Chapter 3: Closer friends
September 1, 2552
Planet: Unknown 22:45 hours

The guards threw Nathan into the old, stone dungeon. It seemed like something that one would see in old holovids. It was damp, dark, and very poorly maintained. If it was like that for intimidation, that wouldn't work on the Spartan. He had been captured by Covenant forces back in the day, and he certainly knew how to escape places more heavily guarded, not to mention way more advanced, than this dump.

Nathan waited for the guards to leave before breaking the chains around his wrists with a simple tug. Once he was no longer burdened by the simple devices, he pulled Almya's AI chip out from his helmet, setting her on the floor, watching as Almya's holographic image danced out from the small device. She stood at the full height of a normal human female, taking the form of a librarian, but a very, 'quirky' librarian. Her hair was in an elegant bun, bangs curling down over her glasses, she wore a mini skirt and a partially unbuttoned blouse. She looked a little bit like an adult movie star. At least that's what Nathan thought.

Nathan smiled and leaned against the wall of the cell. "So Almya, what do you think of our new quarters?" He asked, taking off his helmet. Almya walked around the dank space, running her 'hands' along the cobblestone walls. She turned to Nathan with a quizzical look on her face.

"Why are you opting to stay here? One punch and you could easily break down this wall." She pointed out. "Now, I can read structural weaknesses here, here and here." She said, gesturing to three spots on the wall that could easily be plowed through with the strength of the MJOLNIR armor. Nathan rolled his eyes at her haste to escape the cell. Almya may be a 'smart' AI, but she certainly didn't know about patience.

"This situation requires diplomacy. Something I thought you'd understand." Nathan scolded, refusing to move from his spot. Almya shot him a glance but quickly smiled, taking a seat next to him. It never ceased to amaze Nathan how AI's could be so damn human. It was scary, but also amazing at the same time. Something that someone just fabricated was more human than most humans Nathan had met in his life.

"So, what do you want to do while we wait?" She asked, undoing her bun and letting her holographic hair flow freely.

He shrugged, thinking it over. One of his favorites with his AI had been boardgames. "I don't know. How about a game of chess?" He asked. Almya smiled and brought fourth a holographic chess board already set up. "Ladies first." He said, gesturing to the board.

Almya smiled back at him and moved her first pawn. "Always the gentleman, aren't you?" She asked sweetly. Nathan winked and took his turn.

"Sorry ma'am. But I can't allow you to see him." The guard said as he and his fellow guardsman put their spears in front of the door. Twilight huffed in irritation and began to protest. She was the Princess' loyal student! Why wouldn't she be aloud to see the alien? The alien that she discovered no less!

"I have every right to see him! After all, I was the one who discovered him!" She voiced, trying to get her point across. The guards just kept a straight ahead gaze, ignoring her. Twilight groaned in exasperation and began to pace around the dungeon door. She was too riled up with what happened last night to sleep. All she wanted to do was see her new friend again. She had so many questions to ask him.

"Pretty please?" She begged, giving one of the guards the puppy dog stare. This one had to work. This is how Twilight got passed some of the guards as a little filly back when she first started tutelage under Princess Celestia

The guard rolled his eyes. "No! I'm under orders of Princess Celestia not to let anyone down there!" He yelled, trying to get his orders across to the bookish mare.

"What about us?"

Twilight turned to see Luna standing behind her, her poise as regal as a Princess could make it. Twilight smiled and nodded to the Princess of the night, while the guard behind her began to stammer in fear and surprise.

"P-Princess Luna. I-I'm sorry but you can't go down there, either." He stuttered, shrinking a bit in himself in fear of the former Nightmare of Equestria.

Luna huffed and stepped forward. "We demand to speak to the human at once!" She said regally. Twilight blinked for a minute. How did Luna know what he was called? As far as she knew, neither of the Princesses were told what his species was by wither her or her friends. Pushing that odd thought aside, she continued to watch on as Luna continued to argue with the stallion.

The guard still looked scared out of his mind, but stood firm. "I-I'm sorry, Princess. But I'm under the Solar Guard, and not at liberty to take commands from you."

Luna stepped forward and the guard took an involuntary step back. Her horn began to glow as she spoke low and forcefully. "You WILL let us pass, guard." She seethed, her eyes beginning to glaze over pure white.

The guard gulped and stepped aside, his tail firmly between his legs. "O-of course, m-ma'am.." He stammered, letting Luna pass. Luna turned to Twilight and smiled.

"Art thou coming, Twilight Sparkle?" She asked. Twilight shook her head of what had just happened and followed Luna down into the dungeon.

"That was... dark." Twilight said flatly as the spiraling stairwell became darker and darker. Luna simply chuckled and smiled at the young unicorn before her.

"He blocked our path. What else could we have done?" She asked curiously. Twilight shrugged off the incident as she and Luna arrived at the long hall of prison cells.In one of the cells, Twilight could see a strange light, accompanied by laughing and talking. Twilight motioned Luna to remain quiet, while she snuck over to see what was going on.

Nathan was sitting in the cell with another one of his kind! But, this one was different. Her body was transparent and she was at least a foot shorter than the 'humans' six foot frame. They were both leaning over a chess board as transparent as she was, enjoying the game together. Twilight couldn't help but feel a little left out.

"Ahem!" She coughed loudly, getting the Spartan's and the see through human's attention. Nathan turned to Almya and gave a swift nod of his head. With that, the woman disappeared into a little chip on the floor. Nathan picked the chip up and put it back in his helmet quickly, placing it back on his head.

Nathan wanted to be fully defensible right now. There was a new Equinoid in his presence, and this one looked a lot like the white Princess. And, if that one had disdain for him, then this one was sure to have some, too.

Nathan watched as Twilight tried to peak around his head at the AI chip, clearly confused as to what it was. "Who was that? Where did she go?" She asked surprised.

Nathan stood and went over to the bars, resting his arms on the horizontal beam that went through them. "It's classified, ma'am." He said with authority.

Twilight rolled her eyes. "Please don't call me 'ma'am'." Twilight said with a giggle. "Call me Twilight, Grunt." She said his name as if it were honey, which Nathan noticed, making him and cringed internally. Almya began giggling hysterically into his helmet speakers. Nathan grunted in anger, slapping the side of his helmet to shut the rambunctious AI up.

"Sorry." She retorted sarcastically, still giggling slightly.

Twilight barely noticed the exchange that the human was seemingly having with himself and turned to the darker pony before them. "I want you to meet Princess Luna." Twilight said happily, stepping aside and allowing the Princess by. Luna stepped forward, her gaze on the human was as if he were nothing more than a measly peasant. "Luna? This is the alien who save my friends and I. His name is Grunt."

Nathan carefully examined Luna's features as she approached. Luna was as dark as the night, her mane and tail blew in an invisible wind and looked as if they were filled with stars. On her flanks were large purple blotches with crescent moons in them. Nathan was in awe by her appearance. It wasn't imposing like that Celestia's was. This pony seemed like she knew what she was doing when situations like this arose.

"We are charmed to meet thee." Luna said with fake sincerity. "When we heard there was a human on Equis, we had to meet it." She extended a hoof, which Nathan stared at oddly. "Do you not know how to shake? I thought that is what you do." She pointed out.

Nathan conceded that point and extended his hand through the bars, shaking the Princess's hoof lightly.

Luna smiled after the handshake ended, wiping her hoof on her foreleg, which seemed a bit rude to the Spartan. He didn't care though. He was used to being in rooms full of brass who paid him no heed. No one ever pays attention to a soldier who was built solely to die.

"So do you have a real name?" Luna asked suddenly, taking the Spartan completely off guard. How did she know the name he gave was only a nickname?

Nathan just stared at her, remaining silent. Luna let out a long sigh and leaned forward. "You're lucky we did not kill you the moment you set foot on this planet, Human. Tis rude to ignore a question from somepony who literally holds your life in her hooves."

Twilight stared fearfully at Luna, then to 'Grunt', or whatever his real name was. Why did he lie about something as simple as his name? Surely he must have used it plenty of times! After all, he was military, that much was obvious to the small Unicorn. But, did he really have to lie to her?

Nathan chuckled and propped his head in his hand. "Think that if you want, if it helps you sleep at night." He shot back, not a single ounce of fear in his voice. Luna leaned away, blinking dumbly at his response.

No, she couldn't show any signs of backing down, not with something this important. She needed to try something new, something that even she wasn't used to.

She had to bring out the friendly.

Luna smiled sweetly and batted her eyelashes. "Can thou please tell us thine name? We would very much like to know that much about you. Please?" She said with a hint of begging.

It was Nathan's turn to stare dumbly at the Princess. Was she really trying to use the puppy dog look on him? Granted, it was doing a fine job, considering how large these ponies eyes were.

Nathan let out a sigh and shook his head slowly. "Will it get you off my ass?" He asked.

Luna shuffled awkwardly. "We did not know we were on your... 'ass'." She said awkwardly, eliciting a snort from the Spartan.

"Cute. Well, my name is Nathan. That's all you need to know about me." He said, walking to the back of the cell. Twilight watched as he leaned against the wall, crossing his arms smugly like he had the upper hand in the situation. She really wished he'd stop acting like that. The last thing she wanted to see was him executed for something Celestia and Luna do not like him for.

"Well... Nathan. We shall leave you now. But, we shall be back to ask thee questions later. You can be sure of that." She said with a threatening tone.

Nathan nodded and waved. "I'll look forward to it. And like I said, I am only behaving because of First Contact protocols. The moment you consider me a hostile to you, or your race..." Nathan trailed off and let the weight of his words sink in, making Luna flash a glare of anger, which disappeared as soon as it came.

"Think what you will!" She hissed, heading back towards the stairwell. "Twilight? Come. Leave this beast to rot in his hole."

Twilight sat on the floor, staring at the human before her. "I-If it's alright, I think I'll stay a bit longer... For research purposes." She added at the end, turning to Luna with a smile. "I'll be fine. Don't worry."

Luna glared at Nathan, then at Twilight. "Be warned, Twilight Sparkle. He is a very dangerous creature. Stay outside of the cell at all time." She warned. Nathan snorted at her very accurate rendition of him.

"Yes, Princess." Twilight bowed, waiting for Luna to be fully gone before turning her attention back to the human. Once the two of them were alone, Twilight approached the cell door, placing her horn in the lock. The lock clicked open, allowing Twilight to enter.

Nathan watched as she did, not heeding Luna's warnings in the slightest. He had to respect that; someone who stands up against a higher authority when you believe in something strong enough is pretty admirable. It had gotten Shelly nearly court marshaled a few years back to save his life.

Still, Twilight was acting foolish. If she had shown this kind of acceptance for a Covenant soldier, she'd already be dead right now. "Aren't you going to listen to your Princess?" Nathan asked, still leaning against the wall with his arms crossed.

Twilight just smiled at him and took a seat, stretching her back and forelegs. "Whew. Twenty hours without sleep can catch up to you pretty quick." She said, ignoring his question.

Nathan let out a chuckle and walked forward, sitting on the ground near Twilight. "Only twenty hours? I've been up for about one hundred forty-four hours. Give or take."

Twilight stared at Nathan, slack jawed. How could anypony stay up for almost an entire week?! How was he even keeping his eyes open, let alone forming a sentence!

"H-How-" Nathan held up his hand and smiled.

"Military training, that's all I'm going to say." He chuckled, leaning back. Since the other pony was gone, he felt comfortable enough to take off his helmet. He didn't feel threatened around Twilight. She seemed to be the only one who thought he was any good around here.

Twilight smiled softly when the helmet came off, staring at the face she became so fascinated with. So damaged, yet so innocent looking. Two opposites clashing to create something Twilight didn't expect; otherworldly beauty. Nathan was such a fluid creature in his design.

"So," Twilight began, moving closer to the Spartan. "How about a game of chess? I saw you playing it before with... that see through thing. What do you say?"

Nathan thought about that for a second. She wasn't asking any questions about Almya or anything else, and a simple game of chess wasn't classified... "Sure. But, I know you want to set up wages. So, what do you get if you win?" He asked, pulling Almya's chip from the helmet to his side and placing it in between the two of them. "Allie? A game of chess, please." A chess board snapped out of the small holographic device, making Twilight 'ooh' like a kid seeing a shiny thing.

Twilight composed herself from the image and smiled. He may have known her plan, but what he didn't know was that she was a whiz at chess. Never defeated once in her life. So, with that, she decided to go for all or nothing.

"Well, if I win. I want you to tell me one story. I want to know how your life came to... this." She gestured to Nathan with her hoof.

Nathan thought hard about that. Spartan training was highly classified. It even went under the noses of some of the highest brass out there. Nathan couldn't risk military secrets over a measly game of chess!

Still, he had never been defeated, except by Almya, but she's a machine, that's what she does. No way was some talking pony going to out-chess him. Besides, if he did lose, what would she even do with the information he gave her anyway? It was just a story, nothing more.

"Alright. And if I win, I get a good, long nights sleep tonight. You have your match." He said, making the first move. Twilight stared at the chess pieces curiously, unsure of how to move them. "Just hover your han-, hoof over the piece you want to move and where you want to move it to. It'll know."

Twilight did as instructed, moving one of her pawns across the board. "Wow! That's so cool!" She squealed, smiling up at Nathan, who was smiling back at her enthusiasm.

But, what Twilight didn't know was that he was mostly smiling because he knew he was going to beat her. He wouldn't have to blab anything to her, and everything would be right as rain. There was no way he was going to lose.

He never looses.

"Ah-ha! Check!" Twilight cheered, placing her knight a few spaces from Nathan's king. Nathan moved his bishop between his king and her Knight, also setting up a check.

"I'll check you back." He chuckled, waiting for her to make the next move. Twilight grinned and moved her queen in front of her King, which also gave her a clear shot at Nathan's king once more.

"Check again. Why not concede the game? save yourself from the humiliation?" Twilight teased, filing a hoof on her chest smugly. "I've never lost a game of chess. Ever."

Nathan sighed, seeing almost nothing he could do. He could move his king and prolong the game, or he could just end it all, tell a tale, then finally get some well deserved R and R.

"I guess I have no choice." Nathan chuckled, flicking the holographic king down. Twilight did a double take to make sure she was seeing what she was actually seeing. She didn't understand why he would just throw the game away like that. He had a slim chance to beat her, but... why?

"So, you want to hear that story now, or are you just going to sit their with your mouth hanging open?" Nathan asked, picking Almya back up and placing her in his helmet.

Twilight blushed slightly and recomposed herself. "Heh. Sorry, Nathan... But, yes. I would like to hear that story you promised me." She beamed, scooting closer to the Spartan so the two were only a half a foot apart from each other.

Nathan leaned back against the wall, rubbing the stubble on his chin. "Alright, how I came to be... this. Well, it all started back when I was just a kid. I was only seven when they started training me on the military planet Onyx. Well, we had just barely gotten there and gotten to sleep, when the guards sounded the wake up call..."

August 5, 2539
UNSC Military planet, ONYX
0500 hours

"Wake up, boots!" A large voice yelled from across the barracks. Nathan's eyes shot open quickly, thinking that everything that had happened the night before was just a dream. But, he was still in the large, metal building, or the barracks, as the soldiers called them. Nathan had only gotten to sleep, and didn't bother heeding the man's orders to wake up. He just rolled back over and covered his head with his pillow. He had never been so tired in his life.

Nathan jumped in pain as a jolt of electricity pierced his side. If he wasn't awake before, he was now. The spasm the shock had induced sent the boy to the floor. Nathan painfully opened his eyes and looked up to see a small white man with beady eyes staring down at him.

"Didn't you hear the man, slug? Time to get up!" The man yelled, getting into position to jab Nathan again with the shock stick. Nathan growled in anger, side stepping the mans swift jab. Nathan grabbed the hilt of the baton, and smashed his small elbow into the man's groin. Everyone in the room watched as the soldier let out a yell of pain and fall to the floor. Nathan ignored the man he put in pain and promptly crawled back into bed, sighing as he shut his eyes again for sleep.

Nathan wasn't in bed for long. He let out a surprised yell as he was suddenly lifted by his left arm straight into the air. He was now face to face with none other than Chief Petty Officer Franklin Mendez. Nathan gulped at the intimidating man before him. He was short, but Nathan could already tell he was very strong. His face looked like it was carved from marble and, judging by the smell of his breath, he enjoyed Sweet Williams Cigars, the same kind his father, and his new friend Johnson smoked.

"What's your name, boot?" Mendez asked, smiling slightly. Mendez then turned his gaze on the man at his feet, groaning as he clutched his testicles in utter pain. This made Mendez let out a slight laugh, something he rarely did.

Nathan just sighed and tried to shake his arm free, but to no avail. He decided just to answer the man's questions "I'm Nathan, Sir." He said flatly.

Mendez just kept on smiling. "You seem to be in high spirits. Looks like we'll be one trainer short today. Boots! Hit the shower and head for the yard! Double time!"

Mendez dropped Nathan to the ground and ushered him on towards the showers in the back. Nathan didn't realize just how many other kids were with him. Some were older, some were younger, ages ranging from five to nine years old. Nathan followed them all into the large showering room, which was about the size of a basketball court, with nozzles spaced every foot on the ceiling.

"Enjoy the showers, worms!" One of the trainers yelled, turning the water on full. Some of the kids screamed when they were blasted with the ice cold liquid. Nathan held his ground, letting out a small grunt of displeasure from the surprising cold. He didn't let this get to him. From what he saw back in the barracks, these soldiers wanted nothing more than to seem intimidating to the kids. They wanted all their trainees to know that they were in charge, that they controlled them.

Nathan was adamant that no one was going to control him.

After about a minute of scrubbing in the freezing shower, the kids were ushered back into the barracks. "Alright, maggots! Get dressed! Move, move, move!"

Nathan went back over to his cot to see a gray sweat suit on the mattress. This wasn't there before when he got up. Did they just put these there while they were all showering?

Nathan held the matching black t-shirt up to him. There was a name tag on the front left breast that read, Nathan G129. What was G129?

Once he and the other children were dressed, they were all marched out into the yard. "Alright! One straight line! Now!" Once of the trainers yelled. The kids instantly obeyed, falling into one long line.

Nathan leaned his head over to see the row stretch from one end of the camp to the other. There had to be at least three hundred kids here! Nathan's eyes came back down the row to the child standing next to him. She was probably a year or so younger than him, with reddish hair that still glistened in the morning light from the quick shower. She still seemed exhausted as she wearily closed her emerald green eyes. Nathan was about to warn her about that, but one of the men beat him to it. He came over as fast as lightning and shocked her right in the spine. The poor girl let out a scream of pain and fell to the dirt, writhing in agony.

"Stand at attention, shit bag!" The man yelled in her face. Nathan stared at the poor girl on the ground with concern, then back at the pitiful man with hate. "Alright, you want to do this the hard way?" He asked, setting the stun baton to its highest setting. "Wake-y wake-y!" The soldier jabbed the shock stick down, but ultimately did not expect Nathan to reach out with lightning quick reflexes. The soldier stared in shocked anger at the boy now grasping the device with a vice like grip.

"Leave. Her. Alone!" Nathan said forcefully, spitting on the mans pants for emphasis. "How would you feel is someone shocked you for being tired, huh?" He asked angrily, snatching the baton and threw it away from the soldier. No sense in letting an enemy keep their weapon.

The soldier chuckled, cracking his knuckles for the fun he was about to have. "Oh you asked for it, maggot!" He yelled, pulling his fist back to punch the disobedient child. Nathan smiled as the slow punch came, ducking under it and slammed his head into this man's privates in one swift move. The other kids turned and watched the soldier squirming on the ground, screaming obscenities at the child who had put him in that position. Some kids, and even soldiers, began to snigger while others completely bawled laughing.

Nathan smiled as he walked over to the girl still on the ground. She stared at him in utter shock as he outstretched his hand to her. "Are you okay?" He asked

She smiled up at him and took his hand. Nathan quickly pulled her to her feet and began checking her over for any injuries. "Mhmm. I'm okay... Thank you." She said quietly, rubbing the spot where the soldier shocked her. Nathan, once he was done making sure the girl was okay, looked back down at the pitiful man, hate lingering in his eyes. He picked up the shock baton he'd thrown away earlier and marched over to the soldier, whose eyes were wide in fear.

"Okay. How about a taste of your own medicine?" Nathan asked, bringing the device down on the man.

Mendez stood with Kurt in the building just behind the children, watching the scene with the young cadet and the soldier. Kurt shuffled slightly as he turned to Mendez.

"What's that ones name?" He asked curiously. Mendez began to laugh that, even though he had only been here for little more than four hours, Nathan was already getting the attention of the Spartan in charge.

"His names Nathan, sir. call sign G129. That's the second marine he's sending to the infirmary in about fifteen minutes tops. I think we got ourselves a firecracker on our hands."

Kurt smiled beneath his polarized face plate. "Reminds me of John." He reminisced, gesturing Mendez to follow him out to the yard.

Nathan jabbed the baton into the soldiers chest again. The man caved in on himself, screaming in agony. "It doesn't feel so good, does it?!" Nathan yelled, jabbing the man in the neck this time.

"Please! Stop!" The soldier pleaded. Nathan just stared dumbly at him. How many kids had asked him to stop? How many had he hurt with one of these things? Nathan had enough of this anyway. He gave the man a solid kick to the head with his tiny combat boots. The marine instantly went limp, knocked out cold by the blow. The other children began to back away from Nathan, either out of fear, or what the marines would do to them if they got involved. The girl stayed where she was though. She wasn't afraid of the boy. If anything, she thought he was really sweet for what he did for her. She quickly ran over and gave him a hug, sighing happily.

"You're really sweet. My names Shelly." She said, letting him go. Before Nathan could tell her his name, six more marines rushed over, tackling the boy to the ground. Nathan fought wildly, trying to punch and kick at them to get them off, managing to get in a few glancing blows. One of the marines, fed up with the boys attitude, gave Nathan a straight punch to the chest.

Nathan saw stars as the breath was knocked out of him. His vision began to spiral as the beating began. He looked over through the haze to see Shelly holding her hands to her mouth in shock and fear. The other marines followed their fellow soldiers lead, punching and kicking the boy as hard as they could, possibly to death.

"Stand down, Marines!" A loud voice echoed through the dawn. The Marines instantly climbed off the boy and gave crisp salutes. The new man didn't return any salute. All he did was point towards the barracks. The men quickly scurried off, leaving the mysterious armored man leaning over Nathan.

Nathan's vision began to return, and all he could see was the figure of a fully clad soldier in front of him. His armor was olive drab, with a black suit underneath. Nathan could see his own battered reflection in the polarized visor. He looked like shit.

"You alright?" The new man asked, his voice low and full of authority. Nathan nodded, slowly getting his feet with the help of Shelly. Kurt turned to the rest of the children, placing his hands behind his back with authority.

"Let this be a lesson to all you! Respect your superiors, and they'll respect you back. Don't pull what G129 did here today, or you'll be regretting it later. Part of being a Spartan is learning to obey orders, no matter what they are. NEVER question a superior. But also being a good Spartan is to know when to stand up and defend yourself and your men. G129 demonstrated that here today with G230." The large man looked at them both. "You two shall be partners into tonight's activity." He whispered. Shelly and Nathan smiled and stood close to one another as Kurt continued to address the children.

"I never caught your name." Shelly whispered, standing as close as she could to her new friend.

Nathan smiled and wrapped his hand around hers, hopping to keep her safe from anything that tried to hurt her. "I'm Nathan. And I won't let anything happen to you."

The day was spent doing almost every exercise under the sun; push ups, sit ups, and anything else the superiors had in store. They had to do a five mile run to one of their training areas, which caused Nathan to throw up at least three times on the way. But, despite that, Shelly never left his side once throughout the day.

The duo pushed through the each of the challenges together, even in the free for all game. The FFA objective was to climb the tower and be the first to bring the flag back to Mendez. Nathan and Shelly brought it back together, receiving harsh stares and threats from the other children.

The entire time the children were training, Kurt watched the pair complete each test together through a small camera Mendez had on his jacket. Kurt knew G129 and G230 would be an unstoppable pair in the future. He needed more men like that; men who would be willing to do anything for the one next to them.

Kurt sighed and looked away from the monitor, setting his gaze on the picture on the wall. It was of all the Spartan's who survived the augmentation process. Only thirty-seven of them out of the one hundred-fifty had lived, which still sent chills ups Kurt's spine to this day. Would the war have already been won if all of the Spartan's had survived? That did matter now. What mattered was the five soldiers he was focusing on.

His old team. Kelly, Fred, Will, Linda... and John.

John was probably the greatest Spartan Kurt had ever known. John was still going strong as far as he knew, and Kurt had the feeling in his gut that John would win this war and go on to do great things for the UNSC.

Kurt tore his gaze away from the photo, sighing heavily. He went back to watching the duo, seeing so much of Kelly and John in both of them.

"I miss them everyday." He thought bitterly, snapping a salute at the picture of his fellow Spartans. Soon, the galaxy would have a new generation of Spartan's. And this time, they would all live. They would not die, not on his watch.

Not again...

The children had been led back to the yard where all of this had begun. The sun now setting, just inches above the horizon. Nathan and Shelly fell to the ground, trying to catch their breath from the run back. They both looked to one another and smiled bright, keeping their hands clasped firm in the others. This was the happiest Nathan had been since he lost his home.

"Alright, boots!" Mendez called out happily. "You did one hell of a job today! But, tonight is where you'll really be tested. Line up!" He yelled, gesturing us all back up.

The children were lined up and split into groups. Nathan and Shelly clung to one another so they wouldn't be separated. Kurt said that they would be partners for the day, and Nathan wasn't going to let that stop. It seemed Shelly wasn't, either.

Mendez began filing them into the Pelicans that were parked in the yard, waiting to take flight for the evenings final lesson. Mendez smiled when he saw Shelly and Nathan approach him.

"I wanna wish you two the best of luck tonight." He said, gesturing them up into the Pelican. Nathan entered, helping Shelly into the crew compartment. She began to blush as the two took their seats right next to one another.

Mendez made a propeller motion with his hands and, instantly, everyone's ears were assaulted with the sounds of jet engines. It was the loudest thing Nathan had ever heard. He covered his ears tight as he felt the ship lurch upwards into the sky.

Most of the kids covered their ears the entire trip. Nathan got used to the noise quickly and just sat there, kicking his feet in boredom, waiting for what the final exercise was going to be.

Mendez waited until a green light was lit in the crew compartment before touching a button. Nathan watched in shock as the back door slid open, sending the entire cabin into shear chaos.

Children screamed and scurried towards the back of the Pelican, afraid of falling out into the blackness of night. Mendez, on the other hand, stood just a foot from the door and nothingness. The sky behind Mendez painted the inside of the pelican a soft orange, which made the scene a bit surreal. Nathan could tell Mendez had done this before.

"Alright, meat!" Mendez yelled over the roar of rushing air. "Time for the bravery test! Each of you has a parachute under your seats! Put 'em on and we'll get this started!"

The children hesitantly dawned their parachutes, Nathan more so. He hated heights! he was scared to death of them! He looked behind Mendez at the howling emptiness of the sky and nearly threw up. Nathan looked over to Shelly, his pleasant distraction. He could see she was having trouble getting her parachute on, so he offered his hand to help, which she was very grateful for.

"Shelly, you want to step forward please?" Mendez suddenly asked, making Nathan's eye's widen. Shelly took one last look back at Nathan as she hesitantly walked over to Mendez. Nathan stared shocked as she approached the ledge, standing next to Mendez expectantly. But, Mendez didn't look at her. He kept his eyes on Nathan the whole time.

"Shelly, you'll be okay, I promise." He said. but before she could inquire as to what he meant, Mendez snatched her parachute off her back, kicking her out the door.

"Alright, Who's gonna-" But before Mendez could finish his sentence, Nathan ran for the door, diving into the howling wind. Mendez looked down at the two falling forms in the night. "Well, I'm glad I had time to explain to him how to open that thing." He said sarcastically to himself. "Didn't expect the bugger to go so fast."

Nathan felt the air whip at his face and neck. He squinted through the rushing air, trying to find his friend who was free falling in the dark. He could barely see his hand in front of his face with the sun now gone bellow the horizon. How was he supposed to find Shelly like this?!

The sound of screaming suddenly reached his ears. Nathan turned to the noise and angled his body, gaining speed at a monumental rate. He knew he was catching up. He had to catch up! He promised Shelly he wouldn't let anything happen to her. Nathan was a boy who kept his word, and he wasn't about to let his promise become a lie.

"Hold on Shelly!" He called out into the air, hoping she could hear him.

The ground was coming up faster and faster to meet him. Nathan suppressed the urge to vomit as he continued to listen for Shelly's screaming. He looked to the left to see a dark figure falling, screaming her little head off. It was Shelly!

Nathan reached out, feeling his hand brush against her sweat suit. He pulled her in and held her against his body as tight as he could. He let out a sigh of relief that she was safe. Now all he had to do was open the parachute and... Shit.

Nathan fumbled with the straps desperately. He couldn't find the cord that would save them both! Shelly kept screaming and Nathan kept fumbling, the ground only about 300 hundred feet away. Nathan yelled in defiance and struggled one last time. His hand caught something, which he prayed was the ripcord. He pulled it with all his might, and the chute slowly opened.

Too slow!

The ground was now about fifty feet away when the chute fully opened. "Hold on tight!" Nathan yelled to Shelly. He tucked his legs over her body, shielding her mid section from internal damage in the fall. He winced in pain as his legs hit branches and he and Shelly crashed through the forest canopy.

Nathan hit the ground, tumbling with his friend for about forty feet before slamming into the trunk of a tree. Shelly rolled from his grip, screaming in pain as her leg twisted completely backwards. She saw stars, but she had avoided death! She had survived, thanks to Nathan! She looked over to Nathan to thank him, but was greeted by the sight of her new friend; battered, bloodied, and possibly dead.

Shelly crawled over to Nathan quickly, ignoring the searing pain in her leg. She shook his prone form gingerly, turning him over to face her. He was covered in bruises and caked in cuts and blood. "Nathan? NATHAN!" She yelled. He was unresponsive. "Please, Nathan, get up!" She sobbed, falling into his chest.

She heard a thump a couple yards away and turned to see the fully armored man rushing forward. She gave him the most pleading look she could muster. "Please! You have to help him!" She yelled out, hoping the man would do something.

Kurt leaned over, taking out a small first aid kid from his pack. He checked Nathan for a pulse. It was there, but it was very weak. Kurt pulled out a pack of smelling salts to try and wake the boy up. When that didn't work, he went straight for the adrenalin shot.

Kurt turned to Shelly. "G230, I need you to hold him down, okay?" He said calmly. Shelly nodded, crawling over and squeezing herself behind Nathan, pressing her back into a tree. She wrapped her arms across his mid section, nodding to Kurt to signal she was ready.

"Okay." The Kurt said, flicking the cap off the needle. "I'm going to count to three. One. Two. THREE!"

Kurt slammed the adrenalin shot into Nathan's chest. The boy let out a yell of pain as he tried to thrash out, but Shelly hugged him tight, intent on never letting him slip her grasp. Kurt placed two firm hands on the boys shoulder to try and calm him down.

"You're okay, Spartan! You're okay!" Kurt yelled. Nathan stopped thrashing, taking in deep gulps of air as he looked himself over. He was alive... He was alive! But, where was Shelly?

Nathan felt two arms on his stomach, accompanied by a slight whimpering. He turned around and, to his relief, saw Shelly planted firmly against a tree, crying softly to herself as she continued to hold him tight. Nathan whipped around and hugged her just as tight, crying with her.

Kurt removed his helmet and looked at the two before him. He couldn't help but feel proud of them. Their teamwork, their courage, and their spirits were some of the strongest he had seen in all his recruits to date. Nathan and Shelly would be unstoppable, not to mention inseparable. Kurt smiled and pat both of their shoulders lightly.

"I can tell you two are going to make great Spartans someday." He said, standing and giving them crisp salutes. Nathan returned it as did Shelly, though very weakly. They had still just fallen out of the sky and nearly died.

Kurt turned around, pulling out a flare from his bandoleer. He ignited it on his armored thigh, sending a billow of green smoke into the night sky, alerting one of the Pelicans to where they were located.

Nathan suddenly fell into Shelly, his breathing becoming more labored. "I don't- I don't feel so good..." Nathan said shakily. Shelly just hugged him tight, even as he threw up blood all over her. She never let go. She never would. He had sacrificed everything to save her. He was a friend; the first true friend she had ever had. No way was she going to let him get hurt again. Not while she lived.

"It's okay, Nathan. You'll be okay." Shelly whispered, rocking Nathan back and fourth in her arms. Nathan heard her voice echo around his skull. To him, it was the voice of an angel. He smiled and felt the warmth from her body embrace his own. He didn't realize how cold he was until then. Not to mention tired... Nathan shut his eyes and slowly drifted off to sleep.

The next three weeks for Shelly and Nathan were spent recovering from their grievous injuries. Nathan didn't care about his injuries. All he kept asking the doctors was if Shelly was okay. That's all that mattered to him now. Once he was cleared for visitors, they had Shelly's bed moved into his room.

It was now about eleven o'clock at night. Nathan was sound asleep, but Shelly couldn't sleep a wink. All she thought about was the accident that got the two of them here. All she dreamed about was falling into nothingness. It scared her, more than anything. Shelly rolled over in her bed, gazing over at the sleeping form of Nathan. He looked so peaceful, like he wasn't even hurt at all.

Shelly got out of bed and hopped into her wheelchair, rolling over to Nathan's bed. She smiled and grabbed Nathan's hand in hers, giving it a light squeeze. "Hey, Nathan? Are you awake?" She asked quietly.

Nathan groaned, sluggishly opening his eyes. His gaze slowly found Shelly's, but when it did, he instantly snapped out of his half asleep haze. "Hey there! Are you okay?" He asked quickly, sitting up. His body protested the endeavor the entire time, but it was worth it to see the smile on Shelly's face.

Shelly giggled and turned her chair so he could see her leg in the bright green cast. "Yeah. The doctors say I'll be out of this in a few weeks. But I heard things weren't good for you, huh?"

Nathan was about to answer, but a loud voice echoed at the door, answering for him. Shelly turned quickly and Nathan jump in fright.

"Five broken ribs, cracked A and D vertebra, shattered pelvis, and internal bleeding to be exact." Kurt exclaimed strolling into the room. Nathan sat up straighter, trying to salute, but fell back down from the effort. Kurt returned the terrible salute anyway.

"Hey, you're the same man who helped us in the woods!" Shelly exclaimed, barely recognizing Kurt without his armor.

Kurt smiled and nodded, pulling over a chair from the corner and taking a seat."Affirmative, G230. I wanted to talk to both of you privately, if that's alright with you."

Nathan chuckled, but coughed as his decimated lungs filled back up with air. "You're a Spartan. You don't have to ask permission." Nathan rasped.

Kurt nodded and continued. "I wanted to ask you both if this is what you want. You two have been through more in the first day of training than I have in my first month. If you want to op out, I won't hold it against you." Kurt leaned back in his chair, watching the mixture of confusion and uncertainty wash over the young children's faces.

Nathan turned to Shelly, who looked back at him. Nathan knew the answer the moment he heard the question anyways. "If it weren't for the Spartan program, I never would have met my best friend. I'm staying, and I promise I won't let you down, Sir." Nathan looked back to Shelly who nodded in agreement.

Kurt smiled and stood, saluting the children again. He was proud of them for sticking with the program. It wasn't everyday determination and bravery walked in. Kurt admired the two children even more now than he had before.

"Get well, Spartans." Kurt said, heading for the door. "You have training to complete."

February 19, 2551
UNSC Hopeful
0420 hours

Kurt had just finished talking to Ash G099, watching as the young man strolled into the makeshift hospital area. Ash was a fine Spartan, hell, all of Gamma company were some of the greatest soldiers Kurt had ever known. Now, he was waiting to spot the two cadets he had his eyes on for twelve years. He turned back to the last Pelican to arrive as it touched down on the pad, sending out a blast of air that ruffled Kurt's uniform.

Kurt watched as only two figures strolled out of the crew compartment. One was a strong, tall young man, who had grown into his form perfectly over the years. His brown hair was cropped short with a lightning bolt shaved down the left side. Walking with him was a slender, curvacious woman. She could stop a troop transport at twenty paces with a swing of her hips. Her emerald eyes were hard and cold, reminding Kurt of Linda every time he saw them. The woman walked with a sensual sway in her hips, which caused a few, if not all, of the crewman who were working nearby to turn their heads and stare. The two were none other than Shelly G230, and Nathan G129.

Kurt nodded to his Spartan's from Beta company, Tom and Lucy, and set a brisk pace towards the two soldiers. They seemed a bit in awe of the Hopeful. Most people were the first time they set foot on her. She was the ugliest, but the most helpful ship the UNSC fleet has ever had.

Shelly and Nathan stared on in awe at everything that was happening around the ship. Doctors and scientists were running every this way and that, setting up the machines that would transform all of the trainees into true blood Spartans. Nathan looked over to Shelly, who was as nervous as nervous got. He squeezed her hand and smiled at her.

"Hey, relax. It's gonna be alright." He assured her. Shelly smiled and squeezed his hand back.

"How did I get so lucky to find a friend like you?" She asked, resting her head on his shoulder. Nathan mock pondered her question, tapping his chin with his pointer finger.

"Hmm... Maybe it's because I know how to choose my friends. Now come on. We got a mission to complete." He chuckled, pulling her towards the medical area.

Kurt stepped out from the side, stopping the two Spartans in their tracks. Shelly and Nathan went rigid, giving off powerful salutes, which Kurt returned in kind.

Kurt lowered his arm and smiled."You two came far from that first day. I'm proud of you both." The two young Spartan's smiled to one another, taking in the praise from their superior officer. "You two have your own medical tent. It's practically impossible to separate you both anyways. Good luck, Spartans. I'll see you on the other side." Kurt gave them a final nod and went to the observation deck, followed by their other trainers, Tom and Lucy.

The two Spartans looked to one another. "Well, let's get going." Shelly said happily, grabbing Nathan's hand and pulling him towards the area Kurt directed them towards. Both Spartan's were unsure of what lay ahead, but they knew, for better or for worse, this was going to be one of their most difficult missions.

Kurt, Tom and Lucy entered the observation deck, which had security monitors for all the medical tents on the floor. Kurt grabbed the medical files for the procedure and went over the list for solutions he was giving the young men and women of Gamma Company. Kurt had convinced the Colonel to allow the illegal augmentations to these Spartans. It was the only thing that would save them, which couldn't be said for the Alpha and Beta company Spartans. These solutions would make them virtually impossible to kill under combat situations. They could go on for two miles with half of their stomachs missing and not miss a beat.

But, there was one mutagen that he was giving to G129. The reason he was using it on Nathan was because he had been told it must be used. Kurt didn't know what the solution was, just to trust it. He promised to never reveal who it was that gave him these chemicals. It would cause to many problems if it were revealed.

Kurt sunk into the chair, forgetting about the very strange incident he had the previous night. Pretty soon, he'd have a new graduating class of Spartans. He smiled and thought watching Gamma company as they began the task of becoming full fledged Spartans.

"I promise you I'll do everything I can to keep you safe."

"And then we went through the augmentation process without a hitch, turning us into the finest soldiers human kind had ever seen." Nathan finished his tale, turning to Twilight as she sat there, dumbstruck.

Twilight remained silent as she went over his story again in her mind. He had been through so much in only eighteen years of life. One thing she got out of the story was that he cared deeply for Shelly, and the same vice versa.

"So-" Twilight began, shuffling her hooves. "Are you and Shelly special someponies?"

Nathan thought about the phrasing, 'special somponies'. He assumed that meant, 'were they together', to which he shook his head 'no'. Twilight let out a mental sigh of relief, smiling at the stoic Spartan before her.

"So... Thank you for telling me that story. It was such an eye opener on human culture and behavior." Twilight said happily, standing up off the cold floor. Nathan remained seated as she continued to stare him over.

"So, you heading off then?" He asked, fidgeting with his helmet. Twilight smiled and nodded, walking for the cell door.

"I'm really tired from everything that happened today. But... I'll see you around." She assured. Before she left, Nathan called out to her, halting her in her tracks.

"Can you come back tomorrow night? I still want a rematch at chess." He said, pointing at the mare. "I never lose. And if I do, I come right back and try again."

Twilight giggled at his little joke and nodded. "Alright. Tomorrow night sounds good. I'll see you then." She smiled, walking out of the cell and up the spiral stairs.

Nathan watched as she left, sighing heavily to himself. He shouldn't be so trusting of these ponies. He wasn't really trusting of them as a whole; he really only trusted Twilight. Nathan put his helmet down on the floor and walked over to the window, looking up at the night sky.

Almya ejected her chip from the helmet, displaying her very displeased holographic figure in full height. "What the hell was that? You just divulged military secrets to an alien unnecessarily." She said angrily, crossing her arms.

Nathan didn't bother turning around. He didn't bother saying anything either. He knew it was stupid to tell Twilight all of that, but he had wanted to tell someone that story for a long time now. Someone he felt he could trust outside his unit. Twilight may have been an alien, but she had proven herself to be loyal to him, despite barely knowing who or what he was.

"Oh, don't tell me- You like her, don't you?" Almya scoffed, leaning against the wall. Again, Nathan said nothing, just continued to look out the window. Almya walked over, leaning next to him as she stared up at his face curiously. "Okay, if you don't want to talk about that, answer me this. Why did you throw that chess game away? One move of your rook to A6 and you would have had her in checkmate."

Nathan smiled and finally acknowledged his AI, who continued to stare at him in puzzlement. He still didn't answer her though. He just placed her back into his helmet and placed that on his head as he laid down on the hard, stone floor. "Wake me up at 0600, will you?"

Almya sighed into his speakers. "Alright, clocks set. Just be careful of these creatures, okay? You don't know what they're capable of."

Nathan nodded and shut his eyes for real for the first time in over a week. "Acknowledged. See you tomorrow, lovely." He chuckled, swiftly falling off to sleep.

Almya didn't know what to make of Nathan's forging bond with Twilight. He was becoming too complacent around her, and it led to him spilling a military secret! How could he trust an alien species so quickly? Could it be because they were the only aliens in the galaxy who didn't want humanities head on a platter? Well, at least that purple one and her friends didn't. The rulers of this land, however, were quick to cast their judgement on him.

And just how did those Princesses know what Nathan was so quickly? Something didn't sit right with Almya, and it was eating away at her neural processors. She had a lot of thinking to do tonight.

She was going to get to the bottom of this sooner or later.

Luna set an angry pace towards her elder sisters room. Luna wasn't one to get her feathers ruffled so easily, but the human managed to do it with barely a single sentence. He was an arrogant creature, a creature of nothing but death and destruction.

That was something Luna did not want on her peaceful little world.

Luna approached Celestia's chamber doors, giving the guards guarding them harsh stares. They bowed out of fear, quickly trotting away and letting Luna enter.

Celestia turned and smiled at her little sister who quickly stormed into the room. "Good evening, Luna. You seem to be in a sour mood." She pointed out, gesturing her to sit on the bed. Luna obliged, hopping up into the emperor sized mattress with a huff.

"I think you know why we are in a sour mood already, dear sister." Luna pointed out. "That... creature. Why do we just not kill it? If what the stories of humans from our ancestors is true, then why do we let him live?" After all Luna had heard from the stories of old about humans; how they did nothing but raid and murder countless worlds, why would Celestia choose to keep this one alive?

Celestia let out a long sigh. "If what my student says is true, that he saved hers and her friends' lives, then we must take that into account. Human kind could have changed in those one hundred-thousand years since the great galactic flood, could they not?"

The Galactic flood, something Celestia hadn't thought about in ages. From what she was told by her parents, and her parents were told by their parents, an unstoppable wave swept through the galaxy, wiping all life out. Only those who were aloud shelter in the 'Ark', were offered safe passage through the flood. Once the storm was over, they were sent home to start again.

Luna conceded her elder sisters point. Maybe human kind could have changed. But, that didn't change what the human said to her in the cell. "Tia, it seems our guest thinks he has the upper hand in the situation. He has even threatened us. Tia, I do not think we should be so kind to this creature." Luna's tone was one of warning to her elder sister. She was playing with fire when it came to that creature, and Luna suspected Celestia knew that, too.

"I share in your concerns, Luna." Celestia said, trying to ease her sisters worries. "But, we have to look at the facts. He saved our subjects, six of the most important mares in Equestria no less. I feel that humanity may have changed a bit... But, I feel we still need to take... those measures." Celestia hinted to Luna, who smiled deviously.

"Tomorrow morning then, sister?" Luna asked. Celestia took one last look out the window at the vast reaches of the galaxy before her. She took a deep breath and nodded, making Luna giggle happily as she skipped out of the room.

"We shall organize a few of our strongest Stallions for the job. I think Shining Armor might be willing to volunteer, considering how close the Alien and Twilight are becoming."

"Wait!" Celestia called out, turning quickly to Luna, who halted mid skip. "Twilight and the Alien... are still interacting?" She asked, a hint of anger in her voice.

Luna nodded. "Indeed. When we left the dungeon, Twilight asked to stay a bit longer. We warned her not to enter the cell, but, like the headstrong mare that she is, she did not heed our warnings. We were worried that the creature might hurt her when she entered, but he seems to be taking a shining to young Sparkle."

Celestia's eye twitched a bit as she mulled the information around in her head. "My faithful student and... the human?! No, she must be studying him, that's all. Still, it pays to be safe..."

"Keep Twilight away from the human. I do not want him to try and sway her to his ideals. Get Shining Armor to preform the task at hoof, and I'm sure the human will show his true colors. Now, please. I am tired." Celestia said, waving Luna off.

"As you wish, sister." Luna bowed respectfully, trotting out of Celestia's bedroom with an evil smirk on her face. "You shall not foul the galaxy a second time, Human. We will make sure of that."

Author's Note

Alright! Chapter 3 is up! And, now that I know how to write more fluidly, the love situation won't happen until a bit later in the story, with completely new chapters to boot. It'll help space it all out in the end, and I'm sure the result will be the Halo/MLP fic I've pictured in my mind since day one. Hope you all enjoy this one, and I'll see you in the next chapter. :)