Halo: Contact Equis

The following events take place over a few days

PINKIE AND TAMMY

Tammy was in the kitchen of Sugar Cube Corner, she was much too big for the place as the counters were much lower than normal. Tammy had her helmet off and she was bending down next to Pinkie.
"And this is where I work! Sugar Cube Corner!" Exclaimed Pinkie with her hoof outstretched.
"So you're a baker? What all do you bake in here?" Asked Tammy giving the place a good look.
"Absolutely anything you can think of! Cake, cupcakes, cookie cakes, cookies, cupcakes, muffins, tarts, pies, cupcakes, sweet breads, cinnamon rolls, brownies, cupcakes..." As Pinkie rambled on, Tammy interrupted her.
"I assume you like to make cupcakes the most?" Asked Tammy.
"*GASP!* How did you know!?" Said Pinkie to which Tammy chuckled.
"Lucky guess."
"You wanna make some Cupcakes with me!?"
"I have never made cupcakes before."

Time seemed to slow as pinkie froze in place. Tammy gets a little uneasy as Pinkie just slowly turns to look at her, her eyes wide as if she saw the most terrifying thing in the world.
"...You... Never... Made... CUPCAKES!?!?!?" Tammy was a little startled by Pinkie's outburst.
"No...I've never made any." Admitted Tammy.
"Why not!?" Asked Pinkie as she was suddenly eye level with Tammy, like she was floating.
"I've been a refugee since I was 13, Never really had the chance."
"I cannot and will not stand for this! Here, put this on!" Said Pinkie as she tossed Tammy an apron. Tammy looked at it, it was much too small for her.
"Pinkie, I really do appreciate what you are trying to do, but this really is unnecessary."
"I will not take no for an answer, everypony MUST make cupcakes at least once in their lives!"

Figuring that this was going to be a losing battle, Tammy put on the apron over her armor. The apron was much too short, and couldn't wrap around her. Pinkie then pulled out a large mixing bowl, letting it spin on her nose before setting it down on the counter. She and Tammy would begin to add ingredients to the bowl while Pinkie would sing a small jingle in sync to the ingredients they would put in. Even though it may have seemed just a tad childish, Tammy was surprisingly having some fun. Pinkie let her be the one to mix the ingredients while Pinkie got out the cupcake tray. The jingle Pinkie sang was already stuck in Tammy's head as she started to hum the tune. Once Pinkie finally lined the tray, Tammy poured in the batter, and puts them in the oven. They would have to wait while the cupcakes bake. That's when Pinkie turned to Tammy and opened her mouth to say something, but she hesitated and looked away. Tammy gives her a confused look.
"What's wrong Pinkie?" Asked Tammy giving Pinkie a raised eyebrow.
"Oh, nothing. I was gonna ask you a question, but never mind." Said Pinkie, keeping her head turned away.
"You can ask me anything Pinkie, I won't be upset."
"...You sure?"
"I'm sure."

Pinkie slowly looked back at Tammy, her eyes resembled puppy eyes as she was a bit afraid to ask the question.
"Why haven't you made Cupcakes before?" Asked Pinkie.
"Like I said, I have been a refugee since I was 13." Replied Tammy.
"...How come?" Tammy just looked at Pinkie as what she said started to sink in. She looked down at the ground as she was trying to find the right words. Finally she spoke without looking up.
"Because my home was glassed." Tammy replied. There was barely any emotion in her voice, she hadn't talked about her home in a very long time.
"...What was your home?"
"It was a planet called New Harmony. Back in 2537, the Covenant found my home planet and started attacking. The UNSC was able to repel them for a short while, but later the next year they glassed the planet. Me and my family were able to escape the glassing when I was 13. As soon as I came of age I enlisted." Tammy then looked back up at Pinkie as her eyes were beginning to swell like she was on the verge of crying.
"... I'm so sorry. I shouldn't have brought it up." Said Pinkie as her mane deflated a little. Tammy reaches over and gently put her hand on Pinkie's shoulder.
"Hey, don't be like that. I'm not used to talking about my home, but I do want it's memory to live on. I can tell you more about how beautiful it was beforehand. Would you like that?" Asked Tammy. Pinkie looks back at her and gives her a soft smile. She wipes away some tears forming in her eyes before answering.
"I would love too!" Said Pinkie.

Just then the oven dings, causing Pinkie's mane to immediately reinflate.
"Cupcakes are done!" Yelled Pinkie as she grabs a pot holder and pulls the cupcakes out of the oven with her mouth. After letting them cool for a bit, Pinkie gave Tammy a tube of icing and the two began to ice their cupcakes. After they were done, Pinkie picked one up and ate it one bite, paper and all. Tammy picks one up with her hand and takes the paper off. She bites into it, savoring its flavor. It was delicious, honestly one of the best things she had eaten in years. It would have been impossible for her to fight back the smile growing across her face as it stretched from ear to ear.
"Mmmmmmm..."
"How is it?" Asked Pinkie as she leaned in closer to Tammy.
"It's so good, it's delicious!" Tammy joyfully expressed.
"I knew it! I knew you would love it!" Pinkie began to hop up and down. Tammy couldn't help but chuckle at her. She eventually finished her cupcake before leaning down to Pinkie's eye level.
"Hey Pinkie."
"Yes Tammy?"
"Thank you. Thank you for sharing this moment with me." Tammy gave her a warm and soft smile.
"You're welcome. What are friends for?" Pinkie returned with a smile of her own.

Rainbow Dash and Maverick

Dash was hanging out with Maverick, they were at the Ad Meliora's armory. Many human soldiers were there, along with a few guard ponies as they were instructed to familiarize themselves with human weapons. Dash was hanging back with Maverick looking a little bored. She then started asking him many questions about human weapons.
"So, what exactly are these things you use to fight with?" Asked Dash as she examined some of the weapons. She was used to swords and spears, so she hadn't entirely figured out how these weapons worked yet.
"They're called guns, and they are very dangerous if you don't handle them with respect. They use gunpowder to shoot bullets at a very high velocity. Think of it like a crossbow, but the arrow is short, completely made of metal, and flying hundreds of feet per second." said Maverick.
"Pshhh. I could fly way faster than that." Boasted Dash, giving Maverick the side eye. Maverick began to chuckle at her.
"Heh-heh. I bet you could, you wanna shoot one of the guns?"
"YES!... I mean, sure." Dash's eyes lit up for a second before she immediately calmed herself down. She didn't want to look lame in front of the humans.
"Alright, follow me." Maverick then led Rainbow Dash over to the quartermaster.
"Hello Spartan, your preferred weapon?" Asked the quartermaster.
"Of course, the M392" Said Maverick. The Quartermaster stood up and went to the side, after a bit he came back with a gun and handed it to him. Maverick takes it and gives it a quick inspection, checking the safety, the ammo count, seeing if a bullet is chambered, and if it was cleaned. After being satisfied with the weapon he turned back to Dash. "Alright, follow me."

Maverick then led Rainbow Dash out of the armory and into the shooting range. Again there were some humans in there practicing their skills. At first the loud gunshots startled Dash until Maverick handed her a pair of earmuffs. They go over to an empty section of the range and Maverick turns to Dash.
"Alright, many humans aboard this ship are pretty much trained to use every gun we have, some of us even have been trained to use Covenant weapons as well. But right now I'm gonna have you shoot my preferred weapon, the M392 Marksman Rifle, or better known as a DMR. This gun is semi-automatic, meaning it fires one bullet at a time. Now watch as I handle the weapon." Maverick lectured, the first lecture Dash paid extra attention to. He pressed a button next to him and a cutout of an Elite pops up. Maverick gets on one knee and aims his weapon. He takes a deep breath in and out. He pulls the trigger and fires. Again Dash jumps a bit at the sound, she crosses her hooves annoyed that she was jumping like a frightened cat.

Maverick shoots 3 more times before looking up. He clicks the safety on and looks at his work. Three shots over the heart, and one in the head, directly on the eye.
"Woooooow..." Said Dash looking down range. "How did you get so good?"
"I'm a Spartan III, I've been doing this since I was a kid." Stated Maverick like it was no big deal.
"As a kid?" Asked Dash. Maverick froze for a bit, as he whispered the word 'fuck' to himself. Maverick didn't like to talk about his experiences in the spartan program, shoot it was also classified so he couldn't talk about it. He just looks at Dash, but his helmet shielded his face.
"Not important right now, you wanna have a go?" Maverick gestured towards the gun. Dash nodded, but she gave Maverick a weird look. She quickly got up on her hind legs and leaned against the weapon and held it like Maverick did. "Alright, put your shoulder into the butt of the gun, that braces you for the kick back. Don't put your eye too close to the scope, the kick will give you a black eye. Hold the front firm, and place your hand... uh, hoof, on the handle. When you are ready, you may fire." Maverick clicked off the safety and stayed kneeled down next to Dash.

Dash took a deep breath like Maverick did, she aimed carefully and was able to get her hoof on the trigger, she slowly squeezed and fired. The kick back was a bit hard, but nothing she couldn't handle. She did however felt a rush of adrenaline as she began to get excited.
"Whoa!... Cool!" Exclaimed Dash as she took aim again. She fired again, and again, and again, and again, and again. "This, Is, Awesome!" She kept firing with the largest smirk on her face till the clip ran dry.
"Alright Annie Oakley, you're out of ammo." Maverick Chuckled. He looked down range and he was pretty surprised, Dash's shots all managed to hit, but they were all over the body. "Damn Dash, you hit every shot."
"I did! That's so cool!" Dash Said with the biggest smile on her face. "That was so much fun!"
"You wanna try some more guns out?" Asked Maverick.
"YEAH!" Dash exclaimed loudly. Maverick couldn't help but laugh as he and Dash started to walk back to the armory.

Spike and Carlito

Once again, on the Ad Meliora, Carlito was showing Spike around the ship's Gym. Spike looked around as many humans were using multiple different exercise equipment that he had never seen before.
"So Dawg, how do you like the place?" Asked Carlito. He had his helmet off and his hands on his hips.
"It's big, bigger than I thought any gym could be." Replied Spike, still looking all around.
"You work out at all?" Carlito squatted down to get to his level.
"No, well kinda. I do a lot of chores around the castle." Spike looked at him to see Carlito had an unamused face.
"Nah, not like that. Come with me. I'll show you a real workout." Carlito led Spike over to a bunch of free weights and a bench. "You do any heavy lifting dawg?"
"Not really, but after going through the molt, I have gotten a lot stronger. I just haven't really tested how strong I am." Spike felt his arms, a bit disappointed in them.
"Alright, well then let's see how much weight you can lift! I'm one of the strongest on the team, I'll spot ya."

Carlito began to put weights on one of the bars on a bench. He then motions Spike to lay down on the bench.
"Alright, I've lowered the bar down for you to reach it. There is a total of 100 pounds on this bar. Go ahead and give it a lift." Said Carlito. Spike put his claws on the bar and lifted it up no problem. He was a bit shocked how easy it was for him to hold it. "Ok, now slowly lower it till it barely touches your chest right here." Carlito touched the spot on Spike's chest on where the bar should be lowered. Spike lowered the bar till it touched his chest. "Alright, you're doing well, now push the bar back up." Spike did what he was told and lifted the bar back up. "Hey, not bad homie!"
"That was easy! Can you add more weight?" Asked Spike. He felt his energy going up and he wanted to lift some more.
"Of course, I'll put fifty more pounds on!" Said Carlito. Spike put the bar down as Carlito added more weight.

Spike once again lifted the bar up no problem, he brought it down on his chest and lifted it, doing five reps before putting the bar back down. He asked for more weight and Carlito obliged. They kept going to see how much weight Spike could actually lift. Spike began to lift more and more weight, much more than he ever thought he could. He could feel the workout in his arms as they began to get a little sore and wobbly. After a few more reps, and more weight, Spike was at a total of 350 pounds.
"Alright, easy there amigo, this is a decent amount of weight. I don't want you to hurt yourself." Said Carlito.
"Alright! I'm gonna do it!" Spike lifted the bar up and brought it down, he was beginning to struggle but he brought it back up, then down, then up, then down, then up. He was on his fifth rep, his arms were starting to tire. He lowered the bar and now was having a bit of trouble pushing it up. Sweat was pouring off of him while he struggled.
"Come on Dawg! You got this! One more!"Carlito was shouting in encouragement, he was pumping his fist as he cheered spike on. Spike took a deep breath before exhaling. He was pushing himself so hard that he breathed out a ball of green fire. It was the push he needed however and he managed to push the bar back up.

"Whoa! Chinga de Mierda!" Exclaimed Carlito taking a few steps back as Spike exhaled a bunch of fire. Spike put the bar back on the rack and sat up. He felt his arm with his claw, there was a decent size bump there, causing him to smirk.
"Yeah! That was awesome!" Said Spike as he then flexed.
"Homie, You're pretty loco!" Said Carlito giving Spike a high five. "That was some good shit Dawg! You swear this was your first time lifting weights?"
"I swear this was my first time." Replied Spike as he hopped off the bench. Carlito grabbed a nearby towel and tossed it to him so he could wipe off the sweat.
"You keep this up, I promise you will be built like a brick shit house! Keep up on your weight lifting homie!"
"I will! Thanks Carlito!" Spike and Carlito gave each other a second high five.

Rarity and Adam

Adam was at Carousel Boutique with Rarity. They were sitting around casually as they were just talking to each other. Adam couldn't help but feel like he was at a little kid's tea party.
"You must be honored Mr. Adam, you are the first human to ever enter my boutique." Said Rarity sipping a cup of Tea.
"I guess. To be honest I actually didn't know what a boutique was." Said Adam as he took a sip of his own tea.
"Oh really? Well you must have gone to a designer of some kind to make that combat uniform for you."Rarity gave his outfit a quick look over. "Though I'll admit it looks like it does it's job, but black and gray are so not your color. With that ravishing hair of yours, white and blue would look dashing on you.
"Thanks, blue is my favorite color. But this is pretty much all I have." Adam explained. Rarity began to cough as she choked a bit on her tea.
"Goodness me! You cannot be serious can you!?" Rarity looked at him as if he just insulted her mother.
"Wh-what? What did I say?" Adam was really confused and even a bit intimidated.
"That is your only outfit!?" Rarity was getting more and more high pitched.
"Well, technically. I have a t-shirt and shorts, but I use those to sleep in. And when I'm on the battlefield I usually just sleep in my combat uniform as well."

Rarity quickly stood up on her hooves and her horn began to light up. She uses her magic to grab Adam by the shoulders and pull him to his feet.
"Whoa WHOA whoa! Never gonna get use to that!" Adam said as Rarity then moved a bunch of mirrors around him. He looked around at the stuff Rarity was moving towards him. She then pulled out measuring tape and began to measure him. "Uh...Mind if I ask what you are doing?"Adam was now looking down at her.
"I simply cannot allow you to go on with owning one outfit! it is a crime for one not to express themselves!" Rarity then began to measure his waist. She then goes behind him and measures his height.
"I really appreciate your generosity, Rarity, but I have to stay in my uniform at all times during the day. The Covenant could attack at any moment and I need to be ready."
"Then you can wear it when the war is over! Seriously I must insist! Besides, I've never made an outfit for a human before! I always love a good challenge!"

Adam looked unamused as he soon realized that his objections were going to continuously get ignored. Rarity then wrote down her measurements before using her Magic to lift up Adam once again. He froze, too scared to move as Rarity hovered him to a stand on the middle of her store.
"A bit of a warning when you use your magic on me, I'm still not used to being moved without my will." Adam emphasized as he was placed back down on his feet.
"Dreadfully sorry Darling, but I need you for a second." As Rarity's horn begins to glow once again.
"And what might that be?" Adam then noticed that his armor was surrounded by magic. It soon began to loosen as Rarity took off his chest plate. "Whoa Whoa what do you think you are doing!?"
"I don't have a mannequin in the shape of a human darling, so I need you to stand still while I make you a nice outfit." Said Rarity in a manner-of-factly.
"How do you even know how to loosen my armor?" Asked Adam as Rarity began to remove more of his armor.
"Darling, this isn't my first rodeo. I know how to deal with armor."

Adam was very unsure about this, fearing he may get in trouble for not having his gear on. Within no time, Rarity had all his armor off, just leaving him in his boots, pants, and undersuit. Adam could see Rarity giving him a once over.
"Enjoying the view?" Adam said as he called her out.
"Oh my! Sorry Darling, I just didn't know how muscular you were under all your armor." Rarity teased, giving him a wink. Adam could feel his cheeks begin to heat up.
"Hey, no funny ideas, got it?" Adam forewarned looking down at her. She could see the redness in his face, causing her to let out a giggle.
"Nothing to worry about Darling, just some banter I do with all of my customers." Said Rarity. Adam couldn't tell if she was being serious or not as she began to pull out her fabric.

She pulled out a drawing she made of a nice suit she drew. Though it was for a pony she used it as an inspiration for a human design. She began to sew together white fabric that she would drape over Adam who stood as still as he could. He was disciplined so he could stand in one position for an extended period of time. The whole process only took Rarity around 3 hours. She finished up by brushing his hair and making him look nice. She stepped back and admired her work, She was smiling with pride as she gave him a close examination.
"My my MY!" Rarity said as she walked all around him, giving him a close analysis. "I must say, I really out did myself. Come take a look at yourself darling." Rarity grabbed a mirror with her magic and held it in front of him. Adam almost couldn't believe what he saw. He was in a very nice white suit with blue highlights. His vest had blue glitter on it making him sparkle and the buttons on the coat seemed to be made of sapphires. He admired her work, she did in fact make him look sophisticated. A wide smile formed across his face as he placed his thumb and finger on his chin.
"You know, I was skeptical, but this looks incredible Rarity. I love it!" Adam informed as he turned his head to look at her. Rarity does a small bow, letting all the praise go to her head.
"Why thank you darling, I knew you would love it! No one truly appreciates how they look till they finally see themselves dressed up all fancy." Said Rarity as she levitated a camera and took a quick snap of him. "I definitely need to remember this design so I can make more for the other humans."
"I don't know how I could pay you back for this Rarity. I'm pretty sure there isn't an exchange rate between our currencies yet." Said Adam, as he finally looked away from the mirror to look at Rarity.
"Oh Darling, this was a gift! No charge at all." Rarity waved her hoof as if it was no big deal.

Adam gave her a shocked expression.
"No charge!? But you put gemstones on this! This should cost me a fortune!" Adam exclaimed. He practically felt like he was stealing from her.
"Oh Darling, Gems are not that rare. There is a cave not too far from here where I can get more." Rarity just gave him a smile. Adam still had wide eyes as he looked back at the mirror to look at the suit.
"Rarity, No one has ever done this for me. I am really touched by this." Said Adam, He could feel Rarity give his leg a gentle hug.
"Awww, you're going to make me cry darling. It was no big deal. I'd do it again in a heartbeat." Said Rarity giving him a soft smile.
"Well, I truly mean this when I say, thank you. Thank you so much Rarity." Adam then knelt down slowly and gave her a proper hug to which she reciprocated. "Now, where is my armor? I'll get my ass chewed if I went back wearing this instead of it."
"It's right over here Darling."Rarity then levitated his armor to him.

Applejack and Kieran

Kieran was at Sweet Apple Acres with Applejack. They were at the barn as Applejack was introducing him to the rest of her family.
"Kieran, this is my big brother, Big Macintosh. Big Macintosh, this is my friend Kieran." Said Applejack as she stood between Kieran and Big Mac.
"Big is right, you look strong as hell." Said Kieran as he had his arms crossed. He then offered his hand to Big Mac. "Good to meet ya."
"Eeyup." Said Big Mac as he shook his hand.
"You do the heavy lifting around here?"
"Eeyup."
"Do you ever get tired working out here on the farm?"
"Nope."
"You enjoy being a farm hand?"
"Eeyup."
"Man of few words ain't ya?"
"Eeyup."

Applejack chuckles at the two as they go back and forth. Applebloom stood behind Applejack, peeking out at Kieran. She was intimidated by how big he was. Kieran spots her and looks down at her, this causes Applebloom to quickly scoot back completely behind Applejack. Kieran relaxes his muscles, as to not look as intimidating.
"It's alright Applebloom, he won't hurt you. He is one of the good aliens." Applejack spoke softly as she was trying to coax her sister from her hiding spot.
"Applebloom huh?" Said Kieran as he slowly got down on one knee. Applebloom peeked out once again. Even though he was on his knee, he was still bigger than her. He reaches up and takes off his helmet. Applebloom looks up at his face. He had brown hair and brown eyes. His skin was a little pale, and a very large scar covered almost the entirety of his left cheek. Seeing his face however did relieve some anxiety for Applebloom as she then slowly stepped out from behind her sister. "Applebloom. That is a very pretty name, it fits you well." Applebloom gave him a meek smile.
"...Thanks." She replied, she was still cautious of him, he was big and armored.
"You have a real nice home Applebloom. Do you love it here?" Kieran asked, he was trying to get her to open up a bit by asking about her home and things she liked.
"Yeah... I-I do." She replied.
"I love your bow to, it looks cute on you."
"Thank you." Applebloom was now lifting her head to him and she was stepping closer.
"Do you have any friends Applebloom?"
"Yeah, Scootaloo and Sweetie Belle."
"You care about them alot?"
"Of course I do!"
"Just like they were family?"
"Yes! My friends are family too!"

Kieran gave her a smile. All fear she had been showing was now gone as she was talking loudly to him.
"Well then Applebloom, I think you and I are going to get along just fine." Said Kieran as he offered her his hand. She took a hold of it, admiring how huge his hand was. Despite how large and armored it was, he was extremely gentle with her. Kieran then stood up to his full height just as a really old looking pony came out."
"Hey y'all! The apple pie is done if y'all want a bite!" She said in an old raspy voice. Big Mac and Applebloom wasted no time in heading into the house, but the old pony stepped out to meet Kieran.
"You must be that big alien Applejack told me about." She looked at him head to toe. "Eh, you don't look that tough, I could take ye!" She joked, causing Kieran to laugh a bit.
"I bet you could, Ma'am." Said Kieran, crossing his arms.
"I'm Granny Smith, welcome to our orchard." Said Granny Smith.
"Thank you, I'm Kieran. Your home is beautiful."
"Thank you kindly. Any friend of Applejack is a friend to the family." Applejack saw a change in demeanor in Kieran as Granny Smith told him that.
"Well... I appreciate that more than you know." Said Kieran, his whole body lost all tension and his facial expression softened. "You all... Have a real nice family, a real nice family." There was a twinge of sadness in his voice and Applejack noticed it.
"Thank you sonny. Y'all wanna come in for some pie?" Asked Granny Smith turning her attention to both him and Applejack.
"Just a second granny, we'll be in soon." Said Applejack.

Granny Smith nods as she turned to walk back in. Kieran turned to look at Applejack as he had a confused look on his face.
"Got something on your mind?" He asked her.
"Funny enough, I was gonna ask you the same thing." Said Applejack turning to face him. "Is something wrong?"
"No, nothing is wrong." Kieran said.
"You seemed to really open up more and more when you met the family, and I can tell something is on your mind." Kieran seemed to dart his eyes away, no longer wanting to look her in the eyes. "And don't lie, I have a knack for honesty."
"I have a soft spot for family. So it tugged a little when your granny called me a friend to your family." Said Kieran, trying his best to hide the emotions in his voice.
"Does that upset you?" Applejack said as she stepped closer. She could feel something heavy on Kieran's shoulders.
"No, it does the opposite really. I... I just haven't felt that feeling in a long time." Kieran admitted as he turned and leaned up against the barn.
"Don't you have a family Kieran?"
"... No. They're gone."

Applejack looked up at him. She could see the sadness in his eyes. She feels her heart get heavy, she didn't know Kieran was all alone.
"What happened?... If you feel like sharing." Said Applejack, she didn't want him to open up on something he didn't want to talk about.
"The goddamn Covenant happened. I was born on Eridanus II, I lived there with my mom, dad, and my older brother. It was over 20 years ago the bastards found the planet, and then glassed it... I was the only survivor out of my whole family." Applejack could hear the pain in his voice despite him not showing it. She could sympathize with him, to an extent. She leans against the barn next to him.
"Well... If you need somepony to talk to about it, and who'll know somewhat how you feel... I could be that pony... I'm an orphan too." Said Applejack as she lowered her head, her hat now hiding her eyes. Kieran lifts his head hearing that. He then turns his head and looks down at her. She hid her face from him, but he knew it when someone was trying to hide their emotions. "I know it's not nearly like anything similar you went through, losing all your family... and your home... but I know how it feels to lose loved ones."

Applejack had lowered her head so much that her hat had fallen off her head. Kieran could then see that she had a tear running down her cheek. He kneels down, picking up her hat and placing it back on her head. She is a bit taken back by that and she turns to face him, seeing that he was at eye level with her.
"Keep your chin up, I know your parents would never want you to hang your head in sadness when you talk about them. Keep your head up and smile, though they are worth every tear, they are also worth smiling about." Kieran wipes the tear off her cheek and gives her a comforting smile. She smiles back at him, adjusting her hat to how she likes it.
"Thanks Kieran. That's some pretty wise words." Said Applejack standing up straight. "You want Some Apple pie?"
"I would love some." Said Kieran as he too stood straight up and picked his helmet up off the ground. Applejack then led him inside her house, he had to duck down quite a bit just to get through the door.

Starlight and Marcus

Starlight and Marcus were at the ship, He was going over a demolition tutorial with her. He was on his knee and took his knife and slits open what looked to be a package. He opened it up, and on the inside was what looked like playdough.
"See this stuff right here? This is military grade plastic explosives."
"That is an explosive?" Starlight asked him as she looked closely at the substance. Marcus took a handful of it and began to squish it.
"Yes, it's pretty effective, but also pretty safe. It takes electricity for it to explode. So as long as you don't shock it, it's harmless." Marcus explained to her. "Hell, you could shoot this stuff with a bullet and it wouldn't do anything... as long as if that bullet isn't a tracer, then you would be fucked."
"This is pretty fascinating. Pretty scary how you guys were able to come up with this kind of stuff." Starlight told him.
"Yeah, but when it comes to war, we are in it to win it no matter what." He replied as he stood up. "Wanna see an explosion Starlight?"
"...Would you show me?"
"Of course."
"Then yes I would."
"Alrighty, let me grab a few things."

Starlight waited patiently as Marcus went into the armory, a few minutes later, he came back out holding a massive weapon that had two barrels on it. She was really intimidated by the weapon as he led her out of the ship, and down into the gorge. Down there, there were a lot of boulders.
"Alright Starlight, let me show you the simplest thing we have." Marcus said as he pulled out a grenade. "This is a fragmentation Grenade, once you prime it, you give it a toss. It has a sensor in it and after it hits the ground, it will explode, watch." Marcus pulled the pin on the side and gave the grenade a toss. It hit the ground and bounced, after a few seconds, it exploded, sending small pebbles everywhere.
"Wh-Oao!! That was cool!" Exclaimed Starlight, she felt the explosion in her chest. "It was like watching a firework, just far more dangerous."
"You ain't seen anything yet, stay here real quick." Marcus told her as he walked up to a big rock.

He places something on it, twists a handle and inputs a code. He quickly ran back to Starlight and ushered her behind another rock.
"Ok, you know that plastic explosive I showed you earlier?" Marcus asked her.
"Yeah, I do."
"I just rigged one to explode that rock, wanna blow it up?" Marcus held up the trigger to the explosive. Starlight gave him a smile before using her magic to take it from his hand. "Alright, before you do, you should cover your ears, this will be much louder than the grenade."
"Thanks for the heads up." Starlight used her magic to cover her ears, once she was ready, Marcus showed her how to trigger the explosion by pressing the button. Starlight shakes off any anxiety and presses the button. A thunderous boom fills the gorge as the explosion goes off and shatters the boulder. Starlight felt the shockwave and it gave her a rush of adrenaline.
"Holy cow!" Starlight yelled out as her whole body began to shake. "I... It is in pieces! the whole boulder! Holy Cow!"
"Heh-Heh, like what you see?" Marcus Chuckled.
"Yes!... Well sorta I mean. It's fun, but very dangerous."
"Yeah it is, but I have one more thing to show you."

Marcus picked up the giant two tubed weapon and he put it on his shoulder. Even though he had a helmet on, Starlight could tell he was smiling under it.
"This is the M41 SSR SPNKR! She is a beauty of a weapon! She can do what the last two weapons can do, but you aim where she fires." Marcus then took aim at another rock in the distance. He fired the weapon and a rocket shot out of the tube with intense speed and decimated the rock.
"Gah! Holy Cow!!!" Starlight was stunned at the devastation the weapons were causing. Marcus laughed at her amazement.
"You ponies don't swear a lot do you." Marcus teased.
"No, not really. It's seen as very rude." Starlight explained to him.
"Ah who gives a shit. Here, there is one more rocket inside, wanna fire it?"
"You know, I think I'm good for now. I can only handle too much excitement."
"If you say so. Ahhhh shit we gotta walk all the way back up the gorge." Marcus whined as he slumped his shoulders.
"Don't worry about that, I got us." Starlight stepped closer to Marcus and before he could say a word, she teleported both of them to the top of the gorge, near the entrance of the ship. Marcus stumbled quite a bit as he was incredibly dizzy.
"Holy shit!... warn me next time." Marcus told her as he went down on one knee to try and stop the world from spinning.
"Sorry! I forgot you're not used to magic!" Starlight said regretfully coming to his side and making sure he was ok. Eventually he was able to stand up.
"Man, that was an experience." Marcus slurred his words as he put his hand to his helmet.
"Do you need me to alleviate any nausea for you?" Starlight began to light her horn again out of concern.
"Nah nah nah, I'm good thanks. hehe." Marcus nervously chuckled at her.
"Ok, I understand, Let me help you get to bed then. Laying down after a while will help, I promise."
"Alright, thanks." Marcus and Starlight then walked back into the ship as Marcus seemed to wobble a bit.

Fluttershy and Clara

Clara was standing in front of Fluttershy's cottage, she was bigger than the door so she had to bend down to knock on the door. When She did, she could hear a ton of movement behind the door.
"Coming!" Fluttershy's voice was heard calling out to whoever was at the door. Clara decided to stay bent over as Fluttershy soon opened her door, she gasps and flinches upon seeing Clara there. She still isn't used to how much she towers over her.
"Hi Fluttershy, I didn't mean to scare you." Clara admitted as she stood back up to full height.
"Oh! I know you didn't i'm just not used to somepony being so... big." Fluttershy said meekly. "I'm sorry if I offended you..."
"It's quite alright Fluttershy, I know I'm tall. Being a spartan does that, I'm taller than most humans." Clara reassured Fluttershy as she then leant back down. "So what are we doing today? You asked for some help with some of your animals?"
"Oh! Yes! That would be much appreciated." Fluttershy smiled at Clara. "I hope you don't mind too much."
"Oh Fluttershy, it's no problem at all." Clara reassured her. "In fact, it's a breath of fresh air to do something that isn't related to preparing for battle actually."
"I'm so glad you're looking forward to it Clara! Follow me, the animal sanctuary isn't too far away from here." Fluttershy steps out of her cottage and locks it.

She then leads Clara to the Animal Sanctuary that she had built. Many different animals were there, some that Clara had never seen before. Clara would reach up and take off her helmet and set it on the ground so she could get a better look at the sanctuary.
"This place is incredible, you had this built?" Asked Clara as she looked at all the happy animals.
"Of course I did, me and my friends worked hard to make this a reality." Fluttershy said as she went off to the side to retrieve a ton of buckets full of different types of food. "Do you mind helping me feed the animals?"
"Of course not. I've never gotten to feed animals before." Said Clara as she took a few buckets full of food.

Clara and Fluttershy would only take an hour to feed all the animals, she even got to meet a lot of them that were at first a little nervous to meet her, though they eventually came to her. For the first time in a very long time, Clara was having some fun. She enjoyed meeting the bear, she was a bit cautious at first, but she was quick to find that he was a big softy. Fluttershy and Clara were just getting ready to leave the Sanctuary and head back into town.
"Thanks for inviting me here Fluttershy. I really did enjoy myself." Said Clara as she slid her helmet back on.
"No problem Clara, I'm glad you enjoyed yourself." Said Fluttershy as she closed her eyes and smiled.
"You never invited me to help your animals Fluttershy." Said a mysterious male voice.

Clara immediately began looking around, as the voice startled her. She quickly grabs the M6D Magnum off her hip and begins pointing it around. Till she finally turns to see Discord standing behind her, as she turns she pressed the gun into his chest. Fluttershy seeing Clara having her weapon pressed against Discord immediately began panic.
"Wait! Wait-wait-wait! Don't hurt him!" Begged Fluttershy.
"Oh don't worry my dear, she couldn't hurt me if she tried." Teased Discord as he crosses his arms. Clara narrowed her eyes at him, taking his words as a challenge. That's when Discord snapped his fingers and a bright flash emitted from the gun. In an instant it turned into a bunch of fluttering butterflies and they all began to fly away.
"What the...? Hey! What did you-" Clara began to argue but Discord cut her off.
"I know you're new around here Human but you need to learn some manners. Just because I spooked you doesn't mean you pull a gun on anypony." DIscord hissed at her, giving her a twisted smirk.

Clara glared at discord with discontent. She had never seen anything like him, but she knew that he was fucking with her.
"What the hell even are you? You look like some kind of demon." Said Clara eyeing him from head to toe.
"Isn't that what the Covenant call you spartans?" Snickered Discord. "Isn't that a little hypocritical of you?"
"How... how the fuck-"
"Do I know that? I know a lot of things about humanity and the Covenant dearie." Now it was obvious that Discord was fucking with her.
"Discord... How do you know what the Covenant is?" Asked Fluttershy.
"When you're as old as me Fluttershy, you tend to learn about a lot of things." Said Discord. "I've known about the Covenant ever since they tamed the Lekgolo."
"The fucking what!?" Asked Clara.
"Oh my bad, you humans seem to give the covenant species codewords. The Lekgolo is what you humans call the Hunters."
"Alright bozo, how about this, stop fucking with me, before I fuck you up!"
"I highly doubt you could even touch me. Besides, you're cheating while wearing all that armor."

Discord snaps his fingers again, and in an instant, Clara was out of her armor and only wearing her undersuit. She looked down at herself and immediately began freaking out.
"What the shit!? Where's my armor!? How did you...!" Clara began to shout.
"Come on, doesn't that feel better without all that heavy armor on you?" Asked Discord.
"Discord! That's enough!" Yelled Fluttershy as she narrowed her eyes at him. Discord let's out a sigh.
"Alright, fun time over." Discord then snapped his fingers again, and Clara was back in her armor, and her gun soon fell to the ground from the sky. She immediately picked it up and aimed it at him again.
"Yeah, could you please stop doing that, I don't feel like taking that away from you again." Discord warned her.
"Explain yourself! How do you know so much about the Covenant!?" Clara demanded, she kept the gun pointed at him.
"Oh brother, look, genius. Do I look normal to you?"
"...No."
"What words would you use to describe me!?" Clara thought for a second, but she could only think of a single word.
"...Chaotic."
"Exactly! I am the lord of Chaos! And as the lord of chaos, certain rules don't apply to me."

Clara slowly began to lower her weapon as she tried to process this information.
"Lord of chaos... are you a god?" Clara would ask discord.
"Pshh Hardly!" Replied Discord as he snapped his fingers again to where he suddenly had a big beard, had angel wings, and wore a robe. "Though It would be fascinating."
"Then... how do you know all this?"
"I've been around a long time, much MUCH longer than Celestia and Luna. When I was bored I would look far off into the universe to see if anything interesting was happening. I would watch the Covenant for a good while, they're hilarious! I can't believe they think the Forerunners are actual gods! They are so simple-minded!" Discord would break out into a hardy laugh, but he was the only one laughing.
"Do you really think that is funny? Billions of lives are gone because of that belief!" Clara scolded.
"Oh no, that's not funny, but everything they stand for is! It's preposterous! Though I must admit, I don't know everything about them. After I got sealed away in stone, I missed out on a bunch of their ordeals. Including a majority of their war on you humans."
"Tell me everything you know about them Discord." Demanded Clara.
"Oh I'll tell you, but not now. I'll know when the time is right to tell you."
"No! Tell me now!"

Just as Clara reached out for him, Discord quickly teleported. Clara looked down at Fluttershy who had both a confused and scared expression.
"I'm... I'm so sorry! He gets like that sometimes." Said Fluttershy.
"You never told us about him." Clara said Sharply.
"I'm so sorry... but I didn't know Discord knew about the Covenant. He never spoke about them before."
"Where is he now?"
"He could be anywhere by now... I'm sorry... I-I don't know where he could be!" As Fluttershy spoke Clara holsters her gun.
"The Captain needs to hear about this, what Discord knows could be important."

Twilight and Tex

Tex was lounging casually in Twilight's castle, she had been non-stop asking him multiple questions regarding humanity. He didn't mind too much, as long as he got to relax. Twilight's castle was huge, and the sofa he was sitting on with his feet up was damn comfy. She was sitting in a chair, and wanted to continue off from yesterday.
"Ok Tex, picking up from yesterday, you said Humanity originated from the planet Earth, correct?" asked Twilight with a notebook.
"Yep, born and raised there myself." Replied Tex.
"Ok, Now that you have answered a majority of my questions on your origins, I would like to ask some questions about humanity in general. I can tell by your appearance, you match the description of mammals, correct? I want to make sure." Said Twilight looking past her notebook. She had a pair of reading glasses on her face.
"Yep, we're mammals." Said Tex as he then started to yawn. He had never been this relaxed in such a long time. Twilight quickly wrote down his answer before asking her next question.
"Ok, What is your diet like? Herbivore, Carnivore, or omnivore?"
"Omnivorous. Wait shit that doesn't bother you, does it?" Asked Tex as he quickly sat up.
"Does what bother me?" Asked Twilight looking puzzled, she was still using her magic to write down his answer.
"Does it bother you that we are omnivorous? Humans eat plants and meat."
"No, that doesn't bother me. You gotta eat what you eat. Just don't tell Fluttershy."
"Oh... so you are cool with a different species from you that eats meat?"
"Tex, we live with Griffins and Dragons, they are strictly carnivores. Well some of them had turned to an omnivorous diet as well, but that's not the point. As long as none of you go around eating ponies." Twilight jokes, giggling to herself.

Tex however started laughing hard. He was belly laughing causing Twilight to give him a curoius look.
"It wasn't that funny was it?" She asked him as he finally calmed down.
"Oh Twilight, you're so naive." Said Tex looking at her, wiping away tears of laughter.
"I seriously don't know what you... T-TEX!" Twilight yelled at him, her face turning from a lavender color to a bright red. Tex started laughing again as she started to swat the top of his head with her notebook.
"Come on, you're the one who said it!" Joked Tex as he shields his head with his arms.
"Nasty!... Get your mind out of the gutter!" Twilight scolded, her face still bright red.
"Just having a bit of fun with you Princess." Tex was still chuckling as he sat up.

Twilight glares at him while he gives her a mischievous grin. She takes a deep breath and collects herself.
"Take this a little more seriously Tex, we are supposed to be getting to know each other." Twilight said as she brought her notebook back up to her face.
"That's what I'm doing." He replied.
"Really, you think you are?" Asked Twilight, raising an eyebrow.
"Yeah, I am, I think you are the one slacking." Said Tex as he started to lean back, placing his arms behind his head and putting his feet up on the coffee table. Twilight got a bit offended by that statement.
"E-Excuse me?" She asserted, She flung her wings open as she looked at him.
"Look, don't get me wrong, I know you're the Princess of Friendship, this whole thing is your schtick. But I bet my life that if you were in my shoes you would notice the same thing." Tex started turning his head to look at her. "I see a lot of myself in you Twilight, You want to do this as efficiently as possible because Princess Celestia told you to."

Twilight opened her mouth in protest, but the words got stuck in her throat when she thought about it for a second. Tex put his feet down and sat back up. He scooted to the edge of the seat so he could turn his whole body to face her.
"The questions, the seriousness, the notepad." Tex began to list off as he brought his hand up and took the notebook out of her magical grip. "None of that is friendship and you know that. You just want to do the best job you could to make Celestia proud. I fully understand that. I'm very loyal to Captain McCormick, if he came in right now and told me to jump, I would ask 'How high?' But, you just need to step back, and do shit your way. So forget the notebook and the questions on my species, ask me questions about myself, and I will do the same to you. but as we do it, we're just gonna chill alright?" Twilight's jaw was left gapped. Everything Tex said was absolutely correct. She used her magic to take off her glasses and she gave a loud sigh.
"...How do you know so much about friendship?" She questioned.
"I learned it from my squad. We were a bunch of nobodies, but we are like a family."
"I see... I'm sorry Tex."
"Don't apologize, just join me on the couch." Tex Told her while patting the space next to him on the sofa.

Twilight got up from her chair and climbed up on the sofa, leaning against the opposite arm rest. She looked at him while he looked at her. It was a bit awkward as they both kept quiet for a minute.
"So... What's your favorite color?" She Asked him, causing him to chuckle a bit.
"Red, come on now." Said Tex.
"I know, I'm just joking. Where on earth are you from?" Twilight asked him.
"Finally." Tex Said leaning back again.
"I'm from sweet home Alabama. It's a state in the U.S.A." He stated.
"U.S.A.? What does that stand for?"
"United States of America. My home country." Tex then looked at her. "What about you? You from Ponyville?"
"Oh no, I was born in Canterlot, capital of Equestria. I stayed there until a few years ago, then I moved here."

Twilight relaxed quite a bit on the sofa, and she could see Tex was enjoying this conversation a lot more.
"Interesting, so you got a family back home in Canterlot?" Tex questioned.
"Yeah, My mom, my dad, and my brother. My brother was there for a bit there for a bit, but now he is Prince of the Crystal Empire."
"Prince? Your brother is a Prince? Damn, Is Celestia your mom?" This question caused Twilight to laugh out loud with a snort.
"Of course not! My parents are just two normal unicorns." She Replied through her laughter.
"Well I bet your parents are proud to have two royal children." Tex smiled as he watched her laugh, as it made her look more adorable.
"Yeah, they are. I also must not forget Spike. He has been in my family ever since he hatched. He's my step-brother."
"Having a dragon as a step-brother would be pretty awesome."
"He is pretty awesome." Twilight smiled warmly. "What about your family Tex?"
"I got a Ma and a Pa plus a baby brother." Tex looked towards the ceiling as he talked about his family. "My brother is about 8 years younger than me. He was 12 when I went off to the military, he stayed strong about it, tore my ma up though."
"She didn't want you to enlist?"
"Of course not, everyone has heard about this war and how brutal it is. Even my Pa didn't want me to go, they didn't want me getting hurt."
"It sounds like they care a lot about you." Twilight slowly scooted closer to Tex, who looked back at her again.
"...Yeah, they do. Truth be told, it was hard for me to leave them. But I told you my reason to fight is, I didn't want to sit on my ass."
"You're really brave Tex."
"Thank you Twilight."

She began to scoot closer to him, she was enjoying his company quite alot, and he was enjoying hers.
"Do you have anypony in your life?" Twilight asked.
"What do you mean?" He gave her the side eye.
"Like a super special somepony?"
"special some... you mean like a girlfriend or wife?"
"Yeah, whatever you call it."
"No, no I don't. I haven't had a girlfriend since High School."
"Oh. I'm sorry, I didn't mean to bring that up if it's a sensitive topic." Twilight quickly retracted.
"No, it's fine. I don't really care too much about it." Replied Tex. "What about you? Gotta boyfriend?" Twilight shook her head.
"No, and I never had one." This response took Tex by surprise as he gave her an outlandish look.
"Are you shitting me!? Not one!? But you're a Princess! you should have a line of suitors." He proclaimed.
"Some show up now and then, but it's pretty rare honestly."
"I'm tee totally shocked. By how cute you are, you should have them wrapped around your pinky... or hoof."

Twilight was caught off guard by what he just said, freezing in place as her eyes widened. She looked at him with a shocked expression.
"Tex... You think I'm cute?" She asked him. Now It was Tex's turn to blush as he realized what he just said. He snaps his head towards her as his cheeks began to turn red.
"Ahem, I mean as... well... yeah I think you're cute. But I meant for... you know..." Twilight only chuckled at his attempts to explain himself. "Smooth Tex, real smooth" He thought to himself. He looked out of Twilight's window and saw that the sun was setting. "I really should get going Twilight. I wanna make it back to the ship before the sun sets."
"Trying to change the subject now are you?" Twilight teased him.
"No!... I just... don't want to walk in the dark." Tex defended himself.
"You know you can always sleep here. I have guest bedrooms." Twilight informed him.
"That would be appreciated, but I got drills in the morning. Gotta be there bright and early." He explained as he stood up and began to stretch, his back making audible pops as he extended his body.
"I understand Tex, Have a safe trip." Twilight stayed on the sofa and waved to him.
"Thanks Twi, see ya around." Tex picked up his helmet before putting it on, finally hiding his blushing face. He then exited The room he was in and eventually the Castle. Twilight watched him leave with a soft gentle smile on her face.
"Oh Tex, you big goof."