Chapter 4: A hundred-thousand years judgement
Planet: Unknown; September 2, 2552
0550 hours

"Get up, monster!"

Nathan's eyes flashed open just in time to see a hoof brought down on his bare face. He instinctively went to push it aside, but was instantly bound by some sort of energy in his feet and wrists, locking him in place and allowing the hoof to slam onto his face. Nathan groaned in pain as he looked up at the aggressor.

Before him stood the night Princess from last night, and a fairly burly Stallion with a blue mane and tail. He was dressed in very ornamental purple and gold armor, different from the standard gold armor he'd seen the soldiers around here wearing. It obviously signified this one was of high authority. He was also holding onto Nathan's helmet in a purple glowing field. That's probably why he didn't feel the stallion take it off his head.

"Ah," Luna smiled, walking around the Spartan threateningly. "What was that about last night? About us not having the upper hand? Now, we want answers, and we are going to get those answers, one way or another. I want you to meet Captain Shining Armor. Twilight's older brother."

Nathan turned his bloody face to the stallion, who was flaring his nostrils in anger. So, Twilight had a very jealous older brother? Nice. This was going to be a fun morning for everyone then.

"Captain." Nathan said simply, making Shining cock a brow in confusion.

Shining Armor stepped closer, eying every inch of the Spartan. "So, monster, what kind of armor is that?" He asked, going in to tap Nathan's armor with his hoof. As soon as his hoof made contact, the golden shimmer of Nathan's energy shield became visible, causing the stallion to back up in confusion.

"Classified." Nathan said simply. Shining grunted and sent another powerful hoof into Nathan's face, which was unshielded without his helmet. Nathan grunted from the force, but ultimately remained unfazed, even as more blood trickled from the second wound.

"Okay, my turn. What's Twilight going to think of you torturing her new friend? Probably nothing nice." Nathan shot back. Shining yelled in anger and Pinned Nathan to the wall, pressing his hooves to the mans throat.

"You leave Twilight out of this! What is she to you anyway?!" He shouted, pressing further into Nathan's throat. Nathan rasped as he laughed, coughing up blood onto Shining's face.

"Maybe you should ask her that question." Nathan pointed out, spitting a glob of bloody mucus on the floor at Shining's feet. "Now, I'll forget this happened if you two walk away right now." He threatened, lightly headbutting Shining Armor away from him. Shining stumbled back and groaned from the force of the blow to his snout.

The Stallion looked enraged and was about to attack again, when Luna stopped him with an outstretched foreleg. Luna pulled him aside, speaking to him in hushed tones, hoping Nathan wouldn't hear. Nathan's hearing, however, was almost super human, which aloud him to hear every word they spoke. "Speak to Twilight of this matter. She should be more well informed than us."

"Yes, your highness." Shining bowed, glaring one last time at the Spartan before exiting the dungeon. Luna turned back to Nathan and released the magical bonds around him, positioning herself in a defensive stance as her horn glowed bright. Tia's orders or not, she was going to eradicate this human off the face off the planet!

"We will not allow you to conquer our world! Not like so long ago!" Luna hissed, watching, hoping for the Spartan to try something. She didn't expect for him to just simply laugh again at the situation.

"Look lady, I'm not here for conquest, or whatever you think. I'm only here because my mission to destroy that ship buried nose deep in that forest was a complete wash and ended up jumping here!" Nathan's voice rose in more of desperation than anger. He just wanted to be back home and get some well deserved R and R with his team.

Luna mulled over his words, trying to find any hint of a lie in them. For the life of her, she couldn't find a lie anywhere. This young man was telling the truth about his intentions. Luna stepped forward, her face now taking more of a concerned appearance. "But why? Why didst thou crash here?! Why would that craft come here?!" She asked hastily.

Nathan could hear the fear coming from Luna's voice over the threat. It was something he was used to, which was kind of horrible to think about, really. Countless people had begged him for help on evacuation missions. He never said a word to those people, because he couldn't look a dead man in the eyes and say 'you'll make it out of this. I promise'... That was something the young Spartan would never be able to do.

But, now that he thought about it, why did the ship come here? There was no way the ship randomly jumped through slipspace and ended up here. That could only mean the coordinates for this planet were already locked into the ships navigational computer. Maybe when that Elite damaged it, the ship automatically set its course for the next set of coordinates.

It was a theory, and a very scary one at that. If this ship had the coordinates to this planet, then that meant the entire Covenant armada had them, too.

This peaceful land of Ponies was about to become fire and ash soon.

Nathan ran to the window and looked up at the sky. Thankfully, there was still no sign of any fleet; his own or Covenant. He turned back to Luna and scooped up his helmet, placing it firmly on his head with a muffled click.

"Princess, your world is in danger! If that ship knew how to get here, then others will! You don't want me locked in a jail cell when the Covenant arrive." He warned, grabbing hold of her shoulders.

In an instant, Luna teleported outside of the cell, locking the door behind her. She was afraid when that creature touched her; more afraid than she'd ever been. She didn't know why that simple action had frightened her so. All he did was grab her shoulders. Why did it startle her so much?

"Does this creature really inspire that much fear? Gods above only know what his enemies feel when they face him." She thought coldly, eying the Spartan over clearly for the first time.

The way he held himself, the way he constantly looked over his shoulder, trying to find the danger that wasn't there. Or was it? Could Luna just not see it? It could be right in front of her and she probably wouldn't notice.

But, there was a danger right in front of her.

No, she couldn't let this aliens words get to her. She had a duty to protect her subjects. After letting them down a thousand years ago, she could not be held responsible for letting an unknown monster run loose on the streets of Equestria.

"We... shall discus this matter with Tia. You will not go free until we deem fit you are no threat to our subjects. The council will then hold a vote on the matter if Tia agrees to the terms."

"How long will that take?" Nathan asked, shifting from foot to foot in anticipation. He knew there was a fight coming. He could practically smell the plasma in the air already. If there's one thing you can ever trust in this galaxy, it's a Spartan's intuition to know when danger is coming.

And it was on its way.

Luna stared at the Spartan intently. "I dost not know. It could be up to a week before the council settles the vote. That is, if Tia is open to the idea of setting you free in the first place, which I myself am against." Luna pointed out, wondering why she was even entertaining the idea of him being free.

"Why? What did I do to deserve to be locked up? I saved Twilight and her friends, and stopped what Covenant were on that ship from turning your civilians and this planet into glass. I didn't know saving lives resulted in incarceration here..." He sighed, walking back over to wall.

"Think of this from our point of view." Luna stated, heading towards the stairs back up to the real world. "You are quite used to different species from across the galaxy, while this is our first contact. We must be cautious, as you must have been when your species had first contact, yes?"

Nathan shook his head. "Yeah, we were cautious all right... Lost two ships in an instant and about a third of our fleet to the Covenant in the first year. That's why I'm telling you to let me out. I know how to fight them, you don't. Thousands will die if you think your armies alone can stand up to them."

Luna let the weight of those words sink in. This creature was adamant that he was on their side, but just what could she believe? What should she believe. Then she had an idea, an idea she knew would help get the answers she and her sister sought.

Luna smiled and trotted up the stairs. "I shall see you again, human." She called down, happily leaving the dank dungeon behind her.

Nathan watched her leave with anger laced in his eyes. Once she was gone, Nathan let out a frustrated yell, punching at the wall, cracking the solid stone with the force.

Almya let out a low whistle. "Wow. She really knows how to get under your skin, doesn't she?" She chuckled, getting an aggravated grunt in response. "Still think diplomacy is the best option here?"

Nathan couldn't see any other option. Diplomacy had failed him, the first time that he had ever tried using it. He was the only one from the UNSC with authority here on the situation. He had to think like the top brass if he was to get out of this one without starting another war. But, Almya was right. Diplomacy had failed him hard. But, what could he do? He was locked up tight in the cell. The walls and bars wouldn't budge, he knew since he tried the night before, and the Equines had taken his weapons-

But not his grenade launcher ammunition!

Nathan looked down to see all ten rounds of the M319 Grenade launcher ammo still attached to his armor. He smiled underneath his helmet and turned to the back wall. "How structurally sound do you think this wall is?" He asked, pulling the grenades off his belt and placing them against the wall.

Almya took a second to think. "Well, judging by the radar scans, a well placed explosion could- Ah, I see what you're getting at." She chuckled.

Nathan continued to smile as he placed the last grenade against the wall. "Allie, charge up Armor Lock." He ordered. Almya popped a status bar up in his HUD that was already halfway full. Nathan couldn't believe he was ditching first contact protocol to escape a dank dungeon, but he had no choice. These creatures were too ignorant to see the dangers that were waiting. How many Covenant were really on that ship? How many survived and were still out there, possibly butchering civies right under their governments nose?

"Alright. Armor Lock is fully charged. This is going to be risky, and I'd suggest finding another way, but you're practically unkillable anyways so the argument is moot."

Nathan chuckled as he curled into armor lock, letting his shields charge up to their max before bursting. "Pretty much." He said through the strain in his voice. Armor Lock, though you probably wouldn't be able to tell, was extremely painful to the user. It did what its name suggested. It locked, and locked everything. But, there was one side affect that Nathan needed for what was about to happen. The EMP shock it released would set off the electrical timers in the grenades, detonating them all at once. Nathan was the fuse to a very crudely set up bomb.

The final seconds ticked by to the last. Nathan's shields flared out in a five foot radios, detonating all twelve explosives which sent the Spartan sailing into the cell bars, denting them from the force of the impact. Nathan groaned and got to his feet, his armor smoking.

"Someone probably heard that!" Almya warned. "The crash site is twenty clicks South-East of here, if I'm assuming that's where you're going?" She pointed out, marking the craft on his HUD.

Nathan walked over to the hole, looking down at the sheer drop down the face of the mountain. It was about a five hundred meter free fall to the forest floor below, which didn't look good any way he sliced it. The sudden sounds of frantic hooves galloping down the cobblestone stairwell made up Nathan's mind. He took a deep breath and, just as the Guards entered the dungeon.

"That's the plan." He confirmed, falling forward in a dive, officially declaring his freedom in free fall.

(twenty minutes prior.)

Shining Armor made his way through the halls of the castle, grumbling to himself over the failed interrogation that never even started. He prided himself in his duties to Princess Celestia and Princess Luna. After all, he was Captain of both the Solar and Lunar division of Guards. He had to be good at what he did.

But, after only three questions, one pertaining to his little sister, he had been asked to leave and go find her. He had plenty of things to ask her about this creature, one being what he was to her... That didn't really sit well with the Captain. Sure, inter-species relationships happened, not commonly, but they did. But... What if his little sister was... feeling things for this alien? It unnerved him to his bones

Rounding the last corner to the guest wing, Shining made his way towards the door that literally had paper busting through the seams. He chuckled a bit and knocked on the door a few times.

In an instant, Twilight answered, a cascade of papers falling into the hall, surrounding Shining Armors hooves. He looked down at them with a blank expression, then back up to his sister. "Do I even have to ask what all this is about?" He said sarcastically, entering the former room that looked a bit more like a war zone.

"Well, if you're going to ask if it's about Nathan, then yes." She beamed, reorganizing her stacks of paper. "Can you believe it? First contact! Oh, I can't wait to learn more from him!" She squealed excitedly, rushing back over to the parchment she was currently working on.

Shining stepped over mound of papers, finally finding the couch and taking a seat. "Aren't you at least a little afraid of it? One, you don't know what it is, and two, it's a soldier; an alien soldier who takes no remorse in killing! How are you okay with that?!" Shining Armor's words came out a bit harsher than he intended, but they did the trick to get Twilight's attention off her work and onto him.

"I'm not okay with it..." She admitted, sighing heavily. "But, if he hadn't done what he did, you and I wouldn't be talking right now, two fillies would be without sisters, Ponyville's favorite smile bringer would be gone, injured animals would be without a caretaker and the weather team would have lost one of its finest. Not to mention the Elements of Harmony would become dormant again, useless in case anypony wanted to try and take over Equestria. He didn't just save my life, he saved all of Equestria's last night, too."

Twilight's words were bold truths, truths Shining Armor hadn't realized up till now. His sister and her friends controlled the most powerful weapon in all of Equis, and if they were gone, it would be free game for evil deities and tyrants to try and take the reigns of the peaceful country.

"Twilight... I have to ask you something. You and the alien are getting... a bit close, wouldn't you say?" He asked, rubbing one foreleg against the other.

"I'll say!" Twilight said excitedly, the implication of Shining's words going right over her head. "He's told me so much about his way of life, his military training... It's all so fascinating, and scary... very, very scary... Shining, do you know just what he went through as a child?" She asked. Shining Armor sat there for a second before shaking his head. "Well, I do. At age seven, his home planet was destroyed -destroyed mind you- by those other aliens. His parents were killed right in front of him as an added, horrible bonus."

Shining Armor remained silent as Twilight went on. "While he was evacuating the planet, somepony asked him to be a soldier; they asked a seven year old child to take up arms and learn to fight." She practically yelled. Shining Armor's mind was blank as he mulled that thought over. Joining the military as just a young colt? That's scary even in itself at the adult stage. Celestia knows what he felt.

"Shining, the things they did to him... The things they made him do... I-I can't fathom what his life is like; to be nothing more than a soldier, on duty day in and day out, going on missions too risky for normal soldiers, having your body augmented like some-"

"Whoa, wait a minute," Shining interrupted. "You're saying his body has been... enhanced?" Twilight nodded. "Like how?" He asked worriedly.

"I don't know, just that the chemicals made him stronger, faster and harder to kill... Horrible, I know... Why do you ask?" She asked him, raising a brow.

Shining gulped. "Because, we just left a walking chemical lab alone in his cell!" He shouted. As if to confirm his fears on the subject, a loud explosion detonated a few floors below them, shaking the castle to its core.

Twilight and Shining ran for the window, looking down as the Spartan went into free fall towards the forest bellow. "Oh my Celestia! Nathan!" Twilight shouted, getting on the windowsill.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa!" Shining shouted, grabbing Twilight with his magic and pulling her back in. "What in the hay do you think you're doing?!" He scolded her like one would a disobedient child.

"I have to help him!" Twilight shouted, rushing the windowsill again, only to be pulled down, physically, by Shining again. She fell to the floor and glared at him.

"Twilight, you are NOT jumping five hundred meters off a mountain! That just crosses the line from stupid to crazy! For all you know, he probably can fly, and that's why he jumped." He pointed out, looking back out the window with Twilight to see a tiny dot smash through the forest bellow. "Oooh... maybe not, huh?" He winced, trying to peel his eyes off the hole in the canopy bellow.

Shining ran for the door, stopping in the threshold as he turned to Twilight, a stern look on his face. "Now, I have to go organize a search for this thing. Stay here, and don't do anything stupid." He warned, rushing down the hall. Twilight could hear him shouting orders to passing soldiers as she shut the door, leaving herself alone.

Then she smiled as she approached the windowsill, standing on it as she gazed down at the hole. "Sorry, Shining! I have to make sure my friend doesn't end up getting hurt." And with that, she took a deep breath and jumped down to the forest bellow.

Nathan braced as the ground approached faster and faster. He knew his armor would protect him, after all, it was only five hundred meters. He'd fallen from orbit once and walked it off just fine... with two broken legs.

Nathan tucked his body into a cannonball as he set the suits gel layer to full, crushing his body in a painful, protective goo. Nathan had his eyes shut in pain as he slammed through the forest canopy, imbedding himself into the ground below.

Almya deactivated the armor overrides, preventing the dazed Spartan from being killed by his own armor. "Come on, sleepy, time to move!" She shouted, rousing Nathan to his feet. As soon as the Spartan was up, he was off, following the nav marker deeper and deeper into the woods.

Nathan continued his sprint through the forest, ignoring the protest from his crushed body. Locking down the gel layer could result in death if it is used for too long. That's why when a Spartan is falling from an incredible height, it's imperative they activate it at the last possible second.

With his body screaming, Nathan pushed on, watching the distance to the ship becoming increasingly less with each stride he took. Nathan had to make sure the ship did in fact have this planet in its navigational database, or if landing here was just a huge cosmic coincidence. If the former was true, then this planet had only days, if not less, to live.

“Alyma? ETA on the crash site?” Nathan asked, sliding down a steep hill, landing in a murky swamp. The water barely slowed the Spartan down.

“About five minutes at your current pace. Although, this swamp might slow us down a bit.” She pointed out. Nathan halted for a moment, making sure the area was secure.

There was a sign half buried in the muck, reading 'Froggy Bottom Bog'. A very apt name, since the air was being raped by the sounds of croaking and splashing. The water was a murky brown, with no visibility whatsoever. Anything could be lurking underneath the water right next to him and Nathan wouldn't be able to notice it in the slightest.

"Almya, boost radar power by thirty percent... I got a bad feeling about this bog." Nathan pulled out his knife, keeping a firm grip on the hilt.

Almya seemed a bit perplexed by her Spartan's request. "Doing it. What are you expecting from a swamp called 'Froggy Bottom Bog'? Sounds pretty- Hold on..." Almya trailed off. "Something big is heading this way."

"How big?" Nathan asked. Almya pulled up the boosted image of the radar on his HUD. The entire radar was completely covered by a massive yellow blob, which Nathan instantly changed to red.

Something was lurking under the water. And, it was heading straight for him.

Before Nathan had time to inquire whether or not it was Covenant, he was launched into the air from below, sending him flying across the swamp. Nathan righted himself before he hit, landing on his feet as he slid thirty feet through the muck and muddy water.

When Nathan looked up at what hit him, he wasn't expecting a multi-headed leviathan standing before him. The creature had to be fifty feet tall. It's body had no arms, but it made up for that in the head department. Five heads were now staring down at the Spartan, their large, reptilian eyes dilating in anticipation of the kill. The creature opened all of its maws, roaring angrily at the man in their territory.

"Almya?! What the hell is that thing?!" Nathan shouted, poising his knife, which was most likely going to be useless in this situation. It was all the Spartan had, and it was better than nothing.

"Do you really think I know?! What I do know is, get your ass out of here!" She screamed as one of the heads came down. Nathan sidestepped at lighting speed, slashing his blade diagonally down, carving it beneath the thick scales. It passed through the spaces of the scales easily, carving the thin flesh like a hot knife through butter. The creatures roared as one of their heads hung limply, half torn off by the small, but sharp blade. That was one head down, four more to go.

What Nathan and Almya didn't expect, however, was the four remaining heads to rip off the dying one, letting it flail and thrash on the ground in front of the perplexed Spartan. "Almya? What's it doing?" Nathan asked, scuttling backwards in case it tried to charge again.

Almya didn't answer. She was obviously transfixed on watching this thing through the helmets feeds. The creature began to roar in pain as the spot the head and neck were torn from began to sprout two more heads, which shot high into the sky, joining their brethren in glaring at the little Spartan.

Almya let out a gasp as Nathan ran, the creature hot on his heals. "I can't believe it! I-It's a Hydra!" She squealed excitedly. Nathan wasn't all too excited about finding out what the creatures name was that was about to eat him.

"What the fuck's a Hydra?" He asked, rolling out of the way as three heads came down in a pecking motion to try and knock him off his feet.

"A Hydra is a mythological animal in ancient Greek folklore. It was virtually unkillable. The young hero, Heracles, was able to finally kill one of the beasts by chopping off each head and cauterizing the wounds with a torch." Almya stated as the Spartan kept thumping through the swamp, the squishes and squelches of his feet ringing in his ears.

"So, cauterizing huh? How about an Energy Sword? That should work." He pointed out, kicking one of the heads right in the snout, breaking the bone with a loud crack.

"That should do it. There's bound to be some at the crash site! Go!" She ordered. Nathan picked up the pace, leaving the hydra somewhat in his wake. The ship wasn't far now, just a couple hundred more yards to go, and he'd finally be able to complete what he set out to do.

But, it wasn't meant to be. Nathan took a wrong step, sending him from calf deep water to waist deep water. Nathan felt his right leg being sucked into the thick muck below. He pulled and pulled with all his might, but he just couldn't get it out. The bog gunk held on with a vice like grip.

Nathan continued to struggle as the Hydra neared, hissing in victory as it brought its heads back, poised to strike. Nathan just watched in shock and anger; shocked because it was going to be a mythological creature that was going to kill him, and angry for the same exact reason. He thought it would be the Covenant that would do him in, but no. It was a stinking multi-headed lizard!

Nathan closed his eyes and braced for the end as Almya screamed nonsense about escaping into his ear. Nathan ignored it and just let his life flash before his eyes; his life on New Jerusalem, joining the military, his friends, his team... He'd never see any of them again. Although, the last thought he had was of Twilight; something he didn't expect his mind to ponder on in his last seconds. The Hydra roared, bringing Nathan back to reality. It's heads shot downwards and Nathan prepared himself for the end.

Author's Note

So, my little self hiatus is over. I really needed that break. I love writing, but damn, I just need some me time to sort out some things. :P So, while I was sorting things out, I just went over and proof read this. Now, it's time to post this chapter, and see where things take us. So, see you next chapter! :3