Author's Note

Greetings all,
This is my first attempt at writing Eldar into a crossover. Thanks to dragstormer for the inspiration. As always, any feedback is appreciated. I'm not as well versed in Eldar lore as some other factions, but Wikis exist for a reason. At time of writing, I have a rough outline of events for the story, so it may change pretty drastically when the final product rolls around. Anyways, enjoy my next experimental writing piece.

The Beginning of the End

In the highest tower of Canterlot Castle, the entire city was visible from the beautiful stained glass windows. Recently, the introduction of engineering as a science led to the birth of mechanized construction and manufacturing. It was the biggest reason Canterlot had seen such explosive growth in the last decade. Such growth was also seen in the population where large families were starting to become the norm. Businesses were booming as the growing city claimed more and more land, boasting bigger and better services to those who lived within. At the center of all this progress, Princess Celestia led the way.

At first, Celestia was reluctant to take the title of Princess. However, the ponies wanted to imbue her with the authority to order such changes. As a token of their appreciation, they presented to her a crown of solid gold, set with multiple ornate and colorful gemstones. It was the highest status symbol ever created in the known world and it would be worn by the most powerful and influential leader to ever live. It would be supremely disrespectful to refuse a gift with such loving craftsmanship and pure intentions behind it.

With the recognition of a clear leader and symbol of heraldry, every pony around was filled with joy at the prospect of going into a new age of prosperity and good fortune. As their emotions ran high, so too did Celestia’s. She could feel each and every individual’s warm heart radiating a delicious sensation. Normally, one would be enough to satisfy her emotional thirst, but the tens of thousands who attended the coronation created an unparalleled experience. She could even sense those who could not be in attendance today. Though they were many miles away, their importance in Equestria was no less than her own. She had no plans of letting harm ever touch her precious empire of emotional positivity.

Canterlot may have been the biggest sprawling city in all of recorded history, but enough distance could make even the largest mountains miniscule. The tall spires of Canterlot Castle were still distinct enough that no distance Equestria could offer could obfuscate their signature design. Sweet Apple could see the intricate details with his razor sharp eyesight. Even though he should be focused on harvesting the bounty from the orchard, the Castle was simply too enthralling to look away. Sadly, his dream of one day visiting that marvelous city would have to wait.

Since Big Red passed away, Pops, Golden, Cherry, Crabbe and even Granny all had to pick up the slack to earn a living as farmers. Their biggest cash crop was apples, so that was their specialty. They did have a small patch of land for vegetables, beans and grazing land for the livestock, but demand for apples, particularly their family’s special bounty, was greater than any other two of their crops put together.

As Sweet and Golden finished their pass of the south field, something caught Sweet’s eye. A flicker of movement beyond the borders of his property. Near the edge of the forest tree line, something was there that shouldn’t be. No, something was reflecting light that shouldn’t. Shiny objects don’t belong in forests, thought Sweet to himself. No sooner than he finished his though did the unthinkable happen.

A sharp pop, almost an explosion, audible from this distance interrupted the tranquil air of the farm. An instant later, Golden was gone. In his place, a heavy spray of gore and the eviscerated lower body of his dear brother. Sweet had no time to react. In his panic, he thought to check on his older brother’s wellbeing.

“Golden?” His cries would never get a reply. Seeing the remains of a beloved family member would scar anypony for life, but this was different. Whatever claimed Golden’s life also appeared to claim most of his entire body. There was only a trace of his remains to be found, his left hooves and a patch of skin being the most intact parts of him left. The cart to which he was attached had splintered at the push bar. Only two shattered beams indicated that something struck it and quickly disappeared.

Feelings of fear and almost physical pain shot through his body. What could he do at this point? Nopony in Equestria could cure death, and certainly not death this thorough. This all happened immediately after the light from the forest appeared. It must have been the cause of this. To Sweet’s horror, it was still there, but now, it was shining brighter than ever. Whatever it was, he couldn’t make out any features at this distance and he didn’t stay around to look for them anyway. The only thought on his mind right now was survival at any cost.

If he was to survive, he could hide from it and sneak away when it lost his trail. A hay bale should provide ample protection from this new threat, he reasoned. He reasoned wrong. As he ran for his life behind the bale, another pop rang out and an instant later, his only hope for survival exploded into a million straws that fluttered to the ground. By instinct, he frantically searched for another alternative. This big apple tree should provide excellent cover. He dashed straight for the base of the tree, hoping and praying that if trees could stop an axe, it could stop the wrath of his unseen attacker.

An eternity felt like it passed before time started moving again. His heart was pounding against his ears, sweat was running down his brow and neck, but this was not hard working sweat. This fear-for-my-life sweat. Soon, he would be sweating over other ponies’ lives as well.

“What in tarnation is all that racket?!” demanded Pops as he shouted from the upstairs window of the farmstead. He took a quick glance around at the damage and spotted the most likely culprit hiding behind a tree, figuring he wouldn’t get seen. Sweet wasn’t known for his smarts, as he was hiding on the same side of the tree facing Pops, but even an illiterate young farm worker like him had enough sense to hide out of plain sight, especially when Pops was mad. In this instance, however, it was not Pops’ wrath from which he hid.

“Sweet!” Pops barked at the cowering pony, “You startin’ a war out-”

Pops disappeared as the house exploded, debris flying out the back. Something hit the house so hard that parts of the east face flew out the west face. Pops was nowhere to be found or heard. In fact, nopony else responded from the mayhem. For an agonizing moment, Sweet feared that his younger brothers and grandmother perished as the house was hit. It was only small relief that he remembered that they were all in town selling the crops and getting supplies.

Once he breathed a sigh of relief for the rest of his family, he still had to focus on his own survival. How was that even possible given his current predicament? It seemed less and less likely with each tense moment that passed.

Without warning, the tree which once provided the best hiding spot in his life exploded into a thousand flying splinters. He wasn’t looking straight at it when it happened, but the shower of wood shards told him everything he needed to know what happened. Whatever was at work managed to fell the massive tree that once provided Sweets such a precious sense of security. With a heavy crash to the ground, a cloud of dust blinded the frightened farm pony. Through fear alone, Sweets stayed in his only remaining hiding spot barely hidden by what remained of a gouged tree stump.

It took him over a full minute to clear the dust and dirt from his eyes. Though his eyes were clear again, he feared what he would see if he peeked out from cover. Without any more options, he worked up the courage to look and at least try to see his hitherto invisible assailant. Ever so slowly, he peeked a single eye out to the right, scanning the horizon for any sign of the attacker.

The glint from earlier was not in sight. Was this a good thing or bad? Had his terrorizer relented his reign, even if only for a moment? He moved his head slightly further out, letting both his eyes take in the details of his surroundings. If there was anything to be seen after this ordeal, Sweet’s flawless vision would surely find it. Alas, the tree line was as it had always been: a line of trees with nothing but a mile of wild grass between the farm and the forest. As the rest of his surroundings came into view, Sweets got a good look at his beloved farmstead. His vision was clouded by tears as his home, now in shambles, beset him. Pops was nowhere to be seen, not even a trace of him, just like Golden just minutes ago.

Though he was not the generation that settled here and raised the house and barn, he still had a place keeping it standing tall. Seeing it destroyed in just a few minutes filled him with a sense of dread that he never even dreamed of before. It was as if his entire world was ending and there was absolutely nothing he could do to stop it. Or was it?

His entire world was not yet gone, he realized. Cherry, Crabbe and Granny were far away from the calamity here. Perhaps he could still save them by warning them of the disaster. Better still, he could tell every pony he knew, let them be prepared and not suffer as he had. It was a long walk into town, but a gallop for his life would certainly shorten the journey. Besides, this was far more important. Finding new purpose, he started down the path as fast as his stocky legs could carry him. He was built for heavy lifting, not distance running, but he would endure whatever hardships lay ahead if it meant he could save what remained of his family.

Moving through enemy territory was a dangerous venture, but a lone scout in dulled black armor was less likely to be spotted amongst thick forest foliage. As he reached the edge of explored territory, the scout laid prone and readied his weapon. It was almost as long as he was tall and it packed a terrifying punch, one that all who opposed it rightly feared. The scope had been zeroed for pinpoint accuracy at 1,500 meters, well within the scout’s, and more importantly, the rifle’s, operational range. Having selected the first target, he disabled the safety mechanism and lined up the shot. In his left hand, he held the front grip immobile with his cold mechanical grasp. The anticipation was visible in his eager right trigger finger, his blood roiling, ready to strike his enemies down. There were two targets down range, so he would spend two rounds clearing the area.

With a gentle squeeze of the trigger, the entire apparatus bucked violently. The ear-splitting noise from the barrel was enough to startle and scatter any wildlife within earshot. Creatures of lesser constitution may have been killed by the shockwave alone. Had the scout not been as dug in as he was, he may very well have lost control of his weapon. His resolve, however, was stronger than the tremendous forces at play in such a relatively small weapon. Working the bolt action, he quickly chambered one more round, the brass shell still smoking and radiating heat from the previous shot.

His next target was already in his sight. Even though the scout and the second creature locked gazes, he felt no pity for this xenos. All that mattered was that it was not human and therefore unworthy to live alongside the Imperium. This next shot would make the galaxy one alien settlement cleaner.

Exhale… align… FIRE!

There was one small problem with this shot. The creature flinched an instant before the round left the barrel. The scout was aiming at a stationary target. Now that it was moving, he was denied a kill. Such an insult would not be taken without retaliation. After reloading, he started searching for the runaway target. No more xenos were in sight for the moment.

Movement caught his eye. One target on the upper floor of the hab-structure. It was shouting at something out of the scope’s field of view. A second later, there was nothing left of the target and a gaping hole in the structure where it once was.

I should make one more scan of the area before I leave, the scout thought. There is still that one left in the wind. Now that his last round was chambered, he scanned the area for that lone quadruped that evaded him.

What was that xenos yelling at? It wasn’t in my direction, but something else that caught his attention. Hmmm… that tree was about where it was looking. Perfect concealment. In fact, I wouldn’t think to look there if he didn’t. Perhaps it is taking cover in what it thinks is a safe place. That tree will be its final resting place. The immense power behind sniper rounds gave them the force to bore through up to a meter of tempered adamantium. Xenos plant matter would be no challenge whatsoever.

In fact, it only took one round clean through the base of the tree to send it tumbling down. It was just a centimeter off from being a bullseye, but it still dealt a crippling blow to the tree. The remaining flesh and bark was simply insufficient to keep it standing. What the scout did not anticipate was the cloud of dust thrown up by the massive trunk hitting the ground. There was still the remote possibility the elusive xenos could survive by using the dust cloud as an escape aid. Not while his unblinking cybernetic eye still worked would such a liberty be granted.

After precisely one full minute without seeing any movement, the scout concluded that the three targets were eliminated. It had cost him four precious rounds, one more than he planned on firing this mission, but any reluctance to fire would have allowed the xenos to live. Such a dereliction of his duty would never be tolerated by the Chapter. He made a mental note of his ammunition count and his kill count, then carefully made his way back through the thick vegetation back to his forward operating camp.

This was one of many remote xenos settlements being targeted. This style of guerrilla attack would mitigate the risk that these satellite colonies could be a sort of early warning system for the rest of the main colony. The rest of the grand plan was not for the scout to know. His only orders were to soften the area for the main invading force. He had done his job and a great service to the Emperor. Perhaps one day, he could be promoted to the ranks of what comprised the spearhead of most attacks on the enemies of the Imperium. Until that day comes, he would he would humbly carry out his duties as a scout, providing reconnaissance and only engaging from extreme distances.

Though neither side was aware at the time, the greatest disruption to Equestrian peace would soon be nigh. Could the ponies survive the ensuing violence or would become its latest victim? Celestia had spent over a century building her own little empire of peace, love and prosperity. Was she strong enough to lead it through this coming trial? Only time would tell if she would successfully walk the Path of the Princess.