Author's Note

39th Logistics: A company used for the distribution of aid materials and supplies. "Bringing peace, one crate at a time".

988th Engineer Company: They are used for small reconstruction efforts, for light damage, or medium structure repair. "We lay the foundations of prosperity".

Conversing with the Lunar Princess.

Date: June 20th 4042
Time : 2130 Greenwich time
Location: Former sweet apple acres barn.
Units: 375th LDT

As Gerad sat on the hill overlooking the valley he sighed. Tomorrow they would begin their offensive. Two entire brigades had been deployed to the surface. His unit the 375th LDT and the 33rd Armored infantry Brigade. The 33rd had a lot of armor and were dropped in behind ponyville and out of site of any griffin forces.

"Hard time sleeping commander"? Came a soothing voice from behind him.

Gerad turned and noticed the blue pony from before and shrugged. "We attack tomorrow, we'll be driving them from the area and moving towards your city of Manehatten. It's going to be ugly, especially for them. I don't want your ponies involved in the fighting, you're not experienced in war like we are". His tone was sad.

Noticing his tone Luna looked confused. "Do you not like killing them"? She asked Gerad.

Gerad shook his head. "No soldier does. Humans despite us being warriors, don't like killing. It hurts most of us to do so. The only ones it doesn't hurt are those who have mental disorders". He said and looked out over the field with his rifle sitting in his lap.

"To be honest we tried offering them a chance at peace and to leave but they chose to fight. It's something they will regret later and something we will regret". He finished as the fires below them from the enemy camp glistened in the dark.

Luna was taken back by this. For the ruthless efficiency that his people had in war she would have sworn that they loved it. "But with how good you are.......". She said and was cut off by Gerad.

"Because with every race you have an asshole who want power and obtains it. They then use it to wreak havoc and the good people have to step in and beat him back. We fought two world wars back when we had our home world. World War 2 was a war of horror. A mad man tried to exterminate an entire people out of anger and the desire to have a pure race. My nation ended up leading the charge to stop him". He finished and looked at her.

"Those who take pleasure in killing are murderers and mad men. Those who kill because they must, because the lives of many depend on it are soldiers. Those Griffins below are murderers, they enjoy hurting your people and young children". He pulled the energy mag from his rifle and looked it over and set it down.

Luna was at a loss for words right now. She had never heard of a race that hated killing even for the right reasons. Part of her felt as if something, maybe the uncertainty she held towards them melted away. She felt guilty almost for judging them but knew she had every reason to be cautious towards them initially.

"It's nice to know that our ally isn't blood thirsty or uncaring. It put my mind at ease to know that you all have feeling within you underneath your armor". Luna said and smiled at him to which he smiled back only a little.

"Princess, no matter what happens, we're here to protect your people. We might offer your people another world to live on if needed but we will not do anything to deliberately hurt your people". His tone was serious. The stars above them twinkled and pulsed softly.

"I know your story princess". He said suddenly and that made Luna freeze up.

"I-I was young and st-stupid". She said and stuttered with fear. Something told her that if he tried he would kill her and her magic wouldn't be enough to stop him.

"It's okay". He said softly. "I understand that feeling of loneliness. It can drive anyone to madness and make anyone behave rashly. Were your actions good? No. Were there other issues that compounded it all? Yes". Slapping the energy mag back into his rifle he finished cleaning it.

"Just remember that if you need anyone to talk to, you have your sister and friends. If you can't talk to them, we have people you can talk to who're professionals and can help you. Just know that you're not alone anymore". His tone was kind and was without any hostility.

"And once this war is over, we can take you out to see the stars without being stuck on a moon. In an actual ship and maybe get you to enjoy some of the worlds we live on". He said with a chuckle leaving him.

Luna was taken back by the offer. "I mean...I would....It.....THAT WOULD BE AMAZING"! She yelled in the canterlot voice which left Gerad's ears ringing for a moment as he sat their stunned by the sudden increase in volume. It didn't help that the hearing abilities of soldiers had been increased for early warning reasons.

Gerad shook his head clear and the ringing finally subsided as Luna giggle sheepishly in embarrassment. "We are sorry". She had briefly slipped into the old english again.

Waving his hand he put his weapon back together, having cleaned it and made sure there was nothing in the way of energy condenser. Looking away from the town and fires below that lit up the plains of the valley he sighed. "Well hopefully this will end quickly but I have a feeling we'll be here for a few months". His tone sounded tired and weary but he still remained watchful.

"Your people are being evacuated from the town, it's not safe for them to stay right now. We have dropships helping them move and take what belongings they can. We'll send an aid detachment to your capital to distribute supplies and help make sure no one gets special treatment when it come to your people". He continued as he popped up a manifest from the fleet.

"Right now I have operational command of all ground forces so expect the unit to arrive at dawn tomorrow with a large convoy. They'll set up in the plaza of your city to begin distribution while a company sized element from our engineers will start reconstructing whatever structures may have been damaged of destroyed". He finished and selected the 39th logistics company and the 988th engineer company to head to Canterlot the next day from a ship labeled as the U.S.I.S Romania.

"Though I have to ask. What is your role in the kingdom"? He asked her curiously. Luna rubbed the back of her head with a hoof and smiled a bit.

"Well I watch the dreams of others and help them when they have nightmares, watch the kingdom, and also raise and lower the moon when it comes time to do so". Her hoof left the back of her head as she explained her role and finally looked at him.

"What about you captain"? She asked him.

This made Gerad pause in thought. "It depends. I guess my job is to lead my soldiers, leap into the fray of combat, and show that there's a greater power out there watching out for those in need of help. I'm just a captain really, there's nothing special in the end". A shrug of his shoulders followed.

Luna tilted her head and frowned. "And yet those are important things that you do. Without you your soldiers would be lost, without someone to fight there would be no one to protect your people, and without someone to show that there's someone watching over them people lose hope. I think you're more important than you realize".

Gerad visibly winced at the positivity and shook his head. "I guess but let's not get too positive about it. My job is to kill". His tone was blunt but it wasn't intentional and Luna knew this. Deciding to change the subject she smiled.

"Do you have a mate back home? A special somepony"? She asked curiously.

Gerad simply shook his head. "Negative. I haven't even thought about sex in almost thirty years". He said as he ran a systems check on his armor for any possible issues that might inhibit his ability to fight the next day.

This made Luna frown and small feeling of sadness hit her. "Why not? Surely you must have a reason. Life is short after all".

A soft laugh escaped Gerad. "Naw. Humans can live to 500 years of age now. Thank future medicine and augments for that. They increased the maximum human life span by 4 times what it used to be". He finished and once the system finished it's check it listed that there were no errors in his systems.

Luna took a moment to process what she had been told and looked at him. "How old are you exactly"? She asked him curiously.

Gerad tapped his chin for a moment. "My birthday was six months ago roughly so I'm ninety five years of age currently. I've been serving since I was sixty eight".

Luna's jaw dropped open and she had to take a moment to close it. "That's.....older than most people live on our world".

"Well medicine can do that to you. There was even a whole debate about it but people decided they wanted to see Humanity grow and change and that it would be better to live longer. Humans have only have this ability for about 120 years now so it's kind of become a thing". Gerad let out a soft chuckle.

"But...don't you at least have your eye on someone"? She asked him. She didn't see a reason for anyone to be alone.

"Not that I can think of. I kind of want someone who likes exploring, having fun, but at the same time will love me to death and in turn I can do the same". Looking over at her he smiled a bit. "So in a way I'm still looking".

Luna smiled back and finally got up, spreading her wings open. "Then I say don't give up hope. I must return to Canterlot though, I need to be there when your soldiers arrive".

"That's perfectly okay. There's no need to explain anything to me". He said as he gave a wave of his hand.

With a smile on her muzzle she nodded her head. "You have a good night captain". A mighty flap of her wings sent her skyward before she adjusted herself and head back towards Canterlot.

Little did they both know, seeds had been sown.