My Little Reclaimer: Friendship Never Dies

1652 hours, July 25th, 2552 (Military Calendar) \
Unidentified Planet \ Unidentified System

Upon landing, the Spartans had decided on a stealth recon. That's how decisions are often made on Green Team whenever possible- democracy. Otherwise, Jane had become the defacto leader over the years, thanks to her repeated split-second decisions that kept the entire team alive. Stashing the Pelican and the Scorpion, they had elected to take their usual setups, plus a little extra ammunition.

Taking point is Seth. He's always shown a propensity for close quarters (hence the obsession with his knife), so in addition to the mandatory MA5K assault rifle and M6G magnum, he carries an M90 shotgun, which is currently slung over his back. In the rear is Alice, who is a crack shot, second only to Fred and Linda, who are assigned to Red and Blue, respectively. She carries an SRS99-AM sniper rifle slung over her back, which only sees action when she sets up a sniping post.

Seth holds up a fist, telling the Spartans behind him to hold position. A quick gesture to Jane brings her forward to see what he's seeing. The Spartans have arrived at the opening to a pass in the mountain range they had landed in, which overlooks a large, elaborate city built into the side of the mountain. The sheer scale causes Jane to gasp involuntarily, even as she increases the magnification on her faceplate to get a better view of what had caused Seth to order the hold. What she sees causes her to do a double take.

Below, at what appears to be the entrance to a large castle, a small Covenant force is engaging a much larger group of quadrupedal creatures. The battle is mismatched, but is oddly at a stalemate, with the Covenant firepower being stopped by intermittent shields that are being conjured by the defending forces, even as the Covenant is able to dodge all of their energy beams while slowly moving back towards a waiting Spirit.

Letting out a low whistle, Jane turns to Alice and makes a rapid series of hand gestures- orders to set up a post on one of the nearby outcroppings and offer support. Alice winks a Green light in acknowledgement, and promptly switches weapons while heading off. Jane then turns to Seth, and gestures between the two remaining Spartans before pointing at the firefight below with two fingers. Seth winks green, then wastes no time moving in. Adjusting her grip on her M392 DMR, she beams a quick sample of the firefight back to the Aurora Star for Eden to analyze. The AI wastes no time in commenting, in the form of text that appears on her HUD.

This certainly clears up quite a bit, but not without raising more questions. First, this clearly isn't Covenant-controlled space, otherwise they wouldn't be in a firefight. Likewise, those Covenant forces are wearing the same variants of armor as when they first made contact on Harvest, meaning that this planet's atmosphere is indeed breathable for your team.

I'll begin scanning surrounding space for whatever ship that Spirit is registered to, though. I find it highly unlikely that a lone dropship would find its way into a sector of space where it might get fired upon. Good luck, Green. I trust you not to do anything unusually stupid.

Burying any shred of doubt about the situation in a far corner of her mind, she rapidly flashes her green status light 5 times. Not a half second later, the first shot rings off, the sniper round burying itself in the head of one of the jackals. Then, all hell breaks loose.

Late afternoon, several days after the Summer Sun Celebration
Equus System \ Planet: Equus \ Friendship Castle

It had been a normal day in Ponyville. By all accounts, it still was, save for that strange U-shaped flying object that had passed overhead that morning, headed for Canterlot. But Twilight hadn't paid it any attention- if anything, she's learned over the years that if she and her friends are needed, then Princess Celestia will contact them.

No, instead Twilight had opted to take her friend Rarity's advice, and join her at the spa (albeit reluctantly, and only after Spike had promised to continue working on her royal duties while she took a break). Celestia knew she could use the chance to relax, and a fairly recent family vacation had proven that taking a short break to relax and clear the mind could do wonders for a pony's productivity when she returns. Fate, however, seems to have other plans.

Twilight settles down in her throne in the map room, and picks up one of the many measures that require her attention to read through what was being requested of the Crown this time. Before she can start reading though, the door bursts open as Spike sprints in as fast has his little legs can carry him, carrying a scroll with the Royal Seal on it.

"Twilight!" He yells, desperate to get her attention for whatever must've come up. "Twilight, you need to read this! It's from Princess Celestia, and... and... well, just read it!" Sighing internally, Twilight sets down the missive she had been about to peruse, and grabs the scroll that Spike is carrying in her magic.

"Don't worry, Spike! I'm sure everything's o-..." Twilight trails off as she reads the letter. Her eyes narrow in disbelief as she reads the letter again, and then a third time. Finally, her eyes widen as the dispatch's contents finally register. "On second thought, do worry. I'll be back soon; sorry, Spike!" Then, she teleports from the room with a flash, leaving Spike rubbing his eyes.

She reappears in the cave where the Tree of Harmony resides, and promptly sets to work warding the tree against anything that might try to steal the Elements of Harmony, which had been returned shortly after Twilight and her friends had helped the Pillars save Stygian from the clutches of the Pony of Shadows.

"It feels so wrong, but if Princess Celestia is right, and they're after the Elements... we can't let that happen. These spells are necessary... I hope." Her work complete, Twilight exits the cave and casts a perception filter over the entrance, making it near-invisible. Then, she pictures the throne room in Canterlot in her mind, and fires off another teleportation spell, hoping she's not too late.

1702 hours, July 25th, 2552 (Military Calendar) \
Unidentified System \ Unidentified Planet \ Covenant-
contested territory

As soon as the jackal that Alice had shot hits the ground, chaos erupts.

"Demons!" A grunt yells, only to eat a dose of buckshot as Seth breaks cover to open up the bloodbath. A few hundred meters away, Jane opens fire on the jackals with her DMR, shooting them first in the arm so that they flinch and expose their vulture-like faces, then putting them out of their misery with a deliberately placed shot between the eyes. Blue blood splatters all over the minuscule force as the Spartans overwhelm their otherwise unprepared foes.

Meanwhile, the strange creatures that had been defending the castle don't question the sudden assistance from their unexpected allies, and continue to press the attack. In no time, the group has shredded through the almost two dozen jackals, and roughly half of the grunts, causing the two Elites to activate their camouflage and retreat to their Spirit, which departs immediately, shelling the forces on the ground with its plasma turret during its retreat. Lacking leadership, the remaining grunts begin to frenzy, only to quickly be cleaned up by Seth and the contingent strange quadrupeds, who have lost a few of their own in the skirmish.

Flashing her green status light 3 times, Jane pauses to observe the strange creatures more closely. They are vaguely equine in shape, with a large horn jutting out of their foreheads. This causes Jane to think back to her training, when Déjà had taught them about the mythological creatures of old- she's reminded of one creature in specific: the unicorn. Opening up TEAMCOM, relays her observations.

"Well, the Covenant know we're here, so there's no point in being radio silent. Tell me; do those creatures remind you of anything Déjà taught us?"

"You're joking, right? You mean that you think these things are unicorns?" Seth asks sarcastically, knowing full well that Jane wouldn't propose such a thing for no reason.

"I don't know, Jane. I'll admit that the semblance is uncanny, but still... it seems like a bit much," Alice reasons. "I feel like there's more to this than we know."

The "unicorns" approach Green Team where they have gathered, conversing over COMs while appearing completely silent and stoic to any bystanders. The one that seems to be the leader of the group nickers at the Spartans, getting their attention. When it becomes clear that the Spartans don't understand them, he gestures for them to follow with a flick of his head.

"I think they want us to follow them inside," Jane observes. "Who knows, maybe we'll finally find out what the hell is going on here." A trio of green lights wink acknowledgement on her HUD, with Eden's coming later than the other two. Somehow, knowing that Eden is watching what's happening through Jane's suit's camera comforts her. Creepy or not, there's just something about knowing that someone has her back makes her that much more confident as she follows the "unicorns" inside.

Early evening, Several days after the Summer Sun Celebration
Throne room, Canterlot Castle

With a flash, Twilight materializes in the throne room. Before she can say a single word, she's immediately wrapped up in a hug from Celestia and, surprisingly, Luna. Upon being released from the embrace, Twilight is finally able to indulge her urge to ask questions.

"Princesses! I got your letter; what happened?!" Luna is the first to respond.

"Failed negotiations," she spits bitterly. "That's what happened." Twilight turns to Celestia with a puzzled expression.

"This morning, a group of what we initially believed to be extraterrestrial diplomats arrived in our throne room," Celestia explains. "Unannounced. At first we couldn't understand a word they were saying, which seemed to visibly anger them, so we cast a translation spell. It's still in effect, operating only in this room for the time being." She adds, answering Twilight's question before she can ask it. She opens her mouth to continue, but is interrupted by the door opening for a guard to relay news.

"Your highnesses, I have an update about the skirmish at our front gates." The tan unicorn rises from his bow, only to see Celestia indicating for him to continue. "The invaders have been driven off, two of them leaving in the same craft the whole group arrived in. However, it wasn't us that finished the fight; a trio of armored creatures came down from the cliffs of Mt Canterhorn and opened fire on the invaders." Celestia frowns as she does the math in her head.

"There were seventy-five of them this morning, yet you only said that two escaped. What happened to the rest, Private?" The guard shifts uneasily.

"They're dead, you're highness. Systematically wiped out by the armored trio without prejudice." As the Private speaks these words, Twilight's blood runs cold. How could any creature be capable of such a mindless act of violence? Then, Celestia addresses the guard in her coldest "to-the-sun" voice yet, making Twilight further uncomfortable.

"Bring them here," She orders. "I'd like to know what that type of approach was all about."

"Of course, your highness. Right away" The guard bows, and makes a hasty exit.

1758 hours, July 25th, 2552 (Military Calendar) \
Unidentified System \ Unidentified Planet \ Mysterious Castle

The Spartans approach a large set of double doors, which appear to be large enough to fit an entire Longsword through without any damage. All around them, the creatures seem to be conversing in what Jane can best describe as "horse noises," which, of course, none of the Spartans can understand. What happens next, however, Jane would never have been able to predict would happen.

The doors open, and as the group passes over the threshold, everything shifts. Suddenly, the strange noises register as perfect English.

"Did everyone else just hear that?!" Seth asks over TEAMCOM.

"Yes, I did," Jane comments dryly. "And I don't like it; what is this nonsense?!"

"I don't know, but I have a feeling they might be able to shed some light on the subject." Alice gestures at the three creatures near the center of the room, who seem to be looking at the Spartans expectantly. The one in the center is staring so intently that Jane instinctively checks to make sure her shields are still at full strength. Then, the creature in question speaks.

"Welcome," she begins, in a regal, and very feminine voice. "To Equestria. I believe you have some explaining to do..."