The Conversion Bureau: The Palladium Wings

The Conversion Bureau: The Paladium Wings

Chapter 15

Elephant Gambit

“We are here for six ponies! And six ponies only! These are the Elements of Harmony.” Nikolaos pointed at the photos on the chalkboard.  “They are to be brought alive to this ship. Disobey this order and you will be shot. We clear out in 10 minutes! Get ready.”

The combat crews saluted. They all exited the briefing room and went into the lockers, getting out their equipment. In the Armory, the Mexican-American began passing out the weapons and spare magazines to the black clad troopers. The dropships were loaded, and they launched into the skies. The airship ceased its firing, the scared ponies looked at the metallic constructs land. Hot steam hissed out as the hatches opened, revealing dozens of them, with guns of all makes and periods.

Panic exploded.

The Chimera Raiders began to march in an organized fashion, as if they were ordered by a machine that never ceased to operate. A wild machine that never stops.

“ATTACK!” A Serbian raider cried out.  Plugging the bayonet into his M48 rifle, he saw a curious little filly and raised it. He brought it down with such a force. The little pegasus cried out as the blade sticked out of his stomach, the blade pushing deeper and then it was pulled out.

“NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!” The mother mare cried out.

Gunshots erupted everywhere.

A house was breaked into. The loud footsteps filled the entire house. The raider checked his corners, ensuring no one or anything could attack him. Opening the drawers, he began to examine the contents. Just some scratch money and silver jewelry. Something was something. Pocketing, he took his leave to the rest of the violence.

“HERE YOU GO YOU SONS OF BITCHES!” A raider hurled a Molotov towards a statue of Celestia.  “REPENT FOR YOUR SINS! FOR THE HOUR OF JUDGEMENT HAS COME!”

Several royal guards surrounded a shotgun-wielding raider. The purple eyed Albanian woman gave a smirk as she raised the weapon and pulled the trigger once. The buckshot tore through the guards’ head. Flipping the selector to a different position,  the gun was aimed at the next guard.  Pulling the trigger, one blast put the guard down, the shotgun moved to the next, he went down instantly. Two shells were ejected.

The town hall’s door exploded as several rifle bullets pelted it. Two figures entered, checking their corners with their Vector rifles, the South African version of the Galil. Opening the drawers, they began to look for intelligence on the location of the Elements of Harmony. As they looked across the folders, the found what they were looking for.  One of them pulled out his communicator. “Chimera 17 to Flagship. We found the location of the Elements of Harmony. Stand by for the location.”

“Roger that Chimera 17.” The Communications Officer pulled out a piece of paper and a pen.  “We are ready.”

“Pinkie Pie: Sugarcube Corner.” Chimera 17 said. “Applejack:  Sweet Apple Acres.” He looked at the sheets of paper. “Rarity: Carousel Boutique.” He eyes scanned the documents. “Fluttershy: Cottage outside Ponyville.” He continued to scan.  “Rainbow Dash: Skies of Ponyville, we’re gonna have to flush her out with cannon fire.”  His ears caught something, quickly turning, his hand whipped out a TT-33 and fired it at the incoming threat. The Royal Guard dropped from the pistol shots to his head.

“Chimera 17! What’s going on down there!?”

“Royal Guards were coming in, here’s the continuation for the rest.” He cleared his throat. “Twilight Sparkle: Golden Oaks Library.”

“Copy that. We are sending the locations of all Chimeras.”

“Roger, we are withdrawing from Town Hall and resuming the raid.”

Canterlot

“PRINCESS!” A Royal Guard screamed, but several shuriken penetrated his skull.

Celestia looked at the direction of the sharp metallic stars.

A tall Japanese man pocketed them, pulling out his three piece staff. “It has come to this Solar Tyrant. Your kingdom is starting to fall. We are going to destroy you no matter what.”

Remaining calm, the white alicorn’s glow gave off its golden aura. The man threw one portion of the staff at her. The chain wrapped on her neck. “Bow down.” He said.  She gave him a cold defiant look. The man pulled on the chain, forcing Celestia to bow to him.  “Good. Now DIE!” His hands began to pull on the chain. Celestia groaned in pain as the chain began to squeeze her neck.  “Yes… I can see it, I will be remembered as the man who slew Celestia!”

Celestia began to slowly get up. The golden aura of her horn turned into a dark purple. “Welcome to the herd my little pony.”

The man looked frightened.

The beam flew to the man.

There was a scream of pain as the body was horribly deformed. It ended with silence as an innocent red Newfoal looked around in confusion. All there was a three piece staff and a few shurikens. A Vietnamese man looked at the scene. “ROSHI! ROSHI!” He raised the Type 81 Assault Rifle at Celestia.  “YOU.MONSTER! YOU DISGUSTING ABOMINATION! I WILL SEND YOU TO HELL AND BURN!” He pulled the trigger, the rifle discharging the contents.

The bullets bounced off Celestia, she smirked as a invisible barrier was revealed.  “You think I am ignorant of your weapons? I have studied them and their effects.” She smiled as her horn gave a purple glow. “Don’t worry, you will soon be with Roshi but this time as one of my little ponies.”

The Viet reloaded his assault rifle, bringing it up to her head.

“Come now, you know that isn’t going to work.” Celestia approached the man slowly.

A stray shell impacted the palace. Both tumbled to the floor. The man got up in a panic, lit a pipe a bomb and rolled it towards Celestia’s direction.

The man ran and dolphin dived into the floor. The sound of a deafening explosion was the only thing he could register. No one could have possibly survived that blast.

“THE TREASURY IS HERE!” An excited Korean said. “CHONG! ZHANG! LI! GET OVER HERE AND HELP ME BLAST THE DOOR!”

Three Chinese raiders loaded up their AK-47s. “FIRE!” Li commanded.

The four blasted the metallic door until the magazines went dry. Metal began to whine as the screws dropped to the floor. The four looked at the contents… They were mesmerized by the contents. Platinum, gold, and silver in all shapes and forms. The four entered and began to stuff their pockets with whatever they could fill them with. Something was heard entering . They turned around.  The Chinese brought their rifles up. “You!?”

Celestia was smiling.

The four fired their weapons at her.

The projectiles bounced off her. A red glow enveloped the horn. “Goodbye forever, disgusting humans.” Celestia said darkly.

Zhang whipped out a TT-33. Celestia flinched as the pistol was pointed at her. The dreaded gun of Dragon Nikolaos was gaining infamy with the pirates. She slowly backed off, the Chinese keeping the gun’s laser sight on her head. “Tokarev would be proud that his gun killed an Alicorn. They still make them like they used too.” He walked towards Celestia, noticing a scar on her side. “His bullet is lodged…it slowly moves towards your spine, you feel stronger every day, but that bullet is like a ticking clock.” He fired at the roof, the harsh crack made Celestia twitch in fear, backing away in panic.

The pistol fired again, it went through its cycling process.  The sights were aligned to her scar. “One pull of the trigger…and the Greek’s bullet will be propelled to your spine. You will suffer the most agonizing pain…”

A shell from the attacking airships shook Canterlot again. Below them, the city was on fire. Ponies began to flee the destruction as the fires spread across. The men finished their looting while others began to massacre the ponies, the young ones were taken for the ransom.

“Look outside…”The Chinese man said. His free hand gave a signal to leave. “Outside, your city burns just like lava.” He pulled the hammer. “Your kingdom’s time has come. There is no power, no money, and no force to stop us. You started this and now you will pay the price.”

Celestia looked at the Chinese aggressively.

A shot missed her by a few inches. The man took his leave.

Shells continued to rain down at Canterlot.  A home was set on fire; the raider killed the occupants with extreme prejudice.  All that was left were corpses along with bullet cases.

Celestia looked outside. She screamed in rage. All over Equestria, airships rained death and destruction to all the populace.  Large smoke stacks rised from the horizon. A shell impacted a part of the castle, setting whatever contents on fire. “You…FILTHY APES! JUST DIE ALREADY! DIE ALREADY!”

A small cruiser came into view. It raised the flag of the defected ponies. The Princess flinched as the turrets turned on the palace.

“Load high explosive shells!” The unicorn captain ordered.

The gunnery crews loaded the bores with the massive projectiles.

Celestia gave a scream as the cannons fired against the palace. The projectiles detonated against  the structure, weakening it with every blast.  Getting up, her wings spread.

“All ground units! Leave the city! The defectors have fired upon the palace, mission complete.”

Ponyville

The Golden Oaks Library seemed empty. The two men lowered their weapons, one of them said something in Czech, the other responded in Slovak. The two nodded as they began to search the library for Twilight Sparkle.  A pair of purple eyes looked at them from a small opening on the floor. The two men began to search, looking for anything of value. The Slovak began to knock on the walls, hoping that one of them was hollow. Twilight noticed a large clump of red cylinders with a white cloth rope coming out of them.  The Czech began throw books to the floor, saying how the old knock on the wall was useless, pulling out his CZ75, the pistol fired several times at the shelves. “Bah!”  The Czech complained. “Nothing here.”

“Patience….” The Slovak replied. “Remember, we need the Unicorn alive. That was Shining Armor’s orders and to the extent, the Captain.”

Shining is with them? Twilight wondered. She decided to keep low to watch these two.

The Czech continued to throw books around and firing a few shots into the empty shelves. “Where is she? I’m going to run out of ammunition if I keep this up.”

“Perhaps she is not here.” The Slovak said slyly. “Let’s leave, maybe she escaped.”

Footsteps were heard, along with the shutting of the door.

“Come on Spike, it’s safe.” Twilight opened the secret basement door.

The baby dragon sighed in relief.

The sound of something made the lavender unicorn’s ears twitch.

The Czech pointed his Vz.58 at the two, the Slovak kept the barrel of his Galil rifle pointed at the unicorn’s head. “I used to be an egghead like you ,until I took a bullet to the knee.” The Slovak cocked the weapon. “It’s  set on full automatic, if you try to do anything funny… if you try to run away…if you try using your… magic on me or my friend here…you will be riddled with 35 5.56x45mm bullets, enough to disfigure your corpse.”

The Czech looked at Spike. With a grin, he pulled out his knife. “Let’s see if the myths of old are true.” He approached Spike and grabbed him by the arm, pulling him to his face.

“Leave him out of this, the last thing we need is a bitter dragon… and the Archangels will not spare us a suffering.” The Slovak hissed.

Spike turned a bit pale. “Please…”

The Czech smiled as he prepared the knife.

Something in Twilight’s mind kicked in. Seeing the Czech, she slammed the raider, the knife slipped away.  The man kicked her off, and began to wrestle her.  The two were struggling to pin each other to the floor or any wall.

“MOVE!” The Slovak switched to semi-auto. “FUCKING MOVE!” He tried to get a bead on Twilight.  Seeing the man getting ready to fire, she turned around. The rifle fired. The Czech dropped to the floor hard. “FUCK!” He turned the rifle to the unicorn. The rifle gave a loud click. “FUCK! JAMMED!”

Twilight levitated Spike and placed him on her back.  She trotted out. She stopped. Ponyville was in flames. Gunfire erupted from all sides; yells in different languages were heard.  Behind her, several bullets passed her, she turned around. Several of them were coming, and they looked too happy to give a chase. Spike yelled about how they were running towards them.

From afar, a raider lowered his binoculars and prepared his grenade launcher. Loading up tear gas shells, the raider aimed the launcher into the sky. The shells headed downward.

The shells landed on the unicorn’s path.

“I got a bad feeling about this Twilight.” Spike commented nervously.

The shells began to hiss a red mist. The two began to cough violently as the gas entered their noses. Tears escaped their eyes. Everything was going blurry, the darkness overtaking them. The gas was vented out, a raider gave a devilish grin as he looked at the defeated pony and dragon.  Pulling her mane,  their eyes met. “We have plans for you pony…” He said.  “Guys, take her to the dropship, make sure she doesn’t try to escape.”

Several raiders nodded.

Twilight tried to get up.

A raider raised his AK-74 into the air and brought the butt down with brute force.

Everything went dark.

“HERE YOU GO YOU SUKAS!” A Raider threw a Molotov at an apple orchard. “YOUR LIVES ARE OURS! YOUR APPLES ARE OURS! YOUR FARMS ARE OURS! THEY ALL BELONG TO THE CHIMERA NOW!”

A few raiders lobbed grenades at the house. “BURN!” A Hungarian said as he continued to throw them.  “BURN IN HELL PONIES! THERE IS NO ESCAPE FROM JUDGEMENT! THE FINAL DAY IS COMING!”

Several lights turned on.

The raiders cocked their weapons, aiming them at the door. “COME ON OUT APPLEJACK!” said a East German.” VE PROMISE VE VILL SHOW MERCY! VE COME IN PEACE!” He continued. “IT IS NOT YOU WHO WE HAVE IT AGAINST, IT IS AGAINST ZE NAZI TYRANT YOU CALL CELESTIA! VICE-CAPTAIN SHINING ARMOR PROMISES SAFETY AND FOOD AND WATER ABOARD OUR SHIP!”

“No response…” The Hungarian raider groaned. “Can’t we set this place on fire now?”

“Dummkopf!” The East German shot. “And vaste all ze delicious appels? THINK OF ZE APFELSTRUDELS! AND ALL DELICIOUS PASTRIES!”

“I don’t have the time to deal with a Nazi like you.” The Hungarian countered. “Or waiting for a redneck pony to come out peacefully.” He cocked the G3 rifle. Going up the small stairs, he blasted the door. Kicking it open, he checked his corners. “Come on out little redneck pony, and this Hungarian motherfucker will be merciful to you and your hick family.” Hearing something upstairs, he grinned as he moved the rifle to the roof and pulled the trigger.  Holes blasted across the roof, bullet cases hitting the floor…silence.

Reloading quickly, the Magyar man fired again to the roof.

“AAAAAAAH!” A scream was heard.

“APPLEJACK!” A young voice screamed.

Going up, he kicked the door open. He found a orange mare bleeding from the wounds. The exit hole was bigger. There was a red mane filly sobbing on her body. The man slowly lowered his rifle.

Hearing a pair of footsteps, the East German looked at the bleeding Applejack and then to the Hungarian. A vein throbbed angrily, his eyes going red. “DUMMKOPF! THE CAPTAIN WANTED HER ALIVE! NOT BLEEDING TO DEATH!”

“She had to be incapacitated! We couldn’t let her fight.”

“THERE WAS A HUMANE WAY TO STOP THIS!”

“NAZI!”

“I DON’T HAVE THE TIME TO DEAL VITH ZIS VASTE OF TIME! EITHER YOU HELP ME OUT IN SAVING WHAT’S LEFT OF HER OR THE CAPTAIN WILL HAVE YOUR HEAD.”

“And let this hick pony live? After HER kind kicked us all out?”

The East German pulled out his trusty PPK and pointed it at the Hungarian’s head. “If you speak again, I will put a bullet in your skull and end your sad, pathetic miserable life, are we clear?”

The Hungarian spat.

The East German pulled out what seemed a med kit.

“Oh now you’re going to heal her?” The Hungarian growled.

“She needs emergency treatment….” The East German shooed Apple Bloom away. Something caught his nose. “Oh nice work Attila, her intestines are starting to spill over.”

The Hungarian gave a grim smile. “Proud of that…”

The East German pulled out several disinfectants, ointments, bandages, along with several scalpels, pliers, and picks. Pulling out a large cork, he stuffed it into Applejack’s mouth. “Zis vill hurt a lot…when you feel the pain, just bite.” He began to work in the bullet area. He could hear Applejack give muffled screams, biting on the large cork, tears streaming out of her eyes.  A large metallic object was removed. Picking it up with a plier, he examined it. Looking angrily at the Hungarian, the pistol roared several times.

The Hungarian dropped to the floor, with seven holes in his chest, each one bleeding profusely.

Apple Bloom screamed.  The Hungarian’s eyes staring at the wall, lifeless.

“Sorry you had to vatch that…” The East German holstered the pistol.  He continued to work on Applejack. “There…” He finished bandaging her. Hearing a few footsteps, a raider came in, he lowered his rifle. “Call in a dropship, we got the cargo.”

“Unhand me you brutes!” Rarity demanded.

“SHUT THE FUCK UP!” The raider said as he pulled out a grenade and waved it threateningly. “IF YOU DON’T SHUT YOUR FUCKING MOUTH! I WILL STUFF THIS SHIT INTO YOUR PONY ANUS AND SEND YOU TO FUCKING HELL!”

Rarity gulped.

The raider grinned as he pocketed the explosive. Raising the rifle, he slammed into her head. The white unicorn blacked out.

Fluttershy easily complied with the raiders. To them, the easiest capture ever.

Rainbow Dash took a smack to the face after a struggle with several raiders.

Pinkie Pie took a dart…everything was getting swirly and then it all faded into darkness.

The airships set course for various destinations.

Several dropships landed on the Chimera, bringing back the raiders along with the captured Elements of Harmony.

The airship set its course for a safe haven.

Private Residence, Dragon Maw Islands

Grozny looked at a pheasant through the sights of his Los rifle. The bird was unaware of the man’s presence. Aiming through the scope, he took a deep breath and pulled the trigger. The bird dropped dead a second later. Pulling on the bolt, the spent casing was ejected as a new one chambered in. Behind him, the griffins were observing. Another pheasant came into view. Aiming at it, he took a deep breath, locked the sights, and brought the bird down with a well placed shot. “In scenarios like this, food is essential. All birds can be eaten, but they must be cooked. Game birds such as pheasant are a blessing.”

Guiding the gryphons across the tropical forest, he motioned them to stop. Several water buffalo appeared. “Heavy animals like water buffalo get a small wound using these bullets.” Seeing the weapon’s crate he placed there, he pulled out a big double rifle. “This is the Holland and Holland double rifle, it is chambered in 600 Nitro Express. This gun is a rarity, only available to the rich and elite, and even to this day, it is still rare due to ammunition prices and scarcity of the gun.” Pulling out the large bullet, he opened the rifle and loaded it into the chamber. Aiming it at the buffalo, he fired it. Grozny was pushed by the massive recoil. The water buffalo went down.

One of the gryphons helped him get back up. “Thanks, and I have to warn you about that recoil.” He felt a pain in his spine. “And ...I’m getting old...”

Chimera

They say that when Celestia came…it was all a Test of Faith.

Faith?

Faith has the power to move mountains. No unicorn magic can do that. Faith is what split the Red Sea to allow the Children of Israel to escape from the bonds of Egypt.

But Princess Celestia and Luna…they are goddesses.

False goddesses…they claim to master the sun and moon. What miracles have they done? Have they fed a multitude with just one fish and a loaf of bread? Turned water into wine? Have they the power to save the damned?

But your religions…

You think you can come here and insult us!? Who do you think you are? Who gave you the right to come in and insult us!?

But Princess Celestia wants to help you…

Help us? We don’t want your help NOR DO WE NEED IT!

Twilight Sparkle opened her eyes and gasped.  She looked around in panic. “Girls!?” She called out.

“They’re in another cell.” A voice with a Bulgarian accent responded. “The hick pony is in the infirmary, she needs urgent treatment.” He looked at her. “Listen, you are Twilight Sparkle right? Your brother and sister-in-law want to have a word with you.” He opened the cell slowly, patting his holster. “I going to put good faith in you and trust that you will not do anything funny with that horn..” He opened it, revealing a Beretta 76. “I am a pretty good shot despite how this pistol is meant for recreational shooting.” He motioned her to move. “Follow me.”

The two arrived at the mess hall. The Bulgarian pressed a secret button on the wall. A portion of it opened, revealing a elevator. The doors opened. The two went inside. Pressing a button, the doors shut and up it went.

Cadence, Shining Armor, and a green-eyed human were discussing something of importance. The man looked at the purple unicorn. “Twilight Sparkle…allow me to introduce myself. I am Nikolaos Anastasio Drakonakos.” The man said with a smile. “Take a seat, we have much to discuss.”

The lavender unicorn took a seat.

“You are wondering why you are here.” Nikolaos said. “You have been brought to my ship due to your….special status…” He said. “I have to apologize for the actions of my crew, they had to resort to…violent actions to capture you.”

Twilight turned red of anger. “Shining….explain yourself.” She said, trying to restrain the anger.

“Twily listen, its not what you think…”

“Not what I THINK!?” Twilight’s nostrils flared. “Have you gone insane!? You’re allied with the HUMAN PIRATES! PIRATES! All they do is loot, kill, destroy, rape! Its in their nature! They’re morally corrupt! They have no souls! They should be grateful Celestia promised them salvation.”

“Is that so?” Nikolaos got up. Pulling out his Tokarev, he racked the slide and placed it in front of the lavender unicorn. “You have the right to take my life from me.” He said with a challenging smile. “But if you kill me, my crew will avenge my death.”

Twilight Sparkle looked at the pistol.

“Killing me will not stop the attacks on Equestria….” Nikolaos continued. “We were kicked out…just as the Children of Israel taken to Egypt and into Babylon for many years. We are angry towards your Princess and the ones who left their humanity for the false paradise.”

Twilight looked at the man again.

“He’s right…” Cadence added. “You have a right to take his life, but it will not change things.”

“Why...?” Twilight asked. “Why all this violence? All your history has been violence.”

“Not all of it.” Nikolaos took his pistol back.  He pulled out a Cuban cigar and sat down on his chair, lit, and took a puff.  “But this violence is a reaction…you see…after your little speech on the UN 10 years ago, the occupation by the Sky Fleet and the eventual kick out of many people…not to forget the genocide of Arabs, Pakistanis and Afghans under Celestia’s orders.”

“WHAT!?” Twilight Sparkle bursted. “The princess would never do it!”

“She ponified those people…genocide by human standards.” Shining explained. “Twily, there is no excuse for what Celestia did to the humans.”

“But she wanted to help.” Twilight countered.

“We humans had to endure a lot: The weather, nature, and conquering armies.” Nikolaos said. “Unlike you, we can’t control the weather, so we made homes and clothes to keep us warm or cool during the season. The animals and plants wanted to kill us, so we developed tools and weapons to cut and kill, but we also developed paper to record the knowledge for future reference. The more powerful nations take over the weak, but the people do not put up with it and sooner or later, they fight for their independence.”

“But then Ponification is the only way to stop these burdens and live a better life.” Twilight said. “You could have so much potential in magic.”

Nikolaos took a puff. “Magic…Divination? Necromancy?  Tarot? Tasseomancy?  Crystal gazing? Horoscopes?”

The three ponies blinked.

“Magic to humans refers to unveil the future or see it…it also means resorting to occult practices such as speaking to the dead or summon beings from Hell to reveal the future or make a pact with them for powers or wealth.” Nikolaos took a puff. “How sad of us, we resort to the darkness and sorcerers to grant us our deepest and darkest desires. Power. Wealth. Love. Immunity. But all these things have price…it’s called damning yourself to an eternity in the Lake of Fire.”

“Not nice.” Twilight commented.

“Do you believe in God?” Nikolaos asked.

“God?” Twilight raised an eyebrow.

“God. The Almighty. The Omnipotent.” The Greek explained. “He created everything and everything has a purpose. What has Celestia done so you ponies can worship her? Or her sister?”

Twilight sprouted on the defense of the Princess. “They control the sun and moon.”

“Simple optical illusions and trickery can deceive even the smartest ones.” Nikolaos countered. “But can she move mountains with faith? Or turn water into wine? Or heal the sick? Or smite the enemies of Equestria with one blow?”

Twilight didn’t know what to answer.

“You see…” Nikolaos took another puff. “Those humans who didn’t convert didn’t want to lose what made them human…our cultures, our ways of life, and most importantly our faith… what Celestia offers is a paradise by her terms…but paradise on a earthly term is a lie…looks can be deceiving.” He doused the cigar off.  “There is no escape from the Death, Conquest, Famine, and War.”

“The 4 Horsemen of the Apocalypse?” Cadence raised an eyebrow.

“Yes… and Celestia has been compared to Conquest…the White Horse.” Nikolaos nodded.  “She has conquered our world, promised the Equestrians more lebensraum.”

“Lebensraum?” Twilight blinked curiously.

“Living space in German.” Nikolaos said. “Why most of the world is covered in ponies…” He smiled at Twilight. “But I have use for you and your friends. We don’t plan to ransom you…I know the Princess will be concerned deeply about you and your friends… but we are not savages or mass murderers.”

“Then what are you?” Twilight wanted to know.

“We are all brothers and sisters in arms. We were expelled, abandoned, and forgotten.” Nikolaos explained. “Expelled, when the Newfoal and Colonialist came to our lands and kicked us out. Abandoned, when those closest to us like friends and relatives converted for the promises of a paradise, we were left on our own. Forgotten, because no one knew us, we knew no one. We wandered what was left of home…leaving us to our fates.”

Twilight kept listening.

“All the crews of this ship lost their homes or were called by it to serve.” Nikolaos continued. “Of all walks of life, even a few ponies wander the halls of this ship, each one contributes to her. We are here for many causes…to make a living, to fight for what was lost, revenge against Celestia…and most importantly…love.”

“Love?”

“Most of the crews lost a loved one…especially if it was  their soon to be bride or groom.” Nikolaos said. “Most of the crew members tend to have a tattoo of a burning crucified man or woman…it has a meaning, the love for a man or a woman drove them to violence…the result of seeing a loved one being ponified willingly or by Celestia’s little terrorists, the PER.” He pulled out his pistol and removed the magazine, and pointed it at Shining Armor and Cadence. “If I were to kill either one of these…they’d be under the influence of the most powerful drugs in existence.”

“Drug?”

“You see.” Nikolaos pulled out a bottle of scotch and poured it on several shot glasses, passing them to the ponies. “Love is a drug far more powerful than cocaine or marijuana or the opiates secreted by the poppy flower...it is a far powerful painkiller than any medicine, gives out more of that high that cocaine addicts strive to reach. If Shining were be killed, I can assure you Cadence has lost not just something she held dear but also a piece of herself.” Taking the shot of liquor, he wiped his mouth. “Love can make you do the impossible, love can make do stupid things, love can drive you to murder, love is a drug, it will give you that high, that rush, that healing touch that’ll make the pain go away…a single though… a single memory. And when that is gone…all that is left is the darkest violent desires coming out, to avenge what was killed, to avenge the love taken away by the cruel hands of fate.”

“Let me ask you this Niko, have you ever fallen in love?” Cadence asked.

Nikolaos poured himself another shot. “I never did.” He swallowed the liquor. “But I have a love for firearms…I grew up with them. Heckler und Koch, Walther, Mauser, Colt Patent Firearms, Magpul  Beretta…all the manufacturers. I once mentioned my father sold weapons to the higher bidder and to anyone.” He took a breath. “Somalis, the Serbs, the Bosniaks, various separatist movements, the gangs of Europe, America, South America. If we had it, we can sell it. If you wanted it and we didn’t have it, we’ll get it. That’s how the Arm’s Trade works.”

“You’re nothing but a merchant of death…” Twilight said with a tone of sorrow.

“I have seen and killed people, I lost count…then the ponies came, I lost count of the killing.” Nikolaos replied. “But I know I have a lot of to answer for in the next life for what I did. Do I repent? Yes I do. Why? Contrary to the lies of Celestia, we do a have a soul. It’s there in the Old and New Testaments…”

Shining levitated the glass of liquor, down the hatch it went.

Cadence also took it, she moaned how her head began to hurt.

Nikolaos chuckled. “Can’t handle your alcohol Cadence? The last time you drank Ouzo, it was quite a show.”

“Don’t remind me…” She moaned as her lowered her head.

Twilight looked at the shot glass. Taking a small sip, she began to cough. “What the hay is this!?”

Nikolaos showed her the bottle. “Scotch whiskey.”

“Lucky enough it wasn’t Ouzo…” Cadence groaned. “Trust me, that stuff bucks you right in the head.”

Twilight refused to touch the shot glass.

The holding cells of the Chimera were empty except for one. 4 ponies and a dragon along with a Albanian guard whistling a old tune from the Balkans while performing maintenance on his SKS. The prisoners were still demanding to be released from time to time, he would just ignore their pleas and keep calm. The phone began to ring.  “Yes?” The man answered. “Lunch is done? Alright, I’ll give it to them.”

The Albanian opened the cell door slightly, sliding the plates of Dolma into the cell. “Eat up, and oh, the red plate is for the dragon. They are stuffed with meat.”

Fluttershy started to whimper. “Why do you eat poor little critters?”

The Albanian gave them a stare.  “You think living off plants and vegetables is easy? Let me tell you something,” he brought his chair and sat down, putting the customized rifle on his lap. “Meat is an essential because plants have LITTLE protein we need and can’t be produced in our bodies.” He looked at Spike. “He’s a kid in growing and you ponies feed him vegetarian crap? He should be eating his daily dosages of fish, poultry, and beef.”

“I personally don’t mind the meat.” Spike took a bite of the vine leaf roll. “It’s good. What’s in this?”

“Aside from the beef meat? Rice and yogurt.”

Spike continued to eat the rolls. “Tasty.”

“You should eat those dolma ponies...”

“Why should we?” Rarity argued. “We’ve been fed this…stuff for the past 3 days now.”

The Albanian patted his rifle. “Let me tell you something about my homeland.”  He raised unfolded the bayonet. “The Perit, beautiful women from the mountains but with a purpose: They punish those who are wasteful with bread. In this case, ponies. Do you know what she does to those who waste food?”

“You tell me.” The white unicorn mare shot back.

“They disfigure them so much they end looking like a crooked hunchback.” The Albanian got up, sliding the barrel into the cell.  “But since she won’t appear out of nowhere…a bullet or a bayonet stab?”

“Hey! Leave her alone funny speaking human!” Pinkie defended. “You’re a bully.”

“Bully!?” The Albanian laughed. “You want to know who the bullies are? There’s one people who make ponies life miserable and that’s the French.

“Pfffffff.” Rainbow Dash retorted.  “You’re all the same to us. Just two legged freaks who kill and do war and that kind of stuff.”

“Oh really? Because the French would LOVE to stuff you into an oven.” The Albanian replied. “I’ve seen them doing it. It depends on the gender. If they are colts and stallions, they force feed them this stuffing until their stomachs are bloated, to the point they’re going to explode. They are walked into a massive oven and cooked ALIVE. Mares and fillies? They open up the reproductive part and cram as much stuffing as possible…and they shed tears…all their innocence is lost as they feel this things going into them. Once their wombs are so full of this stuffing, they go into the ovens. I’ve seen it and heard it all. They all cry for mercy…they all cry that they want to defect, they don’t want to die…and its worse when they see a relative next to them being cooked.”

Pinkie began to turn green upon hearing that.

“You disgusting humans! How can you be so soulless!?” Rarity placed a hoof in her mouth, not letting any vomit escaping her.

“The French do it and they do this all the time. A saying goes that as long as the Newfoal and Colonist wanders the Earth and Equestria still exists, they will never run out of food.” He retracted the barrel. “But be grateful you’re not in their hands…they would of stuffed you and into the ovens you go…and become a nice lunch or dinner for them.”