Thompson had joined the Vanguard in hopes he would see many great battles and become a hero knowing he was fighting to defend humanity and Earth. Most of the time he just stared out spaceship windows with nothing to do. He looked at his A-MH-SL Rifle again. It's name stood for Anti-Matter High-Speed Launcher Rifle. It fired a hunk of a strange kind of Anti-matter that only reacted to solid objects, so it wouldn't explode in the barrel, and it was powerful enough to rip through a Haariken's helmet.
Thompson looked to his door when a speaker not far away from it started up.
"Scout Squad 5 through 7 and Attack Squad 2, come to Hangar C immediately." guess this might not be as boring as he'd previously thought. Being part of Attack Squad 1, he stood up, holstered his rifle on his back and left his room.
Several soldiers, including the Planetary Defense Troopers of the Scout Squads, had gathered at the hangar. Thompson was approached by his friends, Marcus and Emily.
"Any idea what's going on?" Thompson asked.
"Thompson, you've known me for three years, you should know I don't really read the mission manifest, I just shoot the aliens."Marcus raised his Rail Cannon proudly.
"Here. Read this. It'll explain everything" Emily handed a small datapad to him.
—————————————————————————————
ALL VANGUARD TROOPERS ASSIGNED TO TEMPO RECON ALPHA
-SCOUT SQUAD 5
-SCOUT SQUAD 6
-SCOUT SQUAD 7
-ATTACK SQUAD 1
-ATTACK SQUAD 2
We have recently arrived at our destination. As of yet we do not know the planet's name. However there is a sentient race living on it that, as of yet, are not hostile and are in fact rather hospitable. However the small Outpost teams assigned to their settlements report small groups of Demons gathering not far from the various settlements. This team has been put together to stop this threat and eliminate these groups. The groups are as of yet small and are no match for you.
—————————————————————————————
Thompson handed the pad back.
"So we're killing off some Demon bandits. Simple enough." Thompson nodded.
"I certainly hope so. Let's just hope some Haariken don't show up."Emily smiled.
"Eh, we have a few P.D.Ts, we'll be fine."
"What, we just hide behind them whenever a Haariken pops his head out to say hello?"
"Sounds like a plan to me."Thompson chuckled.
"You two! Come on! We gotta leave!"Marcus called from one of the dropships. The pair ran over and stepped aboard. Thompson hit the Bay Door Lock and the large panel, previously acting as a ramp, raised, shutting the Dropships. The three vehicles lifted off and flew out of the Hangar.
Thompson watched the approaching planet. It looked like Earth. Well, the parts of Earth away from the sprawling cities. A few settlements were visible, but they were nothing too big. Seemed like this mission shouldn't be too long.
"Entering atmosphere! Everyone grab something, don't care if it's a rail, your friend or your teddy bear, this is rough!" the pilot called. Thompson grabbed a hold of the side of his seat and turned away from the front window as fire consumed the vehicle. A moment passed. Another. Yet another. The dropship continued to shake violently. Then the shaking stopped and the fire vanished. It felt as if the dropship was falling. Then Thompson remembered it was. It was standard protocol to turn off thrusters as your vehicle enters atmosphere to prevent them overheating. Then the thrusters rebooted and the flight actually felt controlled.
"Hey guys, anyone want to see the definition of paradise?" the Pilot called. Thompson looked through the window again. Indeed it was.
Thompson drew his rifle from its holster. Despite the fancy name they were still technically sniper rifles. There was a jolt as the dropship landed and the bay door wheezed open, revealing the rather enjoyable scene outside. The soldiers stepped out of the vehicle and observed the area, both to admire the scenery and to make sure there were no Demon scouts around. The bay door wheezed shut as the two other dropships landed. The first one took off again. The comms came online.
"Alright guys, you need anything, radio in and we'll get you what you need." the pilot instructed as the two other dropships took off as well. The comms changed channel.
"Alright soldiers. You have been deployed on the outskirts of a moderately sized settlement known simply as Ponyville. Your current objective is to become acquainted with the town and it's people, so you know who to shoot and who not to shoot. Understood?" the Orchestrator's Commander instructed.
"Ponyville?" another Sniper Thompson recognized and Phillip chuckled.
"Yes...the boys here are calling the inhabitants, well, either 'Xeno-Equestrians' or just 'ponies'."Command answered. The comms shut off again.
"Alright ladies, let's go meet the townsfolk then. If you see a Demon Spy make sure it IS dead and not faking it. We don't want to rustle their rage JUST yet." Sergeant Emerson ordered. The moderately-sized group of soldiers headed towards the quaint little town.
