Friendship and a 120mm Machine Gun

Chapters

Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8

Chapter 1

(Quick note - writing and replanning an existing story has been rough, so I'll be attempting a new idea in order to get my creative juices flowing. It's worked before on other authors, so here's hoping it'll do something for me.)

Quiet.

The man eyed his surroundings to search for something - anything with the use of handheld binoculars. The hand of a mobile suit was raised into the air, just above the treetops to provide a clear line of sight to survey the area.

The man wore the standard issue Earth Federation ground pilot uniform - gray pants and black boots paired a white shirt and a blue short sleeve military jacket. He was rather tall and lean and in his late twenties, with short brown hair, a stubble on his chin, as well as fairly pale skin. On his jacket was the name tag: ‘J. Monroe’ in engraved lettering. On the side of his right thigh was a holster for an M71A1 service pistol, with magazines in his belt.

Nothing. All the man could see were green and very dense forests - ones that went as far as he could see. Anything else beyond that was too distant to make out. So far, all he could identify were mountains. He continued to look around, his head on a swivel as he continued to look around.

A few more moments passed before the man lowered his binoculars, revealing dim green eyes behind them. “Nothing! We’re good! No mobile suits in sight!” the man called out loudly. He turned and waved - and the mobile suit’s hand lowered. The large and bulky frame of an RMS-106CS Hizack Custom came into view, the large mobile suit's arm raised high above it.

The mobile suit sported the two toned dark and mid shade of green and gray colors of the Titans, sitting against the rock wall of the hole they were in. On its left lay its weapons - a sniper beam launcher and a BR-87A beam rifle. Its large spiked shield on the right shoulder carried a pair of beam sabers for close quarters combat as well. On its left arm was a standard issue Hizack shield with the golden emblem of the Earth Federation on its green armor. The other side of the shield mounted two additional e-pacs for the beam rifle.

Monroe gripped the finger of the mobile suit’s hand as it brought its hand over to the second mobile suit: a standard issue RMS-106 Hizack painted with the two tone navy blue and gray Federation colors, sporting a tall commander's fin on its head. It was sitting against the rocky structure next to the Hizack Custom - its empty cockpit hatch hung open and its mono-eye was switched off. Its right hand gripped a 120mm machine gun - fed by a large 150 round drum magazine. The mobile suit carried a triple missile rack on either side of its waist connected to a hinge point behind the suit, and on its left arm was the same standard issue arm shield as its slightly different counterpart.

On the back of the shield held two additional drum magazines for the machine gun. Its frame differed slightly from the Hizack Custom - with a shorter 'mouth vent' on its head, red fins on the outer edges of the leg thrusters, and the addition of two thin thruster arms on either side of the backpack. Both mobile suits sat in a wide rocky crevice that was almost a dozen meters deep, providing some decent cover from ground level as long as they sat.

Monroe hopped off the hand of the Hizack Custom and landed on the thigh of his own mobile suit before climbing up - clambering into the cockpit before closing the hatch behind him. As the metallic cover hissed, the man sat down in the pilot’s seat of his mobile suit - switching levers and buttons as he began to power the machine on.

The Hizack’s mono-eye flared, its pink light letting out a deep hum as the cockpit’s panoramic cockpit flickered to life. As the many screens of the cockpit interior powered on, the man strapped on his seatbelts before turning to his right. The Hizack Custom stood up, turning to pick up its weapons as the Hizack began to get on its feet as well. Servos whirring and air hissing was all that could be heard before the noises all droned down to a steady hum, their ultra compact Minovsky Fusion Reactors working smoothly to power the mobile suit and all of its factions.

“Are you certain it’s clear to move, sergeant? There isn't a lot of cover if we continue to move,” a female voice over rather short range radio asked. “We still don’t know if those Remnants could be spying on us. Or if there are any AEUG mobile suits are around.”

“Nothing as far as I could see. Instruments are working fine but you can never be too careful nowadays,” the man said as he gripped the control sticks for his suit. The Hizack responded to his minor commands, the fore grip of the large 120mm machine gun swinging left for the mobile suit’s left hand to grab.

The man pulled on his helmet, swinging the mouthpiece of the built-in headset down as he secured it. “We’ve been moving west for about a day now. Our provisions won’t last us more than a few weeks, not even with rationing,” Monrow said.

The Hizack Custom lifted up its sniper rifle - the large beam weapon raised to use its high performance electronic targeting optics to scout ahead. As the area was deemed clear, the mobile suits were free to move about without getting targeted.

“Nothing yet,” the Hizack Custom’s pilot sighed. “Our maps still aren’t working. Not picking up a single ping from any sort of IFF indicator either.”

“Comms are out of the question,” Monroe reminded. “As long as we’re lost, stragglers like us will be easy to pick off. Better not give them any reason to track us.”

“Understood.”

The two mobile suits walked, covering ten to eleven with every step they took. The forests weren’t that tall - with most of the trees going up to ankle or lower knee height. The large feet of the mobile suits pushed through the trees, knocking several over as they made their way through.

As the mobile suits walked, Monroe couldn’t help but think to himself. It was hard not to - especially because he and his wingwoman had no idea where they were. One moment they were fighting in the sky, and what happened next was nothing short of...insane.

Flashback: one day ago -

The Garuda-class Aerial Assault Carrier Atlas had been investigating a clue on a hidden group of Zeon Remnants, having spotted what was possibly an old aircraft in use by Zeon from the One Year War long ago. Having followed the clue into a storm, the crew was likely expecting little to no results with how rough it was.

It didn't take long before the before the Atlas got ambushed - dozens of fighters and bombers surrounded the massive carrier in an attempt at a pincer maneuver. Now the Atlas’s crew and her mobile suits were forced to defend the much smaller and agile threats as they attempted to escape through the harsh weather.

“Enemy fighters to our flank! Kiro, deal with them!” Monroe ordered, his Hizack machine gun firing volley after volley at the enemy attackers swarming the ship. One of the Zeon fighters - a Dopp, veered off before getting cut down by a single 120mm high explosive round.

“Understood!” The GM II fired at the incoming Dopp attempting to flank the Atlas, a burst of low output mega particle beam bisecting the old Zeon fighter before it exploded in midair. “Scratch one!” the pilot called before turning to attack a few more Dopps veering to attack once more.

“Missiles, missiles! Port side!” a shout from a crew member yelled. Some of the Atlas’s manned point defense turrets quickly readjusted to counter the threat - the storm of light cannon rounds cutting apart the small salvo. The Dodai YS that had fired them veered off towards the dense cloud line - its attempt at a sneak attack thwarted.

It would never make its escape - getting a massive hole bored into it by the blast of a thin and yellow beam coming from the Garuda’s port side doors. The Hizack Custom lowered its beam sniper launcher before turning to combat another incoming threat. “Mobile suits incoming, port side!” the pilot called out before firing again.

“Shit! Making my way over - the starboard side is clear!” Monroe called. The blue Hizack quickly reloaded with a magazine handed over by an RX-77-3 Guncannon Heavy Custom before joining the mobile suit sniper on the other side of the Atlas. “I see them, there’s three mobile suits - a Zaku Cannon and two Goufs. They look like Customs,” Monroe quickly said.

Sure enough, the three Zeon suits were heading directly towards them - with the Zaku Cannon and one of the Gouf Customs armed with a bazooka flying atop a pair of Dodai IIs while the last Gouf Custom flew on a Base Jabber painted green, armed with a Gatling shield.

“Target the Gouf on the right. His craft has a mega particle cannon,” Monroe quickly ordered as he took aim with his machine gun - the high powered optics lining up with his Hizack’s mono-eye as he locked onto the enemy machine. “Fire!”

The two Hizacks fired - the sniper beam and the machine gun’s 120mm rounds spat out at the incoming suits. The Zaku Cannon and a Gouf Custom veered off to its left, leaving the last Gouf Custom on the Base Jabber to veer upwards, attempting to cut across the Atlas’s axis and avoid more incoming fire. It didn’t take long for the Jabber and the suit to drop - the Gouf firing its Gatling shield towards the Atlas’s wing before it got struck in the shoulder by a successful burst of fire from Monroe’s suit. “Got it!”

The Gouf was sent falling as the Hizack Custom finished it off with a piercing beam shot through the center mass of the chest causing it to explode. Their celebration didn’t last long, however.

“Missiles, a lot of them!”

Monroe looked up to see a pair of Dodais veering off, having launched over a dozen missiles at close range with the Atlas. There were too many for the Atlas’s gunners to shoot down right away - and none of the suits currently facing it had any Vulcans. “Shi-”

The Garuda-class Transport shook violently. Monroe slammed his head against the back of his seat as he tumbled. Was it an explosion? What if the Atlas got hit? The thoughts raced through his head as he tried to stabilize before he was struck by a flash that was so bright that he went blind for a few moments. His head was pierced by a lance of agony as he yelped, and the suit suddenly tumbled forward while the man had his eyes reflexively closed. Before he knew it, the Hizack was sent plummeting off of the Atlas, falling through the clouds as its pilot lost all sense of balance.

"Sergeant!" a voice yelled. Whether it was a member of the Atlas's crew or if it was a fellow mobile suit pilot, the Hizack operator didn't know. All he knew was that he was falling fast - enough to shatter the mobile suit to crumbs upon impact with the ground if he didn't slow himself down.

“Shit, shit, shit!!” Monroe yelled as he tried to regain control. The mobile suit spun and flailed as it continued to fall, its thrusters burning for split seconds at a time as it attempted to reorient itself. Up above, the Atlas continued to fly, with the pilot barely able to manage directional thrust long enough to see a glimpse of it in his panoramic cockpit.

"Slow down, dammit!!" He slammed his pedals hard, and the thrusters in both the backpack and the legs burned - cutting his descent speed in half as he managed to stop his suit from spinning in the air. Panting as he felt gravity return to normal and his vertigo leave, he looked around.

Only to widen his eyes in shock.

The area they'd been flying above had been mostly rocky areas with the storm overhead, if he remembered the briefing. What he saw was a near opposite of that - baring witness to distant mountains and forests that resembled an area more like a countryside. The storm was nowhere to be seen as well, since the surrounding area looked almost like that of a summer day.

"How long have we been flying? Did we cross country without realizing it?" Monroe thought as he took the time to gather his senses. He landed a few moments later, his descent slow enough that he was able to drop the last few dozen meters with no issue. "Ammo and propellant..." Monroe mumbled as he checked his mobile suit, deciding to focus on figuring out what he had.

The missile pods on his waist had gone unused, with no particularly large aircraft to use them on in that short battle in the skies. His Hizack machine gun was currently at 96 rounds out of 150 - though there were two full drum magazines stored against the backside of his shield. The propellant tank in his mobile suit's backpack and leg units were mostly full, at around 94% capacity. "Not bad. Though if any Zeon Remnants or AEUG bastards try coming after us, I won't be able to hold my own for long..." Monroe thought, his mind flashing to the newer mobile suits he'd seen the Anti Earth Union Group field both in space and in the attack on Jaburo months ago.

he looked under his seat to find the emergency supply kit underneath. The kit primarily consisted of basic tools - enough to repair minor damage or perform maintenance on a mobile suit, medical supplies, a pair of flare guns, water and a week's worth of rations. Behind the seat on a small rack was an M72A1 Bullpup Assault Rifle: the standard issue firearm of the Earth Federation's Ground Forces. Next to the rifle on the other side of the seat were smaller racks for additional 30 round magazines. The day he'd need a gun over a mobile suit would truly be the end of days...

His thoughts were once more interrupted when the sound of an alert was heard. The loud beeping on his secondary monitor warned him of another mobile suit, and he quickly looked up. He pulled back on the stick and aimed the 120mm machine gun back up into the sky...

Only to see a green Hizack Custom come crashing against the ground with an explosion of dirt and trees flying everywhere, landing not as cleanly as the mobile suit before it had. The blue Hizack lowered its machine gun and turned as bits of tree trunk bounced off its armor.

As the sounds died down, echoing throughout the forests - Monroe sighed. "You fell off too, huh?" he asked.

Flashback end -

That was over a day ago. Monroe sighed as the mobile suits continued to walk - their mono-eyes swiveling as they kept surveying the area. "More forests. Not a single village in sight, let alone a runway or even any coast," he thought to himself. "How will we find the Atlas at this point?"

"Sergeant..." a voice came from the radio. "Can we stop? We...need to talk face to face."

The Hizack Custom stopped walking and knelt on the ground as Monroe's mobile suit halted its steps as well. The cockpit of the green sniper suit opened up as a wire descended from a small winch at the top of the hatch. The pilot stepped out of the Hizack Custom - placing her one of her feet in the ringed handle hanging at the end of the wire before it began to lower her to the ground, her hands clutching the wire tightly.

Monroe did the same, tiredly unbuckling his seat belt and opening his mobile suit cockpit hatch before a wire lowered from the top of his hatch. Stepping on the handle, he lowered himself to ground level, where his wingwoman was waiting for him a few dozen meters away.

The pilot of the Hizack Custom stood against the foot of her mobile suit. She was a slim and athletic individual in her very early twenties, with short lavender hair and bright hazel eyes. Her skin was a shade darker than Monroe's pale complexion, and she had a scar on her left cheek. Her slim fitting uniform had a name tag similar to Monroe's, with the name 'K. Rosa' engraved neatly on it.

"Sergeant. I...I think I figured something out," Rosa said. Her helmet rested against her side between her body and her arm, and Monroe noted the rather uncomfortable expression on her face.

"What is it? And why couldn't you say this over the radio?" Monroe asked, arms crossed.

"I...I need to know that you're going to consider what I have to say. And I need eye contact for that," Rosa said. "We...might not be on Earth anymore."

There was silence for a moment. "I figured," Monroe said.

"You did?" Rosa asked quietly. She looked a little surprised - though not at all disappointed. Monroe figured that she expected some denial or arguments over what had to be an outrageous claim.

"Not really out of the question. I mean...we go from a desert to a countryside in the span of a few minutes? Plus our maps won't connect," Monroe said, tapping his helmet. "Our hardware's linked up to analog satellites in space and hard signal beacons in cities and other locations, remember? The only way our maps wouldn't work is if the system in both our suits are down or if the beacons are down."

"And we did hard reboots on both our systems," Rosa finished before looking around. The treetops above them were just like the ones on Earth - and it was hard for both of them to truly believe they were no longer home. "I see. But...then what is this place?"

"I don't really know. Looks enough like home. But without beacons, we can't exactly let anyone know that we need help. The Atlas is probably long gone now, and Minovsky Particle interference won't let us do jack shit anyways," Monroe said. "Any ideas?"

Rosa thought hard, with Monroe patiently waiting. He and Rosa had been squad members in training - having used mobile suits for three years for the Earth Federation's Ground Forces. Despite the history, Rosa was still a bit of a mystery, not talking much about her past or her origins, simply insisting upon keeping her secrets and focusing on her career as a Federation pilot.

They'd gone through a lot together over the relatively long course of their military careers, piloting the now old RGM-79 GMQ Quel and the RMS-179 GM IIs before the RMS-106 Hizack came out, and racking up a handful of combat sorties against the Zeon Remnants and even the AEUG on rare occasion. While the two didn't get along one hundred percent - with a small rivalry forming over Rosa's significant combat skill that earned her the high performing Hizack Custom - they were still close friends regardless.

But right now, the two couldn't afford to be friends or rivals over rank and skill. They had to be soldiers - soldiers who needed to cooperate and focus on surviving and regrouping with their allies. He knew the Atlas was likely still flying around, considering that he'd seen it while falling to the ground of this new land. Even so, it had to be thousands of kilometers away by now.

"I guess...we should just keep walking, huh?" Rosa whispered. It was clear she was hoping to come up with a better answer, something that didn't leave them so much in the dark.

"Hey. We'll get back somehow. I bet the captain will be pleased to see us again once we do, huh?" Monroe reassured. He patted Rosa on the shoulder affectionately before turning around to head back to his mobile suit. "Come on. Eat an energy bar and let's get moving again. We're burning daylight."

Rosa watched as the man made his way back to his Hizack, hoisting himself up with the wire back to his cockpit hatch before she turned to do the same. Even with his confident assurances, she still felt uneasy. Something about this place seemed...wrong, somehow.

Regardless, she made her way back to her Hizack Custom, being lifted back to her cockpit hatch before she got moving once more - the door closing. Both machines moved once more, their footfalls shaking the local ground with every step that they took. As the mobile suits continued their walk, they continued to maintain a constant watch of their surroundings. After all, anything and anyone could come after them...

Elsewhere in Equestria: ten minutes later -

A pounding headache was what greeted Twilight Sparkle as she woke up. The Element of Magic, also known as the Princess of Friendship rolled over in bed and groaned tiredly, her hooves coming up to nurse the pain that continued to bounce around in her head.

She barely remembered what happened. Everything felt fuzzy...why was she hurting so much?

"Twilight! You're awake!" a voice cried. The volume made the agony grow in full force, and she flinched hard. Her discomfort must have shown, because she heard a much quieter "S-sorry!" right after that.

Twilight Sparkle slowly opened her pained eyes, her blurry vision slowly clearing up to see Fluttershy leaning over her. "Ugh...what happened?" she moaned. She looked around, seeing that she was currently in her own bed, specifically in her room in the Castle of Friendship. Fluttershy was next to her, her teal eyes wide and her eyebrows creased in what was clearly concern.

"Spike said you were doing some spell...some sort of teleportation or retrieval spell. Then he said there was some big bright flash of light and you just...you just collapsed! When he came back to you with me, it was so scary!" Fluttershy whimpered, her frightened tone tugging at Twilight's heartstrings. "You were just lying on the ground..."

Twilight Sparkle felt more than a little bad for frightening her friend, but she didn't even know what had happened. "The spell...right! I was testing a spell..." she thought. Then her memories came back, one after the other. She recalled a test about teleportation, which included all sorts of calculations and smaller trial runs for the real thing. She remembered trying the spell out after checking things with her notes a dozen times before things went black. "What happened...all I remember was that spell and...did anything show up?"

"No. Nothing was there. Nothing's shown up for the past day," Fluttershy said, looking Twilight over just to be certain over her state of health. "That's how long you were unconscious."

The words made her eyes widen and she sat up quickly - at least before her head was pierced once more by a lance of pain. "Ow...one day? It's been that long?" Twilight asked.

"Yes," Fluttershy before a knock at the door was heard. "She's awake, you can come in," the shy Pegasus quickly said, quietly as usual. Thankfully, it was still loud enough to be heard, as Spike opened the door with a tray of sandwiches cut into quarters, alongside a few water glasses.

"Oh, good! You're awake..." Spike said with a relieved grin. "You almost gave me a heart attack when you dropped to the ground."

"Sorry. I didn't know that would happen...or that I'd be out of commission for an entire day," Twilight said as she slowly climbed off the bed, landing all four hooves gently to keep from sparking another nasty headache. "But...was there any success from the spell testing? Anything at all?"

"Did you not hear?" Spike asked, his tone both tired and incredulous as he set the food tray on the nearest table. "You just passed out, and you're still thinking about the test? It's alright to take a break, don't you know that?"

"Spike is right," Fluttershy concurred as Spike took a water glass from the tray. "We can talk about what you were attempting to do later. You need to make sure you're healthy!"

"The others visited yesterday. They wanted to come by when you got better, so you'll probably need the rest to deal with them," Spike chimed in as he handed the glass to Twilight, who drank it eagerly. "Pinkie Pie will probably come up with some big party named 'Glad You Survived Your Botched Spell Test' or 'Congratulations On Sleeping For Over Twenty Four Hours Straight', something along those lines, I think."

Twilight Sparkle pouted for a moment before sighing, letting Spike take back the empty glass. "You're right. As always," she said before turning to look at Spike with a pleading expression. "Can you please bring my notes here, at least? I need to make sure I considered all possible variables for the spell test."

Spike shrugged. "Alright. Reading doesn't seem like it'll hurt. At the very least, you won't get bored of it," he muttered as he made his way out of the room, closing the door as Fluttershy let out a little giggle.

"He does seem a little bit concerned," the shy animal loving Pegasus said after a moment. "But you should eat. It's been a whole day, so you have to be feeling hungry;"

Twilight's stomach grumbled lightly, and she reluctantly conceded her friend's point. With her magic, Twilight carefully lifted a sandwich from the plate into the air before bringing it to her. There was no pain or struggle, but she noticed that she felt a little bit weak - likely from passing out the other day. Thankfully, she managed to levitate it long enough to eat the small sandwich in one bite.

Sighing at the explosion of flavor in her taste buds, she momentarily shelved her plan on reading up on her notes, as well as figuring out what exactly happened with the teleportation spell gone wrong. "Ah, well. It isn't like something big got teleported or anything along those lines. We surely would have seen something if that happened - at the very least, noticed something was wrong," she thought as she chewed - using her magic to bring a glass of water before sipping it. "Everything's fine. Probably."

Up in the skies and remaining completely unseen by the residents of Equestria, a monstrously large winged contraption soared above the clouds.

Chapter 2

a few hours later -

It was around noontime, easily three or four hours after they'd started walking again in the morning. The two mobile suits were now sitting a dozen or so meters away from a large river bank near the edge of the forest. Monroe lay on the rocks, focused only on the clouds in the sky and his slow breathing. Nearby was some light splashing - with Rosa bathing naked in the water.

Monroe continued to lie back and watch the skies as Rosa climbed out of the water, the man respecting her privacy as he heard her light footsteps tapping the rocks. "Are you sure you don't want to bathe?" Rosa asked from nearby, with the sound of rustling clothes being heard. "It's refreshing."

"Nah," Monroe said as he sighed, quickly closing his eyes to avoid any sort of temptation. One arm lay behind his head while the other rested atop the bullpup he brought from inside his mobile suit. "How're you going to dry yourself? Water's probably not good for the inside of a mobile suit."

"I'll just wait," Rosa said as she stepped back. Monroe opened his eyes and barely spotted her from the edge of his peripheral vision. She seemed to be checking her M71A1 service pistol, judging by the metallic clacks he heard. "It's getting pretty hot so I shouldn't be soaked for too long."

"Hm. What about your hair?" Monroe asked.

Rosa let out a huff as her gun let out another click, the signature sound of the pistol's external hammer. "You know my hair's pretty short. It's not like it'll puff up when it gets dry," she said. She sat at on a large rock away from the shade, near where her clothes at. With a sigh, she lay down, the sun beginning to warm her body. "This is nice. Is this what exhibitionists feel like?"

"Please don't start getting ideas," Monroe sighed, with Rosa giggling afterwards. That giggle died down seconds later, and Rosa quickly gasped - a sound that worried the Hizack pilot greatly. "Huh? What's wrong-"

His words were cut off the moment a rustle was heard across the river. Monroe's eyes shot open and he sat up in an instant - his bullpup gripped in both hands and aimed at the trees without hesitation. Near him, Rosa had sat up as well, her hand over her chest as she aimed her own service pistol across the river. "What the hell was that?" she whispered.

"What did you see?"

"I saw...something. Eyes, maybe?"

There was more silence for a few moments before the sound came again. This time, it was directly followed by the sight of several birds fleeing from the treetops. "...I don't like this," Rosa said as another rustle was heard. "Think it might be guerillas?"

"I hope not. Back to our suits, now. I'll cover you," Monroe ordered. Rosa gathered up her clothes and helmet in a big bundle as Monroe stood up slowly, bullpup steadily aimed at the trees. There was no more rustling, but he couldn't be sure. The sound of whirring caught his brief attention, and his eyed flickered back to barely see the naked form of Rosa being pulled up to her cockpit hatch.

The second he heard the Hizack Custom's hatch slam shut, he turned and made a run for his own mobile suit. Grabbing the wire and kicking the side of the handle with his foot - he was quickly hoisted back up to his cockpit, gripping the wire with one hand while the other hand was tightly wrapped around the carry handle of his weapon.

He shut the cockpit hatch the second he clambered into his seat - powering the mobile suit on and quickly buckling his seatbelt. "Rosa, status!" he quickly called into his mouthpiece the moment he got his helmet on. As the Minovsky Fusion Reactor hummed to life, so did the mono-eye. The screens of the panoramic cockpit flickered on, and crystal clear images of the surroundings was revealed - including behind, above, and below the pilot thanks to the use of a linear seat.

"Systems optimal. No issues here," Rosa answered over the radio. "Cameras on."

"You see anything?" Monroe asked, quickly zooming in on the forest with his own Hizack’s mono-eye.

"Movement in the trees. I can't figure out what it is but..." Rosa said. Her Hizack Custom's mono-eye had dilated as well, zoomed in on the trees where they'd been aiming at a minute ago. "Wait, something's coming out..."

The treetops shuddered, leaves being shaken off of the tips of branches. The 120mm machine gun came up, the weapon aimed at what could be a Zeon or AEUG infantry group armed with anti-MS weaponry - or worse, a tank.

What slithered out of the trees was nothing either pilot had been expecting. An orange reptilian head of unnatural size poked out of the tree line, its mouth easily big enough to swallow a human whole without any effort. It was clearly snake-like in nature, with wide and green slitted eyes underneath a pair of oddly human-like eyebrows. It sported red frills on either side of its head, and its scales were huge - looking akin to ancient armor more than actual reptilian.

"What the...actual fuck?" Monroe said, his eyes unable to look away. He only did so after another another head stuck itself out of the trees, hissing loudly. The Hizack Custom stepped back, away from the river as a third head popped out, followed by a fourth and final one.

"What the hell is this, a family of snakes?" Monroe muttered incredulously.

"I don't think so," Rosa whispered. The four heads hissed before they began to rise simultaneously, almost as if they were all one creature.

It would turn out to be the case.

The four necks of all the heads literally joined into one creature as it rose out of the trees before stepping forward, its large foot splashing hard in the river as all four of its heads hissed, glaring at the two mobile suits in front of it. The four headed monster was huge - easily as tall as a mobile suit with its necks positioned straight. It stood on two massive legs and the body was wide, with bright yellow belly and large spines on its tail and back.

"...what the actual fuck?" Rose whispered, repeating the sergeant's earlier words. Monroe didn't have the nerve to say anything after her - not when he was in awe of the near mythical beast standing in front of his mobile suit.

His awe turned into shock in mere seconds as the monster attacked him. Its four heads lunged at the Hizack with such surprising speed that Monroe didn't even have enough time to widen his eyes, much less maneuver his Hizack. His head slammed violently into the back of his headrest as the monster smashed into the mobile suit - toppling it over and sending it crashing on its back with a thunderous crash.

"Agh, shit!! What the-" Monroe yelped as he gripped the controls. Ignoring the shakiness and the headache he felt, he pushed hard - forcing his mobile suit to try and get up. The monster wouldn't let him, however - its long necks coiling around the Hizack's arms and midsection.

The servos whirred loudly as alarms blared in the mobile suit's cockpit. The machine was completely immobilized, its arm unable to bring the 120mm machine gun close to smack against the creature, much less shoot at it. "Get this thing off of me!!" Monroe yelled into the comms.

"I can't get a shot!" Rosa's voice cried. Her Hizack Custom had dropped the beam sniper rifle in favor of grabbing the BR-87A beam rifle - ideal for close to mid range but notorious for its immense power output.

“Don’t shoot! Fucking pull!!” Monroe growled. His mobile suit was was still pinned by the multi headed monster. The suit’s armor of Titanium ceramic composite alloy was very strong - but the servos within the suit’s joints were significantly more fragile. And Monroe was not willing to stress test them against a hostile monster.

The Hizack Custom dropped its beam rifle and hurried over - grabbing two of the monster’s necks around the midsection and pulling as hard as its servos would allow. The monster’s heads all screeched, and it began to flail - struggling and threatening to topple the Hizack Custom over as well.

"It's coiled up...tight!" Rosa growled as she pulled back on the controls, forcing the Hizack Custom to step back as it attempted to free its ally. One of the heads let go of Monroe's mobile suit and lashed out at the green machine attempting to yank it away from its prey. The head slammed into the chest, likely hoping to force it away.

It did the exact opposite. The Hizack Custom's armor was much stronger than the standard Hizack - consisting not only standard issue alloys of Titanium Ceramic Composite, but mixes of Gundarium γ, further increasing the suit's durability.

The head cracked against the mobile suit's chest before falling limp, either completely unconscious or dead from such a violent impact. Either way, the loss of this particular head clearly had an effect on the other three, as the creature as a whole screamed and hissed wildly.

It provided just the opening Rosa needed. Shaking herself out of her surprise, she pulled hard - and another head came loose. "Get off of him...you freaky bastard!!" she snarled as the Hizack Custom stepped back once more and leaned away hard.

The other two heads uncoiled at once and lashed at Rosa's mobile suit before Monroe acted. With his mobile suit's arms free - he yanked hard on the controls. The 120mm machine gun still in the Hizack's hands slammed into the creature with enough force to make it topple away.

"I'll kill it!" Rosa quickly shouted. The Hizack Custom reached into the curved aperture of the shoulder shield, and pulled out a large cylindrical object, as green as the suit itself. At first, nothing happened, with the monster still hissing as it attempted to recover from such a violent counterattack.

Then everything went bright.

The end of the object exploded in a massive blast of yellow energy, with such a blast of heat and power that many nearby rocks were sent flying. Even the creature backed off, hissing in response to this unknown threat. Ultra dense concentrations of invisible Minovsky Particles flowed out - molding the wild beam that shot out into the shape of a jagged and fluctuating twelve meter long sword of pure energy, the sound of fizzling particles and screaming beam energy being all that could be heard from miles away.

Thus is the power of the beam saber.

The rocks near the energy weapons melted almost immediately - the gray solids turning into gooey and molten red sludge that boiled and bubbled. The water in the river boiled at once, a massive explosion of steam erupting just from being near the energy. The forest across the water wasn't spared either, with the tree line exploding in flame in an instant. Birds and animals scattered away from the flames as they began to spread, blackened smoke joining the steam as the billowing clouds of hot vapor rose in the air. The entire area glowed yellow from just how bright and powerful the saber was. However, neither Rosa or Monroe flinched. Only the monster panicked - turning and fleeing on its two massive feet.

"Oh no you don't!!" Rosa yelled - and the Hizack Custom took off running after the fleeing creature, the saber still hovering over the rocks and the water. More of the river got evaporated in an instant, and more of the rocks were turned into popping puddles and thick streams of lava. And the fires in the trees only continued to spread.

Despite the few seconds of head start the large multi headed reptile had, the mobile suit was faster - taking larger strides. Plus, it helped to have a melee weapon with reach. The Hizack Custom lunged forwards, swinging the beam saber across its right. The monster stopped screaming an immediate millisecond the saber slashed across its neck. All four heads were sent crashing to the ground, their necks smoldering and sizzling from the contact with raw shaped plasma. Its main body crumpled to the ground, its scales glowing from the heat.

Wisps of smoke billowed out from between the scales, the flesh underneath cooking from being within proximity of the beam saber. Rosa panted as she powered off the saber, with the energy flickering and fizzling out as the mobile suit's unlimited supply of Minovsky Particles was cut from the weapon. As the pilot found herself calming down, she looked to her right to find the Hizack catching up - carrying its own weapon alongside the beam sniper launcher and the BR-87A beam rifle she'd left behind.

The view of a burning forest greeted her from behind her sergeant's mobile suit. "W-what happened?" Rosa asked, her voice quaking at all the fire spreading quickly through the densely packed trees.

"Your beam saber happened," Monroe said. He was quiet through the comm, not at all admonishing her for her actions but not exactly reassuring her. "It's why beam weapons aren't supposed to be used in colonies or near cities, remember?"

Rosa hadn't remembered. In the fear over Monroe's safety and the pure anger over the seemingly random attack that some animal would attempt on an ally, she'd forgotten basic discipline when it came to handling mobile suits. Even if nobody was hurt or if any animals escaped, a forest fire was a pretty big damn deal. "I..." she whispered, quickly getting her mobile suit to put the beam saber back into the storage rack in the spiked shoulder shield.

"We should get moving," Monroe said, cutting her off. The blue mobile suit handed both of the Hizack Custom's weapons to its rightful owner before turning to the edge of the forest. "We need to leave the vicinity of the forest, before we gather any attention. That fire will probably engulf everything in the next few hours. Not much we can do for now except skedaddle."

Despite the conflicting emotions, Rosa simply replied with a "Yes, sir." before she followed along - the strides of both mobile suits considerably greater than before. The forest continued to burn, the steam from the decimated river being drowned out by the ever growing presence of black smoke rising into the sky. There was no telling just how large the forest was, or if the fire showed any signs of stopping.

"And Rosa?" Monroe finally said after a few minutes of silence. Rosa was broken out of her thoughts as she looked back to the Hizack in front of her. "Mobile suits are nothing but weapons. Collateral damage comes with the job and responsibility of piloting one, never forget that."

an hour later: at Ponyville -

Panic had ensued in Ponyville. As of twenty to thirty minutes ago, the ponies that lived in the small and humble town were preparing for the worst. It'd all started with an alarm from a Pagasus conducting a long distance weather patrol, warning them of a massive fire spreading from the Everfree Forest at an unprecedented rate.

The weather team of Ponyville was quick to respond, with as many Pegasi as possible gathering rainclouds to fight off the fires approaching the village. Rainbow Dash was the first to act, rallying the others to gather clouds in order to fight the blaze. Many Earth ponies and unicorns began to prepare for the worst as well, quickly digging up moats near the edge of the forest in order to stem the fires should the Pegasi fail to halt their advance.

Fillies and colts were seen getting rushed to the center of town by their parents as Twilight Sparkle flew over the many rooftops of the area. Fluttershy had rushed to her cottage to get all of her animals out, while Rarity and Applejack had quickly joined the other ponies in digging the large moat. Pinkie Pie had taken to cheering up the panicked ponies - setting up a party and a stage in record time to distract the others. However, she had limited success - given that nopony could miss the smoke rising distantly in the sky.

The princess was quick to join Rainbow Dash as she double checked her cloud alongside many others. The weather factory in Cloudsdale was working overtime: producing storm clouds to be used against the incoming blaze. "Rainbow Dash, the moat's underway," Twilight quickly said. "I told the others that I'll be joining you."

"How're the others doing with that moat?" Rainbow Dash quickly asked. She was dead serious - her tone meaning business as she focused on fighting the fires that continued to swallow the forest.

"They're making good progress," Twilight said as she continued to hover next to the Element of Loyalty. "I can help too, I have a few spells that can-"

"Twilight, you were passed out not too long ago! We can handle this - you should be resting right now!" Rainbow Dash warned.

"Rainbow Dash, I promise I'm alright!" the Princess of Friendship insisted. "My magic went back to normal since I woke up and I don't have my headaches, fatigue, or any kind of long lasting effects after that failed spell. I promise you, I can help!"

"I...alright," Rainbow Dash conceded. "But you stay far away from the fire, got it?"

"Got it. So what's the plan?" Twilight asked.

"Fires spread in all directions. So we need to attack it in every angle we can. The Pegasus that came back said it was heading West, North, and East," Rainbow Dash explained. Nearby, other Pegasi had flown over to listen in on the plan. "There's swamps and rivers all over the forest. We look for anywhere the fires may have stopped and search for the areas that continue to grow. It's our best bet at dousing as much of the more dangerous areas around."

"What if it isn't enough?" one Pegasus mare asked nervously.

"I've already contacted Princess Celestia via a letter before making my way over here. An emergency as big as this doesn't come out of nowhere. This was no accident," Twilight said, speaking up loudly. "We just need to hold out long enough for the Princess to send additional help with containing the fires."

"Right! We won't need to deal with the fires altogether, just keep it from spreading any further. Some might get through, but we can keep pouring water. We're Pegasi, it's what we do best!" Rainbow Dash shouted. Some of the Pegasi cheered, and Rainbow Dash pointed towards the flames. "Split into teams of four or five! Spread out and stay well above the fire! Start raining down on the very edges of where that fire is spreading!"

The now morale boosted Pegasi obeyed at once, zipping towards the flames as they slowly but menacingly approached. Twilight and Rainbow Dash veered West, towards the flanks of the fires. It was also where they were spreading the fastest - and several other Pegasi teams had joined them.

They didn't need to fly very long - the fires were spreading quicker along the West, and the Pegasi wasted little time in combating the flames. The ponies jumped atop their clouds, squeezing out collected rainwater at the inferno. The group relentlessly hurled a violent downpour from their clouds, creating a bombardment that threatened to halt the advance of the fires.

Twilight wasn't idle either - landing at a nearby swamp and acting quickly. With a burst of magic from her horn and a grunt of considerable effort, the alicorn quickly lifted up several spheres of murky water before spreading them out along the lines of clouds. With a bit of concentration and determination, Twilight attacked - quickly hurling the large water balls at the incoming flames. The explosions of water splashed against the trees and doused some of the flames long enough for the downpour to gain the upper hoof.

The fires were being doused, but there was a problem. Rainbow Dash was easily the first to notice, followed by Twilight after she'd thrown another few salvos of water balls from the swamp. "The temperatures are too high!!" she yelled up at Rainbow Dash, barely being heard over the roar of the inferno. She was already sweating - and she wasn't even that close to the fire. Nearby trees had dried up from what had to feel like a heat wave - making it easy for all of them to catch fire.

"Yeah, it shouldn't be this crazy hot!" Rainbow Dash called, wiping sweat off of her brow before she continued to jump, continuing to direct the angled rainfall. "The rain isn't slowing them down quickly enough!"

"It'll only get worse if the winds get worse!" another Pegasus called, already struggling to hold back the flames near him and his partner. Twilight was quick to assist, hurling more water balls at the fires near them.

"The wind! I can shift it back the other direction!" Twilight realized before flying up and landing on the Element of Loyalty's cloud. "Rainbow Dash, I'm going to form my own gust that can push the fires back! If we keep it stuck over areas it already burned, would that help?!"

"It might! But the heat might be too much!" Rainbow Dash called out.

Twilight looked back at the fires with a glint of determination. "I won't need to get close," she reassured. "A wall of wind should be ideal. Just enough to push the fires back and pull any water over them. If we're lucky, the fires will burn itself out f given enough time."

"Will you have enough time?" Rainbow Dash asked.

"We'll find out!" Twilight said, quickly spreading her hooves and closing her eyes. With a blast of magic, a huge gust of wind similar to a stationary tidal wave began to form. Any flames that attempted to lick and catch onto more trees were immediately thrown back. On the other side of the wall of wind, the downpour of rain was getting sucked hard into the wind, thrown into the cowed flames.

Twilight Sparkle didn't dare back down - even as she felt the strain of her magic beginning to weaken her body. Despite the hours of rest she'd received - she clearly wasn't completely at one hundred percent - not enough to keep the winds up.

The fires weren't getting more violent at the very least- but they were still raging beyond the barrier and not showing any signs of stopping. The Pegasi continued to stomp away at their clouds, throwing as much water as they could to keep the fires away.

Twilight growled for a moment, intent on keeping her concentration up for as long as possible. She was starting to feel the aftereffects of using too much magic, and the familiar feeling of aching muscles and pulsing headaches was slowly starting to seep in. The circulating wall of wind was very wide, and it was difficult to maintain its shape and spread to this extent.

Thankfully, she wouldn't need to do so for long. Shadows flew overhead, and Twilight nearly lost concentration before the flames were blasted back - much too quickly to be the result of her magic or the efforts of the Pegasi. Looking up, she saw several large chariots flying by.

Golden chariots. Flown by small but strong rows of Pegasi in golden armor.

"The Princess!" somepony called. The group began to cheer as huge amounts of water poured over the largest concentrations of fire, all of it coming from large tanks on the chariot. Following them were more Royal Guards likely flying as escort.

The Princess herself appeared as well, flying majestically over Twilight' slowly diminishing wall of wind and hovering in place above the fire. Her mane flowed and her wings spread wide with every flap as her horn glowed brightly in a spectacle of multiple colors. With a swing of the head, Princess Celestia sent a spell so large and powerful that it blanketed over several hundred square meters in an instant.

The effect was as immediate as the spell itself. The fires in the area were all gone, leaving husks of blackened trees and incinerated natural landscape. Not only was the wind much stronger than Twilight's spell - but it was much colder. The heat wave was gone, replaced by a chill not too dissimilar from a winter breeze.

The goddess-like alicorn turned to see Twilight struggling to stand on the cloud, next to Rainbow Dash. Flying over and gently landing next to her, the princess gently helped Twilight stand up. "I regret for not arriving sooner. Our own Canterlot Fire Brigade needed to assist our guards in collecting water from the lake," she said apologetically, her tone as gentle as the concerned expression on her face. "Twilight, what happened here?"

It was quiet for a moment, with the Pegasi all bowing their heads in respect to their ruler - not that she was concerned with any sort of bowing. She was focused on Twilight, who slowly found the breath to speak, despite of how tired she felt. "A...a fire from the Everfree. We don't know how it started, only that it was spreading from the other side of the forest. It wasn't any kind of ordinary fire, princess!" Twilight began before getting cut off by Celestia.

"Twilight, breathe. The danger is over," Celestia calmed soothingly. "Slowly."

Twilight took a deep breath before exhaling. She did so again, and repeated things a few more times before she spoke up again - her breath much more composed. "The fire was much hotter than any natural fire could have been, princess. And something this big doesn't come out of nowhere. It had to be caused by a pony or an accident."

Princess Celestia digested this information thoughtfully before nodding. "I understand. I'll conduct my own investigation of the events. It appears the fires started to the south," she said, looking accordingly in the aforementioned direction. "There's a river there as well, along the edge of this part of the forest, no?"

"Y-yes, princess!" Rainbow Dash said as she eyed where the white alicorn was looking. Most of the fires were already put out - the Royal Guards worked fast. "Do you think we might find something there?"

Whatever Princess Celestia would have said in response was cut off as she spotted a few Pegasi in white and golden armor flying towards them at full speed. "I believe they already have," she said. The two guards slowed to a halt, hovering in place as they flew at attention. "Report," Celestia said.

"Your Highness, we investigated the other side of where the fires have likely started and..." one of the guards said. "You need to see this for yourself."

Princess Celestia raised an eyebrow, and Twilight exchanged nervous looks with Rainbow Dash. Whatever this was, it could not be good.

A few minutes later, the three of them hovered over an oddly dry river and the grisly corpse of a massive Hydra. Twilight fought the urge to vomit, while Rainbow Dash couldn't manage to pull her eyes away from the dark sight.

Princess Celestia landed near the beast, inspecting the remains with the grace and experience of a pony who's had to deal with violent situations before. "This kind of Hydra is fireproof," she said, eyeing one of the four heads lying on the rocks. "But whatever or whoever did this somehow burned through its scales and flesh."

"Could it be magic? The bisection looks relatively clean. For a cauterized area," a guard suggested.

"Perhaps," Celestia said. "But the kind of magic capable of such power is difficult to master. This could be a group of dissidents intent on sowing chaos, or-"

"Princess. Hoofsteps," another royal guard quickly called. Princess Celestia turned to see dozens of massive indentations in the rock, resembling oval shapes that went deep into the ground, having shattered the rocks in each step into smithereens or pebbles. The trail didn't go far - the hoofsteps entering fields with thick grass that could easily hide such heavy hooffalls regardless of size or weight

"...or this could be something else," Princess Celestia said. Her eyes narrowed as the realization began to settle in her mind.

"There is a grave threat somewhere in Equestria, and there's no way to pinpoint where it could be."

Chapter 3

in Cloudsdale: 23 hours after the Everfree Forest fire -

"Please, there's no need to bow. I sincerely apologize for dropping in without notification, but I am in dire need of your skills," Princess Celestia said as she addressed the uniformed Pegasi of the Wonderbolts. Her arrival was completely unprecedented, to say the least. The group had been preparing for another run of the mill practice session for their next show when the Princess herself had shown up.

Spitfire was the first of the Wonderbolts to rise up from her bow, her eyes narrowed from the rather ambiguous wording from the ruler of Equestria. "What is it, princess?" she asked.

"Approximately one day ago, the Everfree Forest was set ablaze. The Pegasi of Ponyville managed to gather a sizeable force and fight the blaze before myself and my guard could arrive and assist them." Celestia said, watching as all the Pegasi of the team rose up as well. "This event was not an accident."

"How so?" Spitfire asked. She was effectively in her drill sergeant mode and the others were quick to follow her attitude, all of them quickly dropping all pretense of awe of the princess's presence - focused entirely on the task at hoof.

"The heat was of an abnormally high temperature, hotter than any natural flame could have exhibited. The fires burned for one hour, but over half of the forest had been completely engulfed and destroyed," Celestia continued. A gasp was heard, and a few of the Pegasi exchanged quick and uneasy gazes. "On the other side of the forest was the corpse of a Hydra - bisected by what appeared to be magic."

A dead Hydra? Hydras were bad news, but if something or somepony out there could actually kill one, then that was even worse news. "How did it happen?" Fleetfoot found herself asking. Princess Celestia answered by bringing out a few photos from a saddlebag, revealing the semi-scorched remains of the aforementioned Hydra from several angles, including the separated heads.

"Further investigations showed burns of extremely high temperatures, judging by the effects it had on its scales and flesh," the princess continued. "Whatever this did was hot enough to incinerate scales and cut through it like a knife does with butter." Her face contorted for a split second, likely disturbed with the analogy she chose to use. "Then there was the effect it had on the environment."

She brought out the next few photos, revealing what had happened near the riverbank. Sand was turned to glass. Granite was turned into molten lava, completely hardened but somehow still hot to the touch. A massive part of the river had been completely devastated - with steam still hissing from the considerably lower water level. "We've determined that the fires started after catching fire from whatever had destroyed the Hydra, all while happening across the river several dozen meters away."

Whatever had done this was hot enough that mere proximity was enough to start a forest fire. The sense of uneasiness in the room grew considerably, but nopony broke. Spitfire stepped up and asked the next question. "Understood, princess. What is our objective?"

The princess smiled before pulling out another photo. "Whatever had done this was of a huge proportion. Large hoofsteps led away from the scene of what was likely some sort of battle. We couldn't follow those steps for long, as the fields they led into obscured the trail. But we know that the culprit is still in Equestria," she explained as she brought up the images. The Wonderbolts got looks at the large indentations, the implications of size clearly frightening.

Still, they were all up for the challenge. "Want us to warn the nearby towns and cities?" she asked.

"My guard are currently on that mission. I need you to take to the skies and search for the beast. Do not risk yourselves in any way. You're among the fastest ponies in Equestria, able to cover the most distance overhead. Use that skill to keep all ponies safe."

"Ma'am, you mentioned Ponyville," Spitfire said, her tone dropping for a moment. "Is Rainbow Dash-"

"Rainbow Dash is alright. She and Princess Twilight Sparkle spearheaded the defense of the more dangerous flames, and not a single pony was injured," the princess reassured. Much of the Wonderbolts sighed, small grins forming on their muzzles as they heard of Rainbow Dash's safety. "Now, I must return to Canterlot. Please excuse me."

As the Wonderbolts bowed, the princess nodded and turned, leaving with controlled haste. The second the door slammed shut, Spitfire turned. "Alright, we're splitting into pairs. Fleetfoot, you're with me! Blaze and Soarin! Misty Fly and High Winds! Sun Chaser, you're with Lightning Streak! Wave Chill, stick with Wind Waker! Fire Streak and Silver Zoom!" she ordered, continuing to pair them up as the group quickly scrambled to join their respective partners.

ten minutes later -

The Wonderbolts blasted over the skies of Equestria, splitting up to cover all areas near the Everfree Forest. Fleetfoot and Spitfire soared to the North, just below cloud level as they looked around. Nearby was a small town, which looked fairly unaffected as they continued to survey the area. "Nothing in the vicinity of that area," Spitfire said before veering West a few degrees, followed by Fleetfoot.

The skies were quiet, and everything around the area seemed peaceful. The two mares continued to search, looking for something, anything that seemed out of the ordinary. Their plan was to search all possible plans of travel following the directions the massive hoofsteps had been facing.

"Hey...what're your thoughts on this Hydra killer?" Fleetfoot found herself asking as she kept her eyes peeled.

"I think whatever could take on something like that is a damn menace," Spitfire said. Her tone remained serious, but not at all rough. "Don't tell me you're losing your nerve."

"I'm not. No point in freaking out over this. But something like that is super concerning, don't you think? That death looked...pretty violent," Fleetfoot said. She shuddered a little bit, but the "Especially...you saw the pics of the river, right?"

"Yeah. And that's even more reason to hunt this thing down," Spitfire said. "If something could kill a Hydra like that, then we know for sure that it'll probably take down ponies pretty damn easily. We're not exactly gonna be fighting this thing if we find it, you know?"

"Yeah...but still," Fleetfoot said. "I dunno, just being worried is all."

"Hey," Spitfire said, turning to look at her teammate through her goggles. "It'll all turn out fine. You know how good the Royal Guard are. And Princess Celestia or the Elements of Harmony isn't one to let any danger happen to us."

Fleetfoot sighed. "I hope so," she said as she continued to look down. As she and Spitfire continued to survey the ground, she wondered what exactly could have done such a terrible thing to a Hydra, no matter how hostile one could be towards ponies.

Her thoughts were cut off by the sound of what seemed to be a very distant hum. Her ears flickered, and she stopped flying at once. "Hey, do you hear that?" she asked, hovering in the air.

Spitfire's ears flicked as well. "Yeah. I do. What is that?" she said, having stopped flying as well. The far away sound only grew louder by the second, and the two Pegasi mares began to hear it change from a distant humming sound to a much louder roaring. And it sounded like it was far below them. "Think it's what we're looking for?" Spitfire asked.

"Jeez, I sure hope not," Fleetfoot said, shooting above the clouds and landing on one of them as Spitfire joined her.

The two Wonderbolts peered down from the clouds, searching for something that could possibly be making that noise. What they would see something would be something that warranted a triple take.

A large red contraption shot by underneath them, a blocky shape with odd bumps on the front, and an oddly empty topside - looking less like a viable flying machine and more like a brick with wings. There were a pair of wings on the sides, and several smaller fins behind the main wings near the rear. Multiple plumes of fire jetted out the back of the object - the sound of roaring loudly right behind as it flew by with great speed.

“What the actual…what was that?!” Fleetfoot muttered as the odd and clearly aerodynamic shape veered by as quickly as any well trained Pegasus could fly. The shock factor doubled as five smaller green aircraft flew by as well, their wingtips screaming as several plumes of fire blasted out of the backs of each craft.

These craft were even weirder than the red block with wings - with a smooth oval body sporting fins out of what appeared to be a pair of pod-like protrusions on their backs, as well as large angular wings that stuck out the sides, locked in upward positions. But what was odd was the front of the craft - from what little the Pegasi could see. The head stuck out the front, leaning forward on a neck-like structure between the podlike protrusions. Not much could be seen from where Spitfire or Fleetfoot were currently watching from, but it looked like the head had plenty of windows covering much of the front. With how quickly they shot by, it was almost impossible to see anypony inside.

These smaller craft flew at a much higher altitude, only a few meters below cloud level. The force of the craft sent many clouds - including the ones the two Pegasi mares were hiding in - splitting apart the masses of water drops and ice. The two Wonderbolts were sent spiraling for a moment, with Fleetfoot face planting into another cloud as Spitfire quickly reoriented herself, wings flapping as she managed to stabilize her altitude.

The leader of the Wonderbolts stared as the five smaller green aircraft followed the larger and much blockier one ahead of them - the roars of what was now confirmed to be engines of some sort fading away as the distance grew. “What in Celestia’s name was that?” she muttered. Her shock wasn't very outgoing - it paid well to maintain a sense of calm and control in any unprecedented situation.

"Should we follow?" Fleetfoot asked, quickly yanking her head out of the piece of cloud she'd been haphazardly thrown into. Popping out, she shook her face and mane free of any the cloud, which dissipated into thin air.

"We probably should. I mean, whatever those things are - they aren't pony built. Or licensed," Spitfire said as she looked at the group of unidentified flying objects.

A moment passed as the two Wonderbolts stared after the group of unknown aircraft speeding away from them. "Okay. Then...why aren't we chasing after them? There's a chance they could be pretty dangerous," Fleetfoot asked.

"Our objective is to locate the beast. Or whatever killed the Hydra and burned down half of the Everfree," Spitfire said. "We need to focus on the immediate danger. The skies aren't easy to hide in - especially if we notify the Princess about the presence of possible air threats. But a country with lots of ground to hide in? That needs to take priority."

Fleetfoor eyed the disappearing craft - watching as they became little more than specs in the distance. The roars of their engines could barely be heard thanks to the distance they gained. "Yeah, guess you're right. Not like we can keep up with them at top speed anyways. Damn machines."

"Yeah. I doubt someone can make flying contraptions capable of doing what the Wonderbolts can do," Spitfire chuckled as she flew towards the East, with Fleetfoot following her afterwards.

"Yeah. Hot mares get more fans than bricks with wings, don't you think?" Fleetfoot chortled, swishing her mane in an attempted fabulous manner - though this only got Spitfire to snort. The conversation between the two Pegasi died down as they went back to doing their duty, searching for the unknown threat that Equestria potentially faced.

elsewhere over the kingdom, several minutes later -

The five Dopps escorted the Dodai YS through the skies, their pilots all surveying the land before them. One of them eyed the instruments on her console, specifically a radar screen that displayed all friendly forces. "This doesn't feel like any place on Earth," the Dopp pilot said, her voice a little uneasy.

The pilot wore a slim fitting Zeon pilot uniform - similar to what those piloting mobile suits would wear - though this also came with a flight vest and a belt loaded with pouches. The pilot lacked a helmet, instead wearing a headset over her ears. She was a young woman with long black hair tied in a bun behind her head, with tanned skin and thin blue eyes.

"That's because we aren't on Earth, Lyla," a voice over the short range radio said. "Something happened in that storm that turned it into daytime. It's crazy stuff, I'm telling you. It's like we got...teleported."

"Everyone, focus," another voice said, coming from the flight leader. "Check your screens - we got a ping."

The pilot - Lyla - looked down at her instruments to reveal a large cluster of IFF pings. "Five klicks out. Anybody got a visual?" she asked.

"Not yet. We need to get closer. Lower altitude," the Dopp squadron leader ordered. The fighters began to list downwards, angled to perform a slow and steady descent away from the clouds. The Dodai YS was quick to follow their lead, the less agile interceptor bomber swaying slightly at first before stabilizing its descent.

"Three kilometers," a pilot said after a few moments of flight, the area up ahead was revealed. "Steady as we go. Check that IFF again."

"Hm. Looks like they're all friendly. Looks like our allies. Other Remnants?" another pilot said.

Lyla's eyes narrowed as she peered at the concentration of what the computers deemed to be friendly forces. Her eyes widened at once when she realized what they were. "Not just our Remnants! It's our Remnants! It's Phoenix Flight!"

Phoenix Flight was one of many Zeon Remnant cells that had been surviving on Earth since the One Year War. While a large majority of the group consisted of aircraft and mobile suits controlled by veterans of the Earth Attack Force: specifically Zeon's 2nd Terrestrial Attack Corps based out of their 1st Terrestrial Mobile Division, many more were new recruits or other survivors.

It was also the cell that had been followed by the Federation's Garuda-class Aerial Carrier. The fighters and mobile suits had agreed to fight off the enemy ship while transports fled with non-combatants and supplies. The air battle had been brutal - unable to land any killing blows and losing a handful of fighters and bombers, as well as a mobile suit before a flash of light had engulfed the skies, moments before any significant blow to the ship could be dealt.

Lyla remembered when the light had hit her amidst that battle. Her Dopp went from soaring towards the aft of the Federation carrier to falling like a brick through the air. Several Dopps and a Dodai YS had fallen with them, with many others nowhere to be seen. While most of them recovered and quickly managed to take flight once more, two of them were not so lucky.

Lyla shuddered as she saw the two helpless fighters smash into the mountains, the explosions decimating the remains as she flew off with the others. That was almost two days ago, she realized. The Federation carrier had been nowhere to be seen, as well as the rest of their allies. Were they the only ones who made it somehow?

Those questions had plagued her throughout those two days, only dimmed when she finally realized the answer. Phoenix Flight was here, just within reach. Lyla let out a sigh as she eyed her gauges. Her Dopp didn't have any drop tanks, and they'd been relying solely on the propellant that they could carry.

Any minute longer, and they'd be running on fumes. Shaking herself from the thought of crashing, she took a long look at what awaited them.

The area was a large field that was cornered on the other side of a wall of mountains. It was mostly empty, with woods to the far West. The field had to be several kilometers in width, and the grassy area was almost entirely torn up. On the edge of the destroyed grassland was an ACA-01 Gaw: Phoenix Flight's base of operations and main home of all of their noncombatants, specifically families of those in the cell. Near them sat a Fat Uncle - an oddly named Zeon twin rotorcraft meant primarily for heavy supply transport, and two captured Medea transports, which were the Federation's counterparts to the Fat Uncle. Lined up neatly near the larger aircraft were several smaller craft: almost four dozen Dopps, seven Dodai YS bombers, three captured Federation Base Jabbers, two Doras, and a single Luggun reconnaissance craft.

In front of the Gaw - which had its main forward bay open - was a handful of vehicles, consisting of five Magella Attack Tanks, four captured M61A5 Federation Main Battle Tanks painted in Zeon green, and a variety of almost a dozen armored vehicles. Tents and portable complexes were strewn about as well, with some parked vehicles used as makeshift stands to pitch covers over.

The mobile suits served as the greatest concentration of combat force in any army, and Phoenix Flight had quite a few. A Gouf Custom and a Zaku Cannon stood by the Gaw, deactivated with panels and armor open for maintenance. Alongside those suits were a Zaku II F2 wielding a 120mm machine gun and a Dom with a 360mm bazooka. Standing at the edge of the armored column was a Gouf Flight Type and a Desert Gelgoog.

Lyla jumped when her headset's comms fizzled in - the sound of the squad leader's voice entering the radio waves. "This is Bolin, requesting permission to land."

A hearty laugh was the reply. "Of course! We've been waiting for you to arrive!" the captain of the landed Gaw chortled. "Where did you end up? Never mind, just land and join us!"

Lyla smiled, the relief clear on her face as she leaned back in her seat. "That sounds good..." she sighed as she lowered her landing gear and began to direct her Dopp fighter towards the scorched fields facing the Gaw. "Because I really need to use the bathroom right about now..."

The Dopps and the last Dodai YS circled back around, veering to make their landing as the several hundred strong watched and cheered, seeing the fighters coming back home to them. It didn't take long for the group of aircraft to land - with one fighter at a time touching down before the next did the same.

Despite their sense of loss and a clear lack of knowledge of their surroundings, Phoenix Flight celebrated the return of another few of their colleagues.

Miles away from civilization, the Zeon Remnants found happiness - even if it was only for a short time.

somewhere else in the kingdom, far away from Phoenix Flight -

Gone was the sight of green and forests. Over the course of several hours, the land had slowly shifted into a much more rocky environment. The footsteps of the two Federation mobile suits made loud cracks in the rock as they walked - their immense mass forming little crevices as they passed.

Rosa was tired. Her stomach growled, but she forced herself to ignore it. Food was scarce, and she wasn't about to eat more than she needed to. Besides, she was still deep in thought over much earlier. The Hizack Custom continued to walk, following the other mobile suit as they crossed the country. "Monroe?" she asked.

"Yes?" Monroe's voice came over the radio.

"...do you think we'll ever catch up to the Atlas?" Rosa asked.

"I hope so," Monroe answered, the blue Hizack's mono-eye whirring about as it swiveled left and right. "If we had enough propellant to make it above the clouds or anything, we'd stay in the skies and search more easily from there. Our best chance is doing so when we actually spot the Atlas, and even then it's a gamble."

"Right...what about the terrain? Think we can climb the mountains or something?" Rosa asked.

"You know mobile suits can't climb. We'd fall and take half the mountain with us or something," Monroe sighed. "Look, what is this about?"

"I...I just wanna talk to you," Rosa said meekly. Meek wasn't something Rosa did often, but when she did - it only usually meant one thing.

Monroe's eyes widened a little before he rubbed his eyes. "I'm not mad, I promise I'm not," he said. "You always act like you shit the bed whenever you think someone's mad."

"I just...I didn't mean to cause so much damage," Rosa said. "I didn't want to destroy the forest. I never had to do close combat before. I just-"

"I know, you're better at sniping and artillery support," Monroe said. "The simulations and test runs don't exactly have us risking actual people in training, you know? It's all mock stuff."

"But still," Rosa muttered. "How do you handle it?"

"Honestly, I don't know. I haven't gotten much into close combat against other mobile suits in live fire - and even then, I usually used Vulcans and a shield - at least before I got this baby," Monroe explained as he patted the Hizack's contrtol panel affectionately. "Now I just use a heat hawk. Even if I don't have one with me right now."

Rosa really wished she'd used a heat hawk as well. It could superheat and still cause some damage - but it was contained and easy to handle. Beam sabers shot out sparks and burned everything near it, and the realization that she could just wave it around and still destroy everything still terrified her. "Then...I won't go into close combat anymore-"

"You know that isn't possible," Monroe said. "You haven't come across any this time, but you'll need to fight off mobile suits in all forms of combat. Well...if we ever come across any."

Rosa looked down. "I just don't want to do something so terrible anymore. What about all the animals in that forest? What if people lived in it? What if-"

"Hey, hey, hey. Stop that line of thought now, Rosa," Monroe quickly warned. "It's all 'what ifs' and 'what could have been' talk at this point. Is that really gonna help you down the road?"

Rosa sighed, knowing the answer. "No..."

"Then we focus on the now, got it? Don't worry about anything else other than finding a way back to the Atlas," Monroe said. "We'll find some cover and stop at nightfall. The sunset shouldn't be too far off anyways."

Rosa let out a groan as she shifted in her seat. Her legs felt sore, and the sensation of pins and needles plagued her ankles as she stared at her feet manning the pedals of her suit. "I just wanna get out and stretch my legs..."

"Just move your head around. At least it'll keep your neck from going sore," Monroe suggested. "We can stretch our arms and legs once we touch down at a safe place. Heck, we can probably just roll around on the dirt if you want."

"Don't tempt me," Rosa said as she looked left - turning her head just enough to hear a few cricks. Before she could turn right, she stopped. Her green Hizack Custom stopped as well, and Rosa gasped. "Monroe! To our left!"

Monroe's blue Hizack stopped moving as wall, turning around to see the Hizack Custom stopped in place, its head and mono-eye looking at a different direction. Monroe followed its gaze, and he froze as well: noticing exactly what Rosa had spotted.

Lying in a small lake formed out of an old crater was a Base Jabber in standard pink and purple Federation colors, resting upside down in the water. Its wings were in good shape, and the chin mounted mega particle cannon showed no signs of any kind of damage. The nearby trees had been crumpled, almost as if it'd made a crash landing of sorts. The only other object that didn't fit in this place was the shattered hand of a mobile suit - specifically the hand of a Gouf Custom, judging by the wrecked blue armor of its wrist.

"...I cannot believe our luck," Monroe said as soon as he found it in himself to speak. A wide grin had split his face as he saw the four massive thermonuclear based VTOL jets on the upside down Base Jabber. "Think it's still in good shape?"

"I hope so! Come on!" Rosa shouted, her mobile suit quickly making its way towards the downed sub-flight system, hurrying around the small lake as Monroe's Hizack followed, both of their moods considerably lightened as their shot at flight lay in the water in front of them.

Perhaps they could make it back to the Atlas after all...

...if it wasn't currently on the other side of the planet. Not that Rosa or Monroe knew that little fact.

Chapter 4

several minutes after the discovery of the Base Jabber -

The skies were beautifully clear. Two blue birds flapped side by side below the clouds as the high winds blew past them - brushing past and ruffling their feathers. Alongside the sound of the whistling breeze flying by them, the two birds chirped happily at the view far below, soaring peacefully in the air.

They didn't even hear it coming.

The birds vanished in an instant as a purple blur slammed into them at several hundred kilometers an hour from behind. Two mobile suits slammed against the flying winged platform as it spun and spiraled - a stray feather getting sucked into the air intake as the Base Jabber performed a haphazard barrel roll once.

"I said pull down! Pull it down!!" Monroe barked.

“Steady as she goes!” Rosa squeaked.

"This is the exact opposite of steady as she goes!!"

“I’m trying!”

“You’re squeezing too hard!”

“I’m trying!”

“Try less!!”

The Base Jabber veered left and right over and over as both Hizacks gripped on tightly to the handles of the sub-flight system. The entire platform hovered shakily as the two suits swayed left and right from the admittedly shoddy control. The roar of the vertical takeoff engines nearly deafened the two pilots, though they were relying on direct link comms with their headsets, which assisted in blocking out a good portion of the noise from outside their mobile suits.

The Hizack Custom was the mobile suit properly connected to the Base Jabber via one of its hand tightly gripping one of the handles - with its pilot attempting to manage proper control in flying the thing. The blue Hizack next to it was holding on tightly to its weapon and the second handle on the other side of the Base Jabber.

It was much easier said than done.

These Base Jabbers didn’t have a cockpit - they were controlled by the mobile suit that was sitting or lying on top of it. While not very aerodynamic in design, these craft were more or less powerful and quick to react to control.

It also meant piloting a Base Jabber was a completely different story compared to piloting a mobile suit.

Rosa squealed as she felt the Base Jabber drop for a moment before its thermonuclear rocket jets kicked in once more. Slamming her head back against the headrest, she tried to maintain steady flight with a pull of the control stick, only for the entire Base Jabber to lean right almost 60 degrees.

“Shit, shit, shit!!” Rosa wailed, yanking on her yoke as she tried to lean to the left. Thankfully, her linear seat was stabilizing itself in conjunction with the sudden and violent turn - but it could only do so much against the amount of nausea she was currently feeling.

Her fellow mobile suut pilot wasn't exactly faring any better. “Keep it steady, goddammit!” Monroe growled. He was leaning against the side of his seat, trying hard not to just shove the Hizack Custom’s hand aside and take over control himself - a terrible but tempting choice regardless.

“I can man a mobile suit, not control a flying carpet!!” Rosa complained, with the Base Jabber suddenly veering downwards. Both mobile suits nearly went weightless for a split second before their legs slammed back down on the platform, shaking both of the Hizack pilots hard. “I never got any training on this, I'm a sniper!!”

“You’re gonna have to learn, so might as well do it now!” Monroe shouted as he gripped his control sticks. “If we hit less than a hundred meters in altitude, I’ll take over! So now, just focus on steadying flight!”

“What if we run out of fuel?!” Rose cried as the Base Jabber leaned forward in the air, almost as if it’d braked suddenly before it began to fly upwards.

“Base Jabbers are thermonuclear, they use air as propellant!” Monroe quickly explained as the Base Jabber lurched once more. His linear seat shook to counteract the sudden force, and he felt his head start to pound once more - though whether it was from the nausea or the annoyance, he didn't know. “Just focus on flying, alright?!”

The two Hizacks slammed shoulders with a *clang* loud enough to be heard over the roar of the Base Jabber, which quickly dropped for a mere millisecond before it blasted upwards into the sky at a nearly vertical angle. The air intakes on either side screamed for a moment before Rosa veered down, almost dropping right away.

“Pull up! A little bit, just a little!” Monroe quickly ordered as they shot past the clouds.

Rosa complied frantically, and the Base Jabber slowly leveled out, still wobbly - but not as bad as before. As it slowly leaned up and down, the two Hizack pilots found themselves relaxing. Their linear seats were steady once more, and the feeling of airsickness had died down slowly. "Good..." he said. "You got it?"

"I...I think so," Rosa said, her own heartbeat slowly but surely calming down. "Why is it so sensitive?"

"Because it's an aircraft," Monroe sighed.

"This wouldn't have happened if you're the one that flew from the start," Rosa muttered, pouting as she looked away. Her hands were still tightly gripping the controls as she maintained a steady flight pattern. As she turned, she spotted the glimpse of something gray in the corner of her eye - seemingly below the Base Jabber.

"Yeah, well you needed to learn this eventually," Monroe said as he looked to his right. "Besides, you can't tell me the view isn't great."

Rosa was momentarily distracted by Monroe's words, noting his suggestion and turning to look to her left. Her eyes widened at what she saw near her. Taking care not to send the Base Jabber into a spiral once more, she peered over and bore witness to the true extent of this world through her panoramic screen. Fields of green and large rocky mountain ranges greeted her from an incredibly great distance, alongside skies so clean and blue that it almost felt like a fairy tale.

There were even far away villages and towns on the ground far below - even a city at the corner of Rosa's vision. "Think we should stop by and ask for directions?" the Hizack Custom pilot asked.

"Probably not. We don't want to risk any damage, and the last thing we want is to start boosting the Titans' reputation. I mean, we're using mobile suits that they use," Monroe said. Mono-eyes seemed to be associated with evil lately, mostly because of Zeon constantly using it in her suits. The reason why the Federation would ever start using them was forever beyond him - though he certainly wasn't going to complain over how effective the Hizack or Marasai was, though he hadn't gotten any opportunity to pilot the latter.

Rosa fell silent, a wince hidden in her posture as she looked back to the front. "Alright...then where should we go?" she asked, deciding to drop the topic when the Titans were mentioned.

"Hmm..." Monroe muttered to himself as he eyed his instruments. The basic compass unit in a standard mobile suit's control panel worked electronically rather than relying on magnets, especially because Minovsky Particles really screwed around with magnetism. Heck, a Minovsky Craft System installed on some ships allowed them to literally float thanks to the particles being repelled from a planet's magnetic field.

Monroe shook his head off of that little mental tangent - it was a small issue had. Thankfully, such distractions were limited to idleness or maintenance, never in combat. "I say we head...South. Or East. We've been going West for a while now - might as well see what we avoided," he finally said after some thought.

"Southeast then?" Rosa asked.

"Sure, why not?" Monroe muttered, and Rosa complied with the man's suggestion at once - slowly turning the Base Jabber around and veering to the aforementioned direction. As the Base Jabber flew Southeast, she couldn't help but wonder if she was missing something.

"Hey...Monroe? We didn't miss anything important, did we?" Rosa asked.

"Not really. Why?" Monroe asked.

Rosa fell silent once more - almost certain that she had to have seen something important. "...no reason," she said after a bit of thought to herself. "I just thought...never mind."

As the Base Jabber carrying the two Federation mobile suits flew higher and higher above the clouds, neither pilot noticed the MS-07H-8 Gouf Flight Type hovering just a thousand meters below them - followed by an MS-06F-2 Zaku II F2 (that's a lot of 2s) kneeling atop a green colored Federation Base Jabber.

Both suits looked at each other, mono-eyes swiveling to side-eye the other before they acted. The Base Jabber carrying the Zaku II F2 veered around, heading the opposite direction while the Gouf Flight Type's leg mounted thermonuclear jets began to roar - taking off from its current position and rising in altitude to catch up to the enemy forces that its pilot had spotted.

Its Gatling shield gleamed in the sunlight, moments before the flying mobile suit vanished underneath the clouds - remaining hidden underneath the fluffy layers of white. It wouldn't attack - not yet, anyway.

Not until it found what they were looking for.

Canterlot Castle: one hour later -

Spitfire and Soarin rushed into the throne room as soon as they were granted access. Princess Celestia and her flanking royal guards looked up in surprise as they watched the two fully uniformed and utterly tuckered out Pegasi slide to a stop at the base of her throne, completely bypassing the nobles who had been rattling on over...some trivial manner that the princess hadn't bothered to listen to.

"Ah, I assume you have important news?" Princess Celestia asked. Nearby was Raven Inkwell, flanked by her own pair of royal guards - the aide having paused her writing of the issue at hand.

"Y-yes! We found-" Soarin began before he was silenced by Spitfire quickly elbowing his side. With a jerk of her head, she gestured to the haughty and clearly irritated nobles near them. "Uhh...something...big!"

"Yes, and it is very important...one that requires only your attention, your Highness," Spitfire said, piggybacking off of the admittedly awkward statement by Soarin.

The princess nodded. "I shall attend to your issues at a later date. Please clear the room," she said, redirecting her attention to the other ponies in the room: specifically the royal guards and the nobles in the room, including Raven Inkwell - who got up and bowed before headng out. The royal guards bowed and turned to leave, with a few of them making their way to the flustered nobles to escort them out of the throne room.

Once the door was shut, Princess Celestia nodded to the Pegasi. "I apologize for making you wait. Now, what have you found?" she asked.

"Uhh, we found them! Two of them, one green and one blue!" Soarin quickly spouted out. With another elbow from Spitfire, he coughed and lowered his voice. "They were...bipedal golems, I think. They had one pink eye each and held a bunch of things. The two of them were sitting on a purple flying piece of metal with wings."

Princess Celestia raised an eyebrow, out of both confusion and minor amusement in the manner that the blue stallion had oh, so elegantly described it. Spitfire coughed and spoke up. "Fleetfoot and I came across such bipedal golems ourselves. One on them was green and sitting on top of a flying winged platform, like the ones Soarin saw. The other was gray and seemed to be flying under its own power," Spitfire quickly explained. We followed them and came across Blaze and Soarin after chasing it for ten minutes. Then the green one turned back West while the other headed East."

"If you four all reunited, then you surely both saw the golems you were pursuing, correct?" Princess Celestia asked as she levitated a teapot and two of several empty porcelain cups from a nearby end table. Pouring the steaming tea into the cups with her magic, she kindly gestured for the ponies to continue their recollection of past events.

"Y-yes, your Highness," Spitfire said, taking a deep breath as she moved to speak once more. "Though the two golems on the platform didn't appear to notice the ones we followed. The green one we chased turned back while the gray one went after the others. Fleetfoot and Blaze are currently pursuing the green while Soarin and I tried to chase the other three."

"And what did you find?" Princess Celestia asked as she levitated the cups over to the two Wonderbolts. Soarin drank while Spitfire declined.

"We...couldn't follow them. They went up, much higher than we could manage. The altitude alone is impressive, then there's the speed. We lost them high above the clouds, princess," Spitfire said. "Whatever these things were, they were heading Southeast towards Dodge City and the Badlands, possibly even further. That's all we were able to figure out. I apologize."

"Don't apologize for getting answers. I don't expect the impossible, only your best. And you ponies have certainly done that," Princess Celestia reassured. Spitfire, looking more than a little tuckered out and flushed, accepted the cup of hot tea on the princess's second insistence.

She'd never get to drink it as the large twin doors of the royal throne room swung open with an utterly violent bang. Both teacups shattered, the two disheveled Pegasi whirling around to see Fleetfoot and Blaze stumbling in. "We followed the green one!" Fleetfoot gasped. Unlike Spitfire and Soarin, the two mares looked like they had just about flown all over Equestria without a single break. For all the princess knew, they might have just done that. "It's not just a few! There's lots of them!!"

The two royal guards who had tried to stop the mares looked to the princess, ready to detain them should she give the word. The princess would give no such order, simply waving a hoof calmly and letting them know that it was alright. The two armored stallions silently nodded and closed the large doors with a much softer tap than they'd opened. "I apologize. Please continue," the princess said, as gracefully as ever.

Spitfire and Soarin stepped to the side, allowing the other two Wonderbolts to quickly approach. "There's machines, a lot of them," Blaze said, her tone just a little bit calmer as she plopped on her haunches to take a break. She didn't seem to care very much about her appearance in front of the princess. "There's a few giant golems - about five or six of them, I can't remember. Then there's tracked carriages, tents, large helicopters and several other craft with duck wings or something-"

"Wait, you saw them there?" Spitfire interrupted. "Quick, how many?!"

"I dunno, like fifty? Maybe more? Oh, and a bunch of those flying red bricks! And...a giant creature? No, it was definitely some flying machine. And it was giant!" Fleetfoot quickly explained - going off on rapid fire mode. It wasn't out of panic - but rather out of a need to get as much information out there while she could still clearly remember it.

"How big?"

"We didn't see it moved - but it looked like it landed or something. The fields it was at were completely torn up," Fleetfoot explained as she began to regain her breath. She too had calmed down considerably now that she wasn't running. "They're near Unicorn Range, closer to the rocks."

"Which rocks?" Princess Celestia asked.

"The ones overshadowed by the Smokey Mountains," Blaze said. "And then there were other creatures. They were too far away to see - we didn't wanna risk ourselves getting spotted. But they were bidpedal, just...tinier. But I think they're larger than us."

"I think they're still there," Fleetfoot said. "If you organize a search party, we'll lead you right to them!"

The Pegasi all looked expectantly at Princess Celestia for her orders. The alicorn ruler sipped her tea from one of the surviving cups, clearly deep in thought over their next course of action. "I believe...we shall call in additional assistance."

"What's the plan, princess?" Soarin asked. The four of them had quickly stood at attention, fatigue forgotten in anticipation for what they were to do next.

The princess smiled, seeing that they were still willing to help. "First, I want all of you Wonderbolts to rest. You all have done much more than enough in the matter. Now it is my turn," she said as she stomped her hoof - loud enough for it to echo in the large throne room. The two royal guards opened the door, expectant of the princess's orders. "I wish to assemble a force of guards to rally in the barracks. I shall be there shortly. Until then, please escort the Wonderbolts to guest rooms so they may rest. Provide any accommodations they may request. I say they have earned it."

The four Pegasi looked at each other, all of them a little uneasy that she was having them rest - but they knew better than to suspect the princess's orders as anything other than kindness. Not wishing to be rude, the four bowed thankfully before leaving the throne room. One of the royal guards had saluted before galloping down the hall, likely set on following the first part of Princess Celestia's orders.

The other guard bowed at the princess's behest and gestured for the four Wonderbolts to follow him. As Princess Celestia made her way to Raven Inkwell's table, she took a piece of parchment and a quill from the nearby inkwell before immediately writing.

Dear Princess Twilight

I know you and your friends are recovering from the incident in the Everfree Forest, but I have important news to share: news that may very well affect Equestria as a whole. I'm certain that you're aware of an anomalous beast that may have slain a Hydra and caused the catastrophic forest fire. I've employed the Wonderbolts in a kingdom wide search, and results have been made. Several large bipedal cyclops golems have been identified, and there is a very good chance that these are our culprits. I shall skip straight to the chase, given that little else is known other than a few possible leads.

The first lead is a definitive location - specifically a gathering of aircraft and what may be self propelled vehicles, alongside some of those identified cyclops golems and a massive winged flying machine. The location isn't too far from Ponyville. I shall be sending an airship to your location, alongside a few squads of some of our best in the Royal Guard. The second lead is a direction that a few other of these golems have been spotted heading, specifically Southeast where the Badlands reside.

I shall investigate this second lead myself. I hope you understand how important this task is, but I also implore you to take care of yourself. If you're unable to continue with this investigation, please let me know and I shall remove the burden. You are allowed to say no, my former student.

Sincerely,
Celestia

After a quick grammar check, Princess Celestia sent off the letter with a flash of magic. With a proud grin and a determined set of eyes, she began to leave the throne room in order to begin preparations.

Her eyes fell back to the mess in the throne room - with the puddles of tea and the shards of porcelain dangerously close to the carpet.

"Hmmm...I shall send a pony to clean it up," Princess Celestia muttered to herself as she left the room. She had a barracks to find.

Ponyville: two minutes later -

"Twilight, calm down! What if you're still injured?!" Spike called as the princess of friendship hurled objects left and right, sounds of crashing and clattering heard all over the room. The young dragon assistant was holding the letter Twilight had hurled into the air after she'd finished it.

"I'm not, I promise! I've had plenty and plenty of time to recuperate and I'm back to full strength! My magic feels as good as normal!" Twilight Sparkle declared as she continued to fling objects left and right. "Ahah!" She stumbled out of the room with her saddlebags - a camera floating in her magical grasp as she loaded it into her bags, all while a concerned Spike followed along.

"Twilight, if you really are up for this, then why are you panicking?" Spike asked.

"Spike, take a letter. Dear Princess Celestia-" Twilight began as she opened up a drawer and yanked out a brand new notebook.

"Twilight! Wait!" Spike shouted, gripping Twilight's hoof. With a sigh, he spoke up once more, calmly. "I know you're eager to help the princess, but you should probably be taking a quick breather."

Twilight looked back at her number one assistant - well, her only assistant - before letting out a tired exhale. "It isn't just that, Spike. I'm a princess now, and that means I have plenty of new responsibilities. And many of those all boil down to keeping Equestria safe. And you know the cause of that fire! If something that dangerous is out there..."

She stopped and quickly inhaled before sighing once more. "I just"

She smiled at Spike before hugging him tightly. "I know how to take care of myself, but I need to start putting the good of Equestria before me as well," she said.

"Well...if it ever gets too much, let me know. I'm not your number one assistant for nothing," Spike offered - not that he needed to, since the sentiment would always remain. "And your friends too! I mean, they all have families and jobs and stuff, but they're always down to help out whenever they can, you know!"

Twilight smiled once more. "I have planned on asking them for assistance. If we're to meet these...bipedal newcomers, then we need all aspects of friendship available. And the machines! What're the chances we could learn about them?!" she asked, her giddiness clear to witness as she double checked her saddlebags.

"Well...I guess you could ask nicely," Spike said as he looked over the letter again. "Besides, you don't exactly need to rush it right away. It's not like you're teleporting there. The letter says the princess will send you an airship as well."

"Right! Plenty of time to manage everything we need to bring! And prepare for! Oh, do you think I need to make a speech? I am a princess, I should probably start adhering to the standards one should have!" Twilight said before clearing her throat and standing tall. "Dear...newcomers!" she began.

"Twilight. No," Spike groaned. "Plus, what if these are the ones that...started the fire?"

Twilight's excitement and anxiety dropped, her own expression having turned somber at the memory of fighting the blaze before the princess and her reinforcements had come to their rescue. "Well...then we'd ask. I'm sure it was an accident. Nopony would want to start a fire on purpose...right?"

Spike shrugged. "I dunno. I've met a few dragons who are jerks," he grumbled. "Besides, I think planning every little detail is overrated. I say we go with our gut."

Twilight shook her head. "We'll just have to agree to disagree, Spike. We need to let the others know of our situation. Can you finish preparing what we need? I have a list right here. I need to visit the girls," Twilight said as she levitated a note to Spike for him to read.

Spike gave off a quick salute. "I'm on it!" he declared.

"Good. I'll be back soon," Twilight said before she vanished in a flash of white and purple light, having teleported out of the room - likely out of the castle as well.

Spike looked down at the list before raising an eyebrow. "Ten inkwells? What's she trying to write, a novel?" he mumbled as he began to read off the list, making his way out of the room to start collecting what was needed.

far far away -

The Atlas’s engines screamed as they approached the waves below. The massive war plane was tilted nose up, its large angular boat-shaped belly ready to land in the relatively calm waters on the East coast of some unknown land. The downward oriented jet engines underneath the wings tore up the waters as they flew overhead, slowly closing the distance between the plane and the water.

“We're about half a kilometer away from the land. Hull integrity nominal," an officer said.

Touching down in three. Two. One,” the Federation helmsman announced.

“Brace for impact!” the captain ordered. The Garuda-class carrier slammed into the water, violently shaking the craft. The internal bay of the craft rumbled, with crew members either strapped in to their crash seats, or simply holding on to any stable railing as hard as they could. The personal aboard the bridge of the Atlas gripped their seats or controls, with the captain herself holding tightly onto the command console in front of her.

In the Atlas’s main mobile suit bay stood several mobile suits, all of them safely secured in standing racks on either side of the bay. On the port side were six RMS-179 GM IIs, two RMS-108 Marasais, and two RMS-106 Hizacks in Federation blue colors. The starboard side of the mobile suit bay held an RGM-79SP GM Sniper II, two RGC-83 GM Cannon IIs, an RMS-108 Marasai, and two NRX-044 Asshimars. The last two storage racks on the starboard side of the Atlas’s main bay remained empty.

The storage and maintenance deck underneath the main mobile suit bay was full as well - not of mobile suits, but of all sorts of equipment. Weapons racks on the walls held over a dozen BR-87A and BOWA·BR-S-85-C2 Beam Rifles and a BOWA BR-S-85-L3 Sniper Beam Rifle, alongside 90mm GM Rifles and bullpup machine guns, 120mm Hizack machine guns, half a dozen BLASH HB-L-07/N-STD Hyper Bazookas, and a pair of 170mm mobile suit handheld cannons. Above the weapons were sets of shields, used by both the Hizack and GM line. Massive compartments full of magazines and energy capacitators were set up underneath the weapons racks.

Hanging above the racks from the ceilings were a dozen Base Jabbers secured in ceiling crane systems, alongside eight large shuttle boosters. Standing in the middle of the packed maintenance were two additional mobile suits in standing storage racks - two additional RMS-179 GM IIs with their armor panels opened up for maintenance. In front of the two mobile suits were a pair of RMV-1 Guntank IIs, their navy green color schemes dimmed by the lack of light in the lower deck.

The Atlas skidded on the water as its hover nozzles lowered their output - allowing the bottom of the craft to partially submerge until the aircraft was essentially skating on water. The ten sets of twin thermonuclear ramjets began to throttle down as well, the screams of the air intakes lowering into loud hums as the craft began to slow down, assisted by the water.

Minutes passed as the Atlas slowly crawled to a halt, effectively floating in the water a few hundred meters from the shore of the rather rocky lands near them. As the bridge crew recovered from the admittedly rough water landing, the captain exited her seat and brushed off her uniform. She was a middle aged woman in her mid thirties, with black hair of medium length and narrow green eyes. She was relatively tall, and she wore a pair of thin glasses on her face.

"Orders, captain?" the helmsman asked. The entire crew looked back to the woman, who simply closed her eyes for a second to breathe.

"Deploy Asshimars, reconnaissance only," she finally said. "We're going to find out exactly where the hell we are. I want maintenance checks on all mobile suits and weapons systems, and I want a full systems reboot on our power systems! We don't take off until everything's in optimal condition! And someone get me the quartermaster!" The bridge crew complied, prepping the bow catapult for mobile suit deployment.

The intercom rang loudly throughout the Atlas, with its crew of soldiers, pilots, and engineers stopping whatever they were doing in order to listen. "This is Captain Welles! All corpsmen, please have all personnel undergo medical checkups. Following that, I want all personnel prepped and ready for mobile suit deployment!" she ordered over the intercom.

As the Atlas's crew rushed into action - no one noticed what was going on outside the craft. As the Garuda-class Aerial Carrier floated in the now calmer waters near the coast, a small figure watched them from the rocks.

The young blue dragoness's eyes widened as she stared at the absolute behemoth close to the Dragon Lands. "...whoa..." she whispered.

Chapter 5

over the ocean -

The Base Jabber flew high over the air, having entered the vicinity what appeared to be some sort of massive desert wasteland mere moments ago. Rosa was asleep in her cockpit, silently snoring as the audio in her cockpit was blocked out. Her headset was still on, able to listen for anything Monroe might say in case he needed to wake her up.

Monroe was in control of the sub-flight system now, letting Rosa get some rest. It was almost the end of the day - with the sunset visible over the horizon. Beautiful sunsets were a rare sight on Earth, especially after it had been utterly devastated by the atrocities committed by Zeon during the One Year War, alongside the rumored Zeon Remnants operation that had nearly destroyed North America.

"Wow...ain't that a beauty..." he mumbled to himself, smiling at the crystal clear view before him.

Very far ahead beyond the land, the glimpse of the ocean glowed orange from the light of the sinking sun. The skies remained clean and the clouds only enhanced the glory of a world seemingly untouched by brutal war. Monroe considered waking Rosa up so she could see what all of this was before deciding not to do so.

She needed her sleep.

"I ought to wake her up when we near the ocean. Then it'll look really good," he thought to himself as he leaned back in her seat, continuing to fly the Base Jabber steadily. As he did so, he wondered about the status of the Atlas and the chances of locating it in the air. Planets were big, and he realized that the chances of actually coming across a Garuda-class craft was one in a billion, much less the chances of being able to figure out where it could be.

Even if they could stay in the air and keep searching nonstop, the necessity of landing was something that could not be ignored. What if they ran out of water or food? What if something attacked them? What if they needed to use the bathroom? Monroe immediately shot down the aspect of just going over the edge of the Base Jabber - not only as it unsafe, it just felt wrong.

With a sigh, he looked back out at the sunset before looking back behind him - trying to see if the Atlas was there - or at least anything of any sort of interest.

A gray flying Gouf flew behind them, at least a few kilometers.

Monroe gulped at once before slowly turning back to face the front. Waiting a few moments, he waited for something to happen - anything in case the Gouf was aware or even suspicious of having been spotted.

Nothing.

Monroe quickly took the time to act, and he switched on the receiver built into his headset. "Hey, Rosa-" he began. A loud and very guttural snore greeted him the second he pressed the receiver. Wincing, the pilot coughed and spoke up once more. "Hey, Rosa. Wake up."

Another snore was heard. Monroe growled and decided to wake her up the old fashioned way, with an elbow to the Hizack Custom's shoulder shield. The sound echoed in the air for a second, and the mobile suit jostled in place for a moment before there was complete silence.

If they were lucky, the pilot of the Gouf Flight Type wouldn't think anything of that little move - hopefully chalking the elbow down to some likely conversation happening between Monroe and Rosa. Judging by how the Gouf Flight Type's flight plan hadn't changed at all.

Then the Hizack Custom's mono-eye flickered on with a hum. Rosa's yawning could be heard as she woke up. The sound of muffled shifting suggested she was stretching, and Monroe slowly turned back to see if they were still being followed. Sure enough, the Gouf Flight Type was still flying behind them. It was armed with a large Gatling cannon mounted on a shield in the left arm. "Don't move or panic, but we're being followed. Zeon Remnants - looks like a late Gouf Flight Type," he said.

There was silence for a moment before Rosa spoke up once more, her voice calm as her Hizack Custom's mono-eye swiveled around. Thankfully, the backpack of the mobile suit was large, and the heads didn't automatically turn - simply only doing so in order to cover far flanks. "What do we do now?" she asked quietly, keeping her voice steady.

Monroe fell deep into thought for a moment before he looked back at the Hizack Custom, with the beginnings of a plan in his mind. “I'm going to grab one of your beam sabers in a second. Wait for my mark,” he said. "When I say go, I'll hand control of the Base Jabber off to you - got it?"

"What will you do?" Rosa whispered.

"Something...crazy," Monroe muttered, taking one more look. Sure enough, the Gouf Flight Type was still trailing them at a considerable distance - although it was much closer than before. Was it still focused on following them or would it try to initiate some sort of ambush? Monroe didn't know for sure - and he wasn't going to wait long enough to find out the hard way. "Wait for my mark."

"Are you sure?" Rosa asked.

"Yes. Now wait," Monroe hissed. The Gouf Flight Type remained behind them - trailing at least a kilometer away from the Base Jabber, maybe more. It didn't matter - not when the opportunity to take down another Zeon mobile suit was right in front of them. "Mark!"

Controls for the Base Jabber switched from the blue Hizack straight into Rosa's Hizack Custom. Despite her brief but clear preparation, she wasn't completely ready. With a squeak, she tried to take control of the sub-flight system - doing so after it wobbled for a few seconds.

Monroe had acted by then, his mobile suit having yanked one of the beam sabers out of the Hizack Custom's spiked shoulder shield before letting go of the Base Jabber. The blue Hizack dropped for a second before whirling around, lunging at the Gouf Flight Type behind them with a quick burst of the leg thrusters.

The Gouf Flight Type veered up, drawing the large heat sword from its shield as it began to swing. Monroe's Hizack activated the beam saber - the loud screams of energy and the humming of the I-field shaping the beam blade filling Monroe's ears instantly. But he didn't care.

He was only focused on striking this mobile suit down.

The Gouf Flight Type's blade was now glowing bright orange as the Hizack closed in, both hands carrying the saber as it prepared to push as much weight and force into its already impressive momentum down on the Gouf Flight Type. With a sword swing from both one-eyed mobile suits, the two melee weapons clashed. Sparks flew and a massive flash of bright combustive light struck both mobile suits with a vengeance.

The melee weapons of Zeon's mobile suits were conventional - a heat tomahawk for the Zakus, a heat saber for the Doms, and the heat swords of the Gouf. All weapons were superheated in order to melt through armor with ease. Thanks to their use of electromagnetic charges running through the internal coils buried in the weapons, they could temporarily withstand the power of a beam saber, albeit for a few seconds.

This meant that the clash of a beam saber's particles and the electromagnetic field that surrounds a heat weapon such as the Gouf Flight Type's sword made for a violent reaction. A massive explosion of light and scattering particles erupted, powerful enough to destroy a vehicle in proximity. The force was strong enough to repel both mobile suits from each other - but not enough to completely force one off of the other, especially when falling through the air.

Neither mobile suit suffered any blow - and the sparks began to warp the outer armor of both mobile suits, but damage had been done. The Hizack was now on top of the gray flight type mobile suit, the two of them falling out of control and spiraling towards the far away desert area.

Monroe gritted his teeth as he pushed his mobile suit to its limits. His newer and more powerful Hizack was lighter, faster, and stronger - but the denser armor of the Gouf Flight Type left both suits trapped on equal footing. And with the Gouf Flight Type meant for near unlimited sustainable flight, the more advanced mobile suit was left at a disadvantage in both the air and on the ground.

The Gouf Flight Type swung around violently, forcing the Hizack off of it. The Hizack plummeted for a second before Monroe countered - a massive burst of thrust escaping the backpack, halting the mobile suit’s just for a split second and closing the distance between the charging Gouf.

For the second time, both heat sword and beam saber clashed violently - the Hizack's thrusters working against the Gouf Flight Type's thermonuclear jet engines. The four main thrusters of the gray mobile suit weren't working - likely due to their consumption of propellant. Monroe's eyes flickered down to his controls - noticing his gauge for his mobile suit's propellant tanks. "Just over 82%. Damn!" he hissed as he quickly cut his thrust - intent on saving precious fuel.

The two mobile suits immediately plummeted the second the fuel stopped burning, the Gouf Flight Type's own propulsion not ceasing. Both of them shot towards the ground, pushing the Hizack and intent on shattering it against the harsh and rocky desert biome below. The Hizack's cockpit blared with alarms, and Monroe felt his linear seat working to counter the harsh G-forces pressing against him.

"Shit!" he growled as he pulled a lever. The Hizack was still holding the 120mm machine gun in its other hand, and it swung with all his might. The servos screamed as the machine gun's stock came around - smashing into the side of the Gouf Flight Type hard enough to leave a noticeable dent.

It was also enough for the Gouf Flight Type to lose its balance. Both suits were pushed off of each other by the counteracting force of momentum, and Monroe took his chance, deactivating the Hizack's beam saber and swinging his mobile suit's 120mm machine gun to bear upon the Gouf Flight Type.

*THOOM THOOM THOOM THOOM THOOM THOOM THOOM THOOM THOOM THOOM THOOM THOOM*

The Hizack's large drum fed machine gun blazed away at six rounds per second at the Gouf Flight Type - the stream of massive high explosive ton heavy rounds aimed haphazardly at the Zeon machine. Even with the stock wedged between the Hizack's body and the arm - as well as the relatively steady fall Monroe had managed, the machine gun's recoil mitigated much of that stability - with the powerful weapon violently pushing against the mobile suit firing it.

Most of the rounds missed by a long shot, with the other heavy explosive bullets came close. The Gouf Flight Type veered off to avoid getting hit before its pilot retaliated at once, firing a burst of what had to be 40 to 50 rounds in a two or three second long burst from its large 75mm Gatling cannon. Monroe's Hizack raised the shield on the left arm while angling its body to utilize the shoulder shield. All rounds bounced off both shields, as well as struck angled parts of the lower skirt armor.

The shields were thick enough that the impacted rounds merely left thin gouges, and the lower skirt armor fared little worse. The servos and tubing were left without any damage, and Monroe let out a quick exhale of relief as he realized that his mobile suit was fine. In the distance, the 120mm rounds struck the ground several kilometers away - each impacting round causing explosions large enough to obliterate a large house. The resulting booms were enough to shake the dust off of any rocks several dozen to almost a hundred meters away, and scaring off any critters or underground creatures nearby.

"Down twelve rounds..." Monroe mumbled as he eyed the weapons monitor in his control console. His 120mm machine gun was currently at a capacity of 84 rounds, though he still had the two full drum magazines left in the arm mounted shield compartment.

He was also currently still falling.

Left with no choice, Monroe quickly activated the thrusters once more, burning more much valued fuel as his mobile suit slowed its descent down to the ground. The landing was still very rough, the feet crating large craters underneath the Hizack as it touched down. "Propellant at 70%..." Monroe mumbled before looking up, aiming his machine gun to fight the Gouf Flight Type once more.

He was greeted to the sight of the Gouf Flight Type currently being chased by a Base Jabber, the navy green Hizack Custom on top firing its BR-87A beam rifle and the mega particle cannon mounted under the sub-flight system. "Rosa, what the fuck are you doing?!" he yelled.

"I'm getting him off your back!!" Rosa shouted as she veered the Base Jabber towards the Gouf's flank. However, the Gouf Flight Type wasn't running for long - pulling a 180 degree turn and blasting towards the Base Jabber.

The glowing orange heat sword looked ready to swing.

"Get out of there!" Monroe shouted.

"I got him!!" Rosa yelled.

"I said jump now!!" Monroe roared.

He was right to order it. The Gouf Flight Type had ducked, welll below the firing arcs of both beam weapons. Rosa's Hizack Custom jumped, acting purely on Monroe's panic - jetting into the air with the use of her mobile suit's more powerful thrusters.

The heavy blade of the heat sword impaled the Base Jabber a mere second later before carving through the back of the flying platform. As the Hizack Custom fell to the ground, the Gouf Flight Type blasted into the air - using its main thrusters for the first time as the massive gouge in the Base Jabber began to spark.

The Hizack Custom's thrusters blasted at full power upon its pilot spotting what was happening.

The explosion came seconds later.

The Gouf Flight Type had already escaped the blast radius as the thermonuclear powered Base Jabber exploded in midair. The sheer blast of the system utterly obliterated everything within a few miles. The ball of fire and raw force tore up the ground into a massive crater with the sheer power of raw air force. The fireball sent waves of scorching heat, cooking the sand and lighting up the entire area for dozens of miles.

Both Hizacks were far enough away that they wouldn't get ripped apart or evaporated - but the force still sent them flying. The Hizack Custom landed several miles away, skidding on its feet and stumbling for several seconds before it could properly land and brace. Its weapons were dropped, and they were sent sliding away on the ground.

Monroe's Hizack wasn't quite so lucky, having been a little closer to the blast. It too was sent flying, but the force was strong enough to send it smashing face first into the ground - digging up a massive trench of weakened rock and soft sand. It managed to stop sliding several hundred meters away, about a mile from where Rosa's mobile suit had landed.

Then the smoke and dust hit. As Monroe panted and gasped for air, he watched as his vision through the panoramic screens of his cockpit vanished with the clouds of thick smoke and dust. "Fucking hell..." he hissed as he tried to get his mobile suit up on its feet. The sounds of servos whirring was heard, and he could practically feel the Hizack's moveable frame forcing all of the sand out from its joints as it stood.

It took several minutes for the dust to clear before the lands around the mobile suits could be seen - barely visible thanks to all the dust still raining high in the air. It didn't take a genius to figure out that the area around them was contaminated - likely poisoning a massive chunk of the desert with gamma radiation.

Monroe sighed, glad for the fact that mobile suits were naturally vacuum sealed with their own portable and renewable air supply. Eyeing his instruments, he saw that the air tank was actively being used - with passive filtering systems cut off from the outside world thanks to the mobile suit's automated protocols. His mobile suit itself was safe as well - with the Minovsky particle interference working to mitigate much of the gamma rays exhibited from the blast. Still, opening his cockpit now was suicide.

As the Hizack began to walk in a direction - any direction, Monroe looked around, hearing the muffled thumps of his mobile suit's feet impacting the rock with every step below. "...hey Rosa! Where are you?"

Far away, a massive airship of gold and white approached the mushroom shaped cloud in the distance.

elsewhere, away from Equestria-

The large wheel shaped mobile armor blasted over the Atlas, having performed a second patrol run of the area. The protocol over securing the perimeter of a landed Garuda-class Carrier was to cover the surrounding areas of the ship in a radius of a kilometer.

As far as its pilot knew, the other Asshimar was covering the opposite end of the perimeter, farther towards the open seas. They’d been flying at relatively low speeds for several minutes now, keeping the Atlas covered from the air while her crew performed maintenance procedures.

Switching his gaze from his instruments, he kept an eye out for any anomalies near the land. The coast was relatively unimpressive - consisting of what appeared to be volcanic rock structures and jagged mountains: not a single healthy plant in sight. Most of the plant life looked halfway at death’s door - and the entire region felt volcanic in nature, despite how far away the volcanos were.

The pilot sighed as he turned and looked back towards the ocean, where the second Asshimar was flying high. Below, the water shimmered similarly to how one in a fantasy dream would view the ocean. The sunset on his other side made for a pretty nice view as well-

A light alarm started blinking in his cockpit, breaking him out of his thoughts. Looking down at the control console, he saw a small notification and frowned before activating his helmet comms. “This is Ensign Lassus, reporting intake issues. Permission to land and perform a quick check and reboot?” the young man asked.

“Has the coast been rendered clear of any and all hostiles?” came the voice of the short range comms.

“Yes, sir,” Lassus answered.

“Permission granted. Make it quick.” Lassus complied, shooting off his response before veering towards land.

The Asshimar landed on the rocks, its landing gear touching down as the VTOL thrusters screamed against the surface. As Lassus powered down his mobile suit, he sighed and leaned back against his seat, listening to the slowly dwindling whine of the Asshimar’s thermonuclear engines. “I’m tired…” he mumbled to himself as he started the mobile suit's reboot and diagnostics process. As the control unit complied with his commands, the mobile suit’s panoramic screens switched off, allowing for the frontal door to slide open and reveal the outside world.

The man wore a G-suit, consisting of a blue one-piece flight suit designed to assist in the resistance of G-forces, in conjunction with a mobile suit cockpit’s linear seat. Armored pads on the shoulders, chest, arms, and legs were built in as well for assistance against potential crashes. His helmet was a modified version of the standard space use helmet - with a transparent visor and a built in comms unit.

As he climbed out of his massive transformed mobile suit, he slid down the rather steep ramp before landing half a meter from the ground, stumbling for a moment. As he took a moment to look around, he sighed. Like he saw while flying, the areas close to him were mostly barren and arid in nature, similar to some of the places he’d seen in what remained of Australia. It was almost eerie.

As he waited for his mobile suit to finish its several minute long rebooting process, he failed to notice the blue scaly shape creeping up on his blind spot. He didn't hear it - nor did he suspect it, and it was perfect for the would-be predator that slowly approached him.

As Ensign Lassus sat against the rocks, he stared up at his transformed mobile armor in all of its glory. Two massive beam rifles were mounted on the sides of the large craft just above the wings mounted on the sides of the leg units. The huge smooth round shape was rather odd to the ensign - but he'd long conceded that it proved to be very aerodynamic under full power.

He could also concede the fact that its mostly orange and green color scheme allowed it to look very much like a massive cheese wheel on forward kneeling legs. With a snort, he sighed and rubbed his eyes - eager to get some rest as he waited for the Asshimar to finish its work. The mobile suit had an alert for when it was complete, so he wouldn't need to worry very much over keeping watch. Besides, it wasn't like anybody was going to try and steal it.

He closed his eyes, finally able to let himself relax for the first time in a long time. He was tired, bored, aching, and utterly stressed out. What was the harm in some shut-eye?

POV: Ember -

As the unknown bipedal...thing drifted off to sleep against the warm rocks, Ember took the opportunity to sneak past it and towards the massive and oddly shaped flying machine in front of it. Having lost all interest in going after somebody who was now asleep, she could at least start exploring whatever this odd technology was.

She crept one step aboard the ramp, eyeing the alien or whatever to see if it woke up. No reaction whatsoever - it was fast asleep.

A second step then.

Still nothing.

A third step that was a little faster.

A snore was heard.

Ember climbed up the rest of the way, slowly clambering inside what appeared to be a ball shaped room of sorts. The walls were gray and were covered in lines neat and evenly spaced from each other.

Inside the large room was a large chair suspended in the center, covered with all sorts of gadgets and controls that Ember didn’t recognize. She didn’t think anybody could recognize whatever this stuff was. It was large enough for her to sit in - with quite a bit of room as well. On the back of the seat looked to be some arm of sorts, connected to the back of the chair to hold it in the air.

Climbing up on the chair, Ember sat her scaly butt down, shifting in her brand new seat to see how it felt. To her surprise, it was relatively comfortable, yet sturdy. It wasn’t very cushiony like she heard many ponies liked: but it was far from being like the literal rock all dragons used to sit or lie on.

Then there were the gizmos all over the weird machine. “So this thing is flown, huh?” Ember mumbled to herself as she reached up, trying to touch some of the weird buttons or odd flat gray parts of the panel near her.

Flying machines weren’t alien in nature - Ember heard of the hot air balloons and the airships Equestrian ponies used, and she was well aware that anyone could make something that flew if they knew how. But something like whatever she was sitting in didn’t look like it could fly. How could it when it was essentially a giant wheel with short wings?

She continued to tamper around with the odd controls, flicking levers and pressing buttons curiously. A thought in the back of her head told her it was a bad idea, or it at least warned her to be careful. But she pushed it to the back of her mind: intent on exploring the most interesting thing that had touched down in the Dragon Lands.

She’d regret these thoughts moments later, as she pressed a button that set off some sort of alarm - a series of short but very loud and very quick beeps. Choking on her breath, Ember began pressing buttons left and right in an attempt to silence whatever had just happened.

Ember froze the second she heard the yawn from outside the odd wheel ship, and she shot out of the chair - hiding behind it via hanging on the arm holding up the seat. The young dragon looked around her, essentially panicking as she tried to figure out a plan of escape that didn’t involve a fight. She wasn’t quite so good at combat yet.

A few moments later, she heard footsteps, followed by a second yawn as the odd bipedal alien climbed aboard his ship. He sat in the chair, momentarily shaking the seat just a little as he began pressing buttons and levers, just like Ember had been doing. Only this time, it did something for him. Soon, she heard the door close and a loud hum around her, though the momentary panic she felt from that vanished into awe when the walls suddenly turned into the environment outside the ship.

Almost literally, in fact. The gray metal has faded away to reveal what had to be impossible teleportation. She was back outside? Ember reached out with growing hope, hoping to feel empty air instead of metal.

Her claws tapped more metal.

Darn, still trapped.

“Diagnosis done,” the alien said in a clearly male voice, startling Ember. “All systems nominal and all bugs clear. Requesting a return to the Atlas.”

Before she could even furrow a brow, another voice was heard, much smaller and barely noticeable. “Permission granted.” Where had that voice come from?

“Roger that - returning to base,” the alien controller muttered, and the sound of a loud mechanical whine powering up was heard moments later.

Ember needed to leave, now. She reached towards the back of the chair. Maybe she could knock him out and find a way to open the door before he knew what hit him. There was a handle on the back of the seat. Maybe that did something?

She reached for the handle and pulled: before yanking an entire object off of the chair. Ember cursed: it wasn’t some kind of lever, it was a separate piece.

And it made a loud ‘clack’ sound.

“What the-“ the alien turned around to come face to face with Ember.

The dragon panicked and did the first thing that came to mind: swinging what she was holding in her hands into his helmeted face.

The impact was followed by the sound of shattering and a yell of pain as the ship they were in took off screaming into the sky.

Chapter 6

(Author's Note: Sorry for the long wait, but the semester's been rough and high level classes tend to be very time consuming. I'll try and pump out chapters without taking too long or rushing them.)

Twilight giddily peered over the edge of the Olive Branch, alongside her friends as the Royal Guards kept the airship afloat. It had been a few hours since the airship had arrived and picked them up - and Twilight could still hardly believe she was actually on an airship dedicated to the Royal Guard’s service.

The airship was large, easily 120 meters in length. The main fuselage of the craft was similarly shaped to a boat, with six decks and plenty of golden armor plating over its reinforced wooden deck. The top of the vessel was plated with white steel, and there were small parapets on the sides of each vessel where unicorn guards would keep watch.

The ship was held up by the use of a large rigid balloon frame, which was about three times the size and volume of the ship itself. The rigid balloon was white, with ornate designs made of shaped golden decorating it in a similar manner to the rest of the ship. There had to be a hundred or so Royal Guards on board, the crew being a mix of Earth Ponies and Unicorns. A smaller contingent of twenty or so Pegasus guards were also onboard the Olive Branch, often serving as scouts should the need arise.

Alongside the Elements of Harmony and the Royal Guard was Fleetfoot of the Wonderbolts, having tagged along to provide directions to locate the gathering. As of now, she was currently standing by the helm, eyeing the front of the vessel to see if they were getting close.

“So, what do ya think we’ll come across when we get there?” Applejack asked. She was the only pony not sticking her head over the edge of the deck, a hoof pressing her Stetson hat to her head, the winds howling and threatening to send the hat overboard if she so much as raised her hoof by a millimeter.

"I don't know!" Twilight giggled. "Ooh, it's all so exciting! New and unforeseen technology! You heard the report by the Wonderbolts! Machines that fly faster than even they can manage! All sorts of strange carriages and flying machines! Not to mention...golems..." Her excited smile fell as she recalled what had happened to the Everfree Forest, as well as remembering the details over the deceased Hydra near the edge of the wild woods.

"Dearie, are you alright?" Rarity asked, shaking Twilight from her thoughts.

"Well, I was just remembering how these...newcomers could potentially be very dangerous. What if they aren't interested in friendship?" she asked. "Who knows what they can be capable of? I mean, whatever it was we might be looking for took down a Hydra."

"That does sound very scary..." Fluttershy whispered. Applejack came over and patted her on the arm, helping in calming her down. It was no secret that the death of a Hydra was very disturbing to all ponies that heard: not just the thought of something being strong enough to accomplish such a grisly feat, but the fact that something or somepony was actually willing to inflict death.

"Come on, we're Elements! If somepony tries to do something to us, we can zap them in five seconds flat!" Rainbow Dash attempted to reassure. "Then we can give them a stern talking to!"

"As crass as dear Dashie has said it, she's correct," Rarity said kindly. "After all, it's a sort of...introduction! We may not know how or why they're here in Equestria, but approaching them is the appropriate and civilized approach!"

“Well, we’re just about there now!” Pinkie Pie squealed as she hopped up and down at the very front of the ship. The other mares turned to see the opening in the clouds, a sign that the Oliva Branch was slowly lowering. Sure enough, Twilight found herself witness to what occupied the lands below.

A massive green shape with incredibly large and thick wings sat on the torn up grass and dirt. It had a large red stripe going from its middle down its back, and the back of the machine housed a large vertical tailfin. Near them were dozens of medium sized to smaller aircraft, ranging from winged air vehicles to propeller driven craft. But what caught Twilight's attention the most was the five large bipedal golems that had been somewhat vaguely described earlier.

They had different color schemes with one being blue, another two of them being green and tan in similar tones, one being green, and a larger one in particular being larger and mostly black. They were massive, and they appeared to be equipped with strange objects and gadgets.

But more noticeable than most, Twilight saw that they looked human. The single joint knees, the positioning of arms and the presence of five digits on each hand. Recalling the times she spent in Canterlot High through the portal, the Princess of Friendship was not one to so easily forget what humans looked like.

"I...I think I've seen them before," Twilight said as the airship lowered closer to the ground.

"Wait, ya have?" Applejack asked.

"They remind me of the humans from the other world," the Princess of Friendship muttered, before taking a closer look. She could barely make out details: circular joints in the arms and legs, clearly shaped metallic armor on the body, and the tubes that were present on some of them. "Could it be..."

"The other world...you never talked much about that," Fluttershy said, her curiosity peaked.

"I suppose we'll have to wait and see, darling," Rarity said as the ship landed - its lower ramp opening with a crank as the mares all hurried down to exit the ship, alongside Fleetfoot and several Royal Guards.

One of the golems - the black and purple one - seemed to slide over to the ship's landing zone. Yes, it slid over. Whatever this thing was, it was hovering off the ground. Gripped in its hands was a massive tube with handles and a huge metallic extension on the back. Twilight quickly spread her wings, ready to engage should the giant try something not so friendly.

The ponies all stared as the machine stopped several meters away from the disembarked ponies before aiming the massive tube over its shoulder, directly at the Olive Branch. All that could be heard was the loud sounds of roaring from the golem. The ponies all winced as hot air blasted into their manes and coats. Rarity could barely be heard exclaiming something about her mane, while Rainbow Dash quickly landed before she could be hurled back against the ship.

Then the loud roaring stopped, and the golem's feet landed on the ground with a mighty thud. The ground shook momentarily as the ponies continued to stare back up at the odd humanoid creature in what appeared to be some sort of standoff. Fleetfoot walked up, stopping alongside the princess. "There's still one missing," she said.

"What do you mean?" the princess asked.

"There was a gray one that could fly. It flew off in another direction, towards the Badlands," Fleetfoot muttered. "There could be more of them that we don't know about, and that's a worrying thought." Princess Twilight was no stranger to danger - especially since she'd had to fight off Lord Tirek. She still shuddered at the thought of nearly losing to the monstrous centaur.

What were the chances that these newcomers could pose an even more grave threat to Equestria?

"Well, we can ask about it when we start official negotiations," Princess Twilight said reassuringly as she stepped forward with a cough. She didn't possess the Royal Canterlot Voice just yet, but she could speak rather loudly. Hopefully, this human-like creation could hear them.

"Greetings!!" she yelled. "I am Twilight Sparkle, and I wish to speak to your leader!!"

Silence was all that greeted them. The large, singular pink eye swiveled downwards, all without the head or the body moving. It was an odd thing to see, and one that made a few ponies shudder in discomfort. Though, Twilight only seemed more fascinated than creeped out: having taken note of the loud whirring noise that was emitted when the eye moved.

"...did you just speak?" a voice boomed from the creature. There was no mouth for it to speak from, nor was there any other movement when the voice was heard. It was almost like its voice was coming out of something like Vinyl Scratch's surround sound speakers.

"What an odd question..." Rarity whispered. "Of course she can speak!"

"Ahem. Uhh...yes! Yes, I have spoken! Once more, I'd like to meet with your leader!" Twilight repeated.

"And no funny business!" Rainbow Dash called, only to get nudged by Applejack with a light scowl. "What? We mean business, don't we?" the rainbow haired Pegasus whined.

"Ya can at least be polite about it!" Applejack hissed.

"How do we say 'no funny business' nicely?" Rainbow Dash insisted.

"Both of you, quiet!" Fleetfoot whispered angrily, clearly annoyed by the bickering. Thankfully, the Elements of Honesty and Loyalty obeyed.

There was even more silence that followed. Thankfully, it didn't take long for the machine to move, simply turning around and walking towards the large congregation of aircraft and vehicles. "Come with me," came the male voice from the massive machine.

The mares all looked at each other, before turning to the Royal Guards that bore witness to the event. They seemed to have no reaction of sorts, simply bowing to the princess as a form of assurance that they'd follow her lead. Princess Twilight Sparkle coughed and brushed off her hoof before she walked after the large machine.

"Very well," she said as she headed towards the massive plane that sat at the other side of the field. The relatively short walk was a very tense one. When they reached the start of the camp, Twilight would indeed see that these newcomers were all humans.

They weren't like the ones in Canterlot High. Their bodies were proportionally larger, and their heads were a little bit smaller. Their eyes weren't large and they all had very limited styles on their hair, mostly limited to black, brown, and blonde as far as the princess could see. They weren't dressed in the various outfits familiar to a high school, but a wide degree of what appeared to be uniforms, mostly green in varying states of disrepair.

Having never seen a human and a pony side by side before, Princess Twilight was unsure of how the sizes translated between dimensions. One of the younger humans - a female teenager, she deduced, was revealed to be a noticeable margin taller, with Twilight's horn going up to her chest. Other humans were taller, and some were shorter and much younger. There had to be a few hundred of the humans, ranging from male to female, from young to older and in between.

And all of them stared at the ponies as they walked by. Any person that seemed to be busy had stopped their task to look.

"...why are they staring?" Fluttershy whispered frightfully, her mane draped over her face as she tried to hide herself as best as she could.

"Perhaps they simply can't get enough of us..." Rarity tried to reassure, though she only seemed to be trying to calm her own nerves.

However, Pinkie Pie was clearly having the opposite mindset. Before anypony could stop her she'd started zipping around the camp, racing around one of the green aircraft that was currently opened up. Two humans that had been working on it yelped and stumbled back as the pink blur hopped on the hull with a thud.

"Oooh!! This thing flies? How does it fly?! Do you feed it and it just blasts off or are you supposed to do something else?! The wings are folded up, maybe it flaps like a bird!!" the hyperactive Element of Laughter giggled as she hopped up and down on the craft, jostling it with every thud her hooves made.

"Hey, get off of there!" someone yelled before Pinkie Pie jumped off - landing on the foot of another giant walking machine: a blue one. She didn't get any further before Twilight immobilized the pink Earth pony.

"Awww!!" Pinkie Pie whined as Twilight dragged her over to her side, her lavender magic still encasing the pony.

"Sorry! She's just...very curious!" the princess apologized, chuckling nervously at the glares that many of the humans sent their way. Other looks were some of shock and awe: likely due to Twilight's show of magical prowess, or the mere presence of magic in the first place. "We promise no harm! Just...a word!"

"Stand down!" a new voice boomed, even louder than what the walking machine said. The humans and even the other large golem-like things turned to face the massive plane sitting at the end of the field. Despite having the knowledge that all of these were aircraft, Twilight couldn't help but make the comparison of a ruler over its subjects.

It didn't take long for something else to happen. The large front of the plane opened up, revealing a massive dark interior not clearly seen from where the ponies were currently at. The Elements of Harmony watched as the humans eventually went back to whatever they were doing, either having lost interest or unwilling to do much else. There was a clear path to the open maw of the plane, and Princess Twilight Sparkle took a deep breath.

"I suppose we go inside," she said. "It sounds like the leader we need to talk to is in there."

The ponies all looked at each other. "Still. Ain't that ominous..." Applejack mumbled.

"Come on, I don't think they would surely be so violent. Right?" Rarity asked.

"I dunno," Fleetfoot mumbled. She was eyeing the large blue golem - wary of the massive sword it held in its hands. "My gut says something's off."

"Well if they try to trap us, we'll just bust out," Rainbow Dash whispered.

"I hope we won't need to..." Fluttershy whispered.

"Then we show some good faith," Twilight said. "Come on, girls."

The five mares walked ahead, with Pinkie Pie still floating in Twilight's grasp. The guards followed suit as well, and Fleetfoot was the last to walk over. "I hope you know what you're doing, princess," the Wonderbolt muttered.

"I hope so too..." Twilight thought silently to herself as she stepped foot into the plane.

elsewhere in Equestria -

Princess Celestia stared at the massive cloud far in the distance. She and her personal guards had seen the explosion several dozen kilometers away. The brightness had nearly blinded some ponies, and the blast wave had reached them less than five seconds after the initial flash of light, with the airship violently getting pushed back a dozen or so meters by the air force alone.

Her personal airship - the Hoof of Celestia. was high in the clear blue skies. The vessel was much larger than most in the Equestrian Air Fleet. Despite its size being well over four times larger than the standard airship, it lacked weapons of any sort: instead serving as a massive carrier and supply vessel of sorts. The Hoof of Celestia was by no means meant to serve as a warship, but as a beacon of hope to ponies in need. The princess had refused to heavily militarize the ship, wanting to lean towards its usage as a ship designed to rescue those in disaster, as well as deliver things such as food and medical supplies in need of emergency.

Those events had happened almost half an hour ago. The remains of the blast was clear to see, having happened smack in the middle of the Badlands. Thankfully, it seemed to be limited to the Badlands, and there was no sign of the dark and ominous clouds being pushed towards any civilized areas.

It didn't take long for the aftermath of the explosion to be ignored, not when it was overshadowed by a green and a blue golem walking side by side away from the massive rising cloud. Both looked similar with minor differences in appearance and whatever they were holding. It didn't take long for the princess to issue orders.

"Land the ship," Princess Celestia said. "I wish to make contact."

"Yes, your highness," the helmspony said, and the vessel's large airframe began to deflate as the conventional yet reliable use of heated air lowered to dampen the lift on the flying ship. The Hoof of Celestia lowered and landed at the very edges of the Badlands, with large sets of landing gear and a large ramp touching down gently.

The princess stepped down towards the ground, her golden horseshoes clacking gently against the metallic ramp. Several dozen meters ahead of her were the two massive golems, which stopped the second the Hoof of Celestia had lowered towards them. They still hadn't moved since then, but the princess intended to continue.

Using the Royal Canterlot Voice, the Princess of the Sun boomed up at the unknown creatures. "My name is Princess Celestia, ruler of Equestria!" she called out to the two bipedal constructs that were currently approaching her. The voice was powerful enough that the ponies on her ship winced at the sheer volume.

The two golems didn't seem to react to her announcement, something that Princess Celestia wasn't too certain was bad or good. "Newcomers to Equestria, I would like to welcome you to our lands under civil terms! We mean you no harm, and wish to converse openly!" she continued.

Once again, no reaction from the green and blue giants...at first. Then something happened that made Celestia recoil a little in surprise, if not mild fascination. The singular eyes of their heads turned to look at each other, swiveling to their sides without the heads so much as moving. It didn't take long for the eyes to swing back and face Celestia once more. Adding to her surprise, a male voice rang out - not from the golem as if it were talking, but almost as if it were talking through a speaker somewhere on its body.

"How do we know if you won't hurt us?" the voice called through the air.

The princess was quick to reply, seeing the question as a good sign that the were considering it. "I can only offer you sanctuary, with assurances of good health and excellent care for you both!" she called, intent on reassuring them. ""You have my word as ruler of the kingdom!

They were silent for a moment before the two golems kneeled before her, arms lowered to the ground. Before she could insist that bowing or kneeling was not necessary, their chests opened up with loud hissing noises. Two bipedal figures climbed out - lowering themselves from thin ropes at the top of the doors. "So they're machines of sorts..." the princess thought to herself.

The two oddly dressed creatures made their way to the ground. The taller figure with the facial hair brushed himself off as he made his way to the princess, although he stopped when the second figure - more slender and clearly female in nature - stumbled and crashed in the dirt. "Hey!" he quickly shouted as he hurried over to her, helping her up to her feet. "Hey, you feeling alright?"

"I'm...tired..." the female whispered, her eyes barely half open. Her arm was shaky as she tried to lift it, but the male quickly pushed it down. "Is this really happening?"

"Yes...it is. Somehow," the male muttered as Princess Celestia came over to check on them. "James Monroe," he said, redirecting his attention towards the princess before him. "And this is my partner, Karlie Rosa."

"I see," the princess said. "It's a pleasure to meet you both. Is your partner..."

"Just tired..." Rosa whispered. She didn't seem to be injured in some way, but she sounded awfully exhausted - almost as if she were on the brink of death. "Need water..." Princess Celestia's eyes widened in alarm as Rosa passed out, falling limp in Monroe's arms.

"Help her," Monroe said as he lay the young lavender haired woman gently on the ground.

"We will," the alicorn reassured before her horn glowed bright golden. Rosa was completely surrounded by that same glow moments later, and Monroe nearly tripped on his own two feet. Thankfully, he didn't seem to perceive this as a threat, as the princess simply lifted her up carefully to bring her to the ship. "We'll bring your...machines on board as well," Celestia added. "Right now, you both shall receive medical attention."

"Just her. I don't-" Monroe began before Celestia cut him off.

"I insist," was all she said. Monroe didn't have the will to continue arguing - simply following behind as several of the princess's guard hurried to the large machines behind them. The princess would worry about gathering intel or getting answers later. Right now, the safety of the two new individuals was a top priority.

"One more thing," Monroe said. Princess Celestia turned to face the man, who pointed back at the still present cloud that was so far away. "You might wanna...quarantine the area. We were attacked and...it got nuked. The area's flooding wuth radiation." He said this rather nervously, a bad indicator if the princess ever saw one.

The alicorn narrowed her eyes. She didn't know what the term 'nuke' meant, but she was all too familiar with what radiation could do. It had to be harmful if she was being warned about it. "Very well," she said before turning to the nearby guards at the base of the ship's ramp. "Send out some of our messengers. Tell them to lock down the Badlands."

"Yes, princess." the two guards saluted and galloped up the ramp, with the princess and the two aliens with her.

near the Dragon Lands -

"Ugh...my head..."

Ember groaned as she tried to get a proper understanding of her surroundings, at least the moment her sight and vision returned. As she slowly opened and rubbed her eyes, she sat up. Dizziness was the first thing that dwarfed the pain, but it was slowly overshadowed by confusion. The metal she sat on was flat and cold, a far cry from the hot jagged rock she was used to.

She blinked her eyes and looked around before she noticed that she wasn't in the Dragon Lands: rather, she was trapped in a prison cell of sorts. A metal bench was what she sat on, with the walls being cold gray metal and the door being a moderately sized cage. She got up and looked around, seeing a hallway on the other side of the cage door. "What the..."

There was a sound, with a female voice following it. "The prisoner is awake," Ember heard, and the young teen dragoness quickly sat back down, unsure of what to expect.

"Prisoner...I was captured? What happened to me?" Ember thought to herself as she tried to recall the moments of what occurred before she'd fallen unconscious.

She thought back to when she first boarded that strange wheel looking aircraft...when she'd swung the strange object into the face of the alien before everything started spinning. She remembered getting gripped around the throat while vertigo took hold, and she could barely recall yelling of sorts, either aimed at her or at something else.

The last thing she saw was something flying at them, a red and white something with its arms stretched out towards them...

"A dragon. I don't think I've ever seen something like you...ever."

Ember broke out of her thoughts and turned to the cell door to see...something. Tall, slender, and clearly female judging by the voice. She had fur on her head, tan colored skin, thin eyes, and clothes. An alien, Ember thought for a moment.

With a cough, Ember brushed herself off and quickly summoned what bravery she had, though there wasn't much given just how confused she was feeling. "What do you mean you haven't seen a dragon?" she asked. "What are you exactly?"

"Human. Captain of the Atlas," the female said.

“And the Atlas is...this thing?” Ember asked. She’d recalled the massive winged...thing landing, but she hadn’t considered it to be a ship of sorts.

“I’m going to cut to the chase,” the human female said, deciding not to delay things any further. “We all come from a different world and we’re lost. As such, you’re going to answer some questions.”

And this day kept getting stranger.

“Another world?” Ember asked, a bit confused on the apparent claim. “Like...what do you mean?”

“We aren’t from this planet. Something took us from our home and brought us here,” the alien said. “And so far, we haven’t found any way back.” She leaned forward, clearly intent in intimidating Ember into doing something.

And it was working.

Ember found herself leaning back ever so slightly from her harsh gaze. Regardless of how weird their faces looked, they could look scary when they wanted to. Not that Ember would admit it. “Uhh, what questions do you want me to answer?”

“Questions about this world. What is this land? What other species are there? Have there been others like us spotted?” the human asked. “We won’t resort to torture, but we won’t let you out unless you cooperate.”

“And if I decide to blast my way out?” Ember asked, deciding to challenge the human’s threat as a possible bluff. “My father will notice I’ve been gone for too long. And you don’t want to mess with dad.”

The human simply smiled. It was an unnerving smile, one that seemed to stretch her lips a little bit. “We have the power to wipe entire islands off the map. Are there any dragons out there that can do more?” she asked. “Can your father do so?”

Ember fell silent, out of shock that the alien would make such an outrageous claim. No dragon could destroy entire islands. What were the chances that this ship - the Atlas, could do so? She had to be bluffing.

Right?

The female took Ember’s silence as understanding. “Now that we’ve gotten threats and such out of the way, are you ready to start answering questions?” she asked, her voice a little calmer. “We won’t declare war on your people, we only want to understand where we are.”

Ember slowly nodded, finding no reason to say no. It wasn’t like these humans wanted secrets or power over the dragons...right? Besides, she really didn’t want to find out if these humans were really as strong as her interrogator claimed.

The uniformed human smiled once more. “Good. Let’s begin.”

Chapter 7

(AN: Sorry for the wait. My semester had a bad few weeks since I’ve been studying for the first exam. I failed anyways, so that was a complete waste. On top of that, I’ve been working on the draft for my other story, which is equally as time consuming.

I’m really sorry for disappearing for so long. I’m hoping to be able to get the stories up at a reasonable pace at the very least, so I’ll try and work harder on getting these done. Thanks for your patience! )

Rosa let out a gasp as she woke up, her eyes shooting wide open. She felt sweat on her brow and her body in a chill as she remembered everything that happened: the Gouf Flight Type's ambush, the thermonuclear explosion, and running into...she didn't even know what she ran into. All she knew was that she left her mobile suit, and that Monroe had started carrying her through a desert and-

Monroe!

Sitting up abruptly and without any preparation of what was to come, she tried to get to her feet before she felt a pulse of agony in her stomach, as well as sheer aching pain in her limbs. A whimper escaped as she found herself lying down again. Rosa saw that she was no longer sitting in her Hizack Custom. In fact, she was somewhere else entirely. It looked like a hospital room of sorts, with rows of empty beds. Golden ornate decorations covered the wooden walls, and the floors looked to be made of tiles. It was much cleaner and spacious than anything Rosa had ever seen before.

She looked down to see she was lying on one of those beds herself, with white sheets decorated by tiny embroideries of flowers. She was no longer in uniform, instead clad in her underwear. "Where am I..." she whispered as she hugged herself, her hands feeling cold against her warm body.

"You're aboard the Hoof of Celestia. We've been monitoring your condition, and your ails seem to be limited to exhaustion and malnutrition," a male voice said. "Don't worry, rest and food will get you back up very soon."

Rosa slowly turned her head to thank whoever had taken care of her before she stopped. Next to her bed was not a person, but a gray horse. It was almost comically small compared to a horse back on Earth, likely around 3/4ths of her height if she could stand up. It had large human-like eyes, and it wore a stethoscope around its neck.

Chuckling nervously, Rosa slowly sat up: carefully this time. "Heh. Very funny, Monroe! Talking horse prank!" she said, looking around the room to try and locate her partner. "Come out now!"

"Actually, I'm a pony. An Earth Pony, to be exact," the voice said again. No one else had entered the room, and the horse - no, pony was still here. This time, Rosa saw its lips move when the voice spoke. Furthermore, she actually heard the voice coming from the pony.

Rosa's eyes were widened, utterly silent as her brain put two and two together. "Holy..." she whispered before her eyes rolled to the back of her head, flopping back on the bed as she was once again unconscious.

The Earth Pony tilted his head, clearly confused. "What an odd reaction," he muttered before he lifted the tube of his stethoscope, placing the bell on the woman's chest to check her heartbeat.

Elsewhere aboard the large and airship, Monroe sat on the floor in front of a table in the winged unicorn's quarters in front of its occupant. They were lavish, resembling a very old 18th Century bedroom for kings and queens more than a shipboard room. The bed was massive, easily enough for two horses to lie in with plenty of covers and pillows. The walls, floors, desks, dressers, and drawers were all white with ornate gold decorating them. A set of stained glass windows adorned the back wall facing the aft of the airship.

"Then again, she's apparently some sort of princess," Monroe thought to himself. Princess Celestia was on the other side of that table, sitting as well as she frowned at the man in front of her. At the table was a large ornate kettle with two porcelain cups, steaming with tea.

"So, you're soldiers of this...Earth Federation," the princess said as she hummed thoughtfully. "Not many powers operate by a Federation, at least not many that I can remember. I believe the Griffon Kingdom attempted such control before it entered a state of anarchy and following that: a monarchy."

"Griffons? You have...those too?" Monroe asked.

"We have all sorts of species. How do you know of Griffons?" Princess Celestia asked.

"They were mythological creatures in legends back on Earth. At least before everybody started moving to space almost a hundred years ago. Classes kept me up to date on those growing up," Monroe said. "I don't suppose you have dragons and typons and minotaurs and all that stuff."

"I can't say I'm familiar with Typhons, but we do have dragons and minotaurs in this world, yes," Celestia said.

Monroe fell silent for a second before rubbing his eyes tiredly. "I'm gonna stop asking too much before my head explodes..." he mumbled.

"Yes, I believe there will be ample time to properly explain everything about this world, as well as potential ways that you may have gotten here," Princess Celestia said, minorly amused at the man's confusion. "I believe you were explaining a bit about your world? Specifically how you entered space?"

"Yeah. About...eighty seven years ago, we colonized space. We have cities on the moon and we turned asteroids into living spaces as well. Most of our colonies are built, though. The Federation holds control over the entire Earth Sphere," Monroe said. "They retain control of some colonies in space as well. Only a few of them."

"A few? Out of how many in space?" Princess Celestia asked.

"Hundreds. Groups of colonies are split off into 'Sides'. Since they all cover different sides and distances around the Earth. Some of them belong to the Federation. Others...belong to Zeon," Monroe explained. Princess Celestia took note of how quickly his tone turned dark at the last name.

"Zeon?" Celestia asked, her eyebrows furrowing in concern.

"A Principality that declared war on the Federation," Monroe muttered, and Celestia found herself concerned over the sudden change in body language. He wasn't just mad, he was fuming. "They wiped out our fleets, massacred the billions of innocent people in our colonies before dropping one of them on Earth. It destroyed one of our continents and killed billions more."

Princess Celestia wasn't sure how to process the gruesome information. The thought of so much death was something she never truly thought about: but to see somepony speak of it like they'd seen the events happen firsthand was haunting, to say the least. Destruction and murder on such a scale had never been conceived in all of Equestrian history, much less the thought of a declaration of war. "This...Principality. Why would they do such a thing?"

"Hell if I know. Their 'official declaration' involved independence. But something tells me they just wanted an excuse to murder. They invaded Earth months later," Monroe said as he got up, stretching his arms. His fists were clenched hard and he still looked ready to destroy something, at least until he took a breath. The princess lifted one of the cups with her magic before levitating it to the stressed human. "Thanks..." he said as he gripped the cup and took a little sip. He sighed, feeling some of the tension leave his body. "You know, magic isn't a thing where I'm from. I doubt I'll ever get used to that."

"You also mentioned you would never get used to talking horses," Princess Celestia said with a wry grin. That grin died down moments later as she thought over the words describing the Principality's horrific actions. "You said they wished for independence. Was your government cruel?"

"I dunno. Politics wasn't my thing. But if you want independence, you don't..." Monroe sighed as he sat back down, finishing his tea. "I...I'm sorry. I'm just...stressed," he muttered.

"I can tell," the princess said kindly. "No creature deserves to go through such pain and suffering, much less billions. But that does bring me to my next question. You speak of such brutal history. Where does this history take place?"

"On Earth...which I'm guessing we're not on, considering I'm talking with a magical horse with wings and giant airships without a single human city or town in sight" Monroe said. Princess Celestia shook her head, and he sighed. "I thought so."

"Which begs the question, how did you end up here?" Princess Celestia asked. "And who else came with you?"

Monroe opened his mouth before stopping. He'd almost mentioned the Atlas: and that was enough cause for alarms to start ringing in his head. It was bad enough that he'd ranted about the One Year War, but it would be another thing if the magical ruler of an entire magical kingdom learned that there was a massive warship flying above them.

"...as far as I know...my partner and I. And at least one Zeon mobile suit as well," Monroe said as he sighed. “We fought one before our transport got blown up. We were walking away when…”

“When we found you near the edge of the Badlands,” Princess Celestia finished. The man nodded, and the princess tapped her hoof against her chin thoughtfully. “So there’s more of these…”

“Mobile suits,” Monroe said.

“Yes,” Celestia said. “What are they, exactly?"

"Weapons," Monroe said. "Zeon made them to destroy ships. Then we made them to fight back. And now mobile suits are just everywhere. I don't really wanna talk about it..."

Princess Celestia fell deep into thought, unsure of how to feel. "Much of what he talks about is of war and destruction. But he's clearly not an evil being..." she thought to herself. "What do I do..."

"Umm...is it okay if I check on my partner?" Monroe asked as he got up. "I wanna make sure she's alright...and that nothing bad is happening or anything."

"Of course. Feel free to-" Princess Celestia said, only to cut herself off when she noticed him leaving already, not waiting for actual permission to head out of her room. "...leave..." With an exhale and a sight nicker, she got up and made her way out of her quarters to make sure the human knew where he was going.

Sure enough, she found him entering the airship's hospital deck without any interruptions. He hadn't been stopped thanks to the Royal Guard remembering their orders to let him freely roam the ship. Princess Celestia stayed back as the man approached his partner, sitting on the floor by the bed.

She exhaled lightly. She'd ask more questions later, but for now - the remainder of the trip would be spent in silence.

elsewhere in Equestria -

The Gaw: as Twilight Sparkle learned it was called, didn't look comfortable at all. Everything was made of old and worn metal, and piping could be seen in the ceilings of the halls they walked through. Automatic sliding doors led to rooms left and right, and everything only seemed more and more cramped. The Elements of Harmony, alongside Fleetfoot, only continued to be escorted towards where the leader of these people was currently at.

On the way in, Twilight Sparkle thought about when they'd passed the cargo bay the mouth-like opening led into. The Royal Guard assigned to walk alongside them were ordered to stay outside the large aircraft, as were most of the armed human soldiers. The interior of the plane was impressive: spacious with all sorts of constructs inside ranging from metal arms hanging from the ceiling to large catwalks on the sides. Inside were large blocks of sorts, which had several other people living in them. Perhaps it was a massive flying home? All she could think about was the engineering prowess put into designing such a behemoth of an aircraft.

"Twi," Applejack whispered. "We're here..."

The Princess of Friendship turned to see the last door in the hallway opening, with the two armed guards escorting them standing at attention, one on either side of the door. They'd been quiet - but Twilight didn't miss how their eyes seemed to be locked onto the ponies the entire time. Deciding not to make any remarks about that, the mares moved inside.

The bridge of the Gaw was much less spacious - consisting of a single room with command consoles and computers at the other side of the room and the walls. Two seats faced the two large windows that looked out over the camp of vehicles, metal golems, and the humans all around. At the center of the room was a single table with buttons and controls on the sides, likely a command station of sorts.

Standing against the table was a human - tall with a toned physique. The human male had thin grey eyes with slightly tanned skin, and he wore the same green uniform as the others, though it was kept in much better condition. He wore a black half cape of sorts, one that draped down his front and his back - sporting a golden emblem of sorts on it. His shoulders had epaulets, and he wore a gray helmet on his head. There was nobody else on the bridge, making the whole area appear as though it were his personal throne room.

"A throne room without a throne..." Twilight thought to herself. Despite how it looked, the man occupying the room gave off a sense of authority - one that made her acknowledge the simple and unassuming fact that this man was the one in charge.

"I am Captain Engel, commanding officer of Phoenix Flight," the man said. "And I have several questions."

"I understand. We have multiple inquiries ourselves," Twilight said. "First of all, what are humans doing in Equestria?"

"Humans? Are there others like us?" Engel asked, his eyebrow raising. He was clearly not expecting some familiarity from the aliens of this world, and Twilight was quick to capitalize on this.

"No," the princess quickly explained. "But there are other worlds accessible via magic. I've been to one world in particular, one of which had humans. Before you ask, they looked nothing like these people. Technology such as this doesn't exist, so it couldn't possibly be your home."

"Our home isn't on any planet," Engel said, turning around and looking out at the main windows of the Gaw. "Our home is in the stars: in our colonies in space." He sighed, his stern posture momentarily giving way to something...morose. "We are from the Principality of Zeon."

"Zeon?" Rarity asked. "Is it a kingdom of sorts?"

Engel turned to face the unicorn with a puzzled expression, before it gave way to an amused chuckle. "Well in a way, it is rather similar," he said. "Zeon is ruled by a family - the Zabis. Though, they're all dead now. We lost our independence to the Earth Federation...so we of Phoenix Flight spend our days running and fighting their tyranny."

"That...sounds horrible. Anypony should be given the right to be free," Fluttershy whispered, making her way forward to approach Engel. She didn't retreat when his eyes dropped to gaze upon her, and the mares could see his hardened stare soften.

"What happened to Zeon?" Applejack asked.

"We lost the war. Zeon and its people fought the government on Earth for independence in space. They overpowered us with numbers and our own technology. Mobile suits," Engel said, pointing to the golems outside the plane.

"Mobile suits? The living golems?" Twilight asked.

"They aren't living. Each mobile suit is controlled by a human," Engel explained. "They were our trump card, a way to beat down the Federation to keep our colonies safe. Then the Federation built suits of their own...and we lost. We became trapped on Earth with no way to return to space."

"Wait, if your war was to protect your home in space, how'd you end up on land?" Fleetfoot asked.

Captain Engel turned back to face the sole Wonderbolt of the group. "We assaulted Earth. Our plan was to take over the planet and force a surrender," he said. Upon hearing the shocked gasps of the mares around him, he quickly continued speaking. "We would have left their people unharmed once we won. The plan was to always return to space. But we were forced to retreat. Some fled back to space. Others became trapped, like us."

"And this Federation...they continue to hunt you?" Twilight asked.

"They only see us as scum to be scraped off their boots. As long as we're on their land, breathe their air, they'll continue to want to kill us," Engel spat, a surprising amount of sudden hostility escaping him. Then he sighed, leaning his arms on the console of the Gaw's bridge. "But...but we aren't on their world anymore. Which means the space above no longer has home. For any of us..."

The sadness in his tone softened the ponies. "So you just want to go home?" Pinkie Pie asked, her own hyperactive positity dimmed down by his story.

"Yes. Is that so much to ask?" Engel whispered. he stood up promptly, and he walked over to the large table console in the center of the room. "It doesn't matter at this point. I called you up here to get some answers. But that isn't all. There's something more important to alert you to. And far more dangerous."

He tapped on several controls before the table's edge folded over to reveal a screen. On the screen was a still image of an aircraft: one much sleeker than the Gaw. While the Gaw was stout, tall, and rounded: this plane was long and angular with sharp edges and fins.

It was much more intimidating to look at, especially since it looked so much like a predator of sorts. The streams of what appeared to be energy of sorts shooting out from much of its body did little to calm the ponies.

“What...is that?" Rainbow Dash asked.

"That is a Garuda-class Flying Battleship. It's five times longer and wider than our ship, and armed with enough weapons to destroy a small country on its own," Engel said. The ponies all exchanged looks of nervous fear, and he frowned deeply. "It's a Federation ship, and it's here, likely in the skies above your nation."

That sprung the ponies back to reality. "Here? What do you mean?!" Rarity squeaked. “It’s flying right now?”

"That’s likely the case. Whatever brought us to your world...it brought that thing as well," Engel said, tapping the large and enhanced image. "It's what we've been running from before we appeared here. The ship itself can destroy all of Phoenix Flight, and that doesn't include all the mobile suits they have onboard. And trust me, they have a lot."

He zoomed in on the picture, and the Elements of Harmony gaped at what they saw. A red and white mobile suit stood at side of the craft, right under the wings: holding a sort of weapon in one hand while a large shield was mounted on the arm. What didn't surprise them was the mobile suit: but rather the size comparison between the mobile suit and the rest of the plane.

The aircraft truly seemed to be a monster.

"You need to prepare. I don't know how big your kingdom is or how far your government control goes, but they won't care. As long as they think we're here, they will destroy anything and anyone who gets in their way," Engel said.

"What about you? We need to get you to Princess Celestia. She'll hear you out personally, and we can make plans," Twilight said.

"That's right! The Royal Guard is under her command: if there's anypony in Equestria who will listen to you and understand, it's Princess Celestia," Rarity vouched.

“Princess, huh? Not a queen?” Engel asked.

“Equestria isn’t ruled by queens. Unlike…never mind,” Twilight muttered, remembering the near disaster that was the Canterlot Wedding. "I would need to return home to write to the princess. Then it shouldn't take much more than an hour of waiting."

"I...see," Engel muttered. "Can't believe I'm really considering this..."

"I know we may seem...alien to you," Fluttershy said. "But we would never wish harm on anypony. It's our job to ensure positive relationships and to ensure that every living thing gets along..."

The captain of the Gaw didn't seem as convinced as the ponies would have liked: at least until a few moments of thought had passed. "Very well. I'll meet with your superiors. Me and a few others of my choosing," he said. "Unless that isn't something you'd like?"

"Ooh! More humans?! Do you all like sweets! I have cupcakes, pancakes, cookies, muffins, and more! What about hosting a party for everypony here? Like a 'Welcome to Equestria' party!" Pinkie Pie squealed as she jumped right into the Zeon captain's face, startling him enough that he stumbled back into the inactive helm controls at the front of the bridge. Twilight quickly captured Pinkie Pie in her magic once more before pulling her between Rainbow Dash and Applejack, both of whom quickly pinned her between their bodies.

"I...apologize," Twilight meekly said. "Pinkie Pie is great, though she likes to celebrate a bit too much. That's just her way of welcoming you."

The captain sighed as he stood up once more, brushing his uniform off. "I...can see that," he said. "I also saw her scaring my people and jumping on one of our fighters outside. Alright, I'll give your diplomacy a chance. Allow me to let my people know. And to choose who comes with me."

Princess Twilight Sparkle nodded and bowed respectively, as did the others. Fleetfoot didn't bow - her eyes narrowing all the while. "Of course. Thank you for considering our proposal. I apologize that we haven't answered any questions of yours."

"I can always ask later. I shouldn't keep you from doing your job," Engel said. "Good day."

That was the end of that conversation. As the ponies made their way down the halls to leave the Gaw and make their way back to their ship, they remained silent, mostly due to the Zeon soldiers escorting them back. Thankfully, they stopped at the opening leading to the cargo bay, where the mares could see the Royal Guard ponies waiting patiently and diligently for their return.

As Engel's voice came over the speakers, calling all his people over to talk to them, Fleetfoot took the time to speak up. "I don't like this, princess," she said. "He could be scheming. And you heard him, they were all fighters at some point. These might all be war machines."

"We need to be able to convince them that we truly have goodwill towards them." Twilight said as she looked back around them. Sure enough, the mobile suits had begun walking towards the Gaw behind everyone else. "Mister Engel doesn't seem to be a bad person."

"He's bein' honest," Applejack said. "He talks like us, with emotions and everything. And Ah didn't see an ounce of deceit in his bones."

"You never know. I'm just warning you to be prepared, princess. If the...the Garuda he said is here, then there's no way to avoid a war. You heard him when he talked about this Federation. That was hate."

Twilight and Applejack looked at each other with more than a little uneasiness. "Then...we help them. We'll find this Garuda and make sure no more fighting happens."

"And what better than a party to get the friendship rolling?" Pinkie Pie chimed in.

Twilight sighed as she looked back to the Gaw, surrounded by the several machines, either flying, wheeled, or legged. It was an odd and rather unnerving sight to behold, especially since she now knew them all to be war machines.

"...it might take a bit more than a party," the Princess of Friendship sighed.

a few hours later, at Canterlot -

The airship landed at Canterlot Castle's own private landing zone: which was right next to a large garden behind the castle, obscured from the massive city they flew over via large white walls. Rosa and Monroe stood at the main ramp as it lowered, revealing the gardens for them to witness with their own eyes.

Several pure white stone statues littered the area neatly, with winding cobblestone paths connecting each one. Trees, ponds, small hedge walls, and trimmed bushes were everywhere, reminding the two humans of the sorts of environments that medieval castles would have in their backyards for kings and queens to enjoy.

"I shall have quarters ready for you. Then we shall discuss more. I promise only the best treatment and accommodations for guests," Princess Celestia said as she exited the airship, flanked by two Royal Guards on each side of her. "Please feel free to explore the gardens."

"What about our mobile suits?" Rosa asked. She was leaning against Monroe, a little fatigued but otherwise healthy enough to be up and about.

"They're unloading them now. They shall not be touched: only to stay in the gardens. The last thing we wish is for the populace to see your machines walking about. The scare would be quite drastic," Princess Celestia said, a kind smile on her face.

Sure enough, the larger cargo ramp on the other side of the airship was open, with the first Hizack sliding out. Monroe was thankful for the ship being massive, and the gardens being more so. "We...appreciate the rescue, princess," Monroe said.

The white alicorn simply smiled. "Of course," she said kindly as she walked. She made her way inside the castle with the guards, making her way to the housekeeping areas in the castle. "Guards, please check on our other guests. The Wonderbolts must be eager to meet the ones who set fire to the Everfree."

All four of the armored ponies froze, shocked: though they hid this well. "P-princess? How do you-" one of them said.

"There were large footprints left at the edge of the forest where the fire was concluded to have started. And those same prints were left by those...mobile suits when we found them near the edge of the Badlands. Not to mention the destruction afar that they seemingly left behind when we first came across them," Princess Celestia said. "We are not to harm our guests, but we shall confront them with the truth the moment we confirm this fact."

"So it isn't confirmed?" another guard asked.

"No, it is not. But plenty of evidence leads to them. We shall not be making accusations, nor will they become our prisoners, but we will show that we are aware of any seemingly deceitful intentions, either to trick us or to simply hide something - something dangerous," Princess Celestia said.

"And the goodwill?" the first Royal Guard asked.

"I was serious about that," Celestia assured. "Regardless of war or torment, creatures may not necessarily be bad. Crude and blunt as this Monroe is, he is clearly a good individual. He cared for his partner and willingly answered questions I asked. I could tell that there were no lies to most of the questions he answered."

"Most?"

The guards stopped, as did the princess. A stern look was on the alicorn's face: one that proved how seriously she was taking the matter.

"He mentioned both him and his partner, alongside a...Zeon machine here in Equestria. I believe he's lying." Her eyes narrowed as she revealed her thoughts. "I believe there are more humans that have been transported here. More mobile suits. And if I'm correct about him not lying, then Equestria may be in more danger than ever before."

She was interrupted when the sudden green flash of light appeared before her eyes. A rolled up letter dropped to the ground, a telltale sign of her former student writing to her. Picking up the letter with her magic, Princess Celestia opened it and began to read. It didn't take long for her eyes to widen in worry as she sped through the neatly written words, something the princess's guards picked up on quickly.

"Princess. Is everything alright?" one of the Royal Guard ponies asked in concern.

Celestia simply lowered her letter. "I fear things have just gotten more complex than I’d like," she said before she continued to walk, a little bit faster now. Her letter hung in her magical grasp all the while: letting one of the guards read it as it swayed in front of him.

Dear Princess Celestia,

We completed our investigation and made contact with those. It turns out, these are humans, and their landed fleet are part of a group known as the Principality of Zeon. They were trapped here after running from a tyrannical government known as the Earth Federation Forces. The Zeons mostly consist of innocents, families of those who fought in a horrible and gruesome war for freedom. As far as they have told me, they lost their war and were trapped in their world, in a constant fight for survival. But now they're here, and I believe we can give them a chance to heal, or at least help.

Their leader said that their home was in space: in colonies floating near the moon. How incredible is that? However, something else has come up - Zeon's people aren't the only ones who were stuck here. An aircraft of monstrous proportions belonging to this Earth Federation has been spotted by them before they landed. I believe one of their golems - they call them mobile suits - may be responsible for the fire started in the Everfree. I wish for you to meet this Zeon group's leader in Canterlot Castle. They agreed to return with a few others, and we will disembark for Canterlot as soon as you provide any kind of permission. If we're quick, we can help the Zeon humans return home and prevent their enemies from attacking them - or worse.

I eagerly await your reply.

Sincerely, your former student,
Twilight Sparkle

Chapter 8

in the Dragon Lands -

"Are you sure going in person is the right thing to do?" Ensign Lassus asked. He sat in his Asshimar, flying high into the sky after having launched from the Atlas's bow flight deck. Behind them were two Base Jabbers, one of them carrying a pair of RMS-179 GM IIs, both of them armed with a beam rifle and a shield. The second Base Jabber carried an RGM-79SP GM Sniper II, which remained in the back of the small formation.

"It's ideal. The four of us all have beam weapons, so there's little chance of being taken down so easily. Besides, if your new copilot is correct, then a show of force is probably what's needed to convince them that we're not enemies," a female voice said, a young yet stern voice.

"I...understood," Lassus said, bringing his hand up to open his helmet's visor. A nasty bruise was visible on his cheek, and several small bandaged cuts were on his face: courtesy of a small blue female dragon swinging his own bullpup's stock through his helmet. Next to him in the cockpit was the culprit, who he learned was named Ember.

"You don't get along?" Ember asked. She was standing next to his seat, claws gripping the side of his seat.

"Lieutenant Rira doesn't get along with anyone," Lassus muttered. "She's a sour bitch. She may be good at being a sniper, but that's all she's got."

"I heard that."

"Good," Lassus snapped before cutting short distanced radio contact. He rubbed his eyes tiredly as he continued to maintain altitude. "...today's going to shit..." he grumbled.

"Why is she so...sour?" Ember asked.

"She lost her older sister a few months ago," Lassus said. "A battle in space against rebels. Only...turns out those rebels were the good guys, so Rira's not too happy about her sister dying as an enemy..."

"Bad guys? Good guys?" Ember asked. "Okay, what's going on?"

"It's complicated. How much do you know about politics?" Lassus asked.

"Politics? What's that?" Ember asked.

"And there's my answer," Lassus muttered quietly. A small ping caught his attention, and he turned to see the Base Jabbers carrying the GM IIs approaching his flank. "What is it?"

"We're about half a klick away from our destination. Get ready," one of the GM II pilots said, the mobile suit's shield arm waving. Lassus turned to face the volcanoes that lay ahead: bringing his helmet's visor back down. Ember eyed the view up ahead, sighing as the familiar sight of home entered her eyes once more.

Sure enough, there were hundreds of dragons flying in the air around and above the cluster of volcanoes, all big and small with a wide variety of shapes, wingspans, neck lengths, and more. But the one noticeable dragon out of the bunch was the largest of them all, a dark and pale blue dragon of monstrous proportions standing atop one of the ledges of the taller volcanoes.

Lassus eyed the wings, easily large enough to dwarf the size of mobile suits, as well as the large pair of curved horns on the dragon's head. "Is that who we're facing?" he asked.

"Yep. That's Torch. Ruler of the Dragon Lands and protector of our way of life," Ember sighed. "And he's also...my dad."

Lassus winced. "So I take it he won't be happy that we basically stole and returned a dragon princess," he muttered.

"I'm not a princess," Ember snapped before her eyes fell back to the massive horde ahead. "Land here. Fly any closer and they'll attack."

"Descend here," Lassus quickly ordered over the radio, and his Asshimar shot up to face the sky. "Hey, might wanna brace yourself..."

"What for?" Ember asked before she heard the entire machine around her begin to whir. "Hey, what's going on?"

The entire flying mobile armor shot upwards for a split second before it began to change. The large wheel shape of the main body split apart: with the sides unfolding into large arms and shoulder plating, the beam rifles still externally attached to them. Two 90mm cannons slid out of their housings over the newly revealed hands, clicking into place as the bottom half of the machine began to shift and unfold. The very front retracted and turned to reveal a large shell-like helmet covering a mono-eye system. A large and tall fin sprouted out the very top of the head, almost like a sharp and angled plume of sorts.

The back of the machine slid forwards, revealing a large block with two large thrusters and several smaller drive cones. The bottom half slid down. The wings on each of side of the machine retracted to reveal knees, legs, and feet sliding out. The pair of thrusters on each leg burned as the massive machine dropped from its sudden transformation, landing on the rock with a massive earth cracking thud.

The massive mobile suit's mono-eye flared as one of the escorting Base Jabbers landed behind them, the two onboard RMS-179 GM IIs hopping off with equally loud thuds on the ground. The RGM-79SP GM Sniper II remained on its Base Jabber, its beam sniper rifle gripped in its hands as it maintained a steady altitude behind them.

The Asshimar’s cockpit hatch opened, the small door on the side of the head sliding open for Ember to step out onto the collar of the mobile suit. Ember hopped out, gliding towards the nearby cracked with her open wings while the ensign closed his cockpit hatch quickly. As she made her way down, Ember looked up at the machine above, eyes wide at the sudden change. It was different in almost every way: yet she could somehow see just how this...Asshimar could change to a much smaller wheel shape.

Not that the flying wheel shape was small by any means.

“Daughter. You finally return,” Ember’s father growled, his gruff voice booming loudly and echoing through the area. Lassus winced at the loud volume, his ears ringing even through his helmet.

"...hi, dad," Ember said. "I was just exploring."

"Exploring," Torch remarked, his voice not at all sounding amused. Lassus couldn't help but think about the fact that this dragon girl's father was about as far from any caring parent as he could get. "And what are these...things?"

"These things are...what I found when exploring," Ember said. "They seek an audience with you."

"An audience. And why must I grant an audience to such unworthy newcomers?" Torch asked in annoyance.

Unfortunately, nor Ember or Lassus could speak up when another voice boomed equally as loudly. "As far as I know, brute force is the only language you oversized lizards speak," Lieutenant Rira scoffed, her voice echoing out of her GM Sniper II's main speakers from afar.

Lassus winced, and he was certain hie fellow GM II pilots did the same. The other dragons glared and growled, the sheer number of them Ember whirled around, her eyes wide at the sudden interruption.

Torch let out a loud snarl, hot air shooting from his nostrils with incredible force. "What have you come here for?" the massive dragon asked, slowly and surely speaking each word carefully, the weight behind each syllable potently hanging in the air.

"We're here to let you know of our presence," Lassus said, quickly taking the chance to speak before Rira could antagonize them any further. "We want nothing. No...hoard, no riches, no real territory in these lands. This isn't a warning: just a sort of notification so you're aware. We talked to your daughter and brought her back under our own power as a sign of good faith. Our only wish is that we remain neutral."

The dragons in the distance all looked at each other, clearly confused. No spoken threat of violence? No offer of friendship extended? Ember let out a sigh, somewhat relieved that the words seemed to get through to the others if they were thinking it over.

The real challenge was her father.

"So that's it?" Torch growled.

"Yes," Lassus quickly said. "We've said all we need to. Don't send anybody after us. We'll be out of your hair...er, scales in a week anyways. Just let us mind our own business."

"Dad, they mean it!" Ember yelled. "They won't stay long!"

Torch growled, clearly not intent on taking his daughter's words at face value. However, after several more moments of thought, the massive dragon's snarl died down - now sporting a normal frown on his face.

Taking his silence as unenthusiastic approval, the Asshimar turned around before transforming, blasting away across the Dragon Lands. The pair of GM IIs boarded their Base Jabber as well, flying after the transformed mobile armor with the GM Sniper II behind them.

"Disperse!" Torch growled. "We'll let them go. This time..." The massive dragon lord looked down as Ember flew over to her father's side, anger etched into his features. "You're going to explain everything."

Ember gulped, but nodded. As long as she wasn't in trouble, then she would be fine.

"You're also going to be grounded."

Darn.

on the way to Canterlot Castle -

The Olive Branch flew towards the clouds above, now on its way to Canterlot Castle. Having stopped at Ponyville long ago so Princess Twilight Sparkle could write to Princess Celestia, the few humans that had come along had remained on the ship, out of sight of Ponyville's residents. Needless to say, the wait at the village wasn't long by any means: and the princess had left Ponyville once again to board the airship.

Captain Engel stood at the upper deck of the Olive Branch, accompanied by two other subordinates: pilots of Phoenix Flight’s Dopp Squadrons. Bolin Hahn and Lyla Holt stood near the captain, wearing normal Zeon uniforms and tactical gear - which consisted of a vest, equipment belt, and a small backpack: courtesy of the few members of the Zeon infantry in Phoenix Flight.

Both Dopp pilots held the standard assault rifle of the Zeon Terrestrial Assault Forces, which was the Munzo Defense Force Assault Rifle. The rifle was originally designed for colonial defense and police forces, though it had become the weapon of choice for Zeon's war on Earth: with manufacturing plants in all Zeon controlled colonies seized by the Principality to churn out as many guns as they could to supply the millions of Spacenoids for their attack.

Lyla looked down at her assault rifle. It was by no means glamorous: with a dirtied wooden stock and scuffs clearly seen on the stamped metal parts. Furthermore, she hadn't even fired it once: having never been able to fire a gun due to her role as a pilot, as well as the limited ammunition Phoenix Flight had. "Captain...is it wise to go on their ship? We have Doras and Medeas," she said.

"We can't spare the fuel," Engel said, turning back to face the young pilot. "Running from the Federation with very few chances to resupply has taken our toll on us. Until we can secure more fuel, then all craft will be grounded." He sighed and turned back to look at the sky, the wind gently blowing against his uniform. "Besides, I doubt a world like this has the fuel we need. Airships such as this don't need fuel..."

"We're also stuck if they decide we can't go back," Bolin pointed out.

"We're relying on good faith. They've seen our mobile suits, our vehicles and aircraft. If we insisted on playing things safe for ourselves, there's a chance we might compromise potential allies. And I won't risk us coming under attack," Engel said.

"We understand, sir," Bolin said after a moment of thought.

Lyla frowned as she looked back towards the ship, where several armored pony guards stood, either working the ship or remaining on guard. Despite them being talking colorful horses that seemed more cartoonish than anything, the guards seemed to be much more militaristic than most of the Zeon people she'd seen.

Then again, she hadn't with Phoenix Flight for long. Lyla eyed the view far ahead, seeing the mountain and the tiny speck on the edge that was apparently the castle. Below it in a far more visible fashion was a massive waterfall, looking like a thin stream of raining mist that only dissipated the further it dropped. "It's...weird," she mumbled.

"Yeah. It is," Bolin said. The captain let out an affirmative sigh, and the three continued to silently stare out towards the distant castle high in the air.

On the other side of the airship, Fleetfoot eyed the three humans with clear suspicion. Alongside her was Rarity, Fluttershy, and Applejack. Rainbow Dash and Pinkie Pie were below deck, with Twilight Sparkle and Spike "I don't like this," she muttered.

"Neither do I, but it only makes sense to reach out," Rarity said. "You heard them. These ponies-er, humans have been scared for so long. If we give them a chance-"

"I'm not worried about them being violent. Sure they all have weapons, but you saw most of the humans there. Families and such. They want to protect those they love. But like I said earlier as well, they could be scheming. Nopony needs to be evil to do bad things. If that captain believes he needs to pull something on us in order to keep protecting them, he'll do that."

"Do you think he's that desperate?" Fluttershy asked in concern.

"I can't say. But with that Federation craft possibly in the skies, then there's a good chance that something terrible will happen," Fleetfoot sighed. "I hope nothing crazy happens."

"You mean on top of all the crazy things that have already happened?" Applejack asked.

Fleetfoot let out a tired scoff. "You know how it goes. If something crazy happens once or twice, it won't stop there. You mares of all ponies ought to know that," she said.

The mares all sighed - already knowing all too well just how much danger Equestria and its citizens truly faced. The conversation died there as the airship maintained its heading.

The arrival at Canterlot Castle was as glamorous and overwhelmingly shocking as the humans thought it would be. The sight of the waterfall up close made for an incredibly magical view, and the sight of the castle itself was utterly massive. Not only was the view of the castle standing off the edge of the mountain completely breathtaking, but so was the ginormous city near it.

Lyla held in her astonished gasp as she stared out at the tiny dots moving in the cobblestone city streets, seeing them to be ponies as they got closer and closer ever so slowly. Despite the trip essentially being over, it all seemed to take forever to truly absorb this. "There's nothing like this back home..."

"Yeah. Kinda sad nothing we know looks as fancy as this, huh?" Bolin sighed as he leaned on the airship's railing.

"Stay focused," the captain said, snapping his two pilots to attention. "What we need to do now is to talk things over with the princess here. If we're lucky, we can explore the city on foot when things are said and done." Lyla and Bolin exchanged controlled excited looks at their commanding officer's words.

The Olive Branch landed near the front of the massive castle, with the ramp lowered to reveal several Royal Guards waiting for the new arrivals. The Elements of Harmony all left the ship alongside some of the Royal Guards on the ship, followed by the three Spacenoids onboard.

Fleetfoot and a few flanking guards exited next. "I need to get back to the Wonderbolts," the uniformed Pegasus mare said quickly. "I have a report to make."

"Alrighty, take care!!" Pinkie Pie cheered as the white maned mare shot into the air, disappearing into the castle walls as Captain Engel watched.

"Flying horses. I doubt I'll ever understand..." Bolin mumbled.

"Up bup bup. Ponies," Lyla scolded lightheartedly.

"Same difference," Bolin complained.

"Not really," Lyla teased.

The throat clearing of Captain Engel cut their banter short, and Princess Twilight sighed to herself as she looked back to the front. "They can crack jokes, at the very least. That should make things a little easier," she mumbled.

"Do have a little faith, dearie. The princess isn't exactly one to exemplify on being professional," Rarity said. "I mean, she's elegant and beautiful and holds all of the authority in Equestria, but we've all seen her let loose every once in a while."

"Hm. Not sure I've ever seen you talk about wanting to 'let loose', Rarity," Twilight remarked.

"Oh, even a mare such as I can relax," Rarity said. "Besides, I think relaxing is something us ponies need. Isn't that right, Rainbow Dash?"

The rainbow maned Pegasus in question snapped out of whatever funk she was in, blinking as she looked to the fashionista who'd mentioned her. "Huh?" she asked.

"You've been distracted for much of the journey," Rarity said as the ponies and humans walked into the castle, leaving behind the large landing balcony and the ship docked to it. "Is everything alright?"

"Well...I've been thinking about the giant plane in the sky," Rainbow Dash said. "If it's really that powerful...what if it isn't just after those Zeon guys? What if they'll hurt anypony they come across? They could attack Cloudsdale or the Weather Factory, and-"

"Hey, that won't happen," Twilight quickly said, cutting off Rainbow Dash's nervous train of thought. "We'll keep any of that from happening."

"Twilight is right. As long as we're around, we'll keep Equestria safe," Fluttershy reassured, a kind smile on her face. "Nopony will get hurt."

Rainbow Dash took a deep breath before sighing, noticeably calming down. She wasn't anywhere as easygoing as she usually was, but it was a step towards the right direction. "Thanks," she said.

"Girls?" Applejack asked from the front of the group. The ponies turned to see a midnight blue alicorn princess standing in the middle of the hallway, clearly having been waiting for the ponies and humans to arrive. Quickly, all the ponies bowed, with the mares doing so almost instantly while the Royal Guards all bowed simultaneously in a practiced fashion.

Captain Engel was quick to follow suit, while Bolin and Lyla weren't so quick to bow: having been looking around the ornately decorated interior of the castle hallway for quite some time. Thankfully, Engel was quick to grab Bolin and Lyla by the backs of their tactical vests, followed by a louder clearing of the throat.

"It's quite alright," the dark alicorn reassured. The humans took note of her mane and tail: specifically how it flowed similarly to how a wind would endlessly blow gently against them. While the lack of said wind puzzled them, they didn't dare speak a word. "I have been informed by my sister to expect...newcomers." Her eyes narrowed, clearly not as welcoming as the other ponies were. "Speak clearly, what are your names and our descent?"

Captain Engel stood up, hands clamped against his sides before his right hand shot up in a quick salute. "Captain Engel of the Principality of Zeon's Terrestrial Forces. Accompanied by Ensigns Lyla Holt and Bolin Hahn," he quickly barked, tone sharp and voice clear. The two ensigns quickly followed his lead, able to stand up straight and snap off inmmediate salutes.

The alicorn raised an eyebrow. "I am Princess Luna, sister of Princess Equestria and Ruler of the Night. And while my sister is busy with her normal duties of Day Court, she has placed me in charge of addressing our newcomers," she announced before she turned around. "Now come. I shall be able to give you a proper audience to go over any and all events that you may be involved in."

Princess Twilight looked back, somewhat sheepishly. "Now, I know she's being a little rough, but I promise you it isn't anything serious or rude, she's just-" she began.

"No need to apologize, princess," Engel said as he held up a hand. "Authority deserves respect, and we were in the presence of authority. She overstepped no bounds and treated us as what we are: unknowns that need to be cautioned against."

"We're aliens. Only makes sense," Bolin remarked casually.

"We wouldn't seem quite so alien if you two kept some diligence in the eyes of a ruler," Engel scolded.

"S-sorry, sir..." Lyla whispered.

Princess Twilight only chuckled nervously before Rainbow Dash cleared her throat, jutting her head in the direction of the Night Princess. "We should...probably get going. Before Princess Luna gets mad," she said. The conversation ended there as the group hurried to keep up with the princess through the maze of a castle.

The small group of humans and ponies found themselves following the princess into a much larger hallway: one that led towards a large door. "This is one of our meeting rooms," Princess Luna said. "It is currently being used and it will still take quite some time for us to be able to use it. I shall have our guards escort you to one of our many dining halls. I'm sure you're all famished after the trip. After you eat, you will be granted a grace period where you may rest and go over what to prepare for."

"Uhh, thank you. Princess," Bolin said awkwardly.

Princess Luna simply nodded in acknowledgement of the soldier's gratitude before she turned to the large door. "Now, we shall meet in this room for one hour. You will be brought here when the time comes," she said. And with that, she opened the doors with her magic and promptly walked inside before she shut them behind her. The resulting 'bang' reverberated through the open space for a few seconds, silence in its wake.

"...so...food, anypony?" Applejack asked, likely in an attempt to ease the mood. It was safe to say that the ponies were a little nervous over the idea of a first contact scenario: especially since the Elements of Harmony were well aware of the rather harsh past of their visitors.

The trip to the dining hall was short, with the doors opening to reveal half a dozen large and very long tables set up in stretching from one side of the room to the other in aisles. Surprisingly to the three humans, there were chairs included on either side of the tables: eerily identical to the kinds of chairs that they would use: albeit more fancy. Silently, the group sat down at the nearest table, quietly waiting for what was to come.

The wait was quickly cast aside with the arrival of half a dozen ponies in server attire: bow ties included. Wheeled carts with shelves and dozens of plates were balanced on them, with the typical metallic domed lids customary to fancy dishes in the manors or halls of colonies and Earth adorning them.

Engel had expected fancy plates of hay or flowers, or whatever ponies ate. His suspicions were proven correct when some of the plates levitated off their carts were placed in front of the mares. Their lids were removed to reveal hay sticks shaped like fries, sandwiches with what appeared to be grass and flowers placed between the bread, salads with more flowers, eggs with flowers, and more. Eyeing his subordinates, he noticed their semi-pale faces upon seeing the food.

He would never get a chance to voice the issues, as the next set of plates were placed before the three humans. To their surprise, normal food was what awaited them. Sandwiches with eggs and cheese, omelets with normal vegetables, and to the surprise of the other ponies sitting at the table: meat prepared similarly to gourmet dishes back home.

The fearful expressions of Lyla and Bolin were quick to be replaced by salivating, only for the captain to clear his throat loudly. "Manners," he warned. The two nodded, waiting for the servers to leave before the guests dug in. Under Engel's watch, the two ate as neatly and quietly as they could: something easier said than done given how hungry they looked.

"Humans...eat meat?" Rainbow Dash whispered nervously. The other ponies had begun to eat as well, a little cautiously as their eyes flickered towards the humans.

"Humans are omnivorous. We eat vegetables too, but flowers are usually poisonous to us," Engel said as he picked up a fork and knife, noting how the utensils were a little small for humans. Cutting a piece of chicken and taking a bite, his eyebrows shot up at how well it was cooked: tender and very flavorful. No meat back home had ever tasted quite this good.

His eyes quickly shot over to Lyla and Bolin, warning them not to lose control and destroy the meat with nothing but his narrow glare. The two visibly deflated as they slowed down once more. "This is getting to be more of a chore than I thought," the captain lamented as the two young soldiers continued to eat, clearly not interested in the conversation.

"Well, griffons and other creatures are omnivores as well," Fluttershy remarked. She was the only one not bothered by the sight of their new visitors currently eating something that used to be alive. "It's not a surprise that the castle would have some, especially since they would accommodate visitors from other kingdoms."

"Still, it's a little...unsettling," Pinkie Pie whispered in a tone not at all fit for whispering.

"They're right here!" Rarity hissed in warning.

"Like Bolin said: we're aliens. Don't be too offended," Lyla said. "Only makes sense to be a little uncomfortable. I'm honestly surpised they bothered making meat for us."

"I don't recall informing you of what humans eat. Did you plan ahead?" Engel asked, cutting another piece of that savory chicken.

"I didn't," Twilight said. "Maybe Princess Celestia decided to have options open ahead of time?"

The talking died down as the group continued to eat. Thankfully, it didn't take long to finish the food: they were in rather small portions. The Royal Guards arrived as the dishes were being cleaned up, and were quick to escort the three Spacenoids to the guest rooms for a short relaxation period. After quick goodbyes to the six mares, the humans were brought to a smaller hallway much more plain than the rest of the castle. "The rooms here are available for your choosing," one of the female guards said. "We will notify you when the meeting is ready to start."

The captain bowed respectfully, as did his two subordinates the moment they saw him lower his head. "Thank you and your princess for your kind hospitality," Engel said before he raised his posture and saluted: all while the other two soldiers kept their heads bowed. The guards nodded before heading out, leaving the captain to turn and see Bolin and Lyla still bent at 90 degree angles. "Honestly, you two..." he growled before he walked past them.

"Oh..." Bolin mumbled. Lyla flushed red before she too hurried to the nearest door in the hallway. As Bolin and Engel entered the nearest rooms, Lyla was about to do the same: before she saw one out of all the doors partially open. Raising an eyebrow in mild curiosity, she walked over and pushed on it lightly. The door creaked lightly, and Lyla decided to move it all the way: revealing the bedroom within. The area was spacious, slightly larger than a normal bedroom. There was a large bed, a dresser, and a large window that looked out over the mountains and the view of the lands beyond.

Immediately taken, Lyla made her way to the window and gasped briefly. "It's beautiful..." she whispered to herself. While she had enjoyed the feeling of being in the skies aboard the Olive Branch, she realized she hadn't actually taken the time to explore the view from above. Seeing the fields, forests, distant mountains, and more outside made her feel...calm.

Perhaps staying here wouldn't be so bad.

The sound of a creaking door was heard behind her, and the Dopp pilot turned around, expecting to see Bolin or Engel walking in to check on her. She froze almost immediately halfway through her turn. Instead of seeing her colleague in the doorway leading to the hall, she saw another door having opened: a lavender haired young woman wearing nothing walking out of a steaming bathroom and seeing the fully uniformed Zeon woman in front of her.

The woman shrieked and stumbled back, yelping and slamming into the wall out of shock. "Z-Zeon!!"

Out of sheer panic, Lyla did the same: screaming the first thing she saw.

"Boobs!!"