Rememberby Penguin17203ChaptersFrom Worse To HopelessEvacuation Center...The Fallen KnightFrom Worse To HopelessA lightning-like spark ignited on the corvette as if it were trying to start up something. Not a moment later, a giant dark-wined circle of what Twilight assumed to be a large mass of electricity and energy manifested around the ship, causing an ear-shattering crunch accompanied by a minor quake. It lasted for a mere second before it suddenly disappeared, taking the entire mid-section of the ship which was known as the "covenant cruiser" along with it. An upbeat roar from the citizens of Reach came afterwards, mutual praise and uplifting chatter. Twilight hated feeling this way. She couldn't feel anything for the... covenant. As far as she knew, and given her previous encounters with them, they were nothing but cold-blooded murderers. Just things that did nothing but kill on sight. That was only reinforced when she heard about the invasion. Their plan to wipe out humans completely, off of the face of this planet. To destroy every living sentient being that lived here. "Glassing" humanity called it. In further detail, the large purple-assumingly-metal ship in the sky had a weapon. A plasma beam that shot out from the mid-section to destroy a large quantity of... well, everything living within a radius. Melting everything... Why? Twilight couldn't figure it out. What was their goal? What were they trying to accomplish? What did the humans do the covenant? That has yet to be explained. She didn't find anything that would warrant destruction of an entire planet. With all her teachings in friendship and how important it is to forgive somepony, she could not find it in herself to carry it out. She hated feeling that way. Finding satisfaction in the demise of another living being but she couldn't help it. She could almost say that they deserved it... Her first contact with the humans upon arrival was... unpleasant and still sometimes is but she couldn't blame them. She wouldn't, she understood why they would be hostile toward her. She knew if the roles were reversed, they would be just as reluctant. She remembered when they first met Thorax, they easily chopped him up to be just another changeling. When they first made contact with the covenant, she was instantly met with hostility that nearly got Rainbow Dash killed. The aliens known as "elites" had fired rapid projectiles at her. Twilight presumed it was plasma. They've killed many humans and she was lucky enough to still have magic in order to stop them. They would escape just barely on multiple occasions because of Twilight; if not for her magic. She had tried reasoning with the covenant but it was futile. The language they spoke was entirely foreign even using a translation spell didn't help. After that encounter, she could safely say she really didn't have any sympathy or pity for them. You can't give sympathy to something that killed indiscriminately. She glowered at the burning cruiser, descending toward the atmosphere. Twilight, along with her friends were standing on the balcony of a hotel room in a city called "New Alexandria"; all staring up at the sky. Ever since they had been dumped here on this planet by Cozy Glow's lack of control in alicorn magic, they were met with hostility at every turn. From both humanity and the covenant. Although hostile, humanity was quick to realize that they were not the enemy. Here, stuck and powerless to do anything about the state of Equestria. Not able to be there to stop Tirek, Chrysalis and Cozy Glow from ruling and most likely destroying the land. Everything had felt so hopeless, it felt like they were fighting a battle they already lost. Not only was Equestria in danger but so was Reach. That was until the cruiser was destroyed. During the midst of utter chaos and the potential loss of Equestria, Twilight still find the ability to content, to be satisfied and relieved that at least some good was happening somewhere even if it wasn't for Equestria. Despite their current predicament, the mane six was uplifted the moment the cruiser was destroyed. At least now, they had a chance at fending off the invasion. Fluttershy and Pinkie Pie believed that the covenant could be reasoned with and that killing them wasn't the solution. Applejack and Rainbow disagreed entirely. You can't reason with these genocidal maniacs, besides that, you couldn't even communicate with them. Rainbow and Applejack agreed that this was what the covenant deserved, perhaps way more. Twilight didn't care what happened to the covenant, as long as everypony was safe, she couldn't care less. Rarity felt the same way. The carrier was falling from the sky. Fluttershy was quivering, being held close by Pinkie Pie. Rarity and Twilight frowning and Applejack and Rainbow had scowls on their faces. Everypony was silent, a feeling of relief passing through them. Citizens from numerous buildings were all looking up at the sky, cheering and giving praise. Rarity spotted a small family. A little girl with her mother carrying a baby, she was pointing up at the sky jumping up and down excitedly. Rarity couldn't help but smile at them. A few moments past then something else happened. Something that completely ripped away every morsel of hope. Every sense of relief. There was a small flash of light then there it was. Seemingly out of nowhere another cruiser appeared, almost like an exact replica of the one that had just been destroyed. Then another flash... then another... and another... …and soon enough; there was a whole fleet of covenant cruisers that had appeared within a span of five seconds. The cruiser that was destroyed was but a fraction of the fleet. Barely made a dent and suddenly everyone knew how this was going to end. "Come on. We should get ready." Twilight said, everypony turned toward her. Rainbow frowned, flying up in the air. "Ready for what? You see what's going on up there?" She gestured toward the fleet, staining the sky. Rarity stepped forward, a grim look on her face. "I have to say that I'm also somewhat confused darling. What exactly are we supposed to do?" "Leave, evacuate, help humanity. There's not much we can do but..." Twilight's eyes downcast. "...we have to help somehow..." Fluttershy stayed silent. Everypony did until she spoke up. "W-what about Equestria?" Twilight sighed. "Yeah... that too but... we can't just leave while all of... this-" She gestured toward the fleet. "-is happening." They were already on course for Reach, what looked like birds in a flock descended from the cruisers. They all knew that they weren't birds... It appeared to be a still image but if you looked long enough, they would gradually grow bigger. "I-I mean, what if the covenant found Equis? This is bigger than just Equestria." "Yes, you are right and that's noble of you but I still don't understand how we're supposed to stop all of this." Rarity repeated. The Citizens of Reach were already scattering, yelling, screaming. Hugging their loved ones. Twilight left the balcony and the others followed. The sounds of rapid but muffled footsteps, chatter and scuttling was heard through the walls. "We may not be able to do much but we can at least try to find a way to send a message back to Equestria." "Not to burst your bubble, 'Twi but ah think it's best to try and figure out how to get home first before we start worryin' about things we can't control." Applejack solemnly said. "We have to focus on Cozy Glow and the others first and then we can figure out what to do about Reach." Twilight paused in front of the door, frowning. She was right, Equestria was still in trouble but there were also people here. People that needed help and she said it herself. There wasn't much six ponies could do but if a whole nation were to help out... She sighed, she would have to think about this later. Right now, they needed to find a place that would hide them from the covenant. As Twilight pulled the door open with her magic, someone ran past the room, slight wind hitting her face then a few others past by. The ponies left the room and ran past the hall, some of the citizens noticed them, some screamed at them but most ignored them and quickly left to do their own thing. They were planning on taking the elevator but all were either already being used or full. They detoured toward the stairs but only to discover that it was also packed with frantic citizens. There were screams, mixed chatter and the tapping of shoes hitting the floor. "Everypony, hang on." An aura smoothly formed around Twilight's horn and in a flash, they were soon found at the lobby of the building. It was the same here, people with backpacks, families and scared children exiting the complex. They made their way toward the doors, people shoving into them as they did so. As she was exiting the hotel, Fluttershy caught sight of a little girl who was still in the lobby. She was crying, standing in a sea of people that were swarming past her. They were all ignoring her. The pegasus ran back into the lobby, not knowing her friends were already outside. She ran over to the girl. "H-hey!" She called out, waving her hoof as she approached. The little girl noticed her, bloodshot-puffy eyes and tear-streaked cheeks. "A-are you okay? Are you lost?" She nodded. "M-m-my mom, I-I don't know where she is." "O-oh, okay. It's okay, we'll find her uh..." the pegasus searched for her friends, only to be face to face with a wall of people rushing past her. She glanced back at the girl. "We'll look outside m-maybe she's out there. Do you wanna do that?" The child nodded yes. Fluttershy smiled reassuringly before gently ushering her forward, to the exit doors. Through the cracks in the sea of people, she saw Rainbow hovering in the air. She was looking for her. Once they neared the doors, The element of Kindness turned at the girl. "Don't worry, I'm sure she's out here somewhere." With a squeeze, they finally left the complex and Fluttershy saw Twilight and her friends a few yards away from the building. They weren't moving and by the erratic gestures they were displaying, Fluttershy could tell they were worried about where she was. She was about to run over to them when she remembered the little girl with her. "Is your mother out here somewhere?" She inquired, scanning around the area, buildings stacked up against each other. The sounds of motors being fired up, a mob of people fleeing in every direction. It wasn't long before her eyes caught something in the sky. The birds they saw from earlier had abnormally grown into a strange like flying purple object in the sky. It was closing in faster than she was able to process. The only thing she made out was the sharp wings protruding from either side when a ball, in the color of sea foam and made from fire, shot out from it's mouth; sending it hurling toward her... Evacuation Center...On their way to the hospital tower, a glowing blue asterisk with a syringe logo on it, Twilight caught a glimpse of the sky. Although, the sun was still out, a wide array of dark smoke clouds painted a large part of the sky. A large vessel of purple hovered above the burning city. What Twilight presumed to be anti-air bullets, fired up at the large mass of alien metal only to be met with no result. The ship seemed indestructible. Nothing was working. Everything humanity threw at it failed. The cruiser only soaked up the damage. If this was happening here then she was sure that every other battle on Reach was the same. The sounds of gunfire and explosions was deafening. The howling of the wraith's blasts. Civilians were rushing to the evacuation point, their bags packed and kids clutching to their parents in fear. All of them ignored the six ponies travelling beside them. Twilight wasn't sure if they should head to the evac point due to humanity already being under fire by a coalition of alien species. Their initial plan was to head to a safe area, somewhere out of the city but when they saw the endless waves of covenant patrolling through the streets and the constant firing of weapons from both humanity and the covenant; the odds of getting out of there with no injuries or deaths was impossible. She saw a few marines directing the citizens into the buildings, shouting for them to get to the roof. Something along the lines of a pelican ready for take off. Twilight sighed. "It's now or never, I suppose... is everypony ready?" she asked, turning to her friends. They all look drained, postures hunched over and dirt all over their fur. Her eyes landed on Fluttershy in particular. Her mane was a tangled mess with blood. A significant amount had been burnt off, she looked the worst out of the group. Nearly half of her body was baked in burns and gashes. She had to be supported by Rainbow Dash to keep her moving. When the bomb shot out from that covenant aircraft and hit the ground; it left Fluttershy unconscious. There was barely enough time for Twilight to teleport over to her when the aircraft came around again. When the pegasus came to, she asked about a little girl that she was apparently with to which Twilight had morbidly replied. "What girl?" The pegasus broke down after she asked that. The unicorn never saw a little girl with the pegasus. It was just her. "I doubt we'll ever be ready..." Rarity replied as she trudged beside Twilight. Twilight sighed but quickly became unnerved when one of the marines glance at her. A man with a beard. She watched the flash of alert on his face, the fidget of his weapon, it was lowered but still aimed in their direction as he watched them approach. She gave a worried wave. "Uh e-excuse me?" The marine's eyes widen. "The hell?" He muttered, his face was between a grimace and a disgusted expression. He was still slightly alerted, Twilight could blatantly see that. "I-I... we were wondering if you could help us?" Twilight took a ginger step toward the soldier. He looked at her for a moment. "...With what? What even are you anyway?" "W-we're... we're ponies... sir." "Okay. What exactly did you need help with?" "Hey!" Another solider came over, this one was female. She was holding a weapon that had a sharper barrel to it and a scope. "What is that?" She pointed at the ponies. "Ponies... apparently." The previous marine answered. "They need help." The female marine sighed in frustration. "Oh lord... we don't have time to save animals. There are civies here, that we need to evac, now!" "I-I understand that ma'am." Twilight said, stepping toward the marine. "W-we were just wondering if we could... m-maybe come along too?" Seeing the marine's stunned look, she quickly continued. "We aren't from this planet, w-we had a... complication... back at home a-and now here we are." She deliberately gave a broad explanation, too much to explain and not enough time. The female marine looked at her for a moment longer then at her friends. "What sort of complication?" Twilight opened her mouth but nothing came out. She glanced at the civilians who were still being directed into the building by a couple of other marines. "I-I... we just need help getting out-" "Well, until you give me an answer, you aren't going nowhere. For all I know, you could start firing on the civilians the second you walk into-" "Look, I'm pretty sure they're not covenant." The male marine said. "If they were, they would've done something by now." "It's not about them being covenant. It's about keeping these aliens rats the hell away from my people." She snapped. The bearded marine sighed before laying his hand on her shoulder; ushering her away. "Alright, Jan, just focus on getting the civilians out, alright? I'll deal with them." "Deal with them? As in, 'letting them go to the evac zone' deal with them or...?" "Just go help out the civies, okay?" She feigned a smirk. "Okay, sure. I'll do just that." She threw a glare at Twilight before walking away and began guiding the civilians into the building once more. "Don't blame her... she's lost... a few." The marine explained, looking crestfallen. "It's okay, we understand." "It's not exactly my decision, so I'm gonna have to radio command to grant you guys access." Twilight nodded. The marine's hand went to his helmet and he suddenly began speaking as if he were talking to somepony, much to Twilight's confusion. "There's, uh, six non-hostile aliens here. No, they're not with the covenant. No, no, no weapons." After a few moments, the soldier finally nodded before returning his gaze back to the ponies. "Alright, they agreed to let you through. Just go into the building, head to the roof there's gonna be a pelican there waiting-" He suddenly stopped, Twilight caught the look in his eye. The switch from calm and collected to fear and desperation. She quickly turned to see a large purple metal ship rapidly closing on on their location. Instantly, she knew it was the covenant but the ship was shaped differently. It was in the shape of a long fork, the gap between them had a strange field of aqua-colored energy. "Dropship... Dropship! Covenant Dropship inbound! Everybody get to the roof now!" He barked as he raised his rifle and began firing. The "dropship" began to descend, a strange object attached to the bottom-front of it pointed in their direction and Twilight immediately got a gut feeling something was about to happen. The unicorn quickly manifested a shield around her friends and the soldier. The object on the dropship began firing it's rounds at them but ended up doing nothing; merely penetrating the shield with heavy force causing the ground beneath them to start shaking. The soldier turned to Twilight, an expression of utter confusion and amazement. He noticed the aura floating around the unicorn's horn. He turned back to the battlefield that was now scattered with civilians. The dropship hovered a few feet off the ground, covenant pouring out from the forks of the ship. Brutes and grunts. "Oh lord," the soldier muttered. He saw his fellow squadmates struggling to provide cover fire for the entrance as the covenant began laying down heavy fire. The shield was now being penetrated by green plasma fire as a few of the grunts began closing in. "Okay, here's what's gonna happen. This shield's gonna come down, as soon as that happens, all of you are gonna run straight into the building. Got it!?" He said, readying his weapon and posture. "W-what about you?" Fluttershy asked, stepping closer to him; voice hoarse. "We can't just leave you here on your own!" Rarity added. "I won't be, my teammates are out there and they need my help. Just do what I told you!" He barked. "Okay, three, two... one. Now!" As the shield dissipated, the soldier began firing while Twilight and her friends made a dash for the building. Twilight had kept her shield up for them as they ran into the building. The doors slammed shut, the lobby was empty; a few backpacks were discarded and clothes everywhere. There was an escalator and a set of stairs. They could still hear the gunfire outside. The group went toward the escalator. Once reaching the top, on both sides were four elevators; all in use. "We just left them out there..." Pinkie Pie suddenly muttered. "There weren't nothin' we coulda done, sugarcube." "We need to get to the roof as soon as possible. They could be leaving without us!" Rainbow exclaimed. Twilight suddenly felt a surge of alert as her pegasus friend pointed that out. She was right. The covenant were here and they were attacking the evacuation zone, they wouldn't wait around for any stragglers if they were being attacked. The unicorn took another look at the elevators, all of them still in use. She quickly scanned around for any set of stairs or any signs that indicated toward a set of stairs. Her eyes landed on a white sign with a red image of a stickman running up a flight of stairs. "There!" The muffled gunfire outside the building had stopped but the growls of brutes could be heard. Twilight didn't stop to pay attention. They continued their way up the stairs, the sounds of brutes, gunfire and plasma fire echoed throughout the building. Twilight prayed that they wouldn't run into them. The worst part was the screaming, families, children all being slaughtered in cold-blood. Twilight saw a set of doors with tinted windows. She saw a brute holding a struggling human by the neck and a pack of jackals. She burst through the door, using a magic barrier and shoved the brute over to the ledge. The human fell to the ground, coughing and gasping for air. The jackals were already aiming their weapons at the unicorn but Twilight saw them immediately and manifested a shield of magic to block the incoming bolts of green plasma. While still keeping the shield up, Twilight managed to levitate the human over to her to keep him from getting shot. As the jackals continued their fire, a flash of Rainbow took one of the jackals out; momentarily leaving the remaining jackals stunned. Twilight took the opportunity to shove the rest of them off the building, their screams echoing on the way down. She turned back to check on the human only to be shoved harshly into the ground below her; forehead hitting the pavement at full force. It took a moment to register what had just happened, stunned and confused; she turned to see Applejack engaging into combat with the brute from earlier. She was holding her own for a few seconds, dodging and offering a few kicks in when one of the brute's hands had connected with her face; sending her to the floor. The brute was a mere second away from finishing her off when he sudden burst of gunfire began hitting the ape. It turned and saw the white unicorn; a rifle hovering in mid-air firing at him. It began charging toward her at an alarming rate, forcing the elegant mare to back up. It was a few feet away when it suddenly jumped up and was about to deliver a devastating blow to the mare when it suddenly became stuck in mid-way. A purple aura formed around the brute before it was flung from the building entirely. Twilight panted, struggling to get back up; her head still aching from the impact. Rarity looked at the rifle she had picked up, a little blue interface with the number two on it. Fluttershy rushed over to the man while Twilight took a look at her surroundings. Bodies, bodies everywhere. Not just the civilians this time but soldiers as well and only the occasional dead grunt. "All these people..." Rarity muttered, looking at a dead soldier; her bloody rifle next to her. "If only we got here sooner..." Rainbow Dash muttered. The rooftop gave them a view of the city. Buildings destroyed, some of them on fire, Banshees firing at the soldiers on some of the rooftops. Covenant aircrafts flying in and out. The large corvette hovering above the city and shooting down civilian transport. The smoke was beginning to cloud the sky, painting it like a canvas coat. "Where's the... pelican?" Pinkie asked, looking around, a sad look on her face. "The evac... are they-" "Destroyed..." The human answered, cutting off Applejack and making everypony turn to him; except Twilight as she continued to stare at the destruction of the city. He had a strange foreign accent and spoke in broken English, he slowly picked himself off the ground, Fluttershy there to support him. "Just like everywhere else." He spat out, looking at the city. A moment of silence passed, Twilight rips her gaze away from the city; averting it to her friends. "Come on, there's still covenant in the building. We need to leave, now." "Where are we going this time?" Dash questioned. "We were supposed to be getting rescued here!" She waited for an answer. Everyone looking to the side or staring off into space, a contemplative yet lost frown on their faces. "We'll look for another evacuation point, somewhere where the military is." Twilight finally answered after a few moments. "I can teleport us across the buildings, hopefully we won't get ambushed by any of the covenant." The man gave her and the rest of the mane six a confused frown. "Wait, hold on a second... just what exactly a-are you?" "In short, we're a species called ponies. Pegasi, Unicorn and Earth ponies." She gestured to her friends as she said their sub-species before pointing to her self. "Me, in particular? I'm an alicorn. We have to move before the rest of the covenant finds out we're still here." The man nodded. "My name is Marq and uh... thank you for saving me... for what it's worth..." he trailed off, looking at the rest of the bodies around him. Twilight followed his line of sight and felt the wave of guilt come back; wishing she had gotten to the top sooner. "It was the least I could do. Alright, everypony huddle up!" Everyone did so and soon after the group vanished in a flash of light. Author's Note Bro, I'm so trash when it comes to staying consistent. Perhaps, I shouldn't spend too much time editing? The Fallen KnightAt this point, the city of Alexandria was destroyed. No amount of repair would be able to fix this much damage. It was irreversible with the surface being glassed and buildings being destroyed; you're better off constructing a new city from the ground up. You could use the city as a beacon from space, a warning to not step foot on this planet. An S.O.S. in the midst of a foggy night storm. Instead of lights lighting up the city, it was the flames. They were the ones keeping the city lit. Twilight and her friends along with Marq; the human they met up with back at the evacuation point had sought shelter in one of the tall skyscraper buildings in the city. It was very similar to all the other buildings. Grey walls, marble floors, the neon holograms or signs every now and then. It was quiet for the most part except for the gunfire or plasma fire in the distance. There were also other civilians staying there as well. A small minority of them were against letting the ponies in, shouting obscenities and insults; demanding that they find somewhere else to hide. The majority of them however were mainly scared or concerned, they mainly stuck to their own corners or moved to a different area of the building. When the small minority kept refusing to let them in the building, Marq, in the heat of the moment, had raised his weapon on them. Twilight didn't take too kindly to that as she scolded him for doing so, killing them wasn't going to help their case with the other humans if he had did so. Of course, Marq wasn't going to kill them... or at least, he didn't think so. They were in a desperate situation in that moment. The covenant motherships had already begun glassing the city, there wasn't much places to hide anymore, not even the rooftops were safe. Phantoms and Banshees practically owned the sky now and turrets had been set up on multiple rooftops. The mane six had witnessed it first hoof. When Twilight had teleported to one of the rooftops, one of the carriers had flew over their heads to a distance away. They watched, a dreading anticipation building up as the stomach of the ship slowly charged before an eye-blinding beam shot out; causing the building to rumble. The sheer lighting of the fiery-red beam had turned everything around them into darkness. Everything returned to normal once the carrier was done... The building they had sought shelter in wasn't as damaged as most of the other scrapers in the city. It had shattered windows and debris everywhere but it was much more preferable than being in a building that was burning or was in the process of being destroyed. It also happened to have a bunker in which they were currently occupied in. Twilight stared at the triangle shaped logo that was embedded on one of the walls of the building. "U.N.S.C., Office of Naval Intelligence" it read. She was still heavily reluctant on going back home. She knew Equestria needed their help, all the other ponies and creatures back there needed the elements of harmony but Reach... this whole planet was dying. Not just one country, literally the whole planet was being destroyed! Equestria was one country, not a whole planet. She didn't feel right just leaving all this behind, she didn't even know where they were, in terms of the galaxy. Equis could be on the other side of the universe for all she knew. Twilight was more afraid of not being able to locate the planet once they were off Reach. They leave and then what? How does she know for sure that she would be able to find the planet again? "Twilight," a voice came from behind, she turned to see Marq coming up beside her; laying his rifle against the wall. "How are you doing?" "Fine, least for the moment. How about you?" He sighed through his nose, looking off to the side. "Same, fine I suppose..." "Did... you used to visit this city?" Twilight inquired after a few moments. "You know before the covenant...?" He smirked but Twilight knew it was empty. "No but I always wanted to though." He began nodding. "It's very... beautiful. Quite a sight to see." Twilight's heart dropped. Marq had always wanted to come to New Alexandria and this was his first time witnessing it up close with the flames as decoration and the covenant mercilessly glassing it till the surface was nothing but ash. Marq sighed once more before picking up the rifle and walking away. Twilight looked back at the ONI logo before walking away. She walked over to Applejack who was standing over by the entrance of the bunker, a glazed look in her eye as she stared at the floor. The bunkers' iron bulk doors hadn't been shut yet, the room before it was rubble. The roof had a hole blown through it, letting the rain rush in. A set of two elevators were at the very end of the room, debris and rubble was scattered everywhere. "Hey Applejack," Twilight greeted. "Twi'." The two silently stood side by side for a moment. "When we're done with Cozy and all that... we're still comin' back right?" Applejack suddenly asked, still not tearing her gaze from the floor. Twilight answered almost instantly. "Yeah, of course." The farm pony nodded. If she wanted to say anything else, she didn't. "You... don't think we should?" Applejack shook her head. "It ain't that. Just wanted to make sure we were comin' back is all." "I don't think I would be able to live with myself if I had just up and abandoned everyone here." "Me neither." Applejack paused, a worrisome frown flashed across her features. "Do you think... actually, never mind." "What? No, wait. What'd you wanna ask?" Twilight urged on. "Ah was just... wonderin' if you think Reach will still be here once we're done with Cozy." Twilight didn't want to think about it. With how fast the covenant was destroying Reach, somewhere deep down she had an inkling that the planet would be long gone by the time they were done with Cozy, Chrysalis and Tirek. It could possibly take days if not, weeks before they got everything situated back at home and at this rate? They didn't have a week. "I-I hope so... but regardless... whether Reach is still here or not, we're still gonna help out. The humans, I mean." she finally answered. Applejack nodded. "Ah just hope the covenant never find Equis... 'cause ah doubt we would even last a few days." Twilight gulped, a dreadful feeling in her stomach as she saw the dark look in her friend's eyes. An abrupt ear-shattering explosion occurred somewhere within the building causing it to shake. Everyone started to panic, questions being asked simultaneously as some of the civilians scattered further into the bunker, away from the entrance. "What was that!?" Applejack exclaimed. "The covenant." Rainbow grunted, coming up to them with an angered yet exhausted look on her face. "Who else?" Rarity hurried over while Pinkie stayed with Fluttershy who was lying against the wall. Twilight frantically looked around as the sound of a phantom echoed throughout the building and suddenly a large glare fell through the hole in the roof in the other room; the hum of the phantom seemingly much closer now. She suddenly felt light on her hooves when she realized the covenant was right above them and at any moment now they would be sending in troops to clear out the building. "Uh... uhh, does anypony-anyone know how to close this!?" She gestured at the bulk doors of the bunker. Marq came over with his rifle. "We have to figure it out soon, there's not much ammo in here either." He gestured at his rifle. "You started this!" An angry voice shouted. One of the humans, a young man with short brown hair was coming over to the group of ponies; Applejack and Rainbow already on their defensive stances. "You parasites lead them right to us!" "Hey backup!" Rainbow said. "You overgrown rats! This is exactly why we should've never let you in in the place!" Rainbow began shouting and hurling insults at the man. Twilight was just about to intervene when she heard a faint hiss. She turned to the other room to see multiple figures, all suited in some type of armor she had never seen before. Covered from head to toe. They had differences that being the color and couple of other features but for the most part; it was the same armor. The figures appeared to be human as they were shaped like one. "Maybe but according to Holland the covenant-" "Commander!" One of the armored knights said as it pulled a rifle at a shockingly alarming speed from it's back and aimed it over at the equines. Twilight threw up a shield around her and everyone that was close enough immediately after. The unnerving skull shaped carving on the knights' helmet made her shake viciously as the knights came closer. "Emile, hold your fire! Civilians, up ahead!" The one in blue armor shouted as they made it into the room; the equines taking multiple steps back, nearly hitting the wall behind them. There were still two more knights coming in. "Where does he get off on calling a demolition op priority one-" And right as they came into the contact with the glare that was coming in through the roof, a purple dart shot through the air, creating a sharp whizz throughout the area. The knight in aqua-colored armor suddenly fell to the ground, motionless. The knight who was running beside their fallen comrade pulled a weapon from it's holster and began firing up at the phantom hovering above the hole in the roof. The other knights quickly withdrew their rifles and began firing too. When the phantom flew away, the knight tossed away the gun and began dragging it's fallen comrade into the bunker. "Come on, come on, get in!" "Let's go, come on!" "Close the doors! Faster!" One of the civilians exclaimed. The equines watched in shock as the knight finally made it into the bunker; the doors had already begun closing. Twilight looked at the deceased knight. This one was smaller in terms of body structure, aqua-colored armor and the unicorn focused on the hole that punctured through the knight's helmet. The civilians were still in a panic, only slightly calming down when the knights came into the bunker; everyone looked on the scene, at the dead spartan. A state of shock and disbelief. It was a common belief that spartans, these supersoldiers; unstoppable killing machines were unkillable but here; a spartan laid dead right in front of them. One second, she was alive, sprinting and communicating and the next... she was shot in the head. That was the end of that. Nothing else came after. The equines gingerly followed the knights out to an opening in the wall that was blown in; they were still somewhere high above off ground level as there was nothing but fog below. The olive-colored knight pulled something from the holster that was attatched to his thigh. He made some type of motion with hand before the object lit up with a spark followed by blue smoke. The group of knights all stood silently. Twilight wanted to ask something but given the circumstances? She as well, stayed silent. It wasn't until a few moments, she saw something in the distance growing bigger and bigger. It was a pelican. The civilians waited in the back. The pelican had arrived, slowly backing into the opening of the wall to allow the knights and the rest of the civlians on baorad. Once everyone gotten onboard, the pelican accelerated into a full motion, the door closing. Through the small window on the shutter, the buildings of the city grew distant and carriers that hovered above it. The last thing the equines saw before looking away was the charge of a covenant carrier; ready to begin it's one of many glassing ordeals. Twilight glanced at each of the knights. Her eyes landed on the blue knight in particular who was still carrying his fallen comrade. She contemplated for a moment and sighed. Well, at least they made contact with the military now...
From Worse To HopelessA lightning-like spark ignited on the corvette as if it were trying to start up something. Not a moment later, a giant dark-wined circle of what Twilight assumed to be a large mass of electricity and energy manifested around the ship, causing an ear-shattering crunch accompanied by a minor quake. It lasted for a mere second before it suddenly disappeared, taking the entire mid-section of the ship which was known as the "covenant cruiser" along with it. An upbeat roar from the citizens of Reach came afterwards, mutual praise and uplifting chatter. Twilight hated feeling this way. She couldn't feel anything for the... covenant. As far as she knew, and given her previous encounters with them, they were nothing but cold-blooded murderers. Just things that did nothing but kill on sight. That was only reinforced when she heard about the invasion. Their plan to wipe out humans completely, off of the face of this planet. To destroy every living sentient being that lived here. "Glassing" humanity called it. In further detail, the large purple-assumingly-metal ship in the sky had a weapon. A plasma beam that shot out from the mid-section to destroy a large quantity of... well, everything living within a radius. Melting everything... Why? Twilight couldn't figure it out. What was their goal? What were they trying to accomplish? What did the humans do the covenant? That has yet to be explained. She didn't find anything that would warrant destruction of an entire planet. With all her teachings in friendship and how important it is to forgive somepony, she could not find it in herself to carry it out. She hated feeling that way. Finding satisfaction in the demise of another living being but she couldn't help it. She could almost say that they deserved it... Her first contact with the humans upon arrival was... unpleasant and still sometimes is but she couldn't blame them. She wouldn't, she understood why they would be hostile toward her. She knew if the roles were reversed, they would be just as reluctant. She remembered when they first met Thorax, they easily chopped him up to be just another changeling. When they first made contact with the covenant, she was instantly met with hostility that nearly got Rainbow Dash killed. The aliens known as "elites" had fired rapid projectiles at her. Twilight presumed it was plasma. They've killed many humans and she was lucky enough to still have magic in order to stop them. They would escape just barely on multiple occasions because of Twilight; if not for her magic. She had tried reasoning with the covenant but it was futile. The language they spoke was entirely foreign even using a translation spell didn't help. After that encounter, she could safely say she really didn't have any sympathy or pity for them. You can't give sympathy to something that killed indiscriminately. She glowered at the burning cruiser, descending toward the atmosphere. Twilight, along with her friends were standing on the balcony of a hotel room in a city called "New Alexandria"; all staring up at the sky. Ever since they had been dumped here on this planet by Cozy Glow's lack of control in alicorn magic, they were met with hostility at every turn. From both humanity and the covenant. Although hostile, humanity was quick to realize that they were not the enemy. Here, stuck and powerless to do anything about the state of Equestria. Not able to be there to stop Tirek, Chrysalis and Cozy Glow from ruling and most likely destroying the land. Everything had felt so hopeless, it felt like they were fighting a battle they already lost. Not only was Equestria in danger but so was Reach. That was until the cruiser was destroyed. During the midst of utter chaos and the potential loss of Equestria, Twilight still find the ability to content, to be satisfied and relieved that at least some good was happening somewhere even if it wasn't for Equestria. Despite their current predicament, the mane six was uplifted the moment the cruiser was destroyed. At least now, they had a chance at fending off the invasion. Fluttershy and Pinkie Pie believed that the covenant could be reasoned with and that killing them wasn't the solution. Applejack and Rainbow disagreed entirely. You can't reason with these genocidal maniacs, besides that, you couldn't even communicate with them. Rainbow and Applejack agreed that this was what the covenant deserved, perhaps way more. Twilight didn't care what happened to the covenant, as long as everypony was safe, she couldn't care less. Rarity felt the same way. The carrier was falling from the sky. Fluttershy was quivering, being held close by Pinkie Pie. Rarity and Twilight frowning and Applejack and Rainbow had scowls on their faces. Everypony was silent, a feeling of relief passing through them. Citizens from numerous buildings were all looking up at the sky, cheering and giving praise. Rarity spotted a small family. A little girl with her mother carrying a baby, she was pointing up at the sky jumping up and down excitedly. Rarity couldn't help but smile at them. A few moments past then something else happened. Something that completely ripped away every morsel of hope. Every sense of relief. There was a small flash of light then there it was. Seemingly out of nowhere another cruiser appeared, almost like an exact replica of the one that had just been destroyed. Then another flash... then another... and another... …and soon enough; there was a whole fleet of covenant cruisers that had appeared within a span of five seconds. The cruiser that was destroyed was but a fraction of the fleet. Barely made a dent and suddenly everyone knew how this was going to end. "Come on. We should get ready." Twilight said, everypony turned toward her. Rainbow frowned, flying up in the air. "Ready for what? You see what's going on up there?" She gestured toward the fleet, staining the sky. Rarity stepped forward, a grim look on her face. "I have to say that I'm also somewhat confused darling. What exactly are we supposed to do?" "Leave, evacuate, help humanity. There's not much we can do but..." Twilight's eyes downcast. "...we have to help somehow..." Fluttershy stayed silent. Everypony did until she spoke up. "W-what about Equestria?" Twilight sighed. "Yeah... that too but... we can't just leave while all of... this-" She gestured toward the fleet. "-is happening." They were already on course for Reach, what looked like birds in a flock descended from the cruisers. They all knew that they weren't birds... It appeared to be a still image but if you looked long enough, they would gradually grow bigger. "I-I mean, what if the covenant found Equis? This is bigger than just Equestria." "Yes, you are right and that's noble of you but I still don't understand how we're supposed to stop all of this." Rarity repeated. The Citizens of Reach were already scattering, yelling, screaming. Hugging their loved ones. Twilight left the balcony and the others followed. The sounds of rapid but muffled footsteps, chatter and scuttling was heard through the walls. "We may not be able to do much but we can at least try to find a way to send a message back to Equestria." "Not to burst your bubble, 'Twi but ah think it's best to try and figure out how to get home first before we start worryin' about things we can't control." Applejack solemnly said. "We have to focus on Cozy Glow and the others first and then we can figure out what to do about Reach." Twilight paused in front of the door, frowning. She was right, Equestria was still in trouble but there were also people here. People that needed help and she said it herself. There wasn't much six ponies could do but if a whole nation were to help out... She sighed, she would have to think about this later. Right now, they needed to find a place that would hide them from the covenant. As Twilight pulled the door open with her magic, someone ran past the room, slight wind hitting her face then a few others past by. The ponies left the room and ran past the hall, some of the citizens noticed them, some screamed at them but most ignored them and quickly left to do their own thing. They were planning on taking the elevator but all were either already being used or full. They detoured toward the stairs but only to discover that it was also packed with frantic citizens. There were screams, mixed chatter and the tapping of shoes hitting the floor. "Everypony, hang on." An aura smoothly formed around Twilight's horn and in a flash, they were soon found at the lobby of the building. It was the same here, people with backpacks, families and scared children exiting the complex. They made their way toward the doors, people shoving into them as they did so. As she was exiting the hotel, Fluttershy caught sight of a little girl who was still in the lobby. She was crying, standing in a sea of people that were swarming past her. They were all ignoring her. The pegasus ran back into the lobby, not knowing her friends were already outside. She ran over to the girl. "H-hey!" She called out, waving her hoof as she approached. The little girl noticed her, bloodshot-puffy eyes and tear-streaked cheeks. "A-are you okay? Are you lost?" She nodded. "M-m-my mom, I-I don't know where she is." "O-oh, okay. It's okay, we'll find her uh..." the pegasus searched for her friends, only to be face to face with a wall of people rushing past her. She glanced back at the girl. "We'll look outside m-maybe she's out there. Do you wanna do that?" The child nodded yes. Fluttershy smiled reassuringly before gently ushering her forward, to the exit doors. Through the cracks in the sea of people, she saw Rainbow hovering in the air. She was looking for her. Once they neared the doors, The element of Kindness turned at the girl. "Don't worry, I'm sure she's out here somewhere." With a squeeze, they finally left the complex and Fluttershy saw Twilight and her friends a few yards away from the building. They weren't moving and by the erratic gestures they were displaying, Fluttershy could tell they were worried about where she was. She was about to run over to them when she remembered the little girl with her. "Is your mother out here somewhere?" She inquired, scanning around the area, buildings stacked up against each other. The sounds of motors being fired up, a mob of people fleeing in every direction. It wasn't long before her eyes caught something in the sky. The birds they saw from earlier had abnormally grown into a strange like flying purple object in the sky. It was closing in faster than she was able to process. The only thing she made out was the sharp wings protruding from either side when a ball, in the color of sea foam and made from fire, shot out from it's mouth; sending it hurling toward her...
Evacuation Center...On their way to the hospital tower, a glowing blue asterisk with a syringe logo on it, Twilight caught a glimpse of the sky. Although, the sun was still out, a wide array of dark smoke clouds painted a large part of the sky. A large vessel of purple hovered above the burning city. What Twilight presumed to be anti-air bullets, fired up at the large mass of alien metal only to be met with no result. The ship seemed indestructible. Nothing was working. Everything humanity threw at it failed. The cruiser only soaked up the damage. If this was happening here then she was sure that every other battle on Reach was the same. The sounds of gunfire and explosions was deafening. The howling of the wraith's blasts. Civilians were rushing to the evacuation point, their bags packed and kids clutching to their parents in fear. All of them ignored the six ponies travelling beside them. Twilight wasn't sure if they should head to the evac point due to humanity already being under fire by a coalition of alien species. Their initial plan was to head to a safe area, somewhere out of the city but when they saw the endless waves of covenant patrolling through the streets and the constant firing of weapons from both humanity and the covenant; the odds of getting out of there with no injuries or deaths was impossible. She saw a few marines directing the citizens into the buildings, shouting for them to get to the roof. Something along the lines of a pelican ready for take off. Twilight sighed. "It's now or never, I suppose... is everypony ready?" she asked, turning to her friends. They all look drained, postures hunched over and dirt all over their fur. Her eyes landed on Fluttershy in particular. Her mane was a tangled mess with blood. A significant amount had been burnt off, she looked the worst out of the group. Nearly half of her body was baked in burns and gashes. She had to be supported by Rainbow Dash to keep her moving. When the bomb shot out from that covenant aircraft and hit the ground; it left Fluttershy unconscious. There was barely enough time for Twilight to teleport over to her when the aircraft came around again. When the pegasus came to, she asked about a little girl that she was apparently with to which Twilight had morbidly replied. "What girl?" The pegasus broke down after she asked that. The unicorn never saw a little girl with the pegasus. It was just her. "I doubt we'll ever be ready..." Rarity replied as she trudged beside Twilight. Twilight sighed but quickly became unnerved when one of the marines glance at her. A man with a beard. She watched the flash of alert on his face, the fidget of his weapon, it was lowered but still aimed in their direction as he watched them approach. She gave a worried wave. "Uh e-excuse me?" The marine's eyes widen. "The hell?" He muttered, his face was between a grimace and a disgusted expression. He was still slightly alerted, Twilight could blatantly see that. "I-I... we were wondering if you could help us?" Twilight took a ginger step toward the soldier. He looked at her for a moment. "...With what? What even are you anyway?" "W-we're... we're ponies... sir." "Okay. What exactly did you need help with?" "Hey!" Another solider came over, this one was female. She was holding a weapon that had a sharper barrel to it and a scope. "What is that?" She pointed at the ponies. "Ponies... apparently." The previous marine answered. "They need help." The female marine sighed in frustration. "Oh lord... we don't have time to save animals. There are civies here, that we need to evac, now!" "I-I understand that ma'am." Twilight said, stepping toward the marine. "W-we were just wondering if we could... m-maybe come along too?" Seeing the marine's stunned look, she quickly continued. "We aren't from this planet, w-we had a... complication... back at home a-and now here we are." She deliberately gave a broad explanation, too much to explain and not enough time. The female marine looked at her for a moment longer then at her friends. "What sort of complication?" Twilight opened her mouth but nothing came out. She glanced at the civilians who were still being directed into the building by a couple of other marines. "I-I... we just need help getting out-" "Well, until you give me an answer, you aren't going nowhere. For all I know, you could start firing on the civilians the second you walk into-" "Look, I'm pretty sure they're not covenant." The male marine said. "If they were, they would've done something by now." "It's not about them being covenant. It's about keeping these aliens rats the hell away from my people." She snapped. The bearded marine sighed before laying his hand on her shoulder; ushering her away. "Alright, Jan, just focus on getting the civilians out, alright? I'll deal with them." "Deal with them? As in, 'letting them go to the evac zone' deal with them or...?" "Just go help out the civies, okay?" She feigned a smirk. "Okay, sure. I'll do just that." She threw a glare at Twilight before walking away and began guiding the civilians into the building once more. "Don't blame her... she's lost... a few." The marine explained, looking crestfallen. "It's okay, we understand." "It's not exactly my decision, so I'm gonna have to radio command to grant you guys access." Twilight nodded. The marine's hand went to his helmet and he suddenly began speaking as if he were talking to somepony, much to Twilight's confusion. "There's, uh, six non-hostile aliens here. No, they're not with the covenant. No, no, no weapons." After a few moments, the soldier finally nodded before returning his gaze back to the ponies. "Alright, they agreed to let you through. Just go into the building, head to the roof there's gonna be a pelican there waiting-" He suddenly stopped, Twilight caught the look in his eye. The switch from calm and collected to fear and desperation. She quickly turned to see a large purple metal ship rapidly closing on on their location. Instantly, she knew it was the covenant but the ship was shaped differently. It was in the shape of a long fork, the gap between them had a strange field of aqua-colored energy. "Dropship... Dropship! Covenant Dropship inbound! Everybody get to the roof now!" He barked as he raised his rifle and began firing. The "dropship" began to descend, a strange object attached to the bottom-front of it pointed in their direction and Twilight immediately got a gut feeling something was about to happen. The unicorn quickly manifested a shield around her friends and the soldier. The object on the dropship began firing it's rounds at them but ended up doing nothing; merely penetrating the shield with heavy force causing the ground beneath them to start shaking. The soldier turned to Twilight, an expression of utter confusion and amazement. He noticed the aura floating around the unicorn's horn. He turned back to the battlefield that was now scattered with civilians. The dropship hovered a few feet off the ground, covenant pouring out from the forks of the ship. Brutes and grunts. "Oh lord," the soldier muttered. He saw his fellow squadmates struggling to provide cover fire for the entrance as the covenant began laying down heavy fire. The shield was now being penetrated by green plasma fire as a few of the grunts began closing in. "Okay, here's what's gonna happen. This shield's gonna come down, as soon as that happens, all of you are gonna run straight into the building. Got it!?" He said, readying his weapon and posture. "W-what about you?" Fluttershy asked, stepping closer to him; voice hoarse. "We can't just leave you here on your own!" Rarity added. "I won't be, my teammates are out there and they need my help. Just do what I told you!" He barked. "Okay, three, two... one. Now!" As the shield dissipated, the soldier began firing while Twilight and her friends made a dash for the building. Twilight had kept her shield up for them as they ran into the building. The doors slammed shut, the lobby was empty; a few backpacks were discarded and clothes everywhere. There was an escalator and a set of stairs. They could still hear the gunfire outside. The group went toward the escalator. Once reaching the top, on both sides were four elevators; all in use. "We just left them out there..." Pinkie Pie suddenly muttered. "There weren't nothin' we coulda done, sugarcube." "We need to get to the roof as soon as possible. They could be leaving without us!" Rainbow exclaimed. Twilight suddenly felt a surge of alert as her pegasus friend pointed that out. She was right. The covenant were here and they were attacking the evacuation zone, they wouldn't wait around for any stragglers if they were being attacked. The unicorn took another look at the elevators, all of them still in use. She quickly scanned around for any set of stairs or any signs that indicated toward a set of stairs. Her eyes landed on a white sign with a red image of a stickman running up a flight of stairs. "There!" The muffled gunfire outside the building had stopped but the growls of brutes could be heard. Twilight didn't stop to pay attention. They continued their way up the stairs, the sounds of brutes, gunfire and plasma fire echoed throughout the building. Twilight prayed that they wouldn't run into them. The worst part was the screaming, families, children all being slaughtered in cold-blood. Twilight saw a set of doors with tinted windows. She saw a brute holding a struggling human by the neck and a pack of jackals. She burst through the door, using a magic barrier and shoved the brute over to the ledge. The human fell to the ground, coughing and gasping for air. The jackals were already aiming their weapons at the unicorn but Twilight saw them immediately and manifested a shield of magic to block the incoming bolts of green plasma. While still keeping the shield up, Twilight managed to levitate the human over to her to keep him from getting shot. As the jackals continued their fire, a flash of Rainbow took one of the jackals out; momentarily leaving the remaining jackals stunned. Twilight took the opportunity to shove the rest of them off the building, their screams echoing on the way down. She turned back to check on the human only to be shoved harshly into the ground below her; forehead hitting the pavement at full force. It took a moment to register what had just happened, stunned and confused; she turned to see Applejack engaging into combat with the brute from earlier. She was holding her own for a few seconds, dodging and offering a few kicks in when one of the brute's hands had connected with her face; sending her to the floor. The brute was a mere second away from finishing her off when he sudden burst of gunfire began hitting the ape. It turned and saw the white unicorn; a rifle hovering in mid-air firing at him. It began charging toward her at an alarming rate, forcing the elegant mare to back up. It was a few feet away when it suddenly jumped up and was about to deliver a devastating blow to the mare when it suddenly became stuck in mid-way. A purple aura formed around the brute before it was flung from the building entirely. Twilight panted, struggling to get back up; her head still aching from the impact. Rarity looked at the rifle she had picked up, a little blue interface with the number two on it. Fluttershy rushed over to the man while Twilight took a look at her surroundings. Bodies, bodies everywhere. Not just the civilians this time but soldiers as well and only the occasional dead grunt. "All these people..." Rarity muttered, looking at a dead soldier; her bloody rifle next to her. "If only we got here sooner..." Rainbow Dash muttered. The rooftop gave them a view of the city. Buildings destroyed, some of them on fire, Banshees firing at the soldiers on some of the rooftops. Covenant aircrafts flying in and out. The large corvette hovering above the city and shooting down civilian transport. The smoke was beginning to cloud the sky, painting it like a canvas coat. "Where's the... pelican?" Pinkie asked, looking around, a sad look on her face. "The evac... are they-" "Destroyed..." The human answered, cutting off Applejack and making everypony turn to him; except Twilight as she continued to stare at the destruction of the city. He had a strange foreign accent and spoke in broken English, he slowly picked himself off the ground, Fluttershy there to support him. "Just like everywhere else." He spat out, looking at the city. A moment of silence passed, Twilight rips her gaze away from the city; averting it to her friends. "Come on, there's still covenant in the building. We need to leave, now." "Where are we going this time?" Dash questioned. "We were supposed to be getting rescued here!" She waited for an answer. Everyone looking to the side or staring off into space, a contemplative yet lost frown on their faces. "We'll look for another evacuation point, somewhere where the military is." Twilight finally answered after a few moments. "I can teleport us across the buildings, hopefully we won't get ambushed by any of the covenant." The man gave her and the rest of the mane six a confused frown. "Wait, hold on a second... just what exactly a-are you?" "In short, we're a species called ponies. Pegasi, Unicorn and Earth ponies." She gestured to her friends as she said their sub-species before pointing to her self. "Me, in particular? I'm an alicorn. We have to move before the rest of the covenant finds out we're still here." The man nodded. "My name is Marq and uh... thank you for saving me... for what it's worth..." he trailed off, looking at the rest of the bodies around him. Twilight followed his line of sight and felt the wave of guilt come back; wishing she had gotten to the top sooner. "It was the least I could do. Alright, everypony huddle up!" Everyone did so and soon after the group vanished in a flash of light. Author's Note Bro, I'm so trash when it comes to staying consistent. Perhaps, I shouldn't spend too much time editing?
The Fallen KnightAt this point, the city of Alexandria was destroyed. No amount of repair would be able to fix this much damage. It was irreversible with the surface being glassed and buildings being destroyed; you're better off constructing a new city from the ground up. You could use the city as a beacon from space, a warning to not step foot on this planet. An S.O.S. in the midst of a foggy night storm. Instead of lights lighting up the city, it was the flames. They were the ones keeping the city lit. Twilight and her friends along with Marq; the human they met up with back at the evacuation point had sought shelter in one of the tall skyscraper buildings in the city. It was very similar to all the other buildings. Grey walls, marble floors, the neon holograms or signs every now and then. It was quiet for the most part except for the gunfire or plasma fire in the distance. There were also other civilians staying there as well. A small minority of them were against letting the ponies in, shouting obscenities and insults; demanding that they find somewhere else to hide. The majority of them however were mainly scared or concerned, they mainly stuck to their own corners or moved to a different area of the building. When the small minority kept refusing to let them in the building, Marq, in the heat of the moment, had raised his weapon on them. Twilight didn't take too kindly to that as she scolded him for doing so, killing them wasn't going to help their case with the other humans if he had did so. Of course, Marq wasn't going to kill them... or at least, he didn't think so. They were in a desperate situation in that moment. The covenant motherships had already begun glassing the city, there wasn't much places to hide anymore, not even the rooftops were safe. Phantoms and Banshees practically owned the sky now and turrets had been set up on multiple rooftops. The mane six had witnessed it first hoof. When Twilight had teleported to one of the rooftops, one of the carriers had flew over their heads to a distance away. They watched, a dreading anticipation building up as the stomach of the ship slowly charged before an eye-blinding beam shot out; causing the building to rumble. The sheer lighting of the fiery-red beam had turned everything around them into darkness. Everything returned to normal once the carrier was done... The building they had sought shelter in wasn't as damaged as most of the other scrapers in the city. It had shattered windows and debris everywhere but it was much more preferable than being in a building that was burning or was in the process of being destroyed. It also happened to have a bunker in which they were currently occupied in. Twilight stared at the triangle shaped logo that was embedded on one of the walls of the building. "U.N.S.C., Office of Naval Intelligence" it read. She was still heavily reluctant on going back home. She knew Equestria needed their help, all the other ponies and creatures back there needed the elements of harmony but Reach... this whole planet was dying. Not just one country, literally the whole planet was being destroyed! Equestria was one country, not a whole planet. She didn't feel right just leaving all this behind, she didn't even know where they were, in terms of the galaxy. Equis could be on the other side of the universe for all she knew. Twilight was more afraid of not being able to locate the planet once they were off Reach. They leave and then what? How does she know for sure that she would be able to find the planet again? "Twilight," a voice came from behind, she turned to see Marq coming up beside her; laying his rifle against the wall. "How are you doing?" "Fine, least for the moment. How about you?" He sighed through his nose, looking off to the side. "Same, fine I suppose..." "Did... you used to visit this city?" Twilight inquired after a few moments. "You know before the covenant...?" He smirked but Twilight knew it was empty. "No but I always wanted to though." He began nodding. "It's very... beautiful. Quite a sight to see." Twilight's heart dropped. Marq had always wanted to come to New Alexandria and this was his first time witnessing it up close with the flames as decoration and the covenant mercilessly glassing it till the surface was nothing but ash. Marq sighed once more before picking up the rifle and walking away. Twilight looked back at the ONI logo before walking away. She walked over to Applejack who was standing over by the entrance of the bunker, a glazed look in her eye as she stared at the floor. The bunkers' iron bulk doors hadn't been shut yet, the room before it was rubble. The roof had a hole blown through it, letting the rain rush in. A set of two elevators were at the very end of the room, debris and rubble was scattered everywhere. "Hey Applejack," Twilight greeted. "Twi'." The two silently stood side by side for a moment. "When we're done with Cozy and all that... we're still comin' back right?" Applejack suddenly asked, still not tearing her gaze from the floor. Twilight answered almost instantly. "Yeah, of course." The farm pony nodded. If she wanted to say anything else, she didn't. "You... don't think we should?" Applejack shook her head. "It ain't that. Just wanted to make sure we were comin' back is all." "I don't think I would be able to live with myself if I had just up and abandoned everyone here." "Me neither." Applejack paused, a worrisome frown flashed across her features. "Do you think... actually, never mind." "What? No, wait. What'd you wanna ask?" Twilight urged on. "Ah was just... wonderin' if you think Reach will still be here once we're done with Cozy." Twilight didn't want to think about it. With how fast the covenant was destroying Reach, somewhere deep down she had an inkling that the planet would be long gone by the time they were done with Cozy, Chrysalis and Tirek. It could possibly take days if not, weeks before they got everything situated back at home and at this rate? They didn't have a week. "I-I hope so... but regardless... whether Reach is still here or not, we're still gonna help out. The humans, I mean." she finally answered. Applejack nodded. "Ah just hope the covenant never find Equis... 'cause ah doubt we would even last a few days." Twilight gulped, a dreadful feeling in her stomach as she saw the dark look in her friend's eyes. An abrupt ear-shattering explosion occurred somewhere within the building causing it to shake. Everyone started to panic, questions being asked simultaneously as some of the civilians scattered further into the bunker, away from the entrance. "What was that!?" Applejack exclaimed. "The covenant." Rainbow grunted, coming up to them with an angered yet exhausted look on her face. "Who else?" Rarity hurried over while Pinkie stayed with Fluttershy who was lying against the wall. Twilight frantically looked around as the sound of a phantom echoed throughout the building and suddenly a large glare fell through the hole in the roof in the other room; the hum of the phantom seemingly much closer now. She suddenly felt light on her hooves when she realized the covenant was right above them and at any moment now they would be sending in troops to clear out the building. "Uh... uhh, does anypony-anyone know how to close this!?" She gestured at the bulk doors of the bunker. Marq came over with his rifle. "We have to figure it out soon, there's not much ammo in here either." He gestured at his rifle. "You started this!" An angry voice shouted. One of the humans, a young man with short brown hair was coming over to the group of ponies; Applejack and Rainbow already on their defensive stances. "You parasites lead them right to us!" "Hey backup!" Rainbow said. "You overgrown rats! This is exactly why we should've never let you in in the place!" Rainbow began shouting and hurling insults at the man. Twilight was just about to intervene when she heard a faint hiss. She turned to the other room to see multiple figures, all suited in some type of armor she had never seen before. Covered from head to toe. They had differences that being the color and couple of other features but for the most part; it was the same armor. The figures appeared to be human as they were shaped like one. "Maybe but according to Holland the covenant-" "Commander!" One of the armored knights said as it pulled a rifle at a shockingly alarming speed from it's back and aimed it over at the equines. Twilight threw up a shield around her and everyone that was close enough immediately after. The unnerving skull shaped carving on the knights' helmet made her shake viciously as the knights came closer. "Emile, hold your fire! Civilians, up ahead!" The one in blue armor shouted as they made it into the room; the equines taking multiple steps back, nearly hitting the wall behind them. There were still two more knights coming in. "Where does he get off on calling a demolition op priority one-" And right as they came into the contact with the glare that was coming in through the roof, a purple dart shot through the air, creating a sharp whizz throughout the area. The knight in aqua-colored armor suddenly fell to the ground, motionless. The knight who was running beside their fallen comrade pulled a weapon from it's holster and began firing up at the phantom hovering above the hole in the roof. The other knights quickly withdrew their rifles and began firing too. When the phantom flew away, the knight tossed away the gun and began dragging it's fallen comrade into the bunker. "Come on, come on, get in!" "Let's go, come on!" "Close the doors! Faster!" One of the civilians exclaimed. The equines watched in shock as the knight finally made it into the bunker; the doors had already begun closing. Twilight looked at the deceased knight. This one was smaller in terms of body structure, aqua-colored armor and the unicorn focused on the hole that punctured through the knight's helmet. The civilians were still in a panic, only slightly calming down when the knights came into the bunker; everyone looked on the scene, at the dead spartan. A state of shock and disbelief. It was a common belief that spartans, these supersoldiers; unstoppable killing machines were unkillable but here; a spartan laid dead right in front of them. One second, she was alive, sprinting and communicating and the next... she was shot in the head. That was the end of that. Nothing else came after. The equines gingerly followed the knights out to an opening in the wall that was blown in; they were still somewhere high above off ground level as there was nothing but fog below. The olive-colored knight pulled something from the holster that was attatched to his thigh. He made some type of motion with hand before the object lit up with a spark followed by blue smoke. The group of knights all stood silently. Twilight wanted to ask something but given the circumstances? She as well, stayed silent. It wasn't until a few moments, she saw something in the distance growing bigger and bigger. It was a pelican. The civilians waited in the back. The pelican had arrived, slowly backing into the opening of the wall to allow the knights and the rest of the civlians on baorad. Once everyone gotten onboard, the pelican accelerated into a full motion, the door closing. Through the small window on the shutter, the buildings of the city grew distant and carriers that hovered above it. The last thing the equines saw before looking away was the charge of a covenant carrier; ready to begin it's one of many glassing ordeals. Twilight glanced at each of the knights. Her eyes landed on the blue knight in particular who was still carrying his fallen comrade. She contemplated for a moment and sighed. Well, at least they made contact with the military now...
