarray. With war being a distant memory, the citizens of Concordia clearly had no idea about the rules and procedures of a proper war-time evacuation. On his way through the the city, he had seen discarded luggage bags filled with unneeded items, crashed luxury cars and broken high-heeled shoes. And among the sea of discarded property lay the dead-- unlucky civillians caught in a disaster so innocently named "evacuation". The Peacekeepers defending the city didn't even bother to move the dead, fearing that they would get jumped on by the enemy if they even so much as blinked.
The Peacekeepers were incompetent, disorganised, ill-prepared and inadequately armed. The perfect recipe for tragedy. Artamiel sighed as he observed a three-man squad of Peacekeepers defending the bridge. One Phanteran, one elf, and a human-- standard squad composition for Peacekeeper city patrols. "Poor sods think they can hold a bridge against an army", he said to no one.
"Oh, Arty, just give them a chance," chimed a motherly voice. The light of the communicator clipped to his collar blinked consistently, indicating the incoming transmission. "It's not their fault they do not know the ways of war. They are young and inexperienced after all. Those poor little Concordians."
"Seer, do you not have other Shadows to look after? " said Artamiel. " They need more guidance than I do."
"Oh, Arty, you do not enjoy my company? You wound me." came the over-dramatic voice of Seer.
"Seer," Artamiel deadpanned.
"Geez, you're no fun. The other Shadows have already completed their tasks and returned to Sanctum, you are the last one to finish your mission so I'm now monitoring only you," Artamiel frowned at that. His mission had gone awry after he had lost communications with his rescue target, forcing him to search throughout the largest coastal city of Concordia. Not to mention that it was currently a war zone. "And Elucia says you owe her a thousand credits for losing the bet."
"Tell her I never made such a bet and that I am still waiting for her to pay me the four thousand credits she still owes me," said Artamiel with a hint of irritation. This mission was really getting on his nerves.
"Clear thy mind and calm thy soul, Artamiel," said the soothing voice of Seer. Artamiel wanted to retort but failed to do so. Seer, the Keeper of Shadows was always percepctive of the emotions of those under her watch, always there to support them no matter what. Seer, his elder sister by blood."Be patient dear brother. I am doing my best to locate your VIP."
"Sorry...sis,"Artamiel said in a clamer tone. "It has been a while since I've had to carry out a mission with so much at stake. Guess I'm getting a little rusty."
"Nonsense, Arty. You're one of the best Shadows we have. We wouldn't have made it this far if it wasn't for your commitment to our cause,"There was a slight pause before Seer spoke again."Ah....Our eyes and ears in the sky have found our elusive Avatar. It appears he is holed up in a penthouse apartment a few kilometers from your position. Thermals indicate a dozen bipeds with him. Knowing him, he must have been trying to rescue some citizens who failed to evacuate. Oh, and you'll have to cross the bridge to get there."
Artamiel pinched the bridge of his nose while observing the Peacekeepers as he digested the info."Info on hostiles in the area? I bet he's got himself surrounded and can't relocate," He asked with a slightly disinterested tone." Never mind that. They're definitely surrounded. Four-legged little freaks are here already," Close to a hundred of ponies, mostly unarmored, were advancing from the opposite end Clearwater Bridge. Artamiel frowned as he watched the Peacekeeper squad appear to panic. They were vastly outnumbered by the invaders. He closed his eyes and turned away from window, formulating a plan to reach his target while at the same time distracting himself from the Peacekeeper squad's inevitable doom.
His thoughts were momentarily interrupted by the unmistakable 'crack!' of a rifle firing. 'So it begins. Mercy be with them.' He was about to return to his planning when a sudden realization struck him. Artamiel stood still as though he was waiting for something to happen. The silence in the room was once again shattered by the sound from a single rifle shot. Then again. And again. There was an almost methodical pause between each shot, which Artamiel did not expect. He looked back out the the window to see what was happening and a look of mild suprise formed on his face. By now, all members of the squad are opening up on the ponies with their weapons. Gunfire, spellfire, element fire...They were throwing everything they had at the ponies with no hesitation or reservation and they were holding the ponies back. But what surprised him the most was not the sheer ferociousness of their defense. It was the discplined shooting of the Phanteran squad member that had caught his eye.
Artamiel was very familiar with the weapon in the Phanteran's claws. In fact he was more familiar with it than anyone in Concordia because he was the one who designed it. Mass produced by a proxy company, it was a Logos Tech modular assault rifle a.k.a. 'the rectangular box'. True to it's tasteless nickname, it was a boxy-looking yet uncumbersome weapon, designed to accomodate a wide variety of barrels, receivers and ammunition. Its most outstanding feature however, was its shredding rate of fire. Unlike most Peacekeepers who were armed with it, which he had came across during his trek across the city, this particular Phanteran was not blindly spraying bullets with his weapon like the garden hose it had the potential to be. With every single shot he fired, a pony on the other end of the bridge will collapse with a fatal wound. He was efficient. The same can't be said for the other Peacekeepers.
'Didn't know there are still some that could even shoot straight. Rather impressive,' He thought with a small smile on his face. 'Maybe there's still hope for them yet.' His smile faded. 'Have to get going now.'
His face morphed into one of determination as he walked away from the window to perform a final check on his loadout and cargo. "Seer, send me the coordinates of the VIP's location and my secondary objective. I'm taking a direct route." His attire was rather simple with an emphasis on mobility. A long-sleeved, collared shirt and trousers under a longcoat which in turn was covered by a simplistic light breastplate plus a pair of combat boots. All of which was black in color expect his white shirt. His weapons were a 27 inch stainless steel dusack secured in a sheath on his left hip, a left-forearm mounted gauntlet SMG, and an odd looking device intergated into the palm of his left glove. The device was connected by three tubes, which ran the entire length of his sleeve, to his cargo which was secured to his back by a harness. Artamiel groaned as he thought about the burden on his back. An unassuming cylindrical container half his height with the diameter of a dinner plate.
"A direct route? Dear brother, that would mean going through every single Equestrian between the bridge and the VIP. Not only will it slow you down, you risk losing your cargo." Seer replied with a concerned voice.
"Cargo?" said Artamiel with mock confusion. "Oh...You mean the 50 kilogram metal dildo strapped to my back?"
"Arty!" Artamiel chuckled at her response. "I worked hard to develop every single one of those and they are NOT meant to be used as tools of self gratification! It doesn't even look like one!" Seer audibly grumbled at which Artamiel couldn't help but giggle at. "My point still stands, we cannot afford to waste more time OR lose the device.You won't be able to do it alone while making it there in time! And I can't send you backup! They won't reach you in time!"
"I'm not going to be doing it alone," He walked back to the window. The squad holding the bridge was still in the game. "And I already found backup."
"But Arty, they are inexperienced. They'll just slow you down,"said a worried Seer after realizing what he meant."The VIP and the device you're carrying, they're both extremely important." Artamiel eyed the cargo he was entrusted with."Especially that device, it's our-"
"Our only hope to turn the tides to our favor. Yes, yes. You told me that a lot." He sighed before continuing. "Just trust me, sis.I can't afford to waste time by taking detours, the fastest way is through the Equestrian line. As for our valiant officers of the law, they'll be fine under my care. When have I ever returned without a mission accomplished?"
There was a long silence before Seer replied. "Not once...But you're always making me feel worried every single time." Artamiel was about to tease her when she interuppted. "About the missions, not about you."
"Hmmph. Fine. Anyway, I'm gonna move now, Seer."
"Good luck out there, Artamiel. The fate of Concordia is in your hands."
"Just like always, eh? You say that to every Shadow?"
"Shut up...and yes," Seer continued in a serious tone. "It is true though."
"Yeah...I know" Artamiel opened the door of the apartment and made his way to the elevators."Radio silence?"
"Once you enter the elevator. Your cargo, Artamiel. Please protect it at all costs. The VIP too."
"Roger. Radio silence in effect."
Artamiel was alone with his thoughts as he rode the elevator down the building. 'Race of trans-dimensional equines lead by a demi-goddess waging a war of genocide on Concordia and our trump card is a giant metal dildo.' He snorted at the thought. As the elevator doors parted when it arrived at the ground floor, the sounds of battle once again became apparent. Artamiel strode out of the elevator towards the main exit, his gauntlet gun held at the ready.
Despite his sister's constant reminders, he was fully aware about importance of the burden on his back. He'd never paid much attention during her sister's many briefings and demonstrations on it. He was sure most other Shadows didn't either. But what the device can do was clear to him.
It won't kill the invaders en masse. It won't kill a goddess. It won't end the war in an instant.
But it WILL stop a certain pink, magical barrier dead in its tracks.
