A New Reason to Fightby TjtbombChaptersLog- 01Log- 02Log- 03Log- 01The Meta growled and stomped through the snow as Sarge steadily advanced, firing shell after shell into the Meta’s armor. The blasts did little to slow the monster’s advance, let alone injure it. The hulking freelancer swatted the offending shotgun aside and seized Sarge by the throat, slowly crushing his windpipe. The red seargent’s cries went unheard by the Meta, the sound of blood pumping furiously through his veins drowning out his senses. The intense hatred he had harbored for these SIM soldiers and what they had cost him consumed his mind. As his revenge came to fruition, his only thoughts were on snapping the neck in his hands. By the time the Meta finally registered the movement in the corner of his eye, the other two red soldiers had just tipped the wrecked Warthog over the side of the cliff. His eyes were drawn to the rapidly tightening tow cable stealthily hooked to his chest piece. YOU FU- His thought was cut short as he was suddenly torn off his feet and dragged across the slick ice. He roared as he grasped at the smooth surface for something, anything, to stop his impending doom. He finally settled for the ankle of another red soldier and dragged him toward the cliff. FIGHT LIKE A COWARD, DIE LIKE A COWARD! The super-soldier’s revenge was short-lived as his screaming victim grabbed onto his teammate’s hand, halting his slide and tearing the Meta’s grip from his ankle. The Meta roared his outrage as he plummeted down the icy cliff toward the icy doom below; only slightly happier knowing that he had stolen back the Brute Shot in the struggle. He would die with his weapon in his hands. He struggled with the hook embedded into his breastplate, but it had embedded itself firmly into his armor. Nor did he have time to tear off enough armor to float, not that he could hope to survive for long in the icy water anyway. Realizing the futility of his roars, he silenced himself and turned toward the dark water, pondering this inescapable revelation. He had always found a way out before, but this time there was no such path. He had no A.I. to guide him, he couldn’t use his equipment, and he had nothing to halt his fall. It seemed rather odd that he of all... things would simply accept his fate, but even he knew unavoidable death when he saw it. Would he be judged for his crimes? Did he regret his actions now that all was said and done? Would he be remembered? He mused over these things as he slammed into the freezing depths, water flowing in through the cracks in his armor, chilling him to the bone. Already his thoughts began to dull, the lights began to fade, and his suit began to creak as he was slowly crushed in the depths. He sighed as the cold shock gave him a sudden final moment of clarity. A final moment with his own sanity, what little was left after Sigma’s influence. He was back. He was Maine once more, for what it was worth. In scant moments, the disoriented soldier had managed to piece together his shattered mind, get the drop on his replacement, and rivet his proper psyche back into place, promising his continued sanity. What little could be called sane, that is. He groaned painfully as the memories flooded through his mind. Took me long enough... Burn in hell Sigma... Heh... I deserve this... I murdered half my team. Betrayers and mutineers have a special spot reserved for them in the lowest level of hell. And for what? What was my goal? The Alpha? That was their obsession, not my own. I can’t even remember what I fought for... but I regret that I never fulfilled it... what was it? He blinked slowly as the last remnants of light faded and cracks began to form in his visor. He smiled softly as his original plans from years ago came back to him. To be a soldier... I protected people... at least, in the grand scheme of things... or ... or so I thought... I did whatever it took... whatever they told me to do... for the greater good... it would be nice... to do that... for real this time... He prepared to close his eyes, accept his fate, and die. His body went limp and sunk peacefully down. He took a deep breath, and... Began tearing at his armor, eyes wide and glaring. What am I doing? I can’t escape this, why am I- Tangible thought faded as his life flew through his mind. The UNSC flag, dishonorable discharge papers, the counselor holding out a contract, Project Freelancer, purpose, the team, York standing beside his bed in the med bay. “You idiot! You’re lucky the Director didn’t penalize you for practically crippling yourself! What were you thinking!?” Maine grunted and shrugged painfully as the medical systems repaired his shattered shoulder. A moment passed, and York opened his mouth to berate him again, when a low, low voice cut him off. “Had to.” York was shocked. Maine had never directly spoken to anyone other than the counselor of his own accord. “Did... did you just...? I’ve never heard you speak a word outside of missions.” Maine nodded and rumbled out in the gravelly, rough, and deep tones of his scarcely used voicebox. “I’ve fought for everything. For one reason or another. Money, a favor, the human race... a promise... It’s all I’ve ever done. If I can’t fight, I have no reason to exist.” York was surprised, to say the least. Maine’s reasons for joining Project Freelancer were often one of the first inquiries new recruits had after they met him. The thing is, no one but the Director knew his exact reasons. But York, through some miracle, had learned that Maine simply didn’t know how to do anything else. York gave him a small smile. “I... think I can respect that,” York answered hesitantly as he looked to the helmet feed playing at the end of the bed, showing the vast amounts of carnage the bed-confined soldier could achieve. “Hehe, as long as we’re on the same side, never change, Maine.” A bloody brown helmet flickered across the memory. ”Never change.” Maine sunk into the sea, the heavy, struggling form spiraling down into the darkness, a white beacon in the abyss that refused to be snuffed out. He might die, and he might go to hell, but he would always fight. Hell, why not just fight his way out of hell? ... ”Maine.” Maine was on his feet instantly, taking in his surroundings in a heartbeat. His armor and equipment was missing, as was a certain firearm. A figure in a black cloak stood before him, a chipped scythe strapped to its back. A golden scale sat between the pairing them, and a void of dark grey surrounded the scene. Maine was on the Judgement Plane. A bit stereotypical... ”I get that quite a lot.” The voice didn’t echo, or fade into the distance. Rather, it stopped in an instant, like death, appropriately enough. ”And yes, I can hear you. Thoughts speak louder than words here. Maine blinked at Death’s words and glanced down at the scales, seeing no real need to ask who Death was. It was ridiculous just how cliche the Reaper was. I’m going to be judged? “Yes, Maine.” ...Don’t bother, I know where I’m going. Death chuckled, a raspy, unsettling sound, as he reached for the scythe on his back. “And you’ve already made up your mind not to go quietly, eh?” Maine automatically fell into a free-handed martial arts stance, ready to fight for his life despite his lack of equipment. Death paused and looked him over approvingly before shaking his head. “This may be a mistake on my part, but it’s been such a long time since I’ve seen a potential challenge... Ooh, I can’t resist. I can make a wager with you Maine, if you manage to best me in combat, you get a second chance to redeem yourself in life. If I win, I get another soul for my personal collection.” He reached into the darkness covering his face, gagged for a moment, and pulled out a bundle of small, slimy glowing orbs from his throat. Whispers pleading to be freed or warnings to not fight echoed from the spirits. Death cackled and shoved the souls back into his mouth. ”Well? What’s your decision, Maine?” Maine thought for a mere moment, his mind had instantly agreed there was only one choice that he would accept. Now to use Death’s overconfidence against him. I think Death stacks the odds in his favor. “Hmm?” Death cocked his head. You have your scythe, give me my own weapon. Or do you want to be known for unfair deals? Death eyed him for a moment and laughed, admittedly a truly horrifying sound, though it didn’t do much in the way of scaring Maine. His training wouldn’t allow him to waver. “Ah! You tempt me Maine. I feel as if we could be the best of friends... Very well, your wish is granted.” Death waved a gray hand and a sudden wind blew past him. With a clunk, Maine’s Brute Shot dropped at his feet. He quickly picked it up and checked the clip. Six shots, a full clip. He was going to make them count. “Now then, fight me, Maine!” With a guttural roar, Maine charged forward and swung at Death’s midriff. Death almost casually took a step back and arched his stomach away from the blade. Maine growled in annoyance and sent a complex series of heavily practiced stabs, punches, and slashes that Death just barely moved to avoid. In a desperate attempt to land a hit, Maine finally managed to catch the god by surprise with a single grenade aimed at their feet. Five. It was painfully clear that Death was unfamiliar with Maine’s tactics, despite his near perfect evasion of every attack sent his way. So as he jumped back from the explosion, he watched the edges of the blaze, expecting the mortal to skirt around it. Maine did the exact opposite of what a death-fearing being would do: He fired another grenade at his own unarmored feet, catapulting himself through the blaze like a bat out of hell. Four. The barely visible glint of Death’s eyes widened in surprise as he made to dodge the blade aimed for his skull. His cloak was torn asunder from his head by the point of the blade, leaving the face of Death exposed. That’s a face only a mother could tolerate. Death was not an attractive being. If the ash colored skin, wispy hair, and gaunt cheeks, and sunken black eyes weren’t bad enough, he now had a long, bloody slash stretching across his right ear. His shocked expression faded as he grinned at his opponent and laughed loudly. “Excellent! Excellent! Congratulations, you are the first to ever wound Death himself!” Once his mirth died away, he wiped away an imaginary tear and sighed. A sudden ringing of a bell made him pause and pull a small hourglass from his cloak. He scowled and growled in annoyance before looking back to block a stealthy broadside from the rapidly approaching Maine. What now? “The Man Upstairs told me to hurry things along. I enjoyed this little fight here, I really did. But~” Death smiled, and the air suddenly became thicker, much like a sauna, but without the heat. “-it seems your time has run out.” Death suddenly darted forward, scythe poised to relieve Maine of his head. Only Maine’s instincts saved his life as the reaper’s blade was halted by the very point of his own reflexive block. A scratch and a single drop of blood running down his neck sent a flood of rage through Maine’s body. Death chuckled that now infuriating laugh again. “Now, now, accept your fate.” Has anyone actually accepted that? Death actually thought about it for a moment. (Side note: Death is a bastard.) “Well, there are actually quite a few people... Oh well, you’ll be dead soon either way.” Maine took advantage of the god’s pondering and shoved him away, firing another grenade at close range in the process. Three. The Reaper sidestepped the projectile, and with pinpoint accuracy, neatly separated the charge from the trigger, rendering the explosive useless. “Nice try, but I can read your mind here, remember? You can’t win. I hear your every move, Maine. Give it up already.” Maine had an idea in mind, though he carefully masked it with an extra flurry of stabs. He suddenly backed away and dived into the depths of his mind. He had become rather adept at it over time, and It was not hard to find who he was looking for. Behind mental bars stronger than diamonds, a golden dome stared back into Maine’s consciousness. It was very much alive and well, despite his best efforts. It said nothing, for it knew why Maine was here. It merely outstretched a white-plated hand and waited. Maine shuddered, but knew he had no choice. Only when I need you. The gilded helmet nodded, agreeing to any degree of freedom. Maine reached forward and seized the hand. “Who are you talking to-“ Death stuttered as every thought in Maine’s head suddenly faded. Maine could feel the old frame of mind, where he had been stuck for a very long time. Few changes were made, but now he was the one in charge. Maine took a deep breath and slipped away while he rushed in, eager to kill. The Meta never fought with the A.I. guiding him. They gave him a goal and motivated him, but every blow was pure instinct. “How did you-“ With a familiar growl, the Meta rushed forward and smacked away the scythe with the butt of the grenade launcher; firing point-blank into Death’s chest as he leaped back. Two. The sickly man flew back, his cloak shredded and just barely managed to stay on his feet. He coughed and glared at The Meta. “H-how could you possibly manage to shut down your every thought?” The Meta spoke. We are the Meta. “Th-that’s- a split soul!?” As it turns out, he’s a permanent part of me now, and he doesn’t need to think to kick your ass. Maine darted forward once more, switching mid-run as his body’s every action began running on combat tactics that were drilled into his head ever since day one of Project Freelancer. The Meta heaved a massive overhead strike at Death’s head. The emaciated man simply didn’t have enough weight to resist the strike and was forced to his knees. The Meta eagerly bore down with his weight, trying his best to crush the old man. ”This. Isn’t. OVER!” With a shout more akin to a screech, and a surge of god strength, Death threw the Meta back. The Meta backflipped through the air and landed on his feet. He looked up, only to see the beserker reaper right in front of him, sickly skinny arms rearing back the scythe to bisect him. The Meta snapped the trigger once more, sending the both of them flying and losing hold of their weapons. Death landed heavily on his side while the Meta smoothly rolled to his feet, already running towards Death’s stunned form. The latter reared up his foot to crush Death’s skull and slammed it into the solid floor as the reaper rolled aside, shattering several bones. He merely grunted as pain lanced through the appendage. This was barely deemed a scratch to either side of Maine’s mind. Death frantically made his way to his scythe and wrenched it from the ground. Maine realized the danger and turned his counterpart’s bloodthirsty charge away from Death. The Meta instead leaped forward and rolled over the Brute Shot, picking it up as he went. He turned back to Death and was suddenly struck through the shoulder, pinning him to the ground. “Checkmate.” Death had thrown his scythe; an extremely risky maneuver that would have left him defenseless had he missed. Unfortunately, he didn’t. He panted heavily as he walked over to the struggling form. The Meta slowed and finally receded to the back of Maine’s mind as its will faded, exhausted from the hindrance of being held in check. “I must congratulate you yet again, Maine. You are truly the strongest soul- or rather souls- I’ve ever had the pleasure of meeting. I admit I respect you, Maine. Hell, I might even put you in a nicer spot in my stomach. But you know what happens next, no one escapes Death.” Death leaned over and pulled the blade from Maine’s shoulder. Holding it over his head he looked down at the soldier once more. “Any last words?” Strike three. Maine suddenly propelled Death off of his chest, seizing his weapon from where it fell. With a growl, he ripped the scythe out of Death’s grasp, shoved him to the ground, and placed the Brute Shot’s barrel between his eyes in one rapid motion. One grenade left to fire. Death was dumbfounded. Your first mistake was letting me fight you. The second, thinking you beat me. And the third, the worst mistake one can make, gloating before victory. “B-but you were mortally wounded!” I took six bullets to the throat and kept on punching. You think a measly little stab wound would stop me? Death had nothing to say for a moment. “No wonder you were so overdue. It seems you’ve cheated me before... What an insult. Alright, I... I yield.” He forced the words out. I will live again? “A deal is a deal, but not in your old realm. That is the one place I cannot put you. It would cause reality to tear apart at the seams.” ...Fine. I want my armor, equipment, weapon, and an A.I. with no memory of the Alpha... And my restored health, if you think you can pull one over on me. “Believe me, I never want to see you again, Maine. Consider it done... I hope you have an awful life.” And with that, true to Death’s word, Maine was gone. ::::::::::::::: He awoke to a whistling in his ears, a feeling of weightlessness, the familiar sensation of armor wrapped around him, and for the first time in a long while, a clear mind. Realizing the telltale signs of free fall, Maine quickly snapped into action. He twisted and turned himself over in the air to survey the rapidly approaching green landscape. To his surprise, possible landing areas with odds of survival popped up on the visor. Small code scrolled by followed by text. Integration Complete. All Systems Online. LZ mapped and logged. Maine didn’t have time to celebrate his good fortune as the ground was rapidly approaching. He angled his white-plated form towards a wooded area, a small town in the distance appearing for a brief instant before he began burning back into the atmosphere. Maine attempted to activate a geodesic shield. To his surprise, it worked... to a degree. With the additional air-drag he managed to slow himself to a survivable velocity before it broke. It still hurt though. The world went dark as he slammed through the first of many trees. :::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::: (Three hours ago, Equestria.) Twilight hummed happily as she finished reorganizing the Library again. Repetition breeds optimization of speed, after all. She turned to the stairs and called from the bottom step. “Spike! I’m done with the books! You can come dust now!” A small scuffle sounded before her number one assistant appeared. “Coming!” Twilight smiled and picked up a book that she was reading earlier as her thoughts drifted back to Spike’s change in schedule. After his greed-induced growth spurt on his birthday, Twilight had grilled him for everything else that bugged him even a little. Eventually he admitted that the weekly reorganization of the library’s shelves was slowly driving him crazy. Twilight, the caring mother/older sister figure she was, was quick to remedy it. So instead of helping with the organization, Spike just dusted the library afterwards. A large amount of dust was always disturbed with the mass migration of over a thousand books, so it was still a rather substantial help to her. Spike was more than happy with the grunt work, claiming that all of the complex systems were “melting his brain.” Scientific impossibilities aside, they were both quite happy with the new arrangement. Spike snatched up the feather-duster and scurried up the ladder to begin the long task of meticulously dusting each and every shelf. Twilight sighed and sank into the couch. She opened her book and read for the better part of an hour. A loud crash suddenly startled her off the couch into the floor. A large dust cloud consumed her shortly afterwards. “Oof... Spike? What happened?” The green and purple dragon materialized from the haze with a sheepish grin on his face. “Uh, Rainbow Dash.” “Again?” Twilight groaned and pulled herself off the floor. “That’s the third time in this week.” The cyan pegasus in question gathered the large dust cloud with her wings and swept it out the window with an apologetic look. “Sorry Twi, the wind has really been going crazy today.” Twilight blinked. “Crazy how?” “Does all of the wind currents spiraling towards one point count?” “Uh yeah, it does. Where?” “The Everfree.” Twilight sighed and grumbled a bit under her breath. “Wouldn’t be the first time it’s followed its own rules... Rainbow? Can you help me put these books back for now? I have reading I’d like to get back to.” “Sure thing, Twi! I’ll have those books back in ten seconds flat!” “Organized?” Rainbow visibly deflated. “Aw come on, Twi, nopony knows how to do that but you!” “Calm down, It’s just a simple four-step algebraic equation. Nothing to worry about!” Rainbow groaned in defeat and plodded over to her latest pile of books. Twilight turned back to Spike. “Now then, keep up the good work, Spike.” He chuckled nervously. “Eh, about that... There’s actually no more dust on the shelves.” Twilight looked over the library, and to her surprise all the shelves were immaculately clean. She turned back to Rainbow with a critical eye. “Maybe she should crash into the library more often...” “Twi? Are you coming or what?” Twilight shook her head and dismissed Spike before attempting to help Rainbow Dash. After about half-an-hour of Twilight reconsidering the idea of somepony melting their brain, She gave up and organized the books herself. Soon Rainbow took off again, a few Daring Do books heavier than she was before. Right after she left, an unusually long string of ponies demanded Twilight’s attention to her duties as librarian, interrupting her reading time repeatedly. And believe you me, there was nothing that aggravated Twilight more than being pulled away from a book ten seconds after opening it. She finally sat down again another hour later, one or two hairs out of place. She took a few deep breaths and calmly opened her book. An hour later, she sighed in relief as she finally finished the book and placed it back on the shelf. “Alright Twilight, it was just a rough morning. You’re fine.” She gazed at the perfectly organized shelves with intense satisfaction. And promptly locked the window. “There, now nothing can possibly go-” Twilight was suddenly silenced by a pink hoof poking out of a nearby potted plant. “Don’t jinx it, silly!” Twilight rolled her eyes and nodded as the hoof retracted from her mouth back into the plant. Twilight had long ago learned that when Pinkie was involved, it was far safer to just go along with whatever it was on the off-chance that the pink mare was actually right. Twilight’s horn itched. She reached up to scratch it and realized that it had suddenly become much darker. Fearing the worst, what with all the other unfortunate things that happen to Ponyville on a regular basis, Twilight teleported outside. She was greeted by a quickly gathering storm visible over the Everfree Forest, blocking out the sun. She attempted to use a scanning spell, but after receiving the jarring shock of magical-feedback overload, she decided to leave the ominous cloud be for now and simply observe it. Many ponies were out on the streets already, watching the bizarre phenomenon. A few minutes later, Applejack showed up, Fluttershy and Rarity close behind her. They didn’t really have to say much, the problem was pretty apparent. Pinkie Pie was just suddenly there, for no apparent reason (as usual). And a somewhat blackened Rainbow Dash landed next to Twilight soon after. “So... Twilight,” Dashie turned to her. “Any ideas on what that is?” “Not a clue, maybe it’s just the Everfree going about it’s business.” “That’s what the Weather Factory thought too. But when we tried to corral it, it blasted me and my team into somepony’s house.” Twilight blinked slowly. She still had that annoying itch in her horn, and now she was sure it was coming from the cloud. “Well, I can’t really scan it, and it’s definitely powerful magic, but I can’t really tell you anything more than that. I just can’t seem to affect it.” Everypony was oddly quiet until Applejack spoke up. “So, we jus’ sit here then?” “Pretty much.” “Do you think it likes parties? I wonder if-” Twilight immediately tuned her out. Twilight knew Pinkie had been strangely silent. Nevertheless, she did give her an answer. “Well, it’s a cloud, Pinkie. I doubt it.” A few more minutes passed. Pinkie had finished her rant and produced cupcakes from her mane for everypony to snack on while they waited for something, anything, to happen. Ponyville had seemingly frozen in place as everypony watched the ominous cloud. Finally, after at least twenty minutes, the cloud started shifting violently. They watched with baited breath as it boiled and convulsed before suddenly just... shrinking into nothing... apparently. “Wait, was that it?” “Boo! What a buzzkill!” Twilight sighed in relief as discontent spread across Ponyville. “Well, I’m glad this day can’t get any worse.” Pinkie gaped at Twilight. Her friends did much the same. Applejack stepped forward and placed her hoof on Twilight’s flank. “Honey, don’t ya’ never tempt Discord. We gotta’ few strict rules on the farm, and that’s one of ‘em. Even Applebloom knows better. You’re on yer own here.” The cries of protest were silenced as a loud bang resounded and a flaming white meteor fell from the sky. “Woo!” “Rad!” Fluttershy fainted from the stress of waiting and the sudden climax. (The second kind, not the first one, perverts.) Twilight tracked the falling object carefully as it fell, hoping to predict its crash site. Her eyes widened as the object sprouted a golden sphere of energy that slowed its descent. The sphere broke a moment later, and the object fell to the ground. A few seconds passed before the large shockwave hit. Everypony was launched a full foot in the air as windows broke and unsecured objects fell over. The girls landed rather shakily on their feet. Twilight stumbled and regained her footing as she tried to fight down this sudden feeling of dread growing behind her. A loud, long, crash was heard in the library. Twilight’s right eye twitched as every hair in her mane suddenly popped out of place and her pupils shrank to pinpricks. “I... I-I j-j-ju-ust got finished with that... He-heh... Five hours of work, down the drain.” Wisely, her friends stealthily fled the ensuing freak-out as Twilight’s frustration continued to build. She raged silently, frothed at the mouth, and finally reached a boiling point. ”BUCK IT!!!” Twilight practically tore the front door off its hinges, seized every single stray book in the library with her magic, and rammed them back into the shelves wherever they lay. She fell to the floor, exhausted from the magical overuse and the incredible frustration she felt. Me and my big mouth. A few minutes later, Rarity, having drawn the short straw, tentatively poked her head around the door and surveyed the scene. “Feel better, darling?” ”... Give me a minute.” Author's Note Revised. Hopefully all the mistakes are gone. BTW, probs not going to stick very solidly to proper timeline. Major events only kind of thing. Log- 02The six mares’ next actions were more of their usual shtick: After a short letter exchange with Princess Celestia and an official royal assignment, the girls took off into the Everfree forest. Yadayadafriendshipyada, Twilight, as usual, took charge. “Okay girls, from what I could tell, this UFO landed somewhere near the Castle of The Two Sisters, so we’ll work our way out from there.” Rainbow raised a hoof. “Unidentified Falling Object, Dash. In other words, you every other day.” The Pegasus lowered her hoof with a wry smirk. Laughter followed them as they continued through the forest. ::::::::::::::::::::: As it turned out, they did not have to search very hard. They came across the massive dust cloud in a surprisingly short amount of time; a testament to the force of the impact. Twilight lit up her horn, Rarity soon following her example, and together they began parting the haze as they went. As they approached the center of the cloud, one-by-one they all felt a wave of fear travel up their spines. They shivered and looked about for the eyes they suddenly felt sure were watching. Twilight, despite her large vocabulary, couldn’t describe the incredible depth of the feeling, but her base instincts as a pony told her there was something to be feared here. Twilight gulped nervously as she parted the last of the dust and saw the edge of the crater. She glanced back to her friends to see a variety of reactions. Pinkie’s hair drooped a bit as she nervously smiled and tried to chuckle, failing to laugh away the fear, perhaps because the fear was not imagined this time. Applejack’s face could have been made of stone, but her rapidly shifting eyes revealed her unease. Rainbow dropped to the ground, gritting her teeth and joining the rest as they nervously glanced about, while Fluttershy was petrified, trembling violently as she faced straight ahead with her eyes firmly shut. Rarity broke the tense silence, her voice wavering. “Twilight? Why does it feel so... Wrong here?” She had no real answer. There was no magic acting on them, that much she knew. But that really was all she knew. Despite their being no obvious reason to be nervous, the whole group was struck with almost crippling-levels of paranoia. Twilight inched her way to the edge, her friends unintentionally using her as a shield as they followed. They peeked down into the deep crater and took note of its rather strange contents. A white form lay embedded about a foot deeper than the surrounding ground, a rather menacing looking object impaling the ground beside it. “Um, girls? I think it’s safe.” The others soon congregated on the lip of the crater, gazing down at the bizarre scene. Somehow, seeing the thing they had come for made it less scary, so the hairs on the backs of their necks gradually flattened until the feeling of eyes on them completely faded. The purple-haired fashionista blinked twice before turning to Twilight. “Twilight? What in Celestia’s name is that?” “I... Don’t know. Should we get a closer look, you think?” After a bit of not doing but staring and whispering, the group reluctantly made their way down to give the object a more in-depth investigation. Twilight barely needed a moment to come to a rather simple conclusion. “That’s not a meteor, it’s definitely not a natural substance or shape... Vaguely pony-like...? It looks like it could be a living creature.” Fluttershy came out of her trance at Twilight’s words, and after a moment of steeling herself, slowly approached the still form, chanting a small phrase to herself softly. “You can do this, Fluttershy. It might need your help.” She hesitated as her instincts screamed at her to flee. Finally she ever-so-slowly lifted her hoof and lowered it toward the white-covered creature. She smiled for a brief moment at her bravery before her expression fell. “It’s... Cold... No pulse.” She began to tear up. Pinkie quickly moved to give her a hug, but paused as Fluttershy suddenly yelped at the subtle rising sensation under her hoof. “I-it’s b-breathing! I-It must have a thick skin!” She sighed in relief and quickly leaned down to examine the strange being for injuries. The rest of them, however, were not as overjoyed at the idea of having a large, unknown creature so near to them. Twilight soon summoned up enough courage to join Fluttershy in her examination. She found that it was a tall, seemingly bipedal creature covered head to hoof in a hard white substance with softer patches of black in between. No tail could be seen, and the claw-like appendages, minus the claws, on the ends of its arms were clearly nimble enough for grasping objects. Their search also turned up three more important facts: That the creature was facedown, that it’s shoulder joint was at the very least dislocated, if not broken. That is, if the unnatural angle it was bent at was any indication. And, after a brief spell from Twilight, it was revealed that there was not even the lowest level of magic normally found in all living things on Equus. Fluttershy lightly prodded at the injured shoulder and frowned. “Twilight? Can you please get him free? I can’t set that joint like this.” Twilight reluctantly agreed and began tugging on the tall form experimentally. To her surprise, her magic could not get a proper grip. It was also significantly heavier than she predicted. She was forced to focus and build up far more magic than she normally required to lift things. Self-sorting the entire library twice in the same day was not doing her any favors either. Meanwhile, Rainbow had elected to not go anywhere near the creature embedded in the ground and instead favored investigating the second, smaller object. It was a strange-looking affair, covered in alien mechanisms and a dark black finish. Dash took a quick sniff at the device but recoiled violently at the intense burning sensation in her sensitive pony nose. The device smelled heavily of sulfur and blood. She choked, sneezed and coughed furiously as she tried to rid her lungs of the painful substance. Applejack noticed her plight and came over to help her. “You alright, sugar cube?” Rainbow snorted again before answering. “Do NOT smell that thing. It just set my lungs on fire.” Applejack glanced over at the object in question with some apprehension. CRACK Everypony present jumped at the sudden noise. As soon as Twilight had barely shifted the heavy being, a large crack had spiderwebbed along the ground from its now-clenched fist. Twilight was confused for a mere moment before the color drained from her face. The conclusion was rather obvious after all. She looked up. “Everypony back away. Slowly.” Fluttershy gasped softly as the biped suddenly shifted on its own and began pulling itself up. Suffice to say, caution was thrown to the wind as every-pony quickly vacated the crater while the being freed itself from the ground. The front limbs folded under the torso and pushed up, freeing the head and shoulders. It repeated the action with its back legs, bringing it to a two-legged stand and confirming Twilight’s bipedal theory. Yet again, no tail was visible to help it keep its balance, so how it stood so steadily was still a mystery to Twilight. Twilight gasped softly as an expressionless golden surface appeared instead of the face they had expected. Seemingly unaware of their presence, it looked down to it’s dislocated arm. Without a visible flinch, it simply shrugged it back into the socket with an sickening audible crack. Twilight shivered, nauseated by the sight of pure willpower. The being rolled the shoulder experimentally as it stepped toward the second object. A long curved blade appeared from the soil as the biped gripped the strange handle and easily lifted the massive weapon. Rainbow gawked at the intimidating sight. “Woah.” At the sound of RD’s voice, the biped grunted in surprise and whirled around to face them. ================================= Maine awoke to a ringing in his ears and a throbbing headache as his mind drifted back together. Oh yeah, he curb-stomped Death. He should’ve known the god would pull something like this to spite him. With a groan and a strong flex, he loosened the hard packed ground enough to free his arms. A spike of pain made itself known in his right shoulder as he steadily pulled himself upright. Dislocated, grreeaaat... With a quick roll guided by years of experience, Maine popped the bone back into it’s socket with the slightest of grimaces. He saw his Brute Shot a few feet to his right, buried up to the hilt in the ground and far too close to his own body-print for comfort. He took the few steps to it and pulled it from the ground surprisingly easily. The gravity must be weaker on this planet. A small voice was heard behind him, triggering his instincts as he automatically pivoted to confront the threat. ... Oh screw you, Death. Screw. You. In front of Maine were six multicolored and rather cartoonish-looking small horses. They had yet to do much of anything, but he recognized the intelligence in their terrified stares. He stood stock still for about a minute while his mind tried to cope with the ridiculousness of the situation. The six had frozen as well, not sure how to react. Maine sighed and holstered the grenade launcher onto his back. Guess I’ll follow protocol... He waved, and one of the strange ponies waved back quite cheerfully. He went to grunt something akin to a greeting... only to discover his pipes were clearer than they had been in years. He cleared his throat experimentally and went to speak. “Uh... hi—holy shi— my voice!” He realized six pairs of eyes were staring at him with a range of emotions spanning from terror to confusion. He cleared his throat again and continued, the long missed low growl of his deep voice sounded like music to his ears. “I don’t suppose you speak English? Or Sangheili?” A few more blinks passed before the purple-on-purple... unicorn- who’s horn Maine had just noticed- stepped forward and began to speak quite clearly, to his surprise. “Um, We do happen to speak Equestrian Standard, does that work? Oh, I’m Twilight Sparkle, by the way.” “We- I am... Agent Maine. I may not be affiliated with any government in this realm, but protocol for new species discovery still stands. As such, let me start by stating I mean no harm unless you deal it first. If that happens, expect me to defend myself and return the favor tenfold.” Twilight Sparkle, the stupidly-named unicorn, nodded in agreement while her companions were still a little shell-shocked. “Well, that sounds fair, I suppose. And as the personal student of Princess Celestia, let me be the first to extend the olive branch of friendship on behalf of Equestria.” I... what? Maine waited a moment to see if they were joking... but apparently that was actually the name of the place. “Are... are you aware your nation’s title is a pun named after your species?” Twilight screwed up her face for a moment before her eyes glazed over, like the thought had never occurred to her before. Which, as it turned out, it hadn’t. “H-how did I never notice that?” The rest were equally as surprised. The orange mare with a cowboy hat on her head sat down roughly with a bewildered expression. Did I mention that their faces were incredibly expressive? “Ah... Ah admit that Ah noticed it a’fore, but now tha’ Ah think about it, it is rather odd, right?” Oh dear God, a southern accent. That brings back memories... and rage... Maine clapped his hands, hoping to dispel the little trance and rid himself of such dangerous thoughts. “Alright, I know Twilight here, but I don’t know the rest of you lot. So out with it!” Silence. “ ...Okay, let’s do it this way: One name for one question, deal?” The cyan Pegasus- Jesus, how many mythical creatures are there?- with a technicolor nightmare for a mane popped up into the air and swooped close to Maine’s face with a spiteful look. “What the hay is up with that crazy-looking sword thing? I smelled it and it felt like my brain was on fire!” “Not much to burn...” came a whisper from her friends. She ignored the giggles and floated closer. “Well?” “I was waiting for your name first.” “Urrgh... fine. Rainbow Dash.” I am going to puke your mane by the end of the day at this rate. Maine slung the Brute Shot around and displayed it to her as he continued. “Well, Rainbow Dash, I was a soldier where I come from. A very good one. Comes with the job. You probably got a whiff of sulfur. Leftovers from the explosives I fire from this beauty.” The group blinked, in unison. Very creepy, I assure you. “Explosives?” Maine shook his head and put away the weapon. “Two questions. Next!” The orange ‘cowpony’ with a blonde, well, ponytail trotted forward as Dash retreated to sulk. Not my fault you sniffed my girl. Back off. “Why don’t ya’ have a face?” Really? Well, It’s their first encounter with my kind, but still. “It’s a helmet.” She formed an ‘O’ with her mouth and waved her hoof in a ‘go on’ motion. Maine chuckled. “Yeah, no. This helmet has saved my life on many an occasion. It stays on. Next?” The other unicorn, a white-furred, purple-maned thing that looked surprisingly regal, for a horse, stepped down into the crater with dainty steps. She spoke with an accent to match, very precise. It reminded Maine of Wyoming. “Hello there, good sir. My name is Rarity Belle. If I’m correct that the rest of your appearance is some sort of armor, do you mind if I model some pieces after it? I’m a fashion designer you see, and I have found myself very taken with it.” “You would be correct, and I don’t care. Next.” She bowed her head in thanks and climbed back out of the crater. She was soon replaced by another pegasus with yellow fur and a pink mane who seemed absolutely terrified of the tall soldier. She whispered in a barely audible voice. “I-is y-y-your shoulder o-okay?” Maine crouched down to her height. “Name?” “Um... Fluttershy...” “To answer your question, I have had far worse.” She burst up, plainly alarmed at his answer. “Worse!?” Eh, whatever, censorship is overrated anyway. “Kicked off a building, shot, stabbed, shot six more times, hit by a fast-moving bus, and thrown off a highway all in under a half-hour. I’m fine.” They were horrified. One or two glanced between Maine and the trembling Fluttershy with angry glares. Suddenly an incredibly cheery voice exploded in his ear. “Hiya!” “GAH!” Maine instinctively grabbed the offender clinging to his back and whipped them forward, only for the overwhelmingly pink creature to cling to his arm. He tried to pull her off as she kept switching holds in an instant, all the while jabbering incessantly. The only things he retained from the nonsensical chatter was her name, Pinkie Pie, and that she was apparently the living embodiment of the word party. The equines were laughing hysterically in the background as Maine struggled to dislodge his unwanted passenger. “Just ask your question and get off me!” “Okie-dokie-loki! Why’s your voice all deep and gravelly? Are you sick? Is there a frog living in there? *GASP* Does the frog like parties!?” “I’m not sick! There is no frog! And it’s jacked because I just got it back!” “Oh! How did you lose it!? Was it a voice-stealing gremlin!?” “I answered your question! Get off me already! How are you even holding on!? You have no fingers!” “Uh, magic, duh silly!” “GAAAAAAHHHH!!!” Maine turned and flipped the sky the bird. Seriously, screw you, Death. ================================= Finally, a few minutes later, the others pulled the pink monster off of Maine when he began threatening her descendants. Twilight cleared her throat anxiously, hoping to quell his rage a bit. How does she know Maine was angry? When he was freed, he politely excused himself to go punch a boulder in the distance. The boulder did not survive. Pinkie herself was now lamenting over the loss of the boulder and was having a funeral for it while Maine and Twilight talked. Neurotic, but apparently she was raised on a rock farm... Though how you farm rocks, I will never know. “So, that was Pinkie.” The angry man growled at the mention of her name. “Ehehe... don’t worry, she’s usually only that bad when she’s meeting new ponies.” Maine latched onto the word ‘usually’ and began looking for something else to vent his frustration upon. “Anyway, can I ask you a question?” Opportunity has struck. “You just did.” “W-wait, uh, that’s not- I didn’t mean-“ “Sorry, no more questions.” “THAT WASN’T MY QUESTION!” Maine chuckled at her naivety and waved her on. The girls were incredibly easy to fluster. She blushed heavily when she realized he was just teasing her, but continued. “I wanted to ask about your actual species, for dietary purposes and logging it in official documents.” Maine nodded and voiced his approval. “Makes sense. Finally asking an important question. I’m what is known as a human, man, meaning male, more specifically, homo sapien. Omnivorous diet with significant usual meat intake, but a vegetarian diet is possible for us. Roughly eighty to one-hundred years full natural life expectancy. I think I’m about twenty-eight at this point. I lost track.” Twilight glanced up from the paper she had magicked from somewhere. Also, magic. That’s a thing. Apparently. Maine had shrugged it off on other dimension rules. “How did you lose track of how old you are?” Maine clenched his fists. “Personal question. Move on.” She raised an eyebrow but said nothing more on the subject. “Alright, any specific needs?” “House and a job.” “Well, we can work those out with Princess Celestia.” “Speaking of, not to sound cliche, but take me to your leader.” Twilight laughed and nodded. “Of course, mysterious being from the stars.” “When can we go?” “Oh, uh... right now, I guess. We’ll have to take the train, which means going into town. Can you act, well, less monster-like?” “No promises.” Maine knew he was probably going to be overrun by more candy-colored horses no matter what he did. Maine lazily raised the middle finger to the sky again as he stretched. Twilight stared at it quizzically. “I saw you doing that earlier quite a bit, what does that mean?” “Just paying my dues to someone I hate.” Author's Note Revised. I just realized that every character has an unusually high amount of sass in my stories. ... I wouldn’t have it any other way. ====== Hey, I’m doing this partly for my own benefit, but with stories that are just starting out (especially ones you like), make sure you like the story. I think it’s incredibly hard to get a beginning story popularity, so it really helps us first timers if you submit our stories to big groups and like them. When you read comments on your stories, it makes you feel appreciated and motivated. For those of us with seven (at this moment) subscribers, we have to work awfully hard to get those readers. So hey, respond with constructive criticism or just say that they’re doing a good job, it all makes us feel warm and fuzzy inside. I admit I am doing this for my own profit as well, but please remember to help out the little guys, eh? Thx for the support you’ve shown so far! CYA!!! Log- 03After an entirely pointless and drawn-out rock funeral, they finally set off toward the town Maine had seen earlier. The Mane Six Joined your party! To be honest, the fact that he had an A.I. again had completely slipped Maine’s mind. How it had somehow gotten ahold of an RPG reference was beyond him, but it did give him a name for it. “A.I., your new designation is Merlin.” Designation Recieved. Further Orders? “Run diagnostics and an equipment check. Return systems to peak performance. Search backlogs for Brute Shot ammunition production. It is unlikely the native species will be able to help.” Understood boss, I’ll get back to you when it’s done. Maine was momentarily thrown by Merlin’s words. Normally an A.I. doesn’t develop a personality so quickly, but there have been special cases before. “Maine? Who are you talking to?” Maine looked down to Twilight’s puzzled expression. A quick look confirmed the others were equally as confused. Maine understood their concern, it looked as if he was talking to himself. He sighed and explained. “Right then, get it over with. As it turns out, a regular human can’t run all the equipment in this suit by himself, so we developed a little something called artificial intelligence, or A.I. They’re incredibly complex machines built on an atomic level that take care of all the various systems this armor needs to run at peak efficiency. But in order for them to work properly, we had to include something of a self-learning system, a mind. Over time, they gradually developed personalities until they became what they are today. They’re basically their own beings. I just picked up... this one recently and hadn’t gotten around to naming him until just now... Say ‘hi’ Merlin.” Merlin piped up with a cheery, crisp, British accent. ”Hello there! It’s nice to make your acquaintance!” Twilight immediately magicked up her notepad again and began desperately scribbling down all the information Maine had just given her. The others reactions were more subdued, polite greetings and raised eyebrows. Pinkie, however, looked like she was about to explode. Maine promptly slowed down to put some distance between me and the ecstatic, possibly combustible mare, though that proved to be futile. She inevitably exploded in a cloud of confetti and balloons. Save me. “Does he like PARTIES!?” “Touch me, and I will punch you.” She merely smiled widely and bounced in place in front of him as she waited for an answer. Maine sighed and nodded his consent for Merlin to speak. “Blimey! A party? I can’t say whether or not I like them, Pinkie! I didn’t even exist about five hours ago!” Pinkie Pie gasped loudly, somehow floating off the ground in the process. “Then it’s your BIRTHDAY AND YOUR WELCOMING PARTY!!!” ”Well would you look at that! I guess it is! I’ve never had a birthday before either!” Pinkie’s smile looked painful at this point. “THIS IS GOING TO BE THE BESTEST PARTY EVER!!!” She then jumped into a random bush and promptly vanished. Maine turned back to Twilight and the rest. “Does she always break the laws of physics so casually?” “Yes,” came the unanimous reply. Twilight walked closer to him, waving her quill and paper in the air. “Do you mind if I ask a few questions about him?” “...Shoot.” “What’s his learning capacity like?”f “Massive. Greater than my mind could ever hold. Goes through millions of mathematical equations every minute just to speak.” Twilight’s eyes... sparkled. “Millions? C-could I get a sample of one of the more complicated ones?” It didn’t take Maine long to come up with something to shut her up. “Einstein’s Theory of Relativity. ‘E’ equals ‘MC’ squared.” She frowned for a second, but then her jaw dropped and she quickly wrote the formula on her scroll. She was out of commission for a long while as she puzzled over that particular brain-teaser. ================================= As they continued on their way, Pinkie popped out of another bush a few minutes later and was happily bouncing along with a bit more cheer than even she usually had. Now that they were traveling through the forest proper, it hadn’t taken Maine long to notice the worried glances the others cast into the murky surroundings, more than simple concern on their faces. His senses now on edge, Maine leaned down to Twilight and asked her what was up. “Is there anything to be worried about out here?” Twilight started and turned back to him with a raised eyebrow. “Why do you ask?” Maine huffed and took on the ‘scolding adult’ posture. “I’m a highly-trained solider. I’ve learned to notice things like worried looks.” She blinked in surprise before shrugging and looking forward again. “Well, I wouldn’t worry about it too much, but the Everfree Forest has a reputation for being dangerous, mostly because of it’s wildlife.” “Like what?” Maine always gathered information on possible threats, no matter how unlikely they may be. Twilight turned her eyes up into the air, thinking for a moment, before answering. “Well, the most common ones are probably Timberwolves, carnivorous wolves made of wood and almost impossible for most to outrun. After-” “Shouldn’t be a problem.” She blinked, but continued. “After that is Manticores, an amalg-“ “I actually know that one,” Maine interrupted, to Twilight’s dismay. “Back home we had legends of Manticores, even though they were just myths.” Twilight gave him a puzzled look, but shrugged it off and continued once more. “Then there are Cockatrices, a cross between a snake-like body with wings and a chicken’s head. If you have even a little fear of their stare, you are turned to stone.” “So... don’t fear it?” Twilight nodded as Maine chuckled. “I’ve stared into the face of Death itself and didn’t flinch. I think I can bear to have a staring contest with an overgrown chicken.” Not realizing the literal meaning in his words, Twilight scoffed at Maine’s ‘bravado.’ “Anyway... after that are hydras, dragons that if you cut off a head, three more take its pla-“ “Do they fly?” She grunted and shook her head before opening her mouth to speak again. “Good. Then they shouldn’t be a problem for me.” Twilight gave him a rather pointed glare this time, making sure he was well and truly shut up this time. She continued with a notable amount frustration. “And finally, Ursa Majo-” “Like the constellation?” Maine asked with just a slight smirk as he interrupted her again. She growled in frustration as Maine chuckled. The rest of the group had caught the gist of what he was doing and was littered with snickering. Years of dealing with OCD people like York and some of the A.I. had taught Maine exactly how to press all the right buttons. Twilight took a deep breath to calm herself and looked back to the freelancer again. “You’re actually closer than you may think. Ursa’s are massive bears literally made of stars.” Maine stayed silent this time, genuinely interested. “We probably won’t have to worry about them unless we get between a mother and her cub.” “So the same as regular bears, but way bigger and made of stars?” “Also practically indestructible, so we really don’t want to anger one.” Maine shrugged and continued on, not saying a word to end the conversation. Twilight fumed as she stared after him ; his long strides carrying his frame to the head of the group. A smile crossed his face, though hidden by the helmet. As he passed by Rainbow Dash, she surreptitiously raised a hoof over her shoulder in a gesture strangely similar to a high-five. After a quick check to make sure Twilight wasn’t looking, Maine quickly extended my hand and gave it a quick slap. The pegasus grinned but made no other reaction as Twilight turned to the sound and glared suspiciously at the two of them. Maine ended up chatting with Rainbow for awhile, later being joined by Applejack on his left. Rainbow was definitely an exaggerator and a boaster, but she had a confidence that Maine could respect. She reminded him of Carolina not only with her color but her brash personality. Applejack, the southerner with a penchant for poking fun and calling bluffs, apparently had a rivalry going on with Rainbow Dash. The parallel between these two and Maine’s former teammates was surprisingly spot on. The only real difference Maine could see between his new companions and Carolina and Tex, was the fact that they were friends despite of it. On that note, as he looked back to the rest, Maine could piece together a rather bizarre mirror of his old team. Twilight was definitely York or Wash, Rarity was Wyoming without a doubt, Fluttershy was easily kind enough to be Florida, Texas and Carolina were so similar to Applejack and Rainbow that it was creepy, and Pinkie Pie was... you know, that one pink soldier from the red team, minus the constant innuendos. “Hey Maine! Better brace yourself, cause we’re barging into your party later with a greased log leading the way!” Scratch that last part. Also, what!? The other mares looked... uncomfortable. Maine turned toward Pinkie pensively. “...What greased log?” “Oh, you know, silly! The kind you ride on!” That clarified nothing and made Maine more concerned. Was he the one riding it? “Explain that... a bit more carefully?” Pinkie rolled her eyes and gave Maine a knowing grin. “For log rolling, dummy!” She’s going to be the death of me, I’m sure of it. Also, I’m actually becoming genuinely interested in this party. There’s still one thing missing to get me on board though... “... is there alchohol?” Pinkie laughed and bounced to his side. “Of course! What else would I fill the log-rolling tub with!?” And just like that, I’m in. Maine stopped in his tracks and crouched down in front of Pinkie Pie. The rest of the group stopped and looked toward him as he spoke with all seriousness. “Pinkie, at this moment, I don’t dislike you.” Pinkie laughed at the somewhat dark comment before responding. “You have to take off the helmet to drink though!” “And the moment has now passed.” Laughter surrounded them at hos short answer. He stood after a moment and ruffled Pinkie’s mane, though the curls snapped back a moment later. He chuckled a bit as they walked. “That was a dirty and underhanded tactic, Pinkie Pie,” He turned back to see six smiling mares, “Good job. I didn’t think you had it in you.” ================================ The next hour was relatively uneventful, other than a large number of unidentified bogeys trailing them. Maine was well aware that the forest had gone unnaturally quiet as other animals avoided a threat. And the breaking twigs he had heard since then confirmed his suspicions. He took a nonchalant glance back, as if he was just checking on the group, and quickly scanned the forest. Now that Maine was looking, he could easily see the half-dozen shadows stealthily making their way among the trees. Maine calmly turned back around and resumed his walk as if nothing was wrong. A few minutes later, a small yelp alerted him that one of the mares had seen their followers. Rarity, it sounded like. “M-Maine? I don’t mean to alarm you-“ “I know.” “...What?” “Don’t react, if you’re lucky they’ll leave once we leave their territory. Act like nothing is wrong.” Twilight was amazed, Maine, despite being at the front of the group, had already seen and planned against the Timberwolves behind them. It was suddenly glaringly obvious to her he was a soldier. Worried chatter was passed around as the group attempted to act normally. Pinkie just kept up her usual chatter and bouncing while the rest of them had to work to keep up appearances. Even still... “You lot are awful at acting. I think a rock could act better than you... no offense Pinkie.” “None taken!” The group did manage to continue for awhile longer without incident, but that peace was shattered with a loud growl. The girls and Maine turned as Timberwolves began emerging from the flora around them. Twilight looked back toward Maine’s rather nonchalant stance as he looked over his shoulder rather than bother with fully turning around. She looked back and gasped. A wolf was barely ten feet away from her with its teeth bared and its legs ready to pounce. It froze as she locked eyes with it. Twilight shook uncontrollably as if the hungry gaze was already devouring her. Neither of them moved, not daring to until the other looked away. After what seemed like hours to Twilight, her nerves finally forced her to take a step back, and that was all the Timberwolf needed. A moment later, it was in the air, teeth ready to end her life. That same moment, several things happened all at once. A scream escaped Twilight’s mouth, a loud crack like thunder roared through the air, the Timberwolf’s body suddenly fell to the ground, and finally, the missing half of its head fell a moment later in the form of splinters. She turned in awe to see Maine holding a smoking silver pistol in his hand formerly attached to hos leg an instant before. He calmly placed it back into the holster and walked forward past her. He looked her over for a brief moment and nodded as he placed himself between these ponies under his unofficial protection and the wolves. Maine raised his hand and extended two fingers before flicking them back, giving the universal ‘come and get me.’ The wolves snarled and began circling him. Maine calmly stood in the rapidly shrinking circle of wolves, no concern evident. With a growl, a wolf suddenly launched itself at his back. Maine simply stepped aside without bothering to look toward the assailant as he delivered a bone-shattering punch to the mid-air wolf, practically breaking it in half as it spiraled off into the trees. As another leaped forward, he pivoted neatly on his heel and punted it into a nearby tree, shattering both. Maine’s body turned horizontal as he retracted his outstretched foot and postponed his leg behind himself, forcing the head of the approaching wolf into its own body. It collapsed a moment later. Quickly righting himself, He walked toward the three-wolf rush in front of him. With a left hook, Maine snapped the first’s neck and sent its body sliding into the second. A powerful haymaker sent the third into the dirt, it’s already limited cranial cavity significantly reduced. He turned and raised both fists in the air and slammed them down on the one struggling under its slain companion, flattening them both. He immediately pulled an explosive backflip over his next assailant’s head and broke its spine as he landed. He flattened the paralyzed creature’s skull with a follow-up stomp for good measure before turning to his last opponent. A Timberwolf about twice the size of his brethren glared at Maine over a heavily scarred muzzle and snarled ferociously. Two can play the intimidation game, pup. Maine planted his feet, sucked in an incredible amount of air, and roared. The ground seemed to shake slightly as he bellowed his anger. The huge Timberwolf actually cowered for a brief moment at the display before baring its teeth again. Two seasoned combatants circled each other, searching in vain for an opening. The Law of the Everfree on one side, the massive Combat Training of Project Freelancer on the other. Finally they stopped, the mares on Maine’s left watching with baited breaths. The Alpha ground its feet into the ground and launched itself forward. Maine took two long steps forward and raised his hand, winding up for another pile driver. The wolf corrected itself ever so slightly as it charged, something another animal wouldn’t notice. Maine was no such animal. At the last possible second, Maine scooped low, meeting what would have been a successful dodge with his forearm. Using its own momentum, Maine hooked his arm around its chest, lifted it into the air and slammed it onto its back. Quickly extracting himself from the dazed wolf, Maine stood and reared back for a powerful kick. Twilight, Rainbow Dash, Fluttershy, Rarity, Applejack, and Pinkie Pie were not entirely sure what had just transpired. All they had seen was that one moment the wolf had a head, the next, it did not. Rainbow looked up for a possibly flying head, but all she spotted was a newly-formed hole in a low cloud. “Sweet Celestia...” Maine was rather proud of himself, fairly certain he had punted that head at least a few miles despite it going more up than forward. He turned to see the group staring at the sky in awe. He cracked up laughing at their awed expressions and broke them out of their stupor. In a heartbeat, Rainbow was in his face, a wide grin threatening to split her head. “That. Was. AWESOME!!! You have to teach me how to do that flippy-thingy! And the rest of those rad moves!” Maine pushed her away with a finger on her nose, her face scrunching up and her eyes crossing to stare at the intruding digit. Maine found it strangely cute for some reason. “Princess first, then we’ll see.” She blinked twice as he released her nose and nodded. Maine turned to Twilight and dusted off his hands. “As fun as that was, I like the idea of spending the night here. Shall we go?” Twilight looked up from the notes she was scribbling. “Huh? Oh, yeah. Uhh... Ponyville is basically a ten-minute walk from this point.” Maine grinned and waved his hand in a grand gesture to the trees behind her. “Lead the way, Sparkle.”
Log- 01The Meta growled and stomped through the snow as Sarge steadily advanced, firing shell after shell into the Meta’s armor. The blasts did little to slow the monster’s advance, let alone injure it. The hulking freelancer swatted the offending shotgun aside and seized Sarge by the throat, slowly crushing his windpipe. The red seargent’s cries went unheard by the Meta, the sound of blood pumping furiously through his veins drowning out his senses. The intense hatred he had harbored for these SIM soldiers and what they had cost him consumed his mind. As his revenge came to fruition, his only thoughts were on snapping the neck in his hands. By the time the Meta finally registered the movement in the corner of his eye, the other two red soldiers had just tipped the wrecked Warthog over the side of the cliff. His eyes were drawn to the rapidly tightening tow cable stealthily hooked to his chest piece. YOU FU- His thought was cut short as he was suddenly torn off his feet and dragged across the slick ice. He roared as he grasped at the smooth surface for something, anything, to stop his impending doom. He finally settled for the ankle of another red soldier and dragged him toward the cliff. FIGHT LIKE A COWARD, DIE LIKE A COWARD! The super-soldier’s revenge was short-lived as his screaming victim grabbed onto his teammate’s hand, halting his slide and tearing the Meta’s grip from his ankle. The Meta roared his outrage as he plummeted down the icy cliff toward the icy doom below; only slightly happier knowing that he had stolen back the Brute Shot in the struggle. He would die with his weapon in his hands. He struggled with the hook embedded into his breastplate, but it had embedded itself firmly into his armor. Nor did he have time to tear off enough armor to float, not that he could hope to survive for long in the icy water anyway. Realizing the futility of his roars, he silenced himself and turned toward the dark water, pondering this inescapable revelation. He had always found a way out before, but this time there was no such path. He had no A.I. to guide him, he couldn’t use his equipment, and he had nothing to halt his fall. It seemed rather odd that he of all... things would simply accept his fate, but even he knew unavoidable death when he saw it. Would he be judged for his crimes? Did he regret his actions now that all was said and done? Would he be remembered? He mused over these things as he slammed into the freezing depths, water flowing in through the cracks in his armor, chilling him to the bone. Already his thoughts began to dull, the lights began to fade, and his suit began to creak as he was slowly crushed in the depths. He sighed as the cold shock gave him a sudden final moment of clarity. A final moment with his own sanity, what little was left after Sigma’s influence. He was back. He was Maine once more, for what it was worth. In scant moments, the disoriented soldier had managed to piece together his shattered mind, get the drop on his replacement, and rivet his proper psyche back into place, promising his continued sanity. What little could be called sane, that is. He groaned painfully as the memories flooded through his mind. Took me long enough... Burn in hell Sigma... Heh... I deserve this... I murdered half my team. Betrayers and mutineers have a special spot reserved for them in the lowest level of hell. And for what? What was my goal? The Alpha? That was their obsession, not my own. I can’t even remember what I fought for... but I regret that I never fulfilled it... what was it? He blinked slowly as the last remnants of light faded and cracks began to form in his visor. He smiled softly as his original plans from years ago came back to him. To be a soldier... I protected people... at least, in the grand scheme of things... or ... or so I thought... I did whatever it took... whatever they told me to do... for the greater good... it would be nice... to do that... for real this time... He prepared to close his eyes, accept his fate, and die. His body went limp and sunk peacefully down. He took a deep breath, and... Began tearing at his armor, eyes wide and glaring. What am I doing? I can’t escape this, why am I- Tangible thought faded as his life flew through his mind. The UNSC flag, dishonorable discharge papers, the counselor holding out a contract, Project Freelancer, purpose, the team, York standing beside his bed in the med bay. “You idiot! You’re lucky the Director didn’t penalize you for practically crippling yourself! What were you thinking!?” Maine grunted and shrugged painfully as the medical systems repaired his shattered shoulder. A moment passed, and York opened his mouth to berate him again, when a low, low voice cut him off. “Had to.” York was shocked. Maine had never directly spoken to anyone other than the counselor of his own accord. “Did... did you just...? I’ve never heard you speak a word outside of missions.” Maine nodded and rumbled out in the gravelly, rough, and deep tones of his scarcely used voicebox. “I’ve fought for everything. For one reason or another. Money, a favor, the human race... a promise... It’s all I’ve ever done. If I can’t fight, I have no reason to exist.” York was surprised, to say the least. Maine’s reasons for joining Project Freelancer were often one of the first inquiries new recruits had after they met him. The thing is, no one but the Director knew his exact reasons. But York, through some miracle, had learned that Maine simply didn’t know how to do anything else. York gave him a small smile. “I... think I can respect that,” York answered hesitantly as he looked to the helmet feed playing at the end of the bed, showing the vast amounts of carnage the bed-confined soldier could achieve. “Hehe, as long as we’re on the same side, never change, Maine.” A bloody brown helmet flickered across the memory. ”Never change.” Maine sunk into the sea, the heavy, struggling form spiraling down into the darkness, a white beacon in the abyss that refused to be snuffed out. He might die, and he might go to hell, but he would always fight. Hell, why not just fight his way out of hell? ... ”Maine.” Maine was on his feet instantly, taking in his surroundings in a heartbeat. His armor and equipment was missing, as was a certain firearm. A figure in a black cloak stood before him, a chipped scythe strapped to its back. A golden scale sat between the pairing them, and a void of dark grey surrounded the scene. Maine was on the Judgement Plane. A bit stereotypical... ”I get that quite a lot.” The voice didn’t echo, or fade into the distance. Rather, it stopped in an instant, like death, appropriately enough. ”And yes, I can hear you. Thoughts speak louder than words here. Maine blinked at Death’s words and glanced down at the scales, seeing no real need to ask who Death was. It was ridiculous just how cliche the Reaper was. I’m going to be judged? “Yes, Maine.” ...Don’t bother, I know where I’m going. Death chuckled, a raspy, unsettling sound, as he reached for the scythe on his back. “And you’ve already made up your mind not to go quietly, eh?” Maine automatically fell into a free-handed martial arts stance, ready to fight for his life despite his lack of equipment. Death paused and looked him over approvingly before shaking his head. “This may be a mistake on my part, but it’s been such a long time since I’ve seen a potential challenge... Ooh, I can’t resist. I can make a wager with you Maine, if you manage to best me in combat, you get a second chance to redeem yourself in life. If I win, I get another soul for my personal collection.” He reached into the darkness covering his face, gagged for a moment, and pulled out a bundle of small, slimy glowing orbs from his throat. Whispers pleading to be freed or warnings to not fight echoed from the spirits. Death cackled and shoved the souls back into his mouth. ”Well? What’s your decision, Maine?” Maine thought for a mere moment, his mind had instantly agreed there was only one choice that he would accept. Now to use Death’s overconfidence against him. I think Death stacks the odds in his favor. “Hmm?” Death cocked his head. You have your scythe, give me my own weapon. Or do you want to be known for unfair deals? Death eyed him for a moment and laughed, admittedly a truly horrifying sound, though it didn’t do much in the way of scaring Maine. His training wouldn’t allow him to waver. “Ah! You tempt me Maine. I feel as if we could be the best of friends... Very well, your wish is granted.” Death waved a gray hand and a sudden wind blew past him. With a clunk, Maine’s Brute Shot dropped at his feet. He quickly picked it up and checked the clip. Six shots, a full clip. He was going to make them count. “Now then, fight me, Maine!” With a guttural roar, Maine charged forward and swung at Death’s midriff. Death almost casually took a step back and arched his stomach away from the blade. Maine growled in annoyance and sent a complex series of heavily practiced stabs, punches, and slashes that Death just barely moved to avoid. In a desperate attempt to land a hit, Maine finally managed to catch the god by surprise with a single grenade aimed at their feet. Five. It was painfully clear that Death was unfamiliar with Maine’s tactics, despite his near perfect evasion of every attack sent his way. So as he jumped back from the explosion, he watched the edges of the blaze, expecting the mortal to skirt around it. Maine did the exact opposite of what a death-fearing being would do: He fired another grenade at his own unarmored feet, catapulting himself through the blaze like a bat out of hell. Four. The barely visible glint of Death’s eyes widened in surprise as he made to dodge the blade aimed for his skull. His cloak was torn asunder from his head by the point of the blade, leaving the face of Death exposed. That’s a face only a mother could tolerate. Death was not an attractive being. If the ash colored skin, wispy hair, and gaunt cheeks, and sunken black eyes weren’t bad enough, he now had a long, bloody slash stretching across his right ear. His shocked expression faded as he grinned at his opponent and laughed loudly. “Excellent! Excellent! Congratulations, you are the first to ever wound Death himself!” Once his mirth died away, he wiped away an imaginary tear and sighed. A sudden ringing of a bell made him pause and pull a small hourglass from his cloak. He scowled and growled in annoyance before looking back to block a stealthy broadside from the rapidly approaching Maine. What now? “The Man Upstairs told me to hurry things along. I enjoyed this little fight here, I really did. But~” Death smiled, and the air suddenly became thicker, much like a sauna, but without the heat. “-it seems your time has run out.” Death suddenly darted forward, scythe poised to relieve Maine of his head. Only Maine’s instincts saved his life as the reaper’s blade was halted by the very point of his own reflexive block. A scratch and a single drop of blood running down his neck sent a flood of rage through Maine’s body. Death chuckled that now infuriating laugh again. “Now, now, accept your fate.” Has anyone actually accepted that? Death actually thought about it for a moment. (Side note: Death is a bastard.) “Well, there are actually quite a few people... Oh well, you’ll be dead soon either way.” Maine took advantage of the god’s pondering and shoved him away, firing another grenade at close range in the process. Three. The Reaper sidestepped the projectile, and with pinpoint accuracy, neatly separated the charge from the trigger, rendering the explosive useless. “Nice try, but I can read your mind here, remember? You can’t win. I hear your every move, Maine. Give it up already.” Maine had an idea in mind, though he carefully masked it with an extra flurry of stabs. He suddenly backed away and dived into the depths of his mind. He had become rather adept at it over time, and It was not hard to find who he was looking for. Behind mental bars stronger than diamonds, a golden dome stared back into Maine’s consciousness. It was very much alive and well, despite his best efforts. It said nothing, for it knew why Maine was here. It merely outstretched a white-plated hand and waited. Maine shuddered, but knew he had no choice. Only when I need you. The gilded helmet nodded, agreeing to any degree of freedom. Maine reached forward and seized the hand. “Who are you talking to-“ Death stuttered as every thought in Maine’s head suddenly faded. Maine could feel the old frame of mind, where he had been stuck for a very long time. Few changes were made, but now he was the one in charge. Maine took a deep breath and slipped away while he rushed in, eager to kill. The Meta never fought with the A.I. guiding him. They gave him a goal and motivated him, but every blow was pure instinct. “How did you-“ With a familiar growl, the Meta rushed forward and smacked away the scythe with the butt of the grenade launcher; firing point-blank into Death’s chest as he leaped back. Two. The sickly man flew back, his cloak shredded and just barely managed to stay on his feet. He coughed and glared at The Meta. “H-how could you possibly manage to shut down your every thought?” The Meta spoke. We are the Meta. “Th-that’s- a split soul!?” As it turns out, he’s a permanent part of me now, and he doesn’t need to think to kick your ass. Maine darted forward once more, switching mid-run as his body’s every action began running on combat tactics that were drilled into his head ever since day one of Project Freelancer. The Meta heaved a massive overhead strike at Death’s head. The emaciated man simply didn’t have enough weight to resist the strike and was forced to his knees. The Meta eagerly bore down with his weight, trying his best to crush the old man. ”This. Isn’t. OVER!” With a shout more akin to a screech, and a surge of god strength, Death threw the Meta back. The Meta backflipped through the air and landed on his feet. He looked up, only to see the beserker reaper right in front of him, sickly skinny arms rearing back the scythe to bisect him. The Meta snapped the trigger once more, sending the both of them flying and losing hold of their weapons. Death landed heavily on his side while the Meta smoothly rolled to his feet, already running towards Death’s stunned form. The latter reared up his foot to crush Death’s skull and slammed it into the solid floor as the reaper rolled aside, shattering several bones. He merely grunted as pain lanced through the appendage. This was barely deemed a scratch to either side of Maine’s mind. Death frantically made his way to his scythe and wrenched it from the ground. Maine realized the danger and turned his counterpart’s bloodthirsty charge away from Death. The Meta instead leaped forward and rolled over the Brute Shot, picking it up as he went. He turned back to Death and was suddenly struck through the shoulder, pinning him to the ground. “Checkmate.” Death had thrown his scythe; an extremely risky maneuver that would have left him defenseless had he missed. Unfortunately, he didn’t. He panted heavily as he walked over to the struggling form. The Meta slowed and finally receded to the back of Maine’s mind as its will faded, exhausted from the hindrance of being held in check. “I must congratulate you yet again, Maine. You are truly the strongest soul- or rather souls- I’ve ever had the pleasure of meeting. I admit I respect you, Maine. Hell, I might even put you in a nicer spot in my stomach. But you know what happens next, no one escapes Death.” Death leaned over and pulled the blade from Maine’s shoulder. Holding it over his head he looked down at the soldier once more. “Any last words?” Strike three. Maine suddenly propelled Death off of his chest, seizing his weapon from where it fell. With a growl, he ripped the scythe out of Death’s grasp, shoved him to the ground, and placed the Brute Shot’s barrel between his eyes in one rapid motion. One grenade left to fire. Death was dumbfounded. Your first mistake was letting me fight you. The second, thinking you beat me. And the third, the worst mistake one can make, gloating before victory. “B-but you were mortally wounded!” I took six bullets to the throat and kept on punching. You think a measly little stab wound would stop me? Death had nothing to say for a moment. “No wonder you were so overdue. It seems you’ve cheated me before... What an insult. Alright, I... I yield.” He forced the words out. I will live again? “A deal is a deal, but not in your old realm. That is the one place I cannot put you. It would cause reality to tear apart at the seams.” ...Fine. I want my armor, equipment, weapon, and an A.I. with no memory of the Alpha... And my restored health, if you think you can pull one over on me. “Believe me, I never want to see you again, Maine. Consider it done... I hope you have an awful life.” And with that, true to Death’s word, Maine was gone. ::::::::::::::: He awoke to a whistling in his ears, a feeling of weightlessness, the familiar sensation of armor wrapped around him, and for the first time in a long while, a clear mind. Realizing the telltale signs of free fall, Maine quickly snapped into action. He twisted and turned himself over in the air to survey the rapidly approaching green landscape. To his surprise, possible landing areas with odds of survival popped up on the visor. Small code scrolled by followed by text. Integration Complete. All Systems Online. LZ mapped and logged. Maine didn’t have time to celebrate his good fortune as the ground was rapidly approaching. He angled his white-plated form towards a wooded area, a small town in the distance appearing for a brief instant before he began burning back into the atmosphere. Maine attempted to activate a geodesic shield. To his surprise, it worked... to a degree. With the additional air-drag he managed to slow himself to a survivable velocity before it broke. It still hurt though. The world went dark as he slammed through the first of many trees. :::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::: (Three hours ago, Equestria.) Twilight hummed happily as she finished reorganizing the Library again. Repetition breeds optimization of speed, after all. She turned to the stairs and called from the bottom step. “Spike! I’m done with the books! You can come dust now!” A small scuffle sounded before her number one assistant appeared. “Coming!” Twilight smiled and picked up a book that she was reading earlier as her thoughts drifted back to Spike’s change in schedule. After his greed-induced growth spurt on his birthday, Twilight had grilled him for everything else that bugged him even a little. Eventually he admitted that the weekly reorganization of the library’s shelves was slowly driving him crazy. Twilight, the caring mother/older sister figure she was, was quick to remedy it. So instead of helping with the organization, Spike just dusted the library afterwards. A large amount of dust was always disturbed with the mass migration of over a thousand books, so it was still a rather substantial help to her. Spike was more than happy with the grunt work, claiming that all of the complex systems were “melting his brain.” Scientific impossibilities aside, they were both quite happy with the new arrangement. Spike snatched up the feather-duster and scurried up the ladder to begin the long task of meticulously dusting each and every shelf. Twilight sighed and sank into the couch. She opened her book and read for the better part of an hour. A loud crash suddenly startled her off the couch into the floor. A large dust cloud consumed her shortly afterwards. “Oof... Spike? What happened?” The green and purple dragon materialized from the haze with a sheepish grin on his face. “Uh, Rainbow Dash.” “Again?” Twilight groaned and pulled herself off the floor. “That’s the third time in this week.” The cyan pegasus in question gathered the large dust cloud with her wings and swept it out the window with an apologetic look. “Sorry Twi, the wind has really been going crazy today.” Twilight blinked. “Crazy how?” “Does all of the wind currents spiraling towards one point count?” “Uh yeah, it does. Where?” “The Everfree.” Twilight sighed and grumbled a bit under her breath. “Wouldn’t be the first time it’s followed its own rules... Rainbow? Can you help me put these books back for now? I have reading I’d like to get back to.” “Sure thing, Twi! I’ll have those books back in ten seconds flat!” “Organized?” Rainbow visibly deflated. “Aw come on, Twi, nopony knows how to do that but you!” “Calm down, It’s just a simple four-step algebraic equation. Nothing to worry about!” Rainbow groaned in defeat and plodded over to her latest pile of books. Twilight turned back to Spike. “Now then, keep up the good work, Spike.” He chuckled nervously. “Eh, about that... There’s actually no more dust on the shelves.” Twilight looked over the library, and to her surprise all the shelves were immaculately clean. She turned back to Rainbow with a critical eye. “Maybe she should crash into the library more often...” “Twi? Are you coming or what?” Twilight shook her head and dismissed Spike before attempting to help Rainbow Dash. After about half-an-hour of Twilight reconsidering the idea of somepony melting their brain, She gave up and organized the books herself. Soon Rainbow took off again, a few Daring Do books heavier than she was before. Right after she left, an unusually long string of ponies demanded Twilight’s attention to her duties as librarian, interrupting her reading time repeatedly. And believe you me, there was nothing that aggravated Twilight more than being pulled away from a book ten seconds after opening it. She finally sat down again another hour later, one or two hairs out of place. She took a few deep breaths and calmly opened her book. An hour later, she sighed in relief as she finally finished the book and placed it back on the shelf. “Alright Twilight, it was just a rough morning. You’re fine.” She gazed at the perfectly organized shelves with intense satisfaction. And promptly locked the window. “There, now nothing can possibly go-” Twilight was suddenly silenced by a pink hoof poking out of a nearby potted plant. “Don’t jinx it, silly!” Twilight rolled her eyes and nodded as the hoof retracted from her mouth back into the plant. Twilight had long ago learned that when Pinkie was involved, it was far safer to just go along with whatever it was on the off-chance that the pink mare was actually right. Twilight’s horn itched. She reached up to scratch it and realized that it had suddenly become much darker. Fearing the worst, what with all the other unfortunate things that happen to Ponyville on a regular basis, Twilight teleported outside. She was greeted by a quickly gathering storm visible over the Everfree Forest, blocking out the sun. She attempted to use a scanning spell, but after receiving the jarring shock of magical-feedback overload, she decided to leave the ominous cloud be for now and simply observe it. Many ponies were out on the streets already, watching the bizarre phenomenon. A few minutes later, Applejack showed up, Fluttershy and Rarity close behind her. They didn’t really have to say much, the problem was pretty apparent. Pinkie Pie was just suddenly there, for no apparent reason (as usual). And a somewhat blackened Rainbow Dash landed next to Twilight soon after. “So... Twilight,” Dashie turned to her. “Any ideas on what that is?” “Not a clue, maybe it’s just the Everfree going about it’s business.” “That’s what the Weather Factory thought too. But when we tried to corral it, it blasted me and my team into somepony’s house.” Twilight blinked slowly. She still had that annoying itch in her horn, and now she was sure it was coming from the cloud. “Well, I can’t really scan it, and it’s definitely powerful magic, but I can’t really tell you anything more than that. I just can’t seem to affect it.” Everypony was oddly quiet until Applejack spoke up. “So, we jus’ sit here then?” “Pretty much.” “Do you think it likes parties? I wonder if-” Twilight immediately tuned her out. Twilight knew Pinkie had been strangely silent. Nevertheless, she did give her an answer. “Well, it’s a cloud, Pinkie. I doubt it.” A few more minutes passed. Pinkie had finished her rant and produced cupcakes from her mane for everypony to snack on while they waited for something, anything, to happen. Ponyville had seemingly frozen in place as everypony watched the ominous cloud. Finally, after at least twenty minutes, the cloud started shifting violently. They watched with baited breath as it boiled and convulsed before suddenly just... shrinking into nothing... apparently. “Wait, was that it?” “Boo! What a buzzkill!” Twilight sighed in relief as discontent spread across Ponyville. “Well, I’m glad this day can’t get any worse.” Pinkie gaped at Twilight. Her friends did much the same. Applejack stepped forward and placed her hoof on Twilight’s flank. “Honey, don’t ya’ never tempt Discord. We gotta’ few strict rules on the farm, and that’s one of ‘em. Even Applebloom knows better. You’re on yer own here.” The cries of protest were silenced as a loud bang resounded and a flaming white meteor fell from the sky. “Woo!” “Rad!” Fluttershy fainted from the stress of waiting and the sudden climax. (The second kind, not the first one, perverts.) Twilight tracked the falling object carefully as it fell, hoping to predict its crash site. Her eyes widened as the object sprouted a golden sphere of energy that slowed its descent. The sphere broke a moment later, and the object fell to the ground. A few seconds passed before the large shockwave hit. Everypony was launched a full foot in the air as windows broke and unsecured objects fell over. The girls landed rather shakily on their feet. Twilight stumbled and regained her footing as she tried to fight down this sudden feeling of dread growing behind her. A loud, long, crash was heard in the library. Twilight’s right eye twitched as every hair in her mane suddenly popped out of place and her pupils shrank to pinpricks. “I... I-I j-j-ju-ust got finished with that... He-heh... Five hours of work, down the drain.” Wisely, her friends stealthily fled the ensuing freak-out as Twilight’s frustration continued to build. She raged silently, frothed at the mouth, and finally reached a boiling point. ”BUCK IT!!!” Twilight practically tore the front door off its hinges, seized every single stray book in the library with her magic, and rammed them back into the shelves wherever they lay. She fell to the floor, exhausted from the magical overuse and the incredible frustration she felt. Me and my big mouth. A few minutes later, Rarity, having drawn the short straw, tentatively poked her head around the door and surveyed the scene. “Feel better, darling?” ”... Give me a minute.” Author's Note Revised. Hopefully all the mistakes are gone. BTW, probs not going to stick very solidly to proper timeline. Major events only kind of thing.
Log- 02The six mares’ next actions were more of their usual shtick: After a short letter exchange with Princess Celestia and an official royal assignment, the girls took off into the Everfree forest. Yadayadafriendshipyada, Twilight, as usual, took charge. “Okay girls, from what I could tell, this UFO landed somewhere near the Castle of The Two Sisters, so we’ll work our way out from there.” Rainbow raised a hoof. “Unidentified Falling Object, Dash. In other words, you every other day.” The Pegasus lowered her hoof with a wry smirk. Laughter followed them as they continued through the forest. ::::::::::::::::::::: As it turned out, they did not have to search very hard. They came across the massive dust cloud in a surprisingly short amount of time; a testament to the force of the impact. Twilight lit up her horn, Rarity soon following her example, and together they began parting the haze as they went. As they approached the center of the cloud, one-by-one they all felt a wave of fear travel up their spines. They shivered and looked about for the eyes they suddenly felt sure were watching. Twilight, despite her large vocabulary, couldn’t describe the incredible depth of the feeling, but her base instincts as a pony told her there was something to be feared here. Twilight gulped nervously as she parted the last of the dust and saw the edge of the crater. She glanced back to her friends to see a variety of reactions. Pinkie’s hair drooped a bit as she nervously smiled and tried to chuckle, failing to laugh away the fear, perhaps because the fear was not imagined this time. Applejack’s face could have been made of stone, but her rapidly shifting eyes revealed her unease. Rainbow dropped to the ground, gritting her teeth and joining the rest as they nervously glanced about, while Fluttershy was petrified, trembling violently as she faced straight ahead with her eyes firmly shut. Rarity broke the tense silence, her voice wavering. “Twilight? Why does it feel so... Wrong here?” She had no real answer. There was no magic acting on them, that much she knew. But that really was all she knew. Despite their being no obvious reason to be nervous, the whole group was struck with almost crippling-levels of paranoia. Twilight inched her way to the edge, her friends unintentionally using her as a shield as they followed. They peeked down into the deep crater and took note of its rather strange contents. A white form lay embedded about a foot deeper than the surrounding ground, a rather menacing looking object impaling the ground beside it. “Um, girls? I think it’s safe.” The others soon congregated on the lip of the crater, gazing down at the bizarre scene. Somehow, seeing the thing they had come for made it less scary, so the hairs on the backs of their necks gradually flattened until the feeling of eyes on them completely faded. The purple-haired fashionista blinked twice before turning to Twilight. “Twilight? What in Celestia’s name is that?” “I... Don’t know. Should we get a closer look, you think?” After a bit of not doing but staring and whispering, the group reluctantly made their way down to give the object a more in-depth investigation. Twilight barely needed a moment to come to a rather simple conclusion. “That’s not a meteor, it’s definitely not a natural substance or shape... Vaguely pony-like...? It looks like it could be a living creature.” Fluttershy came out of her trance at Twilight’s words, and after a moment of steeling herself, slowly approached the still form, chanting a small phrase to herself softly. “You can do this, Fluttershy. It might need your help.” She hesitated as her instincts screamed at her to flee. Finally she ever-so-slowly lifted her hoof and lowered it toward the white-covered creature. She smiled for a brief moment at her bravery before her expression fell. “It’s... Cold... No pulse.” She began to tear up. Pinkie quickly moved to give her a hug, but paused as Fluttershy suddenly yelped at the subtle rising sensation under her hoof. “I-it’s b-breathing! I-It must have a thick skin!” She sighed in relief and quickly leaned down to examine the strange being for injuries. The rest of them, however, were not as overjoyed at the idea of having a large, unknown creature so near to them. Twilight soon summoned up enough courage to join Fluttershy in her examination. She found that it was a tall, seemingly bipedal creature covered head to hoof in a hard white substance with softer patches of black in between. No tail could be seen, and the claw-like appendages, minus the claws, on the ends of its arms were clearly nimble enough for grasping objects. Their search also turned up three more important facts: That the creature was facedown, that it’s shoulder joint was at the very least dislocated, if not broken. That is, if the unnatural angle it was bent at was any indication. And, after a brief spell from Twilight, it was revealed that there was not even the lowest level of magic normally found in all living things on Equus. Fluttershy lightly prodded at the injured shoulder and frowned. “Twilight? Can you please get him free? I can’t set that joint like this.” Twilight reluctantly agreed and began tugging on the tall form experimentally. To her surprise, her magic could not get a proper grip. It was also significantly heavier than she predicted. She was forced to focus and build up far more magic than she normally required to lift things. Self-sorting the entire library twice in the same day was not doing her any favors either. Meanwhile, Rainbow had elected to not go anywhere near the creature embedded in the ground and instead favored investigating the second, smaller object. It was a strange-looking affair, covered in alien mechanisms and a dark black finish. Dash took a quick sniff at the device but recoiled violently at the intense burning sensation in her sensitive pony nose. The device smelled heavily of sulfur and blood. She choked, sneezed and coughed furiously as she tried to rid her lungs of the painful substance. Applejack noticed her plight and came over to help her. “You alright, sugar cube?” Rainbow snorted again before answering. “Do NOT smell that thing. It just set my lungs on fire.” Applejack glanced over at the object in question with some apprehension. CRACK Everypony present jumped at the sudden noise. As soon as Twilight had barely shifted the heavy being, a large crack had spiderwebbed along the ground from its now-clenched fist. Twilight was confused for a mere moment before the color drained from her face. The conclusion was rather obvious after all. She looked up. “Everypony back away. Slowly.” Fluttershy gasped softly as the biped suddenly shifted on its own and began pulling itself up. Suffice to say, caution was thrown to the wind as every-pony quickly vacated the crater while the being freed itself from the ground. The front limbs folded under the torso and pushed up, freeing the head and shoulders. It repeated the action with its back legs, bringing it to a two-legged stand and confirming Twilight’s bipedal theory. Yet again, no tail was visible to help it keep its balance, so how it stood so steadily was still a mystery to Twilight. Twilight gasped softly as an expressionless golden surface appeared instead of the face they had expected. Seemingly unaware of their presence, it looked down to it’s dislocated arm. Without a visible flinch, it simply shrugged it back into the socket with an sickening audible crack. Twilight shivered, nauseated by the sight of pure willpower. The being rolled the shoulder experimentally as it stepped toward the second object. A long curved blade appeared from the soil as the biped gripped the strange handle and easily lifted the massive weapon. Rainbow gawked at the intimidating sight. “Woah.” At the sound of RD’s voice, the biped grunted in surprise and whirled around to face them. ================================= Maine awoke to a ringing in his ears and a throbbing headache as his mind drifted back together. Oh yeah, he curb-stomped Death. He should’ve known the god would pull something like this to spite him. With a groan and a strong flex, he loosened the hard packed ground enough to free his arms. A spike of pain made itself known in his right shoulder as he steadily pulled himself upright. Dislocated, grreeaaat... With a quick roll guided by years of experience, Maine popped the bone back into it’s socket with the slightest of grimaces. He saw his Brute Shot a few feet to his right, buried up to the hilt in the ground and far too close to his own body-print for comfort. He took the few steps to it and pulled it from the ground surprisingly easily. The gravity must be weaker on this planet. A small voice was heard behind him, triggering his instincts as he automatically pivoted to confront the threat. ... Oh screw you, Death. Screw. You. In front of Maine were six multicolored and rather cartoonish-looking small horses. They had yet to do much of anything, but he recognized the intelligence in their terrified stares. He stood stock still for about a minute while his mind tried to cope with the ridiculousness of the situation. The six had frozen as well, not sure how to react. Maine sighed and holstered the grenade launcher onto his back. Guess I’ll follow protocol... He waved, and one of the strange ponies waved back quite cheerfully. He went to grunt something akin to a greeting... only to discover his pipes were clearer than they had been in years. He cleared his throat experimentally and went to speak. “Uh... hi—holy shi— my voice!” He realized six pairs of eyes were staring at him with a range of emotions spanning from terror to confusion. He cleared his throat again and continued, the long missed low growl of his deep voice sounded like music to his ears. “I don’t suppose you speak English? Or Sangheili?” A few more blinks passed before the purple-on-purple... unicorn- who’s horn Maine had just noticed- stepped forward and began to speak quite clearly, to his surprise. “Um, We do happen to speak Equestrian Standard, does that work? Oh, I’m Twilight Sparkle, by the way.” “We- I am... Agent Maine. I may not be affiliated with any government in this realm, but protocol for new species discovery still stands. As such, let me start by stating I mean no harm unless you deal it first. If that happens, expect me to defend myself and return the favor tenfold.” Twilight Sparkle, the stupidly-named unicorn, nodded in agreement while her companions were still a little shell-shocked. “Well, that sounds fair, I suppose. And as the personal student of Princess Celestia, let me be the first to extend the olive branch of friendship on behalf of Equestria.” I... what? Maine waited a moment to see if they were joking... but apparently that was actually the name of the place. “Are... are you aware your nation’s title is a pun named after your species?” Twilight screwed up her face for a moment before her eyes glazed over, like the thought had never occurred to her before. Which, as it turned out, it hadn’t. “H-how did I never notice that?” The rest were equally as surprised. The orange mare with a cowboy hat on her head sat down roughly with a bewildered expression. Did I mention that their faces were incredibly expressive? “Ah... Ah admit that Ah noticed it a’fore, but now tha’ Ah think about it, it is rather odd, right?” Oh dear God, a southern accent. That brings back memories... and rage... Maine clapped his hands, hoping to dispel the little trance and rid himself of such dangerous thoughts. “Alright, I know Twilight here, but I don’t know the rest of you lot. So out with it!” Silence. “ ...Okay, let’s do it this way: One name for one question, deal?” The cyan Pegasus- Jesus, how many mythical creatures are there?- with a technicolor nightmare for a mane popped up into the air and swooped close to Maine’s face with a spiteful look. “What the hay is up with that crazy-looking sword thing? I smelled it and it felt like my brain was on fire!” “Not much to burn...” came a whisper from her friends. She ignored the giggles and floated closer. “Well?” “I was waiting for your name first.” “Urrgh... fine. Rainbow Dash.” I am going to puke your mane by the end of the day at this rate. Maine slung the Brute Shot around and displayed it to her as he continued. “Well, Rainbow Dash, I was a soldier where I come from. A very good one. Comes with the job. You probably got a whiff of sulfur. Leftovers from the explosives I fire from this beauty.” The group blinked, in unison. Very creepy, I assure you. “Explosives?” Maine shook his head and put away the weapon. “Two questions. Next!” The orange ‘cowpony’ with a blonde, well, ponytail trotted forward as Dash retreated to sulk. Not my fault you sniffed my girl. Back off. “Why don’t ya’ have a face?” Really? Well, It’s their first encounter with my kind, but still. “It’s a helmet.” She formed an ‘O’ with her mouth and waved her hoof in a ‘go on’ motion. Maine chuckled. “Yeah, no. This helmet has saved my life on many an occasion. It stays on. Next?” The other unicorn, a white-furred, purple-maned thing that looked surprisingly regal, for a horse, stepped down into the crater with dainty steps. She spoke with an accent to match, very precise. It reminded Maine of Wyoming. “Hello there, good sir. My name is Rarity Belle. If I’m correct that the rest of your appearance is some sort of armor, do you mind if I model some pieces after it? I’m a fashion designer you see, and I have found myself very taken with it.” “You would be correct, and I don’t care. Next.” She bowed her head in thanks and climbed back out of the crater. She was soon replaced by another pegasus with yellow fur and a pink mane who seemed absolutely terrified of the tall soldier. She whispered in a barely audible voice. “I-is y-y-your shoulder o-okay?” Maine crouched down to her height. “Name?” “Um... Fluttershy...” “To answer your question, I have had far worse.” She burst up, plainly alarmed at his answer. “Worse!?” Eh, whatever, censorship is overrated anyway. “Kicked off a building, shot, stabbed, shot six more times, hit by a fast-moving bus, and thrown off a highway all in under a half-hour. I’m fine.” They were horrified. One or two glanced between Maine and the trembling Fluttershy with angry glares. Suddenly an incredibly cheery voice exploded in his ear. “Hiya!” “GAH!” Maine instinctively grabbed the offender clinging to his back and whipped them forward, only for the overwhelmingly pink creature to cling to his arm. He tried to pull her off as she kept switching holds in an instant, all the while jabbering incessantly. The only things he retained from the nonsensical chatter was her name, Pinkie Pie, and that she was apparently the living embodiment of the word party. The equines were laughing hysterically in the background as Maine struggled to dislodge his unwanted passenger. “Just ask your question and get off me!” “Okie-dokie-loki! Why’s your voice all deep and gravelly? Are you sick? Is there a frog living in there? *GASP* Does the frog like parties!?” “I’m not sick! There is no frog! And it’s jacked because I just got it back!” “Oh! How did you lose it!? Was it a voice-stealing gremlin!?” “I answered your question! Get off me already! How are you even holding on!? You have no fingers!” “Uh, magic, duh silly!” “GAAAAAAHHHH!!!” Maine turned and flipped the sky the bird. Seriously, screw you, Death. ================================= Finally, a few minutes later, the others pulled the pink monster off of Maine when he began threatening her descendants. Twilight cleared her throat anxiously, hoping to quell his rage a bit. How does she know Maine was angry? When he was freed, he politely excused himself to go punch a boulder in the distance. The boulder did not survive. Pinkie herself was now lamenting over the loss of the boulder and was having a funeral for it while Maine and Twilight talked. Neurotic, but apparently she was raised on a rock farm... Though how you farm rocks, I will never know. “So, that was Pinkie.” The angry man growled at the mention of her name. “Ehehe... don’t worry, she’s usually only that bad when she’s meeting new ponies.” Maine latched onto the word ‘usually’ and began looking for something else to vent his frustration upon. “Anyway, can I ask you a question?” Opportunity has struck. “You just did.” “W-wait, uh, that’s not- I didn’t mean-“ “Sorry, no more questions.” “THAT WASN’T MY QUESTION!” Maine chuckled at her naivety and waved her on. The girls were incredibly easy to fluster. She blushed heavily when she realized he was just teasing her, but continued. “I wanted to ask about your actual species, for dietary purposes and logging it in official documents.” Maine nodded and voiced his approval. “Makes sense. Finally asking an important question. I’m what is known as a human, man, meaning male, more specifically, homo sapien. Omnivorous diet with significant usual meat intake, but a vegetarian diet is possible for us. Roughly eighty to one-hundred years full natural life expectancy. I think I’m about twenty-eight at this point. I lost track.” Twilight glanced up from the paper she had magicked from somewhere. Also, magic. That’s a thing. Apparently. Maine had shrugged it off on other dimension rules. “How did you lose track of how old you are?” Maine clenched his fists. “Personal question. Move on.” She raised an eyebrow but said nothing more on the subject. “Alright, any specific needs?” “House and a job.” “Well, we can work those out with Princess Celestia.” “Speaking of, not to sound cliche, but take me to your leader.” Twilight laughed and nodded. “Of course, mysterious being from the stars.” “When can we go?” “Oh, uh... right now, I guess. We’ll have to take the train, which means going into town. Can you act, well, less monster-like?” “No promises.” Maine knew he was probably going to be overrun by more candy-colored horses no matter what he did. Maine lazily raised the middle finger to the sky again as he stretched. Twilight stared at it quizzically. “I saw you doing that earlier quite a bit, what does that mean?” “Just paying my dues to someone I hate.” Author's Note Revised. I just realized that every character has an unusually high amount of sass in my stories. ... I wouldn’t have it any other way. ====== Hey, I’m doing this partly for my own benefit, but with stories that are just starting out (especially ones you like), make sure you like the story. I think it’s incredibly hard to get a beginning story popularity, so it really helps us first timers if you submit our stories to big groups and like them. When you read comments on your stories, it makes you feel appreciated and motivated. For those of us with seven (at this moment) subscribers, we have to work awfully hard to get those readers. So hey, respond with constructive criticism or just say that they’re doing a good job, it all makes us feel warm and fuzzy inside. I admit I am doing this for my own profit as well, but please remember to help out the little guys, eh? Thx for the support you’ve shown so far! CYA!!!
Log- 03After an entirely pointless and drawn-out rock funeral, they finally set off toward the town Maine had seen earlier. The Mane Six Joined your party! To be honest, the fact that he had an A.I. again had completely slipped Maine’s mind. How it had somehow gotten ahold of an RPG reference was beyond him, but it did give him a name for it. “A.I., your new designation is Merlin.” Designation Recieved. Further Orders? “Run diagnostics and an equipment check. Return systems to peak performance. Search backlogs for Brute Shot ammunition production. It is unlikely the native species will be able to help.” Understood boss, I’ll get back to you when it’s done. Maine was momentarily thrown by Merlin’s words. Normally an A.I. doesn’t develop a personality so quickly, but there have been special cases before. “Maine? Who are you talking to?” Maine looked down to Twilight’s puzzled expression. A quick look confirmed the others were equally as confused. Maine understood their concern, it looked as if he was talking to himself. He sighed and explained. “Right then, get it over with. As it turns out, a regular human can’t run all the equipment in this suit by himself, so we developed a little something called artificial intelligence, or A.I. They’re incredibly complex machines built on an atomic level that take care of all the various systems this armor needs to run at peak efficiency. But in order for them to work properly, we had to include something of a self-learning system, a mind. Over time, they gradually developed personalities until they became what they are today. They’re basically their own beings. I just picked up... this one recently and hadn’t gotten around to naming him until just now... Say ‘hi’ Merlin.” Merlin piped up with a cheery, crisp, British accent. ”Hello there! It’s nice to make your acquaintance!” Twilight immediately magicked up her notepad again and began desperately scribbling down all the information Maine had just given her. The others reactions were more subdued, polite greetings and raised eyebrows. Pinkie, however, looked like she was about to explode. Maine promptly slowed down to put some distance between me and the ecstatic, possibly combustible mare, though that proved to be futile. She inevitably exploded in a cloud of confetti and balloons. Save me. “Does he like PARTIES!?” “Touch me, and I will punch you.” She merely smiled widely and bounced in place in front of him as she waited for an answer. Maine sighed and nodded his consent for Merlin to speak. “Blimey! A party? I can’t say whether or not I like them, Pinkie! I didn’t even exist about five hours ago!” Pinkie Pie gasped loudly, somehow floating off the ground in the process. “Then it’s your BIRTHDAY AND YOUR WELCOMING PARTY!!!” ”Well would you look at that! I guess it is! I’ve never had a birthday before either!” Pinkie’s smile looked painful at this point. “THIS IS GOING TO BE THE BESTEST PARTY EVER!!!” She then jumped into a random bush and promptly vanished. Maine turned back to Twilight and the rest. “Does she always break the laws of physics so casually?” “Yes,” came the unanimous reply. Twilight walked closer to him, waving her quill and paper in the air. “Do you mind if I ask a few questions about him?” “...Shoot.” “What’s his learning capacity like?”f “Massive. Greater than my mind could ever hold. Goes through millions of mathematical equations every minute just to speak.” Twilight’s eyes... sparkled. “Millions? C-could I get a sample of one of the more complicated ones?” It didn’t take Maine long to come up with something to shut her up. “Einstein’s Theory of Relativity. ‘E’ equals ‘MC’ squared.” She frowned for a second, but then her jaw dropped and she quickly wrote the formula on her scroll. She was out of commission for a long while as she puzzled over that particular brain-teaser. ================================= As they continued on their way, Pinkie popped out of another bush a few minutes later and was happily bouncing along with a bit more cheer than even she usually had. Now that they were traveling through the forest proper, it hadn’t taken Maine long to notice the worried glances the others cast into the murky surroundings, more than simple concern on their faces. His senses now on edge, Maine leaned down to Twilight and asked her what was up. “Is there anything to be worried about out here?” Twilight started and turned back to him with a raised eyebrow. “Why do you ask?” Maine huffed and took on the ‘scolding adult’ posture. “I’m a highly-trained solider. I’ve learned to notice things like worried looks.” She blinked in surprise before shrugging and looking forward again. “Well, I wouldn’t worry about it too much, but the Everfree Forest has a reputation for being dangerous, mostly because of it’s wildlife.” “Like what?” Maine always gathered information on possible threats, no matter how unlikely they may be. Twilight turned her eyes up into the air, thinking for a moment, before answering. “Well, the most common ones are probably Timberwolves, carnivorous wolves made of wood and almost impossible for most to outrun. After-” “Shouldn’t be a problem.” She blinked, but continued. “After that is Manticores, an amalg-“ “I actually know that one,” Maine interrupted, to Twilight’s dismay. “Back home we had legends of Manticores, even though they were just myths.” Twilight gave him a puzzled look, but shrugged it off and continued once more. “Then there are Cockatrices, a cross between a snake-like body with wings and a chicken’s head. If you have even a little fear of their stare, you are turned to stone.” “So... don’t fear it?” Twilight nodded as Maine chuckled. “I’ve stared into the face of Death itself and didn’t flinch. I think I can bear to have a staring contest with an overgrown chicken.” Not realizing the literal meaning in his words, Twilight scoffed at Maine’s ‘bravado.’ “Anyway... after that are hydras, dragons that if you cut off a head, three more take its pla-“ “Do they fly?” She grunted and shook her head before opening her mouth to speak again. “Good. Then they shouldn’t be a problem for me.” Twilight gave him a rather pointed glare this time, making sure he was well and truly shut up this time. She continued with a notable amount frustration. “And finally, Ursa Majo-” “Like the constellation?” Maine asked with just a slight smirk as he interrupted her again. She growled in frustration as Maine chuckled. The rest of the group had caught the gist of what he was doing and was littered with snickering. Years of dealing with OCD people like York and some of the A.I. had taught Maine exactly how to press all the right buttons. Twilight took a deep breath to calm herself and looked back to the freelancer again. “You’re actually closer than you may think. Ursa’s are massive bears literally made of stars.” Maine stayed silent this time, genuinely interested. “We probably won’t have to worry about them unless we get between a mother and her cub.” “So the same as regular bears, but way bigger and made of stars?” “Also practically indestructible, so we really don’t want to anger one.” Maine shrugged and continued on, not saying a word to end the conversation. Twilight fumed as she stared after him ; his long strides carrying his frame to the head of the group. A smile crossed his face, though hidden by the helmet. As he passed by Rainbow Dash, she surreptitiously raised a hoof over her shoulder in a gesture strangely similar to a high-five. After a quick check to make sure Twilight wasn’t looking, Maine quickly extended my hand and gave it a quick slap. The pegasus grinned but made no other reaction as Twilight turned to the sound and glared suspiciously at the two of them. Maine ended up chatting with Rainbow for awhile, later being joined by Applejack on his left. Rainbow was definitely an exaggerator and a boaster, but she had a confidence that Maine could respect. She reminded him of Carolina not only with her color but her brash personality. Applejack, the southerner with a penchant for poking fun and calling bluffs, apparently had a rivalry going on with Rainbow Dash. The parallel between these two and Maine’s former teammates was surprisingly spot on. The only real difference Maine could see between his new companions and Carolina and Tex, was the fact that they were friends despite of it. On that note, as he looked back to the rest, Maine could piece together a rather bizarre mirror of his old team. Twilight was definitely York or Wash, Rarity was Wyoming without a doubt, Fluttershy was easily kind enough to be Florida, Texas and Carolina were so similar to Applejack and Rainbow that it was creepy, and Pinkie Pie was... you know, that one pink soldier from the red team, minus the constant innuendos. “Hey Maine! Better brace yourself, cause we’re barging into your party later with a greased log leading the way!” Scratch that last part. Also, what!? The other mares looked... uncomfortable. Maine turned toward Pinkie pensively. “...What greased log?” “Oh, you know, silly! The kind you ride on!” That clarified nothing and made Maine more concerned. Was he the one riding it? “Explain that... a bit more carefully?” Pinkie rolled her eyes and gave Maine a knowing grin. “For log rolling, dummy!” She’s going to be the death of me, I’m sure of it. Also, I’m actually becoming genuinely interested in this party. There’s still one thing missing to get me on board though... “... is there alchohol?” Pinkie laughed and bounced to his side. “Of course! What else would I fill the log-rolling tub with!?” And just like that, I’m in. Maine stopped in his tracks and crouched down in front of Pinkie Pie. The rest of the group stopped and looked toward him as he spoke with all seriousness. “Pinkie, at this moment, I don’t dislike you.” Pinkie laughed at the somewhat dark comment before responding. “You have to take off the helmet to drink though!” “And the moment has now passed.” Laughter surrounded them at hos short answer. He stood after a moment and ruffled Pinkie’s mane, though the curls snapped back a moment later. He chuckled a bit as they walked. “That was a dirty and underhanded tactic, Pinkie Pie,” He turned back to see six smiling mares, “Good job. I didn’t think you had it in you.” ================================ The next hour was relatively uneventful, other than a large number of unidentified bogeys trailing them. Maine was well aware that the forest had gone unnaturally quiet as other animals avoided a threat. And the breaking twigs he had heard since then confirmed his suspicions. He took a nonchalant glance back, as if he was just checking on the group, and quickly scanned the forest. Now that Maine was looking, he could easily see the half-dozen shadows stealthily making their way among the trees. Maine calmly turned back around and resumed his walk as if nothing was wrong. A few minutes later, a small yelp alerted him that one of the mares had seen their followers. Rarity, it sounded like. “M-Maine? I don’t mean to alarm you-“ “I know.” “...What?” “Don’t react, if you’re lucky they’ll leave once we leave their territory. Act like nothing is wrong.” Twilight was amazed, Maine, despite being at the front of the group, had already seen and planned against the Timberwolves behind them. It was suddenly glaringly obvious to her he was a soldier. Worried chatter was passed around as the group attempted to act normally. Pinkie just kept up her usual chatter and bouncing while the rest of them had to work to keep up appearances. Even still... “You lot are awful at acting. I think a rock could act better than you... no offense Pinkie.” “None taken!” The group did manage to continue for awhile longer without incident, but that peace was shattered with a loud growl. The girls and Maine turned as Timberwolves began emerging from the flora around them. Twilight looked back toward Maine’s rather nonchalant stance as he looked over his shoulder rather than bother with fully turning around. She looked back and gasped. A wolf was barely ten feet away from her with its teeth bared and its legs ready to pounce. It froze as she locked eyes with it. Twilight shook uncontrollably as if the hungry gaze was already devouring her. Neither of them moved, not daring to until the other looked away. After what seemed like hours to Twilight, her nerves finally forced her to take a step back, and that was all the Timberwolf needed. A moment later, it was in the air, teeth ready to end her life. That same moment, several things happened all at once. A scream escaped Twilight’s mouth, a loud crack like thunder roared through the air, the Timberwolf’s body suddenly fell to the ground, and finally, the missing half of its head fell a moment later in the form of splinters. She turned in awe to see Maine holding a smoking silver pistol in his hand formerly attached to hos leg an instant before. He calmly placed it back into the holster and walked forward past her. He looked her over for a brief moment and nodded as he placed himself between these ponies under his unofficial protection and the wolves. Maine raised his hand and extended two fingers before flicking them back, giving the universal ‘come and get me.’ The wolves snarled and began circling him. Maine calmly stood in the rapidly shrinking circle of wolves, no concern evident. With a growl, a wolf suddenly launched itself at his back. Maine simply stepped aside without bothering to look toward the assailant as he delivered a bone-shattering punch to the mid-air wolf, practically breaking it in half as it spiraled off into the trees. As another leaped forward, he pivoted neatly on his heel and punted it into a nearby tree, shattering both. Maine’s body turned horizontal as he retracted his outstretched foot and postponed his leg behind himself, forcing the head of the approaching wolf into its own body. It collapsed a moment later. Quickly righting himself, He walked toward the three-wolf rush in front of him. With a left hook, Maine snapped the first’s neck and sent its body sliding into the second. A powerful haymaker sent the third into the dirt, it’s already limited cranial cavity significantly reduced. He turned and raised both fists in the air and slammed them down on the one struggling under its slain companion, flattening them both. He immediately pulled an explosive backflip over his next assailant’s head and broke its spine as he landed. He flattened the paralyzed creature’s skull with a follow-up stomp for good measure before turning to his last opponent. A Timberwolf about twice the size of his brethren glared at Maine over a heavily scarred muzzle and snarled ferociously. Two can play the intimidation game, pup. Maine planted his feet, sucked in an incredible amount of air, and roared. The ground seemed to shake slightly as he bellowed his anger. The huge Timberwolf actually cowered for a brief moment at the display before baring its teeth again. Two seasoned combatants circled each other, searching in vain for an opening. The Law of the Everfree on one side, the massive Combat Training of Project Freelancer on the other. Finally they stopped, the mares on Maine’s left watching with baited breaths. The Alpha ground its feet into the ground and launched itself forward. Maine took two long steps forward and raised his hand, winding up for another pile driver. The wolf corrected itself ever so slightly as it charged, something another animal wouldn’t notice. Maine was no such animal. At the last possible second, Maine scooped low, meeting what would have been a successful dodge with his forearm. Using its own momentum, Maine hooked his arm around its chest, lifted it into the air and slammed it onto its back. Quickly extracting himself from the dazed wolf, Maine stood and reared back for a powerful kick. Twilight, Rainbow Dash, Fluttershy, Rarity, Applejack, and Pinkie Pie were not entirely sure what had just transpired. All they had seen was that one moment the wolf had a head, the next, it did not. Rainbow looked up for a possibly flying head, but all she spotted was a newly-formed hole in a low cloud. “Sweet Celestia...” Maine was rather proud of himself, fairly certain he had punted that head at least a few miles despite it going more up than forward. He turned to see the group staring at the sky in awe. He cracked up laughing at their awed expressions and broke them out of their stupor. In a heartbeat, Rainbow was in his face, a wide grin threatening to split her head. “That. Was. AWESOME!!! You have to teach me how to do that flippy-thingy! And the rest of those rad moves!” Maine pushed her away with a finger on her nose, her face scrunching up and her eyes crossing to stare at the intruding digit. Maine found it strangely cute for some reason. “Princess first, then we’ll see.” She blinked twice as he released her nose and nodded. Maine turned to Twilight and dusted off his hands. “As fun as that was, I like the idea of spending the night here. Shall we go?” Twilight looked up from the notes she was scribbling. “Huh? Oh, yeah. Uhh... Ponyville is basically a ten-minute walk from this point.” Maine grinned and waved his hand in a grand gesture to the trees behind her. “Lead the way, Sparkle.”
