Dimension Wars - Equestrian Nightmare

“Every life has a choice, every choice begets a decision, and every decision defines a character. You understand that, correct?” A single soldier stood on top of a large base, staring down across the vastness of the desert.

“Yeah, Far-Strider. I do. The question is, do you know your role in what has happened?” Another soldier approached Far-Strider from behind, a large box strapped to his back. Far-Strider reached behind, pulling out a box that folded into a large sniper rifle. As he held it, his duster blew in the wind, his hood just barely revealing the thick gas mask that covered his face.

“Sergeant, I do. I'm the lookout. Considering that there are so few of our strongholds left, those bugs are having a hard time finding us. If there's one thing humanity has that the bugs don't, it's resourcefulness.” Far-Strider peered through the scope, watching a convoy speed towards the base. “The next group is here. I really want to know what the 'expedition' everyone has been talking about is. I mean, they're going to need soldiers, but I do want to know, especially since Doc Chevalier was called from Orion Base to work on it.” Far-Strider continued to focus on the convoy. “Four, five, six. Yep, that's the last one. They said four trucks, plus an escort and a troop transport.” Far-Strider stood up, stretching his back as he watched without the scope.

“Far-Strider, what is going on that so many personnel are needed at this base?”

“To tell you the truth, I don't know. Come on, let's get below. Maybe General Hugh knows.”

The inside of the base was massive. Every time Far-Strider saw it, it never ceased to amaze him. The structure was designed with an alien invasion in mind, protected with the strongest metals and elements available to man during the war. Far-Strider whistled, staring up at a workman welding a patch plate on one of the vents.

“They get in through our air vents usually, don't they?” Far-Strider stared down at a soldier that had approached.

“Usually, Francis. It's just how they think. I have to admit, however, that it's a working tactic. They pushed us back, and no matter what anyone says, they know fighting. You know the bugs they send at us? The human-looking ones?” Far-Strider was motioning with his hands, showing approximately size and shape.

“Yeah, I know them. Atraksi grunts. They're little more than simple drones, no brains, just wiring and machinery linked to a living brain. It's an abomination.” Francis and Far-Strider moved together, weaving through workmen moving packages, repairing the base, or otherwise making themselves busy. An elevator at the end of the hallway with a sign above that read “General's Office” was their destination.

“Hey, Francis! Check this out!” Far-Strider looked up to see an Atraksi bug drone staring down at him. “The holographic camouflage is almost ready- ah, there it goes again. Let's rework the circuits again, Alex! Maybe we'll figure it out?” The scientist dropped down from the wall, the image of the bug flickering around him.

“Stupid eggheads. He's just glad my rifle's safety is on, or he would have felt the shot. I hate those bugs.” Far-Strider shoved his hands in his pockets, marching towards the elevator. Francis sprinted, catching up quickly.

“They really hit home for you, didn't they?”

“I said don't ask the last time you asked. Don't make me repeat myself.” Francis sullenly nodded, letting the rest of the walk be silent as they arrived at the elevator. “Computer, Floor 12, General's Office.” A loud beep was heard, the doors flying open like the wind. “All right. Let's get going. VIKI is going to have a field day with whatever they're cooking up in the basement, Francis.”

“No, no, no! You put that wire in there, and that wire here! Get it right, you imbeciles!” A balding scientist stood in the centre of a large white room, ordering his subordinates around on an alien looking ring. “The Conduit must be prepared if the trip is to succeed! We only have one set of coordinates, and the fusion generators can only support one try right now, so we have to get this right!” A door opened, Far-Strider waltzing in.

“Hey, Chevalier. What's cooking now?”

“Far-Strider, I do not have much for your concerns or any pleasantries. We have spent the better part of five years exploring this device so we can send the expeditionary team through. Five hundred people, the best of their fields. Soldiers too, for guarding.” Far-Strider walked around, staring at the various computers and controls.

“You do realize that you have that lead there in the wrong place?”

“What?” Chevalier stared down at his hands, where a wire was that was missing its port. “Oh. Silly me.” He corrected himself, glaring at Far-Strider. “What do you want?”

“Just the news, Doc. I don't care for pleasantries, just the specifics. What's the expedition for, and why was I never told?”

“One, the expedition is to find ourselves allies against the Atraksi, and two, you're a lookout, not a general. Ask Hugh about it.” A window appeared from one of the walls, General Hugh staring down at Far-Strider in dismay.

“Far-Strider, come up here, now. I want to speak with you.”

General Hugh stood at the window, staring down at the alien device. Far-Strider stood beside him, watching the general's movements.

“It took us five years to figure out how to interface that machine with our fusion generators. There are five fusion reactors here at this base, and all they can do is power one use of this Conduit.” He turned to Far-Strider, no expression on his face. “I know you don't believe me, Michael, but it's the truth. Now, we never told you about the expedition, since if someone got captured, the Atraksi would know, and would immediately attack with one of their roving Redoubt Capitol Ships. Only ten years ago, and we were just scratching the surface on interplanetary travel, too. Ten years later, we're cracking reality itself. How far we have come in such a short time.” Hugh watched the scientists again, smiling as they finished. “You're a part of the expedition, Michael. The list came through from Chevalier himself.” Michael Far-Strider was absolutely shocked.

“M-Me, sir? But I don't know! I'm just a sniper, not a soldier-”

“Snipers are soldiers, and you're one of the best. There are five hundred already. You'll be the five hundred and first.” He chuckled, staring down at the scientists again.

Above the surface, bases around the world transmitted radar data to the secret complex in the Sahara desert, alerting them of two Cruiser-class Atraksi Redoubts searching the desert.

An alarm buzzed on Hugh's arm. He stared down, reading the warning.

“Two Cruiser-class ones. Not the big ones, but they still have the particle drivers. Those can punch right through our base deflector fields. Far-Strider, get to the briefing room. The Conduit will be moved to the primary cargo bay when it is ready.” Hugh bowed out, taking the elevator to the surface. Far-Strider stared down at the Conduit.

“Beautiful, is it not? Too bad you might die.” Far-Strider stared behind him, watching as a more dark-coloured version of himself stood beside him.

“If I had told anyone about you being in my head, they would have hospitalized me, or worse, turned me into a Mecha-Pilot. You know how crazy those guys are.” The Dark-Strider laughed.

“Just remember, I'm you, albeit the better half.” The soft, maniacal laughter of Dark-Strider faded away as he did. Michael stared down at the Conduit once more. He started towards the briefing room, smiling as he wondered just what it did.

The meeting had already started by the time Michael entered the room. Chevalier was explaining the inner workings of the Conduit, to which most of the group was nodding and taking notes. The rest were falling asleep. Michael smiled. Scientific advances were an interest of his, dating back to a long time before. As Chevalier gave up the floor to another, a military man, Michael silently groaned. Most of what they said to the soldiers was military junk about serving humanity and protecting the upper caste with their lives. He had seen enough of the upper caste to know that they were no one he wanted to protect, even if it meant that he would die.

“Greetings, my fellow soldiers. As many of you know, humanity is fast becoming a dying breed. As the kind Doctor Chevalier has so generously stated, the Conduit is our key. But into where, that, oh, that is the question. It has the power to rend space-time, to open gateways into alternate worlds, alternate Earths. We will find a safe haven. Our mission objectives are as follows. One, establish a forward base. Two, locate resources needed for survival. Our ration packs may last a long time, but eating standard issue MRE packs are not ideal for long-term survival on another planet. We discovered that with the test flight of our former interplanetary flagship, the Icarus. They survived, but many of them died. The crew was happy that the colonists were able to terraform Mars so quickly. It's unfortunate that soon after the Atraksi appeared, they lost contact. We assume them all dead. Three, locate materials to construct a low-power generator, and locate some iridium. I don't want to have to explain this again, but the iridium is what we use to construct our portable field generators, and if you can get some up and running, the forward base will be almost impregnable. Four, locate sentient life. If it is advanced enough, we can request their assistance against the Atraksi. All efforts on this side will be poured into restoring the Conduit once it is used so that we can contact you from the other side. We will also attempt to reverse-engineer a more archaic version of the Atraksi Conduit, creating a way to keep the linkway online, instead of shutting it down and risking complete isolation. You are all dismissed. Find your team leader, civilians. Soldiers, you are to report to the armory, and acquire your new weapons. That means you, Far-Strider. I know how much you love your sniper rifle, but you need something new now.” The military man walked off the stage, stepping lightly and fast. Michael stared as he walked out, confused.

“How did he even notice me? I'm all the way at the back”

The armory was abuzz with activity as soldiers gathered new weapons and armour. The scientific branch of the United Earth Coalition had not only been studying the Conduit, they reverse-engineered Atraksi weapons for the use of human hands. Michael watched as a younger soldier walked out with a much more archaic human laser rifle. He shook his head in disbelief.

“Why do they never kid in the military? Ten years, and it still hasn't happened.” The lady at the counter waved him forwards, smiling at Michael.

“Far-Strider, you have been issued the new XMu-2 Laser Sniper Rifle. Its small design will be perfect for you.” She lifted a box out, handing it to Michael. He stared at her in confusion.

“It's a box. Where's the gun?” The lady took it from him, flicking her wrist. A sniper rifle slid out, unfolding from the impromptu “case” it was in. “Okay, now I'm impressed. The boys in research really do love me, don't they-” A sudden explosion off to his left cut the rest of his sentence off. Two young cadets ran out, their pants still on fire.

“I really wish they would not mess with the fission grenades. Even though the blast radius is small enough that they are not too dangerous, they still poison the surrounding area with radiation.” She turned back to Michael, who was now staring at her in wide-eyed shock. “They are in your loadout. Command's not taking any chances. Even if we poison the ground, we need to defend ourselves. I wish I was going. The chance to see an alternate Earth! What an adrenaline rush!” She fell over, smiling. Michael shook his head, taking the fission grenades and clipping them onto his belt.

“All right. Well, I'll leave you to your fangirl emotions.”

When Michael entered the main staging area where they were all to embark on their mission of great importance, he noticed the armour of several Covert Operations soldiers. Their black armour and gas masks were unmistakable. Why they were involved in this mission, instead of fighting the Atraksi in their own ships, was puzzling. The civilians wore heavy radiation suits, detailed with a stencil of the Science Branch of the United Earth Coalition. He shook his head, sighing.

“Those eggheads won't even know how to survive a day without the soldiers. If there are hostile elements beyond the Conduit, I don't want to be the one picking up scientist bits.” Michael shuddered, moving towards the front. There had been a mission through an enemy-held Conduit with scientists. It had not been pretty. He nodded to Doctor Chevalier, who nodded to another group of scientists, ones not decked out in the heavy radiation suits of the civilian teams. Several switches were pulled down, hard, the lights dimming as the Conduit spun up. The human tech sparked as a small portal appeared, growing larger as more power was applied from the fusion generators. Chevalier was staring at Michael, who was wide-eyed in shock. The ground was shaking, various items that had not been secured being rumbled off of nearby tables.

“The Conduit is ripping through the fabric of reality! Hopefully we can stabilize it when it gets large enough!” The energy of the Conduit caused the ground to not just shake, but ripple as reality itself was breached.

On another world, more peaceful than the one that was forcing its way through, equines trotted around, smiles abounding as the sun shined down. Each hurried about some pre-ordained task. That was until the sky fell. The sky itself rended open, a huge black portal opening far from the small town. The equines galloped around, screaming, the strange portal moving and changing size.

“All teams! The portal is stabilized! Get through with your equipment now!” The Covert Ops leaped through first, followed by several teams of scientists, engineers, and labourers carrying large amounts of equipment and materials. Michael nodded to Chevalier, who leaped through. A heavy shudder ran through the structure above him, something attempting to break through. A klaxon somewhere sounded.

“Fusion reactor leak! Engage magnetic containment fields!” Michael took a deep breath, running headlong through the portal before the upper floor collapsed, burying the portal, and ruining equipment that was specifically designed for the Conduit.

On the other side, the Covert Ops teams had already set up their positions, guarding the clearing the group now found themselves in. The engineers had already begun the setup of the portable field generators, while the labourers had begun constructing various short walls for defensive measures and weaponry. Two tents were already up, with scientists setting up inside. Michael flew through, landing flat on his face, sliding a few feet before the portal closed behind him. He stood up, staring at the portal. Someone was still inside. As it closed, the person's head was severed from his body, the decapitated head flying directly into a scientist's faceplate. The screams permeated Michael's helmet, even though sound-cancellation measures had activated. He stared at the twitching scientist, her faceplate a mess as she lay there. He shook his head, sighing.

Two equines entered the forest, curious as to what the portal was. As they approached the site where it had been pinpointed to be, it disappeared. Nighttime had begun to fall, and beams of light permeated the darkness, swinging wide as if searching. Staying out of sight, they muttered to each other in a language not easily understood as they studied the strange creatures. A little white rabbit bounced off of the head of one, startling her into catching it. It hopped directly into the path of one of the beams of light, a laser sight tracking it as it slowly backed up.

“Sir, movement!” A pulsed-laser rifle trained on the tiny creature that had shown itself in the clearing. The Covert Ops trooper steadied when he saw it was just a rabbit. “Just local wildlife sir-” A cream-coloured pegasus-like equine entered the clearing, startling several more troopers into aiming their weapons at it. “We may have a hostile!” Michael had been monitoring their radio channels, following their conversation.

“Remember, if it's hostile, shoot it.” The troopers nodded, laser sights flickering on and aiming at the pegasus equine cowering in the beams of their flashlights.

The other equine in the bushes could see that the strange creatures in black meant the other equine harm. Before they could fire their weapons, it just suddenly appeared in front of them, a horn on its head glowing a similar colour to its lavender coat. A large field suddenly appeared, blocking the laser shots as if they were nothing.

“Sir! They appear to have some sort of shield technology! All troopers, fire on the intruders!” The combined laser fire of the Covert Ops troopers began pushing what was assumed to be a credible shielded threat back from the clearing. Almost suddenly, the two equines, along with the rabbit, disappeared in a strange cloud of smoke. “They've disappeared, Far-Strider! Recommend immediate defensive set up.” Michael reviewed footage from one of the trooper's helmet-cams, watching the field. He had never seen anything like it. It meant, unfortunately, that they would have to be extremely careful when locating a power source to replace the portable power packs that everything ran on. They would last for a short while, but not long enough for a long-term engagement.

“Follow the recommendation. These equines seem very intelligent, but hostile. We must complete the defensive bubble fields on the low walls to give extra cover. Get everything together. If those eggheads have the time, get them to erect an Electromagnet Tower. We'll need that to throw off any scans from the enemy.” Michael sat back in his chair inside what had become the command tent, staring at the footage replaying over, and over. Equines with technology that advanced? He doubted it. “There has to be a more simple explanation.” He turned on his radio, signaling one of the Covert Ops troopers. “We may need to interrogate these species. From the helmet-cam, I noticed they spoke to each other, although quietly. Capture one, if you can. Mount an expedition in the morning. For now, everyone must get some sleep. X-1, X-2, you're on first watch with me. R-1, R-2, R-3, you're on second. Remaining troopers, you're on third watch.” He leaned back in his chair before standing up, unpacking his XMu-2 rifle. Stepping out of the tent, he watched as the scientists moved into temporary shelters that the engineers and labourers had finished constructing. Troopers X-1 and X-2 stood at the ready, shining their lights around. “Well, first contact with another alien species, and they're hostile. What a surprise.” He flicked his light on, shining it around. “First watch. Well, everyone have a good sleep tonight, because tomorrow is not going to be as pleasant as I hope it will be.”