The Russianby Semper FidelisChaptersChapter 1: Enter The UnknownChapter 2: ContactChapter 3: Lost My CauseChapter 3.5: Finish the FightChapter 4: Hell of a PartyChapter 5: I See Dead PeopleChapter 1: Enter The UnknownTo: Captain Dimitri Mayakovsky From: Acting General Sergey Shoygu Captain, my time is short so I will give you a quick synopsis. Two weeks ago GRU scientist have discovered an unknown signal from, believe it or not, another dimension. Now they have been able to open a path to this place. I know your unit have just gotten off deployment and were looking forward to going home, but it is out of my control. The other high brass in the Kremlin has selected you and your team. We have little intelligence on what is on the other side. Most drones we have sent have been lost, but provided enough infomation to confirm that they can send a man. Your orders captain, are to travel to this so called “new world” and provide a full report on what you find, if you manage to return. This mission is top secret Captain, not even Putin himself knows. I couldn't convince the Kremlin to cancel the mission or to send extra men, but I managed to get you access to a good size arsenal at your disposal. You have 36 hours to ready yourself and your men. Dima my friend, I wish you the best of luck. You will need it. GRU Intelligence Mission Report Dossier #343//: Operation//: New Horizon Classified: Authorized Personnel Only Unit: Spetsnaz, Spetsgruppa Vympel, Vampir Otryad (Spetsnaz, Vega Group, Vampire Squad) Date: 10/XX/2014 Personnel: Captain Dimitri “Dima” Mayakovsky, Squad Leader/Medic Warrant Officer Vladimir “Vlad” Kamarivsky, Engineer Sergeant Boris Zadornov, Machine Gunner Sergeant Kiril Yeltsin, Marksmen Resources Requested: ~All: MP-443 Pistols + suppressors x4 RGD-5 Grenades ~Dimitri Mayakovski: AK-12 Assault Rifle ~Vladimir Kamarivsky: AKS-74U Assault Carbine Saiga 12K Shotgun RPG-7V2 Rocket Launcher ~Boris Zadornov: PKP Pecheneg Machine Gun Symtex Explosives ~Kiril Yeltsin: AS Val Sub-Machine Gun Dragonov SVDS Sniper Rifle ~Vehicles: Ka-60 Kasatka Helicopter T-90A Main Battle Tank Resources//: Granted Dima looked at the two letters one last time as he sat on top of a wooden crate on the side of a dirt road. The starry night sky shining above him. He wanted to make sure he hadn't missed anything. But one thing kept bothering him. "Not even Putin knows", that seemed very strange. Also, why were they sending soldiers? Wouldn't cosmonauts be better suited for this? Soldiers and scientist rushed every where in the large field where the passage was being built. He paid no attention as truck after truck carrying large cargo covered in drapes roared past. The entire field had been turned into a military base. Two square kilometers of tents and men. Dima was steeling himself for what is to come. It was a great honor to be able to go into a place no man has set foot in the name of mother Russia, but also a curse. The scientist say that once we go through, there is little chance for going back. Due to the nature of the portal, it will either destroy itself or render itself inoperable after it is used. He knows their death is expected by everyone, but he and his men are Spetsnaz, they always seem to have a way of escaping the Grim Reaper. Dima felt a hand being placed on his shoulder. In a split second he spun his head. “I hate it when you do that.” He said as he stood up and slapped his hand into his friend's. They gripped each others hand tightly. “You alright Dimitri?” Vladimir asked noticing the worry in his friend. “Just thinking...” Dima replied. “We don't get paid to think Dima” The two friends chuckled as Vlad lead him to the conference room. As the entered they were greeted by the rest of Vampir Squad. Kiril and Boris leaned against the back wall of the small room filled with scientists and expensive equipment. One of the scientist approached Dima. “We all set for the jump sir. Your equipment is on the Kasatka.” The scientist said in a respectful tone, “And the tank? There is no way in hell the Kasatka can carry that.” Boris asked. “We plan to air drop it. The passage way will set you a few thousand meters over land. As for what lies on that land, we have no clue.” The scientist admited. "Do you think there is any life there?" Vlad asked. “Of course there is. E.T. has one hell of a phone bill, and we're coming to collect.” Kiril joked, drawing a few laughs from everyone. The men continued talked and laughed for sometime until another scientist opened the door. The man walked in and saluted Dima. “We are ready sir.” He said with the utmost respect. Dima took in a deep breath of air. “Vimpir Squad, move out.” Dima's heart sank as he gave waht was probably his last order. Vampir Squad made their way out of the room and boarded the flat-bed waiting for them. “Traveling in style like always” Vlad said while they piled on the truck. "Hey, the ladies love men with big cars." Kiril said. "How would you know?" Boris asked. "Oh, I know what the ladies like..." Kiril joked with a wide grin on his face. "Is that why the girl at the bar poured her drink on you last week?" Dima said. The others bursted out in laughter. "At least I try! When was the last time you had a date?" Kiril retorted. Dima had no response to that question. "Come on Kiril leave him be." Vlad turned to Dima. "He can't help it if he is bad with women." "Whose side are you on?" Dima asked as he playfully jabbed Vald in the shoulder. "My side." Vald answered. The short ride felt like hours for them. No matter how much they joked and tried to keep their spirits up, the looming possibility of death hung heavy in the air. Dima looked up to the sky. The one advantage of being in the middle of nowhere is that there is little light polution. The stars shined in their full beauty as the moon watched them from overhead. The beauty of the sky was somewhat poetic. Like a rose, and how it represents both beauty and death. Dima pulled out from his pocket a large cigar and lit it. He inhaled slowly and exhaled all the smoke in a large white cloud. He could taste the hueof cherry that was infused with the cigar. He took in another, feeling the warm smoke swirling in his lungs. The nicotine dulling his senses. “I thought you didn't smoke anymore?” Vladimir asked. “I don't. But I’ve been saving this one for an important day.” "Hey, we'll be alright." Vlad reassured him. "I don't know Vladimir... What if we don't make it?" "We will make it." "How can you be so sure?" "I'm not sure. But has that ever stopped us before?" Dima looked up to the sky for a moment, then back to Vlad. "You're right." "When have I ever been wrong?" "Remember that bet we made when you thought you could make a tank go 100 kilometers per hour?" Dima asked. "Point taken." They arrived at the main site, they stood in awe of what was before them. A large metal arch built into the open ground, with men swarming around, prepping it for it's first and last use. The arch was as big as the doors to an airplane hanger. It looked like something out of a movie. In front was their helicopter, fueled up and ready to go. Vampir Squad jumped off the truck and slowly approached the helicopter. Vlad dawned his gas mask. The scientist say that the air is safe, but Vlad wasn't taking chances. Kiril opted for his usual style of wrapping a black scarf around his head, covering all but his eyes. Dima wore his helmet with NVG mounted on top, shooting goggles, and a scarf wrapped around his neck. The team slowly approached their ride. Kiril was the pilot for this mission so he climbed in the cockpit and began started the engines. Lights lit up the cockpit and the helicopter slowly roared to life. Dima, Vlad, and Boris sat in the edge of the main cabin, letting their legs dangle. Dima finished his cigar and threw the butt on the ground. A loud voice blared on the base's intercom. “Attention all personnel, we have a go for the jump. Begin final preparations.” Scientist rushed around every where. The helicopter was up to speed and ready to take off. “All preparations complete. Opening portal” The arch started to glow like a christmas tree. Dima stared at the marvel in front of him. The arch formed a slowly expanding rift in the air. A swirling mixture the colors of the rainbow glowed brightly. The scene was unreal, and yet he was witnessing it. After a few minutes the portal was now fully open. The T-90 tank was the first to go. It didn't have a crew so they put a remote control linked to the throttle and the steering. The controllers guided through the portal, where it disappeared without a trace. They were next. The ground crew signaled for Kiril to take off. Kiril slowly powered the engines. The main rotors began to accelerate. The down wash blew the frost off the ground they were on. The helicopter began to lift itself, slowly rising to a few meters off the ground. Kiril tilted the nose of the helicopter down and the helicopter began to inch forward. “Ready my friend?” Vlad's voice came over their radio head sets. “To late to stop now” Dima replied. "I miss home already." Boris added. Kiril pulled pushed the stick forward and helicopter slowly entered through the portal. Scientist stared in awe of the once-in-a-lifetime show. Dima held on tightly to the hand rails as a swirling vortex slowly enveloped the helicopter. "Make us proud!" The intercom said just as they pulled through. Every man on board shut their eyes and hoped for the best. Dima felt the portal passing through his body. It gave a burning sensation, like passing through a hot shower. Dima shot open his eyes, looking back to see the portal now behind them. He looked down and saw that they were at least a couple hundred meters in the air over a forest area. Just to the right was a large canyon that ran through the ground. The helicopter was filled with cheering from Vampir squad. Hugs and high fives went all around. But the merriment was cut short by the sound of alarms going off in the Kasatka. Loud clanking and puffs of smoke came from the engine. The helicopter slowly started to spin. Dima quickly made his way to the cockpit. Kiril was panicking over the controls, flicking switches and pressing buttons all over the cockpit. “Whats wrong!” Dima shouted, “The portal fried the electronics and snuffed the engines, were going down!” Kiril pulled back hard on the stick to try to stabilize the aircraft but it didn't respond. They were now spinning violently in the air as the hurtled towards the ground. Everyone held tightly as the spinning got faster and faster. Dima checked the altimeter, they were now at five hundred meters and dropping. A loud scream was heard on the their headsets. Dima turned and saw Vladimir hanging out of the door of the cabin. Vlad held the skid of the Kasatka for dear life. Dima rushed to his friend and held out his hand. “Hold on!” Dima shouted. He gripped Vlad in one hand and the hand rail in the back of the cabin as they continued to spin out of control in the air. Dima felt himself slipping off the cabin. “Dima, save yourself!” Vlad shouted when he noticed Dima struggling to hold on to the helicopter. “I won't let you die!” “I wasn't asking you Dima.” Vlad let his hand slip from Dima's grasp. “Vladimir!” Dima shouted. Dima watched helplessly as his friend fell towards the ground. Boris pulled Dima back in the helicopter He looked down and saw that they were at least a couple hundred meters in the air over a forest area. Just to the right was a large canyon that ran through the ground. They strapped in and awaited their fate. Kiril looked back into the cabin from his seat. “Brace Yourselves!” He shouted. Dima watched as the forest became closer and closer. Dima began to tear up. This is it... this is how he dies. “It is an honor to know all of you.” Dima said with solemn voice. He then closed his eyes, the last sound they heard was the sound of the rotor blades hitting the ground and tearing metal. A loud boom echoed all through out the snowy forest. Then...silence. Author's Note Thanks for reading. This my first fan fic here. I would love to hear any critism you may have. Good or bad, it won't face me. Any suggestions and comments will only help me get better. Thanks! Notice: This chapter has been remastered and may be slightly different to those who have read the orignal version of this chapter. Chapter 2: ContactDima slowly came to, with his body full of horrible pain. He opened his eyes to see that he was inside what used to be the helicopter. It was now wrecked and he was hanging upside down in his seat. He tried to unbuckle himself, but he release was jammed. He looked up (or down, as it were) and saw his saperka laying on the ground. He reached for his saperka, shimmying himself until he finally managed to grab it. He began to run the sharpened edge along the restraints until it finally snapped, dropping to the floor. His attempts at standing were thwarted by a shock wave of pain surging through his body. He chose to crawl out of the left side wreckage and into the snow covered ground. When he made it about three meters from the helicopter, he took a good look at the damage. The bottom of the fuselage was cracked, the rotors were shredded off, and by the marks on the ground they must have rolled over a few times. Dima found the strength to stagger on to his feet, propping himself with the side of the Kitsatka. He begun a search for his team. He walked towards the cockpit, and then wished he hadn't. Kiril's body was stuck half way out the windshield. His chest was impaled by a large piece of glass. Blood was splattered all over the inside of the cockpit. Dima checked his friends pulse, praying for something, anything... nothing. He then walked around to the right side of the helicopter, he saw Boris lying in the snow. Dima stumbled his way to him. Boris probably didn't strap in properly, he laid a few feet from the helicopter. Dima deduced that he died from the impact. He fell to his knees, feeling his eyes swelling up with a burning sensation, and wept bitter tears. Something that no man would ever do. But he didn't care. He just lost three of his friends. Dima shivered in the cold. He wasn't dressed for this weather. All he had was his black battle dress uniform and light sweater underneath. He knew what he had to do, and hated himself for it. He had to leave them, he would die if he didn't. He pulled Boris and placed him inside cockpit with Kiril. Trying his best to put them and Kiril into a comfortable postion. “Rest in peace...” He said as a final good bye to them. Dima gathered whatever weapons, food, and supplies he could find. He grabbed his rucksack, slung his AK-12 over his shoulder, holstered his pistol, and took a box grenades and as many spare mags as he could carry. Satisfied, he then set out into the frozen forest, with no idea where he's going. He stopped at the base of the tree line. The massive forest loomed in front of him. The sun was setting over the horizon, giving little light to the already pitch black woods. Reluctantly, Dima took a step into the tree line, rifle now in hand. "Here goes nothing..." He begun his treck into the dark forest. His boots crunched in the powdery snow. He walk past tree after tree, the dying light of the sun being smothered by the thick foliage. The first few minutes went without incident. There had been little in terms of anything. Nothing but trees. But Dima kept having a sinking feeling, as if he was being watched. He disregard the notion. The posibility of hostile life sounded absurd. After another hour of walking, it soon became too dark for Dima to continue without a light source. He pulled down his night vision system and flicked the power switch. Nothing happened. He tried again with no success. He pulled off the night vision device and began to inspect it. It didn't seemed damaged on the outside. Perhaps the batteries were dead? He oppened the battery compartment to check the power. They seemed fine, but Dima took them out and flipped them. He flicked the switch and thankfully the device came on. The forest seemed a lot more creepy under the green and black view of the NVG. The trees had a more sinister air to them. Dima hoped he wouldn't have to fight man-eating bushes. He reluctantly continued on his way through the forest. The eerie quietness didn't help much. All that was to be heard was the crunch of his boots on the snow and dead leaves. All seemed normal until Dima heard a crack of a branch behind him. He quickly snapped his rifle to where he assumed the noise originated. He saw nothing through his night vision. He took a few steps backwards before turning around and continuing his march. He walked for another long while. The feeling of uneasiness was still high as he continued. Total night fall had come down upon him. The frigid air began nipping at Dima. The cold wind, the monotony of walking, and a low stomach growl convinced Dima to take a break from walking and set up a small camp fire. He chose to set up next to a fallen tree off to the right. He gathered dead branches and fallen logs for fuel and used his saperka to dig a fire pit. Using a flint and steel, he ignited a small amount of tinder. Then added it to the kindling at the base of his fire. He blew into the ember, causing the flame to grow until it engulfed the kindling twigs. After a few moments the main fuel logs of the fire caught and he now had a decent camp-fire going. He relished in the warmth it provided. The soothing crackling flames drowned out the eerie quiet of the forest. He reached his gloved hands out towards the dancing flames. Feeling slowly began to return to his finger tips. He reached into his bag and retrieved a ration. “It taste like shit but it will keep you alive,” Dima said to himself as he cut open the bag with his shovel. He opened the bag and pulled the large tin can labled "Number 4 (stewed beef)". He pried it open and gazed on the wad of meat drowning in fatty oil. He propped it against the fire in hopes to have a warm meal for the night. Sitting in front of the fire gave him time to think. His spirits were not very high. All he could think of was his regrets. He came to regret not getting the extra bagel at breakfast. He came to regret not bringing warmer clothes. He came to regret forgetting abandoning his friends at the helicopter. He came to deeply regret not trying harder to save Vlad. But most of all, he came to regret being the only one out of the four to survive, for now at least. He knew the he would run out of food eventually, and starvation is a horrible way to die. He decided that when if worst came to worst... drastic measures would be taken. He laid in the snow and tried to sleep. It was a long...long day. He had only slept for a few minutes until he woke up frightened by loud howling very close to him. It barred a striking resemblance to wolves. He quickly got to his feet and tried to identify the source. He looked out into the trees saw pairs of glowing green orbs floating in the dark along with growling and barking. He pulled out his MP-443 and prepared for a fight. The green orbs got closer and closer until they came into the light of the fire. Wolves definitely, but something was off about them. “There made of...wood?” One of them looked ready to pounce. Dima took aim and double tapped the wooden wolf in the head. Dima took aim at the others but felt a sharp pain on his leg. He look down and saw a wolf clamping it's teeth on his left leg. Dima grunted, drawing his saperka, and logged it a couple inches in the wolf's head. Another wolf pounced on Dima, knocking him to his back. The wolf gnashed its fangs at Dima while he held it at bay. Dima placed one hand behind the wooden wolf's head and the other on its muzzle. With one hard twist he snapped its neck. The dispatched wolf fell limp to the side. Dima reached for his pistol and fired at another wolf. The rest of the pack retreated into the darkness of the forest. “No today,” Dima said. He got to his feet and took aim. He took a four shots and killed another three wolves while they tried to flee. The rest got out of visual range before he could shoot them. Dima turned his attention to his leg, it was bleeding badly. With the scarf from his neck and a twig from a dead wolf he fashioned a tourniquet around his leg. As he went to gather his belongings, he noticed that the wolves got to it first. They tore a hole and stole all of his rations. He cursed them loudly with every word he knew and then some. He reached into his rucksack and into his medical bag. After fumbling around a little with the supplies, he pulled a morphine syrette. Dima injected the pain killer into the wound area, and after a few moments was walking shape again. Knowing the wooden wolves would come back, he decided not to waste time. He trekked through the terrain with a slight limp. Past what seemed an infinite forest he finally staggered out the edge woods on to a clear plot of land. He looked over and saw what looked like a wooden building of in the darkness. “Impossible,” He whispered. Drawing what little reserves of strength he had, he ran to the building. His spirits were high, maybe...just maybe there was someone there. He could see it clearly now. A barn? Who cares, he continued to the barn, shouting for help and shooting two bullets from his pistol. He pulled the doors open hoping to see another living thing. He dropped to his knees, his mouth slightly open in the shock of disbelief. The barn was empty. It's dilapidated interior looked like it had been abandoned for years. There was no sign off life anywhere. He shivered, having lost most feeling in his body from his time in the cold. Dima let out a yell of frustration, before droping to his hands and knees. A few tears fell to the floor. He had no hope left in him. In the spur of the moment, he only saw one option... drastic measures. He slowly drew his pistol from his holster and brought it up to his head. “I gave it my best shot...” He said to himself. He slowly began to squeeze the trigger, his whole body trembling in fear, he took a final deep breath and readied himself. Just before he squeezed the trigger he heard a voice behind him. “What in tarnation?” The feminine voice said. Dima spun around and saw a orange...horse? No to small, a pony perhaps? Wait, did that pony thing just...talk? No, no, this must be a hallucination. Dima could barely comprehend what was in front of him. It was so strange, on all fours the pony was about a meter tall, perhaps a little more. It was wearing a cowboy hat. It's blonde mane was tied back. The pony also had a tattoo of apples on it's...thighs? He quickly snapped the gun to the pony and it took a step back. “O chem vy?” (What are you?) Dima asked in Russian. The orange pony slowly approached him. Dima recoiled back, still keeping his sights at the creatures head. “It's ok. I ain't gonna hurt ya,” The pony said in a female southern American accent. “Vy govorite po angliyski?” (You speak English?) Thankfully Dima knew English. “Ah'm sorry. Ah don't understand,” She said. Dima holstered his pistol. “What are you?” Dima's English was accented but the pony understood. “Ah should ask ya the same question. Ah ain't never seen your kind before” “I'm a human. My name is Dimitri... uh, you can call me Dima” “Dima? That's a weird name.” “Do you have a name?” “The name's Applejack partner.” “Ha, and you say my name is funny.” “That's big talk coming from an alien.” “Well to me. You're the alien.” Applejack laughed when Dima said that. “Ah like you mister Dima. Why don't we get ya outta the cold?” Applejack gestured outside the door with her hoof. “Thank you.” He said graciously. He holstered his pistol and began to follow. Applejack lead Dima through the snow and towards a small house. Applejack opened the door and gestured for Dima to enter. The warmth of the house felt like magic on Dima's frozen body. She lead him into what seemed to be a living room. “Just wait here sugar cube, I'll be back.” Dima took a seat in a chair next to a fire place. He took of his helmet and goggles, placing them on the floor, along with his rucksack and rifle. He liked the house, it was cozy. But he was wary of getting too comfortable. He had to keep moving. Movement equals survival in combat. This was no different. Applejack came back with a cup and tray in her mouth. She gently placed it on Dima's lap. “Hope ya like hot apple cider.” “Thank you.” Dima took a sip. Never having cider before, he was suprised that it tasted pretty good. Applejack took a seat in the chair adjacent of Dima. “So uhh...Applejack, can you tell me where I am?” "You're in the Apple family farm right now, partner. Home of the best apples in all of Equestria." Applejack replied enthusiastically, almost as if she were advertising it. "No, I meant, like country, or region or something like that." Dima corrected, causing a slight 'oh' to escape the pony's lips. "Well, this whole place is known as the Kingdom of Equestria, an' down the road a ways is Ponyville." “Equestria? Well I guess I'm not Earth.” “Earth?” “Yeah, my home. We received some sort of signal from here and we were sent here through a portal to explore this place yesterday.” “We? So there's more of yer kind here?” “Three of my friends and myself. They... didn't make it. I rather not talk about it.” Applejack saw the grief-stricken look in face. “Ah'm so sorry.” The mare couldn’t comprehend how much pain he must feel. To lose three friends, it was unimaginable. “Don't be, it was not your fault.” “So how did ya end up in my barn?” Applejack tried to change the subject. “We crashed on the other side of the woods over there. I walked through the night and ended up here. But along the way I had to fight off a pack wolves made of wood. Are those common?” “Ya fought off a pack of Timber Wolves all by yourself!?” Timber Wolves are know for their lethal efficiency. “At a price. One of the got me in the leg when I wasn't looking. Which reminds me...” Dima looked down and noticed that he was still bleeding a little. “You wouldn't happen it have a bathroom of some sort. I need to take care of this bite.” “Yeah. Sure thing sugar cube, up the stairs and to the left” Dima stood up, lifting his injured leg a little of the ground. “Would ya like some help?” Applejack offered. “No, I'm fine” He pulled a first aid kit from his rucksack and limped his way up the stairs. He entered the first room he on the left. It was a small bathroom, it looked rather human, a shower, a sink and mirror. Except for the toilet, which seemed to be meant for their species. He dropped his black battle dress uniform pants and took a look at his wounds. Several puncture wounds from the bite, nothing he can't fix. He cleaned off the blood and put an anti-biotic cream in the wounds. He then wrapped a gauze bandage around it. He put his pants back on and went down stairs. Applejack was still sipping on her own cup of cider. Dima wondered how she was holding it without hands, but decided that even if she told him, he still wouldn't comprehend the logic. “You alright?” She asked. “Yeah, I stopped the bleeding.” “So how did ya scare 'em away? Normally they would have killed a pony.” “I killed most of them first.” “How?” She inquired. “Mostly with this.” Dima pulled out his pistol. "Wow. Uhh, what is it?" Applejack tilted her head slightly in confusion. Examining the piece of equipment. "A pistol." “A what?” “Basically it shoot pieces of metal out of it at a high velocity. In most cases it causes serious injury, or instant death in the hands of a professional.” “Sounds awful.” “Tell me about it, I’ve been hit a few times. Not fun.” “Hay! Wait a minute! You were pointing that thing at me!” “Sorry, my last encounter with the life here almost ate me,” Dima looked away in embarrasment. He just stared at the floor and twiddled his fingers. Applejack decided to let the matter go, she probably would have done the same if she was in his place. “So... how do you live alone in these conditions? It's a blizzard out there” Dima tried to change the subject. “Oh I ain't alone, mah brother, sister, and grandmother are outta town. And the storm, it'll be gone by tomorrow.” “How can you be so sure? It looks pretty bad.” “Well, It was scheduled to end.” “Scheduled? How can you schedule the weather?” “The Pegasus ponies control it. Duh.” “Control weather? That's insane.” “They don't control it where your from?” “No...it just...happens.” Dima stared out the window, the snow was dying down. Now was a good time to make shelter for the night. He began to gather his things. “I better get going before it gets dark. Thanks for everything.” “Where ya off to?” “Got to make shelter before night fall.” “It's awful cold out there. Ya sure?” “I'll be fine. Thank you for the hospitality.” Dima opened the door and began to walk out. But he stopped in his tracks. He turned his head to the air. “Something wrong?” Applejack inquired. Dima shushed her. Placing his index finger over her lips. She was offended at first until she too heard something. Howling, and it was close. Dima looked down and saw a small drops of blood forming a trail on the floor and the snow. Damn, they tracked him. “Applejack, get inside.” “What about you?” “I got unfinished business.” Dima shouldered his AK-12. He took it of safety and set it to semi-automatic. Bullets are finite here, got to make them count. He brought his face up to the iron sights, slowly panning around as he walked away from the house. The snow fall his killed visibility, he could barley see the house that was roughly twenty meters away. Not good. Dima saw a faint green glow in front of him, he fired a shot between the two green orbs and the glow ceased. A loud howl then rang out, Timber Wolves came from every direction and encircled him. One of them pounced. Dima side stepped out of the wolf's path and shot the wolf before it hit the ground. Another came from behind and jumped on his back. Dima reached behind him, grabbing the timber wolf by its neck and threw it to the ground and stompped on it's head. Dima made short work of another two approaching wolves with his rifle. The wolves began retreat, Dima chuckled at their fear. He feeling of certain victory soon cut short as a large alpha Timber Wolf appeared through the snow. The thing was as big as a bear! It was made of thick branches and vines. It growled in a low feral tone towards Dima and snapped its jaws. “Nu, davai! Davai!” (Well? Come on. Come on!) Dima took a stance while he lined up his sights. Dima steadied himself as the alpha wolf charged the soldier. As the alpha wolf pounced Dima threw himself backwards, letting it pass over him. He spun around and took aim, he fired eight shots in rapid succession. The alpha wolf didn't seem effected. It charged again, Dima lined up the perfect head shot. He held his breath and pulled the trigger *Click*. The one sound no soldier wants to hear in a fight. In one great swipe of it's claws, the alpha wolf struck Dima across the chest sending him flying far back. Murphy's law had seemed to strike once again. He regretted leaving his body armor in his rucksack. The wooden claws went through him like a knife through butter. The wolf pounced on him while he was on his back. Dima struggled to hold the alpha wolf at bay while it tried to rip out his throat. The pain was unlike anything he had ever felt as blood poured out of his chest. The wolf barked madly in Dima's face, with breath that smelled like pine trees, and its saliva was some type of sap. Dima gave hard punches to it's face, leaving a dent in some of the wood. But the wolf still kept on him, viciously trying to bite him. The wolf used it's fore paws to pin down Dima's arms, it now had a clean shot. The wolf dove its head down to finish of the soldier. When suddenly the wolf was knocked over. Applejack bucked the wolf as hard as she could. “Get off my friend!” When the wolf got back on its feet Applejack was terrified of its size. The wolf now saw an easy target an ran towards her. By the time she turned around to run, it was too late. The Timber Wolf tackled her to the ground, she was overwhelmed by its strength. The wolf's teeth had just touched her neck when she heard yelling and a loud thud. Dima tackled it to the ground. He was enraged, after all the kindness she had shown him, there was no way he will let her get hurt while he is still breathing. Dima pulled out his saperka shovel while the wolf rolled on to its feet. They slowly walked in a circle around each other. Dima's combat shirt had three large tears across the chest, revealing deep gashes that were bleeding profusely. The wolf bared its teeth and growled, Dima did the same. The wolf lunged at him, Dima side stepped and with a hard downward strike, he imbedded his saperka into the wolfs head. The wolf howled in pain. Dima then gave a hard round-house kick its face, knocking the wolf to the ground with a loud thud. Dima reclaimed his saperka and hacked at the wolfs neck. It twitched and let out blood curtailing cries of pain. The wolfs neon green blood splattered every where. He continued chopping until he was half way through. With a fit of adrenaline fueled rage he shoved his hands into the wolf's neck. He pulled harder and harder with the loud sound of wood cracking and the squelching of blood squirting. With one final heave Dima ripped the alpha Timber Wolf's head off its body. “YA SPETSNAZ!” (I am Spetsnaz!) Dima took the head in his right hand and slowly walked towards the other timber wolves. They trembled, whimpered, and cowered in fear, to scared to move an inch. Dima had blood splattered all over him, a combination of the alpha's and his own. Dima tossed the head in front of them. “Who's next!” They ran in terror to their sanctuary of the Everfree, not one of them looked back. Realizing that what ever it was they were attacking, it wasn't going down with out a fight. Dima then felt a horrible pain surge through his body. The adrenaline rush was wearing off. He buckled his knees and collapsed to the ground. Applejack ran to his side. She grimaced and the sight of him, the large slashes through Dima's chest was pouring blood. “Dima?” She shook his body but got no response, “Dima...wake up” She began to sob, “Please...” She felt him breath slightly, he was alive. Dima eyes shot open and focused on her. “Did...did he hurt you” The last thing he wanted was her to be hurt because of him, “Of course not, you saved mah life” She said, wiping away a few tears. “You saved me first” He smiled with his teeth stained red of blood. “Then we are even” Applejack smiled He looked down and saw that his wounds were slowly repairing itself in front of him, leaving three large scars running down his chest. The scars then faded away, leaving no trace of he previous damage. “How is this possible?” He said, felling his chest to make sure it wasn't a hallucination. “Timber Wolves are plants. The sap that flows inside is kinda like a chemical them makes them grow real big and strong. Ah guess it works with skin too.” Applejack help Dima stand as she lead him to the front door of her house. Dima then turned around and walked back into the snow. “Where ya going?” She asked. “I forgot something.” He shouted. Dima disappeared for a short while then returned with his rifle and the head of the alpha wolf. “Why did ya bring that?” Applejack said pointing to the head, “I worked hard for this, I’m keeping it.” They then continued into the warmth of the house. Dima laid his belongings next to the door and removed his torn shirt. Applejack thought about averting her eyes while he changed shirts, but couldn't help but take a peak, or two. His upper body was well toned and very muscular. There were a few small scars and burns on different places of his body. Applejack snapped out of daze Dima placed on a fresh shirt from his bag. He begun to pack his belongings again. “Ya still wanna leave? You could stay here if you want,” Apple Jack offered, Dima looked outside, it was too late to build shelter for the night and the fight had really drained him. It would be better to move out in the morning. “I guess I’ll take you up on that offer after all.” Dima lead himself to the living room and plopped on the couch, completely drained of energy. He removed his boots and laid on his back. He slowly drifted to sleep, trying to rest from his stressful time here. That couch was the best thing he had slept on in years. Applejack walked over to Dima, handing him a blanket. He graciously took it and wrappe himself into it. “Sleep tight,” Applejack whispered. then she proceeded upstairs to her room. Applejack laid in her bed, trying to comprehend today's events. She didn't understand why she cared so much for somepony she had just met, well...not really a pony but you get the picture. Perhaps it's just the mystery of the creature that captivated her, and...maybe something else. But she couldn't tell what that "something else" was at the moment. But something was special about him, something she kind of liked. Slowly the night over took her. All cozy in her warm bed, she fell fast asleep. Author's Note Thanks for reading! Hope you enjoyed it. Notice: This chapter has been remastered and may be slightly different to those who have read the orignal version of this chapter. Chapter 3: Lost My CauseLocation//: Near Kandahar, Afghanistan Local Time//: 00:23 Hours Date//: xx/xx/2013 Dima readied himself by the corner of the building. He peaked around with his night vision on and saw two insurgents in the dirt road conversing. “Take them,” He whispered into his radio headset. With a small crack in the distance and a hiss in the night. They were both dropped down. “Good night,” Kiril's voice whispered through the headset. Dima signaled for the rest of Vampir squad to move up behind him. Vladimir, Yuri, Vasily, and Ivan stacked up behind him. “Clear,” Kiril said after eliminating the rest of the guards “Alexsandar, do you have our extraction ready?” Dima asked over the radio. “Affirmative,” Alex replied. “Good, going radio silent.” Dima's team moved through the streets under the cover of darkness. They stacked up behind the door of their target building. Dima looked back and got a 'go ahead' nod from Vlad. He kicked open the door with him and the rest of the team followed. Vasily went around back to breach with Boris. The rest of the team split up in groups of two. Going room to room, clearing the office section of the warehouse. Ivan slit a sleeping guard's neck as he and Yuri made their way. Dima and Vlad went into the large hanger area of the warehouse. “Sir, no sign of the dirty bomb. Perhaps GRU's Intel was off?” Vlad whispered, “Patience Vlad, it's here. Just...” Dima started before a bullet hissed past Dima's head, “Contact!” Dima shouted as he and Vlad took cover behind metal crates. They returned fire and dropped two hostiles. But more kept coming in as an alarm blared. Dima and Vlad were still pinned down by enemy fire. Ivan and Yuri entered the hanger bay, taking cover behind a fork lift not to far way. The four men were stuck in an intense firefight. Hot lead flying between both ends of the hanger area. Vlad fired a burst, killing a man whowas aiming at Dima. Ivan threw a frag grenade towards a group hiding behind a shipping container. The fight roared on few a few minutes, but it felt like hours for Dima's team. With every insurgent they killed, they were replaced with more coming in. To make things more difficult, men were now climbing the cat-walk above them and setting up firing positions. Dima attention snapped to one man in particular. An insurgent begun aiming at them with an RPG. Dima shot a burst into the man's chest, but the rocket fired as the guard fell. He watched helplessly as the rocket impacted behind Ivan and Yuri. The blast sent them flying a couple feet. Dima tried to run to them but Vlad held him back. “GET DOWN!” Just then another rocket flew past them and flew out a window. A loud explosion rocked the warehouse, Boris had blown a breaching charge on the side wall. Machine gun fire drowned out the enemies as Boris mowed them down with his PKP, along with Vasily following up with his carbine. Dima and Vlad left their cover and charged the rest of the insurgents. Vlad shot a guard in the head with his carbine as they ran. The wall behind the man now spattered with blood. They approached the center area of the warehouse. A few folding tables were set in a semi-circle fasion with various papers on top, and a pin board with maps and other papers pinned up was set on a table, leaning against a shipping container. Dima took a few steps before feeling a heavy mass ram into to him, knocking him to the floor. Next thing he knew, a man was wrapping his large, meaty fingers aroun Dima's neck. The look on the guards face was inhuman, perhaps feral. Dima tried to pry the man's hands off of his neck. His body desperate for air as his vision begun to fade. Dima tried to punch the man on top of him, but the lack of air weakened his blows. Just as Dima was about to black out, a sudden gunshot tore through the man's head, spraying blood, brain, and bits of skull on the floor. The limp body feel to the side, staining the concrete floor with a ever growing crimson puddle. Dima managed to snap out of his daze and begun to inhale gallons of air. He looked to his side and saw Vlad with is carbine trained in his direction. He walked towards Dima, holding out a hand to help him to his feet. "You alright?" He asked whilst stuff huffing and puffing from the adrenaline. "Yeah. Thanks for-" Dima eyes shot open in suprise. He suddenly bolting down the warehouse. Dima then ran to where Ivan and Yuri were. As he rounded the fork lift, he saw their bodies laying lifeless on the ground. He collapsed to his knees, gazing at the horror. Their bodies were torn to shreads by shrapnel. As much as Dima wished he could do something, there was no surviving this. "How did this happen?" Dima heard Boris coming from behind him. "Anti-personnel rockets." Vlad answered with a solemn voice. “Dammit” was all Dima could say. There were no real words to describe how he felt. Vlad and Boris walked over to Dima. Vlad placed a hand on Dima's shoulder. He wanted to say something comforting, but Dima rose to his feet before he got a chance. "Dima?" Vlad tried to get his attention. "Not now." He muttered, his gaze still on the bodies. “Hey, you need to see this!” Vasily shouted from the area with the maps. The rest of vampir squad rallied to Valisy position. Dima took a stepped forward to see what Vasily found. Inside a large red shipping container was a rectangular object covered with a olive drab tarp. Boris removed the tarp covering the ordinance and with all his strength he pulled it out into the light. It was a grey box made of heavy metal. Boris and Dima unlatched the locks and began to lift the top off the container, it stubbornly stayed stuck. After a final push it popped of and they placed it to the side. “Mother of God...This isn't a dirty bomb. It's a nuke” Dima stared at the explosive in awe. “Hey I have maps over here,” Vasily said. "" Britian, France, America... my God even Russia." Vlad began to examine the explosive with careful scrutiny. "I haven't seen many nukes, but we have at least a megaton yield here. North Korean would be my best guess. The workmanship on this leaves much to be desired,” He explained. “Strange? They haven't added a primer yet, they must not have completed it” Vlad added. That managed to quell some of Dima's worries. “Set a charge, we're going to bury it in this place” Dima ordered. Vasily went to work on the bomb. Setting a large pack of Semtex next to the incomplete nuke. Pressing the glowing buttons on the timer until a 1:00 appeared on the glass. Before he could start the clock, gun shots rang out everywhere. "Contact, left side!” Vasily shouted. "There in the offices!" Boris added. More insurgents came into the building, screaming and firing at them. Dima ordered everyone out the back. The squad ran like hell to the other side of the hanger. Just as he was about to reach the exit, Dima felt the extream pain of bullets tearing through him. He dropped to the floor, watching helplessly as the rest of his team left him behind. Dima knew that they would get them selves killed if they came back for him. He decided against calling for help. Dima slowly dragged himself back to the bomb. Suppressing the urge to pass out from the pain, he dragged himself by his arms, leaving a bloody trail in his wake. If he was going to die here, he was take them with him. He pulled himself up to the bomb and set the timer for ten seconds. He raised his hand a few inches, ready to smash the red button that started the clock. He chuckled a little at the irony, the red button, it was always the big red button. He closed his eyes and brought his hand down. Only to have it stopped just millimeters above the red button. He looked up to see a insurgent holding his hand. He had a wicked smile on his face. “ليس اليوم، الخنزير الروسي” (Not today, Russian pig) He said to Dima before raising his AK-47. The last thing Dima saw was the butt-stock hurtling towards his face. Dima woke up from his nightmare with a short scream. Slipping off the couch and hitting the hard wood with a thud that resonated through out the house. He felt cold sweats running down his body. He picked himself up off the floor and removed his shirt, silently heading for the door. He exited the house, taking a good look at the night. The cold air blew across his skin as he sat on the porch. He felt something different, something so alien to him....peace and quiet. He was used to waking up to the sound of gun shots and people yelling. But to wake up on his own, in the quiet starry night, it was all so strange. He took a deep breath, taking in the sweet air that carried a hue of apples. He gazed in the sky, wondering if he could still see the man on the moon. There was a face alright, but it looked more like a unicorn than anything. He chuckled at the sight. Unicorns? Yeah right. He reentered the house, seeking the comforts of the sofa. He didn't bother trying to fall back asleep. He never slept much anyways. He just laid, waiting, for the morning that seemed so far. He thought back to his friends, all dead. The proud team of eight. In his opinion, the best squad in Vympel Group. Until that one mission...he stopped there, the rest was to painful to remember. He was the last man of the proud Vampir Squad. He shouldn't be alive, but now he is. What now? That question hit him the hardest. What is the next move? He can't seem to think of one. He has no meaning on this planet, no purpose. What does a hyper lethal special forces operator do in a world of technicolor talking ponies? Besides go insane. Applejack woke up in her bed, as usual. Birds were chirping as the first rays of the morning sun bathed the farm in their golden glow. The snow had passed during the night and the apple trees were beginning to bloom again, filling the air with a sweet scent. Suddenly she remembered that she had an inter-dimensional traveler sleeping in the living room. She steadily climbed out of bed, dawned her trademark hat, and trotted down the stairs to check on her guest. She entered the living room seeing Dima lying awake on the sofa. “Didn't get much sleep?” She inquired, “I don't sleep much anymore” he replied. He rose and dawned his combat shirt. He began to take a short inventory of the belongings in his bag. He used up one of his fifteen mags for his AK-12, along with two of the twelve for his MP-443, his saperka needed sharpening, he had his solar charger for his electronics, a few changes of clothes (mostly uniforms in different shades of camouflage), his night vision, a whetstone, gas mask, binoculars/laser designator, a flashlight, a case carefully packed with his grenades, duct tape, a small survival kit, a partially melted Hershey bar, the Alpha Timber wolf’s head wrapped in his scarf, a blueberry muffin (how did that get in there?), a 4x rifle scope, his body armor set, and a few other various belongings strewn about in his bag. Applejack watch as he went through his things. She noticed something on the floor and picked it up. She examined the two metal tabs with a thin chain connecting them. It also had writing on it that she couldn't understand. “Hey Dima? What's this?” She asked, holding them out in front of her. He turned to face her. It didn't take him long to realize what she had. “Those are my dog tags. They must have fallen off” “Yer what?” “This would identify my body if I were to die in combat,” He explained. Applejack did want to think about that. She politely handed them back to Dima, who then placed it around his neck. He finished up his inventory, placing it all in his rucksack. Applejack suddenly felt her stomach growl. “Hey Dima, care fer breakfast?” “No you have been to kind, I couldn't,” He said politely, “It'll be mah pleasure. No one in the Apple house is gonna go hungry” She said with a resolute tone, “I've survived on less, I'll be...” “Follow me,” She gestured with her head, Dima decided not to argue and went with her to what appeared to be the kitchen. Dima sat down at the table, unsure what to do next. A few moments passed before Applejack returned. She had made some eggs, various greens, and her personal favorite, apple fritters. Dima wanted to scream “How is that possible!?” when he saw her using a fork with her hoof, but he decided it would be best if he kept his mouth shut. He took his first bite, than another, than another. Aside from the greens that didn't seem safe for human consumption and the lack of meat. The rest of the food was pretty darn good. The best Dima had in a long while. Beats MRE's by a long shot. “Thank you for the meal,” Dima said. Wiping his mouth clean with a napkin, “It's nothing” She gave him a warm smile. “Hey Dima? Mind if I ask you a question?” She asked. The smile now replaced with a more serious expression. “You just did,” He replied. “Very funny. Anyways, where did cha learn to fight like that?” Applejack started. “I was... well, still am a soldier. Spetsnaz, the best of what Russia has to offer” He replied. “A soldier? Oh, you mean like a Royal Guard?” “I assume so.” “Did you ever...you know...kill?” “I’ve done many things. I can't say I'm not proud of all of them.” “What did ya do?” “I rather not say.” Applejack gave him a small nod in agreement. “Sounds like you've been through a lot,” She said in a tone of sympathy and curiosity. “More than you know.” “Can you tell me what it was like?” Applejack asked, “Where?” “On your world.” “Yeah, Earth... home. I.. I really can't think of a way to sum it all up.” "Ah come on now. Use that head of yours." She cheered in a patronizing sort of way. Dima just gave her a small glare, before letting out a small chuckle. "Fine, fine, let me think. Umm, my world is full of natural wonders, kind people, beautiful art, great music, and amazing culture. I wish I had pictures or something to show you." "It's alright. Can you tell me what is your kind like?" "Sure. My kind is the human race, or humanity. Humanity is an array of different humans, or people as we say. We look similar for the most part. But there is still a lot diversity in my people. Our bodies come in various shapes and sizes. Our skin color can vary, usually from different shades of white, tan, or brown. Our hair comes in shades of blonde, brunette, or black. But that is just the physical part of the equation. Thought some people can look alike, no one person is exactly alike on the inside. We all have our own aspirations, thoughts, beliefs, and ideologies. But, there is one common thread that holds us all together. Every single human being is searching for something. Whether it be searching for fulfillment, love, money, lust, knowledge, wisdom, security, power, fame, friendship. Every person is searching to find something that he or she believe is missing from their life. Humanity is tied together by the belief that we are missing something in our current lives, if we didn't believe we were, we wouldn't desire to change anything that is around us. We wouldn't seek to be a better race of people, better families, or better individuals. We've had many trials and tribulations. Storms have stroked, societies have collapsed, evils have risen and tried to take control, but in the end we beat the odds and used the lessons learned from our past to better ourselves in the future." Dima took a pause to catch his breath. Applejack stared at Dima, dumbfounded with his small speech. "Sorry, I uh... ramble sometimes." Dima's apology managed to snap Applejack back into attention. "It's alright sugarcube, really. It's just your world seems amazing. It seems so much like mine too. I mean, i'd use about eighty percent of that to describe Equestria." She explained. "So, what do you plan to do next now that your here in Equestria?" Applejack asked. Dima stopped eating when she asked that, placing his fork down on the table. "Truthfully, I don't know what to do anymore.” He said with a soft sigh. "I have no meaning here... no purpose." Dima hung his head, staring at the grain of the wooden table. He then felt a soft object touching his arm. He looked up to see Applejack reaching across the table and placing her soft forehoof on Dima, coupled with a beautiful smile. "Hey, don't you worry now. I'm sure things will get better. Just wait and see." She spoke with a voice as soft as silk. He gave her a small smile as a way to say thank you. Dima wanted to believe her, but as far as he's concerned, things don't look to bright. He knew the best thing for him would be to keep moving forward. As much as he would like to stay, doing so wouldn't help his cause of surviving here, and perhaps getting home. He got off from the table and headed towards his rucksack. He slung it over his back and started out the door. “Where ya going?” Applejack inquired. He looked over his shoulder to Applejack “...I have to go.” “Go where?” “I don't know.” “So you're just gonna wander off into the sunset?” “What other choice do I have? I can't stay here, it's obvious. The only way that things will get better is if I make it better. And I can't do that if I just stand around and do nothing.” Applejack wanted to argue, but Dima was right. He can't stay forever. “Well, will ya come back?” She asked in a worried tone. Her mouth forming a small frown, and puppy eyes in full swing. He got down to one knee on her front porch while Applejack stood in the door way. His eyes now level with her's, he stared. Getting lost in the beautiful sea of green that shined with the light that came from the beautiful sunrise behind him. Applejack stared into Dima's dark hazel eyes. His light skin and short dark hair glowed slightly reddish in the light. He then reached behind his head, pulling off his dog tags. “These have been a part of me for as long as I can remember...I've carried them through hell and high water, then back again.” “I want you to have them. And thank you... for everything.” He said with a sincere smile. Carefully undoing and redoing his dog tags around her neck. They hung perfectly over the center of her chest. The cold steel tickled Applejack's fur. Dima stood back up and began to walk. Just as his foot steeped off the porch, Applejack spoke. “Dima?” “Yeah.” “Promise me you'll be safe.” “I don't have to. You've already saved me.” “From who?” “Myself.” With that, he left the house. He began to walk, unsure where to go or what to do. But he knew that it was best to keep moving. Even though she was about 10 meters away, he missed Applejack already. Applejack could do nothing but watch as he slowly walked off. Farther and farther, until he disappeared from sight. She looked at the necklace Dima gave her, with little understanding of what it was. Yet she cherished it, missing the strange creature that owned it. She went back into her house. She remembered she had to meet her family coming back from Appleloosa. She packed her saddle bag and proceeded to the train station. “Back to life I suppose” She said to herself. She began her walk. Through the orchards and down the dirt road. The faint *click clack* of the dog tags resonated with every step she took. After a thirty minutes or so she entered Ponyville, still bustling with ponies going about their own business. She walked through town, deciding to stop at Rarity's place for a small visit. She made her way to Carrousel Boutique. Knocking on the door she heard a voice inside shout “Coming!”. Rarity open the door, smiling at the sight of her friend. She gestured for her to come in. They took a seat in the show room. “What brings you here darling? Oh let me guess! You finally decided to model for me, let me just...” Applejack cut her off. “No, I said it once and I’ll say it again. I will never model for you. And ah didn't have a reason really, just thought I'd drop by” “Hmm?” Rarity noticed something different on her friend. “What's that on your neck darling?” She pointed at the strange necklace hanging from Applejack's neck. “Oh, uhh it's nothing really,” Applejack quickly explained. “It sure looks like something to me,” Rarity said in a teasing tone. “It's just a gift,” Applejack explained nonchalantly. “EEEEEE, Who is he!?” Rarity screamed, “What?” “Who is the lucky stallion of course! Is he cute!?” “It was just something from a friend.” “Oh Applejack, still in denial. But I must say that it is a rather... unfashionable gift. I think he should have gone with pearls...no no, Emeralds YES! That would look perfect on you,” Rarity ranted. “Arrgh ah don't have time for this,” Applejack made her way for the door. Rarity cut in front of her. “Can at least tell me his name?” Rarity begged. “His name is Dima,” With that she left the boutique. Rarity pondered on what Applejack told her while she went back to work on her latest dress. “Dima? That's an unusual name” She said to herself. After a while of walking Dima noticed a small town about two hundred meters out. He looked to his left and saw a tree line on a high hill not to far from said town. The way it over looked the town made it a good place to set up an observation post. He headed for said hill top. When in an unknown or hostile environment, it is best to get a understanding of your area. He decided to preform reconnaissance on this town. A stake-out, so to speak. He laid prone on the ground, pulling his binoculars from his bag. He began observing the town. It was made numerous small buildings and cobblestone roads. He adjusted the focus on the binoculars to get a sharper image. The most of the buildings had a Victorian likeness in their design and architecture. That's strange? He looked around and noticed the inhabitants were all ponies of various colors. One in particular caught his attention. A pink pony that bounced instead of walking. It had puffy pink hair, almost like cotton candy. The logic defying pink pony then stopped bouncing to converse with an other orange pony. Wait a minute? “Applejack?” He said to himself. He soon confirmed it was her by the cowboy hat on her head. After a minute or so she and the pink pony began to go their separate ways. Applejack disappeared behind some buildings. Dima continued to draw as much information as he could by observing. All he could gather was that there seemed to be three variations of ponies. The standard ponies, like Applejack. The winged ponies, the pegasai that Applejack had mentioned. As well as ponies with horns, the unicorns, just when Dima thought he had seen it all. He also saw that the residents seemed to live just like people do, street vendors selling their products, children playing in the streets, ponies doing various jobs around the town. Perhaps ponies and humans aren't so different. An hour or so had passed and Dima started to become hungry. He reached into his bag for an MRE, but he felt a hole where they once had been., “Right...” He said in a bitter tone, recalling the wolves that had stolen them. He pulled some snare wire out of his survival kit and headed into the woods. He set up multiple traps in the woods, hoping to catch something made of meat. He decided to discontinue his recon and make camp. He started a campfire and built a hammock to sleep on. He pulled the whetstone and began to sharpen his saperka shovel to a fine edge to pass the time. Once he got it sharp enough to the point where he could shave with it. He decided to check if his traps worked. He inspected the first one, as luck would have it, he caught a chipmunk. It had a white, heart shaped patch of fur on its back. It hung helplessly by its feet in the air. Dima pulled it out of the trap, holding it firmly against a log. He readied his saperka to hack off the animal's head when leaves rustling in the distance caught his attention. The chipmunk used that chance and made its escape. Dima drew his pistol and approached the source of the sound. He peaked from behind a tree to see the pink pony from earlier. The pony (which Dima assumed was a she) hung by her hind legs that were caught in Dima's snare. She desperately reached for the ground with her fore hooves, trying to reach the Hershey bar put as bait. “Almost got it” She grunted. Dima stepped on a twig, causing the mare to turn her attention away from the candy. “Who's there?” She asked. “I'm warning you, I know karate! Hiya!” She began striking stereotypical poses and karate chopping the air. “I'm quivering in fear,” Dima said sarcastically as he approached her. Pinkie turned to face Dima, her eyes popped into an unrealistic size as she gasped in gallons of air. “So you're the new pony in town! Ha, I knew my Pinkie senses weren't wrong.” Dima held Pinkie in one arm, then cut her lose with the other. Gently setting her down on her feet. Pinkie closely examined Dima. “Wow I’ve never seen a pony like you before.” “First off, I'm a human, not a pony. Second, how did you know I was here.” “Well my Pinkie senses told me that there was a new pony in town Mr. Hoo-man.” “Pinkie senses? Is that like Radar or something?” “What's a Radar? OOH does it taste good? Can I have some Radar Mr. Hoo-man?” “My name isn't Hoo-man” Dima looked away for a moment, he looked back and Pinkie was gone. “Where did she...?” “Hi I'm Pinkie pie!” Pinkie was standing on Dima's head. He recoiled back, landing on the ground. “What's your name?” She appeared this time to his right. “Just call me Dima” He rose to his feet, dusting himself off. “So your the one!” Pinkie shouted, “What?” “The one who gave the necklace to Applejack” “What of it?” “That was so sweet of you.” “It was just a small gift.” “So does that mean Applejack is your special somepony!?” She asked excitedly, “What?” “You know! The pony who has a special place in your heart.” “What!? No I...” He began to explain before a loud 'Woah' and more rustling in the trees drew his attention. He went to the other trap to check what he caught. Pinkie followed him, she saw a familiar gray Pegasus hanging by her all of her hooves. “Ditzy Doo?” Pinkie asked, “Almost got it” She reached for the Blueberry muffin set as bait. Stretching her neck as far as she could, but was only able to chomp at the air above her prize. “Oh, hey Pinkie. Fancy seeing you here” Dima face palmed. He cut Ditzy down in the same fashion as with Pinkie. Ditzy then grabbed the muffin and stuffed it into her mouth. Swallowing it after a few munches. “Thanks mister.” “Don't mention it.” “Well gotta get back to my little Dinky, see ya.” The mare flew back towards Ponyville. Dima went back towards his small camp site. The sun was beginning to set, and he was pissed about not catching anything. He laid in his hammock, looking upon the town. He slow started to close his eyes, maybe, just maybe, he could get some actual sleep. “HEY DIMA!” Or not.... “What do you want?” He mumbled not bothering to open his eyes. “Since your new in town, I was thinking of throwing you a party. It'll be great! There will be cake, streamers, games, cake...” Pinkie began listing. “No,” Dima said gruffly. Sitting up in his hammock. “What?” “I don't want a party,” Pinkie's hair deflated, her bright pink color beginning to fade. “Oh, ok.” She began sniffling. Dima could see tears forming. “I'll just b-be g-going now,” She began to slowly walk away. Dima is a hard man, but the look on that pony tugged on his soft side. He felt like crap, reluctantly giving in. Damn these ponies! “Pinkie...” He said. The mare turned her head to him. “On second though....I'll take that party,” Pinkie's color and puffy hair promptly returned as she jumped for joy. “On one condition,” He interrupted. “Yes anything!” “Don't tell Applejack I'm comming, but make sure she's there. As for the party, nothing to big alright?” “You got it! Tomorrow night, I’ll come get you when we're ready!” She then bounced back towards town. Dima felt his conscience clear, but now he had to attend some party. He didn't like crowds or parties. To late now. He laid in his hammock, slowly swinging from side to side. The sun was just dipping below the horizon, the cool night slowly coming in. He relaxed in the warm air. Slowly drifting to sleep. Author's Note Sorry it took so long. But hey, at least it's finally here! Thank you to all who waited this long. I promise to make the next one as soon as possible. HOORAH -Semper Fidelis Notice: This chapter has been remastered and may be slightly different to those who have read the orignal version of this chapter. Chapter 3.5: Finish the FightLocation//: Near Kandahar, Afghanistan Local time//: 00:57 Hours Date//: xx/xx/2013 “Fall back! Fall back!” Vlad shouted as he and the others made their out of the warehouse. They bolted through a small back lot and hurdled over a waist high concrete wall at the end of it. Bullets flew past their bodies, kicking up dirt as they hit the ground all around of them. The men scrambled to a road eighty or so meters behind the warehouse. A section of the road was dug like a shallow trench into the ground, providing the team with cover. Vlad pressed up against the dirt wall, bullets hissing right over him. He peaked over the dirt, he could see the muzzle flashes of rifles coming out of various places in and around the building. Boris and Vasily took up their firing positions and began to fire back. Vlad looked back to the team and noticed they were a man short. “Hold you fire!” Vlad ordered. Everyone ceased fire and ducked into cover. “Why? What is it?" Vasily asked, "Because they can see our muzzle flashes too?” Boris guessed, “Yes! But more importantly–” Vlad was interrupted by a bullet hissing past him. He popped out of cover and fired a few short busts from his weapon before ducking back down. “Because Dima is missing!” He said over another hail of bullets. “We have to go back!” “Are you insane?” Boris said. “For all we know he's dead!” “We leave no man behind Boris! Dead or alive!” Vlad shouted, "Vlad's right." Vasily said, "But how can we get to him?" Vlad had no idea; he peaked above the dirt ledge once more. By the muzzle flashes he could tell the majority were still around the building, but he spotted a small squad advancing on them. One of the insurgents raised his weapon. The muzzle flashes from his buddies around him revealed it to be an RPG. A small flash erupted, Vlad felt a chill of terror go down his spine. He immediately ducked his head below the dirt berm as the rocket flew over head a split second later, overshooting and detonating elsewhere behind them. He looked back over and saw the man loading a second shot. Vlad knew the chances of him missing a second time at this range were slim. And with the anti-personnel rockets they were using, he didn't need to hit very close. The man stood again and shouldered his RPG. Vlad glanced over to Boris and Vasily who were firing at the man in the warehouse. Their faces full of fierce determination, with a dash of fear. They were soldiers without a doubt. But they would die without even knowing what was coming. He looked one last time to the man with the RPG, just in time to see his body drop to the ground. “Sorry I'm late, had to adjust for wind” Kiril's voice came over Vlad's headset. Vlad heard a bang over the radio, another man from the advancing squad dropped. “I'll take care of the ones flanking you.” He added, “Kiril, when we get back I owe you a drink.” Vlad said. "Remember, i don't like the cheap stuff" Vlad looked over to Boris and Vasily, he whistled to get their attention. He held up three fingers, they nodded and waited. In Vampir squad, holding up three fingers means “When I count to three. follow my lead”. Vlad loaded a fresh mag into his weapon and pressed up against the dirt. “One” Vlad started, “Two” Vasily cocked a round into his weapon's chamber and Boris opened the bi-pod on his PKP. “Three!” All at once, the men raised their weapons, took their firing positions, and began returning hot lead. The enemy fire drew closer as they fired back, chipping away at their already deteriorating cover. The relatively close range and dim lights outside the warehouse made seeing their targets much easier. The enemy began to fall back into cover. Vlad managed to drop one insurgent with a short burst as he stood up from behind a wall. He suddenly saw muzzle flashes coming from inside the warehouse, numerous bullets began kicking dust into Vlad's face as the fire drew closer. He ducked into cover as bullets hissed overhead. He peaked over his cover, but was met with another burst of fire that fell just short. Boris began laying suppressing fire on the window, but it failed to deter the enemy gunner. Vasily had to pull Boris down into cover before the insurgent could home-in on him. “Kiril!” Vlad called into the radio. “Yes?” “Top floor, far right window, he has us pined! Do you have a shot?” “On it” Kiril said. After a few moments Vlad heard a faint crack in the air. “He's done. Oh, that's another drink Vlad.” “Bill me later.” Vlad replied. Vlad raised his weapon and began firing, Boris followed suit. Vasily tapped Vlad on the shoulder. Vlad fired another burst into a man's torso before he reentered cover with Vasily., killing an insurgent “What is it?” Vlad asked, “There is a small hill over there” Vasily pointed to a hill to their left. “Cover here is getting thin. I'll move up to there and flak them, you and Boris cover me.” “Your not going up there.” Vlad started, “If you let me up there, I can–” Vlad cut Vasily off, “Not by yourself.” Vlad said. He moved over next to Boris, who was laying fire on a group hiding behind a wall. “Boris, me and Vasily are moving up. I need you to give us cover.” “My pleasure!” Boris said as he shifted his machine gun fire. Vasily hopped over the berm first, Vlad followed after him. They sprinted towards the hill, a few shots landed a bit to close for comfort, but Boris' fire did it's job and kept a majority of the insurgents preoccupied. As they approached the hill, Vlad and Vasily dropped to their stomachs and crawled to the top it. The hill turned out to be higher that what they had thought. It over looked the back lot that was about five meters away. It provided a clear view of five insurgents hiding behind the concrete wall firing at Boris. In fact, they were the only ones left. Vasily pulled a grenade from one of his vest pouches. “You want to do the honor?” Vasily asked Vlad as he passed the grenade to him. Vlad took the grenade and pulled the pin. “A present from Russia!” He shouted as he released the spoon and tossed the grenade. Both men ducked back into cover. After a loud boom, all was now silent. Vlad peered over the hill to see what happened. By the scorch marks on the ground, he could tell that the grenade overshot by a little. But the fragments did their job. He looked into the back lot and saw numerous bodies littered every where. Many lay on the ground; the ones who weren't dead were laying on the ground bleeding out. A lucky few were attempting to crawl away, dragging their blood soaked bodies at a snails pace along the dirt. They were desperate to escape the horror surrounding them. One lay in the ground with his head missing (courtesy of Kiril). Vlad looked towards the building. He saw the gunner from earlier with his torso hanging out of his window, and a giant hole blown through his chest (also courtesy of Kiril). Vlad and Vasily stood up and walked towards the back entrance of the warehouse. He feared what might have become of Dima, or, what might be left of him. “Please be alive.” Vlad said to himself, “He's a tough man. It will take more then that to kill him” Vasily said in a comforting tone. Vlad hoped he was right. Suddenly a burst of rounds flew behind Vasily. The two dropped to the ground just before another burst passed over head. “Dammit Boris! It's us!” Vlad called into his radio, “Sorry about that.” Boris replied. “I swear...one day I'll...” Vlad muttered. Feeling too pissed to even finish his sentence. Vlad and Vasily picked themselves up and walked into the now dimly lit warehouse. Vlad looked around the warehouse for Dima while Vasily went to look for a light switch. Vlad slowly approached the nuke area. He saw what seemed to be a trail of dried blood across the floor. He reached into his bag and pulled a flashlight and followed the trail. It went next to the bomb then back out and through the front. He turned his attention to the nuke, he then noticed something. While the bomb itself matched the known design specs that Vlad had seen; there was some writing. Although Vlad knows little to nothing about the language, he could tell wasn't Korean. In fact, the strange symbols didn't seem to match any language. It was such a strange collection of glyphs, alien almost. A variety questions kept occupying his mind. What is a North Korean warhead, with inhuman writing, doing in the middle of Afghanistan? And why was just Vampir squad the only ones out here? He pulled a camera from his bag and began taking photos of the warhead. Something is not right. The warehouse lights began to flicker and hum back to life. “Hey, I found the–” Bang All time seemed to slow as single shot cut Vasily's statement short. Vlad turned around and saw Vasily's body slowly buckle to the floor. He tightly clenched his neck as blood spurted against the wall and floor. Vlad turned to his left and saw the shooter. A scrawny person, no older than twenty or so, with a beat up AK held clumsily his hands. He looked terrified, probably hid during the entire fight. Vlad raised his weapon to his shoulder, centering his sights on his target's chest. The young man turned, attempting to flee. The first shot spun him around, the second shot knocked him to the ground with a soft thump. Vlad dashed over to Vasily side. The bullet had ripped through the side of his neck, severing his jugular. Vlad tried to keep pressure on Vasily's neck. He turned his eyes to Vlad, the look on his face was unreadable. Confusion, anger, fear, and sadness all at once. His breathing became laborious, taking in air as if he was having an asthma attack. Vlad pressed harder, desperately trying to reach for his first aid while still keeping pressure. Vlad yanked out gauze from the bag, wrapping it around his neck as quickly as he could then returning to putting pressure. It was no use. Blood still poured out from his neck. Vlad's eyes burned with tears as he felt Vasily's pulse slip away. Vasily, with his dying strength, gently grabbed onto Vlad's arm. The expression on his face saying it's alright. His heart beat began to slow. thump............thump thump...................thump thump..........................thump thump.................................thump thump................................................ Vasily light grip slowly loosened, he looked up to the ceiling. He took a long deep breath; his eyes rolled a little to the side as he slowly exhaled. “What happened!” Vlad heard Boris' voice coming from just outside the warehouse. “I heard shots and I got here as soon as I–” Boris stop his sentence as he entered and saw Vasily. “He's gone,” Vlad said. He gently closed vasily's eyes. “Lets go.” “Where?” “To destroy this nuke, and find Dima.” Vlad began, “I'll be damned if three of our men died for nothing” Vlad said in a unsettling tone. “Vlad!” Kiril called out over the headset, “What?” Vlad retorted gruffly, “I saw a van leaving the area two minutes ago, heading south towards the mountains.” “Your point?” “I think I saw them load a body into it.” “That's got to be Dima.” “I already have Alexsandar with a med-evac helicopter heading to your location for the casualties.” “Thank you.” “Get him back Vlad. And make them suffer.” The men heard the helicopter landing in the field behind the warehouse. A few moments later a team of four men entered the warehouse, stretchers and body bags in tow. Boris and Vlad assisted the medical team in carrying the casualties to the aircraft. The rotor wash of the helicopter kicked up a large plume of dirt and sand into the air. As they loaded their fallen comrades into the cabin, Vlad climbed into the cockpit, tapping Alex on the shoulder to get his attention. “Take good care of them.” Vlad said. “I will. I promise.” Alex said with sincere tone. With that Vlad exited the aircraft, and both men watched as it took off, slowly disappearing into the starry night sky. The sound of the rotors now replaced with soft chirping of crickets. “Get a car and meet me out front.” Vlad walked back towards the building. Boris did as instructed. He found keys on a body in the back lot. They belonged to a pick-up truck that was parked next to the building. He drove around front and waited for Vlad to appear. When Vlad finally showed, he was sprinting towards the truck. He vaulted over the hood and climbed into the passenger seat. “Drive!” he shouted. Boris floored the gas pedal. They sped way in time for the charge on the nuke to detonate. The explosives shook the ground, blowing out all the windows in the building and tearing a few holes in the walls “Where to next?” Borris asked, “Due south, let's get our friend back” Author's Note Greatings my lovely readers! This is just a filler chapter to show what happen after Dima was K.O. in chapter 3. Sorry if it's not that good. There is not much plot here execpt for one part (Your smart enough to figure out which). In other news, chapter 5 is halfway done. Thank you for reading. Till next time... HOORAH -Semper Fidelis P.S. For those of you who are confused as to who the other people are here; Yuri, Ivan, and Vasily are (or were) members of Dima's unit, and Alexsandar is the evac pilot who was waiting to extract the team upon mission completion. ---------------------------------------------------------[Classified]-------------------------------------------- A select few readers will be recieving a PM from me. I have a question I need to ask them... Chapter 4: Hell of a PartyLocation//: Near Kandahar, Afghanistan Local Time//: 01:13 Hours Date//: xx/xx/2013 Dima slowly woke up in blackness, pain surged through his body as he attempted to move his legs. He turned his eyes to see a window, the stars were shining in the night sky. His other senses slowly came back to him. He noticed the sound of a engine, a quick look to his left confirmed that. He saw that he was laying in the back of some car. Perhaps a van? Two men sat in the only seats, the driver was making a phone call while the passenger seemed to be sleeping. The thought then hit Dima, he had been captured, his friends were still back in the warehouse. He never set the charge, he failed. He was going to die a failure. He looked to his legs, there was a small puddle of blood underneath his thighs. He tried to move his legs, but the pain said otherwise. He silently felt his legs, there were bullet holes alright. The fact that he wasn't dead meant that the bullets missed his femoral arteries. He looked back to his captors, they needed to be dealt with. He wasn't in shape to take on both men with just his bare hands. Weapons he thought, he checked himself for anything. Nothing, rifle, pistol, saperka, all gone. Dima had to get creative, he looked to see if he had anything of use. He came up with nothing but spare change and pocket lint. They had taken everything. “You have to be kidding me...” He thought to himself, feeling defeated. He stared at his feet and pondered. “At least they didn't steal my boots,” He thought to himself again, then the idea came to him. He looked back to the front, his captors were not paying attention to him. Now was his chance. He sat up and began to unlace his boots. He threaded each string through, careful not to make a noise. He pulled the last of the string though and tied them together. He began to wrap it around both his hands. Leaving a two feet of boot lace between. He pulled the string taut, and slowly began to crawl his way forward. His legs were useless at the moment. Making his task all the more difficult. He finally made it to behind the seats undetected. Dima was ready to strike, but then he took a moment to think. He had a problem, the passenger has woken up and had his hand on a AK. To make things worse, the driver had a pistol on the dash board in front of him. Dima had to make a choice, kill the passenger and risk being shot by the driver. Or, kill the driver an risk being shot by the passenger. He couldn't think of any situation where he would come out unharmed. But one plan seemed to give him the best chance. He tightened the boot lace around his hand. He began a countdown in his head. “Three” “Two” “One” Ignoring the pain, Dima jumped up and wrapped to cord twice around the passengers neck. He pulled a tightly as he could. The passenger struggled to pry the cord from his neck, desperately trying to breath. Dima saw the driver reach for his gun. Instantly, Dima let go of the cord from his left hand and putting it in his right, he then grabbed the head of the driver and slammed it into the steering wheel, also causing the horn to honk. While the driver was dazed Dima grabbed the pistol and brought it up to the drivers head. Bang. The windshield was splattered with blood as the driver slumped over the wheel, his foot stuck on the accelerator. Dima hadn't noticed his grip loosening on the passenger. To late. The passenger ripped Dima off of him and pushed him to the ground. The passenger reached for his rifle as Dima laid on his back. The passenger began to take aim. Dima's heart was pounding in his ears as time seemed to stand still. Right when the passenger was about to pull the trigger, the car hit something. Dima's body flew forward, he caught a glimpse of what had happened. The car had hit a guard rail on the side of the road. To make matters worse, they were on a mountain road. Dima and the passenger gazed in horror at the chasm below. A steep slope that led downward into a valley below. Dima felt the back end of the car rising as the van rolled over the guard rail. Both Dima and the passenger screamed as the car went over. Dima rolled out of his hammock, hitting the ground below. He hyperventilated while on his hands and knees, slowly catching his breath. Dima picked himself up and looked around. The sun was a little ways above the horizon. Well...at least he slept through the night. He stretched himself and walked into the forest. Hopefully, catching breakfast would take his mind off things. After bushwhacking a little ways in, he heard the sound of flowing water. He continued following the sound to its source. A small, crystal clear stream flowing through the forest. Dima saw good sized fishes swimming through. Only one thing ran through his mind. Meat. But how to procure it? He thought of making a rod, he decided it would take too long to fish them out the old fashion way. Shooting them would be a waste of bullets. An idea then came to him. Dima removed his boots and rolled up his pants. He walked into the cool water, which was only about a foot deep, and waited. He saw one fish swimming towards his legs. Dima readied his hands, timing the right moment to strike. When the fish was in optimal position, he lunged his hand into the water. But the fish slipped through. He tried again with another fish, same results. He tried again, no luck. Dima tried once more, you guessed it, nothing. Dima kicked the water in frustration. He then looked up stream. This time a large fish swam lazily down the shallow stream. Dima was certain he couldn't miss this one. He calmed himself, keeping his hands just above the water. The fish came within inches of Dima, he drove his hands into the water. This time he caught it. The fish fought back, squirming while Dima held it tight in against his chest in a bear hug fashion. When the fish stopped moving Dima held it out in victory. But it was cut short by the fish wiggling around violently. It slipped free of his grasp and into the air above Dima's head. As it came back down, slapped Dima hard across the face with it's tail, causing Dima to fall backwards into water. The fish swam about meter from him then stopped. It turned to face Dima from beneath the water. He saw it's cheeks beginning to swell up. Dima slowly approached the fish. It then spat a stream of water into Dima's face. “Suka!” (Bitch!) Completely pissed, Dima went for plan B. He pulled his pistol from its holster, took aim, and shot the fish. Dima collected his bounty. The plump fish had enough meat for a nice fish breakfast over the campfire, as well as some for later. He also learned a valuable lesson. Fishing sucks. Pinkie worked her flank off setting up the preparations for the party. This was her first party for an alien after all, and she was NOT going to mess it up. There may never be another chance like this again! After several hours of hard work, she put up the last streamer then stepped back to admire her handy work. Sugarcube corner had never looked so good, and it was still morning. The “Welcome Mr. Hooman” banner hung perfectly from the ceiling. The party cannon was loaded and the invitations were sent. This was gonna be huge! Pinkie then stopped to think. “Wait...what was it he said about the party?” She said to herself while placing a hoof on her chin. She though back to when she talked to Dima last night. “AHA I remember now! He said he wanted to be as big as possible! Better send more invitations. NO NO NO. I'll invite everypony in ponyville! THIS IS GONNA BE THE BIGGEST, MOST BESTEST PARTY EVER!” “Pinkie, are you talking to yourself again?” Mrs. Cake's voice cried out from another room. “YES MRS. CAKE!” Pinkie replied, “Could you keep it down a little dear? the twins are still asleep.” “Sorry Mrs. Cake,” She replied softly. Pinkie went to make more invitations for the party of the century. She couldn't wait! Dima didn't do much during the day. He made improvements to his camp. He crafted a lean-to over his hammock, dug a proper fire pit, and dug a shallow trench to observe the town from. Dima did not know how the time on this planet worked, but by the position of the sun he could guess it was around five or six in the afternoon. Pinkie should be here soon. Dima wanted to make a good first impression. He assumed bathing would be a good start considering that he smelled like a dead animal. He grabbed a bar of soap from his bag and headed towards the stream he found earlier. He stripped himself naked at the bank and entered the cool water. He walked towards a deeper end of the stream where the water was above his waist. He poured water on his body and began to wash up. After a few minutes he was done. He walked out of the water, gathered his belongings and proceeded back to his camp. He redressed in a “underbrush” pattern uniform and sat in his hammock. He remembered it was Vlad's favorite pattern. He reached into his bag, rummaging around until he felt what he was looking for. He pulled out an old photo. It was a group photo of all of his team when they graduated Spetznaz training. Dima, Vlad, Kiril, and Vasily knelt down in front while Boris, Ivan, and Yuri stood behind them. The prominent features were Vasily giving Vlad rabbit ears, Dima flashing the peace sign, and Boris had blinked during the picture. He remembered how proud they all were. How accomplished they felt, how happy they were. He missed them, all of them. “It's all my fault. It was my job to make sure you were safe...I failed you...all of you...I'm sorry” He held the photo tightly, running his fingers across the faded gloss. “You guys be good up there...” He said, throwing the picture on top of his bag. He hung his head low, taking a deep breath. “Ooooh are these your friends?” Pinkie's voiced surprised Dima. How long had she been there? “Not anymore. Now lets go.” Dima got up and took the photo from Pinkie, then placed it back in his bag. Dima began walking towards the town, gesturing for Pinkie to follow. “What do you mean there not your friends anymore?” She asked while trying to catch up. This was new to Pinkie. She was all about making friends, not losing them. Dima stopped walking, Pinkie remained behind him. “...” “Hey, did you hear me?” “I did.” “So why aren't they–” Pinkie started, “Because they're dead,” He cut her off mid sentence with a voice as cold as ice. “How did–” Pinkie started before Dima cut her off again. “I don't want to talk about it,” He stated gruffly. “But–” “Not. Another. Word.” Almost everypony in Ponyville came to Pinkie's welcome party. There were so many that most of the party had to be held outside of the Sugarcube Corner. Among the mass of ponies Twilight and the gang (save for pinkie) were all having a good time, waiting for Pinkie to return and start the party. “I wonder who the new pony is? Must be somepony important if Pinkie made this big of a party,” Twilight pondered. “Ah hope he or she ain't too shy. We all know how excitable Pinkie is, and that ain't much help to new-comers...” Applejack said. Her friends nodded in agreement. “It would be awesome to have another pegasus in town. Somepony new to fly with,” Rainbow Dash added. “Yeah...um, that does sound nice,” Fluttershy's voice could barely be heard over the noise of the music Vinyl Scratch was playing for the crowd of party ponies. The speakers on the DJ table popped as Pinkie's voice came on. All the ponies went silent as Pinkie cleared her throat. “Mares and Gentlecolts it is my pleasure to introduce you to our newest guest in town,” She pulled Dima by the arm, revealing him to the crowd. “Dima?” Applejack tried to peak over the heads of the other ponies. She had thought he was gone forever. It looks like Pinkie found him. Dima stared into the crowd of shocked ponies. Unsure what to do next, he just nervously smiled and waved. The crowd of ponies remained deathly silent, unsure what to think of him. “Monster!” Some random pony shouted. All hell broke lose as the crowd fled the scene. Ponies left and right scattered in every direction screaming, tripping over one another, and trampling those who were to slow. Ponies ran into their houses, locking their doors and barricading their windows. Once the chaos had cleared, all who remained were Pinkie and most of her friends. Fluttershy was no where to be seen. “Hmm, didn't expect that,” Pinkie said while scratching her head. “It's Zecora all over again.” “Oh well, more for us! Lets go!” Pinkie grabbed Dima by his hand and lead him to the Sugar Cube Corner. Pinkie brought Dima to the bakery. A group of ponies were waiting inside, one of them being Applejack. Dima could tell by the ponies faces that they had mixed emotions about he presence. “Uh, Pinkie. What is that?” Rainbow Dash pointed to Dima. “This is my new friend” Pinkie wrapped herself around Dima legs, flashing a bright smile. “I see pinkie got to ya” Applejack chucked, “Wait? You now it?” a cyan pony asked, “I have a name” Dima finally spoke. The cyan pony snapped her head to Dima in surprise. “I am Dimitri, you can call me Dima” He drew closer and raised a open hand in greeting, The cyan pony nervously smiled and took a step back. Taking the hint, he retracted his hand. “I see...” “I'm Rainbow Dash,” She gave Dima a friendly grin. “Nice to meet you,” Dima said, returning the gesture. “Uhh, why don't we all sit down,” A lavender mare suggested. All the ponies with Dima in tow sat down at circular table. Dima pulled a chair next to Applejack and Pinkie, the others kept at a distance on the opposite side of the table. Pinkie excused herself from the table left to bring snacks for the group. Well, more like she got up and left, saying “I’ll get snacks!” as she dashed into what seemed to be a kitchen. Leaving Dima and Applejack with the others. Dima felt each mare's eyes look on to him. Nobody said a word, the group sat in a awkward silence, occasionally broken by the sound of Pinkie's rummaging through the kitchen. Dima twiddled his fingers on top of the table. He lifted his hand upward. The eyes of the mares on the other side of the widened and Dima was sure he heard one of them gasp. He then reached for his neck and began scratching a small itch. The mares seemed to relax after he did so. “So, uh Dima these are my friends” Applejack began, She pointed to a white mare with a purple mane “This is Rarity” She pointed to the cyan and rainbow maned mare “That's Rainbow Dash” She then pointed to the last pony, the lavender one “And that's Twilight Sparkle” Applejack then stopped for a moment and began short a head count. “Huh? Anypony seen Fluttershy?” “She probably fled with the other ponies,” Twilight said in a slightly exasperated tone. “Figures,” Rainbow Dash rolled her eyes. “So um, Dima is it? How long have you been here?” Twilight began. “Depends on what you mean by 'here',” He answered. “What do you mean darling?” Rarity inquired. “Today is my first day in town. But I got here three days ago.” “Oh, so where did you come from before? Manehatten? Baltimare?” Twilight listed. “I don't you understand. I got 'HERE', as in your world, three days ago. I'm originally from place called Earth.” Dima explained. Twilight attempted to hold in a chuckle. “What's so funny?” Dima said in a slightly disturbed tone. “I'm sorry, I just thought you said that you are some 'other-worldly' traveler.” She explained with a few giggles. Dima did not find it so humorous. “You don't believe me? I have a wrecked aircraft and the rotting corpses of my friends to prove it. Now i'm stuck lightyears from home and almost died once already. How about that? Very funny, no?” He retorted. Silence once again filled the room. “I-I'm so sorry. I didn't know” “I'm sorry too. I've just...I've just had a rough few days.” Dima sighed. He felt a hoof gingerly placed on his back. He turned to look at Applejack. “Ya sure that you're fine? You don't want to at least talk about it” Dima was grateful that Applejack cared, but he didn't want her sympathy, and he definitely didn't want to talk about it. “I'm fine,” He was lying. Dima knew Applejack could tell. Pinkie then returned with the snacks. Well, if you consider snacks as a bunch of desserts the smell of which can give a man diabetes, then yeah, she brought them. Cream puffs, cake, cupcakes (oddly, they were blood red), meringue, macaroons, doughnuts, and eclairs just to name a few were on a massive platter balanced on the tiny pony's head. She wobbled to and fro trying to balance the thing. It was safe to say that everypony (and person) was expecting a disaster. Luckily, she slid the platter of her head with ease, landing it on the table with such perfection that Simon Cowell would give it a eleven out of ten. “Dig in!” Pinkie said exuberantly, All the ponies began to pick out different items from the vast variety. Dima decided to take a slice of cake. It would take his mind off of things. He grabbed a knife and was about to cut the cake, but he took a moment to read it. Dima couldn't help but laugh a little when noticed the cake had “welcome Mr. Hooman” inscription. After taking a slice, he grabbed his fork and took his first bite, the icing was butter cream. The cake its self was a soft, delicious vanilla. There was nothing else on Earth that can compare to Pinkie's baking. “Dof yuz lik it?” Pinkie asked with a mouth full of cream puffs. “I do. Thank you Pinkie,” Pinkie swallowed the mass of cream puffs in one gulp. Then scrambled over and gave Dima a hug. “Daaaw, your welcome!” “A little *ack* help?” He received a few laughs instead. Dima was amazed at Pinkie's strength. The laughter stopped when a strong smell of rotten eggs came from the kitchen. Pinkie released her hold on Dima and started towards the kitchen. “Eww, where is that coming from?” Rainbow Dash said as she plugged her nose. “I'll check,” Pinkie said as she continued to the kitchen door. Dima decided to follow her. The both entered through the door, all seemed to be normal, until Dima saw a distortion in the air above the stove, along with a slight hissing sound. “Hmm, must have left it on” Pinkie said as she approached the stove. She twisted the dial, but it didn't seem to stop the flow of gas. Dima pulled the stove back to check the gas hose. The fact that the hose had been severed was weird, but Dima recoiled in horror when he saw small block of plastic explosives with four seconds left on the timer. Without thinking, Dima ripped Pinkie away from the stove and held her in his arms. He knew he'd never make it to the door and open it with pinkie still in his arms. He had to choose their fates. One, or the other. The choice was simple. He sprinted two and a half steps away from the stove range. He dropped to his knees, shoved the lower half Pinkie between his legs. He laid his torso over the rest of her body. He brought his arms around her head, holding her tightly. Lastly he tucked his head under his body, closing his eyes. A few milliseconds later... BOOM Flames shot up and engulfed every inch of the kitchen. Spreading on the walls, ceiling, and floor as if it were a liquid. Glass everywhere shattered, from windows to wine glasses. The very foundation of the bakery shuddered with the explosion. Dima felt flames scorch his body. It felt like a wave of magma was rolling over him. His back blistered from the heat, the camouflage clothing melted, fusing with his skin. The few seconds of inferno felling like hours. He could smell his well-done flesh, stinging with unimaginable pain. He managed to open his eyes. Pinkie was unharmed, only suffering lightly charred hair. But she was still in shock, her body was stiff, her hair lost it's puffy shape, and her eyes were unmoving. Dima picked scooped her up in his arms. He rose to his feet and began limping towards the door. He didn't even need to open it, the door swung open; every mare was there. All their eyes widened, their mouths open in shear horror, tears streaming down their faces. Applejack was crying at the sight of Dima and Rarity shrieked in horror. Dima began to limp faster, out of the kitchen. “RUN!” He shouted. The mares all ran towards the front door. Applejack tried to pull open the doors, but they wouldn't budge. “It's locked!” She pulled again, to no avail. “MOVE!” Dima shouted. Applejack cleared away from the door. Dima limped towards the door with Pinkie still in his arms. He raised his right leg and kicked the door off it's hinges. He and the others ran outside, putting a good distance between them and the bakery. He saw a few of horrified ponies gathered outside the building. Dima gingerly laid Pinkie on the cobblestone road. He checked her vitals, she was hyperventilating and her pulse was racing, she had a distant look in her eyes. Dima knew she going into psychological shock and wasn't getting enough oxygen, he began stroking her mane in attempt to calm her down. “It's alright” He said softly. “It's alright. Your safe now.” He continued to run his fingers through her mane. He breathing began to slow down. “Everyone is alright,” Pinkie's eyes fixed onto him when he said that. “Y-You're not,” She stammered. Dima took a look at himself, Pinkie was right. His skin was charred and blistered. Melted skin hung from the outer sides of his arms. The back of his hands were so burned, he could see the bones moving when he moved his fingers. He was practically a charred skeleton. He looked back the the other ponies, Applejack and the others stared at Dima in horror, tears still staining their cheeks. Rarity fainted when Dima looked at her. “F-f-fff” Pinkie struggled to say, “What is it Pinkie?” Dima brought himself closer to her, “F-Fluttershy...Still, inside,” She said. “She...ran upstairs. I never saw her leave.” Dima looked back to the building. The fire had spread through out the entire first floor. Glass shattered from the heat. As much as Dima hated the idea, he knew he had to go back in. Dima staggered to his feet on last time, letting another bystander tend to Pinkie. He looked toward the building. Had tempted death once by shielding Pinkie, now he was going to kick it in the balls by going back in. He began to walk towards the burning bakery. He suddenly felt something tug his shirt back. He turned and saw Applejack pulling on him with her teeth. She spat out the burned cloth and looked him in the eyes. “Are you crazy!? You're not going in there!” She shouted. “I have to. That pony you mentioned, Fluttershy or something, is still in there.” He pointed to the blazing inferno. “Isn't that a friend of yours?” “Yes, but... but” Applejack was at a loss for words. She didn't want to let Fluttershy die, but she didn't want to lose Dima either. “My best friend always said, 'We leave no one behind, dead or alive'.” Dima quoted Vlad, “I'm not going to disregard that” Dima dropped to a knee and gave Applejack a hug. He ignored the pain her tears caused when they fell on his shoulders. “Promise me you'll be careful” She whispered over a few sobs. “I'll be back. I promise.” Dima said softly. He got back to his feet and stared at the building, there wasn't much time left. Summoning the last ounces of strength, he bolted into the mouth of sugary hell. He entered through the front, his boots crunched on broken as walked through the burning room. The smoke had began to build up, the black fog burned his eyes, the smoke Dima inhaled felt like a cigar was lit inside his lungs. He ripped a piece of a curtain that hadn't burned and wrapped it around his mouth. It wasn't a perfect gas mask, but it helped a little. He searched for the stairs, they weren't in the front retail part of the bakery, so that left the kitchen. He opened the door and looked inside, everything that could burn, char, and melt, had already done so. Glass from cupboards drooped down like honey, plastic mixing bowls melted to the granite counter tops, silverware touching the flames glowed red hot. Worst of all was the stove, or, what used to be anyways. The blast sent the stove flying into the other side of the kitchen. The gas pipe was now a flame thrower, feeding the already hungry fire. To top it off, the natural gas flame cannon was blocking the stairs. The ambient heat was starting to blister the unburned parts of Dima's body. He had to make this quick, he came too far to die now. He looked up and saw a exposed rafter above the flame. He took a few steps back and ran toward it. He jumped up and grabbed it, using the rest of his momentum to swing over the flames. He landed at the foot of the stairs and ran up. He entered a small hallway leading to three different rooms. The walls and ceiling were alight, making it look like a tunnel to hell. He didn't have time to search the rooms one by one. “HELLO!?” He called out, he heard a small response. He tuned out the fire and tried to focus on a voice. He guessed it came from the room on his right. He touched the handle, but burned his fingers. He kicked open the door and entered a burning bedroom. Outside the window of the bedroom, Dima could see the ponies in front of the Building. He turned left and saw a yellow pegasus huddled in the fetal position in the far left corner of the room. He slowly approached her. She looked up, when she saw Dima she tucked back into the fetal position began to cry. “Please, don't hurt me” She begged, “My name is Dima,” He said. “I'm here to get you out.” “I don't believe you!” She picked up a piece of rubble and threw it at him. “Look, we don't have time for this! It's either come with me or die here!” She looked up to him a second time. She took a moment to think before nodding her head. She got up to her hooves, then a explosion rocked the bakery. Dima guessed it was the gas line that blew. The wood foundations creaked under the immense strain. He saw the walls starting to deform and the ceiling buckle. “Let's go!” He shouted as burning ruble began to fall from the ceiling. They both ran to the door and into the flaming hall. They ran the stairs, only to see them collapse. “We're going to die!” Fluttershy began to cry again. She was right, there was no other way down except... the idea then hit Dima. “The window!” Dima shouted in his 'eureka' moment. “What!?” Fluttershy asked, Dima had no time to explain, he lifted Fluttershy into his arms and ran back into the bedroom. He placed her next to the window. “Can you still fly?” Dima asked, “Umm, I think so” She replied, “Well then -” Dima grabbed a chair and busted out the window. “- now is your chance.” “But what about you?” “Don't worry about me, now go!” “But–” “I said go!” Fluttershy began to flap her wings slowly rising into the air. With one big flap, she launched herself out of the flaming building. Dima watched her safely land where a few fireman looking ponies took her in. He looked down and saw that the ground farther down than what he had thought, five meters, give-or-take. Dima felt the floor under him crack. He leaped backwards in time to avoid a hole that formed where he was standing. He got back on his feet and began to ponder on how to escape. Just then, he heard a crack from above him, a roof support beam came crashing down onto Dima. He was now pinned to the floor. He held the heavy beam at bay, but it was no use, he was too tired to continue. He let the beam down on his chest, making it difficult to breath as it crushed his lungs. He removed the curtain rag from around his mouth and threw it. He looked to his left and saw the beam beginning to burn, he looked to the right, same story. He never felt so hopeless, he closed his eyes, waiting to die. He didn't have the strength to go on, the pain was all coming back to him. He began to see his life flash before his eyes. Childhood, army, friends, family, then... it stopped at Applejack. He remembered this part. It was the time he first met her. He was on his knees in Applejack's barn. He wasn't able to do or say anything, it felt kind of like watching a movie from the first person. He watched the entire scene unfold in front of him. His flash back then skipped to when he was drinking hot cider with her. He could still taste the warm cider. It then fast-forwarded to the Timberwolf fight. He saw her standing over him when he collapsed after the fight. The background started to flake away like dust being blown by the wind, everything save for Applejack went black. Her eyes began to tear up and she started crying. “Why are you crying?” He asked. “You broke your promise Dima. You're dying,” The voice was Applejack's, but it was distorted. "I'm not dying, I-I just need to-" "Save it Dima," She snapped. Applejack stood up walked away. “Wait... don't go,” Dima pleaded. “Why? You're dead, I'm moving on.” “What?” Applejack began to laugh, “I'll get over ya. I only known ya for what? A day or two?” “I...” Dima was dumbfounded, “You what? You thought I cared about you? Pfft, I only felt sorry for ya” Applejack finished his sentence. Dima stared at her in shock. “Well, see ya partner” Took off her hat and removed Dima's dog tags. She held them in front of his face before throwing them off in to the blackness. She began to walk off. “Wait” Dima pleaded. She just ignored him. “Wait please!” Dima shouted this time. She slowly faded into the blackness. Dima laid alone in the darkness. Tears began to drip from his eyes. His only friend in this world had just given him the cold shoulder while he was in his final moments. He denied it, he knew it couldn't be real. Right? A hallucination? Be that as it may, it still felt worse than any of his his burns. Her words hit the one place that is the most vulnerable, the heart. The blackness slowly had holes burt through it. He was back in the burning room. The fire had engulfed the entire area. Only a small circle of unburned floor board remained around him. It slowly crawled it's way forward. The fires of the beam were inches away from him. He relaxed his muscles, he crossed his arms on his chest the way they do with people in caskets. This time, death didn't seem so bad. He would die the way he wanted, saving another. Who could ask for a finer end? He relaxed his breathing, the smoke in the air still burning his lungs. He closed his eyes and waited. “Dimitri” A unknown voice called out. Dima opened his eyes and looked around for the source. He looked and saw something unreal. A man appeared, walking through the inferno towards him. He stopped at Dima's feet. Flames licked around his body, but he still stood as if it were nothing. With the flames covering him, Dima couldn't tell anything more than that he was dressed in what seemed to be a military uniform. He had a helmet, black sunglasses, a ballistic vest, and had a rifle slung over his back, but that was it. “Grim Reaper?” Dima gave it his best guess. “No” He held out his right hand to Dima. He hesitated, unsure if this was just another hallucination. “Take my hand, if you want to see her again,” The man said. The fires were getting closer. He didn't have much time. “Promise?” Dima asked the man in the flames. He answered with a nod. Dima raised his body, supporting himself up with his left arm. He slowly approached the mysterious man's waiting hand. Dima took a deep breath and closed his eyes. He wrapped his hand around the other man's in a thight grip. Everything went black. 20 Minutes Earlier Over on a hill far from the town, the Sniper watched the building through his binoculars. He touched the 'talk' button on his headset. “Targets in sight,” He said. “How many?” The Engineer asked. “Four in the front, that's all I can see.” “Four out of six, close enough,” The Gunner added. “Are the charges set?” The Sniper inquired. “On your word,” The Engineer said. “Blow it,” The Sniper ordered. "Copy, coundown initiated. Charges set to blow in 5...4...3...2...1" He saw a small flash, the glass blew out of the building. The Sniper exited his view from the binoculars. He changed the radio frequencies. “Targets eliminated,” The Sniper said. “Good work, return to base,” His benefactor replied. “Yes, my Lord.” The Sniper switched back frequencies, “Mission complete, were being called back.” “Acknowledged,” The two others replied. The Sniper packed his equipment and began the long walk back. Author's Note AAAAAAWWWWWW YEEEEEAAAAHH. The update you never thought was coming is finally here! I would like to apologize from the bottom of my heart for taking this long. Writing ain't easy, it takes me espically long to plan out things and write out the chapter to the point where i am happy with it. I also want to thank those of you who kept asking me "When is the next update?". Truthfully, if it wasn't for those people, this story might have ended before it began. Anyways, thank you all and enjoy! HOORAH -Semper Fidelis Chapter 5: I See Dead PeopleLocation//: Unknown? Local Time//: Unknown? Date//: Unknown? Dima felt himself waking up. He slowly opened his eyes. He couldn't comprehend what he was seeing, darkness, darkness everywhere. No ceiling, no floor, just a dark empty void. He was on his back from what he could tell. His body protested when he attempted to sit up. With all his strength, he pulled his torso upright. His entire body felt sore like he had just been hit a car. To top it off, he was naked. A thought in his mind clicked, he immediately looked at himself. At was all coming back to him. He looked at his arms and legs, they looked untouched, his entire body looked like nothing had ever happened. But that was impossible, the last he remembered was the fire. “Am I... dead?” He spoke in a whisper. “No, you're not. Not technically,” A voice echoed through the darkness. Dima quickly looked around to find the source of the voice, but it seemed to be coming from everywhere. He looked froward and saw something coming out of the blackness. A man, dressed as if he was about to go to war, approached Dima. He recognized him immediately. It was him, the man from the fire. He got a better look this time. The man's equipment seemed to be American. But his skin, well it didn't seem to be skin at all, It was gray and misty as if it were gaseous. Perhaps it is gaseous? “You? Who are–” The man stopped him he could finish. “A friend,” He held out a hand to Dima, helping him to his feet. “Why did you save me?” Dima asked the man. “Because–” He began, but the ground began to tremble with earthquake-like force. “Well, well. I did not expect to find you here.” The voice spoke in a dark, gruff, and sonorous tone. Although the voice's manner of speaking was that of normal speech, the shear loudness of the voice made Dima ears ring. The man looked back into the darkness as if there was someone there behind him. Dima could see nothing but the perpetual blackness. “He found me! I need more time!” The man grabbed Dima by his shoulders and looked him in the eyes through black sunglasses. “We'll talk later!” He shouted over the sound of the black void shaking apart. “Now go!” He threw Dima into the blackness. This time, there didn't seem to be a floor. Dima just kept falling in the abyss. His eyes began to feel heavy, his body numb with a tingling sensation. He felt his mind slip away, as if waking from a dream. Sensation began to consume him more and more as he fell through the void. He heard the rumble of the haunting voice speak again. "Your actions tread between bravery and foolishness. Your time of heroism has come to pass over a millennium ago. Yet... you still continue? Why?" "Because I still have something worth fighting for," The man replied without hesitation. "Of course. I see it now. Your doing it for her...” “...” The man's silence was all the answer the voice needed. “You are loyal. That much I shall give you. But that loyalty will do little to stop me. I suggest you embrace your dearest for as long as you can. For she may not be around for much longer." "When this is over, I will make certain that you hang for your crimes." "You would like that, would you not? Fair enough I suppose. But when I tear your very soul from your body, I will be sure in your final moments to grant you a preview to the eternal torture of your beloved. All whilst watching Equestria suffer and burn from your failure..." “You bastard! You'll never win!” Dima heard the man shout, but it sounded very distant. The voice just chuckled. “I already have...” Dima closed his eyes as consciousness slowly slipped away from him. Dima opened his eyes again. The area was still dark but this time little rays of orange light peaked through small holes. Dima felt that something was laying on top of him. He brought his arms up and began to push. His tired arms protested, sending signals of horrible pain through his body. His muscles twitched and quivered involuntarily. With one great heave, Dima pushed what seemed to be a burned sheet of plywood. The sky was still black, the only light coming from small flames that polka-dotted the field of smoldering rubble that used to be the bakery. “Over there!” Dima heard a distant voice call out. In no time a group of four ponies dressed in firefighter gear rushed to where Dima lay. “What in the world?” One of them said as he stared at Dima. His jaw dropped in surprise. Another firefighter standing next to him smacked him the pony upside his helmet. “Don't just stand there! Get him out!” He ordered. Dima couldn't understand what was happening around him. Next thing he knew, large pieces of rubble were being surrounded my glowing auras of different colors, then levitating away as if it were weightless. Dima then felt himself getting lifted, every cell in his body wanted to panic, but he had barley enough strength to just stay awake. He saw the ponies, or unicorns he should say, levitating him onto a stretcher, then into a white horse-drawn cart with a red cross. He assumed it was their version of an ambulance. “Hospital, ASAP!” One of the firemen told the two ponies attached to the cart. “Got it,” The one on the right said. As soon as the fireponies closed the door, they were off. Considering how small the ponies were, Dima was surprised how fast they could pull the rather large cart. The stallions weaved their way through the city. The cobblestone roads and lack of suspension made the ride all the more unpleasant. He felt the wagon come to a stop. The doors opened and a team of doctor looking ponies moved him from a stretcher to a hospital bed. They began to wheel him into an emergency room. Dima managed to turn his head. The doctors stopped him in front of a room with a few patients inside. Dima had his attention locked on one pony in particular, Pinkie. She was sitting on her hospital bed, her hind legs tucked into her chest and her forelegs wrapped around. She was trembling heavily, her eyes were wide open and blood shot, darting from place to place. Her hair lost it's cotton candy shape and luster. Her eyes then gazed upon Dima. Before Dima could say anything, he was wheeled away into another room. A pony put a mask over his mouth and began to pump gas into his lungs. He began to feel woozy. His eyes closed and felt too heavy to open again. Location//: Near Kandahar, Afghanistan Local Time//: 03:43 Hours Date//: xx/xx/2013 Dima had never felt so much pain in his life. He forced his eyes open, trying to comprehend what just happened. He was flat on his stomach inside the inverted van. The body of the van had been dented and torn open in various places, resembling Swiss cheese. Tiny beams of moonlight peaked through the holes, signaling that he hadn't been out for long. He looked to the front of the car, the windshield was fractured beyond recognition and spattered with blood, but remained mostly intact on its frame. The driver hadn't done much better, he was sprawled out on the floor of the van, or roof, as it were. Well, he was already dead, so he probably didn't mind the fall. It then struck Dima, where was the passenger? The window on the passengers side was shattered open and a few small pools of blood were on the ground outside. With luck, he had fled while he had the chance and wouldn't be a problem. Dima attempted to push himself up, only to be reminded by his body that he had been shot and just survived rolling down thirty meters off the side of a mountain. His body began to register the horrible pain that he was in. As much as he didn't want to move, he couldn't just sit around. He drew his arms forward, and began to pull himself forward. He inched forward to the windshield, pushing the driver's body aside. With a hard push, he knocked the pane off of its mount and began to pull himself out. He looked around and saw nothing but the valley that he had landed in. The dirt was still warm, having been baked all day in yesterday's sun. The moon hung high in the sky, it's companion stars surrounding it. One thing Dima could appreciate about today was the low light pollution, allowing the sky to show it's full beauty. Dima snapped himself out of his trance. This was no time to star gaze. He began to think of a plan, he looked up and saw the road that he had fallen from. Perhaps if he could reach it he could get help. He pulled his body to the left and begun the long crawl upwards. The angle was shallow enough for him to pull himself up, but it would be one hell of a workout to reach the top. He dug his hands into the warm soil, holding back the pain as he pulled his body up. Progress was slow, painful, and tedious. After a long journey, he was just about to reach to top. Out of breath and on the last drops of adrenaline, he made it to the guard rail. But the victory was short lived. Out of nowhere, he felt something pulling on his legs. He looked back and to his horror saw the one person in the would pay any amount of money to avoid. The passenger's body was covered in sweat and dry blood. He had sustained a decent size gash in his forehead, which covered the left side of his face in blood. He barred his teeth and growled in a feral tone. His neck had a swollen ring of raw flesh from when Dima attempted to strangle him. He yanked Dima by his feet and threw him down the slope. He tumbled the entire way down. He sustained numerous blows from hitting large rocks on the way down, causing his already broken and worn out body to reach a new level of agony. He hit the bottom hard, knocking the wind out of him. He rolled onto his back, coughing up dirt and blood. He fought against his urge to pass out. He looked to the side and saw the man running down the slope. In no time he reached Dima. To weak to move any part of his body, Dima had no choice but to take what was coming. The passenger pounced onto Dima, roll the two over and pinning Dima down with his knees. He began to pound on Dima with his meaty fist. Shouting curses in sync with his punches. With each hit, Dima's vision blacked out and shone little white dots, then returned just as the next blow has to impact. The man continued his brutal assault with before finishing with a hard punch to the jaw, then stopping for a moment. Dima could barely managed to open his eyes, he coughed out a small amount of blood and desperately tried to breath. He saw the man reach into his pocket and pulled a small switch-blade. He jabbed it into Dima's torso, just to have it ping of his body armor plate. Infuriated, the man aimed his knife at Dima's neck. Just as the knife was about dissect his trachea, Dima caught the man's arms with his hands. Without wasting a split second, he followed up with a hard jab across the face with his right hand, then yanked the knife out with his left. Before the insurgent had a chance to recover, Dima rammed the blade into the man's chest then pushed him off to the side. The man landed flat on his back, his scream echoed in the valley. His hands clenched to his chest around the area where the knife was lodged. Dima threw himself on top of the insurgent, pinning him as the man had done. Dima punched the insurgent so hard in the face, he could see his jaw dislocate. Dima took his time in dealing back what the man had given ten fold. Savoring each blow as if it was intoxicating. Dima ripped the blade out of the man's chest and rammed it into his neck. The man let out a small yelp, grabbing Dima's arms but was to weak to pull him off. He gave the man one final punch to the face. He then ceased to move. Dima remained on top of his opponent. He tilted his head up, taking deep breaths and trying to collect himself. He looked back down to the body underneath him. “You're going to have to try harder than that next time,” He said to the corpse. The adrenaline began to wear off of Dima. The pain returned to his entire body, this time it was to much. He collapsed to the side and blacked out. Dima's eye's shot open, a bright light shone into his face. He grabbed it and moved it aside. He was still in the hospital. He let out a breath or relief. His room was darkened and the moon was visible out the window. He rubbed his temples, trying to comprehend what had just happened. His thoughts first traveled to the fire. He let out a small gasp and quickly begun to inspect himself. His skin was untouched, which did not comply with the burns he had sustained. He stared at his hands, earlier they were charred. Now they look just as they did before. “That man, who... or what is he?” An object to his right caught his attention. He turned his head to inspect whatever it was. A little red balloon tied to a chair bobbed around, it read “get better”. It warmed Dima's heart to see that. He then looked around the room and saw bundles of balloons, piles flower arrangements, and stacks of cards placed all over. It worried Dima, a balloon and some flowers is sweet, but this seemed excessive. He looked to the nightstand next to his bed and saw a clipboard laying there. He sat up and propped himself on the head board in a more comfortable position. He then reached for the board and started to go through the pages. -Patient #286443 Day 1: The patient has been put under anesthesia. He (at least we think it's a he) has suffered 3rd degree to 60-70% of his body. His survival is doubtful. The two other elements of harmony being treated here (Pinkie Pie and Fluttershy I believe) claim to know the creature. Maybe they should be informed? Perhaps later, depending on patient's status. -Patient #286443 Day 2: Patient X has survived surgery and is recovering. His skin is baldy damaged and recovery is slow. A few of the other elements of harmony have stopped to visit the creature. I informed them that the creature can not stay here since we have know idea what it is. I recommended taking him to a veterinarian, that seemed more applicable. They claim patient X, or “Dima” as they call it, is a sentient being like us and deserves the best medical attention. I find that rather hard to believe. But after much pleading, I pulled a few strings and got him to stay. This breaks so many regulations, it's not even funny. -Patient #286443 Day 3: Progress is...well, non existent. Patient is in a fragile state. Heart rate is beginning to drop and breathing is becoming laborious. He might need life support at this rate. I keep having to fight with my superiors to allow this creature to stay. Confound those mares, they made me promise. Why me? What have I done to deserve this? -Patient #286443 Day 6: The elements have become worried. Patient X's state is beginning to deteriorate. He has experienced a cardiac arrest twice in the past 24 hours. Thankfully, he was resuscitated. The current recovery plan is not working. I had to redeem a few favors and get extra help in. We accomplished little. Everyone is stumped as to why the patient is not getting any better. The fact that no one has ever worked on a creature like this just makes it all the more difficult. We have tried everything from medicine to magic. Nothing is working like it should. It's almost like his body doesn't want to get better. I don't get it. -Patient #286443 Day 10: Ten days now patient X has been in a coma. This is not good. The elements are getting desperate. Twilight has offered to help, but I couldn't let her for a number of reasons. It weighs heavy on my heart to see them like this. Who ever... what ever patient X is, they seem to care deeply for his well being. But I've also noticed something. One of the elements, Rainbow Dash was it? Anyway, she has not once been seen here. Strange. -Patient #286443 Day 11: I have inquired about the missing element of loyalty. It seems she is rather upset with Patient X. Her friends tell me that she blames him for the events that put him and patients Pinkie Pie and Fluttershy in the hospital in the first place. Though there is no evidence to back up the claim. Official fire marshal reports claim it to be a catastrophic gas leak. I'm no psychiatrist, but perhaps the incident affected her as well. I recommended that Rainbow Dash should talk to someone about what happened, but her friends claim that she probably wouldn't. As for the patient, not much has changed. -Patient #286443 Day 14: It's been two weeks now. The patient is getting worse. It saddens me to say that some of his friends have given up on him. My bosses are breathing down my neck. Without the support of his friends, I'm afraid his luck may run out. -Patient #286443 Day 18: Superiors just gave me an ultimatum. “We don't deal with animals or aliens! You have three days to get rid of it,” they said. Three days or they put Dima down. Applejack is really trying to beg Dima's case, but I don't think much more can be done. It will take a miracle at this point. We tried our best, didn't we? Dima was locked in a shocked daze, still trying to comprehend what he had just read. He had to look away from the board and then look back just to make sure he wasn't seeing things. A mixture of rage and confusion ran through his mind as he tried to wrap his head around the events that had taken place during his absence. They wanted to put him down like a dog? But then again, they did not know what he was, or if he was even going to wake up. He probably seemed like a waste of time and resources, and had he not waken up then they would have been right. He decided to let the matter go, lest the back and forth debate on whether or not to be angry drive him insane. He heard talking outside the door. He tuned his ears to try and hear what was being said. He heard what sounded like someone crying and an another talking. The door cracked open, the light of the hallway flooding into the dark room. Dima saw a white unicorn with a blue mane dressed in a lab coat talking to Applejack. Her eyes were stained red and had dried streaks of tears running down her neck and face. They didn't seem to pay attention to Dima as they kept talking in the door way. “I'm sorry Ms. Applejack, but he's been out for very long. I'm afraid he might not be waking up.” The doctor tried to sound sympathetic. Applejack continued to cry, wiping away tears with one of her hooves. “Are you sure you don't want to go with the alternative?” The doctor said that in a tone as if he and her had discussed that before. “No!” She barked at him. The doctor nearly dropped his clip board in surprise. “Applejack... I got a message a few days ago. If you don't do it now, my bosses will,” Applejack continued to cry. The doctor didn't seem to be helping. “It's not fair,” She muttered between sobs. “Applejack?” Dima said, receiving the attention of both ponies. Both of their faces were frozen in awe. Without a moment of hesitation, Applejack bolted past the plethora of flowers and balloons. Going so fast her hat flew off her head. She jumped up and wrapping her fore-hooves around Dima chest and crying a small river onto his hospital gown. For a moment, Dima had no idea what to do, but he did what he felt he needed to do. He put his arms around her and began to run his hands through her mane and down her neck in slow soft strokes. For a few moments this continued. Dima could feel the growing pool of tears being absorbed into his gown and she wept. Applejack then pulled away, placing both hooves on Dima's chest. Her luscious, emerald eyes locked onto his. Dima was held in a trance as her head slow inched forward. In a split second, Applejack smacked Dima across his face with her right hoof. “Don't. You. Ever. Do. That. To. Me. Again!” She shouted, pounding her hoof into Dima's chest with every syllable. Dima held Applejack's hooves in his hands, slowly moving them off his chest (which was now aching a little), and placed them around his neck. He brought his face next to hers and wrapped his arms around her back. “I won't.” He said softly, running his fingers through her mane again. She began to sob again, her small tears dripping onto his shoulder. “I'll leave you two alone,” The doctor said, closing the door behind him as he left. Applejack moved her head away from his shoulders, instead resting it on his chest just below his neck. She could hear the slow pounding of his heart in her ear. It felt soothing to her. Part of Dima didn't really understand why she wanted to be so close to him, another part didn't care. Her soft mane smelled of apples and cinnamon. Her soft fur tickling his skin. “You scared me half to death, you know that?” Applejack stated after a few moments of silence. “How long was I out?” Dima asked. “You've been in a coma for three weeks,” She said. Her grip on him began to tighten, as if letting go meant he would slip back into a coma. “Three weeks, huh? Well, I guess you can say it was one hell of a party.” Dima quipped. “You're soooooo not funny, you know that?” She said over a small giggle. She took a second to look at Dima. “How did your skin heal so fast all of the sudden?” Applejack asked as she poked at Dima's arms. She seemed to be entertained by playing with the malleability of his tissue. “Honestly? I don't know,” He replied. He looked back to the clip board laying next to him. “Hey, I uh... read some of the doctor's notes. A lot of stuff seemed to happened while I was out. Is there anything I need to be aware of?” He asked. “Can we talk about that later?” She requested. Dima agreed with a small nod. She had been through a lot, it was probably best to leave the topic off for later. Dima looked out the window. The dim lights of the town along with the full moon and starry sky made the night all the more beautiful. He also saw some brightly colored lights and flashes coming from beyond the town. “What's with that?” Dima pointed to the colorful lights off in the distance. It took Applejack a second to see what he was pointing to until she noticed them as well. “That? Oh, that's the carnival. They came to town this weekend for their Final Fall Festival.” “Final Fall?” Dima raised an eyebrow. “Yeah? Final Fall, the eleventh month out of the year?” She explained. A small 'oh' escaped Dima's lips. He made a mental note to buy a calendar. Dima looked out the window once more. He wanted to be out and make sure his stuff wasn't stolen by timber wolves... again. Perhaps explore the town too, see what there is to see. It sounded better than sitting at his camp doing nothing. He looked to Applejack, who still lay on his chest. The night seemed to have taken her too. Her eyes glazed over, locked in a trance with the view out the window. “Have you gone yet?” Dima inquired. “Where?” “To the carnival?” “Uh no, I've been busy with some other things. Though I think my sis and her friends are going tonight.” “It sounds like fun.” “It is! The carnival games, the great music, and cotton candy, I used to go every time they came to town.” “What stopped you?” “Work I suppose. Apples don't grow by themselves.” “Uh, I'm pretty sure they do.” “Bah! You know what I mean.” She began to laugh a little. The sound of the door opening caught the attention of the both of them. The doctor from earlier came into the room levitating his clip board along with a small note pad and pen in front of him. “Well Mr. Dima. How are you feeling?” He asked. “Better, I suppose.” He answered. “Good, good.” The doctor began to jot down a few notes on his pad. “May I see your fore leg if you don't mind?” He asked. It took Dima a moment to realized that he meant his arm. Applejack released herself from Dima so he could reach out a hand to the doctor. The doctor took his arm in his hooves, inspecting it with careful scrutiny. “Remarkable. It seems that your burns have just vanished over night. Is this normal for your kind?” “No. I really don't know what did this.” “But you are sure that you are fine? You're stallion-hood didn't melt or anything?” The doctor joked. Dima and Applejack's faces flushed a little red. “Uhh, yes. I'm actually a medical technician for my kind. I can assure you that I am healthy and an examination would not be needed.” He quickly explained. The doctor let out a small laugh. “Well, I guess I'll have to take your word for it. Oh, and welcome back to the land of the living sir. From what I’ve heard you're quite the brave one.” “I'm not completely the brave type. Perhaps I’m a little foolish as well.” Dima's expression turned blank after realizing what he just said. The booming voice from his time in the dark void came back into his mind "Your actions tread between bravery and foolishness". The doctor waved a hoof in front of his face, regaining his attention. “You alright there?” He asked. “Yeah, just a little Deja vu.” He replied. “Do you know when I can be discharged?” “Truthfully, the sooner the better. I assume you know why.” He said pointing to the clip board laying next to Dima. “Point taken. Though I honestly can't thank you enough.” Dima said. “Don't thank me. It was Applejack who really pleaded you're case. If it wasn't for her, I'm not sure what would've become of you.” He gestured towards Applejack's. She timidly looked away, rubbing one fore leg with the other. “Well, I have to get going. Come back if you need anything or if you just want to compare notes with a fellow doctor.” He held out a hoof, Dima wrapped his hand around and shook. “Oh before I forget –” The doctor reached inside his lab coat and produced a small envelope “– someone left this for you at the front desk.” “Who is it from?” Dima asked as he took possession of the letter. He examined the red wax seal bearing an insignia resembling a spectre. “Beats me. But it was addressed to you.” The doctor said with a shrug of the shoulders. With that, the doctor turned and left. Leaving Dima and Applejack alone once more. Dima carefully tore open the letter. He pulled a small slip of paper and begun to read it. Dima, my time is short so I can't explain everything. Just heed warning to this list of “Do Not's” 1. Don't tell anyone about the bomb. If asked, dodge the question, or lie. 2. Don't fire your weapon unless absolutely necessary. 3. Don't go to Canterlot, avoid there at all cost. 4. Don't be too conspicuous. 5. Don't don't go too far from Ponyville. 6. Don't do anything stupid. But most of all... 7. Don't. Trust. Anyone. We shall meet again though it may be a while. If you want to get back home, I need you to follow my orders to the letter. But for right now, I paid your hospital bill and left some spending cash plus a few other things back at your camp (You're welcome). Right now it would be wise to build up a familiarization with your surroundings. Perhaps read up on some Equestrian history (Twilight can help you with that), and to try and build a good reputation with the locals. Until next time. ~A Friend P.S. As funny as it would be, I could not bring myself to let you run naked back to camp. I left you a set of clothes in the bathroom. “What does it say?” Applejack asked. Dima snapped his attention back to her. “Nothing. Just junk mail.” He set the paper down on the nightstand. They sat in silence for a bit, enjoying each others warm embrace once more. Dima reflected on what the doctor had said. Applejack practically saved his life, again. He felt obligated to pay her back some how. Applejack then made a quick glance outside. “Seem to be getting late. I best get going.” She released Dima and set down on all fours. She stretched out each leg one at a time and reclaimed her hat that lay a few feet away. An idea then came to Dima, it was a little crazy too say the least. But he felt getting to know her better would be a good start at saying 'thank you'. “Hey Applejack, are you...” Dima chocked on what he was about to say. “Hmm?” Applejack looked to him with a adorable puzzled expression. “Are you... busy tonight?” He managed to say. “No, ah ain't got much really going on for tonight. Why?” “I was wondering...” “Yeah?” “Would you like to join me in a little walk around town? Perhaps we can go to that carnival you mentioned?” Dima felt a knot form in his chest as he said that. It felt like an eternity until she gave him an ear to ear smile hugged him once more, this time a little tighter. “I'd love to,” She said whilst holding on to him. “So... I'll come find you in say, an hour?” Dima asked. “Sound like a plan! See you in a bit sugarcube.” Applejack replied a little enthusiastically. She then exited the room, leaving Dima to himself. Dima let out a breath of relief as he relaxed back into his bed. She actually said yes. Dima couldn't understand why he felt such joy inside. Perhaps things will start to get better? Location//: Tesseraka [Capital], Griffon Kingdom Local Time//: 21:04 Hours Date//: xx/xx/xxxx Things could not get any better as he watched as the target centered himself on the crosshairs. The Griffon King was now in his sights. He was to give a speech addressing his people on a certain series of assassinations of a few major political figures. Assassinations that may or may not have been caused by the marksman behind this gun. The crowd was gathered in a large cobblestone court yard in front of the royal palace. The King appeared from behind a set of curtains and stood on a balcony protruding from the impressive structure. The night was pitch black, but the amber glow of tall torches and lanterns strung up above the crowd was enough to provide a decent amount of light. He stood proudly, puffing out his chest feathers as he began to speak with gusto. His deep, sonorous voice, followed by passionate gestures of the paws and wings managed to keep the crowd in awe of their confident leader. His voice managed to carry well, and with a slight magical enchantment, it could even be heard softly by the assassin despite the distance. The King was able to quell some of their worries by speaking of how he is personally overseeing the operation to find the murderer, and how he would not rest until the culprit had been apprehended. Said murderer readied himself inside the bell-tower that he had made into a firing position. It gave a perfect view above the palace walls that encapsulated the court yard. Unfortunately, the original inhabitants of this location had been... uncooperative. So drastic measures had to be taken. A shame, but no matter. The marksman couldn't help but chuckle. “Let's add a little chaos... in to this equation,” He whispered to himself. He began the final adjustments for his shot. ~Range: about 350 meters ~Windage: 82° at 9 mph ~Temperature: 68° F w/ 28% humidity ~Barometric Pressure: about 98 kPa ~Firing Angle: +10° ~Final Compensation: Up 2 mils, Left, 2.5 mils. He begun to pace his breaths, slowing down his heart rate and relaxing his body. He tensed up on the rifle. Pressing himself closer to it, and becoming one with the weapon. He then stopped breathing altogether. Feeling the soft pulse throbbing in his hand, he began slowly squeezing the trigger. Pacing it just right so that it would fire between beats. He felt light headed, his body begging for the air that he had been denying it. He demanded that his lungs be patient, he needed to focus. The vision in his eye narrowed, he saw nothing save for his target. Nothing else in the world matters. He just to keep his sights on target. He placed the crosshairs on the center mass of the King. Everything was in place. 'Say good night little bird', He thought to himself. He begun to add force to his finger, continuing until he felt a small catch in the trigger. The boom of the rifle resonated through the little room. The bullet traveled the distance in an instant, tearing a trail of vapor in the cool night air. The round met its target in the center of his chest. The King was knocked back by the shot, his eyes wide open in shock. After a brief moment, his eyes rolled to the side of his head and he collapsed on the floor of the balcony. The screams of the crowd could be heard from miles away. Scores of terrified Griffons began flying everywhere. Guards poured out from within the castle, dragging their leader’s lifeless body to safety. "Flawless," He thought to himself. “Mission accomplished, my Lord,” He spoke into his headset. “You have done well. Return to base, there is more at hand,” His benefactor replied. The complacent killer picked up his rifle and begun to make his way out of the tower with a sinister smile on his face. Author's Note Man, I have to stop being so slow with these updates. But hey, better late than never right? Thank you for reading and I hope you guys enjoy! Hoorah! -Semper Fidelis
Chapter 1: Enter The UnknownTo: Captain Dimitri Mayakovsky From: Acting General Sergey Shoygu Captain, my time is short so I will give you a quick synopsis. Two weeks ago GRU scientist have discovered an unknown signal from, believe it or not, another dimension. Now they have been able to open a path to this place. I know your unit have just gotten off deployment and were looking forward to going home, but it is out of my control. The other high brass in the Kremlin has selected you and your team. We have little intelligence on what is on the other side. Most drones we have sent have been lost, but provided enough infomation to confirm that they can send a man. Your orders captain, are to travel to this so called “new world” and provide a full report on what you find, if you manage to return. This mission is top secret Captain, not even Putin himself knows. I couldn't convince the Kremlin to cancel the mission or to send extra men, but I managed to get you access to a good size arsenal at your disposal. You have 36 hours to ready yourself and your men. Dima my friend, I wish you the best of luck. You will need it. GRU Intelligence Mission Report Dossier #343//: Operation//: New Horizon Classified: Authorized Personnel Only Unit: Spetsnaz, Spetsgruppa Vympel, Vampir Otryad (Spetsnaz, Vega Group, Vampire Squad) Date: 10/XX/2014 Personnel: Captain Dimitri “Dima” Mayakovsky, Squad Leader/Medic Warrant Officer Vladimir “Vlad” Kamarivsky, Engineer Sergeant Boris Zadornov, Machine Gunner Sergeant Kiril Yeltsin, Marksmen Resources Requested: ~All: MP-443 Pistols + suppressors x4 RGD-5 Grenades ~Dimitri Mayakovski: AK-12 Assault Rifle ~Vladimir Kamarivsky: AKS-74U Assault Carbine Saiga 12K Shotgun RPG-7V2 Rocket Launcher ~Boris Zadornov: PKP Pecheneg Machine Gun Symtex Explosives ~Kiril Yeltsin: AS Val Sub-Machine Gun Dragonov SVDS Sniper Rifle ~Vehicles: Ka-60 Kasatka Helicopter T-90A Main Battle Tank Resources//: Granted Dima looked at the two letters one last time as he sat on top of a wooden crate on the side of a dirt road. The starry night sky shining above him. He wanted to make sure he hadn't missed anything. But one thing kept bothering him. "Not even Putin knows", that seemed very strange. Also, why were they sending soldiers? Wouldn't cosmonauts be better suited for this? Soldiers and scientist rushed every where in the large field where the passage was being built. He paid no attention as truck after truck carrying large cargo covered in drapes roared past. The entire field had been turned into a military base. Two square kilometers of tents and men. Dima was steeling himself for what is to come. It was a great honor to be able to go into a place no man has set foot in the name of mother Russia, but also a curse. The scientist say that once we go through, there is little chance for going back. Due to the nature of the portal, it will either destroy itself or render itself inoperable after it is used. He knows their death is expected by everyone, but he and his men are Spetsnaz, they always seem to have a way of escaping the Grim Reaper. Dima felt a hand being placed on his shoulder. In a split second he spun his head. “I hate it when you do that.” He said as he stood up and slapped his hand into his friend's. They gripped each others hand tightly. “You alright Dimitri?” Vladimir asked noticing the worry in his friend. “Just thinking...” Dima replied. “We don't get paid to think Dima” The two friends chuckled as Vlad lead him to the conference room. As the entered they were greeted by the rest of Vampir Squad. Kiril and Boris leaned against the back wall of the small room filled with scientists and expensive equipment. One of the scientist approached Dima. “We all set for the jump sir. Your equipment is on the Kasatka.” The scientist said in a respectful tone, “And the tank? There is no way in hell the Kasatka can carry that.” Boris asked. “We plan to air drop it. The passage way will set you a few thousand meters over land. As for what lies on that land, we have no clue.” The scientist admited. "Do you think there is any life there?" Vlad asked. “Of course there is. E.T. has one hell of a phone bill, and we're coming to collect.” Kiril joked, drawing a few laughs from everyone. The men continued talked and laughed for sometime until another scientist opened the door. The man walked in and saluted Dima. “We are ready sir.” He said with the utmost respect. Dima took in a deep breath of air. “Vimpir Squad, move out.” Dima's heart sank as he gave waht was probably his last order. Vampir Squad made their way out of the room and boarded the flat-bed waiting for them. “Traveling in style like always” Vlad said while they piled on the truck. "Hey, the ladies love men with big cars." Kiril said. "How would you know?" Boris asked. "Oh, I know what the ladies like..." Kiril joked with a wide grin on his face. "Is that why the girl at the bar poured her drink on you last week?" Dima said. The others bursted out in laughter. "At least I try! When was the last time you had a date?" Kiril retorted. Dima had no response to that question. "Come on Kiril leave him be." Vlad turned to Dima. "He can't help it if he is bad with women." "Whose side are you on?" Dima asked as he playfully jabbed Vald in the shoulder. "My side." Vald answered. The short ride felt like hours for them. No matter how much they joked and tried to keep their spirits up, the looming possibility of death hung heavy in the air. Dima looked up to the sky. The one advantage of being in the middle of nowhere is that there is little light polution. The stars shined in their full beauty as the moon watched them from overhead. The beauty of the sky was somewhat poetic. Like a rose, and how it represents both beauty and death. Dima pulled out from his pocket a large cigar and lit it. He inhaled slowly and exhaled all the smoke in a large white cloud. He could taste the hueof cherry that was infused with the cigar. He took in another, feeling the warm smoke swirling in his lungs. The nicotine dulling his senses. “I thought you didn't smoke anymore?” Vladimir asked. “I don't. But I’ve been saving this one for an important day.” "Hey, we'll be alright." Vlad reassured him. "I don't know Vladimir... What if we don't make it?" "We will make it." "How can you be so sure?" "I'm not sure. But has that ever stopped us before?" Dima looked up to the sky for a moment, then back to Vlad. "You're right." "When have I ever been wrong?" "Remember that bet we made when you thought you could make a tank go 100 kilometers per hour?" Dima asked. "Point taken." They arrived at the main site, they stood in awe of what was before them. A large metal arch built into the open ground, with men swarming around, prepping it for it's first and last use. The arch was as big as the doors to an airplane hanger. It looked like something out of a movie. In front was their helicopter, fueled up and ready to go. Vampir Squad jumped off the truck and slowly approached the helicopter. Vlad dawned his gas mask. The scientist say that the air is safe, but Vlad wasn't taking chances. Kiril opted for his usual style of wrapping a black scarf around his head, covering all but his eyes. Dima wore his helmet with NVG mounted on top, shooting goggles, and a scarf wrapped around his neck. The team slowly approached their ride. Kiril was the pilot for this mission so he climbed in the cockpit and began started the engines. Lights lit up the cockpit and the helicopter slowly roared to life. Dima, Vlad, and Boris sat in the edge of the main cabin, letting their legs dangle. Dima finished his cigar and threw the butt on the ground. A loud voice blared on the base's intercom. “Attention all personnel, we have a go for the jump. Begin final preparations.” Scientist rushed around every where. The helicopter was up to speed and ready to take off. “All preparations complete. Opening portal” The arch started to glow like a christmas tree. Dima stared at the marvel in front of him. The arch formed a slowly expanding rift in the air. A swirling mixture the colors of the rainbow glowed brightly. The scene was unreal, and yet he was witnessing it. After a few minutes the portal was now fully open. The T-90 tank was the first to go. It didn't have a crew so they put a remote control linked to the throttle and the steering. The controllers guided through the portal, where it disappeared without a trace. They were next. The ground crew signaled for Kiril to take off. Kiril slowly powered the engines. The main rotors began to accelerate. The down wash blew the frost off the ground they were on. The helicopter began to lift itself, slowly rising to a few meters off the ground. Kiril tilted the nose of the helicopter down and the helicopter began to inch forward. “Ready my friend?” Vlad's voice came over their radio head sets. “To late to stop now” Dima replied. "I miss home already." Boris added. Kiril pulled pushed the stick forward and helicopter slowly entered through the portal. Scientist stared in awe of the once-in-a-lifetime show. Dima held on tightly to the hand rails as a swirling vortex slowly enveloped the helicopter. "Make us proud!" The intercom said just as they pulled through. Every man on board shut their eyes and hoped for the best. Dima felt the portal passing through his body. It gave a burning sensation, like passing through a hot shower. Dima shot open his eyes, looking back to see the portal now behind them. He looked down and saw that they were at least a couple hundred meters in the air over a forest area. Just to the right was a large canyon that ran through the ground. The helicopter was filled with cheering from Vampir squad. Hugs and high fives went all around. But the merriment was cut short by the sound of alarms going off in the Kasatka. Loud clanking and puffs of smoke came from the engine. The helicopter slowly started to spin. Dima quickly made his way to the cockpit. Kiril was panicking over the controls, flicking switches and pressing buttons all over the cockpit. “Whats wrong!” Dima shouted, “The portal fried the electronics and snuffed the engines, were going down!” Kiril pulled back hard on the stick to try to stabilize the aircraft but it didn't respond. They were now spinning violently in the air as the hurtled towards the ground. Everyone held tightly as the spinning got faster and faster. Dima checked the altimeter, they were now at five hundred meters and dropping. A loud scream was heard on the their headsets. Dima turned and saw Vladimir hanging out of the door of the cabin. Vlad held the skid of the Kasatka for dear life. Dima rushed to his friend and held out his hand. “Hold on!” Dima shouted. He gripped Vlad in one hand and the hand rail in the back of the cabin as they continued to spin out of control in the air. Dima felt himself slipping off the cabin. “Dima, save yourself!” Vlad shouted when he noticed Dima struggling to hold on to the helicopter. “I won't let you die!” “I wasn't asking you Dima.” Vlad let his hand slip from Dima's grasp. “Vladimir!” Dima shouted. Dima watched helplessly as his friend fell towards the ground. Boris pulled Dima back in the helicopter He looked down and saw that they were at least a couple hundred meters in the air over a forest area. Just to the right was a large canyon that ran through the ground. They strapped in and awaited their fate. Kiril looked back into the cabin from his seat. “Brace Yourselves!” He shouted. Dima watched as the forest became closer and closer. Dima began to tear up. This is it... this is how he dies. “It is an honor to know all of you.” Dima said with solemn voice. He then closed his eyes, the last sound they heard was the sound of the rotor blades hitting the ground and tearing metal. A loud boom echoed all through out the snowy forest. Then...silence. Author's Note Thanks for reading. This my first fan fic here. I would love to hear any critism you may have. Good or bad, it won't face me. Any suggestions and comments will only help me get better. Thanks! Notice: This chapter has been remastered and may be slightly different to those who have read the orignal version of this chapter.
Chapter 2: ContactDima slowly came to, with his body full of horrible pain. He opened his eyes to see that he was inside what used to be the helicopter. It was now wrecked and he was hanging upside down in his seat. He tried to unbuckle himself, but he release was jammed. He looked up (or down, as it were) and saw his saperka laying on the ground. He reached for his saperka, shimmying himself until he finally managed to grab it. He began to run the sharpened edge along the restraints until it finally snapped, dropping to the floor. His attempts at standing were thwarted by a shock wave of pain surging through his body. He chose to crawl out of the left side wreckage and into the snow covered ground. When he made it about three meters from the helicopter, he took a good look at the damage. The bottom of the fuselage was cracked, the rotors were shredded off, and by the marks on the ground they must have rolled over a few times. Dima found the strength to stagger on to his feet, propping himself with the side of the Kitsatka. He begun a search for his team. He walked towards the cockpit, and then wished he hadn't. Kiril's body was stuck half way out the windshield. His chest was impaled by a large piece of glass. Blood was splattered all over the inside of the cockpit. Dima checked his friends pulse, praying for something, anything... nothing. He then walked around to the right side of the helicopter, he saw Boris lying in the snow. Dima stumbled his way to him. Boris probably didn't strap in properly, he laid a few feet from the helicopter. Dima deduced that he died from the impact. He fell to his knees, feeling his eyes swelling up with a burning sensation, and wept bitter tears. Something that no man would ever do. But he didn't care. He just lost three of his friends. Dima shivered in the cold. He wasn't dressed for this weather. All he had was his black battle dress uniform and light sweater underneath. He knew what he had to do, and hated himself for it. He had to leave them, he would die if he didn't. He pulled Boris and placed him inside cockpit with Kiril. Trying his best to put them and Kiril into a comfortable postion. “Rest in peace...” He said as a final good bye to them. Dima gathered whatever weapons, food, and supplies he could find. He grabbed his rucksack, slung his AK-12 over his shoulder, holstered his pistol, and took a box grenades and as many spare mags as he could carry. Satisfied, he then set out into the frozen forest, with no idea where he's going. He stopped at the base of the tree line. The massive forest loomed in front of him. The sun was setting over the horizon, giving little light to the already pitch black woods. Reluctantly, Dima took a step into the tree line, rifle now in hand. "Here goes nothing..." He begun his treck into the dark forest. His boots crunched in the powdery snow. He walk past tree after tree, the dying light of the sun being smothered by the thick foliage. The first few minutes went without incident. There had been little in terms of anything. Nothing but trees. But Dima kept having a sinking feeling, as if he was being watched. He disregard the notion. The posibility of hostile life sounded absurd. After another hour of walking, it soon became too dark for Dima to continue without a light source. He pulled down his night vision system and flicked the power switch. Nothing happened. He tried again with no success. He pulled off the night vision device and began to inspect it. It didn't seemed damaged on the outside. Perhaps the batteries were dead? He oppened the battery compartment to check the power. They seemed fine, but Dima took them out and flipped them. He flicked the switch and thankfully the device came on. The forest seemed a lot more creepy under the green and black view of the NVG. The trees had a more sinister air to them. Dima hoped he wouldn't have to fight man-eating bushes. He reluctantly continued on his way through the forest. The eerie quietness didn't help much. All that was to be heard was the crunch of his boots on the snow and dead leaves. All seemed normal until Dima heard a crack of a branch behind him. He quickly snapped his rifle to where he assumed the noise originated. He saw nothing through his night vision. He took a few steps backwards before turning around and continuing his march. He walked for another long while. The feeling of uneasiness was still high as he continued. Total night fall had come down upon him. The frigid air began nipping at Dima. The cold wind, the monotony of walking, and a low stomach growl convinced Dima to take a break from walking and set up a small camp fire. He chose to set up next to a fallen tree off to the right. He gathered dead branches and fallen logs for fuel and used his saperka to dig a fire pit. Using a flint and steel, he ignited a small amount of tinder. Then added it to the kindling at the base of his fire. He blew into the ember, causing the flame to grow until it engulfed the kindling twigs. After a few moments the main fuel logs of the fire caught and he now had a decent camp-fire going. He relished in the warmth it provided. The soothing crackling flames drowned out the eerie quiet of the forest. He reached his gloved hands out towards the dancing flames. Feeling slowly began to return to his finger tips. He reached into his bag and retrieved a ration. “It taste like shit but it will keep you alive,” Dima said to himself as he cut open the bag with his shovel. He opened the bag and pulled the large tin can labled "Number 4 (stewed beef)". He pried it open and gazed on the wad of meat drowning in fatty oil. He propped it against the fire in hopes to have a warm meal for the night. Sitting in front of the fire gave him time to think. His spirits were not very high. All he could think of was his regrets. He came to regret not getting the extra bagel at breakfast. He came to regret not bringing warmer clothes. He came to regret forgetting abandoning his friends at the helicopter. He came to deeply regret not trying harder to save Vlad. But most of all, he came to regret being the only one out of the four to survive, for now at least. He knew the he would run out of food eventually, and starvation is a horrible way to die. He decided that when if worst came to worst... drastic measures would be taken. He laid in the snow and tried to sleep. It was a long...long day. He had only slept for a few minutes until he woke up frightened by loud howling very close to him. It barred a striking resemblance to wolves. He quickly got to his feet and tried to identify the source. He looked out into the trees saw pairs of glowing green orbs floating in the dark along with growling and barking. He pulled out his MP-443 and prepared for a fight. The green orbs got closer and closer until they came into the light of the fire. Wolves definitely, but something was off about them. “There made of...wood?” One of them looked ready to pounce. Dima took aim and double tapped the wooden wolf in the head. Dima took aim at the others but felt a sharp pain on his leg. He look down and saw a wolf clamping it's teeth on his left leg. Dima grunted, drawing his saperka, and logged it a couple inches in the wolf's head. Another wolf pounced on Dima, knocking him to his back. The wolf gnashed its fangs at Dima while he held it at bay. Dima placed one hand behind the wooden wolf's head and the other on its muzzle. With one hard twist he snapped its neck. The dispatched wolf fell limp to the side. Dima reached for his pistol and fired at another wolf. The rest of the pack retreated into the darkness of the forest. “No today,” Dima said. He got to his feet and took aim. He took a four shots and killed another three wolves while they tried to flee. The rest got out of visual range before he could shoot them. Dima turned his attention to his leg, it was bleeding badly. With the scarf from his neck and a twig from a dead wolf he fashioned a tourniquet around his leg. As he went to gather his belongings, he noticed that the wolves got to it first. They tore a hole and stole all of his rations. He cursed them loudly with every word he knew and then some. He reached into his rucksack and into his medical bag. After fumbling around a little with the supplies, he pulled a morphine syrette. Dima injected the pain killer into the wound area, and after a few moments was walking shape again. Knowing the wooden wolves would come back, he decided not to waste time. He trekked through the terrain with a slight limp. Past what seemed an infinite forest he finally staggered out the edge woods on to a clear plot of land. He looked over and saw what looked like a wooden building of in the darkness. “Impossible,” He whispered. Drawing what little reserves of strength he had, he ran to the building. His spirits were high, maybe...just maybe there was someone there. He could see it clearly now. A barn? Who cares, he continued to the barn, shouting for help and shooting two bullets from his pistol. He pulled the doors open hoping to see another living thing. He dropped to his knees, his mouth slightly open in the shock of disbelief. The barn was empty. It's dilapidated interior looked like it had been abandoned for years. There was no sign off life anywhere. He shivered, having lost most feeling in his body from his time in the cold. Dima let out a yell of frustration, before droping to his hands and knees. A few tears fell to the floor. He had no hope left in him. In the spur of the moment, he only saw one option... drastic measures. He slowly drew his pistol from his holster and brought it up to his head. “I gave it my best shot...” He said to himself. He slowly began to squeeze the trigger, his whole body trembling in fear, he took a final deep breath and readied himself. Just before he squeezed the trigger he heard a voice behind him. “What in tarnation?” The feminine voice said. Dima spun around and saw a orange...horse? No to small, a pony perhaps? Wait, did that pony thing just...talk? No, no, this must be a hallucination. Dima could barely comprehend what was in front of him. It was so strange, on all fours the pony was about a meter tall, perhaps a little more. It was wearing a cowboy hat. It's blonde mane was tied back. The pony also had a tattoo of apples on it's...thighs? He quickly snapped the gun to the pony and it took a step back. “O chem vy?” (What are you?) Dima asked in Russian. The orange pony slowly approached him. Dima recoiled back, still keeping his sights at the creatures head. “It's ok. I ain't gonna hurt ya,” The pony said in a female southern American accent. “Vy govorite po angliyski?” (You speak English?) Thankfully Dima knew English. “Ah'm sorry. Ah don't understand,” She said. Dima holstered his pistol. “What are you?” Dima's English was accented but the pony understood. “Ah should ask ya the same question. Ah ain't never seen your kind before” “I'm a human. My name is Dimitri... uh, you can call me Dima” “Dima? That's a weird name.” “Do you have a name?” “The name's Applejack partner.” “Ha, and you say my name is funny.” “That's big talk coming from an alien.” “Well to me. You're the alien.” Applejack laughed when Dima said that. “Ah like you mister Dima. Why don't we get ya outta the cold?” Applejack gestured outside the door with her hoof. “Thank you.” He said graciously. He holstered his pistol and began to follow. Applejack lead Dima through the snow and towards a small house. Applejack opened the door and gestured for Dima to enter. The warmth of the house felt like magic on Dima's frozen body. She lead him into what seemed to be a living room. “Just wait here sugar cube, I'll be back.” Dima took a seat in a chair next to a fire place. He took of his helmet and goggles, placing them on the floor, along with his rucksack and rifle. He liked the house, it was cozy. But he was wary of getting too comfortable. He had to keep moving. Movement equals survival in combat. This was no different. Applejack came back with a cup and tray in her mouth. She gently placed it on Dima's lap. “Hope ya like hot apple cider.” “Thank you.” Dima took a sip. Never having cider before, he was suprised that it tasted pretty good. Applejack took a seat in the chair adjacent of Dima. “So uhh...Applejack, can you tell me where I am?” "You're in the Apple family farm right now, partner. Home of the best apples in all of Equestria." Applejack replied enthusiastically, almost as if she were advertising it. "No, I meant, like country, or region or something like that." Dima corrected, causing a slight 'oh' to escape the pony's lips. "Well, this whole place is known as the Kingdom of Equestria, an' down the road a ways is Ponyville." “Equestria? Well I guess I'm not Earth.” “Earth?” “Yeah, my home. We received some sort of signal from here and we were sent here through a portal to explore this place yesterday.” “We? So there's more of yer kind here?” “Three of my friends and myself. They... didn't make it. I rather not talk about it.” Applejack saw the grief-stricken look in face. “Ah'm so sorry.” The mare couldn’t comprehend how much pain he must feel. To lose three friends, it was unimaginable. “Don't be, it was not your fault.” “So how did ya end up in my barn?” Applejack tried to change the subject. “We crashed on the other side of the woods over there. I walked through the night and ended up here. But along the way I had to fight off a pack wolves made of wood. Are those common?” “Ya fought off a pack of Timber Wolves all by yourself!?” Timber Wolves are know for their lethal efficiency. “At a price. One of the got me in the leg when I wasn't looking. Which reminds me...” Dima looked down and noticed that he was still bleeding a little. “You wouldn't happen it have a bathroom of some sort. I need to take care of this bite.” “Yeah. Sure thing sugar cube, up the stairs and to the left” Dima stood up, lifting his injured leg a little of the ground. “Would ya like some help?” Applejack offered. “No, I'm fine” He pulled a first aid kit from his rucksack and limped his way up the stairs. He entered the first room he on the left. It was a small bathroom, it looked rather human, a shower, a sink and mirror. Except for the toilet, which seemed to be meant for their species. He dropped his black battle dress uniform pants and took a look at his wounds. Several puncture wounds from the bite, nothing he can't fix. He cleaned off the blood and put an anti-biotic cream in the wounds. He then wrapped a gauze bandage around it. He put his pants back on and went down stairs. Applejack was still sipping on her own cup of cider. Dima wondered how she was holding it without hands, but decided that even if she told him, he still wouldn't comprehend the logic. “You alright?” She asked. “Yeah, I stopped the bleeding.” “So how did ya scare 'em away? Normally they would have killed a pony.” “I killed most of them first.” “How?” She inquired. “Mostly with this.” Dima pulled out his pistol. "Wow. Uhh, what is it?" Applejack tilted her head slightly in confusion. Examining the piece of equipment. "A pistol." “A what?” “Basically it shoot pieces of metal out of it at a high velocity. In most cases it causes serious injury, or instant death in the hands of a professional.” “Sounds awful.” “Tell me about it, I’ve been hit a few times. Not fun.” “Hay! Wait a minute! You were pointing that thing at me!” “Sorry, my last encounter with the life here almost ate me,” Dima looked away in embarrasment. He just stared at the floor and twiddled his fingers. Applejack decided to let the matter go, she probably would have done the same if she was in his place. “So... how do you live alone in these conditions? It's a blizzard out there” Dima tried to change the subject. “Oh I ain't alone, mah brother, sister, and grandmother are outta town. And the storm, it'll be gone by tomorrow.” “How can you be so sure? It looks pretty bad.” “Well, It was scheduled to end.” “Scheduled? How can you schedule the weather?” “The Pegasus ponies control it. Duh.” “Control weather? That's insane.” “They don't control it where your from?” “No...it just...happens.” Dima stared out the window, the snow was dying down. Now was a good time to make shelter for the night. He began to gather his things. “I better get going before it gets dark. Thanks for everything.” “Where ya off to?” “Got to make shelter before night fall.” “It's awful cold out there. Ya sure?” “I'll be fine. Thank you for the hospitality.” Dima opened the door and began to walk out. But he stopped in his tracks. He turned his head to the air. “Something wrong?” Applejack inquired. Dima shushed her. Placing his index finger over her lips. She was offended at first until she too heard something. Howling, and it was close. Dima looked down and saw a small drops of blood forming a trail on the floor and the snow. Damn, they tracked him. “Applejack, get inside.” “What about you?” “I got unfinished business.” Dima shouldered his AK-12. He took it of safety and set it to semi-automatic. Bullets are finite here, got to make them count. He brought his face up to the iron sights, slowly panning around as he walked away from the house. The snow fall his killed visibility, he could barley see the house that was roughly twenty meters away. Not good. Dima saw a faint green glow in front of him, he fired a shot between the two green orbs and the glow ceased. A loud howl then rang out, Timber Wolves came from every direction and encircled him. One of them pounced. Dima side stepped out of the wolf's path and shot the wolf before it hit the ground. Another came from behind and jumped on his back. Dima reached behind him, grabbing the timber wolf by its neck and threw it to the ground and stompped on it's head. Dima made short work of another two approaching wolves with his rifle. The wolves began retreat, Dima chuckled at their fear. He feeling of certain victory soon cut short as a large alpha Timber Wolf appeared through the snow. The thing was as big as a bear! It was made of thick branches and vines. It growled in a low feral tone towards Dima and snapped its jaws. “Nu, davai! Davai!” (Well? Come on. Come on!) Dima took a stance while he lined up his sights. Dima steadied himself as the alpha wolf charged the soldier. As the alpha wolf pounced Dima threw himself backwards, letting it pass over him. He spun around and took aim, he fired eight shots in rapid succession. The alpha wolf didn't seem effected. It charged again, Dima lined up the perfect head shot. He held his breath and pulled the trigger *Click*. The one sound no soldier wants to hear in a fight. In one great swipe of it's claws, the alpha wolf struck Dima across the chest sending him flying far back. Murphy's law had seemed to strike once again. He regretted leaving his body armor in his rucksack. The wooden claws went through him like a knife through butter. The wolf pounced on him while he was on his back. Dima struggled to hold the alpha wolf at bay while it tried to rip out his throat. The pain was unlike anything he had ever felt as blood poured out of his chest. The wolf barked madly in Dima's face, with breath that smelled like pine trees, and its saliva was some type of sap. Dima gave hard punches to it's face, leaving a dent in some of the wood. But the wolf still kept on him, viciously trying to bite him. The wolf used it's fore paws to pin down Dima's arms, it now had a clean shot. The wolf dove its head down to finish of the soldier. When suddenly the wolf was knocked over. Applejack bucked the wolf as hard as she could. “Get off my friend!” When the wolf got back on its feet Applejack was terrified of its size. The wolf now saw an easy target an ran towards her. By the time she turned around to run, it was too late. The Timber Wolf tackled her to the ground, she was overwhelmed by its strength. The wolf's teeth had just touched her neck when she heard yelling and a loud thud. Dima tackled it to the ground. He was enraged, after all the kindness she had shown him, there was no way he will let her get hurt while he is still breathing. Dima pulled out his saperka shovel while the wolf rolled on to its feet. They slowly walked in a circle around each other. Dima's combat shirt had three large tears across the chest, revealing deep gashes that were bleeding profusely. The wolf bared its teeth and growled, Dima did the same. The wolf lunged at him, Dima side stepped and with a hard downward strike, he imbedded his saperka into the wolfs head. The wolf howled in pain. Dima then gave a hard round-house kick its face, knocking the wolf to the ground with a loud thud. Dima reclaimed his saperka and hacked at the wolfs neck. It twitched and let out blood curtailing cries of pain. The wolfs neon green blood splattered every where. He continued chopping until he was half way through. With a fit of adrenaline fueled rage he shoved his hands into the wolf's neck. He pulled harder and harder with the loud sound of wood cracking and the squelching of blood squirting. With one final heave Dima ripped the alpha Timber Wolf's head off its body. “YA SPETSNAZ!” (I am Spetsnaz!) Dima took the head in his right hand and slowly walked towards the other timber wolves. They trembled, whimpered, and cowered in fear, to scared to move an inch. Dima had blood splattered all over him, a combination of the alpha's and his own. Dima tossed the head in front of them. “Who's next!” They ran in terror to their sanctuary of the Everfree, not one of them looked back. Realizing that what ever it was they were attacking, it wasn't going down with out a fight. Dima then felt a horrible pain surge through his body. The adrenaline rush was wearing off. He buckled his knees and collapsed to the ground. Applejack ran to his side. She grimaced and the sight of him, the large slashes through Dima's chest was pouring blood. “Dima?” She shook his body but got no response, “Dima...wake up” She began to sob, “Please...” She felt him breath slightly, he was alive. Dima eyes shot open and focused on her. “Did...did he hurt you” The last thing he wanted was her to be hurt because of him, “Of course not, you saved mah life” She said, wiping away a few tears. “You saved me first” He smiled with his teeth stained red of blood. “Then we are even” Applejack smiled He looked down and saw that his wounds were slowly repairing itself in front of him, leaving three large scars running down his chest. The scars then faded away, leaving no trace of he previous damage. “How is this possible?” He said, felling his chest to make sure it wasn't a hallucination. “Timber Wolves are plants. The sap that flows inside is kinda like a chemical them makes them grow real big and strong. Ah guess it works with skin too.” Applejack help Dima stand as she lead him to the front door of her house. Dima then turned around and walked back into the snow. “Where ya going?” She asked. “I forgot something.” He shouted. Dima disappeared for a short while then returned with his rifle and the head of the alpha wolf. “Why did ya bring that?” Applejack said pointing to the head, “I worked hard for this, I’m keeping it.” They then continued into the warmth of the house. Dima laid his belongings next to the door and removed his torn shirt. Applejack thought about averting her eyes while he changed shirts, but couldn't help but take a peak, or two. His upper body was well toned and very muscular. There were a few small scars and burns on different places of his body. Applejack snapped out of daze Dima placed on a fresh shirt from his bag. He begun to pack his belongings again. “Ya still wanna leave? You could stay here if you want,” Apple Jack offered, Dima looked outside, it was too late to build shelter for the night and the fight had really drained him. It would be better to move out in the morning. “I guess I’ll take you up on that offer after all.” Dima lead himself to the living room and plopped on the couch, completely drained of energy. He removed his boots and laid on his back. He slowly drifted to sleep, trying to rest from his stressful time here. That couch was the best thing he had slept on in years. Applejack walked over to Dima, handing him a blanket. He graciously took it and wrappe himself into it. “Sleep tight,” Applejack whispered. then she proceeded upstairs to her room. Applejack laid in her bed, trying to comprehend today's events. She didn't understand why she cared so much for somepony she had just met, well...not really a pony but you get the picture. Perhaps it's just the mystery of the creature that captivated her, and...maybe something else. But she couldn't tell what that "something else" was at the moment. But something was special about him, something she kind of liked. Slowly the night over took her. All cozy in her warm bed, she fell fast asleep. Author's Note Thanks for reading! Hope you enjoyed it. Notice: This chapter has been remastered and may be slightly different to those who have read the orignal version of this chapter.
Chapter 3: Lost My CauseLocation//: Near Kandahar, Afghanistan Local Time//: 00:23 Hours Date//: xx/xx/2013 Dima readied himself by the corner of the building. He peaked around with his night vision on and saw two insurgents in the dirt road conversing. “Take them,” He whispered into his radio headset. With a small crack in the distance and a hiss in the night. They were both dropped down. “Good night,” Kiril's voice whispered through the headset. Dima signaled for the rest of Vampir squad to move up behind him. Vladimir, Yuri, Vasily, and Ivan stacked up behind him. “Clear,” Kiril said after eliminating the rest of the guards “Alexsandar, do you have our extraction ready?” Dima asked over the radio. “Affirmative,” Alex replied. “Good, going radio silent.” Dima's team moved through the streets under the cover of darkness. They stacked up behind the door of their target building. Dima looked back and got a 'go ahead' nod from Vlad. He kicked open the door with him and the rest of the team followed. Vasily went around back to breach with Boris. The rest of the team split up in groups of two. Going room to room, clearing the office section of the warehouse. Ivan slit a sleeping guard's neck as he and Yuri made their way. Dima and Vlad went into the large hanger area of the warehouse. “Sir, no sign of the dirty bomb. Perhaps GRU's Intel was off?” Vlad whispered, “Patience Vlad, it's here. Just...” Dima started before a bullet hissed past Dima's head, “Contact!” Dima shouted as he and Vlad took cover behind metal crates. They returned fire and dropped two hostiles. But more kept coming in as an alarm blared. Dima and Vlad were still pinned down by enemy fire. Ivan and Yuri entered the hanger bay, taking cover behind a fork lift not to far way. The four men were stuck in an intense firefight. Hot lead flying between both ends of the hanger area. Vlad fired a burst, killing a man whowas aiming at Dima. Ivan threw a frag grenade towards a group hiding behind a shipping container. The fight roared on few a few minutes, but it felt like hours for Dima's team. With every insurgent they killed, they were replaced with more coming in. To make things more difficult, men were now climbing the cat-walk above them and setting up firing positions. Dima attention snapped to one man in particular. An insurgent begun aiming at them with an RPG. Dima shot a burst into the man's chest, but the rocket fired as the guard fell. He watched helplessly as the rocket impacted behind Ivan and Yuri. The blast sent them flying a couple feet. Dima tried to run to them but Vlad held him back. “GET DOWN!” Just then another rocket flew past them and flew out a window. A loud explosion rocked the warehouse, Boris had blown a breaching charge on the side wall. Machine gun fire drowned out the enemies as Boris mowed them down with his PKP, along with Vasily following up with his carbine. Dima and Vlad left their cover and charged the rest of the insurgents. Vlad shot a guard in the head with his carbine as they ran. The wall behind the man now spattered with blood. They approached the center area of the warehouse. A few folding tables were set in a semi-circle fasion with various papers on top, and a pin board with maps and other papers pinned up was set on a table, leaning against a shipping container. Dima took a few steps before feeling a heavy mass ram into to him, knocking him to the floor. Next thing he knew, a man was wrapping his large, meaty fingers aroun Dima's neck. The look on the guards face was inhuman, perhaps feral. Dima tried to pry the man's hands off of his neck. His body desperate for air as his vision begun to fade. Dima tried to punch the man on top of him, but the lack of air weakened his blows. Just as Dima was about to black out, a sudden gunshot tore through the man's head, spraying blood, brain, and bits of skull on the floor. The limp body feel to the side, staining the concrete floor with a ever growing crimson puddle. Dima managed to snap out of his daze and begun to inhale gallons of air. He looked to his side and saw Vlad with is carbine trained in his direction. He walked towards Dima, holding out a hand to help him to his feet. "You alright?" He asked whilst stuff huffing and puffing from the adrenaline. "Yeah. Thanks for-" Dima eyes shot open in suprise. He suddenly bolting down the warehouse. Dima then ran to where Ivan and Yuri were. As he rounded the fork lift, he saw their bodies laying lifeless on the ground. He collapsed to his knees, gazing at the horror. Their bodies were torn to shreads by shrapnel. As much as Dima wished he could do something, there was no surviving this. "How did this happen?" Dima heard Boris coming from behind him. "Anti-personnel rockets." Vlad answered with a solemn voice. “Dammit” was all Dima could say. There were no real words to describe how he felt. Vlad and Boris walked over to Dima. Vlad placed a hand on Dima's shoulder. He wanted to say something comforting, but Dima rose to his feet before he got a chance. "Dima?" Vlad tried to get his attention. "Not now." He muttered, his gaze still on the bodies. “Hey, you need to see this!” Vasily shouted from the area with the maps. The rest of vampir squad rallied to Valisy position. Dima took a stepped forward to see what Vasily found. Inside a large red shipping container was a rectangular object covered with a olive drab tarp. Boris removed the tarp covering the ordinance and with all his strength he pulled it out into the light. It was a grey box made of heavy metal. Boris and Dima unlatched the locks and began to lift the top off the container, it stubbornly stayed stuck. After a final push it popped of and they placed it to the side. “Mother of God...This isn't a dirty bomb. It's a nuke” Dima stared at the explosive in awe. “Hey I have maps over here,” Vasily said. "" Britian, France, America... my God even Russia." Vlad began to examine the explosive with careful scrutiny. "I haven't seen many nukes, but we have at least a megaton yield here. North Korean would be my best guess. The workmanship on this leaves much to be desired,” He explained. “Strange? They haven't added a primer yet, they must not have completed it” Vlad added. That managed to quell some of Dima's worries. “Set a charge, we're going to bury it in this place” Dima ordered. Vasily went to work on the bomb. Setting a large pack of Semtex next to the incomplete nuke. Pressing the glowing buttons on the timer until a 1:00 appeared on the glass. Before he could start the clock, gun shots rang out everywhere. "Contact, left side!” Vasily shouted. "There in the offices!" Boris added. More insurgents came into the building, screaming and firing at them. Dima ordered everyone out the back. The squad ran like hell to the other side of the hanger. Just as he was about to reach the exit, Dima felt the extream pain of bullets tearing through him. He dropped to the floor, watching helplessly as the rest of his team left him behind. Dima knew that they would get them selves killed if they came back for him. He decided against calling for help. Dima slowly dragged himself back to the bomb. Suppressing the urge to pass out from the pain, he dragged himself by his arms, leaving a bloody trail in his wake. If he was going to die here, he was take them with him. He pulled himself up to the bomb and set the timer for ten seconds. He raised his hand a few inches, ready to smash the red button that started the clock. He chuckled a little at the irony, the red button, it was always the big red button. He closed his eyes and brought his hand down. Only to have it stopped just millimeters above the red button. He looked up to see a insurgent holding his hand. He had a wicked smile on his face. “ليس اليوم، الخنزير الروسي” (Not today, Russian pig) He said to Dima before raising his AK-47. The last thing Dima saw was the butt-stock hurtling towards his face. Dima woke up from his nightmare with a short scream. Slipping off the couch and hitting the hard wood with a thud that resonated through out the house. He felt cold sweats running down his body. He picked himself up off the floor and removed his shirt, silently heading for the door. He exited the house, taking a good look at the night. The cold air blew across his skin as he sat on the porch. He felt something different, something so alien to him....peace and quiet. He was used to waking up to the sound of gun shots and people yelling. But to wake up on his own, in the quiet starry night, it was all so strange. He took a deep breath, taking in the sweet air that carried a hue of apples. He gazed in the sky, wondering if he could still see the man on the moon. There was a face alright, but it looked more like a unicorn than anything. He chuckled at the sight. Unicorns? Yeah right. He reentered the house, seeking the comforts of the sofa. He didn't bother trying to fall back asleep. He never slept much anyways. He just laid, waiting, for the morning that seemed so far. He thought back to his friends, all dead. The proud team of eight. In his opinion, the best squad in Vympel Group. Until that one mission...he stopped there, the rest was to painful to remember. He was the last man of the proud Vampir Squad. He shouldn't be alive, but now he is. What now? That question hit him the hardest. What is the next move? He can't seem to think of one. He has no meaning on this planet, no purpose. What does a hyper lethal special forces operator do in a world of technicolor talking ponies? Besides go insane. Applejack woke up in her bed, as usual. Birds were chirping as the first rays of the morning sun bathed the farm in their golden glow. The snow had passed during the night and the apple trees were beginning to bloom again, filling the air with a sweet scent. Suddenly she remembered that she had an inter-dimensional traveler sleeping in the living room. She steadily climbed out of bed, dawned her trademark hat, and trotted down the stairs to check on her guest. She entered the living room seeing Dima lying awake on the sofa. “Didn't get much sleep?” She inquired, “I don't sleep much anymore” he replied. He rose and dawned his combat shirt. He began to take a short inventory of the belongings in his bag. He used up one of his fifteen mags for his AK-12, along with two of the twelve for his MP-443, his saperka needed sharpening, he had his solar charger for his electronics, a few changes of clothes (mostly uniforms in different shades of camouflage), his night vision, a whetstone, gas mask, binoculars/laser designator, a flashlight, a case carefully packed with his grenades, duct tape, a small survival kit, a partially melted Hershey bar, the Alpha Timber wolf’s head wrapped in his scarf, a blueberry muffin (how did that get in there?), a 4x rifle scope, his body armor set, and a few other various belongings strewn about in his bag. Applejack watch as he went through his things. She noticed something on the floor and picked it up. She examined the two metal tabs with a thin chain connecting them. It also had writing on it that she couldn't understand. “Hey Dima? What's this?” She asked, holding them out in front of her. He turned to face her. It didn't take him long to realize what she had. “Those are my dog tags. They must have fallen off” “Yer what?” “This would identify my body if I were to die in combat,” He explained. Applejack did want to think about that. She politely handed them back to Dima, who then placed it around his neck. He finished up his inventory, placing it all in his rucksack. Applejack suddenly felt her stomach growl. “Hey Dima, care fer breakfast?” “No you have been to kind, I couldn't,” He said politely, “It'll be mah pleasure. No one in the Apple house is gonna go hungry” She said with a resolute tone, “I've survived on less, I'll be...” “Follow me,” She gestured with her head, Dima decided not to argue and went with her to what appeared to be the kitchen. Dima sat down at the table, unsure what to do next. A few moments passed before Applejack returned. She had made some eggs, various greens, and her personal favorite, apple fritters. Dima wanted to scream “How is that possible!?” when he saw her using a fork with her hoof, but he decided it would be best if he kept his mouth shut. He took his first bite, than another, than another. Aside from the greens that didn't seem safe for human consumption and the lack of meat. The rest of the food was pretty darn good. The best Dima had in a long while. Beats MRE's by a long shot. “Thank you for the meal,” Dima said. Wiping his mouth clean with a napkin, “It's nothing” She gave him a warm smile. “Hey Dima? Mind if I ask you a question?” She asked. The smile now replaced with a more serious expression. “You just did,” He replied. “Very funny. Anyways, where did cha learn to fight like that?” Applejack started. “I was... well, still am a soldier. Spetsnaz, the best of what Russia has to offer” He replied. “A soldier? Oh, you mean like a Royal Guard?” “I assume so.” “Did you ever...you know...kill?” “I’ve done many things. I can't say I'm not proud of all of them.” “What did ya do?” “I rather not say.” Applejack gave him a small nod in agreement. “Sounds like you've been through a lot,” She said in a tone of sympathy and curiosity. “More than you know.” “Can you tell me what it was like?” Applejack asked, “Where?” “On your world.” “Yeah, Earth... home. I.. I really can't think of a way to sum it all up.” "Ah come on now. Use that head of yours." She cheered in a patronizing sort of way. Dima just gave her a small glare, before letting out a small chuckle. "Fine, fine, let me think. Umm, my world is full of natural wonders, kind people, beautiful art, great music, and amazing culture. I wish I had pictures or something to show you." "It's alright. Can you tell me what is your kind like?" "Sure. My kind is the human race, or humanity. Humanity is an array of different humans, or people as we say. We look similar for the most part. But there is still a lot diversity in my people. Our bodies come in various shapes and sizes. Our skin color can vary, usually from different shades of white, tan, or brown. Our hair comes in shades of blonde, brunette, or black. But that is just the physical part of the equation. Thought some people can look alike, no one person is exactly alike on the inside. We all have our own aspirations, thoughts, beliefs, and ideologies. But, there is one common thread that holds us all together. Every single human being is searching for something. Whether it be searching for fulfillment, love, money, lust, knowledge, wisdom, security, power, fame, friendship. Every person is searching to find something that he or she believe is missing from their life. Humanity is tied together by the belief that we are missing something in our current lives, if we didn't believe we were, we wouldn't desire to change anything that is around us. We wouldn't seek to be a better race of people, better families, or better individuals. We've had many trials and tribulations. Storms have stroked, societies have collapsed, evils have risen and tried to take control, but in the end we beat the odds and used the lessons learned from our past to better ourselves in the future." Dima took a pause to catch his breath. Applejack stared at Dima, dumbfounded with his small speech. "Sorry, I uh... ramble sometimes." Dima's apology managed to snap Applejack back into attention. "It's alright sugarcube, really. It's just your world seems amazing. It seems so much like mine too. I mean, i'd use about eighty percent of that to describe Equestria." She explained. "So, what do you plan to do next now that your here in Equestria?" Applejack asked. Dima stopped eating when she asked that, placing his fork down on the table. "Truthfully, I don't know what to do anymore.” He said with a soft sigh. "I have no meaning here... no purpose." Dima hung his head, staring at the grain of the wooden table. He then felt a soft object touching his arm. He looked up to see Applejack reaching across the table and placing her soft forehoof on Dima, coupled with a beautiful smile. "Hey, don't you worry now. I'm sure things will get better. Just wait and see." She spoke with a voice as soft as silk. He gave her a small smile as a way to say thank you. Dima wanted to believe her, but as far as he's concerned, things don't look to bright. He knew the best thing for him would be to keep moving forward. As much as he would like to stay, doing so wouldn't help his cause of surviving here, and perhaps getting home. He got off from the table and headed towards his rucksack. He slung it over his back and started out the door. “Where ya going?” Applejack inquired. He looked over his shoulder to Applejack “...I have to go.” “Go where?” “I don't know.” “So you're just gonna wander off into the sunset?” “What other choice do I have? I can't stay here, it's obvious. The only way that things will get better is if I make it better. And I can't do that if I just stand around and do nothing.” Applejack wanted to argue, but Dima was right. He can't stay forever. “Well, will ya come back?” She asked in a worried tone. Her mouth forming a small frown, and puppy eyes in full swing. He got down to one knee on her front porch while Applejack stood in the door way. His eyes now level with her's, he stared. Getting lost in the beautiful sea of green that shined with the light that came from the beautiful sunrise behind him. Applejack stared into Dima's dark hazel eyes. His light skin and short dark hair glowed slightly reddish in the light. He then reached behind his head, pulling off his dog tags. “These have been a part of me for as long as I can remember...I've carried them through hell and high water, then back again.” “I want you to have them. And thank you... for everything.” He said with a sincere smile. Carefully undoing and redoing his dog tags around her neck. They hung perfectly over the center of her chest. The cold steel tickled Applejack's fur. Dima stood back up and began to walk. Just as his foot steeped off the porch, Applejack spoke. “Dima?” “Yeah.” “Promise me you'll be safe.” “I don't have to. You've already saved me.” “From who?” “Myself.” With that, he left the house. He began to walk, unsure where to go or what to do. But he knew that it was best to keep moving. Even though she was about 10 meters away, he missed Applejack already. Applejack could do nothing but watch as he slowly walked off. Farther and farther, until he disappeared from sight. She looked at the necklace Dima gave her, with little understanding of what it was. Yet she cherished it, missing the strange creature that owned it. She went back into her house. She remembered she had to meet her family coming back from Appleloosa. She packed her saddle bag and proceeded to the train station. “Back to life I suppose” She said to herself. She began her walk. Through the orchards and down the dirt road. The faint *click clack* of the dog tags resonated with every step she took. After a thirty minutes or so she entered Ponyville, still bustling with ponies going about their own business. She walked through town, deciding to stop at Rarity's place for a small visit. She made her way to Carrousel Boutique. Knocking on the door she heard a voice inside shout “Coming!”. Rarity open the door, smiling at the sight of her friend. She gestured for her to come in. They took a seat in the show room. “What brings you here darling? Oh let me guess! You finally decided to model for me, let me just...” Applejack cut her off. “No, I said it once and I’ll say it again. I will never model for you. And ah didn't have a reason really, just thought I'd drop by” “Hmm?” Rarity noticed something different on her friend. “What's that on your neck darling?” She pointed at the strange necklace hanging from Applejack's neck. “Oh, uhh it's nothing really,” Applejack quickly explained. “It sure looks like something to me,” Rarity said in a teasing tone. “It's just a gift,” Applejack explained nonchalantly. “EEEEEE, Who is he!?” Rarity screamed, “What?” “Who is the lucky stallion of course! Is he cute!?” “It was just something from a friend.” “Oh Applejack, still in denial. But I must say that it is a rather... unfashionable gift. I think he should have gone with pearls...no no, Emeralds YES! That would look perfect on you,” Rarity ranted. “Arrgh ah don't have time for this,” Applejack made her way for the door. Rarity cut in front of her. “Can at least tell me his name?” Rarity begged. “His name is Dima,” With that she left the boutique. Rarity pondered on what Applejack told her while she went back to work on her latest dress. “Dima? That's an unusual name” She said to herself. After a while of walking Dima noticed a small town about two hundred meters out. He looked to his left and saw a tree line on a high hill not to far from said town. The way it over looked the town made it a good place to set up an observation post. He headed for said hill top. When in an unknown or hostile environment, it is best to get a understanding of your area. He decided to preform reconnaissance on this town. A stake-out, so to speak. He laid prone on the ground, pulling his binoculars from his bag. He began observing the town. It was made numerous small buildings and cobblestone roads. He adjusted the focus on the binoculars to get a sharper image. The most of the buildings had a Victorian likeness in their design and architecture. That's strange? He looked around and noticed the inhabitants were all ponies of various colors. One in particular caught his attention. A pink pony that bounced instead of walking. It had puffy pink hair, almost like cotton candy. The logic defying pink pony then stopped bouncing to converse with an other orange pony. Wait a minute? “Applejack?” He said to himself. He soon confirmed it was her by the cowboy hat on her head. After a minute or so she and the pink pony began to go their separate ways. Applejack disappeared behind some buildings. Dima continued to draw as much information as he could by observing. All he could gather was that there seemed to be three variations of ponies. The standard ponies, like Applejack. The winged ponies, the pegasai that Applejack had mentioned. As well as ponies with horns, the unicorns, just when Dima thought he had seen it all. He also saw that the residents seemed to live just like people do, street vendors selling their products, children playing in the streets, ponies doing various jobs around the town. Perhaps ponies and humans aren't so different. An hour or so had passed and Dima started to become hungry. He reached into his bag for an MRE, but he felt a hole where they once had been., “Right...” He said in a bitter tone, recalling the wolves that had stolen them. He pulled some snare wire out of his survival kit and headed into the woods. He set up multiple traps in the woods, hoping to catch something made of meat. He decided to discontinue his recon and make camp. He started a campfire and built a hammock to sleep on. He pulled the whetstone and began to sharpen his saperka shovel to a fine edge to pass the time. Once he got it sharp enough to the point where he could shave with it. He decided to check if his traps worked. He inspected the first one, as luck would have it, he caught a chipmunk. It had a white, heart shaped patch of fur on its back. It hung helplessly by its feet in the air. Dima pulled it out of the trap, holding it firmly against a log. He readied his saperka to hack off the animal's head when leaves rustling in the distance caught his attention. The chipmunk used that chance and made its escape. Dima drew his pistol and approached the source of the sound. He peaked from behind a tree to see the pink pony from earlier. The pony (which Dima assumed was a she) hung by her hind legs that were caught in Dima's snare. She desperately reached for the ground with her fore hooves, trying to reach the Hershey bar put as bait. “Almost got it” She grunted. Dima stepped on a twig, causing the mare to turn her attention away from the candy. “Who's there?” She asked. “I'm warning you, I know karate! Hiya!” She began striking stereotypical poses and karate chopping the air. “I'm quivering in fear,” Dima said sarcastically as he approached her. Pinkie turned to face Dima, her eyes popped into an unrealistic size as she gasped in gallons of air. “So you're the new pony in town! Ha, I knew my Pinkie senses weren't wrong.” Dima held Pinkie in one arm, then cut her lose with the other. Gently setting her down on her feet. Pinkie closely examined Dima. “Wow I’ve never seen a pony like you before.” “First off, I'm a human, not a pony. Second, how did you know I was here.” “Well my Pinkie senses told me that there was a new pony in town Mr. Hoo-man.” “Pinkie senses? Is that like Radar or something?” “What's a Radar? OOH does it taste good? Can I have some Radar Mr. Hoo-man?” “My name isn't Hoo-man” Dima looked away for a moment, he looked back and Pinkie was gone. “Where did she...?” “Hi I'm Pinkie pie!” Pinkie was standing on Dima's head. He recoiled back, landing on the ground. “What's your name?” She appeared this time to his right. “Just call me Dima” He rose to his feet, dusting himself off. “So your the one!” Pinkie shouted, “What?” “The one who gave the necklace to Applejack” “What of it?” “That was so sweet of you.” “It was just a small gift.” “So does that mean Applejack is your special somepony!?” She asked excitedly, “What?” “You know! The pony who has a special place in your heart.” “What!? No I...” He began to explain before a loud 'Woah' and more rustling in the trees drew his attention. He went to the other trap to check what he caught. Pinkie followed him, she saw a familiar gray Pegasus hanging by her all of her hooves. “Ditzy Doo?” Pinkie asked, “Almost got it” She reached for the Blueberry muffin set as bait. Stretching her neck as far as she could, but was only able to chomp at the air above her prize. “Oh, hey Pinkie. Fancy seeing you here” Dima face palmed. He cut Ditzy down in the same fashion as with Pinkie. Ditzy then grabbed the muffin and stuffed it into her mouth. Swallowing it after a few munches. “Thanks mister.” “Don't mention it.” “Well gotta get back to my little Dinky, see ya.” The mare flew back towards Ponyville. Dima went back towards his small camp site. The sun was beginning to set, and he was pissed about not catching anything. He laid in his hammock, looking upon the town. He slow started to close his eyes, maybe, just maybe, he could get some actual sleep. “HEY DIMA!” Or not.... “What do you want?” He mumbled not bothering to open his eyes. “Since your new in town, I was thinking of throwing you a party. It'll be great! There will be cake, streamers, games, cake...” Pinkie began listing. “No,” Dima said gruffly. Sitting up in his hammock. “What?” “I don't want a party,” Pinkie's hair deflated, her bright pink color beginning to fade. “Oh, ok.” She began sniffling. Dima could see tears forming. “I'll just b-be g-going now,” She began to slowly walk away. Dima is a hard man, but the look on that pony tugged on his soft side. He felt like crap, reluctantly giving in. Damn these ponies! “Pinkie...” He said. The mare turned her head to him. “On second though....I'll take that party,” Pinkie's color and puffy hair promptly returned as she jumped for joy. “On one condition,” He interrupted. “Yes anything!” “Don't tell Applejack I'm comming, but make sure she's there. As for the party, nothing to big alright?” “You got it! Tomorrow night, I’ll come get you when we're ready!” She then bounced back towards town. Dima felt his conscience clear, but now he had to attend some party. He didn't like crowds or parties. To late now. He laid in his hammock, slowly swinging from side to side. The sun was just dipping below the horizon, the cool night slowly coming in. He relaxed in the warm air. Slowly drifting to sleep. Author's Note Sorry it took so long. But hey, at least it's finally here! Thank you to all who waited this long. I promise to make the next one as soon as possible. HOORAH -Semper Fidelis Notice: This chapter has been remastered and may be slightly different to those who have read the orignal version of this chapter.
Chapter 3.5: Finish the FightLocation//: Near Kandahar, Afghanistan Local time//: 00:57 Hours Date//: xx/xx/2013 “Fall back! Fall back!” Vlad shouted as he and the others made their out of the warehouse. They bolted through a small back lot and hurdled over a waist high concrete wall at the end of it. Bullets flew past their bodies, kicking up dirt as they hit the ground all around of them. The men scrambled to a road eighty or so meters behind the warehouse. A section of the road was dug like a shallow trench into the ground, providing the team with cover. Vlad pressed up against the dirt wall, bullets hissing right over him. He peaked over the dirt, he could see the muzzle flashes of rifles coming out of various places in and around the building. Boris and Vasily took up their firing positions and began to fire back. Vlad looked back to the team and noticed they were a man short. “Hold you fire!” Vlad ordered. Everyone ceased fire and ducked into cover. “Why? What is it?" Vasily asked, "Because they can see our muzzle flashes too?” Boris guessed, “Yes! But more importantly–” Vlad was interrupted by a bullet hissing past him. He popped out of cover and fired a few short busts from his weapon before ducking back down. “Because Dima is missing!” He said over another hail of bullets. “We have to go back!” “Are you insane?” Boris said. “For all we know he's dead!” “We leave no man behind Boris! Dead or alive!” Vlad shouted, "Vlad's right." Vasily said, "But how can we get to him?" Vlad had no idea; he peaked above the dirt ledge once more. By the muzzle flashes he could tell the majority were still around the building, but he spotted a small squad advancing on them. One of the insurgents raised his weapon. The muzzle flashes from his buddies around him revealed it to be an RPG. A small flash erupted, Vlad felt a chill of terror go down his spine. He immediately ducked his head below the dirt berm as the rocket flew over head a split second later, overshooting and detonating elsewhere behind them. He looked back over and saw the man loading a second shot. Vlad knew the chances of him missing a second time at this range were slim. And with the anti-personnel rockets they were using, he didn't need to hit very close. The man stood again and shouldered his RPG. Vlad glanced over to Boris and Vasily who were firing at the man in the warehouse. Their faces full of fierce determination, with a dash of fear. They were soldiers without a doubt. But they would die without even knowing what was coming. He looked one last time to the man with the RPG, just in time to see his body drop to the ground. “Sorry I'm late, had to adjust for wind” Kiril's voice came over Vlad's headset. Vlad heard a bang over the radio, another man from the advancing squad dropped. “I'll take care of the ones flanking you.” He added, “Kiril, when we get back I owe you a drink.” Vlad said. "Remember, i don't like the cheap stuff" Vlad looked over to Boris and Vasily, he whistled to get their attention. He held up three fingers, they nodded and waited. In Vampir squad, holding up three fingers means “When I count to three. follow my lead”. Vlad loaded a fresh mag into his weapon and pressed up against the dirt. “One” Vlad started, “Two” Vasily cocked a round into his weapon's chamber and Boris opened the bi-pod on his PKP. “Three!” All at once, the men raised their weapons, took their firing positions, and began returning hot lead. The enemy fire drew closer as they fired back, chipping away at their already deteriorating cover. The relatively close range and dim lights outside the warehouse made seeing their targets much easier. The enemy began to fall back into cover. Vlad managed to drop one insurgent with a short burst as he stood up from behind a wall. He suddenly saw muzzle flashes coming from inside the warehouse, numerous bullets began kicking dust into Vlad's face as the fire drew closer. He ducked into cover as bullets hissed overhead. He peaked over his cover, but was met with another burst of fire that fell just short. Boris began laying suppressing fire on the window, but it failed to deter the enemy gunner. Vasily had to pull Boris down into cover before the insurgent could home-in on him. “Kiril!” Vlad called into the radio. “Yes?” “Top floor, far right window, he has us pined! Do you have a shot?” “On it” Kiril said. After a few moments Vlad heard a faint crack in the air. “He's done. Oh, that's another drink Vlad.” “Bill me later.” Vlad replied. Vlad raised his weapon and began firing, Boris followed suit. Vasily tapped Vlad on the shoulder. Vlad fired another burst into a man's torso before he reentered cover with Vasily., killing an insurgent “What is it?” Vlad asked, “There is a small hill over there” Vasily pointed to a hill to their left. “Cover here is getting thin. I'll move up to there and flak them, you and Boris cover me.” “Your not going up there.” Vlad started, “If you let me up there, I can–” Vlad cut Vasily off, “Not by yourself.” Vlad said. He moved over next to Boris, who was laying fire on a group hiding behind a wall. “Boris, me and Vasily are moving up. I need you to give us cover.” “My pleasure!” Boris said as he shifted his machine gun fire. Vasily hopped over the berm first, Vlad followed after him. They sprinted towards the hill, a few shots landed a bit to close for comfort, but Boris' fire did it's job and kept a majority of the insurgents preoccupied. As they approached the hill, Vlad and Vasily dropped to their stomachs and crawled to the top it. The hill turned out to be higher that what they had thought. It over looked the back lot that was about five meters away. It provided a clear view of five insurgents hiding behind the concrete wall firing at Boris. In fact, they were the only ones left. Vasily pulled a grenade from one of his vest pouches. “You want to do the honor?” Vasily asked Vlad as he passed the grenade to him. Vlad took the grenade and pulled the pin. “A present from Russia!” He shouted as he released the spoon and tossed the grenade. Both men ducked back into cover. After a loud boom, all was now silent. Vlad peered over the hill to see what happened. By the scorch marks on the ground, he could tell that the grenade overshot by a little. But the fragments did their job. He looked into the back lot and saw numerous bodies littered every where. Many lay on the ground; the ones who weren't dead were laying on the ground bleeding out. A lucky few were attempting to crawl away, dragging their blood soaked bodies at a snails pace along the dirt. They were desperate to escape the horror surrounding them. One lay in the ground with his head missing (courtesy of Kiril). Vlad looked towards the building. He saw the gunner from earlier with his torso hanging out of his window, and a giant hole blown through his chest (also courtesy of Kiril). Vlad and Vasily stood up and walked towards the back entrance of the warehouse. He feared what might have become of Dima, or, what might be left of him. “Please be alive.” Vlad said to himself, “He's a tough man. It will take more then that to kill him” Vasily said in a comforting tone. Vlad hoped he was right. Suddenly a burst of rounds flew behind Vasily. The two dropped to the ground just before another burst passed over head. “Dammit Boris! It's us!” Vlad called into his radio, “Sorry about that.” Boris replied. “I swear...one day I'll...” Vlad muttered. Feeling too pissed to even finish his sentence. Vlad and Vasily picked themselves up and walked into the now dimly lit warehouse. Vlad looked around the warehouse for Dima while Vasily went to look for a light switch. Vlad slowly approached the nuke area. He saw what seemed to be a trail of dried blood across the floor. He reached into his bag and pulled a flashlight and followed the trail. It went next to the bomb then back out and through the front. He turned his attention to the nuke, he then noticed something. While the bomb itself matched the known design specs that Vlad had seen; there was some writing. Although Vlad knows little to nothing about the language, he could tell wasn't Korean. In fact, the strange symbols didn't seem to match any language. It was such a strange collection of glyphs, alien almost. A variety questions kept occupying his mind. What is a North Korean warhead, with inhuman writing, doing in the middle of Afghanistan? And why was just Vampir squad the only ones out here? He pulled a camera from his bag and began taking photos of the warhead. Something is not right. The warehouse lights began to flicker and hum back to life. “Hey, I found the–” Bang All time seemed to slow as single shot cut Vasily's statement short. Vlad turned around and saw Vasily's body slowly buckle to the floor. He tightly clenched his neck as blood spurted against the wall and floor. Vlad turned to his left and saw the shooter. A scrawny person, no older than twenty or so, with a beat up AK held clumsily his hands. He looked terrified, probably hid during the entire fight. Vlad raised his weapon to his shoulder, centering his sights on his target's chest. The young man turned, attempting to flee. The first shot spun him around, the second shot knocked him to the ground with a soft thump. Vlad dashed over to Vasily side. The bullet had ripped through the side of his neck, severing his jugular. Vlad tried to keep pressure on Vasily's neck. He turned his eyes to Vlad, the look on his face was unreadable. Confusion, anger, fear, and sadness all at once. His breathing became laborious, taking in air as if he was having an asthma attack. Vlad pressed harder, desperately trying to reach for his first aid while still keeping pressure. Vlad yanked out gauze from the bag, wrapping it around his neck as quickly as he could then returning to putting pressure. It was no use. Blood still poured out from his neck. Vlad's eyes burned with tears as he felt Vasily's pulse slip away. Vasily, with his dying strength, gently grabbed onto Vlad's arm. The expression on his face saying it's alright. His heart beat began to slow. thump............thump thump...................thump thump..........................thump thump.................................thump thump................................................ Vasily light grip slowly loosened, he looked up to the ceiling. He took a long deep breath; his eyes rolled a little to the side as he slowly exhaled. “What happened!” Vlad heard Boris' voice coming from just outside the warehouse. “I heard shots and I got here as soon as I–” Boris stop his sentence as he entered and saw Vasily. “He's gone,” Vlad said. He gently closed vasily's eyes. “Lets go.” “Where?” “To destroy this nuke, and find Dima.” Vlad began, “I'll be damned if three of our men died for nothing” Vlad said in a unsettling tone. “Vlad!” Kiril called out over the headset, “What?” Vlad retorted gruffly, “I saw a van leaving the area two minutes ago, heading south towards the mountains.” “Your point?” “I think I saw them load a body into it.” “That's got to be Dima.” “I already have Alexsandar with a med-evac helicopter heading to your location for the casualties.” “Thank you.” “Get him back Vlad. And make them suffer.” The men heard the helicopter landing in the field behind the warehouse. A few moments later a team of four men entered the warehouse, stretchers and body bags in tow. Boris and Vlad assisted the medical team in carrying the casualties to the aircraft. The rotor wash of the helicopter kicked up a large plume of dirt and sand into the air. As they loaded their fallen comrades into the cabin, Vlad climbed into the cockpit, tapping Alex on the shoulder to get his attention. “Take good care of them.” Vlad said. “I will. I promise.” Alex said with sincere tone. With that Vlad exited the aircraft, and both men watched as it took off, slowly disappearing into the starry night sky. The sound of the rotors now replaced with soft chirping of crickets. “Get a car and meet me out front.” Vlad walked back towards the building. Boris did as instructed. He found keys on a body in the back lot. They belonged to a pick-up truck that was parked next to the building. He drove around front and waited for Vlad to appear. When Vlad finally showed, he was sprinting towards the truck. He vaulted over the hood and climbed into the passenger seat. “Drive!” he shouted. Boris floored the gas pedal. They sped way in time for the charge on the nuke to detonate. The explosives shook the ground, blowing out all the windows in the building and tearing a few holes in the walls “Where to next?” Borris asked, “Due south, let's get our friend back” Author's Note Greatings my lovely readers! This is just a filler chapter to show what happen after Dima was K.O. in chapter 3. Sorry if it's not that good. There is not much plot here execpt for one part (Your smart enough to figure out which). In other news, chapter 5 is halfway done. Thank you for reading. Till next time... HOORAH -Semper Fidelis P.S. For those of you who are confused as to who the other people are here; Yuri, Ivan, and Vasily are (or were) members of Dima's unit, and Alexsandar is the evac pilot who was waiting to extract the team upon mission completion. ---------------------------------------------------------[Classified]-------------------------------------------- A select few readers will be recieving a PM from me. I have a question I need to ask them...
Chapter 4: Hell of a PartyLocation//: Near Kandahar, Afghanistan Local Time//: 01:13 Hours Date//: xx/xx/2013 Dima slowly woke up in blackness, pain surged through his body as he attempted to move his legs. He turned his eyes to see a window, the stars were shining in the night sky. His other senses slowly came back to him. He noticed the sound of a engine, a quick look to his left confirmed that. He saw that he was laying in the back of some car. Perhaps a van? Two men sat in the only seats, the driver was making a phone call while the passenger seemed to be sleeping. The thought then hit Dima, he had been captured, his friends were still back in the warehouse. He never set the charge, he failed. He was going to die a failure. He looked to his legs, there was a small puddle of blood underneath his thighs. He tried to move his legs, but the pain said otherwise. He silently felt his legs, there were bullet holes alright. The fact that he wasn't dead meant that the bullets missed his femoral arteries. He looked back to his captors, they needed to be dealt with. He wasn't in shape to take on both men with just his bare hands. Weapons he thought, he checked himself for anything. Nothing, rifle, pistol, saperka, all gone. Dima had to get creative, he looked to see if he had anything of use. He came up with nothing but spare change and pocket lint. They had taken everything. “You have to be kidding me...” He thought to himself, feeling defeated. He stared at his feet and pondered. “At least they didn't steal my boots,” He thought to himself again, then the idea came to him. He looked back to the front, his captors were not paying attention to him. Now was his chance. He sat up and began to unlace his boots. He threaded each string through, careful not to make a noise. He pulled the last of the string though and tied them together. He began to wrap it around both his hands. Leaving a two feet of boot lace between. He pulled the string taut, and slowly began to crawl his way forward. His legs were useless at the moment. Making his task all the more difficult. He finally made it to behind the seats undetected. Dima was ready to strike, but then he took a moment to think. He had a problem, the passenger has woken up and had his hand on a AK. To make things worse, the driver had a pistol on the dash board in front of him. Dima had to make a choice, kill the passenger and risk being shot by the driver. Or, kill the driver an risk being shot by the passenger. He couldn't think of any situation where he would come out unharmed. But one plan seemed to give him the best chance. He tightened the boot lace around his hand. He began a countdown in his head. “Three” “Two” “One” Ignoring the pain, Dima jumped up and wrapped to cord twice around the passengers neck. He pulled a tightly as he could. The passenger struggled to pry the cord from his neck, desperately trying to breath. Dima saw the driver reach for his gun. Instantly, Dima let go of the cord from his left hand and putting it in his right, he then grabbed the head of the driver and slammed it into the steering wheel, also causing the horn to honk. While the driver was dazed Dima grabbed the pistol and brought it up to the drivers head. Bang. The windshield was splattered with blood as the driver slumped over the wheel, his foot stuck on the accelerator. Dima hadn't noticed his grip loosening on the passenger. To late. The passenger ripped Dima off of him and pushed him to the ground. The passenger reached for his rifle as Dima laid on his back. The passenger began to take aim. Dima's heart was pounding in his ears as time seemed to stand still. Right when the passenger was about to pull the trigger, the car hit something. Dima's body flew forward, he caught a glimpse of what had happened. The car had hit a guard rail on the side of the road. To make matters worse, they were on a mountain road. Dima and the passenger gazed in horror at the chasm below. A steep slope that led downward into a valley below. Dima felt the back end of the car rising as the van rolled over the guard rail. Both Dima and the passenger screamed as the car went over. Dima rolled out of his hammock, hitting the ground below. He hyperventilated while on his hands and knees, slowly catching his breath. Dima picked himself up and looked around. The sun was a little ways above the horizon. Well...at least he slept through the night. He stretched himself and walked into the forest. Hopefully, catching breakfast would take his mind off things. After bushwhacking a little ways in, he heard the sound of flowing water. He continued following the sound to its source. A small, crystal clear stream flowing through the forest. Dima saw good sized fishes swimming through. Only one thing ran through his mind. Meat. But how to procure it? He thought of making a rod, he decided it would take too long to fish them out the old fashion way. Shooting them would be a waste of bullets. An idea then came to him. Dima removed his boots and rolled up his pants. He walked into the cool water, which was only about a foot deep, and waited. He saw one fish swimming towards his legs. Dima readied his hands, timing the right moment to strike. When the fish was in optimal position, he lunged his hand into the water. But the fish slipped through. He tried again with another fish, same results. He tried again, no luck. Dima tried once more, you guessed it, nothing. Dima kicked the water in frustration. He then looked up stream. This time a large fish swam lazily down the shallow stream. Dima was certain he couldn't miss this one. He calmed himself, keeping his hands just above the water. The fish came within inches of Dima, he drove his hands into the water. This time he caught it. The fish fought back, squirming while Dima held it tight in against his chest in a bear hug fashion. When the fish stopped moving Dima held it out in victory. But it was cut short by the fish wiggling around violently. It slipped free of his grasp and into the air above Dima's head. As it came back down, slapped Dima hard across the face with it's tail, causing Dima to fall backwards into water. The fish swam about meter from him then stopped. It turned to face Dima from beneath the water. He saw it's cheeks beginning to swell up. Dima slowly approached the fish. It then spat a stream of water into Dima's face. “Suka!” (Bitch!) Completely pissed, Dima went for plan B. He pulled his pistol from its holster, took aim, and shot the fish. Dima collected his bounty. The plump fish had enough meat for a nice fish breakfast over the campfire, as well as some for later. He also learned a valuable lesson. Fishing sucks. Pinkie worked her flank off setting up the preparations for the party. This was her first party for an alien after all, and she was NOT going to mess it up. There may never be another chance like this again! After several hours of hard work, she put up the last streamer then stepped back to admire her handy work. Sugarcube corner had never looked so good, and it was still morning. The “Welcome Mr. Hooman” banner hung perfectly from the ceiling. The party cannon was loaded and the invitations were sent. This was gonna be huge! Pinkie then stopped to think. “Wait...what was it he said about the party?” She said to herself while placing a hoof on her chin. She though back to when she talked to Dima last night. “AHA I remember now! He said he wanted to be as big as possible! Better send more invitations. NO NO NO. I'll invite everypony in ponyville! THIS IS GONNA BE THE BIGGEST, MOST BESTEST PARTY EVER!” “Pinkie, are you talking to yourself again?” Mrs. Cake's voice cried out from another room. “YES MRS. CAKE!” Pinkie replied, “Could you keep it down a little dear? the twins are still asleep.” “Sorry Mrs. Cake,” She replied softly. Pinkie went to make more invitations for the party of the century. She couldn't wait! Dima didn't do much during the day. He made improvements to his camp. He crafted a lean-to over his hammock, dug a proper fire pit, and dug a shallow trench to observe the town from. Dima did not know how the time on this planet worked, but by the position of the sun he could guess it was around five or six in the afternoon. Pinkie should be here soon. Dima wanted to make a good first impression. He assumed bathing would be a good start considering that he smelled like a dead animal. He grabbed a bar of soap from his bag and headed towards the stream he found earlier. He stripped himself naked at the bank and entered the cool water. He walked towards a deeper end of the stream where the water was above his waist. He poured water on his body and began to wash up. After a few minutes he was done. He walked out of the water, gathered his belongings and proceeded back to his camp. He redressed in a “underbrush” pattern uniform and sat in his hammock. He remembered it was Vlad's favorite pattern. He reached into his bag, rummaging around until he felt what he was looking for. He pulled out an old photo. It was a group photo of all of his team when they graduated Spetznaz training. Dima, Vlad, Kiril, and Vasily knelt down in front while Boris, Ivan, and Yuri stood behind them. The prominent features were Vasily giving Vlad rabbit ears, Dima flashing the peace sign, and Boris had blinked during the picture. He remembered how proud they all were. How accomplished they felt, how happy they were. He missed them, all of them. “It's all my fault. It was my job to make sure you were safe...I failed you...all of you...I'm sorry” He held the photo tightly, running his fingers across the faded gloss. “You guys be good up there...” He said, throwing the picture on top of his bag. He hung his head low, taking a deep breath. “Ooooh are these your friends?” Pinkie's voiced surprised Dima. How long had she been there? “Not anymore. Now lets go.” Dima got up and took the photo from Pinkie, then placed it back in his bag. Dima began walking towards the town, gesturing for Pinkie to follow. “What do you mean there not your friends anymore?” She asked while trying to catch up. This was new to Pinkie. She was all about making friends, not losing them. Dima stopped walking, Pinkie remained behind him. “...” “Hey, did you hear me?” “I did.” “So why aren't they–” Pinkie started, “Because they're dead,” He cut her off mid sentence with a voice as cold as ice. “How did–” Pinkie started before Dima cut her off again. “I don't want to talk about it,” He stated gruffly. “But–” “Not. Another. Word.” Almost everypony in Ponyville came to Pinkie's welcome party. There were so many that most of the party had to be held outside of the Sugarcube Corner. Among the mass of ponies Twilight and the gang (save for pinkie) were all having a good time, waiting for Pinkie to return and start the party. “I wonder who the new pony is? Must be somepony important if Pinkie made this big of a party,” Twilight pondered. “Ah hope he or she ain't too shy. We all know how excitable Pinkie is, and that ain't much help to new-comers...” Applejack said. Her friends nodded in agreement. “It would be awesome to have another pegasus in town. Somepony new to fly with,” Rainbow Dash added. “Yeah...um, that does sound nice,” Fluttershy's voice could barely be heard over the noise of the music Vinyl Scratch was playing for the crowd of party ponies. The speakers on the DJ table popped as Pinkie's voice came on. All the ponies went silent as Pinkie cleared her throat. “Mares and Gentlecolts it is my pleasure to introduce you to our newest guest in town,” She pulled Dima by the arm, revealing him to the crowd. “Dima?” Applejack tried to peak over the heads of the other ponies. She had thought he was gone forever. It looks like Pinkie found him. Dima stared into the crowd of shocked ponies. Unsure what to do next, he just nervously smiled and waved. The crowd of ponies remained deathly silent, unsure what to think of him. “Monster!” Some random pony shouted. All hell broke lose as the crowd fled the scene. Ponies left and right scattered in every direction screaming, tripping over one another, and trampling those who were to slow. Ponies ran into their houses, locking their doors and barricading their windows. Once the chaos had cleared, all who remained were Pinkie and most of her friends. Fluttershy was no where to be seen. “Hmm, didn't expect that,” Pinkie said while scratching her head. “It's Zecora all over again.” “Oh well, more for us! Lets go!” Pinkie grabbed Dima by his hand and lead him to the Sugar Cube Corner. Pinkie brought Dima to the bakery. A group of ponies were waiting inside, one of them being Applejack. Dima could tell by the ponies faces that they had mixed emotions about he presence. “Uh, Pinkie. What is that?” Rainbow Dash pointed to Dima. “This is my new friend” Pinkie wrapped herself around Dima legs, flashing a bright smile. “I see pinkie got to ya” Applejack chucked, “Wait? You now it?” a cyan pony asked, “I have a name” Dima finally spoke. The cyan pony snapped her head to Dima in surprise. “I am Dimitri, you can call me Dima” He drew closer and raised a open hand in greeting, The cyan pony nervously smiled and took a step back. Taking the hint, he retracted his hand. “I see...” “I'm Rainbow Dash,” She gave Dima a friendly grin. “Nice to meet you,” Dima said, returning the gesture. “Uhh, why don't we all sit down,” A lavender mare suggested. All the ponies with Dima in tow sat down at circular table. Dima pulled a chair next to Applejack and Pinkie, the others kept at a distance on the opposite side of the table. Pinkie excused herself from the table left to bring snacks for the group. Well, more like she got up and left, saying “I’ll get snacks!” as she dashed into what seemed to be a kitchen. Leaving Dima and Applejack with the others. Dima felt each mare's eyes look on to him. Nobody said a word, the group sat in a awkward silence, occasionally broken by the sound of Pinkie's rummaging through the kitchen. Dima twiddled his fingers on top of the table. He lifted his hand upward. The eyes of the mares on the other side of the widened and Dima was sure he heard one of them gasp. He then reached for his neck and began scratching a small itch. The mares seemed to relax after he did so. “So, uh Dima these are my friends” Applejack began, She pointed to a white mare with a purple mane “This is Rarity” She pointed to the cyan and rainbow maned mare “That's Rainbow Dash” She then pointed to the last pony, the lavender one “And that's Twilight Sparkle” Applejack then stopped for a moment and began short a head count. “Huh? Anypony seen Fluttershy?” “She probably fled with the other ponies,” Twilight said in a slightly exasperated tone. “Figures,” Rainbow Dash rolled her eyes. “So um, Dima is it? How long have you been here?” Twilight began. “Depends on what you mean by 'here',” He answered. “What do you mean darling?” Rarity inquired. “Today is my first day in town. But I got here three days ago.” “Oh, so where did you come from before? Manehatten? Baltimare?” Twilight listed. “I don't you understand. I got 'HERE', as in your world, three days ago. I'm originally from place called Earth.” Dima explained. Twilight attempted to hold in a chuckle. “What's so funny?” Dima said in a slightly disturbed tone. “I'm sorry, I just thought you said that you are some 'other-worldly' traveler.” She explained with a few giggles. Dima did not find it so humorous. “You don't believe me? I have a wrecked aircraft and the rotting corpses of my friends to prove it. Now i'm stuck lightyears from home and almost died once already. How about that? Very funny, no?” He retorted. Silence once again filled the room. “I-I'm so sorry. I didn't know” “I'm sorry too. I've just...I've just had a rough few days.” Dima sighed. He felt a hoof gingerly placed on his back. He turned to look at Applejack. “Ya sure that you're fine? You don't want to at least talk about it” Dima was grateful that Applejack cared, but he didn't want her sympathy, and he definitely didn't want to talk about it. “I'm fine,” He was lying. Dima knew Applejack could tell. Pinkie then returned with the snacks. Well, if you consider snacks as a bunch of desserts the smell of which can give a man diabetes, then yeah, she brought them. Cream puffs, cake, cupcakes (oddly, they were blood red), meringue, macaroons, doughnuts, and eclairs just to name a few were on a massive platter balanced on the tiny pony's head. She wobbled to and fro trying to balance the thing. It was safe to say that everypony (and person) was expecting a disaster. Luckily, she slid the platter of her head with ease, landing it on the table with such perfection that Simon Cowell would give it a eleven out of ten. “Dig in!” Pinkie said exuberantly, All the ponies began to pick out different items from the vast variety. Dima decided to take a slice of cake. It would take his mind off of things. He grabbed a knife and was about to cut the cake, but he took a moment to read it. Dima couldn't help but laugh a little when noticed the cake had “welcome Mr. Hooman” inscription. After taking a slice, he grabbed his fork and took his first bite, the icing was butter cream. The cake its self was a soft, delicious vanilla. There was nothing else on Earth that can compare to Pinkie's baking. “Dof yuz lik it?” Pinkie asked with a mouth full of cream puffs. “I do. Thank you Pinkie,” Pinkie swallowed the mass of cream puffs in one gulp. Then scrambled over and gave Dima a hug. “Daaaw, your welcome!” “A little *ack* help?” He received a few laughs instead. Dima was amazed at Pinkie's strength. The laughter stopped when a strong smell of rotten eggs came from the kitchen. Pinkie released her hold on Dima and started towards the kitchen. “Eww, where is that coming from?” Rainbow Dash said as she plugged her nose. “I'll check,” Pinkie said as she continued to the kitchen door. Dima decided to follow her. The both entered through the door, all seemed to be normal, until Dima saw a distortion in the air above the stove, along with a slight hissing sound. “Hmm, must have left it on” Pinkie said as she approached the stove. She twisted the dial, but it didn't seem to stop the flow of gas. Dima pulled the stove back to check the gas hose. The fact that the hose had been severed was weird, but Dima recoiled in horror when he saw small block of plastic explosives with four seconds left on the timer. Without thinking, Dima ripped Pinkie away from the stove and held her in his arms. He knew he'd never make it to the door and open it with pinkie still in his arms. He had to choose their fates. One, or the other. The choice was simple. He sprinted two and a half steps away from the stove range. He dropped to his knees, shoved the lower half Pinkie between his legs. He laid his torso over the rest of her body. He brought his arms around her head, holding her tightly. Lastly he tucked his head under his body, closing his eyes. A few milliseconds later... BOOM Flames shot up and engulfed every inch of the kitchen. Spreading on the walls, ceiling, and floor as if it were a liquid. Glass everywhere shattered, from windows to wine glasses. The very foundation of the bakery shuddered with the explosion. Dima felt flames scorch his body. It felt like a wave of magma was rolling over him. His back blistered from the heat, the camouflage clothing melted, fusing with his skin. The few seconds of inferno felling like hours. He could smell his well-done flesh, stinging with unimaginable pain. He managed to open his eyes. Pinkie was unharmed, only suffering lightly charred hair. But she was still in shock, her body was stiff, her hair lost it's puffy shape, and her eyes were unmoving. Dima picked scooped her up in his arms. He rose to his feet and began limping towards the door. He didn't even need to open it, the door swung open; every mare was there. All their eyes widened, their mouths open in shear horror, tears streaming down their faces. Applejack was crying at the sight of Dima and Rarity shrieked in horror. Dima began to limp faster, out of the kitchen. “RUN!” He shouted. The mares all ran towards the front door. Applejack tried to pull open the doors, but they wouldn't budge. “It's locked!” She pulled again, to no avail. “MOVE!” Dima shouted. Applejack cleared away from the door. Dima limped towards the door with Pinkie still in his arms. He raised his right leg and kicked the door off it's hinges. He and the others ran outside, putting a good distance between them and the bakery. He saw a few of horrified ponies gathered outside the building. Dima gingerly laid Pinkie on the cobblestone road. He checked her vitals, she was hyperventilating and her pulse was racing, she had a distant look in her eyes. Dima knew she going into psychological shock and wasn't getting enough oxygen, he began stroking her mane in attempt to calm her down. “It's alright” He said softly. “It's alright. Your safe now.” He continued to run his fingers through her mane. He breathing began to slow down. “Everyone is alright,” Pinkie's eyes fixed onto him when he said that. “Y-You're not,” She stammered. Dima took a look at himself, Pinkie was right. His skin was charred and blistered. Melted skin hung from the outer sides of his arms. The back of his hands were so burned, he could see the bones moving when he moved his fingers. He was practically a charred skeleton. He looked back the the other ponies, Applejack and the others stared at Dima in horror, tears still staining their cheeks. Rarity fainted when Dima looked at her. “F-f-fff” Pinkie struggled to say, “What is it Pinkie?” Dima brought himself closer to her, “F-Fluttershy...Still, inside,” She said. “She...ran upstairs. I never saw her leave.” Dima looked back to the building. The fire had spread through out the entire first floor. Glass shattered from the heat. As much as Dima hated the idea, he knew he had to go back in. Dima staggered to his feet on last time, letting another bystander tend to Pinkie. He looked toward the building. Had tempted death once by shielding Pinkie, now he was going to kick it in the balls by going back in. He began to walk towards the burning bakery. He suddenly felt something tug his shirt back. He turned and saw Applejack pulling on him with her teeth. She spat out the burned cloth and looked him in the eyes. “Are you crazy!? You're not going in there!” She shouted. “I have to. That pony you mentioned, Fluttershy or something, is still in there.” He pointed to the blazing inferno. “Isn't that a friend of yours?” “Yes, but... but” Applejack was at a loss for words. She didn't want to let Fluttershy die, but she didn't want to lose Dima either. “My best friend always said, 'We leave no one behind, dead or alive'.” Dima quoted Vlad, “I'm not going to disregard that” Dima dropped to a knee and gave Applejack a hug. He ignored the pain her tears caused when they fell on his shoulders. “Promise me you'll be careful” She whispered over a few sobs. “I'll be back. I promise.” Dima said softly. He got back to his feet and stared at the building, there wasn't much time left. Summoning the last ounces of strength, he bolted into the mouth of sugary hell. He entered through the front, his boots crunched on broken as walked through the burning room. The smoke had began to build up, the black fog burned his eyes, the smoke Dima inhaled felt like a cigar was lit inside his lungs. He ripped a piece of a curtain that hadn't burned and wrapped it around his mouth. It wasn't a perfect gas mask, but it helped a little. He searched for the stairs, they weren't in the front retail part of the bakery, so that left the kitchen. He opened the door and looked inside, everything that could burn, char, and melt, had already done so. Glass from cupboards drooped down like honey, plastic mixing bowls melted to the granite counter tops, silverware touching the flames glowed red hot. Worst of all was the stove, or, what used to be anyways. The blast sent the stove flying into the other side of the kitchen. The gas pipe was now a flame thrower, feeding the already hungry fire. To top it off, the natural gas flame cannon was blocking the stairs. The ambient heat was starting to blister the unburned parts of Dima's body. He had to make this quick, he came too far to die now. He looked up and saw a exposed rafter above the flame. He took a few steps back and ran toward it. He jumped up and grabbed it, using the rest of his momentum to swing over the flames. He landed at the foot of the stairs and ran up. He entered a small hallway leading to three different rooms. The walls and ceiling were alight, making it look like a tunnel to hell. He didn't have time to search the rooms one by one. “HELLO!?” He called out, he heard a small response. He tuned out the fire and tried to focus on a voice. He guessed it came from the room on his right. He touched the handle, but burned his fingers. He kicked open the door and entered a burning bedroom. Outside the window of the bedroom, Dima could see the ponies in front of the Building. He turned left and saw a yellow pegasus huddled in the fetal position in the far left corner of the room. He slowly approached her. She looked up, when she saw Dima she tucked back into the fetal position began to cry. “Please, don't hurt me” She begged, “My name is Dima,” He said. “I'm here to get you out.” “I don't believe you!” She picked up a piece of rubble and threw it at him. “Look, we don't have time for this! It's either come with me or die here!” She looked up to him a second time. She took a moment to think before nodding her head. She got up to her hooves, then a explosion rocked the bakery. Dima guessed it was the gas line that blew. The wood foundations creaked under the immense strain. He saw the walls starting to deform and the ceiling buckle. “Let's go!” He shouted as burning ruble began to fall from the ceiling. They both ran to the door and into the flaming hall. They ran the stairs, only to see them collapse. “We're going to die!” Fluttershy began to cry again. She was right, there was no other way down except... the idea then hit Dima. “The window!” Dima shouted in his 'eureka' moment. “What!?” Fluttershy asked, Dima had no time to explain, he lifted Fluttershy into his arms and ran back into the bedroom. He placed her next to the window. “Can you still fly?” Dima asked, “Umm, I think so” She replied, “Well then -” Dima grabbed a chair and busted out the window. “- now is your chance.” “But what about you?” “Don't worry about me, now go!” “But–” “I said go!” Fluttershy began to flap her wings slowly rising into the air. With one big flap, she launched herself out of the flaming building. Dima watched her safely land where a few fireman looking ponies took her in. He looked down and saw that the ground farther down than what he had thought, five meters, give-or-take. Dima felt the floor under him crack. He leaped backwards in time to avoid a hole that formed where he was standing. He got back on his feet and began to ponder on how to escape. Just then, he heard a crack from above him, a roof support beam came crashing down onto Dima. He was now pinned to the floor. He held the heavy beam at bay, but it was no use, he was too tired to continue. He let the beam down on his chest, making it difficult to breath as it crushed his lungs. He removed the curtain rag from around his mouth and threw it. He looked to his left and saw the beam beginning to burn, he looked to the right, same story. He never felt so hopeless, he closed his eyes, waiting to die. He didn't have the strength to go on, the pain was all coming back to him. He began to see his life flash before his eyes. Childhood, army, friends, family, then... it stopped at Applejack. He remembered this part. It was the time he first met her. He was on his knees in Applejack's barn. He wasn't able to do or say anything, it felt kind of like watching a movie from the first person. He watched the entire scene unfold in front of him. His flash back then skipped to when he was drinking hot cider with her. He could still taste the warm cider. It then fast-forwarded to the Timberwolf fight. He saw her standing over him when he collapsed after the fight. The background started to flake away like dust being blown by the wind, everything save for Applejack went black. Her eyes began to tear up and she started crying. “Why are you crying?” He asked. “You broke your promise Dima. You're dying,” The voice was Applejack's, but it was distorted. "I'm not dying, I-I just need to-" "Save it Dima," She snapped. Applejack stood up walked away. “Wait... don't go,” Dima pleaded. “Why? You're dead, I'm moving on.” “What?” Applejack began to laugh, “I'll get over ya. I only known ya for what? A day or two?” “I...” Dima was dumbfounded, “You what? You thought I cared about you? Pfft, I only felt sorry for ya” Applejack finished his sentence. Dima stared at her in shock. “Well, see ya partner” Took off her hat and removed Dima's dog tags. She held them in front of his face before throwing them off in to the blackness. She began to walk off. “Wait” Dima pleaded. She just ignored him. “Wait please!” Dima shouted this time. She slowly faded into the blackness. Dima laid alone in the darkness. Tears began to drip from his eyes. His only friend in this world had just given him the cold shoulder while he was in his final moments. He denied it, he knew it couldn't be real. Right? A hallucination? Be that as it may, it still felt worse than any of his his burns. Her words hit the one place that is the most vulnerable, the heart. The blackness slowly had holes burt through it. He was back in the burning room. The fire had engulfed the entire area. Only a small circle of unburned floor board remained around him. It slowly crawled it's way forward. The fires of the beam were inches away from him. He relaxed his muscles, he crossed his arms on his chest the way they do with people in caskets. This time, death didn't seem so bad. He would die the way he wanted, saving another. Who could ask for a finer end? He relaxed his breathing, the smoke in the air still burning his lungs. He closed his eyes and waited. “Dimitri” A unknown voice called out. Dima opened his eyes and looked around for the source. He looked and saw something unreal. A man appeared, walking through the inferno towards him. He stopped at Dima's feet. Flames licked around his body, but he still stood as if it were nothing. With the flames covering him, Dima couldn't tell anything more than that he was dressed in what seemed to be a military uniform. He had a helmet, black sunglasses, a ballistic vest, and had a rifle slung over his back, but that was it. “Grim Reaper?” Dima gave it his best guess. “No” He held out his right hand to Dima. He hesitated, unsure if this was just another hallucination. “Take my hand, if you want to see her again,” The man said. The fires were getting closer. He didn't have much time. “Promise?” Dima asked the man in the flames. He answered with a nod. Dima raised his body, supporting himself up with his left arm. He slowly approached the mysterious man's waiting hand. Dima took a deep breath and closed his eyes. He wrapped his hand around the other man's in a thight grip. Everything went black. 20 Minutes Earlier Over on a hill far from the town, the Sniper watched the building through his binoculars. He touched the 'talk' button on his headset. “Targets in sight,” He said. “How many?” The Engineer asked. “Four in the front, that's all I can see.” “Four out of six, close enough,” The Gunner added. “Are the charges set?” The Sniper inquired. “On your word,” The Engineer said. “Blow it,” The Sniper ordered. "Copy, coundown initiated. Charges set to blow in 5...4...3...2...1" He saw a small flash, the glass blew out of the building. The Sniper exited his view from the binoculars. He changed the radio frequencies. “Targets eliminated,” The Sniper said. “Good work, return to base,” His benefactor replied. “Yes, my Lord.” The Sniper switched back frequencies, “Mission complete, were being called back.” “Acknowledged,” The two others replied. The Sniper packed his equipment and began the long walk back. Author's Note AAAAAAWWWWWW YEEEEEAAAAHH. The update you never thought was coming is finally here! I would like to apologize from the bottom of my heart for taking this long. Writing ain't easy, it takes me espically long to plan out things and write out the chapter to the point where i am happy with it. I also want to thank those of you who kept asking me "When is the next update?". Truthfully, if it wasn't for those people, this story might have ended before it began. Anyways, thank you all and enjoy! HOORAH -Semper Fidelis
Chapter 5: I See Dead PeopleLocation//: Unknown? Local Time//: Unknown? Date//: Unknown? Dima felt himself waking up. He slowly opened his eyes. He couldn't comprehend what he was seeing, darkness, darkness everywhere. No ceiling, no floor, just a dark empty void. He was on his back from what he could tell. His body protested when he attempted to sit up. With all his strength, he pulled his torso upright. His entire body felt sore like he had just been hit a car. To top it off, he was naked. A thought in his mind clicked, he immediately looked at himself. At was all coming back to him. He looked at his arms and legs, they looked untouched, his entire body looked like nothing had ever happened. But that was impossible, the last he remembered was the fire. “Am I... dead?” He spoke in a whisper. “No, you're not. Not technically,” A voice echoed through the darkness. Dima quickly looked around to find the source of the voice, but it seemed to be coming from everywhere. He looked froward and saw something coming out of the blackness. A man, dressed as if he was about to go to war, approached Dima. He recognized him immediately. It was him, the man from the fire. He got a better look this time. The man's equipment seemed to be American. But his skin, well it didn't seem to be skin at all, It was gray and misty as if it were gaseous. Perhaps it is gaseous? “You? Who are–” The man stopped him he could finish. “A friend,” He held out a hand to Dima, helping him to his feet. “Why did you save me?” Dima asked the man. “Because–” He began, but the ground began to tremble with earthquake-like force. “Well, well. I did not expect to find you here.” The voice spoke in a dark, gruff, and sonorous tone. Although the voice's manner of speaking was that of normal speech, the shear loudness of the voice made Dima ears ring. The man looked back into the darkness as if there was someone there behind him. Dima could see nothing but the perpetual blackness. “He found me! I need more time!” The man grabbed Dima by his shoulders and looked him in the eyes through black sunglasses. “We'll talk later!” He shouted over the sound of the black void shaking apart. “Now go!” He threw Dima into the blackness. This time, there didn't seem to be a floor. Dima just kept falling in the abyss. His eyes began to feel heavy, his body numb with a tingling sensation. He felt his mind slip away, as if waking from a dream. Sensation began to consume him more and more as he fell through the void. He heard the rumble of the haunting voice speak again. "Your actions tread between bravery and foolishness. Your time of heroism has come to pass over a millennium ago. Yet... you still continue? Why?" "Because I still have something worth fighting for," The man replied without hesitation. "Of course. I see it now. Your doing it for her...” “...” The man's silence was all the answer the voice needed. “You are loyal. That much I shall give you. But that loyalty will do little to stop me. I suggest you embrace your dearest for as long as you can. For she may not be around for much longer." "When this is over, I will make certain that you hang for your crimes." "You would like that, would you not? Fair enough I suppose. But when I tear your very soul from your body, I will be sure in your final moments to grant you a preview to the eternal torture of your beloved. All whilst watching Equestria suffer and burn from your failure..." “You bastard! You'll never win!” Dima heard the man shout, but it sounded very distant. The voice just chuckled. “I already have...” Dima closed his eyes as consciousness slowly slipped away from him. Dima opened his eyes again. The area was still dark but this time little rays of orange light peaked through small holes. Dima felt that something was laying on top of him. He brought his arms up and began to push. His tired arms protested, sending signals of horrible pain through his body. His muscles twitched and quivered involuntarily. With one great heave, Dima pushed what seemed to be a burned sheet of plywood. The sky was still black, the only light coming from small flames that polka-dotted the field of smoldering rubble that used to be the bakery. “Over there!” Dima heard a distant voice call out. In no time a group of four ponies dressed in firefighter gear rushed to where Dima lay. “What in the world?” One of them said as he stared at Dima. His jaw dropped in surprise. Another firefighter standing next to him smacked him the pony upside his helmet. “Don't just stand there! Get him out!” He ordered. Dima couldn't understand what was happening around him. Next thing he knew, large pieces of rubble were being surrounded my glowing auras of different colors, then levitating away as if it were weightless. Dima then felt himself getting lifted, every cell in his body wanted to panic, but he had barley enough strength to just stay awake. He saw the ponies, or unicorns he should say, levitating him onto a stretcher, then into a white horse-drawn cart with a red cross. He assumed it was their version of an ambulance. “Hospital, ASAP!” One of the firemen told the two ponies attached to the cart. “Got it,” The one on the right said. As soon as the fireponies closed the door, they were off. Considering how small the ponies were, Dima was surprised how fast they could pull the rather large cart. The stallions weaved their way through the city. The cobblestone roads and lack of suspension made the ride all the more unpleasant. He felt the wagon come to a stop. The doors opened and a team of doctor looking ponies moved him from a stretcher to a hospital bed. They began to wheel him into an emergency room. Dima managed to turn his head. The doctors stopped him in front of a room with a few patients inside. Dima had his attention locked on one pony in particular, Pinkie. She was sitting on her hospital bed, her hind legs tucked into her chest and her forelegs wrapped around. She was trembling heavily, her eyes were wide open and blood shot, darting from place to place. Her hair lost it's cotton candy shape and luster. Her eyes then gazed upon Dima. Before Dima could say anything, he was wheeled away into another room. A pony put a mask over his mouth and began to pump gas into his lungs. He began to feel woozy. His eyes closed and felt too heavy to open again. Location//: Near Kandahar, Afghanistan Local Time//: 03:43 Hours Date//: xx/xx/2013 Dima had never felt so much pain in his life. He forced his eyes open, trying to comprehend what just happened. He was flat on his stomach inside the inverted van. The body of the van had been dented and torn open in various places, resembling Swiss cheese. Tiny beams of moonlight peaked through the holes, signaling that he hadn't been out for long. He looked to the front of the car, the windshield was fractured beyond recognition and spattered with blood, but remained mostly intact on its frame. The driver hadn't done much better, he was sprawled out on the floor of the van, or roof, as it were. Well, he was already dead, so he probably didn't mind the fall. It then struck Dima, where was the passenger? The window on the passengers side was shattered open and a few small pools of blood were on the ground outside. With luck, he had fled while he had the chance and wouldn't be a problem. Dima attempted to push himself up, only to be reminded by his body that he had been shot and just survived rolling down thirty meters off the side of a mountain. His body began to register the horrible pain that he was in. As much as he didn't want to move, he couldn't just sit around. He drew his arms forward, and began to pull himself forward. He inched forward to the windshield, pushing the driver's body aside. With a hard push, he knocked the pane off of its mount and began to pull himself out. He looked around and saw nothing but the valley that he had landed in. The dirt was still warm, having been baked all day in yesterday's sun. The moon hung high in the sky, it's companion stars surrounding it. One thing Dima could appreciate about today was the low light pollution, allowing the sky to show it's full beauty. Dima snapped himself out of his trance. This was no time to star gaze. He began to think of a plan, he looked up and saw the road that he had fallen from. Perhaps if he could reach it he could get help. He pulled his body to the left and begun the long crawl upwards. The angle was shallow enough for him to pull himself up, but it would be one hell of a workout to reach the top. He dug his hands into the warm soil, holding back the pain as he pulled his body up. Progress was slow, painful, and tedious. After a long journey, he was just about to reach to top. Out of breath and on the last drops of adrenaline, he made it to the guard rail. But the victory was short lived. Out of nowhere, he felt something pulling on his legs. He looked back and to his horror saw the one person in the would pay any amount of money to avoid. The passenger's body was covered in sweat and dry blood. He had sustained a decent size gash in his forehead, which covered the left side of his face in blood. He barred his teeth and growled in a feral tone. His neck had a swollen ring of raw flesh from when Dima attempted to strangle him. He yanked Dima by his feet and threw him down the slope. He tumbled the entire way down. He sustained numerous blows from hitting large rocks on the way down, causing his already broken and worn out body to reach a new level of agony. He hit the bottom hard, knocking the wind out of him. He rolled onto his back, coughing up dirt and blood. He fought against his urge to pass out. He looked to the side and saw the man running down the slope. In no time he reached Dima. To weak to move any part of his body, Dima had no choice but to take what was coming. The passenger pounced onto Dima, roll the two over and pinning Dima down with his knees. He began to pound on Dima with his meaty fist. Shouting curses in sync with his punches. With each hit, Dima's vision blacked out and shone little white dots, then returned just as the next blow has to impact. The man continued his brutal assault with before finishing with a hard punch to the jaw, then stopping for a moment. Dima could barely managed to open his eyes, he coughed out a small amount of blood and desperately tried to breath. He saw the man reach into his pocket and pulled a small switch-blade. He jabbed it into Dima's torso, just to have it ping of his body armor plate. Infuriated, the man aimed his knife at Dima's neck. Just as the knife was about dissect his trachea, Dima caught the man's arms with his hands. Without wasting a split second, he followed up with a hard jab across the face with his right hand, then yanked the knife out with his left. Before the insurgent had a chance to recover, Dima rammed the blade into the man's chest then pushed him off to the side. The man landed flat on his back, his scream echoed in the valley. His hands clenched to his chest around the area where the knife was lodged. Dima threw himself on top of the insurgent, pinning him as the man had done. Dima punched the insurgent so hard in the face, he could see his jaw dislocate. Dima took his time in dealing back what the man had given ten fold. Savoring each blow as if it was intoxicating. Dima ripped the blade out of the man's chest and rammed it into his neck. The man let out a small yelp, grabbing Dima's arms but was to weak to pull him off. He gave the man one final punch to the face. He then ceased to move. Dima remained on top of his opponent. He tilted his head up, taking deep breaths and trying to collect himself. He looked back down to the body underneath him. “You're going to have to try harder than that next time,” He said to the corpse. The adrenaline began to wear off of Dima. The pain returned to his entire body, this time it was to much. He collapsed to the side and blacked out. Dima's eye's shot open, a bright light shone into his face. He grabbed it and moved it aside. He was still in the hospital. He let out a breath or relief. His room was darkened and the moon was visible out the window. He rubbed his temples, trying to comprehend what had just happened. His thoughts first traveled to the fire. He let out a small gasp and quickly begun to inspect himself. His skin was untouched, which did not comply with the burns he had sustained. He stared at his hands, earlier they were charred. Now they look just as they did before. “That man, who... or what is he?” An object to his right caught his attention. He turned his head to inspect whatever it was. A little red balloon tied to a chair bobbed around, it read “get better”. It warmed Dima's heart to see that. He then looked around the room and saw bundles of balloons, piles flower arrangements, and stacks of cards placed all over. It worried Dima, a balloon and some flowers is sweet, but this seemed excessive. He looked to the nightstand next to his bed and saw a clipboard laying there. He sat up and propped himself on the head board in a more comfortable position. He then reached for the board and started to go through the pages. -Patient #286443 Day 1: The patient has been put under anesthesia. He (at least we think it's a he) has suffered 3rd degree to 60-70% of his body. His survival is doubtful. The two other elements of harmony being treated here (Pinkie Pie and Fluttershy I believe) claim to know the creature. Maybe they should be informed? Perhaps later, depending on patient's status. -Patient #286443 Day 2: Patient X has survived surgery and is recovering. His skin is baldy damaged and recovery is slow. A few of the other elements of harmony have stopped to visit the creature. I informed them that the creature can not stay here since we have know idea what it is. I recommended taking him to a veterinarian, that seemed more applicable. They claim patient X, or “Dima” as they call it, is a sentient being like us and deserves the best medical attention. I find that rather hard to believe. But after much pleading, I pulled a few strings and got him to stay. This breaks so many regulations, it's not even funny. -Patient #286443 Day 3: Progress is...well, non existent. Patient is in a fragile state. Heart rate is beginning to drop and breathing is becoming laborious. He might need life support at this rate. I keep having to fight with my superiors to allow this creature to stay. Confound those mares, they made me promise. Why me? What have I done to deserve this? -Patient #286443 Day 6: The elements have become worried. Patient X's state is beginning to deteriorate. He has experienced a cardiac arrest twice in the past 24 hours. Thankfully, he was resuscitated. The current recovery plan is not working. I had to redeem a few favors and get extra help in. We accomplished little. Everyone is stumped as to why the patient is not getting any better. The fact that no one has ever worked on a creature like this just makes it all the more difficult. We have tried everything from medicine to magic. Nothing is working like it should. It's almost like his body doesn't want to get better. I don't get it. -Patient #286443 Day 10: Ten days now patient X has been in a coma. This is not good. The elements are getting desperate. Twilight has offered to help, but I couldn't let her for a number of reasons. It weighs heavy on my heart to see them like this. Who ever... what ever patient X is, they seem to care deeply for his well being. But I've also noticed something. One of the elements, Rainbow Dash was it? Anyway, she has not once been seen here. Strange. -Patient #286443 Day 11: I have inquired about the missing element of loyalty. It seems she is rather upset with Patient X. Her friends tell me that she blames him for the events that put him and patients Pinkie Pie and Fluttershy in the hospital in the first place. Though there is no evidence to back up the claim. Official fire marshal reports claim it to be a catastrophic gas leak. I'm no psychiatrist, but perhaps the incident affected her as well. I recommended that Rainbow Dash should talk to someone about what happened, but her friends claim that she probably wouldn't. As for the patient, not much has changed. -Patient #286443 Day 14: It's been two weeks now. The patient is getting worse. It saddens me to say that some of his friends have given up on him. My bosses are breathing down my neck. Without the support of his friends, I'm afraid his luck may run out. -Patient #286443 Day 18: Superiors just gave me an ultimatum. “We don't deal with animals or aliens! You have three days to get rid of it,” they said. Three days or they put Dima down. Applejack is really trying to beg Dima's case, but I don't think much more can be done. It will take a miracle at this point. We tried our best, didn't we? Dima was locked in a shocked daze, still trying to comprehend what he had just read. He had to look away from the board and then look back just to make sure he wasn't seeing things. A mixture of rage and confusion ran through his mind as he tried to wrap his head around the events that had taken place during his absence. They wanted to put him down like a dog? But then again, they did not know what he was, or if he was even going to wake up. He probably seemed like a waste of time and resources, and had he not waken up then they would have been right. He decided to let the matter go, lest the back and forth debate on whether or not to be angry drive him insane. He heard talking outside the door. He tuned his ears to try and hear what was being said. He heard what sounded like someone crying and an another talking. The door cracked open, the light of the hallway flooding into the dark room. Dima saw a white unicorn with a blue mane dressed in a lab coat talking to Applejack. Her eyes were stained red and had dried streaks of tears running down her neck and face. They didn't seem to pay attention to Dima as they kept talking in the door way. “I'm sorry Ms. Applejack, but he's been out for very long. I'm afraid he might not be waking up.” The doctor tried to sound sympathetic. Applejack continued to cry, wiping away tears with one of her hooves. “Are you sure you don't want to go with the alternative?” The doctor said that in a tone as if he and her had discussed that before. “No!” She barked at him. The doctor nearly dropped his clip board in surprise. “Applejack... I got a message a few days ago. If you don't do it now, my bosses will,” Applejack continued to cry. The doctor didn't seem to be helping. “It's not fair,” She muttered between sobs. “Applejack?” Dima said, receiving the attention of both ponies. Both of their faces were frozen in awe. Without a moment of hesitation, Applejack bolted past the plethora of flowers and balloons. Going so fast her hat flew off her head. She jumped up and wrapping her fore-hooves around Dima chest and crying a small river onto his hospital gown. For a moment, Dima had no idea what to do, but he did what he felt he needed to do. He put his arms around her and began to run his hands through her mane and down her neck in slow soft strokes. For a few moments this continued. Dima could feel the growing pool of tears being absorbed into his gown and she wept. Applejack then pulled away, placing both hooves on Dima's chest. Her luscious, emerald eyes locked onto his. Dima was held in a trance as her head slow inched forward. In a split second, Applejack smacked Dima across his face with her right hoof. “Don't. You. Ever. Do. That. To. Me. Again!” She shouted, pounding her hoof into Dima's chest with every syllable. Dima held Applejack's hooves in his hands, slowly moving them off his chest (which was now aching a little), and placed them around his neck. He brought his face next to hers and wrapped his arms around her back. “I won't.” He said softly, running his fingers through her mane again. She began to sob again, her small tears dripping onto his shoulder. “I'll leave you two alone,” The doctor said, closing the door behind him as he left. Applejack moved her head away from his shoulders, instead resting it on his chest just below his neck. She could hear the slow pounding of his heart in her ear. It felt soothing to her. Part of Dima didn't really understand why she wanted to be so close to him, another part didn't care. Her soft mane smelled of apples and cinnamon. Her soft fur tickling his skin. “You scared me half to death, you know that?” Applejack stated after a few moments of silence. “How long was I out?” Dima asked. “You've been in a coma for three weeks,” She said. Her grip on him began to tighten, as if letting go meant he would slip back into a coma. “Three weeks, huh? Well, I guess you can say it was one hell of a party.” Dima quipped. “You're soooooo not funny, you know that?” She said over a small giggle. She took a second to look at Dima. “How did your skin heal so fast all of the sudden?” Applejack asked as she poked at Dima's arms. She seemed to be entertained by playing with the malleability of his tissue. “Honestly? I don't know,” He replied. He looked back to the clip board laying next to him. “Hey, I uh... read some of the doctor's notes. A lot of stuff seemed to happened while I was out. Is there anything I need to be aware of?” He asked. “Can we talk about that later?” She requested. Dima agreed with a small nod. She had been through a lot, it was probably best to leave the topic off for later. Dima looked out the window. The dim lights of the town along with the full moon and starry sky made the night all the more beautiful. He also saw some brightly colored lights and flashes coming from beyond the town. “What's with that?” Dima pointed to the colorful lights off in the distance. It took Applejack a second to see what he was pointing to until she noticed them as well. “That? Oh, that's the carnival. They came to town this weekend for their Final Fall Festival.” “Final Fall?” Dima raised an eyebrow. “Yeah? Final Fall, the eleventh month out of the year?” She explained. A small 'oh' escaped Dima's lips. He made a mental note to buy a calendar. Dima looked out the window once more. He wanted to be out and make sure his stuff wasn't stolen by timber wolves... again. Perhaps explore the town too, see what there is to see. It sounded better than sitting at his camp doing nothing. He looked to Applejack, who still lay on his chest. The night seemed to have taken her too. Her eyes glazed over, locked in a trance with the view out the window. “Have you gone yet?” Dima inquired. “Where?” “To the carnival?” “Uh no, I've been busy with some other things. Though I think my sis and her friends are going tonight.” “It sounds like fun.” “It is! The carnival games, the great music, and cotton candy, I used to go every time they came to town.” “What stopped you?” “Work I suppose. Apples don't grow by themselves.” “Uh, I'm pretty sure they do.” “Bah! You know what I mean.” She began to laugh a little. The sound of the door opening caught the attention of the both of them. The doctor from earlier came into the room levitating his clip board along with a small note pad and pen in front of him. “Well Mr. Dima. How are you feeling?” He asked. “Better, I suppose.” He answered. “Good, good.” The doctor began to jot down a few notes on his pad. “May I see your fore leg if you don't mind?” He asked. It took Dima a moment to realized that he meant his arm. Applejack released herself from Dima so he could reach out a hand to the doctor. The doctor took his arm in his hooves, inspecting it with careful scrutiny. “Remarkable. It seems that your burns have just vanished over night. Is this normal for your kind?” “No. I really don't know what did this.” “But you are sure that you are fine? You're stallion-hood didn't melt or anything?” The doctor joked. Dima and Applejack's faces flushed a little red. “Uhh, yes. I'm actually a medical technician for my kind. I can assure you that I am healthy and an examination would not be needed.” He quickly explained. The doctor let out a small laugh. “Well, I guess I'll have to take your word for it. Oh, and welcome back to the land of the living sir. From what I’ve heard you're quite the brave one.” “I'm not completely the brave type. Perhaps I’m a little foolish as well.” Dima's expression turned blank after realizing what he just said. The booming voice from his time in the dark void came back into his mind "Your actions tread between bravery and foolishness". The doctor waved a hoof in front of his face, regaining his attention. “You alright there?” He asked. “Yeah, just a little Deja vu.” He replied. “Do you know when I can be discharged?” “Truthfully, the sooner the better. I assume you know why.” He said pointing to the clip board laying next to Dima. “Point taken. Though I honestly can't thank you enough.” Dima said. “Don't thank me. It was Applejack who really pleaded you're case. If it wasn't for her, I'm not sure what would've become of you.” He gestured towards Applejack's. She timidly looked away, rubbing one fore leg with the other. “Well, I have to get going. Come back if you need anything or if you just want to compare notes with a fellow doctor.” He held out a hoof, Dima wrapped his hand around and shook. “Oh before I forget –” The doctor reached inside his lab coat and produced a small envelope “– someone left this for you at the front desk.” “Who is it from?” Dima asked as he took possession of the letter. He examined the red wax seal bearing an insignia resembling a spectre. “Beats me. But it was addressed to you.” The doctor said with a shrug of the shoulders. With that, the doctor turned and left. Leaving Dima and Applejack alone once more. Dima carefully tore open the letter. He pulled a small slip of paper and begun to read it. Dima, my time is short so I can't explain everything. Just heed warning to this list of “Do Not's” 1. Don't tell anyone about the bomb. If asked, dodge the question, or lie. 2. Don't fire your weapon unless absolutely necessary. 3. Don't go to Canterlot, avoid there at all cost. 4. Don't be too conspicuous. 5. Don't don't go too far from Ponyville. 6. Don't do anything stupid. But most of all... 7. Don't. Trust. Anyone. We shall meet again though it may be a while. If you want to get back home, I need you to follow my orders to the letter. But for right now, I paid your hospital bill and left some spending cash plus a few other things back at your camp (You're welcome). Right now it would be wise to build up a familiarization with your surroundings. Perhaps read up on some Equestrian history (Twilight can help you with that), and to try and build a good reputation with the locals. Until next time. ~A Friend P.S. As funny as it would be, I could not bring myself to let you run naked back to camp. I left you a set of clothes in the bathroom. “What does it say?” Applejack asked. Dima snapped his attention back to her. “Nothing. Just junk mail.” He set the paper down on the nightstand. They sat in silence for a bit, enjoying each others warm embrace once more. Dima reflected on what the doctor had said. Applejack practically saved his life, again. He felt obligated to pay her back some how. Applejack then made a quick glance outside. “Seem to be getting late. I best get going.” She released Dima and set down on all fours. She stretched out each leg one at a time and reclaimed her hat that lay a few feet away. An idea then came to Dima, it was a little crazy too say the least. But he felt getting to know her better would be a good start at saying 'thank you'. “Hey Applejack, are you...” Dima chocked on what he was about to say. “Hmm?” Applejack looked to him with a adorable puzzled expression. “Are you... busy tonight?” He managed to say. “No, ah ain't got much really going on for tonight. Why?” “I was wondering...” “Yeah?” “Would you like to join me in a little walk around town? Perhaps we can go to that carnival you mentioned?” Dima felt a knot form in his chest as he said that. It felt like an eternity until she gave him an ear to ear smile hugged him once more, this time a little tighter. “I'd love to,” She said whilst holding on to him. “So... I'll come find you in say, an hour?” Dima asked. “Sound like a plan! See you in a bit sugarcube.” Applejack replied a little enthusiastically. She then exited the room, leaving Dima to himself. Dima let out a breath of relief as he relaxed back into his bed. She actually said yes. Dima couldn't understand why he felt such joy inside. Perhaps things will start to get better? Location//: Tesseraka [Capital], Griffon Kingdom Local Time//: 21:04 Hours Date//: xx/xx/xxxx Things could not get any better as he watched as the target centered himself on the crosshairs. The Griffon King was now in his sights. He was to give a speech addressing his people on a certain series of assassinations of a few major political figures. Assassinations that may or may not have been caused by the marksman behind this gun. The crowd was gathered in a large cobblestone court yard in front of the royal palace. The King appeared from behind a set of curtains and stood on a balcony protruding from the impressive structure. The night was pitch black, but the amber glow of tall torches and lanterns strung up above the crowd was enough to provide a decent amount of light. He stood proudly, puffing out his chest feathers as he began to speak with gusto. His deep, sonorous voice, followed by passionate gestures of the paws and wings managed to keep the crowd in awe of their confident leader. His voice managed to carry well, and with a slight magical enchantment, it could even be heard softly by the assassin despite the distance. The King was able to quell some of their worries by speaking of how he is personally overseeing the operation to find the murderer, and how he would not rest until the culprit had been apprehended. Said murderer readied himself inside the bell-tower that he had made into a firing position. It gave a perfect view above the palace walls that encapsulated the court yard. Unfortunately, the original inhabitants of this location had been... uncooperative. So drastic measures had to be taken. A shame, but no matter. The marksman couldn't help but chuckle. “Let's add a little chaos... in to this equation,” He whispered to himself. He began the final adjustments for his shot. ~Range: about 350 meters ~Windage: 82° at 9 mph ~Temperature: 68° F w/ 28% humidity ~Barometric Pressure: about 98 kPa ~Firing Angle: +10° ~Final Compensation: Up 2 mils, Left, 2.5 mils. He begun to pace his breaths, slowing down his heart rate and relaxing his body. He tensed up on the rifle. Pressing himself closer to it, and becoming one with the weapon. He then stopped breathing altogether. Feeling the soft pulse throbbing in his hand, he began slowly squeezing the trigger. Pacing it just right so that it would fire between beats. He felt light headed, his body begging for the air that he had been denying it. He demanded that his lungs be patient, he needed to focus. The vision in his eye narrowed, he saw nothing save for his target. Nothing else in the world matters. He just to keep his sights on target. He placed the crosshairs on the center mass of the King. Everything was in place. 'Say good night little bird', He thought to himself. He begun to add force to his finger, continuing until he felt a small catch in the trigger. The boom of the rifle resonated through the little room. The bullet traveled the distance in an instant, tearing a trail of vapor in the cool night air. The round met its target in the center of his chest. The King was knocked back by the shot, his eyes wide open in shock. After a brief moment, his eyes rolled to the side of his head and he collapsed on the floor of the balcony. The screams of the crowd could be heard from miles away. Scores of terrified Griffons began flying everywhere. Guards poured out from within the castle, dragging their leader’s lifeless body to safety. "Flawless," He thought to himself. “Mission accomplished, my Lord,” He spoke into his headset. “You have done well. Return to base, there is more at hand,” His benefactor replied. The complacent killer picked up his rifle and begun to make his way out of the tower with a sinister smile on his face. Author's Note Man, I have to stop being so slow with these updates. But hey, better late than never right? Thank you for reading and I hope you guys enjoy! Hoorah! -Semper Fidelis
