Catherine Halsey: private journal entry.RED encryption using my private key. DO NOT auto save to network.
September 10, 2517
The event that occurred today is something that I can only suggest as impossibility incarnate. This ‘Pegasus’ as the guards are calling it just appeared right in the middle of the lab facility through what I could only assume was slipstream space. How the creature or anything for that matter was able to make a hole in slip-space and go through it with no protection and survive is something I cannot even fathom. ‘Pegasus’ seems to be a fitting term for the subject in question. It appears equine in nature. I am positive that if it weren’t for me grabbing it, the grunts would have killed it. Luckily, I wanted to study it.
September 11, 2517
Medical analysis has come back with interesting results to say the least. The subject is female, at a height of four feet even and a weight of thirty-seven pounds. She has light blue fur, red eyes, naturally rainbow coloured mane, and a pair of wings. I can only wonder just what environment could make a creature evolve and adapt to not only have wings, but have hair of those hues as well. During examination, the ‘Pegasus’ has not only shown that she is intelligent, but so much so, that she is sapient. The subject is estimated to be roughly five to six years old if her brain waves are anything to go by. While all of these findings are fascinating, the most interesting discovery was her genome. Now, when I began, I assumed that I would find some relation to a horse or, considering her size, a pony. To my surprise, I found neither. Instead, she turned out to posses a near exact match of the Human genome, despite her equine nature. Not only that, but she also appears to have the same genetic markers required for the Spartan II Program...
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I need a drink. A stiff one. I will resume tests in the morning.
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“Hello there.” Said Doctor Catherine Halsey as she kneeled down, trying to comfort the scared pony. The woman was in her mid-twenties, had black hair and strikingly pale skin. Match that with the jumpsuit that matched her skin tone, and her resemblance to a ghost was uncanny for the equine.
“Don’t be scared little one, I won’t hurt you.” She tried to comfort it.
The Pegasus just stayed where she was, hiding under the Doctor’s desk.
‘Maybe she’s hungry,’ she thought before picking up something she knew was in the pony’s pallet. “Would you like a carrot?” she asked holding out the vegetable.
To the good doctor’s surprise, the Pegasus came out, said “Carrot!” and started eating it. Dr. Halsey was shocked. The scans had shown her mental capacity and that she had indeed possessed the proper vocal cords necessary for speech…but she hadn’t counted on it to have picked up on English so quickly!
She waited for the creature to finish and asked, “Can you say anything else?”
But all it did was repeat, “Carrot, carrot, carrot!”
Halsey Sighed. “Can you say anything else other than carrot?”
She had expected only for it to say carrot, but when it said “Hello!” instead, her heart skipped a beat or two.
“Can you say anything else?” She asked again.
“Hello carrot, hello!”
Halsey shot her a deadpan stare.
“Of course. Well…I suppose you’re going to need a name.” She told it, looking at its unique mane. ‘Well, rainbow is certainly out of the question that would be unoriginal, idiotic and quite possibly cruel.’
She was then hit with a stroke of genius. She had those often, being who she was. “What do you think about Iris?” She asked.
It jumped up and down saying, “Iris! Iris! Iris!”
Dr. Halsey placed her palm to her face. “At least you approve of it...” At this point, she noticed the newly christened Iris yawning. “Déjà: play Debussy’s Nocturne please.” Picking Iris up as a piano began to softly play in the background, she put her in a nearby basket. “Okay little one, time for you to sleep.”
And then, she began wonder where the basket came from, as the filly drifted off to sleep.
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September 12, 2517
The creature is now asleep peacefully. I have decided to name her Iris, after the ancient Greek goddess of the sky and personification of the rainbow. Iris seems to have picked up English quickly. Perhaps it is similar to her native language? I know how hard it is to believe, but doesn’t that seem to be the case with everything about Iris? I also received the data from the energy that was radiating from her. Keyword being: ‘was.’ The energy is slowly leaving her and from the tests, it’s not harmful to her or us. The energy in question is very similar to Hawking radiation and is also what I assume to be the cause of her ‘dramatic’ entrance. Now, I have two choices as what to do with her. Either I stick her in the SPARTAN II program or send her to the labs. Both options are guaranteed to be fatal for her and both will help humanity. But if she is sent to the labs she would die immediately and results would not be seen from the findings until a lifetime of study. I believe she can become a great soldier, the best perhaps. At the very least, she’ll live longer. So…of she goes to war. There is no guarantee on what will happen with the SPARTAN II augmentation. Even if it did work, we wouldn’t know of any possible side effects until after they become apparent. But it’s better than the alternative. She will become Candidate-117. I will be sending reports of her progress to ONI monthly.
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Later, I tried to pick Iris up without accidentally waking her, but she must have felt my hands. “What’s going on?” she asked.
Surprise surprise. A couple hours ago, she could only speak three words. But now, she seemed to be able to speak at least a full sentence. As much as I wanted to see how much she knew, I still had to get the files that she decided to nap on.
“My apologies. I just need to get the files that you decided to nap on. Now if you don’t mind, I have some questions for you.” I said, putting her down on the floor.
She started stretching her wings. Now, I may not have been an expert on winged animals, but from the look she had, it didn’t take someone with several doctorates (which I was) to deduce that she wanted to fly. But, putting my scientific curiosity aside, I started asking her questions to see if she remembered where she came from, what she was, and the like. She could not remember a thing and even if she did, I doubted we would have been able to follow the directions of a five year old to a far off planet to which I doubted she has even seen from orbit. So, that was out of the question.
“So, what are the files for anyway?” she asked me. I looked at her before exhaling. I somehow knew she was going to ask this.
“I'm going to be honest with you Iris. This folder is to enlist you into the Spartan II project. In short: you’re going to be protecting people.”
She just looked at me before dawning an impossibly large smile. “Awesome! I’m going to be like, a superhero!”
‘Huh, I’ve actually only ever heard the word awesome spoken in books.’ I muse to myself. “Well I’m glad to see you actually want to go with this, but I warn you: there will be no going back. There’s no way out if you choose to accept, understand?” I asked her, as if she had a choice. She would be on an experimentation table being dissected otherwise.
She just looked at me for a second before pumping her chest, flaring her wings, and stating, “I’m not going to back down! I’m going to be the best spar-whatchamacallit ever!”
I just laughed. “Good luck then, Iris-117”.
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September 15, 2517
As I have been making arrangements for Iris’s training, I have been trying to figure out her education requirement. Suffice to say, she is severely lacking in almost everything except for physical prowess, which is slightly above average. Couple this with her unique biology, and I could already experience the nightmare that my training would cause. That is why I requested Mendez to have her taught away from the other Spartans and undergo a more rigorous and intensive program so that she may, at some point, be able to join the others. Frankie agreed immediately. I have also solved one of the more notable problems concerning Iris’ training: the fact that she is unable to grip and easily interact with object due to her lack of hands. I worked around this by designing some equipment similar to that of a robotic prosthesis built into a skin-tight suit. Simple, efficient, and best of all, EMP resistant. The prosthesis itself is built at the base of her hooves, which are retractable so as not to hinder movement. This will also add several inches to Iris’s height. The suit will be ready before training begins and, all things considered, Iris has been taking everything quite well…though she has become quite fond of me. It’s good that training begins tomorrow. She cannot have attachments to me. It could become a liability.
September 16, 2517
I do not regret what I have done and if I keep saying that, maybe I’ll believe it. Right now, across several star systems, seventy-four children are being abducted and brought here, to Reach. I knew this day would come when I first began work on the Spartan II project, but that does not make it any easier to stomach. Iris has distracted me the past few days, but now that she is gone, my thoughts are returning to my duties. We are replacing the children with flash clones—dumb pieces of meat that look like the children, and little more. If I could use the clones for my work, I would, but the damn things break up quicker on the genetic level faster than you can build them. In a matter of days or weeks, these clones should all die. It is regrettable that we must take this step, but I need those children if Spartan II is to work. And ONI…ONI will have its soldiers.
December 20, 2520
What we just witnessed here should not even be possible. It’s hard to describe what had happened or better yet, how, but apparently, a sonic boom shattered the visible light spectrum and created a rainbow. A ‘sonic rainboom,’ as everyone is calling it…
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I probably should explain how the event occurred. It started when we thought Iris was trying to escape. We sent a few Pelicans to recover her and enough men on each to detain her if necessary, but that’s when things toke a turn for the strange. She just flew faster until, as one of the pilots observed, a Mach cone formed around her and then she did the impossible by breaking the sound barrier, naturally. Anyway…she landed soon after words, which was the indicator she wasn’t trying to escape but just wanted to stretch her wings. We brought her to the medical bay for the obvious reason that her going at high speeds unprotected could be harmful to her body. When we inspected her body, we discovered three things.
First: the fur around her leg has changed to a rainbow coloured lightning bolt mark.
Second: she was irradiating energy waves similar to what she was giving off when she first arrived. We asked her what she did, but she knew as much as we did, so we can’t exploit it as of yet. Though from what I understand, it would appear to be similar to that of adrenaline. I suspect that she will be able to do this naturally with further training or after the augmentations.
Third: she did not have a scratch on her from…whatever she did. It is also come to my attention that Iris has not only caught up with the other Spartans academically, but has notably surpassed many them and has proven herself psychically stronger, with the notable exception of a few, like Jorge. As such, I believe that she if finally ready to train with the others.
July 3, 2521
Iris has been adapting quite well to being around others, though like them, she doesn’t talk very often. The other Spartans, in turn, were very accepting of their ‘sister’ and have treated her as an equal. She has especially bonded with Kelly and Sam. She has also quickly earned the respect of the few Spartans not so quickly accepting, namely Sorren. Just yesterday they were sent on a training mission in which they were dropped over a forest located deep in one of Reach's many mountain ranges and expected to get safely to their extraction point, a Pelican dropship. The children also had instructions to leave the last child arriving behind. They were supposed to do this alone. Instead, Iris informed the other Spartans to meet near a lake, to which they all complied and made her leader of the squad and operation. When the group came upon the Pelican, it was guarded by armed men. These men were actually UNSC Marines, but were not in uniform, thus leading the Spartans to mistake them for a hostile threat. I am actually curious as to why those Marines were out of uniform, seeing as neither Mendez or I authorized such actions. Not wanting to take for granted that the guards would be friendly toward them, she came up with a plan to take the men down, capture the dropship, and ensure the safe extraction of every team member, as she made sure she was the last person aboard. To do this she ended up hijacking the dropship with the help of Déjà, and beat down the men with stones, causing severe injuries amongst the Marines. Despite myself, I laughed at the situation and pictured it: seventy-five eight-year olds with nothing more than sticks and rocks, near fatally injuring twenty battle-hardened Marines armed with tranquilizers, cattle-prods, and body armour. This event has led me to make Iris the official Squad leader. It has also become an ample example of how far Spartan II has progressed.
September 6, 2525
We have just got the test back from Iris-117. It seems that the augmentations have altered her more than we thought. The differences are minor, but noticeable.
The first change was that the process has turned her from an herbivore to an omnivore. The change itself is a marvel. I mean…changing an herbivore to an omnivore is a grand accomplishment, but the question of any negative effects is something that only time will tell, though initial investigation suggests that there will be none.
The second change is even more fascinating and what I can only describe as chemically induced hypermobility. At first glance, Iris’s bone structure appeared the same, but upon further inspection, it has changed to allow a greater amount of flexibility, particularly in her joints, which can stretch and contort similar to someone who is double-jointed. Couple this with Muscular Enhancement Injections and the Catalytic Thyroid Implant, and she doesn’t have to worry about her movements tearing tissue. This will make it much easier for her to use her ‘hands’ and also means that she is now both a biped and quadruped. While I’m sure that it will take some time to get used to, she will be even deadlier. It also appears that the Muscular Enhancement Injections, the Catalytic thyroid Implant, the Occipital Capillary Reversal, and the Superconducting Fibrification of her Neural Dendrites had greater effect on her than on the human subjects with no unexpected problems. Her perception, tissue density, reflexes, tissue growth, intelligence, memory, creativity…all of it is almost twice of what was projected.
September 10, 2525
I can’t believe that it’s been eight years since the SPARTAN II program was started. Since we found Iris-117. She has been through a lot in these past years. I have watched her grow from something that can sleep in a basket to the size of a preteen child. She also has not only met, but went well beyond my expectations. I could not be more proud of her.
Princess Twilight was studying furiously in the royal library. But this time, it was not simply for the enjoyment of learning. This time, she was researching anything and everything she could to save her friend, Rainbow Dash. Surrounding the desk Twilight sat in were a multitude of books, all related to magic in some form or another. Some about alteration, a few about the Aether, but most were about teleportation. Twilight herself was in a state. Her mane was matted, her crown misplaced, and large bags under her eyes. Occasionally, her head would slowly sag downward before immediately shooting right back up, normally followed by her roughly shaking her head, and another cup of coffee. All because of what happened.
Roughly a month ago, she miscast a spell sending her friend who knows where. When Twilight realised what happened it was too late for her to react. ‘RAINBOW!’ she winced at the memory. ‘How!? How could that even happen!? A simple moustache spell shouldn’t be able to do that! How could I let that happen?’ she thought, tears forming. She snapped herself out of her self-depression and returned to the books.
There was a knocking at the door.
“Twi, you in here?“ Applejack asked, but to no reply.
“Twilight, darling? Are you there?” Rarity asked, but again, there was no response.
The next was the most shocking of all. “TWILIGHT! WE KNOW YOU’RE IN THERE!” Fluttershy shouted.
Twilight let out an exhausted sigh, stood up from her desk, and began walking towards the library entrance. Suddenly, the door was knocked on again, expect this time, it seemed that the ground was shaking with the door and the world had turned gray.
“MR. DEWITT!” Said a booming voice, which Twilight could only barely recognize as Pinkie’s. Twilight shook her head and the world was back to normal. She just stood there blinking for a few seconds before continuing on her path.
When Twilight reached the library’s entrance, she unlocked the door and poked her head out, finding her friends Applejack, Rarity, and Fluttershy (who had scared herself from her own outburst and was hiding behind Rarity). But strangely (or more so), no Pinkie Pie in sight.
“What do you want?” Twilight nearly shouted, tired from her research and angry at herself for what had happened.
“Twilight, just because you’re a Princess does not mean you can start being a rude.” Rarity scolded
“Sorry…it’s just I have been working my flank off trying to get rainbow back.” She apologized.
“That’s okay, but you need to take a break and get back to work.” Applejack said.
“WHAT?! BUT WHAT ABOUT RAINBOW DASH!? I CAN’T JUST ABANDON HER!” Twilight exclaimed.
“Sugarcube, we're not saying that. We’re saying that staying in a library twenty-four/seven isn’t healthy for ya’. When was the last time you slept?” Applejack asked.
“Umm…” Twilight said, shifting uncomfortably.
“I thought as much. If ya’ keep exhausting yourself like this, you won’t be able to fill in for the Princesses while they’re away, let alone find Rainbow. You just need to get some shut eye and you’ll feel better in the mornin’, okay sugarcube?”
Twilight paused for a moment, looking at her friend’s determined looks before responding with, “Okay, I’ll go to rest a bit, but just a small nap. Then I’m back to finding Rainbow Dash.” And so Twilight begrudgingly trudged to her room.
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“So Twilight, can I call you Twilight?” Said a light-blue Stallion, looking at a purple mare in a straitjacket.
Twilight just looked confused. “I’m sorry…who are you?”
“I’m Doctor Mane, your Psychiatrist. Now tell me, what is it you remember?”
“I remember…” Twilight paused and began to think before her eyes widened in realization. “Rainbow Dash!”
“So you do remember. Your friend disappeared a year ago a-“
“A YEAR!?”
“-nd you had breakdown. Now tell me what happened to her.”
“I…I was testing a spell on-“
“Now we both know that’s a lie. Only unicorns can cast spells.” Dr. Mane said calmly.
“But, I’m an Alicorn! I’m a Princess!” Twilight was beginning to panic.
“Twilight, Alicorns don’t exist. Just look at yourself and you’ll see that.” He pointed to Twilight’s left.
Twilight immediately looked that way and saw a large full-body mirror, but she was not looking at the mirror, but rather, her reflection within. A purple earth pony. Before she could panic, Twilight’s thoughts were once again interrupted by Dr. Mane.
“Twilight, I need you listen. Tell me what the last thing you remember Rainbow Dash saying was.”
Twilight just continued looking at the mirror, thoughts of her friend that she’ll most likely never see again filling her mind as she still tried to respond, tears forming while doing so.
“She said…she said--“
“Twilight…” Came a distorted and hauntingly familiar voice.
She turned her head to the source of the voice, in front of her. It was a mare. A Pegasus. Light blue with a rainbow mane. It was covered in cuts and bruises. Her eyes and mouth produced an almost blinding amount of sickly yellow light. And it came closer.
“Tell me Twilight, what caused Rainbow Dash’s disappearance?” Dr. Mane asked, seemingly unaware of the new pony’s presence.
Twilight just continued to stare in terror at the Pegasus slowly walking towards her.
“Twiiiiillllliiiiigggghhhhtttt…….” Came Her voice, still slowly approaching.
“Tell me Twilight! Who did it?!” Dr. Mane queried loudly.
“Twiiiiiiiiiiilllllllllllllllliiiiiiiiiiigggggggggggggghhhhhhhhhhhttttt…………..” Came her friend’s voice, now next to her.
“TELL ME! WHO TOOK RAINBOW AWAY!?” Dr. Mane was shouting at her.
“TWIIIIIIIIIIIIILLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIGGGGGGGGGGGGHHHHHTTTTTTTT……..” Came Rainbow’s voice, Twilight now staring face to face with eyes of yellow light.
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Princess Twilight awoke in a cold sweat to the sound of a gasp and banging on her door.
“Princess Twilight! You must wake up! You have a letter!” Said what she could only assume was a Royal Guard outside her door.
“I’m up, I’m up!” Twilight replied, rubbing her eyes, trying to remember what her dream was about and that it was about Rainbow Dash.
Finally awake enough to engage in basic motor functions, she got out of bed, walked to the door, and opened it to reveal a Royal Guard with a Scroll. Twilight took the scroll, mumbled a ‘Thank You’, and unfolded it.
Dear Princess of Equestria,
If you are reading this message, then a great catastrophe has befallen the changling race and we humbly ask for your aid. I know that you have reason to hate our species and we apologise for all we have done. We ask you to please help, to protect our home, and to help protect our race. We’ll we meet any and all demands you have so long as help is sent immediately.
Signed Queen Chrysalis.
Twilight looked at the scroll for almost a minute, shocked to say the least. The Queen of the Changelings asking for her help? The same mare that trapped her and her sister-in-law in a cave? The same Queen of the Changelings that tried to forcibly marry her brother? The same Queen of the Changelings that tried to conquer Equestria? Twilight briefly considered denying Chrysalis aid out of the spite that welled up in her throat, but then she remembered what she was asking.
The continuity of her race.
Twilight folded the paper before looking back up to the armoured stallion. “Guard, gather a squad and a chariot.”
