Version: 2
Chipped Chisel was a large stallion with chocolate brown fur and a short, messy, rust colored mane and matching tail. He was currently staring in surprise at a human girl in a single piece pink dress. She had been hidden from view until only a moment ago thanks to the old rotting wooden fence post she had been sitting behind. While he was standing a comfortable distance away, she was carelessly dangling her feet over the edge of the cliff. The very cliff the moldy fence was meant to keep people away from.
"You're a pony?" she said in awe.
"Yes," Chisel replied robotically.
For a time they continued to stare at each other. The sound of the ocean waves crashing against the rock face several stories below provided a peaceful ambiance.
"I've never met a pony before," she commented. "What are you doing here?"
The situation suddenly became clear to the soldier. His eyes hardened. "I am Chipped Chisel and I've been deployed here to intercept the approaching kaiju."
"What? A kaiju is coming? And you're going to fight it... here?" she asked while pointing at the ground between them incredulously.
Chisel snorted with amusement. "Of course not. In half an hour the kaiju should be in range for me to snipe it from here."
She blinked in confusion. "Snipe?"
Now it was Chisel who was confused. "Yes. I am a sniper." He pointed to the rifle attached to his back.
It was only now that the two of them took a moment to really study each other. The girl had moderately tanned skin and dark hair. Chisel was never good at guessing human ages, he was a pony after all, but his best guess for her was a young teenager. An adult woman would have been just a tad taller than him while standing and a child would have only come up to his barrel. She was somewhere in-between, so she must have been a teen. Meanwhile the girl wasn't sure what she was looking at. Except for his head and neck, the pony was entirely covered in what looked like a wet suit, but it was camouflage colored like he was trying to hide in a forest. Attached to the uniform were a number of gadgets she couldn't exactly identify. The most prominent was the weapon on Chisel's back which looked a lot like a turret from a tank. On each of his hooves was some kind of dark bracelet with little spikes pointing down towards the ground. Then there was the headpiece he wore which held a mic by his muzzle and a single green lens in front of his right eye. Last, but not least, was the lone onyx gem embedded in the suit over his chest.
The girl was the one who continued the conversation. "I didn't know ponies used... guns."
Again Chisel snorted in amusement. "Well, in a way, it's not really a gun. It doesn't fire bullets. It fires my concentrated magic."
She glanced at his head and his clear lack of a horn. "But you're not a unicorn. I thought only unicorns had magic."
Chisel actually recoiled in astonishment. "You don't know... anything about us ponies?"
She blushed with embarrassment. "We talked about the history of the kaiju and ponies coming to Earth in school... and we see you guys regularly fighting off the kaiju on the news. But it's not like anyone really sits down and explains this stuff."
Chisel felt hurt. He had dedicated his life to protecting humans who knew almost nothing about what he and the other ponies actually did. He sighed and looked out at the crisp ocean where the next threat drew ever nearer.
"Do I have to leave?" she asked suddenly, snapping Chisel out of his moping.
"Standard procedure is for all civilians to evacuate the area or retreat to the nearest shelter until the threat is eliminated." He glanced at her with a raised brow. "You should go."
She brought her knees up to her chest and hugged them as she too looked out at the ocean. "You said it will be here in half an hour?"
"Not here, just in range."
"So by the time I get to a shelter you'll have already killed it?"
Chisel thought about that for a moment. "I... guess."
"Am I actually in danger here? You said it won't reach the shore."
Chisel rolled his eyes. "My gun is very powerful and very loud. You wouldn't want to be too close when I fire."
She peaked at him from the corner of her eye and a playfulness entered her voice. "You didn't order me to leave either. So you can't make me, can you?"
Chisel grumbled. "No. I don't have the time or authority to drag you away. I need to stay here in case the target accelerates or changes course. But I can call my team and have you removed," he threatened while gesturing to his headset with a hoof.
She sighed. "But I've never gotten to see a pony before. In person. Can't I stay and watch?"
Chisel turned back to the empty ocean and chewed on that. Was she in danger? Not really. She wouldn't even be able to see the kaiju when he killed it. And she was right about getting to a shelter. Even if she got in a car now, by the time she reached a "safe place" the kaiju would already be dead. Seemed a bit pointless. However, it was also a bit risky for him to let her stay here.
Eventually he growled and shrugged his shoulders. "Do what you want. Just... realize you're putting your life in danger by sticking around. This is a military operation and things happen."
She grinned. "I'll be fine. You'll protect me."
He looked away to hide his blush and his smile. That famous speech, The Promise, rang through his head. "Yeah. I'll... keep you safe."
They were quiet for a minute or two. Until Chisel got bored. "What's your name?"
"Amada. And you said you were... Chipped Chisel? That's a weird name."
The pony scoffed. "It's a pony name. It's got meaning unlike you humans and your... meaningless names."
She giggled. "So... you said something about using magic even though you're a... terran? Is it offensive to call a pony the wrong race?"
He chuckled. "Some ponies might get mad. I know the thestrals and the ghouls don't like each other much, but you could never mistake a ghoul for anything else. And yeah, I'm a terran. No horn, no wings. Just hooves and muscle."
"So how can you have magic without a horn?"
"All ponies have magic," Chisel began to explain. "It's just that unicorns and astrals have way more than the rest of us and they can cast real spells with it. Terrans, pegasi, thestrals, and ghouls can only cycle the magic within ourselves. We use it to reinforce our bones so they don't break or temporarily power our muscles so we don't get tired."
"Can unicorns and astrals use magic like that?" the girl asked curiously.
Chisel paused. "I'm... not sure. Unicorns and astrals never become martial fighters, but I don't see why they couldn't. I think they'd probably even be better at it because they naturally have more magic to power the effect."
"So how can you use magic then?"
"Magi-tech," Chisel said simply.
"That gear you're wearing?" she queried and pointed at his various gadgets.
He nodded. "The tendency is for unicorns and astrals to have lots of magic while the rest of us have very little. However, now and then one of us non spell slingers will be born with a very large internal magic pool. In the old days that just meant you could become an even stronger terran, but magi-tech lets me break the rules. Now terrans like me, born with way more magic than normal, have another option. This equipment doesn't let me cast real spells, but it does allow me to harness my magic pool and fire it as pure energy bolts. I'm like a fake unicorn," he finished with a mischievous smirk.
She giggled. "You're a sniper."
He snorted. "And I'm glad. When I was young I was always jealous of the unicorns."
Amada's happy demeanor faded. "Why is that?"
Chisel faced the ocean and sighed. "We terrans... are sort of the lowest of the pony races. Pegasi and thestrals can fly. Ghouls have their blades and... that other stuff. Unicorns and astrals have all the spells. What do we terrans get? We're really strong," Chisel grumbled. "It's... it makes you feel trapped. There are four fighting styles you know and we terrans normally don't even get a choice."
The girl shook her head. "Four kinds of martial arts?"
Chisel worked his lips and tried to hold back his groan of annoyance. She really was ignorant of everything pony. "The four fighting styles are: martial, magic, gunner, and abstract. Martial refers to any pony who fights mostly in melee with the kaiju. Like all terrans and ghouls. Magic fighters are any pony who casts spells. Like all unicorns and astrals. Gunners are ponies who can't cast true spells, but use magi-tech to harness their magic pools and fire pure energy. Like me. And Abstract is just another way of saying 'Others'. For ponies whose fighting style or techniques just don't fit well in any other group. Honestly I don't know much about them," Chisel concluded with a shrug.
"Martial fighters are the most common and they always came across as the most... brutish... to me," Chisel tried to explain lamely. "Running up and kicking a kaiju in the face is really brave and all, but it always seemed so... stupid. The magic fighters hang back and hammer the monsters from a distance. They carefully counter the kaiju and whatever abilities it might have with strategy and cunning. Martial fighters just run in and start hitting it. I didn't want to become a martial fighter. I always wanted to wield magic and stop kaiju with my head rather than my dumb muscles. Does that... make sense?"
She nodded sympathetically. "I totally get it. You didn't want to be a meathead."
Chisel smiled. "Yeah. I wanted to fight smart. So when I took my evaluation and they told me I had enough magic to become a gunner... wow," Chisel sighed. "I felt so much relief."
Amada smiled with him. "Do you like sniping kaiju?"
"I'm proud of my job," Chisel proclaimed and stood straighter.
She laughed. "You know, you look like a badass with that camouflage and that cannon on your back."
He snorted. "That's the idea," he replied with a hint of sass. "I'm a soldier."
"How come you don't have a more colorful uniform like the others? Or is that just a 'gunner' thing?"
"You mean, why don't I wear bright neon like the others? Because..." Chisel's voice faded and his face twisted with anger.
"What's wrong?" the girl asked cautiously.
"I... don't want to talk badly about my fellow ponies."
"You don't like the way they dress?"
"I don't like their attitudes," Chisel grit his teeth.
The girl was quiet for a minute. "Do you hate them?"
Chisel sighed, trying to relax his sudden anger. "They're proud... when they shouldn't be."
"Why shouldn't they be? They kill kaiju and save people."
"Do they?" Chisel asked darkly. When he noticed the look of fear on Amada he turned away from her. "Sorry. I just don't agree."
"With what?"
"They like to think of themselves as heroes. Like from those old comic books, you know? They wear bright colors because it makes them stand out. As though killing a kaiju by yourself doesn't already do that," he added with a roll of his eyes. "I like to think of our job as being a bit more serious than that."
"That's why you wear military camouflage. It makes you more serious?"
"I think it sends a better message. I'm here to fight and save lives, not star in the next big action movie."
"I think the bright colors make them look cool."
Chisel hummed thoughtfully. "Maybe."
They sat silently after that. Chisel was frustrated that Amada didn't see the others how he did, while she realized that the stallion was now in a bad mood. So they waited. And waited. Until the radio in Chisel's ear buzzed.
"Miss," Chisel said quickly. "The kaiju is in range and I have to take it out now. I suggest you leave. The shot is going to be loud. It could damage your hearing."
"I want to watch," she insisted while glancing out at the ocean. She didn't see anything.
Chisel wasn't as casual this time. Now that he was about to fire one of the most powerful weapons in the world, he was more concerned about hurting the girl indirectly. But now there was no time to move her. He had to take the shot right now.
"Very well," Chisel relented with a grumble. Then he began walking away from the cliff.
The girl was confused. Where was he going? She stood and moved to follow him after a moment, but then he stopped and spun around. She stopped too. He raised a brow.
"I suggest getting down and covering your ears as hard as you can," he instructed. Then he faced the ocean. It was time.
Chipped Chisel raised a hoof and gently tapped the black stone on his chest. It glowed and a pulse like a heartbeat radiated out from it through the fabric of his uniform. A few seconds passed and then the stallion began to grow. His body expanded and his equipment along with him. From his original height up to two meters. Then three. Then four. He kept growing and growing. Bigger and bigger. His hooves cut into the grass and dirt. His shadow got longer and longer. Amada took a step back and found herself gazing higher and higher. So this is what a pony looked like up close when they used the stones. This was the ultimate weapon created from the fusion of pony magic and human technology. A tool that evened the playing field and turned ponies into giants that could fight a kaiju one-on-one!
When the growth stopped the girl was little more than a Lego figure compared to Chisel. A toy on the ground. But he couldn't focus on that. There was a kaiju out there in the ocean heading for the coast. If it reached a populated area the consequences could be incalculable. The pony spread his hooves and began to channel. Lights on the bracelets that decorated each of his hooves lit up and the spikes extended. They drove down into the soil and anchored the huge equine in place, a counter to the massive recoil of his rifle. Then Chisel lowered his head and the cannon on his back lit up. The barrel lowered until it was pointed straight down the pony's spine and ended just beyond his ears.
Chisel's headset also served as his ear protection so that firing his own weapon didn't leave him deaf.
The inside of the barrel began to glow a bright white. The light then grew brighter and a loud whining noise filled the air. Chisel's headset muted the painful sound a moment later and the stallion carefully aimed with the targeting system built into his eyepiece. The rifle wiggled such tiny amounts back and forth no one would have been able to tell as the pony dialed in his shot. He had to hit the monster while taking into account that it was still moving towards him and at this range even the rotation of the Earth would effect the trajectory. Luckily he didn't have to worry about gravity. His energy bolts would fly straight no matter what.
Finally, he had it. Chisel took a second to warn his audience to cover her ears. Amada did so. He fired.
The pony's whole body was violently jerked back, but his hoof-anchors kept him in place. A beam of light raced for the horizon and seemed to disappear from view like a bolt of lightning. The shockwave of his weapon firing sent a wall of air blasting out in all directions, knocking the girl down. Chisel ignored her for a moment and prepared his weapon for another shot. The inside of the barrel began to glow again and the pony regained his firing stance. His eyepiece was useless for the moment as the disturbance from his first shot had stirred up something in the distance. Was that blood? That was a good sign.
It was a tense minute. His barrel was warmed and ready to fire again. He had just rediscovered the target. It looked like it was in rough shape, but was it dead?
Then the tension faded. His radio buzzed. Kill confirmed. Stand down and return to base.
Chisel sighed and reabsorbed the magic he'd flooded into his weapon. The light dimmed and the barrel rose back into standby position so he could raise his head without bumping into it. His ground spikes retracted and he could move again. What about the girl?
She was rubbing her temples and her dress now had grass stains, but she didn't look too bad. "You alright?" he asked the now very tiny human.
"Yeah!" Amada called up to him. Was she yelling because her hearing was a mess or because she thought she needed to be loud for him to hear her?
"Good. The mission was a success. The kaiju is dead."
"Really!? You took it out with one shot!?"
He chuckled. "A sniper's pride. One shot, one kill."
Chisel touched the black stone on his suit once more and quickly shrank back down to his normal height. The girl stumbled up to him, occasionally rubbing her ears. Then the two of them were only separated by a few steps.
"Sorry about your ears. I warned you," Chisel apologized.
"It's fine! That was so cool. Thanks for, you know, not sending me off to a shelter."
He snorted. "Got to make fans somehow. Not like I get to be on the news like the others."
"Why is that? Where are the news cameras?" she asked while doing a quick spin.
Chisel shrugged. "Not flashy enough I guess."
"That wasn't flashy enough? That was crazy!"
"It's alright," Chisel waved a hoof. "I don't care too much."
She watched him for a few moments quietly. Long enough that Chisel was starting to think it was time to say goodbye. Then she made a request.
"Can I... pet you?"
Chisel choked on his own tongue. He had to take a moment to clear his throat so he didn't sound hoarse when he asked his own question. "Why?"
"It's just... I want to. Is that rude? To pet a pony?"
The pleading look in her eyes, the way she held a hand up to her chest, that innocent question. Chisel groaned. "Fine. Just one though."
She grinned so wide he thought her cheeks would split open. She practically danced those last two steps up to him only to hesitate. She looked at her hand. Then she glanced at his wild brown mane. Carefully she raised her hand and ran it through his messy hair one time. It was an unusual feeling. The majority of humans Chisel worked with on a daily basis were military and scientists. Adults. He'd never been pet or even had a human ask before.
But it was... nice.
As she was told she stroked his mane once and then backed away. She smiled. He smiled.
"Satisfied now? You pet a pony. All your life's dreams have been fulfilled."
She giggled at his sarcasm. "You're sweaty."
"Yeah? Well I just did something really difficult. I just shot a kaiju from 60 kilometers. I think I've earned the right to be a little dirty."
Author's Note
A story is really just a collection of information. Data. To organize that mass of information into a story it must meet two requirements: the writing must clearly communicate with the audience and it must do so in a way that is entertaining or interesting. There are three ways to deliver that information to the audience: through a narrator, through the world, or through the characters. Each method has its advantages and disadvantages. This lesson is what I struggled with the most while writing this short story.
This Pony/Kaiju world I'm building is kind of complicated. There is a LOT of "information" I need to communicate. So much that needs to be explained. For the first chapter in this series I decided to focus on teaching my audience three main things: the pony variants, the uses of magi-tech, and the different combat roles with a special focus on gunners this time (because I knew the concept was weird and would need more explaining then something as obvious as "spell slinger"). I also hinted at other world building elements along the way, though that was more unavoidable than intentional. I couldn't really have Chisel explain why gunners were special without at least mentioning the other pony variants while he was at it. It would come across as suspicious later once I started introducing them properly and my audience would undoubtedly start asking why they weren't discussed before.
Also had to find a good way to explain that they aren't called "earth ponies" in this universe. They are called "terrans". And I have two reasons for that choice. For one, "earth pony" is two words while all the other pony variants are one word names. Unicorn, pegasus, thestral, astral, and ghoul. One word names. Second, "earth pony" is a weird name for a species that is not native to a planet called Earth. It would be awkward. So... new name.
Usually I am very confident that my work is good, no matter what the ratings after I publish it might suggest. I'm a good writer dammit! But this is a time when I am genuinely not sure. Is this a good piece? Did I overload the audience with too much information? Am I getting ahead of myself starting a whole universe? I guess I've kind of done that in the past already, but not with this much intention. Should I have spent some time describing the kaiju threat first? But kaiju are such a widely familiar trope, does it need an explanation? A writer can drive himself mad struggling with dumb questions like these.
I hope you enjoyed the story and got something out of these random post-story ramblings. There may be more in the future too. I've got a couple more Kaiju vs Pony story ideas.
