Rarity watched Boss pull out a small paddle-like device. It chirped three times, and a jolt of something ran through the fallen Commando and into her. If she wasn't already awake from the battle, she felt positively wired now. Scorch got up rubbing his head.

"What I miss?" he asked casually.

Boss chuckled "Besides Rarity's crash course in pistol marksmanship. Not much."

Scorch made a show of wiping a fake tear from his helmet. "they grow up so fast. Next, she'll get her anti-armor certification then she'll be asking for the keys to the AT-TE."

Rarity scoffed and kicked a leg at the praise. The door creaked behind Delta, and the pregnant mare peeked out slowly.

"Is it safe?" She let out her accent thick, but her voice still trembled. Boss put a hand to his helmet to contact Sev.

"Oh-Seven status?"

"Chasing stragglers- Hey get back here!" Trained ears could hear the sound of a sniper bolt in the distance.

"Oh-Seven, Please tell me that was an Elk." Boss sighed.

"Don't worry it is... Was." Sev corrected with a dark chuckle. "Just cleared the last block heaving to RV," Boss confirmed and looked back to the Clones and ponies. Rarity was trying to comfort the mare.

"we're ready to move," Boss stated, and the mare took a shaky step towards him.

"Where are you taking me?" She started shaking using all of her mustered courage to ask a simple question. Scorch crouched to her level, and she flinched.

"You live in the area, ma'am?" He asked She looked at Rarity who nodded encouragingly. She swallowed to wet her dry mouth. Then nodded not able to get the words out.

"Then we're here to deliver you home safe and sound you and everyone else." She didn't look like she trusted them, but she bowed her head.

"Thank you."

Boss was almost in a good mood "Let's move on Oh-Sevens waiting with the other prisoners. Can you walk?" She nodded

"Just not fast..." She took a breath and began walking Delta and Rarity walked on all sides of her. Whenever one of them got to close she would wince until they moved back. They passed the battle-torn room through fields of arrows. Rarity would pluck the more intact arrows she came across inspecting them she'd gingerly put them in her bag. Fixer spotted a bow and picked it up offering it to her.

"Here you go Oh-Five" She looked at him and the bow with a polite smile.

"I appreciate it Four-Oh, but I simply don't know how to use a bow at least not in any useful manner. It just happens you um what they are called darling?"

"Blasters." Fixer informed and she nodded.

"Yes, blasters an apt name indeed. They are fairly point and click if you would." She lifted the arrows with her magic and broke the head from the shaft. Examining the sharpened crystal, Fixer looked at her confused and concerned.

"Then whats the arrows for?"

"Four-Oh everypony handles stressful events differently" Her voice changed slightly "Some wail, and scream, and wonder, why them. Others hide inside themselves, so they don't have to deal with what's happening. Some even get angry and lash out in any way they can." She spoke with a forced calmness like every sentence threatened to break her practiced composure. She snapped another arrow, but it left a little to much of the shaft causing her to focus a scrutinizing glare at the imperfect break. "Others simply do that... break."

Fixer and Scorch were watching the white unicorn hands on their blaster calmly switching them to stun.

"What about you?" Scorch asked with a general nonchalant-ness. His helmet was facing forwards, but his eyes were watching her intently.

"Me?" She asked all the regal and calmness back as if nothing had happened. "I simply focus on my craft. These crystals would make a stunning necklace." She smiled and trotted a little faster to catch up with the other mare. Fixer and Scorch exchanged looks.

"Whats your name darling?" She asked softly, and the Mare looked at her then down at her walking hooves.

"Frost jumper..." She spoke quietly.

"Well Frost I wish we could have met in much better conditions, My name is Rarity." She nodded but froze staring wide-eyed at one of the Elk corpses. She started to shake and chant in Elkish Tears falling freely from her as Rarity draped her arm over her and kept her moving forward.

"Do you know what she's saying?" Rarity asked. Four-Oh was the to answer grimly.

"There's Evil inside me..." Rarity looked at the Elk and the Mare's stomach. She clenched her jaw at the sour taste all of a sudden. Scorch shook his head angrily.

"Boss we got time for Demolition?" Boss stopped and turned to him

"Six-two I understand your feelings but STOW IT. Focus on the objective the survivors are what matters now." He spoke sternly, and Scorch fell back in line nodding.

"Yes, Sir sorry Sir."

They filled the main hallway where they could see the main entrance. The door opened, and Delta snapped their weapons up. The door opened, and four small Elk stood there stunned at the carnage. They looked young and scared nothing hung from their antlers, no crystals only a spear strapped to the one in the front's back. Their eyes flicked all over the place from the dead Elks to the Deltas. The one in the front stuttered something out and taking a step forward on wobbly knee's.

Scorch raised an eyebrow "I think he told us to halt?" Fixer remembered something on Elk culture.

"I think these are unblooded."

"What's that?" Scorch asked

"Fresh, young trainees."

"Oh! So their shines." Scorch sang out the nickname.

"Fixer Tell them to drop their weapons," Boss ordered, and Fixer stepped up and shouted the command the young Elk jumped confused, and Fixer repeated the order motioning with his rifle. The young Elk trembled frozen as his brothers moved closer to hide behind him. At that moment Delta squad couldn't help but see four young dark-skinned younglings bred and created for one thing. Separated from there more common brothers and taught be perfect or die.

"Sev hold your fire there young," Boss ordered seeing Oh-Seven creeping up on the side.

"I see that what are we doing with the Elk slime." Sev's voice was harsh and low. Boss took a look at the four hiding behind their brother. Taking prisoners wasn't unheard of but was very rare for the Commandos. Clankers weren't smart enough to surrender. When Delta was sent in there usually wasn't a happy ending for those they were after.

Before Boss could decide a massive burst of static went through the coms,

"Long-range coms just went down Deltas!" Fixer informed

"Pycho do you read me?" Boss asked it was a moment before the pilots static filled response came.

"Barely Sir. We're being jammed." Pycho reported, and Boss cursed.
This meant something on the planet with a significant energy source and a signal jammer on all frequency.

"Is it the Empire?" Scorch asked worried, and Fixer shook his head.

"Negative this doesn't match any known signal, but it's similar to a signal I picked up before the griffin kingdom."

"So not Empire good." Scorch said optimistically.

"Knowing our luck is something just as bad." Sev let out pessimistically.

"Delta Squad we have an unknown contact in out airspace!" Celestia came over the Coms frantically.

"What the Devil is that?" they heard Dece before something exploded shaking the castle and the line went Dead.

"Delta move now!" Boss ordered and rushed the door the Elk scattered towards the woods, and Delta squad watched as the LA-AT Fell burning from the sky.

"Delta Advisor!, Princess!" Boss shouted over the mic But didn't get a response. They watched it crash into a hill several miles away. Sev's rifle snapped up seeing the Elk run away and Boss pushed the Rifle down.

"Leave em they just got knocked several hundred pegs down our priority list Deltas."

Author's Note

What now?