Metal Gear: Sonata of Faith

by Azure Sandora

First published 30th of August, 2013

When the changeling's invade Canterlot, A soldier from the most gruesome war in Equestrian History is the only one who can discover the truth and save Canterlot.

Octavia wanted to forget war. She wanted to live a normal life not filled with bloodshed, and focus on her music career. Unfortunately, war is rarely considerate, so when the changelings invade, Octavia has no choice but to act in order to save her country from possibly a threat worse than even the War of 1972.

But in a city taken over by creatures that can take any shape, who can you trust?

This story is NOT a retelling of Metal Gear Solid, but it uses some of the tropes from that game.

Chapter 1

I wrote this story in response to this video. As I'm using it as the base for my story, please watch that video first. Enjoy the story!

~Canterlot, 1984 ASU (Age of the Sisters United)

I'm no stranger to war. Though for the last eighteen years I've made a living as a classical musician, I've seen things that would make a sane pony scream in terror. I've done things that would make a normal pony gallop away from me faster than the Wonderbolts if they ever found out. I know more than a hundred different ways to kill somepony, close to half of those ways being with my bare hooves.

I'm most known for my unusual style of playing my choice instrument, the cello. I, like most Earth Ponies, was blessed with powerful hindlegs and muscles. After my days as a soldier I started using my skills at standing upright to play the cello, holding the instrument with one forehoof and the bow in the other. But back then, during the War of 1972, I used my skills to fight, and even kill, my enemies. After the war, I focused on my Cutie Mark, a treble cleft, and pursued a career in music, swearing to never use my talents to hurt anypony again.

Yet here I was, looking at two changeling guards from a distance, trying to figure out how to take them out silently without alerting anyone.

They were guarding the entrance to Canterlot, making sure nopony could get inside without them being a changeling. I had to get inside however, preferrably inside the castle. That was my main objective in reclaiming Canterlot from the changeling Queen, who had suddenly invaded Canterlot yesterday. According to Princess Luna, Princess Celestia was being held somewhere inside. She was the first in a long list of ponies I had to save in order to ensure that the changelings left Canterlot for good.

To say that I took the mission by accident wouldn't be too accurate, but I didn't mean to get involved with this. I was just on vacation in Canterlot. Like most other ponies in Canterlot that day, I wasn't expecting the changeling invasion. Unlike most of the ponies though, I was prepared for all situations like this.

Before I knew it, I was fighting the changelings simply to survive. Along the way, I ran into three ponies: two pegasi named Fluttershy and Rainbow Dash, and to my surprise Princess Luna. Apparently they were all attending the wedding of Princess Cadence and Shining Armor. The Princess Cadence present turned out to be Queen Chrysalis in disguise, who was draining the love of Shining Armor. Using the love of the young knight, she was able to defeat Princess Celestia with ease.

Fluttershy and Rainbow Dash were sent with four other ponies to get the Elements of Harmony, but they were overwhelmed and recaptured. Only Fluttershy and Rainbow Dash were able to escape, and they ran into Princess Luna, who had a secret hideout directly outside of Canterlot. With all of their soldiers taken by the changelings, they had no one to help them reclaim Canterlot. That was until the Princess learned who I was and what I was capable of. All she had to do was ask. Cut to a few hours later, and I'm here, trying find my way back inside the city I worked so hard to flee from.

Damn it, why was I so goddamned nice?!

I decided that rushing in head first wasn't a good idea. Instead I thought to catch their attention to lead them away from the gate. I crouched down close to the ground and slowly made my way to the side, hiding in a bush. There was a small rock on the ground in front of me, perfect for what I had planned. If I could just get them to come over here, I could sneak my way over to the other side and into Canterlot undetected.

I threw the rock at the side of the gate. They looked at the rock, and then turned to my direction. I was hoping that both of them would come, but sadly only one came.

Oh well, I thought. I'd have to do this the hard way then.

The one on the left walked over to the bush I was hiding in. When he was clsoe enough, I pulled him into the bush with me. From there, I fell down to the ground with the changeling on top of me, and wrapped my forelegs around his throat, cutting off the circulation to his lungs. It took a few seconds, but eventually he was knocked out.

One down, one to go.

I walked out of the bush and started galloping over to the changeling that was left. He noticed me a little too late though. Once I reached him, I quickly jumped to my hind legs and punched him hard in the face with my fore hoof. He was knocked down to the ground, but he quickly kicked to his feet, also standing on his hind legs.

The changeling rushed over to me and began swinging his fore legs wildly. I ducked and dodged his assaults first, and then grabbed his fore leg, throwing him to the ground. I braced myself for his second assault, which came immediately when he stood up in the form of a flying spin kick. This time I ducked under him, and when he landed I did a side kick to his back. My back legs were so strong that I was able to break his back with that kick, so he fell down easily from that.

Okay, I thought. That wasn't too hard.

Once inside, I decided it was time to call Princess Luna. Putting my hoof to the tiny earring on my ear, I turned the ring around until the magical number suddenly appearing in my eye matched the number the Princess gave me. Once I pressed the small stud in the earring, I heard a small ringing sound and a second later I saw Princess Luna's expression in my eyes.

"Princess," I said, "This is Octavia."

"Octavia, I assume you arrived?"

"Just got inside. I was lazy, so instead of jumping the gate like Rainbow Dash said, I decided to just fight my way through the front door."

"Ha ha, as long as you were careful not to get noticed. Remember, the changelings possess a hive mind, so if one spots you, the others will know as well."

"Right, I know," I rolled my eyes. Faust, talk about overly cautious. Then again, I was the only pony who could rescue her sister at the moment, and reclaim Canterlot. I guess it made sense for her to be a little paranoid.

"If it is safe, I would like to go over your objectives."

I sighed, as this was always my least favorite part of being a soldier, when the commanding officer has to review your objective a second time. It always seemed pointless to me, but I had perfect recollection, a photographic memory, and perfect pitch. Of course to someone like me this would be repetitive.

"It's safe here. Go on."

"Well, as you know, the main reason you're here is to reclaim Canterlot. For that reason it is important that you make your way to the castle."

"It's there that I'll find Princess Celestia, correct?" I asked, seeing Princess Luna nod in my eye.

"Exactly. I'm certain she's being held there with my niece Cadence and her husband to be Shining Armor."

But more than likely not in the same place. That would be silly to put the two most powerful ponies together in the same area, "Weren't there some other ponies I needed to rescue besides those two?" I asked.

"Ah, yes. I'm glad you remembered. Unfortunately, I was only able to escape with the Elements of Loyalty and Kindness. There are six total, one of which... is a dear friend of mine."

She was referring to Twilight Sparkle, the Element of Magic. Apparently, there were three others too: another Unicorn named Rarity, and two Earth Ponies, one named Applejack and another named Pinkie Pie. Though the Princess was worried about all of them, she mentioned before that she and Twilight were very close.

"Don't worry," I said, "I promised that I would save her, and I meant that. I'll save all of them."

"I'm... grateful..." she said, her tone softening a bit along with her expression.

"Do we know why the changelings took over Canterlot like they did?" I asked, trying to get back on topic.

"No, which is your other objective. You must find out whether or not this is a simple occupation of Canterlot, or if something much more sinister is happening."

This seemed too big of a takeover for it to just be an attempt at gaining more land. This was planned out. I knew enough about war to make that connection. What I needed to do was figure out what that was.

"So, I need to save your sister, the Elements of Harmony, your niece and her husband, learn what the Changeling Queen is planning, and reclaim Canterlot. No pressure," I said sarcastically. More like all the pressure. If I wasn't an expert on covert operations, this would be impossible. Thankfully Princess Luna knew my reputation.

That was why I was here in enemy territory all by myself, with no one to help me.

"If you are in need of assistance, remember this frequency. Worry not about volume. The magic in that earring sends the words of the second party directly to your mind. You will be the only pony able to hear it."

"Got it. I think I want to check on Fluttershy and Rainbow Dash before I get started."

All Princess Luna did was nod, "I wish you the best of luck, Octavia."

With that she cut the link. I decided to next check on Fluttershy. She was a really cute Pegasus, and quite literally the epitome of her name. She seemed really uncomfortable when she first laid eyes on me, but she warmed up to me shortly after. Turning the earring so I could get her frequency, I eventually found hers and pushed the stud down, seeing her sweet smile waiting for me.

"O-Octavia..."

"Hey there, Fluttershy. How are you holding up?"

"I'm fine now," she said sweetly, "Princess Luna's base is actually cozy, in its own way..."

I laughed, glad that I called her, "I think whatever you injected in me is helping. I still feel full of energy."

"Oh, that's good. That particular potion was meant to keep your metabolism at its peak. You won't have to stop for food or water as much, and you won't have to worry about getting tired."

"So I'll be able to end this in a day or so. Good job, Fluttershy."

She made a small squel, a sound she had a habit of making when she was feeling bashful. It was a shame that this sweet pony had to be a part of this horrible situation.

"If you need anthing concerning medicine, I'll be available on this frequency. I may be a Pegasus, but I know a lot about potions and other forms of medicine. Also, since we're really close to Canterlot, you can call me to do rescue runs if you find anypony injured."

"Well, it's certainly reassuring that I'm not completely alone here. Thanks, Fluttershy."

"Don't mention it..." as usual, whenever I thanked her, she got really somber. I could tell that she appreciated it, so I could never understand where her sadness came from.

"Fluttershy, is something wrong?" I asked her.

"Well, Octavia... you see..."

"Hm...?"

She sighed and shook her head, "It's nothing. Um, Rainbow Dash wanted to talk to you before you got started, so you should call her."

"I will. See you later, Fluttershy."

She nodded and hung up. As sweet as she was, there was something weird about her. Sometimes she seemed to reach out to me, as if asking for help with something, or at least wanting to tell me something. I never paid it too much mind. After all, the first time I met her was really embarrassing. It was during the Grand Galloping Gala of 1983, the last Gala I ever performed at. After some of her friends caused a commotion in the main ballroom, Fluttershy chased a large amount of animals into the room, shouting "you're going to LOVE ME!!!!!" I thought she was insane at first, and ironically I was afraid of her when we met. Imagine my surprise when she turned out to be really sweet and kind.

Still though, I couldn't help but feel like there was something more to it.

I turned the earring to Rainbow Dash's frequency. At first I didn't really like her, but when I sat down with her for a few minutes I realized she was actually really deep. Who would have thought she was so well versed in magi-tech and above all literature! I pushed the stud down and waited until I saw Rainbow Dash's image.

"Hey, Octi! Just the mare I was waiting for!"

That was the one thing I hated about her... that nickname...

"Hi Rainbow Dash..." I groaned, trying to hide my annoyance at the name she gave me, "Just got into Canterlot."

"Did you use the short cut I told you about?" she asked me.

"Jumping the side gate? Nah, once I got here I felt lazy, so I decided to fight the guards and walk through the front gate."

"That was the lazy route?!" she sounded shocked, "You soldiers are hardcore!" Truthfully I realized that I would have needed wings in order to get up the gate, so I really had no choice but to use the front door. But hey, it worked out, right?

"You learn that the hard way is usually the real easy way after fighting in a few wars," I explained laughing, "So, you told me that this earring had another use, right?"

"Oh yeah, now that you're inside it should work. Okay, push the little diamond over the stud."

I did, and immediately noticed something weird. On the other side of my eyes, next to Rainbow Dash's image, was a map! How the hell did that get there?!

"Um... what is this?"

Rainbow Dash laughed, "Ya like that, huh? That's a military grade mapping system called a SOLOTON Radar."

"Aren't those used mainly by military pegasi to see their flight path?"

"Well, yeah, but I adjusted it so it'll work just as good on the ground too. Princess Luna wanted me to give that to you. You can thank me now," she said triumphantly. Faust, she was arrogant. Oddly that made her that much more appealing.

"Well, thank you, Rainbow Dash," I said slightly sarcastically, "Now how exactly does this work?"

"What? No trial and error? Ugh, I'll break out the instruction booklet and explain," she acted like she was annoyed, but I could tell she was happy. She was the type that liked to talk. I knew someone just like her actually, and she and I were good friends.

"Okay, the white dot in the center is you. The earring scans the area around you in a five mile radius, and keeps up with your movements in real time. Anything red is a changeling."

"Why red? For enemies?" I asked.

"I don't know. Something about reacting to the magic in their bodies. Also, you'll notice there are blue cones in front of them. That's basically their point of view."

"So basically, stay out of that blue cone."

"Yep, you got it. When you run into any of our friends, they should appear as blue dots. Any civilians will be green."

"This should make my mission easier," I said, silently waiting for the catch. Things like this always had a catch.

"Well, there is a catch," see? "Some places have a bad magical interference, so you won't be able to use the radar in those areas. Also, you won't be able to us it in tight enclosed spaces."

So I could only use it outside, or inside the castle. Now it didn't seem as useful. Oh well, at least I could see the enemies before they saw me.

"Well, I'm sure I can find a use for it. So, any ideas of where I should go first?"

"Well, looking at the computer here..." she trailed off a bit as she searched something on her computer, "Okay, the hospital is being used as a changeling stronghold. You should go there."

"They captured the hospital?"

"Yeah, looks like it. Careful there though, Canterlot hospital is the largest hospital in Equestria. If you go east from the front gate you should see it."

"Got it," before I hung up I took a look at Rainbow Dash. She looked like she wanted to say something else, "What's wrong?"

"Well, it's just," she sighed, "I wish I were there with you. I messed around and got hurt escaping though, and now all I can do is desk work."

I did feel bad for her. She was a pegasus interested in joining the military, in particularly the Wonderbolts, which was the most well known military flight team in Equestria. Trying hard to fight off the changelings to save her friends, she broke her wing and had to be carried away by Fluttershy. She does have a bit of military training, and her father apparently showed her how to use military grade magi-tech. It was her knowledge of magi-tech that earned her the current spot in Luna's Rebellion against the changelings. She did good desk work, that didn't mean she liked desk work.

Apparently she hated every second of it.

"I'm sorry, Rainbow Dash," I said sympathetically "I know that you're going stir crazy in that base, but I need you to stay there and protect the Princess and Fluttershy."

"Yeah, I know..."

I thought about what I could do about this issue. Most soldiers in covert operations had a pony keeping a record of their actions. This way if something happened to them on the field, somepony else would know exactly where they left off. Many soldiers were saved based off of this set up.

"Hey, what if you kept my record?" I suggested, "You heard about that system, right?"

"Oh yeah, the navigator keeps record of everything that happens on the mission. Wait, you want me to keep your record?" she asked hopefully.

"Well, I can't bring you on the field, but I can keep you updated on my situation. It might help you feel like you're right there with me."

"Considering that otherwise I'm just stewing here collecting dust, YEAH! Besides, you're, like, a legend among military buffs like me. Is it true that you won the War of 1972?"

"I wouldn't say I won the war, but I did play a major part in the victory. The part where I fought twenty griffons by myself though, that part is true," only because my entire squad was murdered by a single pony on the enemy side.

Braveheart...

Apparently Rainbow Dash knew a bit of the story, because while most ponies were amazed that I even could fight that many griffons, she looked down somberly, "So, what my dad said was true. You did lose your squad. What was she like? Braveheart, I mean."

"She was, and probably still is, a killing machine. She's nothing more than a living weapon, and I will kill her if I ever see her."

"W-what did she-"

"That isn't important right now," I said changing the subject, "I need to get started."

"Right, sorry. Why don't I make a record of what you did to get inside," I recalled everything I did for her, and she put a record of it on her computer, "Will you tell me more about the war next time?"

"It's not a pretty tale, but if you don't mind having nightmares then sure, I tell you in small sections."

"Great, thanks Octi. Good luck in there," she said hanging up. It felt good knowing I could share my story with someone. I tried therapy once, but it didn't help stop the nightmares from that time. Contrary to what some ponies think of me, I'm not iron willed. In fact, it's pretty common for me to cry myself to sleep at night.

Well, that's what Cider was for, I thought pulling my flask out of the small magic bag the Princess gave me. Apparently it was charmed so even though it was small enough to stay out of my way, it could hold an assortment of weapons and items. I'd need that if I was going to survive, since most of the weapons I would use had to be picked up on the scene.

After taking a small swig from my flask to calm my nerves, I put it away and galloped over to the hospital. The Changeling Queen had one thousand plus changeling soldiers. All Equestria had was me, a single war veteran plagued with night terrors, yet couldn't say no to someone in need. Sounds impossible, right?

Well, here's the story of how I did it...

Chapter 2

It was a good thing that it was night time. That made getting around a lot easier, since I could hide in the shadows. One of the reasons I was used for covert operations in the war was my gray coat helped me blend in at night.

Oddly though, there wasn't any real commotion going on at the moment.

I saw the hospital in the distance. It was a large building, at least fifteen stories. It had the same sort of old fashioned architecture as most of Canterlot, meaning this building had to date back to at least the late 1600s. The inside was probably modern though.

Right when I was about to go toward the hospital, there was a small ringing in my head. It took a second for me to realize it was probably the Princess. I ducked behind a building and answered.

"Do you see the hospital?" Princess Luna asked me.

"Looking right at it," I took a better look at it and noticed the tight security, "It's going to be Tartarus getting in there, though."

"Hm... I expected the security to be an issue... but this is strange. Why did the changelings put the hospital under such strict guard?"

"Two guards by the front gate, and I think I see something like cameras or something," I said, taking note of the weird spider looking creatures on the wall. The only reason I suspected them to be cameras was the large eyeball in the center of their bodies, "Also, I think they have a few flying creatures keeping watch too. I don't know, think they're trying to keep someone out?" I asked sarcastically.

"That's too heavy for a mere occupation of territory," she stated, not saying whether or not she caught my sarcasm, "I wonder what they're hiding inside."

"Hang on," I said, "I'm going to get a closer look."

"Careful, Octavia," Princess Luna stated, "We can't afford to lose you."

"I'll be careful. Stay on the line."

I slowly trotted my way to the hospital, until I was at least a block away from it. From here I could also see what looked like a large boat with four white sails. The odd thing was that it had mechanical wings on its under side.

"What's that ship?" I asked.

"Do you mean the SS Friend-Ship?" the Princess asked. I was silently reeling at the name of the ship, "No one was to know of its existence. How did the Changeling Queen find it?"

"Someone is stepping out," I said as someone walked out of the hospital. They looked like the changelings, only they were as large as Princess Celestia, and had long green hair. Her horn was as long as an Alicorn's horn, and she had large wings on her back. She walked out with two other changelings and what looked like two heavily armored Canterlot guards, "Is that the Queen?"

"Probably so," the Princess said, "Can you hear what they're talking about?"

"Hang on," I said trying to zone in on what she was saying. It wasn't easy, but I could make it out for the most part.

"The guards at the front were taken out?" the Queen said in a haughty tone, "That means somepony is inside right now. Make finding this pony your top priority," she turned to her Canterlot Guards, "Make sure no one gets to the prisoner in the warehouse. If you see the intruder, kill them on sight."

The guards saluted and started walking away from the hospital. I imagined they were making their way to the warehouse.

"Prisoner in the warehouse?" I asked Princess Luna.

"She must be speaking of one of the Elements," she said, "I hope Twilight Sparkle is well..."

"Octavia," Fluttershy interjected, her image appearing next to the Princess' "If there are prisoners being kept there, we need to rescue them."

"You mean in the warehouse? Yeah, I thought that as well," I knew my objective was simply to rescue the Elements of Harmony, but I couldn't leave any civilians alone either.

"I do not like it, but this detour is necessary. Octavia, you should follow the guards. Perhaps we can learn more of the situation from the pony in captivity," Luna stated.

"Got it," I said as Luna hung up, just leaving me and Fluttershy.

"When you find the prisoner, give me a call," Fluttershy said, "I'll tend to any injuries they might have."

"Hopefully that won't be necessary. There's no reason you should have to enter this fight, and I have a feeling it's about to start getting bloody here."

"Well, okay... but definitely call me if you can win back the hospital. I might be able to set up there and be of more use."

So innocent, yet still so eager to help even if that meant being surrounded by blood. I guess that was to be expected from the Element of Kindness.

"Well, alright. As long as I don't see you carrying a weapon anytime soon. Leave the fighting to the soldiers, alright?"

"R-right, I understand..." she sounded really somber for some reason, but hung up before I could ask her why. This was still a war after all. The thought of me being a soldier and killing a few ponies was probably still trying for her.

The Canterlot Guards slowly made their way to the warehouse. I noticed that they seemed out of it for some reason. I took a chance and got a little closer to them, and I noticed their eyes had a green tint to them. Were they being controlled? I guessed that made sense.

It took a few minutes of shadowing them, but I eventually saw the large warehouse. It was in range of my Radar, so I noticed a blue dot in the room. Some one called me at that moment, so I ducked into the shadows and answered them.

"Octi!" Rainbow Dash answered, "That blue dot!"

"I know. That's one of your friends, right?" I asked.

"You can get her out of there, right?"

"I can certainly try," I said. I had every intention of getting in there and securing her safety, but I didn't want tog et her hopes up too high. I was a soldier, not a super hero, so there was still a high chance I could die here.

"Thanks, Octi."

Rainbow Dash hung up, not asking if I wanted to have my progress recorded. Understandable, as if I wanted that I'd ask her directly. I'd ask her about that after saving the hostage, whoever it was.

When the guards stopped, I made my way to the warehouse. It looked like there were weapons left behind here. I knew at some point I'd need weapons, so I picked up what looked like a small cross bow. It had a small section at the bottom that held boxes filled with tiny arrows. I tested the arrows by shooting a wall, pleased with the results. It pierced the wall and was stuck in it. This arrow could kill if shot in the right place.

I put the small crossbow in the magic bag the Princess gave me, and I started looking for a way inside the warehouse. I could always open it from inside, but since whoever the hostage was hadn't moved, that meant it would be more productive to keep the door locked outside. The poor pony inside was probably bound in some way.

If it was Twilight Sparkle, they'd have to use an inhibitor ring on her horn to prevent her from undoing the bindings. Any unicorn would need that treatment for that matter.

The side of the warehouse had a vent big enough for me to get inside. I looked out at the front door and saw the two guards I was shadowing standing guard. Yep, I thought, definitely locked from the inside.

Since I knew I'd have to go through the vent, I silently opened it and crawled inside. All I could do was hope that there was a way to get into that room from the vent.

When I got about halfway inside, I heard what sounded like a fight break out outside, but it was muffled. Maybe I was hearing things. I had to be. After all, I was the only pony inside Canterlot that was actively fighting.

Right...?

When I got further in the vent, it rose to where I thought was the ceiling. There was a opening that went into the room, and I finally got a good look at the pony inside. She was a white unicorn, with a long curly purple mane and matching tail. She had three diamonds representing her Cutie Mark. The poor thing had shackles on both her fore legs and hind legs, and a black collar with a chained leash hooked to the floor. There was a a black band on her mouth, and just as I thought, an inhibitor ring on her horn. She obviously was tough, because she was pulling at the leash with all of her might and screaming through the band. Before getting in there I called the Princess.

"Princess, I think I found one of the Elements of Harmony," I said.

"Describe her," she said.

"We're looking at a white unicorn with a purple mane and tail. Cutie Mark is three diamonds on the left flank."

Fluttershy appeared next to Luna.

"Rarity!" she screamed. Apparently Rarity was a good friend of hers, if her reaction was anything to go by.

"Is she okay?" the Princess asked. I could tell she was disappointed that it wasn't Twilight, but happy nonetheless.

"Despite being chained up like an animal, gagged, and obviously hating every second of it, yep. Absolutely fine."

"Your sarcasm is quite apparent, as usual," the Princess stated in a slight groan.

"Oh, would you rather I be a drone that follows your every order and has no personality? I thought we were fighting that lifestyle," I said loftily. I could hear Fluttershy giggling on her channel as the Princess sighed. My other superior officers have always had mixed feelings for how flippant I was. Some liked it, but some thought it was unnecessary and frustrating. Princess Luna was clearly the latter.

"Just get her out of there if you can," Princess Luna replied.

"I will, after I learn what she knows about the situation," I stated. She looked somewhat frantic at the moment, so I needed to make sure she didn't turn around and attack me once I freed her.

"Keep in mind there are guards outside," Princess Luna warned, "If they hear you, do whatever it takes to stay alive."

I knew what that meant. If the guards saw me, I was to kill them if I had to. My least favorite part of the job, and sadly the part I did the best next to staying hidden.

"I understand," I replied, not letting her know how much I hated the thought, even though I knew she was aware.

"Octavia..." Fluttershy said softly.

"I promise, I'll save her."

"I... trust you..." she said softly before she and Luna hung up. I slowly started undoing the covering on the vent. Once it was loose and fell open, Rarity stopped struggling and looked up. I shushed her before she made too much noise and then slowly jumped down into the room.

"You're Rarity, one of the Elements of Harmony, right?" I asked her. She gave me a slow nod, but she was still trembling. Apparently, she thought I was still a changeling. Understandable in this situation. Anyone could be a changeling.

"Don't worry," I reassured her, "I'm going to get you out of here, but first I need to ask you a few questions. I'm just going to undo the gag, okay?"

She slowly nodded, still eying me suspiciously. Now I could actually see her face, and was a little taken aback. She was wearing blue eyeshadow and mascara, showing that this pony was a little vain about her looks. When I got closer to her I realized she was also wearing perfume, but it had worn off a bit since she was here for at least a day. Undoing the gag showed she was also wearing red lipstick.

"You're not one of them are you?" she asked me, her voice high and fancy.

"No, I'm not a changeling, but I also know that I have no way of proving that to you. So I unfortunately can't undo the chains until you're sure I'm not a changeling."

"That's okay," Rarity said, "Honestly, the shackles I don't mind too much, but this collar..." I was about to protest, but she raised a hoof as best as she could, "I get it. You have to keep that on too, for your own safety. I'd do the same in your situation."

"Well at least we have an understanding," I said sitting down in front of her, "Why were you captured like this?"

"They were keeping me and my friend Applejack together," Rarity said looking down seriously, "But one of the changelings came in and took her to the hospital a few hours ago."

"Was she sick?"

"No, that was the strangest part," she said, her voice edged with worry, "She was perfectly healthy, and she almost got free herself."

She pointed to another set of chains on the other side of the room, and I trotted over there to investigate. The chains looked strained, as if someone pulled them loose.

"Your friend must be pretty strong," I reasoned.

"Physically she's the strongest one of us," Rarity said, pulling at the shackles on her fore legs a bit. Apparently she was getting uncomfortable.

"Hold on," I said, "You said only you and Applejack. Weren't there two more?"

"Twilight and Pinkie Pie," Rarity said, "But I don't know where they are. Pinkie Pie is resourceful enough to get out herself, but I'm worried about Twilight," Rarity looked away and shed a few tears, "Oh Twilight, I'm sorry..."

"Sorry? For what?" I asked, my heart racing a bit. Was she okay?

"Twilight knew something was wrong, but-"

"Wait," I walked over to Rarity, "What do you mean Twilight knew?"

"Well, Twilight was the first one of us to notice something strange going on in Canterlot. You see, the bride, Princess Mi Amore Cadenza, was Twilight's old foalsitter, but Twilight noticed she was acting strange. We thought she was just being jealous because she was marrying her brother-"

"Twilight's brother was the groom?!" I asked angrily, making Rarity step back a bit in fear.

"Y-yes. Is something wrong?" she asked me. Realizing how I scared her I took a deep breath and composed myself.

"Sorry Rarity, I didn't mean to startle you. I just didn't know Twilight had such a connection to this situation."

Rarity laughed in disbelief, "She's more than connected to the situation here. Twilight is almost at the center of it. Not only does she know Princess Cadence and the groom, but she's Princess Celestia's student."

That was something I would have liked to know ahead of time. What else had Princess Luna opted not to tell me?

"She suspected something from the start, but we all pushed her away and even abandoned her," Rarity pulled at the chained leash lightly before continuing, "Maybe this is divine punishment. If we had been better friends, then none of this would have happened."

"You don't know that," I said sitting down in front of her again, "This invasion was planned, and looking at how much damage they already did, there wouldn't have been much you could do."

"But what if Twilight is-"

"She's alive, I'm sure of it. I already promised somepony I'd save her, and I meant that. Once I've saved her and put a stop to whatever the changelings are planning, you'll be able to apologize to your heart's content."

That seemed to put Rarity's heart at ease, "Thank you," she said, "I feel horrible, I don't even know your name."

"Well, you probably can't recognize me without my cello, but-"

"Hold on, cello?" she looked at my flank and then her eyes went wide, "Y-you're Octavia Melody?!"

I laughed, careful to keep my voice down, "Yes, if you're curious I have history as a soldier though. This is a job I took out of the goodness of my heart," something I was still somewhat regretting. Not because I didn't want to help ponies, but I wanted to escape this life. Turns out life had other plans for me.

"You're a soldier? If you don't mind me asking, what was the war?" she asked me.

"I don't mind too much. It was the War of 1972," I stated.

If it was possible for anypony with such a white coat to get pale, she sure did. After a second she looked away in sadness, something I thought was odd.

"Rarity? Is something wrong?" I asked.

"Um, out of curiosity... did you run into any of my other friends? A pegasus with a cream coat for example?"

"You mean Fluttershy. Yes, she's back at our base outside Canterlot."

She oddly bit her lip, and tensed up, "So... you know about..." she looked at me expectantly, as if I was supposed to know something. When I shook my head she relaxed a bit, "Never mind. It's nothing important. Um, you should leave me here. I'd just get in your way."

"I told your friends I'd save you though, so I can't-" I stopped midway, once I noticed something. Rarity had made a bit of a commotion in here, and none of the guards came in. I shushed Rarity and slowly made my way to the door and listened.

Someone was breathing right outside.

I motioned for Rarity to stay silent, and then slowly opened the door. I was expecting to be assaulted when I stepped outside.

"Don't move!" someone shouted, pointing their purple horn at me. I looked at the pony and saw a Canterlot Guard, wearing the full armor and helmet, which was closed over their mouth, but their eyes told me they were female. The pony looked in the warehouse and saw Rarity inside, "Is she alright?"

"I didn't touch her," I said simply and honestly.

"I don't believe you," the armored mare said, her voice shaky, "How do I know you're not a changeling? You might have put her under a spell or something." I turned around to face her and she thrust her horn right at me, "Don't move!" she repeated, her voice frantic now and her whole body shaking.

"You ever kill anypony before?" I asked her.

"What are you talking about?" she asked in retaliation.

"I'm betting not. That spell you're charging up is a spell with enough concentrated energy to kill somepony, and you know it. Your eyes show too much emotion though, and your shaking, which means your afraid."

"I-I-I'm not afraid of you!" she shouted. I snorted lightly in response.

"Please, don't kid yourself. If you had any intention of firing that spell you would have done so by now," I looked to the side a bit and saw the two guards knocked out, one of them missing his armor, "And you didn't kill them."

"Wh-why would I...?" before she could finish her question, I looked behind her and saw a changeling slowly stepping out from behind a building, his horn charging with magic.

"Get down!" I shouted. Before she could protest, I pushed her to the ground just as him and two other changelings stepped out and fired green bolts at us. I stood up and saw three more step out to join them.

Six of them against only two of us, one of us clearly new to combat and war. I stood on my hind legs getting in a fighting stance, confusing the mare next to me.

"What are you..." she asked me.

"You have that spell ready, right?!" I asked her urgently.

"W-well, yeah, but-"

"Then get ready to fight!"

"WHAT?! But I can't-"

"As of this second, you're a soldier!" I stated, "Whatever you do, don't stop shooting!"

Chapter 3

The song I chose for this first part is the "boss theme" of this story. I chose it because to me it's the perfect fusion of the magical feel of MLP and the high energy and suspense of Metal Gear Solid.

play this song!

Immediately two of the changelings charged at me. I spun kicked one back, and then in one swift motion I pulled out the small cross bow and fired at the second one. I hit him point blank in the head, and he died immediately.

The first one was getting up, but before I could get to him, two more rushed over to me and knocked me back. I turned to the armored unicorn, who was trembling still charging her spell.

"Why are you just standing there?!" I shouted to her, snapping her out of her daze.

"W-what?!" she asked.

"I can't beat these guys on my own, and more are probably coming! Fire the damn spell already!"

That caught her attention, because immediately she screamed and fired a spell so big I had to jump away and duck. Thank FAUST she didn't hit me with that, otherwise I'd be more than dead.

Whoever this pony was, she was stronger than anyone I had ever seen.

The changelings all fell down dead, but just as I figured, more were coming. Apparently, they had enough time to call in reinforcments. I jumped back to my "partner's" side and held the small cross bow at the ready.

"Can you fire a smaller version of that?" I asked her, getting a shakey nod as a response, "Okay, time your shots with mine, and aim for sensitive spots. Shoot to kill, got it?"

With the way she stepped back, I could tell she had never killed ANYPONY before. I started to feel bad for yelling at her before, but this was a frantic situation. If we didn't kill them first, they'd kill us.

Four more changelings ran down the path over to us, and I could see three flying ones coming in as well. I fired at the four on the ground, not wanting to try my luck at hitting flying enemies yet while my trepid partner fired at the ones in the air. The four I shot at died instantly, but she missed one of them, only knocking him out of the sky.

I was about to fire at him, but my cross bow had run out of ammunition. I swore and then charged over to him with a jumping spin kick. He gaurded it, sending me back, and then threw a few punches of his own. After ducking and dodging his blows, I punched him in the jaw, and then again in the stomach, knocking him out. While on the ground I snapped his neck, making sure I killed him.

When I did, my partner gasped in shock.

end song

"W-w-why did you do that?!" she asked me trembling, "He was already knocked out! You didn't have to-"

"If he woke up he'd call more changlings," I replied, "It'd be harder to get Rarity out of there otherwise. Speaking of which, how do you know her?"

"H-huh? Um..." she shook her head and stepped away from me, "I'll take care of Rarity. You've done enough."

"If you expect me to just get out of your way, then sorry. I was asked by the Princess to personally handle freeing Canterlot. After getting Rarity out of here, you should find someplace to hide."

"No!" she said adamantly shaking her head, "I have to save them! I don't care what I have to do, I'm not running away!"

This mare was either really courageous or really stupid, and I was betting it was a combination of both. She wasn't cut out for battle, and she would probably die if she didn't get to safety.

Before I could say anything else, she walked into the warehouse Rarity was being held in (I noticed that her walked was surprising dainty for someone so rash), and cast a weird spell, completely undoing the bindings, "I have a place set up where it's safe. Come on," she said to Rarity, who slowly nodded. The two of them got up and galloped out of the warehouse.

"Hey! Hold on!" I shouted as they ran, but it was too late. The armored pony, and one of the Elements of Harmony, was gone. I ducked behind a barrel next to the warehouse and called Princess Luna.

"Is everything alright over there?" she asked me.

I sighed, "Well, the good news is that the hostage is safe. The bad news is that she isn't with me anymore. Someone else ran in all gung-hoe and got her to safety."

"And you're sure it wasn't a changeling?"

"Pretty damn sure. She didn't show up as one on the radar," now that I thought about it, she might have shown up blue. Did that mean she was another Element of Harmony? Did I just let another one slip by me?

"Whoever it was then, be on the look out for her. They might get hurt otherwise."

I nodded in response, opting not to tell the Princess who I thought that was. She was a unicorn pony that showed up blue on my radar. I had reason to believe that I had just run into Twilight Sparkle, the Element of Magic and dear friend of Princess Luna's. I didn't want her hopes to go up too high in case I was wrong.

"After taking a quick break I'll make my way to the hospital. Applejack is being held in there, so I'm going to need all my strength to get in there."

"Alright. Be careful, Octavia."

She hung up, and I decided to call Rainbow Dash. I had no idea what to expect in the hospital, so in case they needed to send somepony else after me I decided to have her record my progress.

"Hey Octi. What's up?" she asked me.

"I'm going to need you to save my record before I go in," I said, "Just in case I die."

"Here's to hoping you don't, but I get it. Alright, I have the file open. Tell me everything, and leave out nothing."

I recounted everything I had done up till that point, including the fight against the changelings. I even confided in her that I thought I had run into Twilight, but I made her promise not to tell anypony about that theory.

"So, if you've got a minute, why did the war start?" Rainbow Dash asked me.

"You mean the War of 1972?"

"Yeah? My dad said that it was the last big war in the world, but he never told me why it started."

"That's probably because he didn't know. A lot of soldiers are drafted into battle without being told the reason, and the best soldiers are the ones who don't ask. Soldiers like your father and I are expected to just follow orders, and kill whoever our commanding officers tell us to kill."

"You make it sound like soldiers are just machines..."

"That's what we're expected to be like. Do what we're told, and not ask questions. All I know about the war is that it was a large fourway battle between all the countries of the world. Some factions joined forces, such as Equestria teaming up with Serpentera. Tallos, the griffin kingdom, teamed up with Zebrica, all the creatures like minotaurs, sea serpents, and other ferocious creatures from the north teamed up to form one nation close to the fallen Crystal Empire, and finally the Changelings of the south."

"Sheesh, that many creatures fighting?!"

"Believe me when I say, it's a wonder that there's even a planet left to live on. I was trained in dragon style martial arts by a soldier named Fang."

"Hold up, is that how you learned how to stand on your hind legs like that?"

I laughed, "Yes, as a matter of fact it is. I still balance better on four feet like normal ponies do, but I can do a lot on two feet. It gives me a lot of freedom."

"Did you work with Equestria mainly?" she asked me.

"Actually no. Most of the time I stayed in dragon territory. They're actually really nice when you get to know them, and no they aren't all taller than Canterlot Castle. Some are actually close to a pony's height if said pony were standing up right. Fang was one of those types."

I actually got a little misty eyed thinking about Fang. I missed him so much, and the way he died would haunt me for the rest of my life.

Damn you, Braveheart...

"Octi? Are you okay?" Rainbow Dash asked, bringing me back to reality.

"Yeah, I'm fine. I'll tell you more later, but I can't keep Applejack waiting," also, I needed to change the subject. Talking to someone about the war was good therapy, but it also stirred up a lot of my inner emotions and fears.

"Right. Thanks for sharing all that with me, and good luck in there. Hit em once for me, kay?"

"I will," I said with a laugh, "See you, Rainbow Dash."

We hung up at the same time. Feeling refreshed I galloped over to the hospital. It looked like they upped the security a bit since I came through here before. Well, by now they had to have known that someone had infiltrated Canterlot.

I took my time making my way to the hospital, trying to not get seen by the small flying drones, which I assumed were cameras or something like that. There were two of them right at the doorway into the hospital. Damn it, I thought to myself, How the hell am I going to get in there now?

Looking around I saw a changeling guarding what looked like a bunker for weapons. Maybe there was something in there I could use. I slowly ran over to the side of the bunker, and knocked on the wall to get his attention.

"Huh? What was that?" he asked, slowly trotting over to where I was. I quickly ran around the back of the bunker to get to the other side before he got there. From there I was able to get inside the bunker, where I saw two things that caught my attention. Thing one was a small wand with a trigger at the bottom. Thing number two was a set of small blue orbs with clips hanging off of them.

I sat down in the back corner of the bunker and called the Princess, hopefully she could tell me what these were.

"Princess, I found some strange weapons," I asked her, "One I think is a pack of grenades, but I don't know what sort they are, and the other one is a strange wand with a trigger of some sort."

"Hm... I'm afraid I can't help you too much with that. However, I anticipated something like this, so I asked my student to help you as well."

"You have a student too?" I asked, as she didn't seem like the type to take on a desciple.

"I took her on last year. She has a lot of potential, much like Twilight Sparkle, but her upbringing had her abilities blossom late. Turn your earring to frequency 141.52 to reach her. She knows a lot about magical based weaponry."

"Thanks Princess. I'll call her immediately," I said hanging up. I then turned to the frequency Luna gave me, and got a surprise when the pony on the other end picked up. I saw the image of an azure colored pony with a light blue mane, and she was wearing a purple witch's hat and cape.

"You have reached the Great and Power Trixie," the pony on the other end said arrogantly, "Please make your inquiry now or begone peasant."

I couldn't contain my laughter. Of all the ponies Luna could have chosen as a student, I didn't expect her. But then again, she did have a lot of magical potential.

"Glad to see you haven't changed, Beatrix," I said, using her birth name. She was born Beatrix Lulamoon, but she began calling herself Trixie when she started doing shows.

"Octavia Melody...?" she asked, followed by gleeful laughter, "It is you, isn't it? I can't believe it!"

"Neither can I. It's a small world isn't it? How are you, old friend?"

"Worried about Canterlot, and my teacher," she explained, "Thankfully I decided to pick the day of the wedding to visit family in Manehatten, but now I'm stuck out here, unable to do anything to help."

"Well, I'm not too sure about that," I said, "You apparently know about magical weapons, right?"

"Correct," she said looking up in a haughty manner, "Trixie not only knows about magical weapons, but she also knows a lot about the history of some species in Equestria, including changelings."

"That's perfect, considering what I'm up against here," I swear, when I said that, Beatrix's face became darker than I had ever seen in my life.

"So what my teacher said is true... the changelings did invade?" she looked at me in determination and earnest, "Those creatures are monsters, and what they're doing could lead to another war as big as the War of 1972. I won't stand for that. Sadly, all I can do for you is give you information on what I know."

"Hopefully that's going to be enough," I said, "One soldier here is already one too many. What can you tell me about these weapons I found?"

I described to Beatrix the two weapons I found.

"Well, the wand your looking at is a special type of Fire Wand. Magicians in the old days used wands and staffs to augment their magical abilities. These days they've gone into dissuse, as many unicorns such as moi have magical capabilites superior to many normal unicorns, who simply use their magic for house hold uses.

"Because of this, staffs and wands are now used by other ponies in the military who can't use magic. Pegasi and earth ponies are able to cast spells using them simply by pulling the trigger."

"But Pegasi and earth ponies can't use magic normally, right? Don't you have to be magically capable to cast spells?"

"Yes, you do," Beatrix explained further, "Which is why those wands are usually charmed with spells prebound to them. The wand you have right now has a fire spell weaved into it. All you have to do is pull the trigger to cast the spell."

"Interesting," I said pocketing the want, "This is going to come in handy. What about these grenades?"

"Ah, now that's simpler to explain. Those are Magynite Grenades," she explained, confusing me a bit.

"Magynite? What the hell is that?" I asked her, making her laugh a bit.

"It's a special mineral that disrupts magic. It's rare, but if used in something like a grenade for example, it can cause magi-tech machines to malfunction. If you use it, your radar will be knocked out for a short while, as it's a product of magi-tech as well."

"But it will come back on after a while? I'm guessing the machines will start working again too after a bit."

"Yes. You have to understand, Octavia, magic is alive. Like all living entities, it adapts, so after a few seconds the machines will be able to work again. They won't adapt to a point where they're immune to magynite, but you'll have to fire another grenade to get the effects again."

At least that was good news. I had quite a few of these now, and I had a feeling that there would be more lying around. This also gave me a way into the hospital, which was exactly what I needed.

"This works. I can get a lot of use out of these weapons."

"If you find anything else you don't understand, let me know. I'll do everything I can to be of service."

"Thanks. It's good to see you again, Beatrix," I said with a smile.

"Same here, Octavia."

She hung up, and I couldn't help but smile thinking about the times she and I had after the war. I had heard she lost a lot during the war, but she never told me what. I had a feeling that it had something to do with the changelings though.

With that done, I made my way out of the bunker. The guard was out front again, but being inside I could take him out easily. I grabbed him and brought him into the bunker with me, and choked him until he fell unconscious. No need to kill him, since he never saw my face and would have any idea of where I went.

When he was down, I got as close to the hospital as I could and held out one of the Magynite Grenades. Biting the clip off, I threw it toward the cameras. It gave a small silent explosion, and small green particles came out and clouded the area. The camera like creatures were looking around frantically, unable to see anything apparently.

I also noticed that my Soloton RADAR showed static instead of an overhead representation of my immediate area. Oh well, according to Beatrix it would clear up soon enough.

I ran into the hospital, thankful that inside my radar worked perfectly. I guessed the hospital was open enough for a scanning. Good.

I explored the hospital for probably a good few minutes to an hour, unable to find anything unusual, which was unusual. I figured though that if no one was in the lower floors, then they'd be in the upper floors.

I spotted what looked like an elevator. Thankfully it still worked. I decided to check the middle floors, starting with the tenth floor.

It took some time, but when it arrived, I saw changlings walk past the elevator. Thankfully they didn't see me, but I still waited until they passed by before I made my way out. There were a lot more changelings here, which made me think that Applejack might have been close.

I walked down the halls of what was starting to look like the emergency section. I looked through all of the rooms I went past, but I didn't see Applejack anywhere. I was starting to get worried. This place was huge. If I didn't find her soon, she might not survive, but where in this hospital was she?

I saw the operating room ahead, but there was another security camera like creature watching the pathway. Something told me that whatever was behind that door wasn't something they wanted revealed.

Possibly a hostage. Possibly Applejack.

I threw a Magynite Grenade over to the door, and it exploded confusing the drone. I then ran over to the door, but slowly opened it, just in case I was ambushed.

When I looked inside, all I saw was an earth pony with an orange coat and a light blond mane and tail strapped to the operating table, her Cutie Mark being three apples. At first I thought she was dead, but getting a closer look I saw her breathing slowly.

I went inside once I was sure she was the only one there and slowly closed the door. Once I did, my radar came back on. I was expecting a green dot, but instead I saw a blue one.

I found her.

When I galloped over to her, I was heartbroken. She didn't look thin or anything, but she looked so tired and weak. Also, she was moaning as if in pain, and she had long given up on pulling at her bindings. Her mane was flowing freely, as was her tail, giving her a truly helpless look like from one of those story books about a captured princess.

"Hey, are you awake?" I asked in a whisper. She slowly opened her hazel eyes and looked up at me weakly, "You're Applejack, Element of Honesty, right?"

She slowly nodded, moaning in confirmation.

"Don't worry, I'm going to get you out of here. Just give me a second to untie you," I said getting to work. As I tried to work her bindings (which were tied really tightly to keep her still apparently) I noticed her tense up.

"Be...hind... you..." she moaned. I looked up at her, and saw her wide eyed a bit. Immediately I turned around just in time to see what looked like a needle fly toward me. I jumped away just in time.

"So you're the one messing with our drones?" a sweet yet sinister voice said stepping out from another side door, "I thought it was the Element of Magic who was fighting us. I didn't expect the famous Octavia Melody though."

The pony that stepped out wasn't a changeling. In fact, it was just that, a pony! She had a pure white coat, a pink mane tied in a bun, and a long pink tail. Her Cutie Mark was a red cross surrounded by four hearts.

I knew of this pony. This was Nurse Redheart, famous nurse turned surgeon. At first I thought she was under changeling control, but then I saw her eyes weren't green tinted. A changeling.

"How cute," I taunted, "But I already know your tricks. You're a changeling mimicking the real Nurse Redheart," I said, making the changeling laugh.

"Oh silly pony, I am the real Nurse Redheart," she said with a sinister smile, "But you aren't wrong about the changeling part. However, it's so much more complicated than you realize."

"More complicated..." I asked, afraid of what she might have meant by that.

She trotted over to Applejack and began caressing her cheek, "She was so strong before. Thanks to the first strain of my plague though, she's been reduced to this helpless damsel," she said chuckling.

"Your plague? What did you do to her?" I asked harshly.

"I simply used her as a test for my virus," Nurse Redheart said trotting away from Applejack and spinning around, "Imagine, a virus so powerful that it makes even the strongest ponies powerless against our queen. If this were a success, then no pony could ever stand up to us, not even an alicorn."

That got my attention, and I took out my small crossbow and pointed at her, "You better not have-"

"Oh trust me, I wanted to," Nurse Redheart said, "Sadly, Her Majesty is keeping the pony I wanted to test this on as a personal prisoner, so I settled for the strongest of the Elements of Harmony," she kicked the table Applejack was tied to, making the poor mare moan and sob in sadness/pain.

"You should have seen her a few hours ago," Nurse Redheart continued, "She was so strong willed. Even strapped to the table, the main drones were afraid to approach her. Once I infected her with the first strain, she lost all power. Why, even a child could overpower her now."

Applejack looked at me with the saddest expression I had ever seen. I could see it in her eyes, she was begging, pleading me to save her. She was scared, and although she was strong willed, she didn't want to die.

"I had just finished the second strain when you came in," Nurse Redheart continued walking over to her work desk, "After years of researching and testing, my weapon is completed. I was going to test it on the Element here, but that might kill her. Instead," she pointed her scalple at me and smiled evilly, "I'll knock you out, strap you to a table, and then test it out on you!"

"That's if you live past this!" I said standing on my hind legs and getting in a fighting stance. I was still confused though. This was Nurse Redheart, no doubt about it. But she was a changeling? I had a lot of questions on my mind, but before I could answer those questions...

I had to survive this fight first.

Chapter 4

So you know when you played Metal Gear Solid, and you'd call your people about how to beat the bosses, but no one would be attacking Snake even though he's just standing there? Suspend your disbelief a little here with the way this chapter begins. I'm trying to make this feel like a Metal Gear game, so bear with me on this, okay?

Also, excuse the vector size. I wanted it to be smaller, but eh, what are ya gonna do?

play this song!

I ducked behind a table and immediately called the Princess. Before I fought this mare I needed to know what the hell was going on here.

"What's going on?!" I asked when Princess Luna answered, "Is this Nurse Redheart or a changeling?!"

"I'm afraid I don't know!" Luna said frantically, "She sounds like Nurse Redheart, and she doesn't seem to be under any control..."

"Well something's going on here, because she's working with the changelings!" I stated, a little frustrated with this whole situation. I couldn't just kill her without cause if she was a civilian under control, but if she was a changeling then I'd have to fight her at full force.

"Heart Breakers!" Fluttershy chimed in, her image appearing next to Luna's. She looked really surprised too.

"Heart Breakers? What are you talking about?" Princess Luna asked.

"She must be with them! That's the only explanation!" Fluttershy continued.

"Mind filling me in?" I asked, "Since I'm the one who has to fight her!"

"S-sorry Octavia..." Fluttershy said shrinking back a bit. Maybe I was a little harsh with her. I sighed and calmed down.

"It's okay, Fluttershy. I'm not mad, I'm just a little confused. What's a Heart Breaker?"

"The Heart Breakers are an elite organization of changelings that answer directly to the Queen. They were formed around the end of the War of 1972," Fluttershy explained, "In order to gain information about Equestria, the changelings sent some of their most elite drones into Equestria. They were so powerful that they could create forms from scratch rather than just mimicing existing ponies."

"So these changelings can appear as anyone?!" Luna asked.

"Yes. After the end of the war, the Heart Breakers vanished from the face of the Earth," Flutttershy continued, "Their existence was just a rumor, but after hearing Nurse Redheart talking, I'm sure they exist now."

"If Queen Chrysalis came here with her elite soldiers, then she wants something else besides more land," I reasoned. After all, she wouldn't need soldiers this elite if this were an occupation. They already own Canterlot, so why all the security?

"If that's true..." Luna trailed off, "I wonder... are they after...?"

"Princess? What's wrong?" Fluttershy asked.

"And with them stealing the SS Friend-Ship too..."

"Princess! What's going on here?! Is there something you aren't telling me?!"

"That isn't important right now," Luna said, "What is important is defeating the changeling in front of you and stopping Chrysalis."

I was silent when she said that. Clearly she wasn't telling me something. In fact, I was sure at that moment she knew exactly what the changelings wanted. But like I told Rainbow Dash earlier, as a soldier, I was expected to do my job and not ask questions.

Didn't change how irritated I was though...

"Octavia, the one your fighting right now must be White Plague," Fluttershy explained, surprising me a bit.

"How do you know that?"

"She was said to specialize in biological warfare in the War of 1972," she continued, "She probably isn't that good at hoof to hoof, nor is she very fast."

"Fluttershy, I..." I was really taken aback by her knowledge of this organization. How had she known about the Heart Breakers when I didn't? Sure it was a rumor, and I didn't follow much on rumors, but this...

"Octavia, you need to take her out quickly so we can save Applejack. Fluttershy, you need to head there as well to treat her," Luna suggested, making my heart leap out of my chest.

"Hold on, I don't want Fluttershy getting involved anymore than she already is! This is officially a war zone here!"

"Exactly, and as such everyone here is a soldier. Fluttershy is a designated nurse as well, so the hospital is a good place for her to set up. We had planned on getting her there anyway."

"Yes, but..."

"Octavia, it's fine," Fluttershy said softly, "I can defend myself if necessary. Besides, if Applejack is as bad off as she sounds, she needs immediate help."

I hated it, but Fluttershy was right. I couldn't treat Applejack, and she sounded really weak. Fluttershy was the only one who could tend to her.

"Fine, but be careful Fluttershy," I urged, "I don't want to have to save you too."

"I'll be fine. Just concentrate on killing White Plague. I'll be there as fast as I can," Fluttershy said before both she and Luna hung up. Fluttershy told me to kill White Plague? I never thought I'd hear those words come out of Fluttershy's mouth. Before stepping out and fighting I quickly went to Beatrix's frequency to get her opinion on how to proceed.

"Like Fluttershy said, she isn't very powerful," Beatrix explained, "Trixie recommends putting that mini crossbow of yours to good use. The fire wand is also a good choice."

I thanked her and hung up. Immediately I pulled out the mini crossbow and jumped out to fight Nurse Redheart.

"There you are!" she shouted before galloping over to me with a scalpel in her mouth. I jumped away just in time before she threw it at me, and then fired the mini crossbow at her. It hit her side, but she didn't take a lot of damage and quickly jumped behind a table herself.

"Earth ponies are such powerful creatures," Nurse Redheart said, "They make ideal soldiers and laborers. Their bodies are so much sturdier than any other pony in existence other than alicorns. That's why they're the perfect subjects for my tests!"

She jumped out and threw another scalpel at me. Just how many of those things did she have? One hit me as I ran out of the way, but I managed to get a few good hits with my mini cross bow before she ducked behind another table.

"The reason I got into biological warfare is because it's not as violent," Nurse Redheart explained as I circled around the room, "There's nothing more fulfilling for me than to see someone strong willed suddenly bowing their head before me," she moaned in ecstasy, "I get goosebumps just thinking about it!"

She threw a small orb out from behind the table. When it exploded a green gas came out of it and covered the room. This was poison!

I covered my nose and looked away for a split second, but then felt a powerful blow to my face knocking me back. When I got up, I saw Nurse Redheart with a needle in her mouth lunging at me. I quickly rolled to the side and kicked her back, and then pulled out the fire wand and shot at her. She fell back and then ducked behind the table Applejack was still tied to.

"You better hurry, Octavia!" Nurse Redheart taunted, "She might still die if she isn't treated!"

True enough, I thought. All during this fight poor Applejack had been moaning in pain the entire time, and it sounded like she was crying right now. I tried to picture her vibrant and strong willed, but as she was now I couldn't see it. That was a testament of how much pain she was in at the moment.

Nurse Redheart jumped out and ran to another table, throwing her scalpels at me as she ran. I rolled out of the way and fired my mini crossbow at her as it was quicker and harder to dodge. She took the attack in the leg but jumped behind the table before I could get her again.

I ducked behind the table Applejack was resting on, so I could A) stay as far away from Nurse Redheart as possible, and B) ensure Applejack that it would be okay. We met eyes, and I could once again see the fear in them.

"I'll save you," I said, "I promise."

Applejack nodded slowly, letting me know that she trusted me. She was clearly still afraid, but she wouldn't let it show anymore than it already was. She was a tough mare.

I rolled out of my hiding spot pulling out the fire wand and shot at the table White Plague was hiding behind. The table caught fire and she was forced to jump away. I took that as my chance to gallop over to her and return the gift she gave me earlier. When I got to my hind legs and threw the punch, White Plague caught my punch and threw me over her shoulder.

I got to my feet again and continued to throw blow after blow, landing a few really good hits in. I kicked her back into a wall, and then pulled out the fire wand and shot at her. She galloped to the side just in time, but I could see her wearing down a bit.

She threw another gas grenade out at me, but this time I was ready. I rolled behind the burnt table she just came from and waited for the gas to clear up. When it did I saw White Plague looking around for me. Apparently I wasn't the only pony who couldn't see in that fog.

She was open. I took my chance and shot her with my fire wand, landing a really good point blank shot at her back and knocking her down.

end song here

"Not... bad..." she panted from behind the table Applejack was lying on, "I expected no less from the Great Shadow herself. But I'm not done yet," she said. She jumped out and was about to lunge at me, but something happened that I would never forget.

A pony rushed by her really fast in a blur, and her left eye was sliced through.

"Augh!!!!" she screamed, "You bitch! You cut my eye!"

I looked at who the attacker was and my heart was pounding. They were a pegasus, clearly female. I couldn't see her face nor her mane, as she was wearing a skin tight body armor that was black and red, and her helmet covered her head and face perfectly with a red visor over the eyes. The armor came out in the back and around the waist almost like an armored dress completely covering her tail as well, but I could tell who it was immediately. I knew, and I saw red.

"Y-you..." I said, "You're..."

"You traitor!" White Plague said, "Vanish for twelve years and then turn your back on the ones that made you! The Queen will hear about this!"

White Plague ran out of the room, covering her eye as she left. Immediately I pulled out my mini crossbow and fired at the black armored pony, but surprisingly she moved her head out of the way as if it were nothing.

Enraged, I charged at her and began fighting her close quarter. She ducked and doged out of the way of all of my blows as if it were a dance. She then in one swift motion kicked me back into the table Applejack was resting on. Seeing her move, now I was sure of who it was.

"Braveheart!" I screamed, "What are you doing here?!"

"Just trying to save a friend," she said, her voice distorted beyond recognition because of the armor.

"How dare you call me a friend!" I shouted, "This is for Fang!"

I'll admit, I sort of lost myself in the moment there. I just began firing at her, knowing that it was futile. Somehow she was able to dodge my shots. I just wanted one to hit her, just one.

Sadly, it never came. After a few seconds she jumped out of the window and flew away, even her wings being armored. I ran to the window, but when I arrived, she was gone.

I slammed my hoof on the window, fighting the urge to scream. She was here, right here, and I let her get away. I was about to run out and search for her, but I remembered why I was in Canterlot in the first place. Sadly, personal missions like that needed to be taken care of when there wasn't a helpless mare tied to a table in excruciating pain right behind me.

I took a deep breath, and turned to Applejack with regained composure. I trotted over to her and untied her, helping her off the table.

"Can you walk?" I asked. She tried to walk a bit, but her legs were really shakey.

"Yer... the classical musician... Octavia Melody, ain't ya?" she said, her Applosian accent quite apparent now that she spoke in full sentences.

"That's right," I said guiding her to the window and lying her down under it, "Surprised to see somepony like me fighting?"

"Not really..." she said with a smile, "Mah big brother fought in the War of 1972. Said there was sum interestin characters there, all sorts of types. Seein ya fight like that... didn't surprise me one bit."

"Your brother was in the War of 1972?" I asked, suddenly getting a good look at her. How could I not recognize her? She was younger in the pictures, but I remembered her now, "Tell me, is his name Macintosh?"

"Yeah, that's his name," she said, suddenly coughing.

"Hey, don't get too excited," I said, "You're not well."

"Sorry," Applejack said, "It's jus, Ah can't believe Ah'm meetin one of his war buddies right now. Ah can't wait ta tell Big Mac that Ah saw ya."

"Big Mac, huh? Funny, in the war, we always called him Lil Mac because he was the youngest one there," I said loftily, making Applejack laugh too.

"Lil Mac?! Aw, ya shouldn't 've told me that," she said coughing once, "Ah'll never let him live that one down."

That cough was worrying me, so I smiled to her and quickly called Fluttershy, now wanting her to get here.

"Fluttershy, how close are you?" I asked Fluttershy, who looked really tired for some reason. Must have been flying really fast.

"I'm right outside the hospital," she stated, "The changelings are clearing out."

"Must be because I took out the leader. Applejack is safe, but she's not well. Can you treat her when you get here?"

"That was my plan," Fluttershy said, "Can you stay with her until I get there?"

"Sure, I can do that."

"Thank you Octavia..." she said somberly before hanging up. She was always so worried about others, I figured she felt bad for slowing me down. It wasn't a bother to me at all. In fact, I was looking forward to seeing her again.

"Your friend is on her way," I said to Applejack, "The changelings have left, so you aren't in any danger."

"Hang on..." Applejack said, "Yer here ta fight the changelings, right?"

"Well, my main goal is to save all of your friends and Canterlot," I stated, "But yeah, that's in my job description as well, techically."

"Then Ah need ta tell ya whut I learned," she said, surprising me.

"What you learned?"

"Before they captured me, Ah heard a few of the drones talkin about a weapon they wus gonna use. Ah wanted ta tell somepony, but since mah capture Ah wus gagged almost the entire time, even when Ah wus with Rarity."

That had to be frustrating. Having information that could help stop the invasion, one of your friends right next to you, and you can't talk. No wonder she was so adamant about escaping.

"Do you know anything about this weapon?" I asked her.

"Nurse Redheart wus talkin ta the queen 'bout it. They thought Ah wus unconscious, so they didn't pay me much mind. Apparently, it's sum sort of... bipedal tank or somethin. They also said somethin 'bout a "metal gear" an' somethin called "tallas"... Ah don't know. They lost me when they started talkin machines."

I let the words ring in my head for a bit. A bipedal tank? And what were they talking about concerning a "metal gear"? It took a minute, but then the gears in my head started turning really fast.

"Do you think they meant Metal Gear TALOS?" I asked Applejack, who nodded quickly.

"Yeah, yeah! That's the thing!" she said, coughing again. Faust, this mare was going to kill herself before Fluttershy got here, "Metal Gear TALOS, that's the name."

If the changelings were trying to get the Metal Gear project running again, we were in serious trouble. I just hoped they hadn't been working on it for very long.

"This isn't good," I said pacing around, "They're building a Metal Gear? What for?"

"Ah don't think they're building it," Applejack said coughing once, "Ah think they said it wus finished."

My heart sank when I heard that. It was built already? The changelings had that sort of technology at their disposal?

"Ah... managed ta warn Twilight 'fore Ah got captured," Applejack said, "She wus wearin one of them earrins yer wearin, an' told me ta remember 140.15..."

"A frequency?" I asked Applejack.

"She said not ta give that number ta anypony but our friends," Applejack said, "But yer the only pony who can protect her."

"Why do you want me to protect Twilight?" I asked Applejack.

"Cause when Ah told her 'bout the weapon the changelings were usin, she freaked out an' went off on her own. Ah wanted ta gallop after her, but..."

"Then you got captured before you could reach her," I continued, getting a grimace from the earth pony lying down in front of me. This confirmed for me that the pony I had seen before was Twilight Sparkle. I needed to find her quickly.

The door opened, making me jump a bit. When I turned around I saw Fluttershy galloping into the room.

"Applejack! Are you okay?" Fluttershy said kneeling next to her.

"Aw, Ah'm fine now," Applejack said, suddenly sounding tougher than earlier, "It's gonna take more than sum overgrown bugs ta take me down."

I could see it in her eyes. She was forcing herself to sound strong for her friend. I knew this was a bad idea, but it wasn't my place to argue.

"Fluttershy," I said catching the cream colored pegasus' attention, "I'm going to get in touch with Twilight, and then start making my way to the castle. What are you going to do?"

"Um... it probably isn't safe to move Applejack too quickly," Fluttershy said softly, "I'll take her back to Princess Luna's base when she's better, but for now I'll stay here."

"I'd feel better if you weren't here by yourself," I stated, "But if you're sure you'll be okay..."

Fluttershy nodded, "Yes, Octavia. I'll be alright. Please look after Twilight."

"I will," I said before pulling Fluttershy into a comforting embrace, "It's going to be okay, Fluttershy. I'll protect you and all of your friends."

"Th-thank you..." she said softly before returning the embrace. She let go of me and quickly began tending to Applejack, who was suddenly looking at Fluttershy concerned. I thought about asking her what was wrong, but thought against it, as I was pressed for time.

"When you see Lil' Mac, tell him I said hi, okay?" I said to Applejack who nodded smiling.

"Ah'll tell Lil' Mac just that," she said with a smirk. I knew that she was going to make Macintosh's life hell now that she knew his nickname, but that's what little sisters were for, right?

When I left the operating room, I noticed that the camera like creatures were gone. Like Fluttershy said, the changelings cleared out of the hospital. That was good, but I knew they'd eventually come back unless we got a defense around here.

Well, it was safe now, so I walked over to the elevator and turned my earring to the frequency Applejack gave me. Sure enough, the pony on the other end was wearring Canterlot Knight armor.

"Y-you..." she said, clearly surprised that somepony was able to find her.

"Your friend Applejack is safe," I said to start the conversation, "She's being taken care of by your friend Fluttershy right now."

"You're with... Fluttershy...?"

"Rainbow Dash and Princess Luna are with me as well," I continued, "I'm on your side. My name is Octavia Melody."

"Wait... Octavia Melody? As in, famous classical musician and composer Octavia Melody?!"

I laughed at her eagerness, "I take it you're a fan?"

"I'm literally in love with your music! I listen to it all the time when I'm studying!" Twilight said, literally beaming with excitement. Through the image I could see she was still wearing her helmet, so I could only see her eyes, but that was enough for me to see that she was smiling.

"It's nice to know that my music is so well received," I said smiling as well. Now that I was talking to her, I could tell she was a pony I could get along with.

"But I'm confused... earlier you seemed so..." she said looking away slightly.

"Sorry about that. I know that the way I spoke to you was a little cross, and I probably scared you quite a bit, but-"

"I know, you were trying to survive. I was just surprised that you were so hard core," she said honestly.

"Well, let's just say that playing stringed instruments isn't the only thing I'm good at, unfortunately."

"So... were you a soldier?"

"Yes, I fought in the War of 1972," I said, noticing how somber she got.

"Princess Celestia told me how gruesome that war was," she said, "Most of the ponies that fought in that war turned out pretty traumatized."

That made me wonder how Lil' Mac was doing. He was a good kid, and always had something witty to say. He was the one making us laugh when when things got too serious. I hoped he was still loud and cracking jokes every five seconds.

"Applejack told you about a weapon the changelings were going to use, right?" I asked, getting a nod from the pony on the other side.

"Yes. I've been looking into it while searching for civilians. My brother got injured trying to get himself and Cadence to safety, so I'm using his Codex Earring."

That explained why she even had the earring in the first place, "Did you learn anything about the weapon? Where it's being held?"

"No, sorry. Most of the guards are stationed in the castle, so that's where the more juicy information is. I did hear something about the creator of it. I think her name was Vinyl Scratch or something like that."

So, Metal Gear was made by a pony of Equestria? Somepony was a traitor, and I was going to make them pay for making something so accursed.

"Well, that gives me even more insentive to get into the castle," I said seriously, "Do you know a way in?"

"Hm... wait, I think I have an idea," Twilight said, "At the western side of Canterlot is a way into the catacombs. I'm pretty sure they connect to the castle. You can use that."

"Great. Thanks, Twilight. Now get back to your brother where it's safe," I commanded, but she shook her head adamantly.

"Sorry, but I have to see this through till the end. I'm not going back."

"Twilight-"

"Besides, you'll still need my help getting into the castle. I'll be stationed there in about an hour, so I can sneak you inside. Also, I know the entire layout of the castle like the back of my hoof."

I sighed in frustration. I just knew this mare would be the death of me.

"I'm not saying I'm going to fight, but I can at least support you. At this point, it's better that we work together."

Sadly, I couldn't argue with that. Despite how our first meeting went, I could tell that this pony was the type to use common sense. She was right, I did need her help.

"Fine, you and I can work together," I said, "But stay out trouble, okay?"

"I'll be good, I promise," Twilight said.

"Alright, we'll meet up at the catacomb's entrance. Wait for me there, okay?"

"Got it, and thanks for looking after my friends," Twilight said.

"They're slowly becoming my friends too," especially Fluttershy, I thought to myself when I remembered how I hugged her earlier. She was slowly becoming something like a little sister to me.

"See you in a bit," Twilight said hanging up. The western side of Canterlot, huh? Well, at least I had my next objective. I got on the elevator and went down to the first floor, wasting no time making my way to the door.

Outside, I saw there were definitely less changeling drones around, but there were still a couple. Before I continued I decided to call Rainbow Dash in order to record my progress.

"You okay, Octi?" Rainbow Dash asked me.

"Yeah, I'm okay now," I said, "Could you record my progress?"

"Got the computer open and ready to record. What cha got for me?"

I then relayed everything to her that had happened to me so far, including my moment with Braveheart.

"So... you're sure that was Braveheart from earlier?" Rainbow Dash asked me.

"I'd know those moves anywhere. It was her, alright."

"But she saved you, didn't she? That has to count for something."

"She only saved me so she could kill me herself," I said venomously, "What I want to know is why she's even here. White Plague called her a traitor."

"Maybe she was with the changelings," Rainbow Dash said. I thought about that, and it did make sense. But why did she betray them? Did she turn on them just like she turned on Equestria during the War of 1972?

"All I know is that she's dangerous, and clearly a wild card. If I see her again, I'm taking her out."

"Octi..."

"I'll fight calmer next time, I promise, but I will fight her, and I will kill her," and I meant it. There wasn't much to say after that, so Rainbow Dash nodded somberly and hung up, a gesture I appreciated.

I began sneaking my way to the western edge of Canterlot. There were a few changeling guards stationed around, but nothing too complicated that my life was in any danger.

I was about halfway there when my earring began ringing. I looked at the frequency, and it read 141.80. I didn't recognize that frequency, so I hid behind a building and opened the line.

I was not ready for who I heard on the other end.

"Hello, is anypony there? This is Princess Celestia. I need help."

Chapter 5

"Hello? Is anyone out there? Please answer me!"

Was I hearing this correctly? How in the world was Princess Celestia contacting me? How did she even get my frequency? This smelled like a trap, so before answering her I contacted Luna on a separate channel to get her input.

"Princess, I just received a call from frequency 141.80," I explained, "Does that sound familiar to you?"

"Wait, my sister?!" Luna asked, confirming that it was in fact Princess Celestia on the other line, "You did not answer yet?! Why not?!"

"Well, considering that we're fighting enemies that can take on any likeness, I figured I'd call you first before answering," I explained. Luna caught herself immediately and regained composure.

"Ahem, yes. Well, you're right to be cautious. Patch me through as well," Luna said. I complied and pulled up the Princess, who was apparently on an open channel. When her image appeared in my eye she looked really worried, but otherwise okay.

"Hello?" I asked, "This is Octavia Melody, a soldier fighting to liberate Canterlot. I'm here with your sister, Princess Luna."

"Sister, is it really you?" Luna asked. Celestia was wide eyed when she heard our voices.

"Luna? You're really Luna?" Celestia asked.

"What is the secret to magic?" Luna asked, I assumed it was a code they shared.

"The secret to magic is in the unity of all life on Earth," Celestia replied, "As our dear teacher taught us?"

"Dearest Starswirl, may his soul rest in peace," Luna stated, suddenly looking elated, "Tia, it is you!"

"Oh Luna, I have been so worried!" Celestia said, almost breaking into tears of joy, "Thank the heavens you are safe!"

"So, it really is her?" I asked, now breathing a bit easier.

"Yes, Octavia, it is indeed my sister," Luna stated, and I released a breath I didn't know was being held.

"Octavia Melody? You played at the Gala last year, didn't you?" Celestia asked me, "I'm surprised to see you engaged in combat."

"Well, it helps that I have history as a soldier under my belt," I explained, "I was a soldier in the War of 1972."

Her face became grave when I said that, and she looked away in sadness, "I'm sorry, Miss Melody. The state of your mind must be torturous at best."

"Well, drowning out my sorrows with alchohol and playing really depressing music helps with the healing process," I said, getting a slight chuckle from the Sun Princess.

"Well, at least you have a positive outlook about things," Celestia said, "But to go against the changelings by yourself..."

"Octavia has a history in covert operations," Luna explained, "Her code name during the war was Great Shadow."

"You were able to get the Great Shadow to fight for us?" Celestia smiled as if she had an idea, "This works out perfectly then. Perhaps she can help us stop Chrysalis."

"That's the idea, but I need to know what they're planning. While we're on the subject, how did you even escape?"

"Sadly, I did not," Celestia said, "At least, not fully. I managed to trick the drones guarding me, and then I got free from my cell, but sadly I'm in hiding at the moment."

"Hiding? Where are you?" Luna asked, "I can have Octavia find you and-"

"No, sister, there isn't any time," Celestia said, "We have more pressing matters to attend to, such as stopping another great war from breaking out."

"How do they plan on doing that?" I asked, not sure how the changelings could start a war by themselves. They had numbers, but they weren't very advanced. Unless of course...

"In order to do that, they'll require Metal Gear TALOS," Celestia said, confirming my suspicions.

"Sister?!" Luna called out, "That's top secret! We can't just-"

"Can't just what?" I challenged, "Can't just tell the pony who volunteered to help out of the kindness of her heart what the hell she's even fighting for?" I'll admit, I was getting really irritated with the Princess. I knew that as a soldier I needed to just follow orders, but this wasn't just a regular mission. As of now, I HAD to know what was going on.

"Luna, she's right," Celestia said, "We can't keep this a secret from her, especially if she's helping us. Miss Melody, what do you know about the Metal Gear Project?"

I wasn't accustomed to being called "Miss Melody" but it had a nice ring to it.

"I've heard a few things about it during the war," I said, "I had heard it was going to be a magically powered bipedal tank, but it was deemed unethical."

"That's because it was a machine designed solely for destruction," Celestia explained further, "Equestria's desire was to stop war, not add to it. It was decided that Metal Gear would promote combat, rather than putting an end to it."

"Which makes it perfect for the changelings to use," I reasoned looking away slightly, "How do I stop it?"

"I imagine that the only one who would know that would be its creator, correct?" Luna asked.

"Yes, you need to find Vinyl Scratch. She's Metal Gear TALOS' creator," Celestia answered.

"I planned on finding her anyway," I said venomously, "For reawakening the Metal Gear Project, when I get my hooves on her I'll-"

"Please go easy on her when you find her," Celestia urged, "It isn't her fault that machine is alive now."

"And you know this how?"

"I fear you will know after you meet her, and when you do you may hate both Luna and myself," Celestia said sadly. Truth was, I was already beginning to have certain thoughts about the royal family, but at least Celestia was upfront with me, unlike her sister Luna.

"Tia, we need to stay in touch," Luna said.

"I agree. Miss Melody, remember this frequency. I will keep you updated on anything I learn about what the Queen is planning. Also, I have knowledge on how the changeling's function, so if you need help, call me."

"I appreciate it, but shouldn't you be trying to escape?" I asked, "Maybe you should try and find Luna."

"I'm sorry, but I can't leave. What has happened today is my fault for multiple reasons, and I will not leave until I make things right. I would be failing my ponies if I simply ran away."

I sighed, seeing something in common between Celestia and her apparent student Twilight Sparkle. Speaking of which, I still needed to tell Luna that she was safe. I assumed Celestia knew that Twilight was okay, since she didn't ask about her.

"Alright, but stay hidden," I commanded, "Princess Luna, I'm going to continue onward."

"Very well," Luna said, "Both of you, be safe."

"You as well, sister," Celestia said. I could feel their love for each other over the Codex. It was a shame they couldn't be near each other. That was a reunion I was anxious to make happen. Both of them hung up at that moment, but before I proceeded I called Luna back.

"I forgot to mention, I have good news," I said smiling, "Twilight is safe."

"Thank the heavens," Luna said breathing out in relief herself, "Not only is my sister safe, but so is my dear friend."

"What is your relationship with Twilight anyway? Except for being your sister's student and the Element of Magic, she seems like a pretty normal pony."

"Twilight Sparkle was the very first friend I made in this millennium," Luna answered, "I care deeply for her, partially in ways deeper than mere friendship."

"You mean, you're in love with her?" I asked.

"I know it is strange, to be in love with a mortal, but she saved my life in so many ways," Luna continued, closing her eyes blissfully, "I am in a great dept to her."

"Does she know how you feel?" I asked.

"Nay, I have not the courage to tell her," Luna admitted, "However, after this mission is over, I am telling her how I feel. Whether she rejects me or not, she must know."

I wished her luck and we hung up. I didn't care to talk about love for too long, as it always depressed me about Fang. Thanks to Braveheart, my happy ending would never come. That didn't mean I didn't believe in them, because I did. I just didn't like hearing about other ponies getting theirs.

It didn't take long for me to arrive at the catacombs. It was a small tunnel that lead underground, and I assumed that there was a path leading into the castle from there. One lone canterlot soldier was standing watch. I could tell it wasn't Twilight simply because it was a Pegasus. Before I could proceed further, I got another call from my Codex. When I picked it up, it was Twilight.

"Twilight, where are you?" I asked her.

"I'm about to make my way toward the catacombs entrance now," Twilight said, "Are you close?"

"Looking right at the entrance now. There's a pegasus standing guard right now," I said.

"That's Flash Sentry," Twilight stated, "He's under Chrysalis' spell too. Don't worry, I'll get rid of him."

She hung up after that. A few seconds later I saw a knight up to the pegasus. It was obviously Twilight, because once again her walk was the dantiest and most feminine walk I had ever seen. I literally couldn't take my eyes off her flank as she walked. A uniform was enough to fool a guard who was under a spell, but in any other situation she'd stick out like a ruffled feather.

She gave the soldier a salute that he returned, and then he trotted away. When he was out of sight, I saw her motion for me to come over to her. I slowly walked out of my hiding spot and approached her, tapping her shoulder. She jumped and gave a slight yelp, which was cute despite proving once again why she shouldn't have been on this mission.

"Oh, it's you," Twilight said breathing out in relief.

"Don't be too trusting," I commanded, "That's how ponies get killed."

"R-right, sorry," she said looking down. She almost gets killed and apologizes to me. Faust, this filly was worse than Fluttershy in this situation, and that said a lot.

"Nevermind," I groaned, "Anyway, you're sure these lead into the castle?" I asked her, looking into the dark tunnel.

"This will at least get you into the castle walls," Twilight said, "Once you're that far, give me a call. I should be able to get you inside the castle."

"Where do you think Vinyl Scratch is being held?" I asked Twilight.

"No idea, but if you give me some time I should know by the time you get out of the catacombs," Twilight said, oddly making my heart leap a bit. That meant she would have to inquire with the soldiers, which would put her in a lot of danger.

"Twilight..."

"It'll be fine," she said, "As long as I'm wearing this armor no one will notice anything."

"All any sane pony has to do is look at your walk and they'll see right though your disguise," I stated deadpanned.

"Do you have any other ideas?" she challenged, "We need to learn about Metal Gear TALOS as fast as possible. If we waste any time the changelings could get that thing mobile, and what then?"

What this pony lacked in war sense, she clearly made up for in common sense. Once again I found myself silenced by her logic. If she looked into Vinyl Scratch's location while I went inside the catacombs we'd save a lot of time. My only qualm was that she wasn't a soldier, and it was bad enough that I had Fluttershy and a number of Twilight's other civilian friends involved. This mare was knee deep in the situation, and seemed intent on getting deeper.

She must have really loved her country. She would have been the perfect soldier with that devotion, but she wasn't one. I was.

"Damn it filly, you're going to get both of us killed," I groaned, "But, I see your point. Fine, you get information on Vinyl Scratch's location while I explore the catacombs. Once I'm out, I'll call you."

Twilight nodded, "I'll see you at the castle," Twilight said, galloping away before I could stop her. I had hoped I could keep her from getting too involved, but she was slowly becoming something akin to a partner in this.

I was torn. On one hoof, it was nice to not have to fight completely alone, but on the other end she was a civilian. If she got hurt it would be on my conscious.

Oh well. I'll just have to keep her as safe as I can, I thought to myself. Looking back into the dark tunnel, I steeled my nerves and galloped inside. When I got in the tunnel I was greeted with the wonderful sight of my radar getting knocked out. I took maybe two steps in before my earring rang. This time it was Rainbow Dash.

"Octi, I guess you already know, but-"

"My radar went dead," I groaned, "That's going to make things harder for me."

"The catecombs should be pretty straight forward. Also, it isn't too dark in there, right?"

"Not right now," I said, looking at the torches lighting the walls. These must have not been abandoned, which made sense since there was supposed to be a guard standing watch, "I'm expecting further in things might be different though."

"Maybe further in you'll find something that can help you see," Rainbow Dash said. I wasn't holding my breath for that, but you never knew, right? Maybe I'd find a torch or something I could take with me.

"I'll keep my eyes opened," I said, hanging up. I hadn't made enough progress to ask for her to record anything, but I'd definitely call her for that once I got out of this place.

Like Rainbow Dash said, it was pretty straight forward going through the catacombs. I didn't see any enemies as I explored nor did I see any diverging paths. It looked like I was going completely under the city.

It was starting to get darker. This was bad. Sure, I had been in dark environments before, but I at least had the moon to light my way. No light could get into the cave, and it was getting darker and darker.

As I stumbled around, my hoof kicked what felt like a small box. I looked down and saw what looked like a present. I was about to pick it up but my Codex earring began ringing. The frequency was 140.48. I didn't recognize it, and they were on an open channel. This meant that they were close by. Was it another Heartbreaker? I carefully answered the call.

“I left that for you,” the person on the other end said. The only image I saw was static, and they were using a voice modulator.

“Who are you?” I asked, “Are you Braveheart?”

The person on the other side laughed, but a genuine laugh, “I bet you'd like that, wouldn't you,” they said, “Sadly no, I'm not Braveheart. I know her, though. She was asking about you, actually.”

Hearing that made me sick to my stomach. This person was Braveheart's ally, and they were talking about her generally. Also, she was asking about me?!

“Why don't you open it?” the voice said, “You'll like it. I got it just for you.”

“How do I know this isn't a trap?” I asked, “Braveheart and I aren't exactly close, you know. This could be a ploy to kill me.”

“Braveheart wants to meet you,” the voice said, “Why would I stop my friend from meeting you by killing you? If she wants that, that's up to her, but I'm here for a different reason.”

“Oh? And what's that?”

“To keep you alive,” they almost sounded genuine. This pony said that they were friends with Braveheart, but they wanted to keep me alive? Probably so Braveheart could kill me. Even still, that told me that they were probably telling the truth. I carefully opened the box, surprised by what I saw.

It was a pair of goggles. They had a magic generator and a light. These were night-vision goggles!

“These are...”

“SURPRISE!!!” the pony on the other end shouted, scaring the hell out of me, “I said you'd like it!”

“Okay, now I have to know. Who the hell are you?” I asked, not so much annoyed but confused.

“Just call me, Sprinkles,” they said.

Wait. Sprinkles?! I heard of this pony! He was an informant during a major scandal concerning the royal family a few decades ago. I was still a teenager when it happened. Was this the same pony? Were they just using the same code name?

“Sprinkles? Are you seriously...”

“One of the Heart Breakers is further in waiting for you,” Sprinkles continued, “She's a specialist in crystal magic. I left a few items there you can use to fight. You'll need them.”

“Why are you doing this?” I asked, “To help me save Canterlot, or to keep me alive until Braveheart kills me?”

“I'll leave that to your imagination,” with that, they hung up. I immediately called Luna to ask her of her opinion.

“Princess, I got a call from someone using the code name Sprinkles,” I said to her.

“Sprinkles?” Luna asked, “Celestia told me about that. The incident was before my return from banishment though.”

“So you don't have any idea if it's the same pony?” I asked her.

“I'm afraid not. Tia might know though.”

I thanked Luna and hung up, calling Celestia. This time I used the closed network, which wouldn't be affected by the jamming being underground.

“Sprinkles?” Celestia asked after I told her who I just got finished talking to, “That's a name I haven't heard in a long time.”

“Do you think it's the same pony?”

“It's possible,” Celestia said, “If it is the same one, then I assure you that he's trustworthy.”

“Even though he's friends with Braveheart?” I asked skeptically.

“Sprinkles may keep some odd company, but he's pro life in war. Whenever he contacts you it's in your best interest to listen.”

I didn't like it, but he did give me the night-vision goggles. He even warned me that a Heart Breaker was inside waiting for me. That could have been a problem.

“So I should expect the worse when I head deeper in?”

“Sprinkles warned you that a Heart Breaker is waiting for you?” Celestia asked, “They may have lost the ability to shape shift or shed their given forms, but they're still Changelings. They're a part of the hive. If one knows, they all know. Miss Melody, they're hunting for you. You must exercise caution.”

That was ominous. Made worse with them taking the identities of ponies living in Equestria. They could be anyone. The only ones I could be sure of were the ponies I spoke to via Codex and the ones I met face to face. Rarity and Applejack were accounted for, as was Twilight Sparkle. Everyone else was fair game until I saw them on my radar.

I thanked Celestia, hung up, and walked deeper into the catacombs, now wearing the night-vision goggles. I didn't want to admit it, but I was happy to have those goggles. It made traveling a lot easier. If I had gone the way I originally planned, I would have walked right into a wall.

After traversing the underground caverns for a little longer, I found myself in a more open environment. On the walls I saw two large statues, one shaped like a large ram and the other one shaped like a large goat. Both statues were at least two stories tall. With how bright my vision got with the goggles I could tell that this room was lit up enough where I didn't need them, so I put them away and looked around the room.

“Finally! The Great Shadow has arrived!” I heard ahead. I looked and saw a purple unicorn with a dark purple and white mane walking up to me. On her flank I saw three crystals, similar to Rarity but a different shape.

“And who are you supposed to be?” I asked her.

“Living in Equestria, I earned the name Sparkler,” she said, “You may call me Gemstone.”

“Alright Gemstone,” I said, “So, you waited here just for little old me? Why, I'm flattered.”

“Once White Plague ran into you and Braveheart, I just had to meet you in person,” she said enthusiastically, “Let's see just how skilled a classical musician truly is.”

Her horn lit up, and next to me I heard a tremor. I looked just in time to see the black stoned ram statue come to life and tackle me into the wall. I jumped back and saw that the goat statue come to life as well. This one charged up magic in its horns and launched an orb of magic at me. The blast knocked me back, but I caught myself and slid to my feet, looking up at the monsters in front of me. On their chests were red crystals that were glowing. Clearly they were the power source.

Gemstone laughed out loud, “Yes! That's what I wanted to see! You're truly magnificent, Great Shadow. Aries, Capricorn, have fun with our guest!”

She ran off, and I looked up at the monsters, apparently named Aries and Capricorn. I had a pretty good idea which one was which, but that didn't matter to me. I was prepared to fight changelings, but golems?! I didn't even know they existed! What were they even doing under the city anyway?

Questions I'd have to ask after this fight, assuming I actually survived.

Author's Notes:

If you like my writing, check out my Patreon and consider donating. I might even write something special for you personally.

Chapter 6

play this song

Aries charged over to me, but I rolled out of the way just in time to make it run into a wall, making the entire room tremble. I needed to be careful with that, or else the entire room would cave in.

I also needed to remember that there were two of them. I received a reminder when a magical blast hit me in the side knocking me into a wall. I ran around the room around Capricorn, dodging its magical attacks as best as I could, but Aries was also chasing me, making it hard to process what was going on.

Damn it. I was not getting out of here alive.

I took cover behind a boulder and called Luna. She needed to know what was happening here.

“Luna, the Heart Breaker here just activated what look like two golems!” I said.

“Golems?! Those went into disuse over two centuries ago!”

“I didn't even know they were ever in use!” I shouted.

“My student may know something,” Luna said, “Also, Fluttershy knows more about the Heart Breakers than I do. Perhaps there's something there that can help you.”

Fluttershy did know a lot about the Heart Breakers. At least she knew enough to help me deal with White Plague. I thanked Luna and decided to call Fluttershy first. As I called her I ran behind another boulder as the one I was hiding behind was destroyed.

“Octavia! Are you okay?!” Fluttershy asked frantically.

“I'm fine,” I said, “Scared out of my mind, but fine. What do you know about Gemstone?”

“Gemstone of the Heart Breakers? You're fighting her now?”

“More like I'm fighting some of her constructs,” I explained, “She activated two golems here, and they're kicking my ass!”

“Gemstone specializes in crystal magic,” Fluttershy explained, “During the War of 1972, she was conducting research on the magical fields of certain gemstones, and their effects on objects. She and White Plague worked together a lot during the war, as neither one liked getting their hooves dirty.”

How did Fluttershy know so much about them? It was like she was there.

“Crystal magic?” I asked, “Could that be used to reanimate a golem?”

“Oh yes, definitely,” Fluttershy said, “But I'd ask someone who knows more about magical artifacts to know for certain.”

I thanked Fluttershy and quickly moved away as Aries charged at the boulder I was hiding behind. Thankfully I found a small ditch and hid inside there. None of them could get me in there, but I'd have to hurry and end this before the entire cavern caved in on me.

I tuned my Codex to Beatrix's frequency, happy that she picked up so quickly.

“Octavia, Trixie's teacher told her of the situation!” Beatrix said frantically.

“That saves a lot of time. What can you tell me?” I asked her.

“Look at the golems. Do you see gemstones on them?”

“Yeah,” I said quickly getting a peek at them, “They both have red gems on their chest.”

“Okay, good. Obviously those golems are very old. Rubies are used to reanimate golems that have fallen to disuse because their magical field is very hot but loose. It's like magical fire. Because of that those golems will have energy for weeks. Months even, depending on the size.”

“I don't exactly have months, Beatrix,” I said, “I need to kill these things now so I can get to the castle.”

“Ahh, but remember, rubies have a very loose field. They're extremely unstable thus easy to damage with a strong enough weapon. Golems rely solely on their power source, so if you destroy the rubies...”

“I'll render the golems useless. Perfect,” I said, suddenly wondering if I had a weapon that could do enough damage. Sure, I had a plan now, but unless I had something strong enough to break a crystal...

I looked right next to me, and saw another present. I remembered Sprinkles saying that he left weapons for me to use against the Heart Breaker, so I opened the box to see what was inside.

Powder Bombs. That was unexpected.

“Beatrix, I think I found something I can use,” I told Beatrix, telling her about the Powder Bombs.

“You know, that might work,” Beatrix said, “If you hit the rubies the those, they should break after a few times. You're good at moving on your hind legs, right?”

“Ugh... that's going to be a hassle, but yeah, I see why I'd have to do that,” I didn't have extra appendages like pegasus wings, nor did I have telekinesis like a unicorn. I would have to get on my hind legs, use my forelegs to carry and throw the powder bombs at the rubies. It was exhausting, but if I was to get out of here...

I thanked Beatrix for her help and hung up, getting a powder bomb ready. These things were designed to explode right on impact, so I didn't have to spend too much time on my hind legs. I just had to be up long enough to throw the damn things.

I jumped out of the ditch and first ran over to Aries, as it was closer. It stomped the ground preparing to charge at me, but I threw the powder bomb at its chest before it could do anything of the sort. The bomb exploded on the crystal, making Aries fall to the ground as if its power failed it briefly.

I took that as my chance to run over to Capricorn, dodging its magical attacks as it fired continuously at me. I jumped into the air, pulled out another powder bomb and threw it at Capricorn's gem. Just like Aries, it seemed like its power failed it and it fell.

Around that time, Aries stood back up. Okay, now I saw a pattern.

I landed back onto the ground, but Aries charged at me, forcing me to roll to the side. I looked back at Aries as it stomped on the ground preparing to charge again. It looked like Capricorn was about to stand back up too. I had to hit Aries fast before I had to deal with both of them again.

I gathered up all my courage and ran over to Aries, carrying a powder bomb with me. At the same time, Aries charged at me, but I ducked underneath the large beast throwing the powder bomb straight up, causing Aries to run right into it. Its power failed it again, right before Capricorn recovered completely. I was really close to Capricorn, so I threw a powder bomb at Capricorn damaging his gem.

I thought I would have time to breathe, but both golems began charging up energy in their gemstones. I tried to run away, but I was too late. Both of them fired an electric blast right at me. I screamed before I fell to the floor. It took a second, but I was able to force myself up, but so were Aries and Capricorn.

Damn it. Now I had to deal with both of them again.

Aries charged at me, this time faster than last time as I almost didn't dodge it in time. Capricorn started firing magic at me at a faster frequency, thus also leading to more close calls.

I ran through the cavern, completely aware that Aries was tackling all the walls, just missing me. It was like they were becoming careless. Maybe I could use that to my advantage.

I started guiding Aries, careful to avoid Capricorn's blasts. I led Aries to Capricorn, and waited for it to charge. At the last minute, I rolled to the side making Aries hit Capricorn. Both of them fell to the floor, their gems close to each other.

I ran over to them and threw a powder bomb at them, destroying both of their gemstones at the same time.

end song

The golems eyes stopped glowing, and they became lifeless. I heard clapping from somewhere, but I couldn't see who it was.

“Very good, Great Shadow!” Gemstone's voice echoed in the room.

“Where are you, Gemstone!” I called out, “I've got some for you too!”

“Oh, how bold of you! How brazen! You're such a brute, Great Shadow,” Gemstone laughed, “I love it! Mmm... I'm so excited! We'll have our fight later, Great Shadow. I want to see more of that monster inside of you. Until next time, tootles!”

With that, I assumed that Gemstone had left. Her civilian name was Sparkler? I wondered if anyone knew her.

I sat down on the ground to rest, and decided to call Rainbow Dash. I had told myself that I would record my record after leaving the cavern, but that was before I knew a Heart Breaker was waiting for me.

“Octi, are you okay?” Rainbow Dash asked me.

“Yeah, I'm fine,” I breathed out, “Could you make a record of the last hour or so?”

“Got the computer open already,” Rainbow Dash said, “Tell me everything.”

I started with my meeting with Twilight, which gave Rainbow Dash a good laugh. It was actually nice to have someone I could talk to about my mission. I had thought it would be boring telling someone everything that happened to me, but Rainbow Dash was so animated and into it, I enjoyed telling her.

“Rainbow Dash, did you know a unicorn named Sparkler?” I asked her after I was done.

“I don't know her personally, but I've seen her,” Rainbow Dash said, “There's this little kid in Ponyville named Dinky, and she sometimes helps her mother Derpy take care of her.”

I wondered if she was referring to the same Derpy I worked with during the War of 1972. She sustained a serious head wound, and suffered from extreme brain damage. If it was the same one, I hoped she was okay.

“Poor kid,” Rainbow Dash continued, “She really liked Sparkler as far as I knew. With her being a changeling... Hey, do you think that...”

“That there ever was a Sparkler?” I finished for Rainbow Dash, who nodded, “Honestly, I don't know. I doubt it though. From what Fluttershy said, the Heart Breakers made their own pony identities. Sparkler was nothing but a construct for the changelings to use as a spy.”

“I wonder if it's really that black and white.”

“Nothing is black and white in war, Dash. Ponies may like to think otherwise, but there are no good guys or bad guys. Everyone is fighting for what they believe in, and to that pony, everyone who stands in their way is the enemy.

“As a soldier, it's up to you to decide how you deal with that. Maybe you're the type that tries to see your opponents as objects, so you don't feel bad for having to take their lives. Or maybe you're a sentimental type, looking at everyone as a living creature and trying to appreciate their struggle.”

“Which one is better?” Rainbow Dash asked me slowly.

“Neither, actually,” I explained, “The ones who train themselves to see their opponents as objects fall into the trap of losing their humanity. However, the ones who retain their humane side often find themselves hesitating to pull the trigger. In the end, a common middle is probably best, but that depends on the individual.”

“So, if there are no good guys or bad guys, what does that say about Braveheart? What was she?”

“They're aren't bad guys in war,” I said darkly, “but monsters exist everywhere.”

With that said, Rainbow Dash and I said our good byes for now. I wondered what her perspective on war was, now that she had a real life soldier telling her the true horrors of it. Did she still want to be a soldier? A Wonderbolt? I'd sit down and talk to her about it when I got the chance.

It didn't take much longer to get out of the catacombs. After maybe another hour of searching, I found myself walking out of a secret wall, entering the castle grounds. It was still nighttime, which was good, but I could tell that the sun would be coming out soon, assuming that Celestia could afford to raise the sun from where she was or Luna had dominion of the sun. I wasn't sure.

I stepped out just enough to get a signal, and called Twilight.

“Octavia, you made it out,” Twilight said, sounding relieved.

“Just barely,” I said, “I ran into another Heart Breaker inside.”

“I'm sorry,” Twilight looked down, “I had heard that the changelings were waiting for you in there, but you had already gotten too far in. I couldn't connect so...”

“It's alright,” I said, though I was curious as to how they even knew I was going to be there.

“Anyway, I found out where Vinyl Scratch is being held,” Twilight said.

“Held? You make it sound like she's a prisoner too,” I said.

“I think she is,” Twilight said, “The guards were saying that they locked her in the Gemini Lab under the castle. There's a way there from the courtyard. Head toward the hall to your left, and then go into the back tower. There's a staircase that will take you to the basement. You'll have to go past the dungeons, but beyond that you'll find the labs.”

“Is anyone being kept in the dungeons?” I asked Twilight, who looked down seriously.

“Up until recently, Princess Celestia was,” Twilight said, “Right now, the only pony I know of who's a prisoner is Cadance.”

“Cadance? As in Mi Amore Cadenza? She's one of the ponies I've been tasked to save,” I explained.

“You're not going to be able to get Cadance out,” Twilight said, “Not until we kill Chrysalis.”

“I get the feeling I'm not going to like what I see when I get there,” I said, more so to myself than to Twilight, “Thanks Twilight. Now stay out of trouble. I don't want to have to save you along with everyone else.”

“I'll be careful,” Twilight said, “Let me know when you've found Vinyl Scratch. We can meet up and figure out how we're going to destroy Metal Gear TALOS.”

“Alright, I'll call you then.”

We hung up, and I made my way to the dungeons. I was glad that I saved a bit of vodka in my flask, because I had a feeling I was going to need a drink before this was all over.

Author's Notes:

Please take a look at my Patreon and consider donating a small amount.

Chapter 7

Author's Notes:

Sorry with how slow this story is updating. This is still a project I want to see through, but I can imagine the impatience that comes with waiting. All I can say is that updates for this story will show up whenever inspiration hits me.

---

If you want to help me turn my writing into a living, and want to support me, you can click here to support my Patreon. Your contribution of as little as a dollar will help me in my campaign for world domination.

I wasted no time following Twilight's guidance. She knew the castle much better than I, for I had never once been inside the whole castle. The most I've ever seen is the ballroom, and that was due to the Gala of 1983. Twilight, from my limited understanding of her, had actually lived here in the castle for most of her life.

Guards were patrolling the courtyard, so I had to be careful. I looked closely to see if one of them was Twilight, but none of the guards had her signature saunter. Well, it wasn't so much of a saunter, but it kind of was. Wait, why was I thinking so hard about Twilight's flank?! First of all, I was on a mission. Second of all, I wasn't a lesbian. Okay, so I may have experimented a bit in high school, but didn't everyone?

At 39 going on 40, I was pretty sure of my sexual orientation. At this point of my life, asexual.

I used the bushes to hide, and I timed my movements so that the guards would walk right past me as I moved. Through my radar, I could see that the guards were red dots, meaning they were under the control of the changelings. I wasn't sure how the radar could tell what their field of vision was, but I wasn't complaining.

One of the many mysteries of magic.

After about a minute, I made it to the hallway. I was about to move toward the tower, but I had to stop as two guards walked right out. They almost saw me, and I think one had actually stopped to look around. He eventually walked off after his partner, so I was able to proceed.

Damn, I was losing my touch.

The tower had two staircases; one going up and the other going down. The way I needed to go was down. Even though I was curious as to what was up the stairs, I was pressed for time. I didn't know how much time until Metal Gear TALOS was active, so I couldn't afford to take too many detours.

Right before I reached the dungeon, my Codex went off. It was Fluttershy's frequency, probably wanting to see if I was okay. I felt bad for not calling her right away to tell her that I made it out safely, so I stopped to answer her.

“Octavia...” she said softly looking down. Oh dear, was she upset?

“I'm sorry I didn't call right away,” I said, “I was so focused on my mission, and I have so much on my mind that I-”

Fluttershy shook her head, “I'm not upset. Truth is, I've been thinking about a lot of things too.”

“Well I suppose I have a few minutes. What's on your mind?”

“Oh no, I don't want to hold you up, Octavia,” Fluttershy said shaking her head, “This isn't really that important...”

“Fluttershy, what's going on in Canterlot right now is scary, even for me. I can only imagine what's going on in your head right now. Maybe talking to someone will help.”

“Yeah... maybe...” she looked really troubled.

“So what's bothering you?” I asked, giving her my most sincere smile to comfort her. I didn't know if it worked or not, as she turned away biting her lip before speaking again.

“Octavia... how does it feel to kill somepony?”

“Why... do you ask?”

“Well, I overheard a few of your conversations with Dash about...”

I sighed, “Braveheart... right?”

Fluttershy nodded, “I just wanted to know... what from your perspective... how does it feel to... take a life?”

“Well, for me it's not something I enjoy doing,” I said, “Sadly though, killing is one of those things that gets easier the more you do it. I partially become numb to it. I don't take pride in it at all, and it saddens me every time I kill somepony, but as long as I'm fighting for my country, I'll do it.”

“So... you do it because it saves lives?” she asked, still looking away with a somber expression.

“I'm no hero, if that's what your asking,” I said, “At least, I don't see myself as a hero. What I am, is a soldier. More like a living weapon to protect the real heroes. Ponies like me aren't going to save the world. What will save the world are ponies like you, ponies with a kind heart and a love for life.”

“Oh Octavia...” she said, crying a bit.

“Fluttershy, are you okay? I didn't upset you, did I?”

“N-no...” Fluttershy sobbed, “I just... feel so weak right now...”

“Fluttershy, you're not weak. You're one of the strongest ponies I've ever seen. Damn, I wish you didn't have to be a part of this.”

“It's fine... I'm fine... I just, need to...”

“Need to what?” I asked, getting a little worried for some reason.

“It's nothing,” Fluttershy said looking down. I could tell that there was something she wasn't telling me, which had me really concerned. She wasn't going to do something drastic, was she?

“Fluttershy-”

“I need some time alone. I'm sorry, but... don't call this frequency for a bit...”

Oh dear, I had upset her. I felt horrible, and I wanted to try and calm her down, but I could see that pressing the matter more would just upset her even more.

“Alright Fluttershy,” I said sadly, “I'll contact you after I've found Vinyl Scratch. And Fluttershy?”

“Yes...?”

“I'm your friend, no matter what, alright? Whatever it is you want to tell me, I'll be there for you.”

Fluttershy nodded and quickly hung up, I imagine so I wouldn't see her break down right there. Before proceeding onward, I decided to call Twilight, as she was good friends with Fluttershy.

“I... think I may have screwed up,” I said once Twilight picked up her Codex.

“What happened? Are you in trouble?” Twilight asked nervously.

“No, no. Nothing like that,” I sighed, “I just got finished talking to Fluttershy. She asked me a few questions about being a soldier, and I think I may have upset her.”

“I see. Yeah, I can imagine Fluttershy asking questions like that. Since you're someone she really looks up to, I guess you should know...”

“Know what?” I asked. Was I about to learn a bit more about Fluttershy?

“You see, Fluttershy's... an orphan.”

My heart sank when Twilight said that. I wondered why she seemed so clingy to me and the others, and why she was so sensitive. She struck me as someone who suffered a serious trauma, and this shed light on it.

“When did it happen? Do you know?” I asked Twilight, who looked down in sadness.

“She told me that it was when she was a child. Her mom and dad were killed right in front of her, only a little after she got her Cutie Mark. According to Fluttershy, they were killed by changelings.”

“Which explains how shaken up she is right now. It's taking her right back to that moment,” I stated, Twilight nodding in confirmation.

“I think she wants revenge. She of course wouldn't ever admit it, but...”

“These creatures killed her family,” I said seriously, “I'd be surprised if the idea of revenge didn't cross her mind at least a little.”

“What do you want to do?” Twilight asked me.

“Personally, this just gives me a reason to want to take out the changelings. I'll help her carry out her revenge.”

“Octavia... I...”

“I imagine you don't agree with that. I'm not asking you to be a part of it, but-”

“No Octavia, I do want to be a part of it,” Twilight said, surprising the hell out of me.”

“Twilight... do you know what you're saying?”

“I do. Fluttershy is one of my dearest friends. Before last year, I didn't have any friends, but now I have five of the greatest friends in the world, Fluttershy being one of them. If these monsters are the reason she's suffering, and she wants revenge, then I want to help her get there too.”

“You're a good friend, Twilight,” I said, “Some might even say you're too good of a friend, endorsing your friends need for vengeance instead of pulling her away from it.”

“My brother is a soldier, so I've been around this sort of thing a lot. I understand that some things don't go away with time, and that violence is the only way to solve problems if they go too far.”

“It's always sad when things get that bad,” I said somberly, Twilight nodding in agreement. We both hung up around that time, and I took some time to think about the news I just learned. As sweet as Fluttershy was, deep down there must have been a deep hatred within her. She may have even asked that question because she had visions of killing the Changeling Queen herself, and that thought scared her.

Damn changelings. They truly were monsters.

I proceeded to the dungeon, which were dark and humid, like what you'd expect from a castle dungeon. While the rest of Canterlot Castle was bright colored and beautiful, this part of the castle was the complete contrast. There weren't any guards as far as I could see, but I still wanted to be careful.

As I moved through the dungeon, I heard moaning up ahead, along with chains rattling. Someone was in this dungeon locked up, and I was betting it was Cadance. My heart started racing, as I wondered what state the Princess of Love was in.

I followed her moaning, which was starting to sound like muffled screaming for help. I thought I was ready for what I would see, but there was no way I could be ready for this.

When I found her, the word overkill came to mind. She was locked up in a cell, her forelegs and hind legs all chained to the floor, a large black shackle around her torso also chained to the floor causing her to lie down. Both of her wings were chained closed, and she had an inhibitor ring on her horn, preventing her from using magic. She also had a black band around her mouth gagging her and a blind fold over her eyes. It looked like she had been beaten, as her body had cuts and bruises, and I could tell through the blind fold that she was crying.

“What the hell?” I asked stepping back. My Codex went off again, but this time it was Sprinkles. I took a deep breath and answered him.

“Sadistic, isn't it?” Sprinkles asked.

“This does seem like much,” I said, “I mean, wouldn't just locking her up be enough?”

“This wasn't about holding her,” Sprinkles said, “The Changeling Queen wanted to torture Cadance. An alicorn's magic comes from positive feelings, so to ensure she not try to escape, Chrysalis needed to weed out any hope within her. I assure you that any alicorn in Chrysalis' custody would be in a similar set up.”

That made me curious as to how Celestia escaped. She said that she had tricked the guards, so maybe she was just lucky. I looked closely at the chains and saw that they were magically created. Even if I could get into that cell, the only way I could release her would be to kill Chrysalis.

That's what Twilight meant.

“Don't worry about her for now,” Sprinkles said, “Chrysalis wants Cadance here alive, so she won't kill her. Vinyl Scratch is in the labs up ahead. Look for the one with the symbol of Gemini on the door.”

Sprinkles hung up, and I looked at Cadance. I felt weird leaving her like that, but there wasn't anything I could do at the moment. Still, I had to leave her with something.

“Princess, can you hear me?” I whispered. Cadance tensed up immediately, letting me know that she did hear me, “Don't worry, I'm not going to hurt you. I'm a soldier attempting to free Canterlot, and that includes you. I can't free you unfortunately, but I wanted you to know that someone is fighting for you. Don't give up, Princess.”

She relaxed, and she nodded. She said something through her gag that sounded a bit like “thank you”.

“You're welcome. Stay strong, Princess. I'll come back for you, I promise.”

And I meant that too. I was the kind that always kept their promises, so this meant I had to save Canterlot. Just more pressure on top of the pressure I already had.

I found a door leading to the labs. This hallway had silver halls that looked to be made of marble, and golden doors all with the symbols of Zodiac symbols. The one I was looking for was the Gemini Lab. It was easy to find, as the symbol was pretty big on the door. What I didn't expect though were the number of knocked out guards and changelings all around.

I walked over to the door and saw that my radar was picking up two signals inside, one being a green dot, but the other one being white. I pressed my ear to the door to listen after I heard a scream inside.

“W-what do you want from me?!” a frantic female voice cried.

“She's coming for you. I'm just here waiting for her to arrive,” the voice was deep and mechanical, but I recognized that soft machine like tone anywhere. Braveheart was in there, and she found Vinyl Scratch first.

“Who's she?!” the pony I assumed was Vinyl asked, “What the hell is going on here?!”

I opened the door carefully and walked in, careful to not let anyone see me just yet. I saw Baveheart sitting in a chair with her hind legs crossed and forelegs folded, and a bit to her side was a white unicorn with a neon blue mane and tail, and black glasses. Her Cutie Mark was a musical note. Something about her looked really familiar to me, but I couldn't put my hoof on it.

I saw Braveheart reach into her wing and pull a blade out, “Finally,” she said, throwing the small dagger right at me. It hit the wall right next to my head, stopping me in my tracks. Realizing that she already saw me, I stood up and walked over to her.

“Braveheart...” I said venomously. She got out of her chair and walked toward me.

“I'm glad you made it Octavia,” Braveheart said, “This meeting has been a longtime coming.”

Vinyl turned to me wide eyed, “What the hell? You were waiting for a classical musician?”

“That's not all I am,” I said glaring to her, “I'll deal with you later though,” I turned back to Braveheart, “You didn't hurt her, did you?”

“You were the one I wanted,” Braveheart explained, “She has nothing to do with us. I merely used her as bait.”

“How did you know that I needed her?” I asked.

“Is that really what you want to know?” Braveheart asked, “I would have thought you would want to know about why I murdered your squad in the War of 1972.”

“Shut up...” Vinyl said in shock looking back at me, “You fought in that war?”

I ignored Vinyl, glaring at Braveheart, “You remember then?”

“I never forget,” Braveheart said, “Everyone I've ever killed is etched in my memory.”

I acted on impulse, pulling out my mini crossbow and pointing it at Braveheart. Vinyl stepped back in shock, but Braveheart didn't even flinch.

“Shit, shit, shit, shit, shit, shit,” Vinyl began saying over and over again, clearly beginning to panic as she knew what was probably about to happen.

“Do you... hate me Octavia?” Braveheart asked mechanically.

“What do you think?” I spat, feeling a rage unlike anything I've ever felt.

“Why don't you show me,” Braveheart said, standing on her hind legs elegantly and holding her hooves out. Small blades came out of both hooves, and a dagger sized blade came out of her mouth guard as well.

“You want to fight here?” I asked her.

“Don't you?” Braveheart asked me, “I want to experience your hatred, and you want revenge. There's only one way for monsters like us to get what we want.”

“I'm no monster!” I shouted.

“All of us who take the lives of another into our hooves is a monster, regardless of the reason. The only difference between us is that very thing. Reason, purpose. Yours is that of a soldier, a protector, while mine is that of a weapon, a killer.”

“Shut up! SHUT UP!!!” I screamed, completely losing myself to my rage, “I'm nothing like you!”

I began firing my mini crossbow at Braveheart, who spun around, flipped, and blocked all of the arrows. One almost hit Vinyl, who screamed and ran into a nearby closet to hide.

“There's only one way to freedom,” Braveheart said, “Either I'll kill you, or you'll kill me. Either way, one of us will be set free from our eternal bondage.”

“I'll be free,” I seethed, “once I kill you!”

I knew that this was a bit of a detour in my mission, but then again, I needed Vinyl Scratch, and there was no way I was going to get to her until I took Braveheart down. This was going to be one of my toughest fights ever, but there was no getting around it.

I had to kill Braveheart now.