Nothing is Over

Fluttershy was making her way outside to feed her animals, when the sound of galloping hooves approaching. Looking over she saw Marble with his saddlebag hanging from his mouth, further behind him was about six guards, even further was Applejack and Twilight. They were all heading straight for her. Acting on instinct, Fluttershy froze, waiting for them to come crashing down.

Marble saw Fluttershy and instinctively dove over her as she crouched down in fear. Rolling to his hooves, he recovered and continued galloping into the Everfree. The guards were not as successful, as they attempted to stop before crashing into Fluttershy.

"Fluttershy! Are you ok!" Twilight yells over as her and Applejack come running up. The guards quickly get up attempting to reorganize.

"Sorry miss, but we have to keep going." The sergeant states before ordering the other guards to start moving. Fluttershy moves over by Twilight and Applejack.

"What's going on? Why were they chasing Marble? Oh he's not in trouble is he?" Fluttershy asks

"Well, ah went t' go get 'im this morinin. And we was in the market, and he started fightin these two ponies, then the guards came and took 'im away." Applejack answers." Ah guess he somehow got out."

"Ooh I hope he's ok." Fluttershy comments, "We have to help him!"

"That's a good idea. Fluttershy you go find Rainbow, Applejack you go find Pinkie, and I'll get Rarity and we'll all meet back here." Twilight says. Before all three turn and rush back into town.

The six guards continue their search, through the Everfree forest, for Marble. A voice comes through their communication bands causing them to stop." Sergeant, several eyewitness came forwarded saying that it was an act of self defense."

The sergeant thought for a moment before replying. "Ok we'll bring him in and work it out."

"Be careful though. You told me to find information about him. Turns out, he's a former Solar Beret. Says he received the Royal Medal of Honor."

The sergeant stood unsure what to do. "We'll be careful." He says through the band." Alright fan out. 50 yards between each other." The sergeant called out. The guards move to the respected distances. Trudging along, one guard moves to jump over a fallen log, when a leafy mass amerges from a bush. The blob stabbed the guard in the hind leg before taking the crossbow, quiver, and communication band off the guard before disappearing into the foliage. "AAAAHHHRRGGG!" The guard screams in pain. It all happened so fast before she could see what happened.

"That's Firefly. Shit, Lucky get over there!" The sergeant cried. Lucky, a pegasus, rushed to where Firefly was. He was running along, on one side of him was a ditch and on the other was elevated another 2 meters. As he was passing the ditch, something large fell from a tree. He felt hooves connect with his armor as he's kicked down. Looking up he sees a grey pony with leafs and mud covering him. The pony threw two punches into the lucky, before kicking him down into the ditch; into a patch of blue flowers.

Cutlass, and Blue Star continued to make their way through the forest when they heard lucky calling. Cutlass was about to move, when he felt something around his hoof. Before he could get a good look, he was yanked upside down, in the air.

"AHH. Blue get me down!" He yells just before and arrow flies into his leg. "AAAAAARRRGGG!"

"Sweet Celestia! Don't worry I'll get help." Blue Star runs off to find the others" Sarge! Sarge! Sar-AAAAGGGR!" He screams as branch swings back hitting his forelegs with several three inch spikes." AAAHHH! HELP ME! SOMEPONY HELP ME!"

The sergeant heard the yelling." Blue Star! What the hay is going on here!? Come on Swift." He yells to Swift Blade before running off to Blue Star. Swift would have followed if something didn't tackle him to the ground. Sarge kept running until he found Blue Star standing with spikes imbedded in his front legs. "Sweet Celestia, Blue. Hang on." He says as he moves to pull the spikes out of Blue Star. "Ok one, two, THREE!" He yells pulling Blue back causing both of them to stumble backwards. Blue sits crying in pain, while sergeant looks around for Swift Blade." Swift where the Hay are you?" He gets up and heads in the direction he came from, only to see Swift knocked out tied to a tree. He's about to move, when a mass merges from a bush slamming him into a tree. He looks and sees Marble covered in mud, pinning him against a tree with a knife to his throat.

"I could've killed them all. I could've killed you." Marble says coldly." In town, your the law, out here it only me. Don't push it or I'll give you a fight you won't believe. Don't. Push. It." With that, he turns and runs off deeper into the forest leaving the shaking sergeant.

Twilight and her friends were making their way to the HQ the guards have set up. They passed by several guards bandaged up being carried away. They passed by one guard who looked like a ball of fluff.

"Gee, what happened to him?" Rainbow comments.

"Fell in those blue flowers." The girls look over and see the sergeant walking over to them.

"Who did all this?" Asks Twilight.

"Your psycho friend out there."

"Pinkie?" Rainbow comments. Sarge gives her a look, while rainbow recieves a smack on the back of the head curtesy of Applejack.

"What. No that Marble guy that showed up in town." Sarge comments as he heads towards the Hq tent. "Now to make matters worse, we've learned that he didn't even start the fight. How he can fight two pegasi and take on, basically the entirety of Ponyvilles garrison is beyond me. *scoffs* Don't know what the hay would pose Celestial to make a pony like Marble."

"Celestia didn't make Marble." They all turn to see a tall olive green unicorn with a charcoal mane. He's wearing a black beret with a phoenix emblem and a long grey trench coat. "I made him." They are all confused by his sudden appearance.

"Who the hay are you?" Sarge asks.

"Name's Trottman. Colonel Trottman." He says

"Well we're a little busy here colonel, what can I do for you." The sergeant says

"I've come to get my pony."

"Woah, woah, woah. Your pony?" Asks Rainbow Dash. Trottman turns to her and says

"I recruited him, trained him, and commanded him for six years durning the Griffin Civil War. I think that make him mine."

I wonder why Canterlot would send a full bird colonel to deal with this." Sarge joins in again

"The army thought I could be of help."

"Well I don't know in what way. Marble's a civilian so he's our problem." Trottman is slightly taken aback by this

"I-I don't think you understand. I didn't come down here to rescue Marble from you. I came here to rescue you from him." Sarge looks at him with a smug grin on his face.

"Is that right, well we all appreciate your concern colonel. We'll try to extra careful out there." Trottman glances outside at the wounded guards then back at the sergeant before saying.

"I'm just amazed he allowed any of your possy to live."

"Is that right."

"Strictly speaking, he slipped up. You're lucky to be breathing."

"Well that's just great!" Sarge exclaims slamming his hoof down. "Colonel you came down her to see why one your swords has a dull blade!"

"You don't want to accept the fact that your dealing with in guerrilla warfare. With a pony whose the best. With bows, with knife, with his barehooves, even weapons you've never seen. With a pony whose been trained to ignore pain, ignore weather. To live off the land. To eat things that'll make a billy goat puke. In the griffin lands, his job was to expose of enemy personal. To Kill. Period. Win by attrition. Well Marble was the best." Everyone was in their own different state of shock muttering to themselves

"Ignore pain?"

"Weapons we've never seen?"

"K-kill?"

"Ok colonel, now you've got us all scared. W-what do you and your special forces think we ought to do about your psycho out there." Sarge ask while motioning towards the forest.

"Let him go." Rainbow Dash was the first to come out of the stupor.

"Do WHAT!" She yells

"Let him go, for now. Defuse the whole situation. Defuse him. Create a gap and let him slip through, then put out a national APB. In a couple weeks you'll pick him up in Appaloosa or some place cleaning windows. There will be no fighting and nopony will get hurt." Trottman says calmly.

"I'm sorry colonel, we can't just turn our backs and hope he gets picked up in Appaloosa." The sergeant says turning towards Trottman.

"Well you send your ponies in there, they'll get killed."

"Look, we're just a small town barracks but we're expected to do our job, like our ponies in the special forces!"

"In the special forces, we taught them how to stay alive."

"Well no shit I haven't thought of that." Sarge says getting annoyed by Trottman.

"you want a war you can't win!"

"Hey!" Rainbow Dash cuts in." Are you saying that us six plus all the guards are no match for Marble!"

"Well you send that many just remember one thing."

"Oh yeah, what." She says confidently

"A good supple of body bags." Trottman says as he exits the tent. Every ounce of confidence Rainbow had was gone.

"Trottman!" Sarge calls out to him." Listen colonel, I don't know who's side your on. If you really came to help then follow me."