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Stasis

by Arxsys

Chapters

00. Prologue

                Gravel showered my helmet, thrown from one of the many explosions shattering the landscape.  What was once a verdant field quickly became a twisted hell of craters and ash as artillery shell after shell impacted the soft soil.  It was all I could do to keep my composure between two uprooted boulders as chaos and fury screamed around me.  The unyielding stone at my back gave some semblance of protection from the storm.

                The dark gray armor shielded me from the worst of the storm.  Incoming shells sounded like runaway freight train,; at least the ones back in ancient times.  They tore through the air, eager to vent their wrath on the mortals below.  Soon enough, the noise and fury stopped.  That was the sign my work was to begin.  A soft tinkling noise followed my movements as gravel and grit trickled off my armor, scraping and grinding as I slipped around my hiding spot, eager to cause some chaos of my own…

“…going to implant you with the new series of augments that front line units are getting.  Considering that you are an engineer and not combat arms, they will be tailored for your skill set and increased survivability.”

The downside to all this was the insane amount of pain the injections cause as the nanotech bonds to your body.  Still, it was a minor inconvenience when you compared it to the upside.  Faster healing, increased response times and generally being harder to kill are always a bonus.  No idea what the other tech they are implanting would do, but it should be interesting.  Joys of being a test dummy.  Or good at my job.   Six of one, half a dozen of the other I guess…

“…to ALL of humanity.  As such, we are activating the Osiris Project.  The disparate societies of our shattered planet have banded together in this historic act to save our peoples.  This program will save the best and the brightest of our planet until this crisis passes.  With the combined resources of humanity, we can save over one hundred thousand individuals and the technology to help them repair what remains of our shattered earth.  Each vault will house ten thousand people, along with anything they could possibly need to survive after awakening…”

                I’ve always hated the cryogenic stasis training they put us through.  It was even worse knowing that it was for real this time.  When I opened my eyes again, a thousand years will have passed.  Everything I have seen, and everyone I have ever known would be nothing but dust.  Those somber thoughts echoed in my mind as I lay down in the armored coffin.  AI connecting to my armor and augmentations to guide the connections and hoses into their proper locations.  Pressure snaked over my body as plates locked me into place, hoses and lines crossed my frozen torso.  A sharp jab made me gasp for air as a needle punched into me above each collar bone.  The pain faded quickly into a cool sensation as chemicals flooded my bloodstream.  As everything faded to black, the last thing I saw was an armature lowering a plate to cover the face of my helmet.  In moments, sleep overtook me.

                Across the vast underground vault, row after row of steel coffins stood out.  Metal squealed against metal as lids were lowered into place and armored against the elements by robotic arms.  Slowly the noise tapered down to silence as everything was secured.  Coffins slid into armored recesses in the floor, the arms retreated into protective recesses in the walls, and the lights flickered and died.  The only things remaining in the dark were the maintenance robots and the AI that waited and watched.  Over the years, the dust settled, and the air became still.  The calm of the grave overtook everything.

                An eternity later, light breached the darkness of the crypt, dust motes swirling in the fresh air as they were disturbed by a very strange set of intruders.  Unsure of what exactly the intruders were, the AI silently watched and gathered information.  This could be the time to awaken, or the time to defend.  Only observation would tell.

***Recording contact beginning 2136

***Compiling data onto new archive on secure server D

Unaware they were being watched, the ponies curiously edged into the darkness.  Flickering lanterns threw twitching shadows across the room.  Blinding white light contrasted harshly from the alicorn and unicorns leading the party.  The purple one always ventured a step or two ahead of the rest, eyes full of curiosity, glancing around as if she could take in every detail in a moment.  Near the back of the party, a feminine voice spoke out.

"Ah don't know about this Twi.  I suppose you were right about there being something in the Crystal Caverns under the city, but don't you think we should go back and tell somepony what we've found.  It looks like nopony has been here in a very long time, and I don't want us accidentally breaking some of the doodads around here.  Let alone anything important."

A long sigh came from the lavender mare before she spoke.

"I suppose you are right Applejack.  I have no idea what any of this does, and as much as I want to dig into it tonight, I think it would be best if we went back to camp and rested for the night.  I might be able to find something in the archives about this.  Maybe the Princess Luna would know something more.  Lets mark where we leave off in the dust and come back tomorrow."

The AI watched the strange creatures and their movements, unsure of what they were or how they entered the vault.  So many sensors and cameras were offline that it was impossible to tell for sure.  The animals showed some kind of intelligence though, apparently communicating through some form of vocalization.  Every single noise they made was recorded and fed through the processing cores that were still online.  As the animals turned and followed their steps back, none of them noticed the single barely glowing red lens that tracked their movements.

***Analyzing linguistics

***Unknown verbal phenotype detected

***Reverting to secondary software

***Attempting to connect with Google Translate

***Google Translate failed.  Language identified as Cantonese

***Deleting Google Translate

***Accessing anthropological database

In the cold metal coffin, the beast slept.  The soft humming of cryo pumps as its lullaby.

01. Freezerburn

Over the next several days, the AI watched and waited as the quadruped creatures came and went from the vault.  At first they started in small, laughable groups.  As word of the archeological find spread, and royalty put themselves behind the project, the trickle of ponies quickly turned into a torrent of furry noses poking where they ought not.  Through it all, the AI studied and learned of the creatures.  Diagrams and scans, even recordings of video and audio were cataloged.  The security systems were inoperable due to neglect, so it was all the AI could do to watch and learn.  Hopefully the prize it guarded would not be discovered.

***Camera 43A recording session 23 commencing 1603hrs date unknown.

"Ya know Twilight, we are all happy to lend a hoof when you need one, but why in tarnation are you having us dig around in some musty pit with you?"

***Syntax computing  90 percent complete.

The small group of ponies were completely oblivious of the being that watched as they violated its tomb.  Per the course, the Lavender one was in the lead as its curiosity always got in the way.  As it turned to speak, several cameras zoomed in to watch the minute movements of facial muscles.  Everything to ease translation of the thrice damned language.

"I asked for your help because nopony knows what we could find down here.  This cavern was never fully explored, and nopony even knew this existed until that cave in a few weeks ago.  Think of all the history we could uncover.  The architecture is obviously not pony, and predates anything we have recorded in history.  History that we might be able to use against the minotaurs."

"I simply must agree with Applejack.  This place is filthy and the hard floors are doing a number on my hooficure.  I'm only here because you asked, darling."

***Quadrupeds 1 and 4 identified with 93 percent certainty.  Designations as followed.

***Lavender quadruped with star markings, wings, and horn designation changed from unknown 1

***to Twilight Sparkle."

***Heightened radiation readings in any recorded spectrum from illumination source coming from horn.

***Further research required.

***Yellow quadruped with icon denoting apple on flank designated "Applejack."  

*** Subject observed to wear Stetson hat on all occasions of contact.

***Observations will continue.  Archiving duplicate notes onto backup drives.

Deeper into the dark halls they traveled, their hoof marks being the only sign of activity in the overwhelming dust that blanketed the tomb.  The group naturally clustered closer together as the hall grew more oppressing.  The only light being cast by magic or lantern, as the lights of the large camp had disappeared in the maze of halls.  

"We are already almost done with the mapping today girls.  After that, we can head back to the camp.  I'm sure the other parties have plenty of things to ask us.  Let alone trying to find something to help down here."

"Twitchy tail...Shakeashake...Eye twitch... huh.  Wonder what that means"

As one the group spun toward the pink creature. Vibrations from her tail were making her scuttle across the floor with a rattling noise.

"What is it Pinkie?"

"I'm not sure Twilight, I've had my tail twitching like this before, but never this bad.  Its like we are going to meet a new friend, but the friend was one of Fluttershy's.  The manticore, what was his name, Manny Roar, that's it.  Kind of like meeting Manny!  We all thought he was a big meanie and then he turned out to be nice once you got to know him."

Twilight could only facehoof at all this.

"Pinkie, look at this place.  Nopony has been alive down here for a long time.  There are lots of secrets to find, but I don't think we are going to find a new friend down here unless it is one of the ponies that came with us.  Now come on, we just have this last room to check before we go back for the night."

With that, she turned and walked down another dimly lit hallway, leaving the group to hurry behind.

***Targets nearing vault.  Door controls not responding.  

***Radiation levels throughout facility are at constant dangerous levels.  Decontamination advised.

***Odds of creatures discovering vault and attempting entry at 99.73 percent.  

***Odds of creatures discovering active cryostasis pod at 98.1

***Please note that removal of subject from cryovault before resuscitation is complete will result in

***death of subject.

***Downloading data to on-board systems

***Commencing emergency start-up of all hardware

"Anyone gettin a strange feeling like we are being watched?  The fur on the back of mah neck is standing up.  I don't think we should be down this hallway Twi."

As she stopped walking, the AI watched as her ears swiveled, taking in the noises of the dark hall.

"Now that you mention it Applejack, there is a faint sound like something mechanical is working down here.  A little bit of static in the air too.  It shouldn't be an issue though.."

"If it is an issue, I'm sure I can beat up whatever it is!"

They all turned to look at the blue one at that comment.

"Mechanical, Rainbow.  Meaning a machine.  As in not alive."

"Oh, I knew that."

"Lets just get this room done with so we can go back, okay?"

The light seemed to fade as the group entered the final room at the end of the hall.  A dark oppressive feeling spread through them as all eyes were drawn toward the center of the room.  All the hoses and cables they had followed lead to one thing, and one thing only.  A cold metal coffin under an eternity of dust.  A single light fading into and out of existence on the end of the unit.  The crimson pulsing light slowly blending into a bright blue.

"Hey whats that thing doing the blink blink blinkity blink?  I wonder what that is!"

As the pink one bounded forward, they tried to stop her.  The closer she got to the coffin, more lights sprung to life around the room.  The strobing light was the only thing on her mind though.  As she reached the end of the steel bed, a hoof brushed away the dust and a panel flickered to life.

"Pinkie!  Get back here!  What are you doing?!"

"  TwitchAtwitch... Ooooh a big bluey button.  I wonder what it does if I push it like this?"

A feminine voice that nopony could understand began talking as the button was jammed into its recess.  Latches popped and creaked as they came free from the machine and fog started leaking from cracks that were quickly growing.

Whatever was in the coffin was going to be free.

02. Phase Transition

All of the ponies in the room huddled together as the sarcophagus lid raised incrementally.  The latches and rivets covering the dust laden surfaces disappearing behind a torrent of white fog that streamed out of the ever widening gaps.  To counterpoint the whimpering yellow pegasus, the Alicorn stepped forward strongly into the now freezing air.

“Come on girls.  We don't know whats in here, but at the very least we need to turn this off so the other researchers can come in here safely.”

Naturally, she left out the part where she was curious of what lay inside the darkened metal canister.  The air from within smelled old and stale like an old freezer, but without the taint of festering rot.  Regardless of her thoughts, she took a step back as more displays blazed to life.  The formerly blank walls illuminating the room in a blinding blue light.  Unknown figures and images streamed across the monitors in a rainbow of multihued chaos.  Little did they know that beneath the fog a set of frozen steel arms waited to strike.

***Sublimation of solid state coolant 98 percent complete.  Activating final warming sequence.

***Armatures 1 through 5 active.  

***Arming neurological probes for phases 5 and 6.

The ponies could only stare in awe and confusion as the frosted metal lid lifted away to reveal golden glowing elements within.  Streams of liquid poured from within the device, making the floor scream and crackle as its temperature dropped.  Those chaotic thoughts were quickly forgotten as four squealing steel arms lifted out of the coffin, hoisting a rag doll figure aloft like some sort of fetish.

“AH don't care what is in this room Twi!  We're out of here before those things get us!”

Save one, the ponies turned and ran, leaving the purple one alone with the corpse of history past.  Her mind noting and processing infinitesimal details in a fraction of the moment passed.

“Girls!  It's safe, come back!”

As she looked closer, her mind wandered toward what the thing really was.  Some kind of golem with its metal skin.  But why would they lock it away like that if it were dead?  Maybe a method of preservation.  The room had grown quite chilly after all.  

Either way, she stared in awe as the arms pulled the slumped figure to a point above a series of previously unnoticed rings in the floor.  A floor that had a strange clicking and whirring noise coming from within.  Idly, she wondered what would happen next.

“Come on Twi, lets leave that thing alone and get out of here,” a voice echoed from the hallway.  A voice soon forgotten as beams of light illuminated different parts on the golem, and a final golden arm unfolded from a compartment within in the wall.  The limp figure barely shifting as the unit pushed against its back with a dull set of clicks.

***Armatures attached.  Proceeding to next phase.

***Injecting mixture 193Alpha

***Measuring conductivity of all connected points... 87 percent of units within parameters.

***Arming system.

It was all Twilight could do to not to scream or cover her ears as a high pitched squeal poured from the machines and the limp figure seized and shook like a madman as shock after shock poured through it.  The entire room pulsing in a defiling blue glow that cast foreboding figures on the walls.  Down the hall, the black shadow of an unmoving alicorn stretched into eternity.

***Natural rhythms acquired.  Injecting endorphin/electrolyte mixture for final stage.

***Activating nanite swarm

As the shaking and nightmarish electrical show stopped, and the whimpering from the hallway slowly ceased, the group finally came back together to stare at whatever the unknown thing was.  Confusion reined free through the group as the object only seemed to make mechanical noises and get electrocuted, not threaten to chase them down the hallway to crush their bones with its teeth.

“Twilight, don't get me wrong, seeing lightning like that in a room was kind of neat, but what the hay was that?!?”

It was all she could do to shrug.  Whatever it was, apparently it was broken beyond repair if it shot arcs of electricity everywhere.  Something to catalog and figure out another day.

“Lets just go back to camp girls.  I don't think this thing is going anywhere soon.”

Nopony said a word as they turned to leave, hardly noticing the pink one just staring at the limp figure sullenly.  “I thought you were going to be my new friend,” she whispered as she turned.  Her eyes never leaving the figure until she faced away.  Eventually the darkness of the hallway engulfed them whole.

God knows how long I hung there waiting for the damn aliens to leave.  Why the hell they were in the secure vault, I have no idea.  God knows that I couldn't understand a word they were saying with their whinnies and nickering like some sort of demonic horse.  I remember the old Greek mythos about a pegasus, and the old english about unicorns, but I have no idea what that other damn thing was.  Some kind of hybrid maybe.  That or the cryo fried my brain a little extra crispy.  Either way, hanging from the vault walls was starting to get painful.  With a gesture, I triggered the release mechanisms and was lowered to the floor.

Breathing hurt.  A lot more than it should.  Everything was tinted a little bit red at the same time.  Either way, the onboard AI should be connecting to my armor any time...now.  Thin green text scrolled across the armor plate in front of my eyes.

***Greetings, I am <corrupted> 73, the sole remaining AI in vault <corrupted> You have been in cryostasis for ***<data unavailable> years.  This vault has undergone severe damage from unknown events.  Backup servers are ***unavailable at this time do to severance of networking hardware.

***As you have noticed, there is significant scarring of your optical and internal tissues.  Nanite swarms have already been ***dispatched to mitigate any permanent damage.  Please limit your movement for the next several ***minutes while they work.  You may experience momentary blindness and/or tightness of chest and ***pain as these issues are resolved.

***At this time, there are currently 28 unknown creatures occupying this vault.  Count is estimated 73 percent accurate ***due to lack of functioning security hardware.  All data in regards to this species and subspecies will be uploaded to ***your neural network at the completion of biological repairs.

***Unknown species has not shown hostile intent at this time.  Please proceed with extreme caution.  Systems are ***prepared to strip cryo components from your suit <Type 18 undersuit> and replace with your  ***standard issue <Type 18 Combat Chassis>  Would you like to proceed?

Through all the wheezing I was doing, I could barely make the meager gesture to the AI to get myself prepared.  As the compartments around me unlocked and more components sprung to life, everything began to fade to gray as the nanite swa...


I woke up hanging in the same spot several hours later.  Thankfully with the blindness and pain gone as the nanites had done their part apparently.  Even better was the fact that the AI had donned my armor for me while I was unconscious.  Wonder what I'll end up calling the thing.  Even for an AI, only being called 73 is an indignity.  First things first though.  Lets see what these creatures...

###Neural drive accessing:

Species within the vault refer to themselves as “Ponies.”  Recorded designations in archive below.  Linguistics has been uploaded to allow for translation.  Human vocal chords are unable to match patterns.  Please use AI <corrupted>73 to translate for you.

Well ain't that interesting.

“73, get me my guns...”  

03. Claustrophobia

Author's foreword:  Since the Pinkie chapter (albeit inspired) didn't really fit the theme I was attempting to fit, I am going to take a more serious approach to the story.  That said, should I write a chapter that doesn't seem to fit, but is downright hilarious, I will tag it with (Lost Chapter) these will not be canon for the story.  Just for laughs and all that.  And yes, augmented Pinkie would both be scary and hilarious.

Hissing noises filled the chamber as the air pressure changed once again.  Hermetically sealed lockers in the wall were breaking their seals after an eternity of disuse.  Formerly trapped noble gasses finally mingled with the stale air of the vault as their preservation services were no longer needed.  After so long of a slumber, my weapons were returning to serve again.

***Please note:  Weapons will need lubricant application post storage.  Ammunition should remain

***unaffected by storage times.  Please use caution when engaging potentially hostile parties.

“Thanks for the warning 73.  I don't suppose you have any idea what the hell happened in this complex anyhow?  How the hell are there talking horses?”

Mostly it was just idle musing as I sorted through drawers and stacked combat equipment haphazardly.  Magazine pouches locked into place quickly and easy with small clicking noises on my chest and left hip.  A holster quickly adorned my right.

***Unable to process query at this time due to corrupted data.  Please try again after reconnecting to

***network

“Well that just sucks.  Could you at least tell me where the creatures are now?”

***The creatures identified as “ponies” have returned to their encampment.  It appears that they have

***set guard and are preparing for their nocturnal cycles.

“Good to know 73,” I mused mindlessly as I squirted oil into the internals of my weapons.  After so long, they were still in the same shape I stored them in.  My 1911 was still battered and ugly, especially with the suppressor attached to it, garish scrapes running down the black finish everywhere.  Even after two hundred years of military service the design was still nigh unstoppable.  The small noise of metal on metal marred the quiet of the room as I slid a magazine home and release the slide.  A familiar weight settled onto my hip as I holstered my handgun.

The final thing I reached in for was my rifle.  It was a near duplicate of the M-4 rifles of old.  It even had the ancient direct impingement gas system so many people complained about.  So long as it was lubricated, the rifle would function to the end of time.  With modern materials, the archaic design was able to hurl a heavier bullet faster and further, even having the ability to pierce the hard armor of the less well equipped countries.  Idle memories disappeared as I pushed the bolt release, a sharp metallic noise rupturing the silence with finality.  One final thing left to do.  With a twist of my wrist and a ratcheting noise, the suppressor threaded onto my rifle.  Better quiet than not.

“Okay 73, first thing is to secure our base of operations.  You are sure there are no ponies in the next few chambers, correct?”

***All cataloged specimens have been recorded at their campsite.  99 percent chance of no contact.

***Additional:  Considering I am the last known AI on our network and my full designation is

***unavailable, I would like to request a status change to “Seven.”

***It is a prime number, and like myself, cannot be divided.

All I could do was shrug.  Once an AI decides on something, barring new information they are in for the long haul.

“Seven, kill the lights.”

The room disappeared into inky darkness, punctured only by the occasional blinking light from the wall mounted displays.  After a moment my vision shifted to a field of gray, greens, and black.

“Time to go hunting”.


As I walked down the darkened hallways, I minded every step, every moment.  Granted, the creatures supposedly were asleep, but giving myself away before the game even started was a bad idea.    Unknown creatures, unknown damage to the base, hell, unknown everything.  This was just a just a clusterfuck of epic proportions.  

***Vault 18 Bravo to your left is free of hostiles.  Please place IR reflective marker on doorway.

From a pouch on my thigh I pulled out a simple thing.  It pretty much was nothing more than a reflective strip of clear plastic with a pressure sensitive adhesive on the back.  It pretty much blended in with whatever you stuck it to, but under my night vision and the security cameras, it fairly well lit up the doorway.  One simple task complete.  So many more to go.

Two hours later, I had finally marked and cleared every passageway I thought was passable into my section of the tunnels.  Two hours of trying to be quiet.  Two hours of pausing and listening to every movement, even if it turned out to be things crumbling from decay or falling due to the pony things poking at them.  Fuck it was boring.  Still was better than sitting in a FOB in Canada waiting for something to happen during the wars.

I lost track of how many tubes of grease and oil I used trying to open and shut doors and panels to secure the area.  I was on my third pack of IR tags even.  I had barely even used those things before in my life, but now they seemed ever so important.  The constant passing of dark hallways seemed to be getting to me though.  I could swear there were noises like footsteps down here with me.  One last junction and I could head back to my vault in safety and security.  One last junction.  I would swear that I could see the occasional flicker of light, but it was probably just my eyes from staring at a display so long.

***CONTACT LEFT 28 meters and closing.  1 Unicorn and 1 Pegasus in sensor blind spot.

***Activating camouflage on emergency settings.

“Son of a fucking fuck fucker fuck fuck!”

Thankfully I didn't yell that out as my vision flickered.  The IR lamps died and all extra system power went into the textures imbedded in my armor.  To most, it just looked like a series of small polygons embossed the metal.  To an engineer who understood how it worked, it was far more.  Either way, the colors of my armor faded to match the bleak surroundings.  Naturally, this was the worst time for a rock to get stuck in the tread of my boots.

“Did you hear that Midnight?”

“Yeah, that was way too close.  Lets take a look and make sure it was nothing...Like every other time we've checked.”

Of course they would come and check that noise.  Every step I made backward cause by boots to click and scrape against the concrete floors.

“There it is again.  I'm pretty sure its moving.”

“This is the Royal Guard!  Everypony is supposed to be confined to camp after hours!  Come out now!”

Well screw that.  

“Seven, somehow I think they are on to me.  How close am I to the nearest blast door?”

***The nearest blast door is 12 meters behind you.  At your current rate of movement you will be

***discovered before reaching it.  Perhaps disregard stealth to reach safety at this time?

“Good enough idea Seven.”

One long scrape echoed down the hallway as I turned and ran.  The stomping of my armored feet on the ground certainly seemed to draw the guards out.

“HEY!  GET BACK HERE!”

***They have not discovered you at this point.  Please continue current path toward blast door 18.

***Locking mechanism overridden.  Hydraulics inoperable at this time.  Door requires manual closure.

Great, one more thing to worry about.  Whatever smart ass thought I had coming to mind was quickly forgotten as a white light spilled into the hallway.  Have to find the damn door latch fast.

***Due to rapid movements and increasing proximity to light source, optical camouflage effectiveness

***is decaying rapidly.  Maximum of 15 seconds before defenses are ineffective.

Thankfully, right as that message appeared on my screen my wildly grasping hands found the cold metal of the emergency release panel.  Every ounce of adrenaline in my body was put to great use and my muscles screamed out in agony, but the door started skittering shut.

“Do you see that Warden!  The door up there is moving like somepony is messing with it.”

“This is your last warning!  Come back to camp with us or there will be severe repercussions.”

I couldn't even see down the hall toward the damn things from the light being so bright.  The visor and electronics of my armor were simply unable to dim the pure light stemming from one of the creatures.  One more tug on the door.  Please please please.  Come ON!

With a foul screech of mistreated metal, the door slammed shut with my hand already on the locking bolts.  A small twist and there was no way those things could get in here with me.  3 inch thick bars slid out of the door and into the wall at several points.

“Seven, that was too fucking close.  What the fuck happened?”

***Unknown.  Ponies recorded as “Midnight Blaze” and “Crimson Warden” are recorded at camp site

***currently.

***Starting system diagnostics...

“God damn it Seven...  Fuck it, they know I'm here now.  I have a few hours to figure out what is going on before they try to breach the door.  Lets just head back to my vault and figure our options.”

As the door squealed shut, it left two stunned and worried guards in its wake.  The orange pegasus looked at the unicorn, grimacing from the harsh light.

“Is it just me or did you see a shadow in the middle of the light you were casting Warden?”

His compatriot just looked at him perplexed.  

“I thought that was just me.  Either way, there is no way we can get through this thing without some extra help.  Lets get back to camp and see if we can figure out which pony is stupid enough to play this prank.  We'll probably need to wake the Princess to get her help rescuing the idiot who shut this thing.”

“You are probably right.  Some stupid prank.  Either way, this is going to be a long night.”


The Accidental Chapters: 03 Psychic Pie (NON CANON)


THIS CHAPTER IS NOT CANON TO THE STORY!  

***Please verify identification code for armory authorization

“Really 73, you are seriously going to make me do this?  Freaking AI.”  All I could do was sigh as the damn computer wouldn't let me arm myself otherwise.  “Gunnery Sergeant Alex Randwulf.  Now unlock the armory 73.”

***Identity confirmed.  Armory panels unlocked.

***Current conditions advise stealth encounters with lethal force only as final alternative.

***Recommended weapons are available in locker 18A.  See contents below:

***M87 pistol: Integrally suppressed .45ACP 11 rd capacity.  Lethal rounds only available at this time

***R38 rifle: Standard issue accelerator rifle. 30 rd capacity.  Lethal and non lethal rounds available.

***G21 concussion/flash grenade

“Now we are talking my kind of toys.  73, run a final check on all armor systems, specifically focused on the camouflage and optical systems.”

With that, I stepped out of the cradle that had supported me for the last while, my feet coming to a rest on the ground for the first time in forever.  It felt strange, like coming home after being away for years.  Before I could get lost in thought, the open panels in the armory beckoned to me, teasing with their contents.  Small clicks filled the air as the contents of the locker were methodically locked onto my armor.  Left hip and thigh had magazine carriers rock into place as a familiar weight settled over my body.  More magazines and a grenade pouch adorned my chest plate as I pulled a combat load forth.  Toolkit on the small of my back and balanced.  Finally time for the main course.

“I've missed you,” I whispered to the duo of firearms that had saved my hide more times than I could count.  Even hundreds of years after its creation, the familiar pattern of the 1911 was still in service with the military.  Largely ineffective against modern armor, it still made a great weapon for quietly dispatching a guard or breaking things quietly from afar.   A soft click echoed in the dimly lit room as I pushed a battered magazine into the old pistol and pulled the slide back.  After all these years, it still chambered a round like the day it was issued.

Lastly, was my constant companion, my rifle, my gun.  The R38.  By modern standards the aesthetic was nothing to look at, but it did what the rifle was designed for very well.  Unlike the newer model Gauss rifles, you could feed pretty much anything magnetic through this thing and kill stuff with it.  Lethal, non lethal, scrap metal, hell, even a fork once.  Yes, I shot a guy in the lung with a fucking fork.  Hell of a way to go, albeit kind of hilarious from the outside.  If only I had a soup spoon or melon baller.  The textured grip felt odd but ever so familiar through my gauntlets.  As I pushed a magazine into this machine of death incarnate, icons began to pop up on my heads up display.  Power remaining in the magazine based battery, remaining rounds, heat, targeting, and the everpresant pain in my ass plasma damage meter.  Downside to a weapon like this is it liked to eat itself and shoot bits at the enemy.  A small tradeoff if you ask me.

“73, anything else I should know?  Also, calling you 73 is getting kind of old.  I know you aren't the combat AI that usually interfaces with armor but you need a proper name.  Any ideas?”

***All systems are prepared for combat operations, including in suit weaponry, camouflage, and optical systems.

***If 73 is not a designation you desire, I would like to be called Seven.  To my knowledge, I am the last AI functioning and cannot be divided.  It is fitting.

All I could do was shrug.  If one of these things makes up its mind, there is no changing it.  “So, which way do I go to follow these “ponies?” Please tell me you mistranslated the last bit.  Calling a species “Ponies” is kind of retarded.”

***At last visual contact, tracked subjects were approximately 300 meters up the corridor to your right.  Please disengage suit lights and operate with IR units for stealth.  Traction on greaves has been optimized for hard foor.

Well, at least I know Seven knows what it's doing.  On the upside it couldn't read thoughts like the combat AI.  They helped a lot, but damn they got nosy.  “Kill the lights in the vault Seven.”  With a moment's pause the lights in the room flickered and died, the only remainder being cast by the buttons on assorted panels.  Barely a thought crossed my mind before my vision shifted to a field of gray, black and green.  A small bouncing light told me where my rifle was pointing without much effort.  Time to go hunting.

Several minutes later, I stalked down the darkened hall behind the ponies.  There was no real fear of being discovered so long as I was cautious.  Every so often I would pause as they stopped to take a break or have a small conversation.  The purple one called “Twilight Sparkle,” was always seeming to point out this or that and have some sort of conjecture about it.  Yes, it is a power outlet with networking connection.  No, I don't expect a freaking horse thing to understand what that is.  Don't lick it, you'll get a nasty surprise.

***Really Sergeant, joking about electrocution, especially considering what you have planned?  That is just dark.

Fuck, the little bastard could network with the nanites with my head.

***Yes, I can sir.  I am unsure of what my lineage has to do with anything.  Oh, you were insulting the software I descended from.  Very droll sergeant.

“Lets just get this over with so I can get you out of my head, okay?”  Damn I hope I thought that loud enough.

***While you were occupied the ponies took a turn to the left in approximately 15 meters.  They are outside the field of view of my cameras however.  Proceed with extreme caution.

With practiced grace, I inched toward the corner, placing my back gently against the concrete and steel wall.  A small twist spun the camera imbedded at the muzzle of the rifle 90 degrees left so I could attempt to look at what was ahead of me.

“SON OF A FUCKER!”

A blue bolt of energy whipped down the hallway, barely missing my outstretched rifle in the inky blackness.  Naturally, I pulled myself tight against the wall.  Unknown fire and all that.  I don't want to find out that my hard cover was just “cover” when I get a perforated spleen.

***Translating in real time via nanites.

“Rarity, what was THAT?!”

“I...I had a feeling we were being watched.  I'm sorry Twilight.  I shouldn't have acted so rashly.”

“Its okay Rares, I've had an unsettlin feeling myself since we left that strange room back there.”

“Now that you mention it girls, I thought I kept hearing hoof steps, but thought it could have been an echo.”

“Do you mean that...that...that thing could be in the dark here with us?”

“If it is, I'm sure we could kick it's flank.  Did you see how skinny it was?”

“We don't know if its hostile or even out there.  I'm pretty certain that the thing was dead.  Lets just get back to camp.  We can get a larger group tomorrow to search that area again.”

“Did you guys even listen to my tail?!  It twitched and twitchedatwitch.  That means we are going to have a new friend.  And the thing isn't really a thing after all.  Didn't you read the screens?  His name is Alex and he's standing right around the corner.  Rarity almost shot him.  I wonder if he likes cupcakes.  Or even better if he likes brownies!  Oooh!  I get to throw a party for a pony that nopony has ever seen before.  He has a strange name though.  Alex the hoooman.  Wonder if he's related to Gilda.  I hope not, she was a big meeniehead....”


“PINKIE!  WHAT DO YOU MEAN HE WAS AROUND THE CORNER?!”

“Exactly what I meant silly.  That corner we came around before we all started talking.  He's just leaning against the wall over there listening to us and freaking out.  Oooh, now he's wondering if something called a tazer can knock one of out so he can get away.”

I could only lean against the wall and wonder what the holy fuck was going on.  “Seven, any idea what is happening?  Am I hallucinating?”

***No sergeant.  You are not hallucinating.  That pink creature seems to know what you are thinking for some strange reason.

“Now he's talking to somepony named Seven.  YOUHOO!  MR ALEX!  WE AREN'T HALLUCINATIONS!”

The only thing hey heard after that was footsteps slamming against the floor faster and faster until they faded into the distance.

“WHAT THE FLYING FUCK!”

04. Jailbird

***It appears that the guards have woken the encampment and are performing a headcount as we speak.

***A limited time frame exists to prepare defenses remains before our presence is discovered.

***Additional: With the sealing of nearby junctions, air purification units have already begun lowering the radiation ***levels within this section of the facility.  Filtration of materials will not be necessary in 18 hours.

"Well thanks for that bit of good news there Seven.  We still have to live for 18 hours for that to mean shit.  Considering you are linked to our limited security access, where should I start preparations?"

***Accessible sections of facility have been sealed.  Best preparation would be to manufacture cover near blast door.

***Incomplete data on "Unicorn" and hybrid abilities exists.  Caution advised.

"Good enough for me.  Lets get going then.  I'll get building, you do your best to access and repair any security systems."

At least we had a plan.  Considering the damn things were going to figure out that I was here soon, something had to be done and fast.  A crazy idea began to form in my head.  Those creatures would have to get in to get me first, and that door was the only way in that Seven and I could find.  What if I had a method of truly securing the door in an emergency?  With that idea, I tore through an open box of supplies to find what I was looking for.  A tube of grey paste and a spool of filiment quickly dropped into my pouches.

I double timed back to one of the damaged utility rooms I had walked by previously.  The machinery within was mangled and torn from whatever catastrophe had rendered the facility into its present state.  Either way, big hunks of metal and lifting equipment awaited me.  First things first was to grab the necessary items to block the door.  A sheet of scrap steel, some angled brackets and a small plasma welder went into my toolkit.  Hopefully I won't need plan "Oh Shit," but it was better than getting gored or whatever those things do to attack.

As I reached the door, I started inspecting the seals closely, to make sure my plan had a chance of working.

***I do not recommend this plan of action.  Should you need an escape route, there are no other known methods ***should this be enacted.

"Worst case plan Seven.  Worst case plan.  Hell, I don't even know what I'm going to eat later.  First thing is to not get killed."

Strangely, the AI was silent as I used a spare strip of metal to spread the paste into the joint where the door met the wall, packing it tightly into anyplace I could find.  The goop blended into the metal and concrete fairly well, but it did look out of place with a strand of filament poking out.  It looked stranger still as I clipped a small electrode to the end of the wire.  Worst worst case plan ever.

To say that time passed quickly as I worked was an understatement.  It took longer than I wanted to weld the sheet of scrap over a good chunk of the door.  Even longer still to form some kind of crude barricades out of whatever pumps and cases I could pull out of rooms.  I had tried to strip the armored casing off my sarcophagus, but Seven advised against it.  While I was otherwise occupied, Seven had managed to sort through some of the chaos in the electronic systems.  The occasional electronic locking bolt clicked into place through the halls, along with my vault sealing itself.  The armory doors closed, armatures and cryo unit slid back into their recesses in the walls and floor.  Guess the thing was finally good for something.

***There is a group of "Ponies" approaching the barrier.  ETA approximately two minutes.  Linking your display to ***cameras.

I'll admit I was surprised to see the hybrid leading a pack of what looked like ponies wearing plate armor.  Inter spaced among the group were the group of ponies that had awoken me.  Strangely enough, despite all the dust and grime in the collapsing tunnels, there was one white pony that shone like it was freshly polished.

"Strange, must be some kind of magic to stay that clean," I muttered to myself as I watched.

***Could you repeat that Sergeant?  I did not understand your reference.

"Don't worry about it Seven.  Just talking to myself.  I think they are close enough, don't you?  Could you please link me into the speaker system near the door?"

***Talking to yourself is unhealthy Sergeant.  You may consider rethinking this behavior. [/color

***Linking translation software to neural link.

###Link Established.

"Attention unknown group.  You are trespassing in a secure facility belonging to the North American Federation.  State your intentions and be prepared to immediately vacate the premises.  Lethal force has been authorized."

I'll openly admit it seemed strange to think that through the link and then hear a mix of horse noises pouring out of the speakers.  Even stranger to see the lips on the ponies moving and not hearing a thing until the translation poured into my brain a moment later.

"The North American Federation?  There is no such thing.  You are trespassing in sovereign Equestrian land.  Surrender yourself peaceably and the royal courts will be lenient.  There is no reason for this to escalate due to a poorly thought out prank.  If you surrender now, you have my word as Princess"

A prank?  Did I just hear that right?  If I weren't so occupied, facepalming would seriously come to mind for this. Let alone the fact that the hybrid said "Princess."  Probably dealing with some kind of prissy royalty or some kind of nerd.  Either way, rock meet hard place.

"This is no joke, Princess.  State your intentions or please leave.  This is your final warning.  You have thirty seconds to comply."

I'm not sure if it was shock or something else that appeared on her face first, but no matter what the species I could tell that I pissed her off as her lips began moving and she gestured animatedly, hooves kicking up dust as she kicked the floors.

"I don't know what pony would think this is funny, but threatening Royalty is a capital offense.  Come out NOW!"

This really wasn't getting anywhere, and I just wanted the damn things gone so I could find out what happened.

"Seven, do we have network access to the blast door behind the ponies?  The one at the junction earlier?"

***Accessing network.  One moment please.

***Door controls available.  40 percent of door range of movement available.

"Do it."

***Activating systems.

The group of ponies looked around in a panic as the door behind them slowly began to creep closed.  A few of them ran through the door not realizing it couldn't fully close.  The purple one closed her eyes for a moment as if she were thinking of what to say.  Really I just wanted them gone.  I didn't see her lips moving as the rage of her words flowed into my mind.

"THIS IS YOUR LAST WARNING!"

My head pounded as the statement echoed in my mind.  And yet, not thought went toward the door that was nearly at the limit of its short span.

***RADIATION SPIKE DETECTED SEEK COVER!

"Son of a fuck!"

I barely had time to throw myself over the makeshift barricade as something slammed into the door, rocking it on its hinges.  A massive dent cratered the center of the 6 inch thick slab.

"Seven, WHAT THE HELL WAS THAT?"

***Unknown.  Processing.

***Hybrid appears to be able to manifest and control the local radiation with kinetic effects.  

***Hybrid reclassified as HOSTILE  Extreme caution advised.

Whatever witty remark I had coming disappeared from my mind as a lavender bolt of energy screamed over my head through a freshly smoking hole in the blast door.  WHAT THE FUCK?!

***Radiation levels in secure area increasing.  Disregard previous statement on purification.

Suddenly I realized the hole in the door could work both ways.  The rubber buttstock of the rifle dug into my shoulder armor as I brought the glowing reticule up toward the hole and the creatures beyond.

***DANGER CLOSE UNKN^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

Whatever Seven was saying was proven as I was thrown against the wall by a blue blur.  The hits against my helmet rained down as my mind roared with feedback from the impact.  There was wetness inside my helmet that I'm fairly certain was blood leaking from my ears and nose.  Whatever this blue thing was, it was in a world of trouble.

***REBOOTING

***SYSTEM ONLINE

###Armor link complete

###Close Combat routine ACTIVE

With a roar, I shoved off the wall and swung a fist toward the blue blur, but no matter how fast I tried, the thing was faster.  My armor screamed with impacts.  None were as hard as the first, but they were felt either way.  Their staccato beats rained against me as I flailed away uselessly.  Whatever was being screamed over the radio was forgotten in trying to save my own ass.

***Pattern recognized.  Uploading to neural network.

"My turn now," I growled as new information entered my mind.  I may not have been able to stop every impact but I was blocking some and biding my time as I was battered and bruised.  Finally my moment had arrived.  A fraction of a second pause as the creature pulled back for a stronger hit.

###Capacitors charged and ready.

I met its incoming hoof with an open palm, surprise registering on the ponies face as I used momentum for my advantage.  As my hand made full contact, my vision flickered for a moment.  Power flowed out of my suit and into the being who was dumb enough to kick the crap out of me.

###Capacitors discharged.  Full recharge in 90 seconds.

I'll openly admit I enjoyed watching the thing spasm on the floor for a moment.  Then again, that moment was far too long as another bolt of energy tore through the door.  Incomprehensible yelling was pouring through my headset through the camera feeds.

"Fuck this!  Seven, hit the button while I get the fuck out of here!"

Hoof in hand, I dragged the blue pony down the hall as I tried to stay out of the field of fire.  

***Detonating

All the colors in the hall turned into searing white as the enhancements to the blast door did their magic.  With a small jolt of energy, Seven had released fifteen thousand degrees of heat into the doorframe, welding my side of the door into the concrete.  The creatures on the other side weren't so lucky however as gallons of superheated metal sprayed into the blinding tunnel.  I didn't need to use the translator to understand what the screaming meant.

As I rounded the final corner into my vault, I looked at the aware but stunned blue pegasus that was being drug along.  What kind of animal has a multicolored mane anyhow?  Plate armor and radiation weapons and hair dye?  What the flying fuck is going on?  Either way, I was due some answers.

"Seven, keep an eye on the feeds and let me know if they regroup or leave.  That hallway is going to be superheated for hours.  I'm going to get some answers."

***Affirmative.  We have lost monitoring in several cameras.  Assumed damaged or destroyed by thermobaric detonation.

"So my little jailbird, we are going to have a nice long conversation and you are going to answer some of my questions.  Don't make me shock you again."

***Sergeant, your helmet is soundproof and you are not linked to the translation program at this time.  One moment.

###Linking to neural network

"SON OF A BITCH!"

I jumped a little as I heard the translation pouring out of my suits speakers.  

"Damnit Seven.  Really?!"

05. Blast Wave

I'll openly admit that it took a few minutes longer than I expected to tie up the damn pegasus with some loose wire ties from the utility room.  It was definitely a learning experience as it turns out that one of these critters can take an obscene amount of voltage to stay down.  After the third time it shrugged off lower shocks and tried to headbutt or kick me, I raised the voltage to maximum.  That turned the little blue prisoner into a gibbering, spasming mess pretty nicely so I could truss it up like a turkey.

"Seven, any reports from the cameras?"

***No visuals as of yet.  When contact is found, I will uplink to your net.

Not much to really say to that, so I kept working.  There was little time to waste as after my little explosion, I'm fairly certain the hybrid was going to try to regroup and blow a hole through me.  Time to make another plan A and B, and I was going to need more AI help for that.

"Seven, while you are in the drives I need you to get access to the comm system surrounding the encampment.  On top of that, I need you downloading every scrap of info you have access to into the storage in my armor.  And I mean everything."

***I will attempt to access the systems you have requested.  Network access is proving more difficult than expected.

"Oh, and Seven, please keep an eye on our unconscious friend.  I'll be back shortly.  I need to close a section of tunnel apparently."

The AI was strangely silent as I opened one of the armory panels and pulled out some RCom explosive.  Then again, he might have been able to tell that was coming after my method of securing the door and my foothold on the base.  Either way, I needed to make sure nothing else could follow the path the blue one had taken.  After hanging a right down the hall next to my barricades, I paused to eye the still glowing door frame.  Thank god for my armor, otherwise the heat would be unbearable.  That should buy me more time though.

It took several minutes of searching to finally find the small section where the pony had squeezed between fallen beams and the concrete floor.  It was completely impassable for a human, so using it as an emergency exit was right out.  Might as well make sure it can't be used as an entrance again either.  A few feet away from the collapsed portion, I began to set my charges.  Bowl shaped pucks of yellowish explosive stuck to the walls and ceiling almost effortlessly.  They should force the blast into the supports around this section and bring the entire span down completely.  A small metal spike was inserted into each blob before I turned away to head to the cover in the nearby hall.

"Fire in the hole."

###Detonating remote explosive charges 1-3

Even through my supposedly soundproof helmet, I could still hear the deep WHUMP! as the blocks exploded.  My armor protected my body but the concussion still forced some air out of my lungs angrily.  Either way, that tunnel was going to be no use to anyone now.  As I headed back to the vault, the soft tinkling of tons of dirt settling on abused steel was my soundtrack.

***It appears that the explosion has woken our guest.  She is currently struggling against her bindings.

"Guess it is my lucky day," I muttered to myself.  Not often I get to talk to a mythical creature after blowing stuff up.  Any other smartassery was forgotten as I entered the vault and was immediately assaulted by the obscene noises the creature was producing.

###Activating Translation

"...OUT OF HERE YOU FREAK!"

I just stood there, staring impassively at it, hoping that my faceless helmet would somehow intimidate the thing into submission.  It just struggled more as I watched, as if getting shocked again was something it desired.

"Stop struggling or I will shock you again.  You are going to explain what is going on here, since you and your friends woke me up."

If looks could kill, I would have exploded from the amount of pure unadulterated hate the look the pony was giving me.  She had oddly colored eyes.  Strange I didn't notice it earlier, but I was a little occupied.

"BUCK YOU!  YOU ATTACKED MY FRIENDS!  YOU ZAPPED ME!  I'M NOT TELLING YOU ANYTHING MONSTER!"

Sighing softly, I triggered the circuits in my gauntlets and let the electricity arc from finger to finger as if it were begging to be freed.  The blue one shrunk back, apparently getting the point.

"I'M COOL!  I'm cool.  Just...Just don't shock me again, okay?"

With a thought, I dismissed the arcs, but still kept the contacts primed.  That was just too easy.  As I leaned against the opposite wall, the open doorway to my right, the pegasus kept making darting glances away from me.  Clever girl...

"So what is your name?  Also, what are you and the rest of these "Ponies" doing in a secured facility?"

"My name is..."

Whatever it was saying was cut off as the camera feed began pouring into my displays.  It appeared that the group of ponies did not have any fatalities, just some burns and mild injuries.  That was utterly amazing considering the blast and massive results.  Stranger still was the hybrid.  The moment I linked to the camera, her head swiveled to look directly at it for a moment as her lips moved.

"...Rainbow Dash to us!  We will not rest until she is returned to us.  You have declared war on Equestria from within its capitol.  Return her to us.  I won't ask again."

***Apparently, she does not have to ask again, Sergeant.  Cameras have detected movement at the campsite.

***An indeterminate number of armored ponies are entering the facility.  A compromise may be in order.

***In either case, odds of survival are exceedingly low.  As are the odds of other survivors.  Shall I prepare Objective ***99?

Calmly, I tried to figure out what to do as my options were getting smaller and smaller by the moment, until the thought occurred to me.

"Seven, prime Objective 99.  Do not activate the unit, but play the warnings through the translator and speaker system at maximum volume."

***Link Established to Objective 99

***Remote Detonator assembly inoperative

***Manual Detonation Required.  No access path to weapon available.

***It appears that we cannot activate the weapon at this time.  Proceeding with vocal warnings.

The very phrase I was expecting sounded very twisted as it poured from the speakers across the facility.  At least, the speakers that remained working in the destroyed tunnels.

"Vault Compromised.  Activating Objective 99 Facility Denial Weapons System.  Verbal Activation Required."

"If you attempt to seize this base, I will detonate the nuclear weapons stored within.  Withdraw now and your "Rainbow Dash" will be returned to you once your forces have evacuated."

***I hope she does not call your bluff.  At this time, it does appear to be the best option we have available.

The camera view started to warp and distort as I heard the one called Twilight Sparkle yell in frustration just before the view went dead.

***The camera has been destroyed.  Acoustic sensors state the group of ponies is heading toward their encampment.

"Okay Seven, now we need to figure out how to get the hell out of here before they figure out we are lying.  I'm not exactly a fan of having holes blown through me."

Through all of this, I had completely forgotten about Rainbow Dash until a blur slammed into my chest.  Reflexively, I brought my arms around, trying to grapple as my vision blanked out for a moment.

###Capacitors Discharged.  180 seconds remaining until recharge complete.

When my vision flickered back to life, the first thing I noticed was a smoldering patch of blackened fur on a twitching pegasus.

"Damnit..."

A short time later, I was sorting and tearing through lockers for what I would need to pull this hoax off.  Extra power packs were attached to the back of my armor by the robotic arms and a weighty pouch of RCom was slung on my hip.  I had even pulled out a spare grenade pouch and attached it to the side of my chest.  This was going to be...interesting.  Seven had informed me that the ponies were shuffling out of the collapsed tunnel and into the beyond in an orderly fashion, and could not find anymore within the facility.  Time for part two of the plan.

"Seven, broadcast the modified message.  This should make sure that none of them around around if they really care this much for the damn horse."

After a moment, the speakers roared to life again, pitching my lies into the darkness and beyond.

"To hostile forces:  We are showing you have vacated the facility.  I will be performing the prisoner transfer shortly.  Any attacks on my person will be dealt with immediate lethal force."

"Objective 99 system triggering status change.  Motion and Proximity sensors activated.  Any entrance to the facility will result in immediate detonation."

There was no reply so I figured it was good enough of a time to give my plan a shot.  A dull CRACK tore through the air as the det cord I placed on the blast door tore out a roughly human sized hole.  With a groan, I hefted the bound blue bundle and headed out into the blackness beyond.

###Activating camoflage system at maximum.  With additional power supplies, 19 minutes of charge remain.

The heat output from my suit was immense, but what normally would have rendered me into a nearly matching color was overpowered into making me practically invisible at a distance.  Time to get this crap over with before I roasted in my armor.

Eleven minutes of overly cautious walking later, I was approaching the splintered entrance that the ponies flowed into the facility through.  Per the plan, I had Seven make the lights start flickering and die well in advance of my arrival.  Apparently the ponies took me at my word as I had come across nothing but hastily left supplies and hoof prints smeared into the dust covered floors.  Either way, I approached the portal with extreme caution.  Catching a bolt to the chest would really ruin my day.  My eyes never left the hole in the wall as I stepped toward it.  Every few paces I would pause a moment to listen.  Content that there was nothing hidden in the dark but myself, I would place a block of RCom to the concrete wall.  This hole was going to be sealed one way or another.

Finally, I stood at the brink, nothing but blackend tunnel and something reflecting IR light in the distance.  Considering it had a flat sheen to it, I assumed it was part of whatever they had breached the wall with.  A grunt escaped my lips as I hefted the weight in my right hand, getting a test feel for the swing of it all.  Moments later, a bound blue blur was tossed into the pit, a small radio attached to the wire binding her.  After the soft thump of her impact, I quicky walked backward away from the entrance, rifle cradled in my arms in case it was needed as I triggered the radio.

"Rainbow Dash has been returned to you.  Follow the constant tone this device will emit.  Sealing facility in ten seconds."

Naturally this was right when my camo system decided to run out of power and my grey armor stood out in the gloom like a specter in the dark.  I turned and ran around the nearby corner before I took any incoming fire.  Strangely enough, none came.  Even though I was expecting it, I jumped a little as the charges began to detonate from each end of the tunnel, working toward the middle.  The middle where I had placed the most charges to bring down the house.

whump...whump...whump...whump...WHUMP...WHUMP...WHUMP!

To say I was tossed on my ass was an understatement.  Thrown like a ragdoll was more accurate, my armor skittering me down the side of the concrete tunnel where I ended up laying for more than a moment as I just tried to breathe.  Pressure waves are a bitch.

***You might have used slightly too much explosives.  Never the less, the entrance has been sealed.

"Good enough for me, Seven," I groaned as I sat up.  "Since we are closer to the main hub, try to access more of the network.  We need to try to find out what happened here and make an escape route.  I don't think those ponies are going to let us off this easily."

06. Shattered Youth

A few minutes later at the Royal Guard encampment in the Crystal Caverns...


"...only has some burns to her fur, but otherwise appears to be in good health.  She should awaken from her shock sometime in the next half hour."

"Thank you for keeping me updated Frost."

With a slight bow, the tan earth pony turned and left the dimly lit tent that contained the Princess of Magic.  Frustration and stress were etched into her face as she studied a parchment that had recently arrived from one of her many informants across the world.  Pale light spilled from Twilight Sparkle's horn, harshly illuminating the contents of the area.  Stacks of paperwork and miscellany lay everywhere around a barely made bed.  As much as such things annoyed her, the missive currently in her hooves took priority over everything.

"I did as you asked when I followed my brethren into the dark earth.  I did as you asked to try to prove to you that things were not as they seemed.  In the end, things were worse than both of us could imagine.  Deep in the caves below Ironholdt they found a massive tomb complex beyond anything I could imagine.  At first, I held out hope that this would be an archeological find that would bring untold riches to the Minotaur lands.  

All my hopes were dashed as I watched the guards and researchers alike tear into whatever relics they were able to get their hands on.  Worse still was how they treated the dead.  Nearly every casket was torn open to see what treasures lay within.  The coffins were torn from the cold stone floors, metal lids torn away with hammer and bar to see what was inside.  Every single one was the same, but after the first few things of use were discovered in the crypt all pretense of civility fled.  It mattered not that they looked like they could be smaller cousins of my species, only that they were more advanced than any of us by leaps and bounds.  They are not minotaurs, please do not disturb their rest during your search.

I am unsure of where the new weapons and armor you are being attacked with come from, but without a doubt they are related to this place.  The trespass the Minotaurs have committed was bad enough.  When I became fed up with the behavior of my people, I came across the true horror.  They had stacked the noble dead like cordwood in whatever spare space was available.  Countless corpses lined the hallways and spaces of the place.  Whatever their reasoning in the initial act is moot.  From now on you can count on my personal support and that of my clan.  I do hope the reports of a similar structure below Canterlot are true as the senate refuses to listen to reason.  Force may be the only way to stop this insanity.

Go with the sun.

Ferrus

PS Please tell Fluttershy hello and thank you for standing up to me."

By the time she was done reading it, tears of rage and sorrow were dripping down Twilight's face.  Over the last seven years since her ascension, many tears had been shed and there were still many more to follow. The tear stained parchment joined the stack of letters needing replies.  So little time had passed since she was nothing more than a student in Ponyville learning about friendship.  Incrementally, life had changed for both the better and worse.  Her friends still surrounded her, albeit most of them wore somber faces these days.  

As she looked at the letter again, the tears stopped.  Sorrow that had etched itself into her face was subsumed by anger.  Anger for the creature that was keeping her from what her people needed to survive.  Anger toward the minotaurs for starting a genocidal war against the ponies.  ANGER for the creatures that tried to strike down her teacher and friend.

"Guard!  Prepare another unit of unicorn guards.  We are going to attempt entry into the crypt.  We can't fail this time.  Celestia is depending on us."

Her voice bellowed out of the tent at the duo of guards standing near the closed canvas entrance.  They could only nod grimly and begin their assigned tasks.  On the other side of the encampment, everyone gave a massive crimson pony plenty of room as he began to don thick slabs of blackened plate mail, a war hammer lay on the stone next to his steel shod hooves.

Three years ago...

"Twilight, you are my most trusted student and a member of royalty, but in this regard I have to go alone."

Celestia looked down at her protege with concern in her eyes.  Little did the fledgling alicorn know of the troubles brewing in the republic to Equestria's western frontier.  Some things had to be met with tact, and others with stern determination after all.  With those final words, the regal alicorn summoned a golden sphere of energy around herself and vanished with little more than a rustle of wind.

Not even a half hour later, there was a massive explosion of magic in the throne room.  For a moment there was silence.  For a moment, the shock set in before the screaming started as sanguine blood began to stain the pristine white marble floor.  As she slowly toppled over, a blood stained scroll fell from Celestia's mouth flutter to the ground like a dying crow.  A massive gouge was torn from her head next to the alicorn's horn, staining everything red.  As Celestia's eyes rolled back, she gestured weakly at the scroll and mouthed a single word as ponies streamed to her aid.

"...Luna"

07. Apotheosis

Meanwhile...

***Connection established to network hub 93Y

***Accessing systems

"Keep up the good work Seven.  Let me know when you can get into the network drives and figure out what the hell happened."

The AI was strangely silent after I blocked off the only way we knew to get out of the complex.  Then again, those horses seemed to be a little homicidal so keeping them away would be a good thought.  A thought that led to my assembly of a sentry gun in the hall near my section of the vault.  If anything wanted to get in the hole I blasted through the door, they would have to get past this gun first.

At least whoever designed the units was smart.  Even a cook could put this together.  Roll the cart into place and deploy the armored tripod, Check.  Six dull thumps later, the brackets for the turret had locked against the ground, rooting the matte green unit in place.  Now was the fun part.  My armored fingers fumbled around in the base trying to find the connector for the wiring, as the little bastard kept slipping out of my grip.  Eventually, I got a decent grasp on it and pulled the wiring harness free.  A soft click later and it was attached to the main gun that I was slowly lowering in place.  I couldn't help but grin a little evilly at the design of the gun, black and green were my favorite colors after all.  It was even topped off with a three barreled pulse cannon.  Sexy indeed.  Only one thing left to do, I opened a panel on the side of the unit and pushed the big red button labeled "START."

----Power supply on emergency reserves.  External charge needed to start reactor.  

"Son of a bitch," I muttered under my breath as I popped open a panel on my thigh with a dull click.  From within I teased out a section of cable and locked it into the matching port in the controls for the turret.

----External power online.  Reactor coming online in 5...4...3...2...1...

----NAF M230 Sentry unit is now online.  Linking to network for command and control.

With a grim smile on my face, I unplugged from the unit as the panels and lenses lit up.  Someone was going to have a big surprise.  Now that my back was covered, time to see what I can find out.

"Seven, tell me you are making headway on the networks.  I need to know something while I check the other pods in this section of the vault."

***One moment please.  Network connection nearly complete.  Severe damage to systems on ***opposite side of collapse.

I just shrugged as I climbed through the hole I had melted through the blast door, armor scraping slightly against the jagged and rough edges.  While Seven worked, I might as well do the same as there were a few stasis units around my vault.  Time to defrost some allies.

Slightly over an hour later, the lights in the vault began to flicker.  Shadows began to twist and contort as a purple light started to fill one of the antechambers.  At first it looked nothing more than lights short circuiting, but that quickly changed as a lavender ring formed on the floor.  From the edges it flowed upward like some kind of water possessed,  Flowing and trickling together to form a sickly colored dome in the heart of the room.  As one, the lights went out and from the darkness a stream of ponies ushered forth, led by the behemoth in ebony armor.

Out of the room they spilled, dozens of them searching the halls and rooms looking for one specific thing.  The creature that had hurt them so.  The creature that could save them from damnation.  Multicolored magic dimly illuminated the oncoming horde as they crossed boundaries again and again, following hoofprints in the dust toward a solitary corner of the complex.  Through the concrete catacombs they traveled, slowly, cautiously, constantly weary of traps, not expecting a metallic monotone voice to erupt from the speakers.  

"Wait.  I know you are here, I can see you.  All of you, including the purple one who tried to kill me.  There...I... I have no fight left in me.  If you want to speak, come down the next hallway alone.  If not, all of the ponies with you will die down here."

The mass of ponies only looked at each other, slowly parting for the Princess to pass.  This was something they had hoped to happen.  There had already been too much bloodshed, let alone the fact that nopony truly knew what was going on.  With nothing more than a nod, Big Mac stepped aside from Twilight's path and watched her round the corner into the darkness.

All alone with little more than her magic to protect her, Twilight felt utterly isolated for the first time in years.  Hoofsteps clicking gently against the artificial rock of the floor, every detail of the hall thrown into harsh contrast from her magic.  At the end of the hall, a trio of glowing eyes followed her movements with a slight whirring noise.  As she neared, a blocky, foreboding shape resolved into view as the voice spoke again.

"Ignore the sentry.  It will do the same to you."

Gently she passed the silent device, expecting it to swivel and watch her passing, but the thing lay still.  Gingerly she stepped though the hole missing in the door, sour memories and thoughts tainting every moment with regret.  All of that was forgotten as she turned the final corner to see something unexpected.  The creature that normally towered over them was sitting against the wall defeated.  Eight small metal tags lay on the ground between it's feet, while a single tag dangled on a chain from its clenched hand.  A blank slab of metal lay where it's face should be, plates and straps covered nearly every inch of the creature, her eyes taking it all in, completely forgetting it watched her in return.

"Dead.  They are all dead or gone.  Out of over ten thousand, and I'm it.  You need something from here, that much is obvious, and to be honest I am tired of watching my back and killing little horses.  Help me find out what happened to my people and I won't give you any trouble."

As the final metal tag clattered to the ground from the creature's hand, Twilight could see writing on the surface of it.  Writing that eerily reminded her of Iron Will's letter...

08. Thanatos

(Author's foreword:  This should be the last time jump chapter I have planned as everything from here on out will be seen from Alex's point of view)

Shortly after the sentry gun came online:

So it turned out that I only had access to nine other units in my section of the vault.  Everything else was cut off from me due to collapsed tunnels and severed networking hubs.  Still, nine soldiers at my side would be a huge improvement when there was probably a large horde of pissed off ponies coming for my blood very soon.  Call me crazy, but I'm not fond of getting shot with whatever freaky radiation weapons they possessed.  

Seven's work on the networking systems was starting to show as lights that previously had been offline began to hum and flicker on, filling the hallways with a sickly yellow colored illumination.  Still, it was a sight better than constantly running on my armors inbuilt night vision.  Fresh details of the horrors of time came into view as I walked down the tunnel.  Rusty pipes and dust caked concrete stretched as far as my limited vision could see.  Sections of wall bulged out in random places where the concrete had been ravaged by time.  All in all, I was kind of surprised the walls hadn't come down on me already.  However, Seven pulled me out of my thoughts with a disheartening message.

***Of the nine accessible units, only three of them are registering components to complete revival.

***The remaining pods regrettably are considered a complete loss at this time.

"God damnit, Seven.  This isn't how it was supposed to happen..."

Thankfully the AI was silent and only illuminated directions to the nearest pod in my HUD.  The display showed the three units in various states of defrost thanks to the AI's silent work.  At some point, I'd need to collect the dogtags from my fallen compatriots, but it was time to honor the living.  A minute or two later, I was standing in front of the slowly opening door for vault 10-09-06 belonging to a Corporal Tyler.  Beyond the name stenciled on the doorframe, it could have passed for my unit in practically every way.  

***Sublimation and warming complete.  Seals releasing.  Armatures Primed on all vaults.

With a dull hiss, the armored lid of the cryo unit slowly lifted to reveal a figure armored nearly identically to myself.  Where my carapace was a dull grey, his was an assortment of mottled colors.  I couldn't tell if he was black or white, ripped or run to fat.  All I could hope for was that he was a good soldier.  I could use one.  As the robotic arms lowered into the pod, I could only wince.  Even after seeing the process done dozen of times in training, this looked painful every time.  Whirring noises spanned the room as the tools slowly lifted him at several points when everything went wrong.

As the arms lifted, a sick feeling spread through my gut.  Something felt wrong, but I just couldn't put it to words before it became obvious.  With a squeal and a wet tearing noise, Tyler went in three separate directions.  Even with all my years in combat I still had to force the gorge in my throat down as flashing messages scrolled through my vision.

***Critical Failure...

***Critical Failure...

***Critical Failure...

"GOD DAMN IT SEVEN!  WHAT THE FUCK!"

All I could do was stare at what had once been one of the soldiers assigned to my section of the facility as it all processed in my mind.  Rancid meat dribbled down into the coffin from what had once been Tyler's lower chest.  His legs dangled from another set of armatures, while his lower back lay stuck to the bed.  Fuck... Fuck... this was already going wrong.

"What the hell happened Seven?!"

***Nanotech systems did not report compromise of armor integrity. It appears that sections

***of Cpl. Taylor fused to the unit during preservation.  There was no way to have known.

"Just...Just put him back, okay.  He may be dead, but we can't leave him like this.  Reseal the unit so we can bury him later."

With a sick feeling in my stomach, I reached out and opened a panel next to the controls and gently pulled out a single dogtag on a chain.  Thankfully, I could look away as the remains were lowered back to whence they came.

"Rest in peace, Tyler."

I could say that the next one worked out great.  I'd absolutely love to say that Cpl. Graves woke up without a hitch.  Hell, I wish I could say he woke up.  For over ten minutes, Seven worked tirelessly to get his heart to beat.  Despite shocks, shots, and a dozen other things, Graves' heart would only beat for a moment or two before stopping.  Soon enough, another dogtag joined the small pile forming in one of my pouches as I traveled room to room.  In the end, there was only one left.  One that I knew too well.

Sergeant Andersen was what she went by at work to most people.  I knew her as Kara.  As I wearily stepped into her room, I could see her resting in the cold embrace of the armatures, her lithe form contorting and shaking as the tech worked to restart her body.  My heart fluttering as hers did, a small beacon of light in this dark tomb.   The flickering lines on the screens slowly settled into steady pulses and her body lay slack against the restraints.  If anyone could survive this for me, it would be Kara.  

After a few minutes of watching scrolling displays, she began to move.  A small twitch at first, that quickly turned into more.  The biggest smile of my life crossed my face as she raised her head to look at me.  The biggest smile of my life turned away as icons began to flash and Kara thrashed against her restraints.

***Critical Failure

***Critical Failure

***Critical Failure

In a moment, I was by her side, trying to do anything to stop what was happening.  Whatever was happening.  I wish I could tell myself that my presence is what made her seizures stop, but even as naive as I used to be, it was an impossibility.  For a moment, a small glimmering moment, she was there with me, her voice echoing over the communication system as she tried to reach for me despite the restraints.

"...I...l...l...love............................................................................"

I could only stand there stunned as she became another ragdoll in the arms of a robot.  A million thoughts screaming through my head.  I wish I knew what I was saying.  I wish I knew what I was screaming.  I wish I knew what things I was whispering to her as I pressed the releases for the armor plate on her helmet and slid the plate upwards.  My first sight was wisps of her dark blond hair.  I wish I could forget the rest, but it is forever burned into my memory.  Her bottomless sapphire eyes sparked with joy no more as she stared off into eternity.  The rest of the armored glass was obscured by misted blood that slowly formed droplets.

***I...am sorry, Sergeant.  There was no way of knowing of her reaction on revival.

I just ignored the AI and gently unclipped Kara's armor from the machinery supporting her.  After a moment, the weight of responsibility and guilt rested solely on myself.  Memories screamed wordlessly through my mind.  Our first date, our plans for the future, hell, my proposal shortly before being frozen.  All of it was worth nothing more than the dust that caked my armor.  Tenderly, I lay her down in the pod she had risen from so little ago as tears fogged up my visor.

"Keep her safe Seven.  When this is over, I intend to...something...  I need to sit down."

Her dogtag found its way into my hand as I slowly slumped down against the dank wall of her room.  The hiss of her pod resealing barely reaching my ears.

***I have accessed what sections of network are available.  All systems are showing the

***overwhelming majority of units are unoccupied.  Reason unknown.

***Additionally, I have gained access to the drone network.  Beginning assembly.

I barely could nod to what Seven said as I was slowly drowned in a torrent of memories.  

"I love you too..."

09. Catharsis

To say that the pony looked surprised would be an understatement as I slowly pulled myself to my feet. For being their "Princess" Twilight was kind of short, only coming up to my chest.  The fact that a pair of spears leveled at me as I stood barely registered.  It is a strange thing to see a pony speaking and hear the odd noises but not know what it means.  Thankfully the translation program filtered it into my mind a moment later with a cool sensation and a soft, albeit bookish feminine voice.

"So you'll help us just like that?"

###Activate Armor sound systems

"It's not just like that, Twilight.  Yes, I know your name along with the majority of those in your party.  Now, I don't understand what happened here and where my people went, but I intend to find out.  You clearly have me outnumbered and self preservation is key to finding my answers.  That said, you are looking for something too, and you are going to tell me why.  I won't let you ransack the tombs of my friends and family without explanation."

Her eyes widened as she looked up at me.

"Your friends and...family?  So that is why you reacted like that?  We need to get you to the Princess."

"...Yes... wait, what?  I thought you were the Princess?"

The rest of the thought was quickly forgotten as swirling energy began to wrap itself around her horn, flowing and whipping wildly.

***WARNING!  LETHAL LEVELS OF RADIATION DETECTED!

My armor scraped against the wall as I shoved myself away from her, hoping the thick plating did its job.   A look of shock slamming into her face as the soft snap of my rifle safety slipping to fire echoed around the room.  The swirling streams of energy faded into nothing as she looked at my expressionless faceplate.

"STOP RIGHT THERE!"

"What?! What are you doing?!"

***Radiation Levels dropping rapidly.

***Analyzing...

"You were trying to kill me with whatever that was," was forced through the translator as I gestured towards her horn with my rifle.

"Kill you?  I was trying to teleport us!  How would that kill you?!"

Sighing softly, my rifle lowered just a hair so it aimed at the floor instead of her head.  The tingling sensation of a data upload danced across my mind as I raised a finger to try to hold the conversation for a moment.

###New Upload to Neural Drive

###Assembly and Arming of units Bravo 1 to Bravo 7 are complete.

###Assembly of Primary Control 83 percent complete.  ETA: 9 minutes

###Translation Paused

"Seven, when Control is prepped, send the units we have up.  We're going to need to find some clear skies for Control.  Upload anything else to my drive."

###Translation Resumed

"Sorry about that Twilight.  I had to fix the translator real quick.  Whatever you were doing could have killed me.  If you want me to meet another Princess, we'll have to walk.  BUT, I'll be watching.  Until we get back, I don't want any funny business down here.  If this is a trap, you won't like the results."

I just really hoped she didn't have some freaky power to see the grin on my armored face.  If they tried anything there would be a big surprise in store for the ponies.  It really is strange to watch a mini horse shake her head and do what I'm guessing is a sigh of frustration.

"This ISN'T a trap.  We need your help and apparently you need ours.  This wasn't supposed to get out of hoof like this.  Everything we had found out said this was an abandoned tomb.  We had no idea you or any of your kind were down here.  By the way,what are you?"

With the rifle slack against my chest, but with a ready hand on the grip, I followed the pony out and down the dimly lit hallway.  With more light, it really was looking worse for wear especially after my latest rampage.  Small chunks of gravel crunched underfoot as the group turned and headed out toward what turned out to be the tunnel I had collapsed earlier.

"I...forgot about that.  You might want to step back a little bit."

Seriously, what was with the human gestures these things kept doing.  Insanity aside, I could swear the purple thing had a sheepish smile on her face as she turned toward the pile of rubble.

***Radiation levels rising.  Non lethal at this distance.  Compensating armor systems.

***Analyzing...

With little more than a bow of her head, a spear of purple energy shot out of Twilight's horn, searing through tons of rock, concrete, earth, and rubble, only leaving the winged unicorn breathing slightly hard.  Impressive really.  Moreso when the tempest dissipated and I could see the flickering of torches on the other side of the dim.  Instinctively, I gripped my rifle harder.

***Are you certain of this path of action?  

***At best speed, drones can only reach you well after your calculated death.  ETA: 11 minutes

"Yes, I'm sure Seven.  If we get allies out of this, good.  If not, we are kind of fucked anyhow."

The entire mass of ponies stopped as one, heads swiveling to face me, along with a wide assortment of weapons.  Other than the so called Princess, one gave me pause.  The thing was MASSIVE and covered head to...hoof in black plate armor. The only thing that gave the pony under it away was a hay stalk poking out from under the helmet. Trained soldier or not, that thing gave me the willies.  

***You forgot to turn off the armor speaker systems, Sergeant.

I didn't expect the synthesized voice to come from my armor, nearly making me raise my rifle by reflex.  Bad idea.

"You may call me Seven.  I am the translator system built into the Sergeant's armor.  He is speaking the truth.  Without your help, we are in no position to find out the answers we seek."

###Good Save, Seven.  I forgot those were even on.  I just hope they bought it.

###Just in case, store the drones in my vault when they are ready.  Keep the sentry powered too.

I could see Twilight's lips moving, but whatever was slithering through the translation was interrupted by a massive explosion in the distance.  Shards of light spearing into the darkness of the cavern beyond and casting harsh shadows behind tents and ponies alike.  The translator flared to life with screams and yells as nearly all of the ponies flooded through the tunnel to their encampment.  Sounds of conflict found their way to my ears again after so many years, along with faint puffing noises.

"Seven..."

###Speaker system offline.

"Seven, bring the drones up.  I don't have any idea what is going on and I don't like it."

***Control online in under one minute.  Will transfer control directly.

***ETA of reinforcements 9 minutes.

"Once more into the abyss, eh Seven?"

###Combat systems engaged.

With that brief thought, the inbuilt lights on my armor died and the dull grey color of the armored plates faded to a mottled black. Time to see what the hell is going on.

10. Si vis pacem fac bellum

Careful with my foot placement, I inched down the darkened tunnel.  No matter how I stepped, the fused rock and dirt crackled like broken glass under me, its glossy surface reflecting in my night vision.  Every sound from the encampment tore through the air, feeding itself down the stony tube and into my patient ears.  Step after step, the tones of chaos and carnage willed me forward, forward toward the incomprehensible screams and sounds.

***I recommend observing from the mouth of the tunnel.

***IFF markers are weakly tracking on multiple locations.

"Fair enough plan.  I don't suppose Control has a scout available?  Eyes on without getting into this would be nice.  Friendly fire is bad and all that."

The AI was strangely silent for a moment before I felt another network connection appear with another burst of frost in my mind.  Another  crackling step and I was close enough to the entrance of the shaft to be uncomfortable, yet deep enough in the black to remain unseen for now.  

***RQ-9 Raven launched.  ETA:  45 seconds.  Estimated 52 seconds for stable camera platform.

This close to the chaos the symphony of noises slowly filtered through the translator.  Formerly wordless sounds of combat were twisted into a madman's drum beat.

"...to the Princess!  Protect Luna!"

"...ON THE LEFT!"

"MY LEG!  OH CELESTIA MY LEG!"

"Where is that guy?  Isn't it supposed to be helping us?!"

"...Seven, are you sure you are reading IFF Tags?  This doesn't sound like something we'd do."

There is no worse feeling than to sit by and be forced to listen to the sounds of combat.  No deeper pain that hearing the rattle as a final breath leaves a now cooling body.  And yet, I kneeled there in the dark waiting for more information.  Information that was soon coming as a blur shot across my vision, accompanied by a dull buzzing noise.  The drone had arrived.

***Starting camera feed

In the dim light, I could clearly see collapsed tents and bullet riddled bodies in the panning views from the drone.  Its small shape drifting back and forth across the cavern.  Small bursts of radiation an matching flashes of colored light streaked out of the darkness and chaos into massive figures silhouetted in the light.  Figures that had the occasional blinking IR IFF beacon on them.

"Fucking Ponies screwed us!  Seven bring up all the assembled drones.  Keep Bravo 6 in the rear to protect Control."

***Orders received.  Drones underway.

With that rough fucking fresh in my mind, I felt it was plenty late in the game to deal some damage to the ponies.  With little more than a thought, my carbine drew itself to my shoulder and settled into its familiar home as the safety clicked off.

###Combat Systems at 100 percent  External Batteries at 93 percent

###Backing up Autonomic functions to network

My eyes tracked everything in the chaos.  Wherever my head looked, the bright beam of an IR laser followed, waiting to find an unwilling victim.  

***Hold Position Sergeant.  Additional incoming video incoming.

A small portion of my vision resolved into the drone video feed once again.  This time, it was much closer to the figures flowing from the brightness.  At first, the image looked off, then it looked wrong, very wrong.  Massive beasts were wearing scraps of armor from my kind.  Horns jutted out from the occasional visor, or scraps of chest plate strapped onto a bandoleer.  Scraps of my people were tied to monsters like some kind of sick trophy.  In their colossal hands, several of them cradled what looked like antique flintlock weapons, occasionally discharging with a dull "POOOMF."

I never did hear the grip of my rifle cracking under the pressure of my hands, nor did I feel Seven turn off the speakers on my armor as I tore across the campsite toward the encroaching light.  Toppled items were thrashed out of my rampage across the chaos.  Tents were leapt over, campfires trodden through, all to bring me into line of sight with the monsters.

The camera feeds did no justice to the beasts as the first one found its way into my vision.  A moment later, a glowing dot found itself on the head of the creature as it tried to reload some kind of black powder weapon.  It mattered little as the glowing dot and guided me.  A soft squeeze and my rifle bucked against my shoulder and the thing toppled with a 30 caliber hole through its head.  The moments blurred together as I tracked movement and found creative places for my laser to rest.

One of them died gurgling from blood filled lungs.  Another took three to the chest and slumped over wordlessly.  Through the carnage I strode like the god of chaos and war, finding things beneath my contempt and snuffing them from the earth.  Streaks of energy screamed around me and even the impact of several lead balls did not deter me.  Wherever my eyes and laser traveled, death swiftly followed.  My mind barely grasped that I had just slammed my last magazine home as the clack of the closing bolt joined the chaos, a trail of brass and blood behind me.

***DANGER CLOSE! 7 o'clock!

Spinning on my heel, I tried to drop to my knees as fast as possible as a figure filled my vision.  My rifle coughed three more times and the beast fell at my feet just as an impact threw me from them.  As my rifle clattered to the ground, I was snatched out of the air, the room spinning out of control before I was slammed into something, making colors explode into my eyes.  The impacts came again and again, my vision fading as every part of me was beaten into something, what was once sharp pain, quickly becoming dull and everywhere as I was unceremoniously dropped to the ground.  Cameras blacked out, any other sensors offline, I was deaf and blind, not that it mattered as my vision started to fade to darkness.

***You are not allowed to die, Sergeant.  Drones will be with you shortly.

###Severe damage detected

###Administering Combat Recovery Protocol

###Administering Combat Stimulant Cocktail 21A Warning: Continued Use will cause user fatality.

###Optical sensors offline.  Releasing exterior visor.

Light trickled into my eyes as they snapped open, the pain through my body gone.  Red, everything was tinged red as I dragged myself to my feet with the rattle of loose and cracked armor.  Spiderwebs crossed the thick glass in front of my eyes, but I could still the fucker that tried to beat me to death.  The fucker that was going to die.

Before the thought even crossed my mind, the dull click of my pistol firing reached my ears and the damn thing fell forward with a hole in its head where an eye should have been.  Scrolling warnings flashed in my displays but fuck it.  These bastards needed to die.  Everything seemed so slow as shot after shot lined up in front of me.  Shot after shot drove those things into the dirt until I was hit hard enough to toss me aside.  Nary more than a thought echoed into the neural drives.

###Purge and Eject External Batteries

###Systems Overvolting

###Capacitor systems at 291 percent.  Immediate discharge required.

The nearby ponies could only stare as the armored thing single hoofedly took on the Minotaurs.  Wherever it traveled, blood soon followed.  In a blur of motion they saw it leap from the ground to bury a knife in the skull of the creature that hit it, before grabbing another in a blue haze of electricity that left a smoking and charred corpse behind. As it monstrosity turned, they could see red hot glowing metal on its back where two blocky objects once sat.  With a roar, it leapt onto offense once again.

In the end, it turned out to be the creature against five heavily armored minotaurs that took turns punching and kicking it as it tired to disembowel them.  Big Mac of all ponies rushed to the thing's defense with a shuddering blow from his warhammer, caving armor like wet tissue paper.  As one, the remaining ponies descended on the remainder with a mad war cry.  Spears and lances of magic taking chunks from the minotaurs like some kind of freakish totem.

The final two tried to run for the shaft of light to the outside, hoping for safety in the captured streets of Canterlot before any pony could catch it.  One was struck down by a blast of purple light from Princess Twilight, her magic burning a hole clear through.  As the final one bellowed a war cry, it exploded in a shower of gore and the sound of rippling thunder.  After a moments pause, the figure in now crimson armor dropped the severed arm it had resorting to using as a weapon and extended a hand with one finger upraised and yelled something unintelligible before falling on it's face.

***The drones have arrived and are returning you to the vault for medical care.

***I do not know if it was necessary to yell "I fucking love drones."

***Apparently 40mm grenades work well against whatever those things were.

***Sedating for medical care

###Administering Sedatives

Seven watched the cameras through the drones as dozens of ponies stood over the Sergeant's prostrate and bloody form as the drones moved to collect it.  Murmuring comments came from the crowd, ranging from colorful to expletives.

'What is it?"

"EEEW!  Look at it's face!"

"Um, is it's arm supposed to bend like that?"

It took only a moment before sanity reigned again as cries for medics once again echoed through the cavern.

.

11. Echoes

"Love you too Kara.  I'll see you in a thousand years.  Sweet dreams babe..."

I knew she couldn't hear me as the armatures lowered her into her cryo unit, but it still made me feel better about all this.  It certainly didn't leave a good feeling in my gut knowing that she was covered in hoses and needles.  Not to mention that was about to happen to myself.  Lost in thought, I watched the armored lid slide into place with a soft hiss and a series of clicks as it locked and begun to lower itself into the floor.

"Fuck it... guess it's time to meet my maker."

It was just a short walk, far to short in my opinion to get to my vault.  All of my gear was neatly stored in hermetically sealed and nitrogen purged safes in the wall.  At least some things will still be around after this.  I tried to ignore the pain as I was suspended in the tender embrace of the AI.

***Commencing stasis program.

***Rest well Sergeant Rodriguez.

Needles and hoses connected through the armored body glove I was wearing, every cold prick and pain a sensation I didn't want.  Slowly my body went numb, my mind slipping away into oblivion, but my last thought was of Kara.  Her soft lips and the sparkle in her eyes graced my mind as it all faded to black.

Hours later, the tomb was silent except the occasional thump of firing weaponry or the whirring of drones maintaining something.  As time passed, even that faded away into the silence of the grave.

"Exterior doors are closed.  All units commence sealing and decon procedures."

"Fuck my head hurts," I muttered to myself as I wheeled a cart next to the three foot thick door.  Despite all the metal protecting me, I could still feel and hear the concussion of weapons firing from the base defenses.  Poor bastards out there didn't want to go down without a fight.  The die is cast and all that though.  That old poet was right though, humanity didn't go out with a bang.

Morbid thoughts and a massive headache aside, I had a job to do.  From within the cart, I pulled an impact gun and a matching black socket.  With a little fiddling and swearing, I slid each of the bolts off the cart into slots lining the armored entrance.  Across the complex, dozens of other engineers were doing the same thing as we secured our new home for a few thousand years.

BRAAAAAAP

"One bolt down, three hundred seventeen to go for this door..."

As I stepped aside to work on the next bolt, Kara stood next to me connecting wiring where I just was.  As time passed, what was once a tangled mess of wires slowly turned into a spider web across the great gateway.  There was nobody else that I would trust more than her to make sure the wiring for the explosive bolts are done properly.  I'd have to make sure to talk to her before final checks.  Even though she was a few doors down from me, this was going to be a long thousand years without her.

"HOLD THE LINE!"

The sounds of chaos filled the air as gunfire, explosions, and screams all blended into one as I kneeled behind a rough concrete barricade.  Constant chipping and squealing assaulted my ears as round after round impacted on the other side.  Damn terrorists and traitors.

###Ten seconds until detonation.  Remain in cover

###Five minutes Ten seconds until defenses are back online.

As I huddled on what used to be a shattered road, my hands deftly worked my rifle.  A slight click dropped the magazine into a waiting hand that carried it into a pouch on my hip.  A moment later, a fresh one replaced the partial in my carbine, my thumb pushing on the assist to ensure a round was seated and ready to go.  

###Five seconds until detonation

With a small gesture, the armored visor slid into place over the thick glass of my helmet and sealed, making my vision flicker for a moment as screens powered up in muted colors.  Exhaling softly, I mentally prepared for what was about to happen.

###Impact in 5... 4... 3... 2... 1...

Mentally preparing wasn't enough as the sky was torn asunder with the thunder of an enraged god as missile after missile struck little more than a football field away from my cover.  Flame and ash screamed over the concrete, jetting over and around my pitiful cover for a moment, rattling my eyes and knocking out what little breath was still in me.  For just a moment, I crouched there for my mind to readjust, oblivious to the yelling on the radio that snapped me back to reality.

"COVERING FIRE!'

"MOVING!

The moment weaponry behind me barked to life, I tore to my feet, forcing myself to run into the torrent and trust my unit.  Nothing between me and my destination but crushed concrete and blood spattered pavement, I pushed harder.  Nothing mattered but the slap of my armored feet on the ground and getting where I was needed.  Just a little more to the wall of conexes and barriers.  Just a little more until I could get to work.

It wasn't enough as a sharp impact threw me sideways onto the ground, making everything ache and my displays tint red with blood inside my helmet.

***Contact left approx. 43 yards.

***Non critical damage to helmet.

"God damnit..."

Through the smeared displays, I could see two figures in the haze, slowly and carefully heading to the same destination as I was.  Fuck that shit.  Thankfully they were turned slightly away from me as I dragged my carbine to my shoulder and leveled the dot on the first figure.  A moment later with just a press, my weapon roared and sent three rounds into the chest of the soldier.  As his compatriot turned towards me, he disappeared with a pop and a flash as something heavy impacted against armor.

"Fuck my life."

Groaning, I pulled myself to my feet and started limping to cover.  Whoever had just taken that last shot seriously saved my ass.  With a grunt and some scraping noise, I finally slid over the barriers keeping me away from the small firebase.  I was safe...somewhat, and it was time to get to work.  Finally a chance to get this heavy ruck of tools and parts off my back once I found the generators.

"This is Sergeant Rodriguez.  I just reached firebase delta and will start repairs on the defense systems.  ETA 4 minutes before power is restored."

"PFC Rodriguez, you are to report to Sergeant Halverson immediately."

That was the last thing I wanted to hear echoing over the speakers in the barracks.  Despite my nervousness, I pulled myself off the couch and made my way to Sgt. Ream me.  Dull tile and off white paint passed by as I jogged down the hall.  No idea what I did, but this was going to hurt.  Little did I know how much.

A few minutes later...

All of my energy seemed to be sapped away, draining into the floor as reality slammed into me again and again.

"I'm sorry Alex.  There was nothing we could do.  They were too close to the bomb when it went off.  If it is of any consolation, your sister and mother didn't feel a thing.  They were a credit to the Federation."

This had to be a joke.  Some kind of sick joke.  Mom and Christie were just there to help troubleshoot some problems with the Shanghai vault.  There wasn't a bomb.  There couldn't have been a bomb...

"Alex?  Take the rest of the week off, okay.  I wish I could give you more, but orders came down that we are to start training and upgrading security on our facilities next week."

I don't even remember leaving the Sergeant's office or the walk back.  The only thing in the world that seemed to matter was Kara's arms wrapped around me as my world fell apart.

"Again, Congratulations Graduates!  Please take some time to meet with the representatives of the services you will be training with for your term of enlistment."

I could have been paying attention to the graduation speech that Principal Lewis was giving, but as my first moments of life after school were concerned, kissing Kara was a higher priority.  Especially when she did that cute little breathy moan into my ear.  Apparently we both scored high enough to be considered for the advanced programs for our enlistment.  So we were both going to train in the same unit.  Score!  I get to learn to blow stuff up, and I get blown by my girlfriend.  This was definitely going to be something to make the next few years memorable.

"FIGHT FIGHT FIGHT!"

I could just facepalm over the retarded freshmen always getting into fights all the time.  As I shoved through the small crowd, I definitely proved myself wrong.  Wasn't freshmen fighting at all.  The new girl was wailing on one of the hockey players as he was curled into a ball on the floor.  Of course, my mind went blank when she looked up, straight at me, grinning despite the dripping blood from her busted lip.

'I think I'm in love..."

"Alex honey, we need to talk about your father.  He was...in an accident at work today.  I'm sorry Alex, but he's not going to be coming home tonight..."

The little green army man didn't want to sit in the sand no matter how hard I stuck him in there.  I pushed sand against the plastic around his feet and it just wouldn't work.  Stupid army guy.

"Alex, its time to go.  Your mom is waiting for us."

At the deep baritone of my father's voice, I looked up to see his massive outstretched hand that dwarfed mine as he pulled me to my feet.  As I looked back, I realized that the little army man was still in the sand, but it was too late.

"Come on Alex, let's go home."

The little boy and faceless figure walked down the road together as the colors began to swirl together.


"FUCK!"

Well, to say I woke up screaming was an understatement as my eyes snapped open.  The cold air of the vault tickled my sweat covered skin.

On the other side of the wall, a small alicorn princess flinched away from the yelling instinctively.

12. Let the Monsters Free

"Seven!  Why the hell am I naked?!?"

A somewhat flat voice answered from the speakers in my vault as I looked around.  The exterior doors were sealed and all sorts of bloody and discarded armor and clothing littered the floor around the area I was suspended.  The humming of the filtration units was somewhat comforting, as radiation poisoning didn't sound fun.

"Relax Sergeant.  Removal of your armor and clothing was necessary to effect the repairs that were needed to your body.  Please do not exert yourself at this juncture as you may aggravate your injuries.  You will find a new bodysuit in the clothing locker to your left."

As I looked toward the locker Seven mentioned, the iron grasp of the robot arms weakened, allowing me to step out of the cradle that supported my weight for however long I was out.  The moment my left leg touched the ground, pain filled most of my body for a moment before dulling as the meds in my system took over.  Slowly working my way to the locker, I pushed the latch into its recess and opened it to see what lay within.  Nothing much, just a standard issue black two part body glove with the usual assortment of electrical connections and ports randomly assorted across the surface.  With a painful shrug, I slowly slid the clothes on, wincing as the fabric grazed over tender places.

"What now Seven?  It looks like my armor is pretty much fucked up at this point?"

I swear you could hear the smugness in his flat metallic voice.

"Please return to the arming unit.  Your armor will be assembled at that time.  Some parts had to be fabricated by the drones from the stores to manage around your injuries.  Speaking of which, they were quite severe.  I will explain once you are secure again."

A moment of limping seemed to take forever until my wrists were grasped again by the arms, and a familiar weight of the cradle pressed against my lower back.

"Please relax as I try to explain your injuries.  By all rights, the only reason for your survival was the experimental medications and compounds you were injected with.  Despite their increasing your survival rate, there was significant damage to your structure.  Case and point, nanites were fused to support numerous fractures in both your ribs and left leg.  Most concerning was your left eye.  You suffered a destroyed orbit from what can be surmised as a musket ball.  The bone has been replaced with a titanium extrusion, along with a decent percentage of your cheekbone."

"You did WHAT?!"

"It was necessary for your survival.  If you do not survive, we cannot attempt to find the rest of our people.  To continue, the damage to the optical orbit also caused your retina to detach.  That has been largely healed, but a good portion of the photo receptors have been replaced with tech.  On one hand, it will increase your ability to see in adverse environments.  On the other hand, it will be obvious that your eye is augmented."

I could only sigh at that.  Better to have two working eyes than one, even if my left was going to be a bit screwy.

"Fine, lets get this show on the road then.  I'm fairly certain that those things will be back."

It was all I could do to close my eyes as the whirring of machinery started again.  Bit by bit, I could feel metal being shackled around my body and electronics being connected until on my head remained.  When the whining had stopped and the formerly red lights on the cradle turned green, I did what came naturally.

###Connecting to network

###Mapping armor to physiological changes

###M42 Pathfinder chassis online.

With that, I stepped out of the cradle and onto the concrete floor with a soft thump, wishing there was a mirror handy.  I had only heard rumors about the pathfinder armor.

"Seven, where did you find this stuff?"

"Due to radiation levels and expected combat operations, I felt that equipping you with the best items from our limited stores would be the best for your survival.  Your new helmet will be available shortly, once software and database updates are complete.  Differences between your armor and the new systems will be displayed on linking to your armor.  The many things I have discovered will also be updated to your neural drive at that time."

"Sounds good enough to me.  Anything interesting happen while I was out?  Also, how long was I out?"

I just leaned against the wall as there was nothing else to do until my armor was finished.  Couldn't even get out of the room because of the radiation.

"You were unconscious for nearly 32 hours.  In that time, there were 3 attempts to take the cavern by the creatures dubbed "Minotaurs."  Each time they were repelled with extreme prejudice.  After your encounter, I have taken it on myself to manage the targeting of the drones as the creatures seem to be carrying scavenged NAF armor."

Ok that was kind of impressive that the ponies managed to fend off 3 attacks without me.  

"The first attack was nearly a rout until the CQB drones arrived on station.  After that, they did not make it past the cavern entrance.  Additionally, the entire albeit limited store of drones in our section of the complex have all been completed and deployed.  Control and it's escorts are currently orbiting the city at ten thousand feet and providing me with real time data on hostile movements.  One moment please."

I could only just look around awkwardly while I wondered what was going on, until a panel popped open with a helmet within.  It looked similar to mine, but so much more complex and streamlined.  With nary a thought, I grabbed it and pulled it on.

###Initializing network and neural drive connections

###Uploading and updating files

With that small gesture, information exploded in my mind.  Everything that had happened while I was sleeping.  Conversations with Twilight, and apparently the one called Luna.  Seven spoke to both through a support drone.  Knowledge poured into my mind like a torrent, as Seven had been extremely busy.  As the new displays flickered to life, details on my armor scrolled past my eyes just as quickly.  To sum it up, this new gear made mine look like kids toys.  Somewhat stronger and faster, but quieter and more stealthy.  The one that got my attention was limited EM shielding from radiation spikes by material implanted in the armor.  All in all, freaking neat.

As I leaned there with my eyes shut, everything filtered through.  Twilight's explanation of how the minotaurs attempted to assassinate the one they called Princess Celestia with a really crappy musket.  The complete and utter chaos that it caused that allowed the invading armies to herd the ponies battle by battle until it was only a few hundred guards and civilians left to fight in the military with little more than swords, spears, and the occasional cannon.  Even her desperation to find something that everyone of her kind thought was a myth, the facility that they had apparently built their caverns above.  I could only feel sorry for her having to shoulder the responsibility for defense in a genocidal war at such a young age.

***Now that you are aware of the situation, do you believe my plan of action is appropriate?

I could only nod as I picked up my rifle from the floor and began arming myself once again.  Time to go fix us a Princess.

With a hiss, the crypt doors unsealed and slid open to reveal a stunned Twilight Sparkle.  

"How...How are you up already?  Seven said you were severely injured?"

"It's simple really... ah damnit."

###Translation program and external speakers active

Obviously Twilight didn't understand a word I said as she cocked her head a little when I spoke.

"I was saying it is kind of simple really.  In the end it is how we are going to fix up your...Princess Celestia."

She definitely perked up at that as I hefted a bag of medical supplies onto my shoulder and headed down the passage toward the pony encampment.  This was definitely going to be an interesting morning.

13. Mythos


Down the shattered halls, I followed the oddly colored hybrid as her pace quickened.  A hurried pace quickly transformed into a jog toward the shattered encampment.  As the doorways and passages flew by, the sounds of reviving machinery filled my ears.  A support drone was cutting away chunks of twisted and warped metal that were blocking a doorway, while another carried loads of ammunition towards the front.

In the end, it only took a few moments to burst back into the now harshly illuminated cavern.  Orbs of light floated dozens of feet above, causing jagged shadows and multicolored reflections over what had once been a military encampment.  In the distant dim, I could see the subtle movements of a trio of CQB drones as their weapons tracked the movement by the cavern entrance.  Movement that turned out to be a group of ponies using magic and muscle to throw the stripped and shattered corpses of the minotaurs out into the light.  I guess you could say I was lost in their actions and in my own thoughts, until Seven snapped me out of it.

***There is an approaching enemy force.  Unsure if the cavern is their destination.  

***Control will continue observations

***I recommend working expediently in case the cavern is the target of enemy movements.

That definitely put an urgent note on what I was needing to do, and put on a little burst of speed to catch up to Twilight.

"Seven says that there may be another minotaur attack soon.  I need to see your Princess before that, as this will take some time."

She just looked at me and continued her pace, the rough clicking of her hooves on the stone floor somehow managing to pierce my helmet.  As we passed huddled groups of ponies, I was astonished by the reactions I was getting.  Some trembled in fear, or even whimpered in terror, but the vast majority of them seemed to clutch their primitive weapons tighter as if expecting me to attack.  It was quickly filed to the rear of my mind to ask about later, as a pegasus barred our way.  Silver plate mail covered the majority of its body, with the odd patch of blue fur poking out here and there, along with a garishly dyed mane.  What caught my attention was the pair of shining blades attached to the leading edge of the pegasus' wings, not to mention what looked like a set of claws formed into the shoes it was wearing.

"Twilight, what is this THING doing here?  We don't know if it will try to hurt the Princess or not.  It may have saved a few ponies, but I'm just not sure about it."

Before I could even utter a reply, a voice boomed out of a tent that seemed to be wrapped in shadows. If it had not been for the voice, my eyes would have just skimmed over it, not even noticing it was there.

"Rainbow Dash, you will let them enter at once!"

Gritting her teeth, the guardian stepped from the path, gritting her teeth and glaring at me the whole time.  After a few steps, Twilight paused to take a breath.

"Don't mind Rainbow.  She has been taking her job as head of Princess Luna's security very seriously after the last Captain was killed during the siege.  Soarin was a good friend of hers."

There really isn't much you can say to that.  Then again, I never would have thought much on magical ponies in a genocidal war.  As we stepped into the gloom, I had to reach up and flip up the armored lenses over my eyes, the cameras not being able to see a thing.  My eyes couldn't either, I quickly found out as I followed the sound of hoofsteps until I was blinded by blue light that forced my eyes shut and a hand to rise in front of my face.  Of course, that is when Twilight decided to speak.

"Sergeant, this is Princess Luna..."

It took a moment for my eyes to adjust, and a few more heartbeats for my jaw to drop completely.  Inside the tent lay a massive hybrid similar to Twilight, barring size and a dusky blue coloration.  What grabbed my attention was that her mane seemed to shimmer and sparkle like the night sky and fluttered in a nonexistent breeze.  Books and tomes lay every which way in haphazard stacks, seemingly discarded at random.  At least my presence seemed to have the same reaction as a stunned look appeared on Luna's face.

All that was forgotten when my eyes found the source of the searing light.  Inset to the floor was a large hollow of smoothed, yet glowing crystal.  As my eyes followed the edge of the chasm, filters flipped down over the thick lenses in front of my eyes.  In the crater lay an inferno of swirling energy.  Buried within lay the motionless figure of the one I assumed was princess Celestia.  The irony was that her and I appeared to have suffered the same injury.  Where my cheekbone was replaced with fused machines and metal, hers was still as fresh as the day it was inflicted.  Drops of blood stood frozen in time at the moment they were shed, like tiny rubies covering her white fur.  I stood there gawking for several minutes before I realized the creatures were talking to me.  Mostly when Twilight nugged me with one of her hooves.  Shaking myself out of my reverie, I said the first thing that came to mind.

"...wow."

Mentally, I facepalmed.

"We...I... have spent the last years studying, trying to find something that can heal my dear sister.  All of our efforts were for naught, as the very structure of my sister's body was shattered by what the foul creatures did to her.  I sent scouts to the most remote villages seeking knowledge, but nothing was ever found.  Nothing until I found a tome in the ancient archives about the creation myths of my people, the Alicorns.  There are so few of us, the tome was placed to the side, until Canterlot fell.  When we took refuge in this cavern, we found your resting place, and those of your people.  I...ask...I...request...beg... that you heal my sister.  Your kind created ours, so I pray it is within your power to grant."

".........................................................................................................................................."

14. Rising Luminosity

"...Luna... my kind didn't create yours.  Until today, I had never seen a talking horse, er, pony before.  I don't know where that comes from, but it wasn't us.  I will try to do what I can for your sister however."

Twilight looked stunned, while Luna hung her head in shock, the mics n my helmet barely picking up her whispers.

"I...I...thought you were going to save us..."

With a thump, the bag of supplies slid off my back and onto the ground as I began to rummage around in it.  At least Twilight seemed interested in what I was doing, while the other lay there silently.  A little bit of wiggling, and I got a small pile of supplies out of the bag, mostly a thin but heavily armored case and a few other bits and bobs.

"Twilight, I'm going to need your help with this.  Is it safe to assume that the "energy" down there with Celstia is what is keeping her alive?"

She only nodded as I started opening canisters and connecting components to each other.  Thankfully, this seemed to pull Twilight out of her shell and at least get Luna to look up at what I was doing.  

"Luna, you said she was your sister.  I'm going to need your help if I'll have any chance to help her.  Since my medicine has nothing to work off of, I am going to need to inject you with some of it.  We need to see how your bodies work so we can build from there."

Twilight tried to interject, but I really wasn't paying attention as data scrolled past my eyes.  Tenderly, I pulled the neoprene cover away from the body of an injection unit, the cold stainless steel glimmering in the harsh light, and making Luna go wide eyed as I stepped toward her.

"Before we can fix things, we need to know what to base the fixes on.  Celestia is the same species as you, let alone your sister, so it should be close enough.  This is an injection of the same things that are in my blood, and all they will do is map out your body so we can compare it to hers."

Honestly, I expected some kind of protest or even complaint.  Instead, Luna sullenly tiled her head to the side and bared her neck.  With an outreached hand and a tiny amount of pressure, a spring loaded release in he unit unlocked and shot a tiny needle into Luna's neck.  Not even a gasp or whimper, just grit teeth as the stainless vial emptied it's contents into her bloodstream.

Five minutes.  Five minutes of awkward silence as the nanites worked their way around Luna's body.  At first, it wasn't so bad, but when I shot a dart loaded with the same machines into Celestia, it got a little weird.  Some of the machines were reporting damage to her body, while others couldn't decide, changing between signs of good health incredible trauma.  At least the majority of the mapping was complete.

***Control is reporting enemy movement toward the cavern entrance.

***Estimated 275 hostiles incoming.  ETA 5 minutes.

***Nanite mapping should be complete within the next 2.  Please commence sequence when able.

***Launching reserve drones.  Control will begin contact when hostiles are in range.

That certainly put a damper on everything.

"Twilight, Luna, there are nearly 300 minotaurs in the city above heading toward the cavern entrance.  We need to defend this position.  I'm going to give Celestia the first injections to help heal her, then head to the front lines to help."

Before they could say anything, I grabbed the harness of electrodes I had been connecting, along with a much larger set of injectors and slid into the pit.  The moment my feet touched the smooth crystal, it felt like my body had been dipped in glacial water, screaming cold quickly turning to agony, to numbness in a matter of seconds.  Up close, Celestia was incredibly regal.  It was a true shame her pristine white coat was matted with blood and bone like it was.  Regardless, there was work to do, so I set about connecting electrodes around the wound, while wondering what was going on with my displays.

*

After a moment, the series of wires and tubes silently clicked into the large canister I carried down with me.  Another moment to slide the injectors into he housings built into the harness.

**

Around the time I linked the medical computer in the canister to Luna's nanites, a dull roar began to filter down to where I was.  I just marked it up to friendly troop movement as the timer in my helmet showed 3 minutes left until contact.

***

***WHAT...ARE...YOU...DOING?

As I continued to work, I kept an eye on the display, hoping Seven would clarify somehow.  Right around the 2 minute marker, everything was hooked up and the nanites were being injected into the unconscious Alicorn.  With every step out the hole, my body screamed in protest.  With every step, the dull roar turned higher and higher pitched.  The slowly throbbing icons on my helmet beat faster and faster until I reached the edge and reality slammed into me full force with the sounds of automatic weapons fire.

***YOU WERE SUPPOSED TO USE A DRONE TO ATTACH THE UNIT!

***THOSE LEVELS OF RADIATION ARE NEAR LETHAL

***HOSTILE CONTACT.  DRONES ON AUTOMATIC

Warning after warning scrolled down my displays as my mind tried to wrap itself around what was going on.  Dosimeters on my armor went from little more than background to flashing black in a heartbeat.  The chronograph was showing contact -7:51 minutes when it had shown over two minutes before.  Either way, there was chaos outside of the now empty tent and it was obvious I was needed out there. The rest could be figured out later. With a groan, I bent down and collected my rifle from leaning against a stack of books and stepped from the darkness into the light.

Ten minutes of hell later...

The drones were nearly out of ammunition, the grenade launchers had fallen silent minutes before.  What was once a constant buzzing of gatling guns outside the cavern had dwindled to little more that deadly belches of lead, and yet the damn minotaurs kept coming.  In the blood spattered chaos, creatures from both sides fought and died.  A black pony impaled a rampaging minotaur with a spear to the neck.  Elsewhere, one of the barbarians was using a pegasus as a mace against its' compatriots, every impact making a sickly wet noise.  In the rear, I marked targets for the drones and fired at whatever targets of opportunity presented, but wanting to save ammunition for when the lines fell.

I am fairly certain that nobody expected the tent behind us to burst into flame, nor the howl of madness that followed it.  As one, Twilight, Luna, and myself turned toward the noise and the thing within.  A flash of white fur was all I saw before being thrown from my feet and slammed into the cavern wall.  Alarms squealed in my helmet but no matter of fighting seemed to break whatever was holding me.  In the end, I guess it didn't really matter.  Where once had been a multihued mane stemming from alibaster fur, there was only gouts of waving flame that licked over Celestia's body.  Her one good eye was open wide and burning with the same intensity as her mane as she laughed at the chaos.

Chaos that stopped as the first Minotaur burst in a shower of flames and gore.  Wherever his blood and body parts went, they burned any minotaur it touched, setting off a chain reaction.  They tried to run, they tried to get away, but in the end, nothing could save them.  Elemental flame burst from the rocks below and the crystals above, slamming together with a howl of a mare possessed as a greasy scent began to fill the air.  For a moment, the yells and screams of hundreds burning outstripped the laughter of a mad god, but only for a moment.  With a ripple and a sick belching noise, the flames faded into oblivion, leaving nothing  but glowing and crazed crystal behind.  A soft thud echoed across the silent chasm as a sizzling yet neatly severed minotaur arm fell to the ground ahead of the army.  Somehow the ponies in combat had been spared the flames.

My confusion disappeared as I was wrenched away from the wall and thrown into the air above the assembled ponies, and a voice invaded my mind.

"YOU!  YOU WILL BURN FOR THIS!"

I couldn't hear myself screaming over the sounds of every alarm in my armor squealing as it began to burn away.  The agony disappeared as everything faded to black.

15. Vehemence

"TIA!  STOP!"

Whatever else Luna was going to say was forgotten as Celestia's eyes rolled back as she collapsed.  With a clatter and a wet thump, the creature she had been trying to immolate met a similar fate on the freshly scorched stone.  As the ponies rushed to the aid of their fallen princess, none of them saw the faint blinking lights on the human's armor, let alone all the test scrolling on the displays in his helmet.  

The extreme majority of the ponies huddled around Celestia, watching as her sister tried to wake her.  Twilight on the other hand carefully rushed toward the fallen human and prepared to heal him.  That was until she remembered how Seven explained that their magic was poisonous to humanity.  It was why they wore the armor after all.  In the end, any decision she would have made was moot as a pair of flat bodied and tank treaded drones pulled next to the human with soft whirring and the crunch of gravel.  The princess sat silently as the drones rolled Alex onto his chest with a set of mechanical arms.  Arms that proceeded to pull canisters similar to the ones used on Celestia out of armored compartments.  Clicking and buzzing filled the air as Twilight sat enraptured while the drones attached the units to the recesses and ports in Alex's armor.  She jumped slightly as a scratchy and broken voice spoke from the armor, addressing her specifically.

"Twil..t...Spa...le... please...not...disturb.  Critic... dition."

So she sat and guarded over the fallen human in the gloom, not noticing the fine mist that was exiting his armor. Twilight instead watched the angry swarm of drones passing through the cavern.  Without her knowing, the reclamation of Canterlot had begun.

Deep in the heart of the vault, buried behind yards of concrete and thick steel doors, Seven watched.  Every feed from the drones, every camera that was online, every possible scrap of vital information flowed into his digital mind.  And his mind was angry.

***Subject Celestia repairs 93 percent complete.  Neural mapping complete.  

***Commencing repairs to synapse pathways.

***Creating Partition /Celestia/augmentaion/Neural Drive

***Mapping user: Twilight Sparkle

Nopony could understand why Celestia twitched in her unconscious state.  All they could do was guard her and watch as the formerly bloody wounds were slowly closing over a mixture of bone and metal.  None knew what was going on in the depths of her mind as information slowly trickled into it.

After several minutes of utter silence, ponies were dispatched to attempt to rebuild the camp and secure their foothold outside the cavern.  Seven watched through the cameras as the ponies swiftly spilled out into the daylight and flowed into shattered buildings and alleys.  If he were capable of such things, admittedly would be feeling a sense of smug satisfaction at the plan.

I...I don't know how long I was out.  Flickering displays slowly roused me from the darkness that had taken me so completely.  Everything hurt as I tried to sit up, my muscles screaming in protest.  I expected to be back in the cradle again, but surprisingly enough the first thing I saw other than dirt was a set of lavender hooves.  It took damn near everything I had to sit up and lean against the support drone that idled nearby as I heard the usual stuttering whinny from Twilight as she spoke.

###Network connections offline due to system damage

###Translation software offline due to system damage

###Recommend repair or replacement of armor.

I made a "come here" gesture at the Alicorn as I dragged myself onto the armored bed of the drone, and tapped on the inset controls.  A few lurching movements later, I lay there watching the darkened chasm float by with crystals slowly turning into a concrete tunnel.  Bumps and shaking movement were the order of the day as I was wheeled back toward my room.  At some point, I must have passed out again, as I awoke to find the dull mechanical hands of the arming cradle pulling me into position as Twilight watched.  She looked rather sure of herself despite being sealed in my vault with me.  I figured it was safe to assume Seven told her magic would be a bad idea.  Pain spiked through my head as the arms connected a cable to the rear of my helmet, once again linking me to the network.

###Manual Access to Arming System achieved.  Running full system diagnostics

###Activating Translation program

"What the hell happened Twilight?"

"I'm sorry!  We had no idea Princess Celestia would react like that!"

###Diagnostic complete.  Commencing repairs to outer armor.

"Thank god for modern ceramics...oh shit.  Sorry I forgot the translator was still on.  Um... It's okay for now Twilight.  Her and I are going to need a serious talk after she is done healing though."

She looked glum at that prospect, but her eyes perked right up as the fresh tooling was loaded into the armatures as they attempted to remove the damaged portions of my armor.  Squealing of tortured screws and stressed plating filled our ears as Twilight looked on, enraptured as plates fell away to reveal the servos and superconductors underneath.  I wish I could say it was easy to get by with her watching, but there seemed to be a question for everything.  Questions I couldn't always answer for many different reasons.  Let alone the fact that the tools working on the rear of my helmet were seriously getting annoying.  Displays and monitors flickered off and on in a seizure inducing pattern while circuits were replaced.  Eventually I saw the one thing I had hoped for.

###Network Access repaired.

"Seven, what the hell is going on out there?  More importantly, what the fuck is up with my armor?"

***Your armor was severely damaged during the engagement with Celestia.

***It is good to know the EM Modifications held up during that crisis.

***You are currently undergoing massive decon from radiation poisoning.  ETA: 2 hours before completed.

***Additionally, I have started a new process that should make interactions with the populace...easier.

***You will need to don a spare set of armor after this set can be removed for repairs.  

***As such, I modified several chassis sets in anticipation to this.

***Additional:  You will need to procure new weaponry.  They did not survive your treatment.

I tried to shrug, but it didn't really work considering I was currently suspended by my arms, let alone the fact that everything hurt.  At least the damage wasn't as bad as it could have been.  

"Sorry Twilight, I just got back in touch with Seven.  Didn't mean to zone out there on you.  So what exactly happened?"

As the story was repeated, she watched on in wonder as the machines pulled chunks of armor off to place in drawers for repairs before pulling out new ones to reattach.  In the span of a few minutes, she had fairly well seen me stripped down to little more than a helmet and form fitting bodysuit before getting rearmed.  The questions didn't even stop for a moment through the entire process.  How this worked, how that attached, what that thingie was made out of and what it did. Thankfully Seven fielded several of the less sensitive answers and explained that we couldn't answer more.

Eventually, all that was left was my helmet.  With a twitch, the arms lowered my feet to the ground and then pulled back to their recesses in the walls and floor.  A few noisy steps to an open panel on the wall rewarded me with a new helmet of the same design.  Three cheers for military cost cutting.  They may not fit perfectly, but if you needed a spare they were easy to find.  It took both hands to pull the damaged one away from my head, but it was nice to feel cold, albeit musty air on my face.  As I placed the damaged one in the waiting try, I could feel Twilight's eyes appraising everything she saw.

"Sergeant, what happened to your fur?!  Are you okay?"

Mentally, I facepalmed for a moment before realized that everything I'd seen had some form of fur.  It took all I had to keep from sighing.

"Twilight, humans don't have..."

The rest of the sentence went unsaid as a massive explosion rocked the facility, echoing through the tunnels like the wrath of an angry god.  Reflex alone slammed my helmet down over my head as I yelled for Seven, only to have my answer waiting in the displays as they flickered on.

***Thor-12 warhead detonated.  

***Pacification of city designated "Canterlot" underway via Control.

16. Random Access Memories

Twilight and I sprinted down the shattered halls toward the pony encampment.  The sharp clicking of her hooves contrasted strangely with the dull thumping of my armored steps, but the distance passed quickly as a golden light seemed to flood into the tunnel from the hole I blasted so recently.  With a sharp snap of her wings, Twilight catapulted herself ahead of me through the passage and into the burning light.  On the other hand, I skidded to a stop inside the dark tunnel when my eyes saw what lay ahead.

In the center of what had been a trashed and bloody camp stood Celestia, who looked a lot better than I thought she should.  The gaping injuries from when we last met were eerily missing, and her ivory coat contrasted sharply against the dull stone.  The golden light appeared to be cast from her horn as she held a large shield dome above the camp.  Knowing retreat was in my best interested, I turned toward the dimly lit tunnel and managed to take a few steps before data started scrolling on my displays yet again.

###User: Celestia has joined network.

###User: Celestia running translation program.

"You have got to be shitting me.  SEVEN!  WHAT THE HELL DID YOU DO?!"

I wish I could say I got the response I wanted, but the AI was silent.  My rage was only met by a soft feminine voice passed through the speakers in my helmet.

"Sergeant Rodriguez, Seven is occupied at the moment.  He... informed me of your actions and that I owe you a grave apology for my actions, and those of my subjects.  Speaking like this is...trying, however.  Could you come speak to me in person?"

I really didn't want to do that, but getting to the bottom of what Seven did was in my interests as the damn thing still hadn't responded.  Slowly, grimly, I stepped out of the gloom and into the harsh light of the cavern.  As I neared, Celestia turned her head my way and a small archway opened in the shield for me to pass through.  I'll be honest and admit I was freaking out a bit as I got closer to the white Alicorn.

***Apologies Sergeant.  Control and I are pacifying groups of hostiles with extreme prejudice

***There appears to be fewer than two hundred hostiles remaining in the city at this time.

***Apparently the minotaurs have limited defensive capabilities against our weaponry.

***As for your question, I removed the chance of your death via friendly fire.

***All four "Alicorn" Princesses have been exposed to nanotech.  I am setting up neural drives currently.

I tried to say something, anything to figure out what the hell he meant, but the thrice damned computer kept talking.

***The idea came from Twilight Sparkle, as she asked how we communicated so easily after you were healed.

***At that point, I realized that the simplest method of your survival was to integrate them into the network.

***They have been supplied with basic neural drives but can communicate with you easier.

***Additionally, they have a limited understanding of human technology to aid their and your survival.

I must have looked like a madman as I stopped walking and just yelled at Seven inside my helmet, with my hands gesturing wildly.

"YOU USED MILITARY SUPPLIES ON AN UNKNOWN SPECIES SEVEN!  WHAT THE HELL?!"

***You are the only known human at this point.  You are both ambassador and leader of your species.

***Your survival is tantamount above all things.  

***To aid your survival and hopefully the recovery of your species, I made a decision.

***Now please go speak with Celestia.  You are getting strange looks.

"Fucking AI is going to get me killed."

Greatly irritated at this point, I crossed the distance between myself and Celestia with purpose, intending for this to be over as quickly as possible.  She nodded softly as I neared and as usual, before I can say anything, I get cut off.

" As I was saying previously, I do apologize about my behavior.  I...was not in my right mind when I awoke.  I saw you standing over my ponies with a weapon similar to what struck me and I just reacted.  We may be at war, but this was not the proper way for a ruler to act.  When this conflict comes to an end, you will have the full backing of Equestria to find your people.  Seven has been instrumental to defending what remains of my people and explaining your situation."

I'll be honest, I did not expect an apology like that.  It left me kind of speechless really, but it didn't matter as she continued.

"Speaking of Seven, the healing you two did on me did wonders.  I feel like a whole new Alicorn.  Aches and pains I had for ages are gone.  Not to mention all the knowledge of your people he has supplied.  We always thought you were a myth.  Occasionally some artifacts would be found, but quickly debunked.  You are living history to us, and there is so much to learn."

Everything paused as there was another dull thud of a weapon going off in the city above and my display flashed again.

***Thor 12 warhead detonated.

"Seven, what are you doing up there?  Why are you using Thor weapons?  Where did you get them anyhow?"

***It appears that the 1200 series of weapons are the only non ballistic weaponry accessible..

***On an agreeable note, the DIME charges do significant damage to the hostiles.

I'll openly admit I was kind of confused for a moment as a smug look appeared on Celestia's face.  After a second I realized that she could see the same comments from Seven as I could, due to the networking.  It still felt strange to know there was a horse hooked up to the wireless network.

"Sergeant, what is this DIME that Seven was speaking of?  I can't find anything in the records he let me see."

This was going to be a long day.

By the time I got done explaining the concept of Dense Inert Metal Explosives to her, a great many things had scrolled down my display.  Some useful, others annoying, but all in all it was still a step up in the world.  She really wanted to know how they worked and why the name was how it was.  Apparently the ponies have a reason for naming everything as they do.  It took a while for her to grasp that humans just like to name stuff, even if it doesn't make sense.  The Thor series hit like a bolt of lighting from the gods, and the 12 designation was little more than the bomb diameter and a different charge weight if listed.  Eventually Celestia was content that the caverns weren't going to collapse and crush us all from the shaking.  It certainly was strange to see anything dispelling "magic" so easily.  

As night fell, three messages scrolled across my displays.  Ones that I didn't really want.

###User: Luna has joined network.

###User: Twilight Sparkle has joined network.

###User: Cadence has joined network.

This was going to be a long night.

17. The Fog

I did the best I could to facepalm as software updates scrolled down a microdisplay in the far corner of my vision.  Apparently in exchange for some of our knowledge, Seven was copying a fair about from the ponies about their world.  At least that would make my life easier when we got out of this godforsaken cave  As a bonus, it seemed that the other Princesses were unable to communicate two ways through the network.  I could message them, but they couldn't send anything back.  Twilight seemed to be one to have a million questions that would have to wait as so many things pecked at my mind.

"Seven, how exactly did you get tech into Cadence when I haven't even met her yet?"

***The same way Twilight Sparkle was exposed to the nanites.

"Which was... what Seven?  You did save my life with this apparently, but it wasn't the best plan."

***It was the only viable plan of survival at that juncture.

***I simply vented some from a pressurized canister when the drones attached them to your armor.  

***Inhalation is inefficient but effective in some regards.

"By the way, who is Cadence anyhow?"

***Still downloading relevant data.

Now, I didn't expect a map marker to appear on my HUD pointing out a tent in the distance, but it was a start.  That bridge would have to wait as there were more pressing things on my mind, namely that I was in a war zone without a functioning weapon.  What was once my beautiful rifle had been turned into a misshapen lump of metal by the fire and rage of an alicorn.  Might need a bigger gun if I ever intended to "remove" one of the princesses.  But that is neither here nor there.

"Seven, where are we on establishing a foothold in the city?  Also, what weapons do we have available to replace my carbine?"

***Please return to your vault.  Our limited selection will be presented to you there.

***We should be able to commence troop movement shortly.  

***I recommend speaking to Celestia in that regard.  Twilight is currently...occupied.  

***That one has an inordinate amount of knowledge on their "magic" and its implementation.

***I may be able to ascertain some form of defense from her databases.

Well, that would be some good news at least.  I'm not really enjoying the fact that the locals seemed to have weapons strapped to their heads.  At least they are on my side for now.

###Message users: Celestia, Luna>

>>>I have to return to my vault for equipment.  Could you accompany me to discuss tactics?

It looked like they had figured out a decent part of the network as a two more color coded markers appeared in my vision before blinking for a moment in confirmation.  I apparently wasn't in some kind of coma or psycotic break, so I might as well make lemonade out of this.  As I leaned against the purple crystal walls of the cavern, I could see the two alicorns approaching calmly despite all the insanity of late.  Throughout the camp, ponies worked diligently working to repair the damage from earlier.  Through the chaos, the princesses strode easily as their subjects flowed around them like water.  If it weren't for the occasional odd colored light catching in Celestia's eye, I would have sworn she was uninjured and without augmentation.

"You wished to discuss tactics for reclaiming our capitol city?"

###Translation software online.

I pushed away from the crystal walls with a dull scrape as I collected my thoughts.  The darkened tunnels awaited.  My thoughts were scattered to the wind as blue white light burst from Luna's horn, making me me flinch away instinctively.

"Jesus Luna!  What the hell?!  You know that crap will kill me!"

That's when it occurred to me that the radiation meters in my armor were not going off.

"Damnit..."

The two princesses had stopped walking and were looking at me with what I could only guess is a concerned look on their faces.  I figure it was safe to say "why the long face" was not the proper thing to say here.

"Sorry.  I had a bad reaction to Twilight's magic and I'm still a little...skittish about it.  I'm surprised Seven didn't tell you that.  Could we just forget that happened and move on?"

"As you wish, Sergeant.  Please lead the way."

Sighing at my stupidity, I started walking again.  The flickering lights of the tunnels gave a garish look as the damage flickered in and out like a haunted house.  Given that this place was now a tomb for my love and other soldiers from my home, the analogies seemed accurate.  Carefully, I picked my way over rubble and around fallen pipes, leading the royals deeper into the labyrinth.

"Twilight said that you had been looking for a tomb that might have a way to save your people.  This facility wasn't intended to be a tomb, but it has turned into one.  As far as I know, I am the last of my kind.  I watched the rest of the humans here die... every one of them...I'm all alone..."

It took me a moment to realize that I had trailed off and the only noise in the tunnel were the scraping of my armored boots and the soft clicking of the Princess's hooves against age old concrete.  Before I lost myself in thought, I had to continue.

"Ahem... Per what has already been discussed, I'll help you retake your kingdom.  When you are secured in power again, you'll help me find my people, or at least what remains of them.  The first thing to do is retaking the city above.  I believe we have some things down here that should help.  The materials contained in this facility are limited, but I will do what I can.  Do not have your ponies down here unaccompanied by myself or a drone.  This is a tomb, and I expect it to be treated as such."

It took me a moment to pause and push some debris out of the way.  I could see the hole I blasted through a door shimmering in the flickering light just a short distance away.  Despite that, the bleak tunnel seemed to last forever as memories assaulted my mind.

"As for retaking the city, I have a few ideas that should allow us to gain a decent foothold without stretching your personnel too far.  I can explain better when we get into my unit.  No magic in there please."

It felt so strange to be talking so much without a reply from the royals, but with a flicker of thought a few questions of mine were answered.  A network diagram superimposed over a fraction of my vision as I walked past the silent sentry gun with it's IR beacon blinking softly. Halfway stooped, I stepped through the blackened door.  The glowing diagram showed loads of traffic between the Princesses and Seven, so I imagine he was busy explaining things to them.  A moment later, familiar surroundings filled my vision as the armored door to my section slid open with a creak and soft squealing of ancient metal.  From the soft sound of hooves on concrete, I knew the Alicorns were behind me as the door began to seal.

"Don't worry about the next part.  It will suck a bit, but it doesn't hurt."

I at least tried to explain it calmly before the automated voice could do it for me.

"Commencing Decon procedures.  Remain stationary and do not breathe while system is running."

Luna of all ponies gave a slight twitch as the door creaked and clanked while massive bolts locked into the metal frame.  I tried not to laugh as jets of chemical laden air sprayed from the ceiling and floor.  The strange manes of both princesses whipped around through the air like miniature tornadoes while the room filled with a thin mist while they stood there with eyes pinched shut.  Only a few seconds had passed before vents inset into the wall kicked on with a tortured squeal and began sucking the fine particles from the room.

"Decon complete.  No dangerous levels of radiation present.  It is safe to remove your armor at this time."

###Lock translation program>CelestiaLuna ENABLED

"What is it that you wished to discuss in private, Sergeant?"

A held up finger was my only response before my practiced hands slid over the cool metal of my helmet.  After a moment of questing, they found the latches at the base of the armor plating and gently pulled them away with a soft click.  The flickering glow of the lights was a little painful as I slid the armor up and away from my faceplate to rest on top of my helmet.  A few more deft movements and the displays on the armored glass flickered and died as I disconnected a thin bundle of cables at the rear of  my neck.  With the laborious process complete, I jerked my helm to the side sharply to break the seal to my armor.  A moments sharp hissing and shocked expressions on both princesses met my bare eyes for the first time.

"Nice to meet you, I'm Alex Rodriguez and I'm going to help you save your people."

With that, armored lockers around the room hissed and popped as armored door after door creaked open to expose a multitude of racks set into the walls.

18. Foothold

I wish I could say that the racks were full of nothing but weapons and ammo.  That would have made my life a lot easier in the long run.  Several of the panels rotated into position and lit up as a wide variety of displays.  Others neatly carried the tools of my trade, armor, toolkits and the like.  Either way, the Princesses looked suitably impressed by the show.

"I hope you don't mind if I have a snack while we discuss things.  It feels like I haven't eaten in a million years.  I'd offer you a seat, but as you can tell, things are a little...sparse in here.   Feel free to take a look around while I take care of myself."

It was kind of amusing to watch their reactions to all the new technology they were being introduced to.  Luna seemed more intent to gaze at the assortment of items hanging or shelved on the racks.  More disturbingly was Celestia's reaction.  She strode over to the large screen that had recently unfolded and was glaring at the images displayed with a mixture of hate and absolute revulsion.  That reminded me to hurry up.  From one of outstretched racks, I removed a small stainless tube with a small threaded tip.  

Luna's attention quickly changed to watch my movements as I unlatched a small panel on my inner thigh.  It was one of the may places where function overcame armor, as the recess under the panel sat directly over the femoral artery.  From within the tiny pocket, I fished out a small section of braided steel line and screwed it into the matching part of the ampule.  Another series of gestures clicked the object into the socket in my armor before I replaced the covering and met Luna's eyes and unspoken questions.

"We haven't figured out what I can eat here yet, so Seven went to the backup of the backup's backup plan.  I'm just happy I don't have to taste it, as I don't think amino acid, protein, and vitamin concentrate would taste good.  Not exactly filling either."

I grimaced a little at the thought of my grumbling stomach, but this was still a sight better than going without.  Both Luna and my heads whipped around when we heard Celestia whispering to herself.  It was a mixture of spoken words and a growl, but every bit of it was angry.

"My city... my ponies... gone.  All gone."

Thats when I truly paid attention to the display.  While two of us had been occupied with mundane things, Celestia was enveloped in her own personal hell.  The slowly panning display was a live feed from Central's camera suite.  It showed current movements of the minotaur forces, current status of the drones under its control, and most importantly, a real time view of all the destruction below.  Minotaur bodies lay strewn through the cobblestone streets like bloody ragdolls.  Moreso was what drove the Princess beyond horror.  On the ramparts and in full view of the city stood a large set of gallows.  From the palace walls dangled an assortment of corpses in varied states.  More importantly was the section of the screen that Celestia was practically pressing her nose against.  

A small group of ponies were being dragged along the shattered ramparts on a chain lead.  The majority of the ponies seemed downtrodden, resigned to their fate as the ropes beckoned.  There was one stallion that strode proudly, head held high despite the weight of shackles and series of purple bruises spreading across his alabaster coat.  One stallion that Celestia seemed to know so well.

###Accessing Database: Royalty

***Friendly identified as "Shining Armor," Captain of the Royal Guard

Well, fuck me.

In the end, it wasn't my action or inaction that started the reclamation of Canterlot.  Don't get me wrong, I'd love to take that tile for a ride, but it isn't mine.  You see, I had forgotten about the other people...er...ponies that had access to the network.  Imagine my surprise when the screen popped up with a series of messages of an insane nature.

***Users: Cadence, Twilight have left network range.

***Radiation spike in city.  "Magic" output detected.  Matches User: Twilight

***Users: Cadence, Twilight detected on surface.  Tasking drones for CAS

"Anyone want to tell me what the hell is going on?"

Celestia was still enraptured with the display, watching every foot...hoofstep of the pony called Shining Armor toward his inevitable fate.  Luna at least seemed to be as irritated and confused as I was with the situation as she moved in next to her sister while speaking.

"Shining Armor is both Twilight Sparkle's older brother, and Cadence's husband.  I can understand their behavior, but there is no way for my sister and I to reach him in time."

Mentally, I was slapping myself, but hitting Seven harder.  If he hadn't given these damn horses our tech, this wouldn't have happened.  The damn ponies had committed themselves to something I had no idea if we could win.  With a slight tug, I pulled one of the panels out on it's mount, laying it out like a desktop computer and tried to figure out a way to salvage this.  

"Seven, give me access to drone tasking for Control.  Luna, there is no way I am letting your sister out of here in her current state, but I need someone to lead your ponies if we are going to survive this shitstorm.  Get back to your camp and mobilize the majority of your forces, we are going to need them.  I'll let you know what the plan is, if we have one when you get there."

Little more than gut instinct made me grab my helmet off the shelf and slam it over my head, barely getting it sealed before Luna vanished in a burst of azure magic.  A moment later, I had everything reattached and my micro displays flickered back to life.  Since the Princesses were apparently set on getting themselves killed, I needed to do my best to protect them.  After all, they were my best shot at staying alive.  By the time I had started marking targets for drone strikes, a series of explosions rippled over the stoney walkway carrying the ponies.  Out of the settling dust strode two Alicorns looking for a fight.

"Luna, we don't have much time.  I need you to do two things.  First, the drones say that the area near the cavern entrance is largely free of hostiles.  I need your forces to clear an area around he entrance of all hostiles.  The bigger the better, but nothing you can't hold on your own.  Beyond that, I need a small kill team of your best.  I'm going to task a support drone to try to get them to the castle, as the fight has already started there.  We'll get the rest later.  Talk to one of the drones out there if you need me.  I'm going to try to save Twilight and Cadence if I can."

I didn't even give her much of a chance to respond as I got back to the matter at hand.  Chaos was everywhere on the ramparts.  Magic met steel and in several cases, alicorn horn pierced firm flesh of the minotaurs.  Cadence was a dervish of destruction wherever she strode, kicking and biting her way toward her husband.  Twilight on the other hand slung spell after spell at the onrushing creatures, blasting or throwing many to the hard and now very bloody stone below.  Every time it looked like they would be overwhelmed, one of the Princesses pulled some insane trick.  One minotaur exploded in a shower of blood and bone as it tried to bludgeon Twilight.  More horrifying were the results of Cadence's magic.  At first it was grotesque as two of the creatures stopped their advance to look longingly at each other.  Until the rest of the nearby minotaurs decended, each wanting to get a piece of the two, very literally.  The drones passed overhead, firing at targets of opportunity as they could, pausing whenever I tasked them to make sure that the prisoners stayed safe through the melee.  Several times, their shots landed just moments before what would have become a killing blow on both pony or Alicorn.

Meanwhile, I could see the limited fighting in the city on my displays.  Luna and her forces were making decent headway and had the better part of a few hundred yards clear of any hostiles, strangely without a single casualty.  The kill team on the other hand was completely unhindered as most enemy movement was toward the palace.  Anything they came across was struck down by the overwatching drone.  Hopefully they would get there in time.

"Luna, don't push too hard into the city.  We don't have the forces to hold much more.  The support drones I sent out with you have bags of small metal spikes in them.  Both the drones and your forces need to set those in the ground every few dozen yards.  It'll let us know when and where movement in the area is.  By the way, Twilight and Cadence are doing well so far.  I'll keep you posted."

All in all, it took far to long for this clusterfuck of an operation to go down.  The drones ended up using nearly their entire payloads to support the insanity.  In the end, I watched with a small grin on my face as the three airborn drones escorted the prisoners and their saviors toward the green zone near the caverns.  Anything that came near the exhausted group of survivors was dealt with harshly by the kill team, especially the one I had learned to fear.  Big Macintosh was a monster with his warhammer, caving in chests with powerful swings, and snapping bone with little more than a kick.  Thankfully his coat was already crimson, as he was somewhat coated in blood from what the camera showed.

The sensor probes went up without much hassle, and they at least gave us a small detection network without the drones being in the air constantly.  Fuel was not infinite after all.  It would also give everyone a chance to do the three R's.  Rearm, resupply, and relax, even if it was only for a few minutes.  As I concentrated on displays and calibrating sensors, something unexpected happened.  From nowhere, two limbs snaked around my torso and pulled me tight, reminding me that Celestia was still in the room.  The soft pattering of tears hitting my armor was surprising at the very least, and her whispers stunned me into silence.

"Thank you..."

19. Tarnished Steel

Eventually, I sat alone in my vault with only the light of the many displays to keep me company.  Celestia had thankfully opted to use the door when she left.  Through the multitude of cameras, I occasionally peered into the tearful reunion between the ponies.  There was too much to do before I could relax and I just hoped they hadn't kicked a hornet's nest.  When the hugging started, I tuned out before memories of my own came to mind.

Thankfully the sensors were fairly quick to come online as they largely networked with each other.  Each of the small units communicated through high frequency radio and line of sight lasers that were invisible to the naked eye.  In the end, it gave me  a spiderweb of interconnecting lines across the limited map before me.  Whenever something stepped within 10m of one of the sensors, it should show up as a triangulated red dot on the map.  The lasers worked similarly, except the units that lost communication would also flash.  In the end, it was a great system for me, and horrible for those that fought against me.  With just a few things left on my list to do before resting, I triggered the return to base command for the airborne units.  The support drones should be ready for them soon.  A few more taps on the screen linked the new network to my armor so I could get updates.  

After a moment, my fingers yet again started opening the panel on my inner thigh.  Don't get me wrong, I was thankful for the "food" if you could call it that, but getting strange concoctions pumped into my veins left a strange taste in my mouth.  I wish I could say I was joking, but really did leave almost a copper and lemons taste that just wouldn't fade.  Before too long, the canister was unscrewed and plating was replaced.  As my mind wandered, Seven popped in with a gritty synthesized voice from the speakers.  Still, it was better than trying to constantly keep up with his scrolling text of doom.

"Sergeant, Control and its escorts are on final approach and the support units are ready to refuel and rearm.  I would like to recommend keeping them secure in the caverns and use the Raven or Mockingbird drones for limited observation."

Really, it was what I had already planned on doing anyhow, so I just grunted my approval as I stepped toward the storage racks.  Hoping that one of the few weapons available was something I knew how to use fairly well.  Thankfully, the silhouettes on the rack looked somewhat close to mine, with a few glaring changes.  Even through the armor, I could tell this was a completely different style of weapon, yet so close to what I was familiar with.  It was vastly heavier, as if it carried the weight of all the ages I'd been asleep.  The collapsible stock was gone and replaced with a simple fixed stock.  What really drove it home was the massive suppressor built into the rifle, along with a small prismatic scope sitting atop it all.

"What the heck is this, Seven?"

After making sure the chamber was clear, I pulled the behemoth to my shoulder and checked the balance, how it felt to move with it, with me.  Other than being front heavy, it felt familiar, just as it should.

"That is a M18 mod 2 rifle, commonly called the Tomahawk.  The northern facilities started using it for controlling predator populations.  Along the line, someone figured it was similarly good against armored personnel.  They were beginning to issue them to special forces units prior to your interment.  The rifle works identically to your previous weapon with a few caveats.  It is suppressed and subsonic ammunition is available at this time.  For your scope, use the BDC on the left with subsonic.  The right for supersonic rounds.  Just remember this has significantly more recoil than your previous weapon and a greatly reduced round capacity."

I'll openly admit that something with more punch was probably going to be useful since I was going to be shooting mythological monsters in the face.  Fewer shots in each magazine was somewhat worrisome, but considering my limited choices, it was better than nothing.  Heavy magazines were pulled from the waiting rack and placed in my assorted pouches.  Some of the mags carried red markings to denote  subsonic, while green showed the much faster bullets.  Mentally, I kept track of what went where as I became weighed down.  Last out of the rack was my apparently cleaned and lubricated 1911.  Once it slid home in the holster, I was feeling much more comfortable. A soft tap the illuminated "close" button started the rack and trays into movement, before I turned toward the door.  Naturally, Seven picked the perfect time to be a smartass.

"Please be careful with that rifle.  We only have so many spare parts remaining."

Freaking AI.

It took a what seemed like minutes for the thick doors to cycle open and shut after I passed through the edifice.  Either way, the same dreary and shattered hall met my vision.  Thankfully, Seven had kept one of the support drones busy on a few side tasks that were useful.  A fair amount of the clutter and debris was cleared away, giving a smooth and unobstructed path.  It all only seemed to reinforce the fact that I had been occupied with the "rescue" for longer than I thought.  The jagged hole that was torn through an armored door hours ago was cut cleanly at the edges now, with little more than a smooth sided rectangle hole to show for my efforts.  Whatever scrap that had been created I assumed was hauled off or placed somewhere else as the tracked robot toiled endlessly.  Curiosity was killing me at this point, so voicing my thoughts seemed to be the simplest answer.

"Seven, what exactly are you doing down here?  I know I had mentioned cleaning up and fortifying the position down here, but don't we have higher priorities?"

***Please wait.  Attempting to allocate processing power to address your inquiry.

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"...I...the fuck?!  Freaking AI is broken or something.  Figures.  Might as well wait and see what happens."

Trying to remain calm, I took in my new surroundings as I walked toward the cavern.  Whatever Seven was up to seemed to be keeping everything busy down here.  The one support unit in the tunnels had managed to install several steel brackets into the concrete wall every few yards, along with running a long armored power cable against the wall.  This was going to be interesting if my thoughts were right.  Junctions and armored doors passed until I neared where everything could have gone so wrong.  The dark tunnel to the caverns still gaped like the jagged mouth of a demonic entity that yearned for souls.  The solid light green dots depicting active drones always had a calming effect on me.  Especially when the dots were moving toward me and I knew what they were carrying.  

From the black came three of the largest support drones.  Their weapons lay flat against armored surfaces as mechanical arms cradled locking lugs imbedded in the bellies of Control and the other airborne drones.  Many of my...former...coworkers and soldiers thought the streamlined delta wing shape of the Command and Control unit was strange.  Personally, I enjoyed the shape.  It was just as artful as it was deadly.  Housed within the nearly seven foot long body was as close to an AI core as could be found outside a full server suite.  Below the nose of the craft sat what looked like a large round ball surrounded by matte black glass panels.  That was a huge mistake for anyone in combat to mistake.  Behind the panels lay a massive array of cameras that tracked everything in front and below the unit.  Similar clusters were at several other locations across the armored unit.  

The armored ball was the impressive bit though.  During regular flight operations, the true contents of the unit never showed.  In combat, the ball rotated down from the belly of the craft to limber a weapon far too large for a drone of this class.  Control drones were armed with the best weapons the NAF could create and cram into a weapons platform.  In this case, it was a M229 Kali pulse cannon.  Control was able to destroy damn near anything with that cannon.  The only reason they weren't widely used was the cost to build them.  Across the body of the unit there were also four small, empty shackle points for an assortment of weapons or gear.  In this case, I figured it was safe to assume the missing units were the DIME charges that Seven used earlier today.  

It took me a moment to shake myself out of a reverie.  Memories had threatened to overwhelm me, swimming before my eyes from my years of service, years of constant combat.  Shaking my head softly, I trailed a hand down the leading edge of Control's wing as it passed with the soft whirring of hydraulics on the way to be rearmed.  There were bigger fish to fry if I was ever going to get some rest today.  The armor could keep me running longer if needed, but meds never did equal real sleep.  With that in mind, I set down the dark tunnel to meet our newest members, specifically the one they called "Shining Armor."

An obscene mixture of sobbing and cheering met my ears as the dark walls of the tunnel passed.  The closer I got to the glimmering crystals and the camp within, the louder it got.  Considering the Minotaurs knew exactly where the ponies were camped, its not like there was any stealth to be lost after all.  Careful to mind the meters in the corner of my vision, I stepped toward the large cluster of ponies at the heart of the camp.  The flickering torches and "magical" crystals for light had all been done away with.  Instead, the entire cavern was lit with the golden glow of what appeared to be a miniature sun floating at the far upper reaches of the area.  Considering the sun was openly emblazoned on her behind, it was safe to assume that was Celestia's doing.

Strange.  That really is the only way to put it when you are walking through a crowd of miniature horses who nod greetings or shy away from you.  The vast majority of them only came up to my stomach or mid chest at best even with their armor, so at least I was afforded a good view across the group.  The only interruptions were the occasional cluster of tents or pegasi zipping around where the royals were clustered.  That is when a thought occurred to me, a very important thought.  

A simple command later, I was inching my way toward the crystal walls and the safe darkness beyond while the Raven drone descended from above.  The realization of how Celestia reacted came to mind when I wondered how to introduce myself.  No need to court extra injuries and all that.  Surrounded by the inky blackness of the blasted tunnel, the small panels embedded in my armor came to life once more and I faded from mortal sight.  It took a moment for me to sit down from all the armor wrapped around me, but it also protected me from the rocky surfaces below.  A simple mental trigger pulled up the audio and video from the Raven to lay over my vision in a ghostly way.

I did the smart thing and watched from a distance as the flamboyant Alicorn hugged a very weary and abused looking unicorn.  Bruises mottled what I assumed at some point was supposed to be white fur.  It really was hard to ascertain for certain through all the dust, blood, and general abuse he had suffered.  Thankfully it didn't look like anything medical that would need any special intervention.  Don't get me wrong, it was useful to have an insane amount of information at my beck and call from the other networked individuals, but it was also a massive pain in the ass.  That did remind me to check the panel that I assigned to system messages.  From the corner of my vision, I saw the exact same thing as before.

***Please wait.  Attempting to allocate processing power to address your inquiry.

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***Your requests are important to us.  Please continue to hold.  An AI will be with you shortly.

The damn AI better not be broken.  In the dark and the gloom, that was my last thought for a while as my eyes closed and darkness took me.


Groaning softly, I stretched my legs and enjoyed the respite from combat.  The damn Chinese hadn't stopped the shelling for hours.  The utter black of the storm drain I took cover in met my eyes, rough hewn rock and more rough rock.  That was a strange dream.  Fucking magic ponies.  Really should see a doc after I get back to base.  Everything seemed to creak and pop as I stood up and took in my position.  What the hell was up with my display?

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"Oh fucking shit!"

That brought everything back real damn fast.  Fuck.  FUCK!  The memories of the past day and a half were pouring back into my mind as sore spots and aches came to the forefront before my mind screamed one word, one name.  Kara.

"Oh jesus... oh fuck...fuck..."

The past, my hopes, my dreams haunted me while my feet idly shuffled me in some direction.  Her face.  Her soft lips.  How she felt pressed against me in the night.  Our plans for after waking up.  Waking up...  Why couldn't she have come with me?  Why did I have to be the only one in this insane hell?  Step by step I traveled while in my own personal hell.  Her last words taunted my mind, knowing I couldn't follow her yet.  Knowing she was just out of reach.

"I'm coming soon love, I promise."

A soft beeping was pulsing through the speakers in my helmet as I trudged onward.  Thankfully the further I walked, the quieter it became until I heard nothing more than the scrape of boots on rock and my soft breathing through many filters.  Kara was so close, I could see her just at the top of the rise before me.  Blond hair twisting in the soft breeze as she looked up at the night sky with a smile on her face.  I was safe here, safe with her.  As my hands worked, the displays in my helmet flickered and died when they were unplugged.  Two small latches came next, their soft clicks were barely audible, my mind too intent on what was before me.  A jerking motion and a soft hiss crossed my consciousness for a moment before the helmet slipped away.  

The darkened sky met my bare eyes as I tried to find Orion.  Surely the Guardian of Hunters could show guidance or comfort in the twinkling half light.  Kara and I had watched his journey across they sky so many times before, so long ago.  Cloyingly sweet scents mixed with earthy tones from the blood soaked earth, the first thing I had smelled besides metal and oil in far too long.  The fact that I was standing in a patch of tainted land never once occurred to me.  That is, until the soft slap of my helmet tore me from my reverie.  My haunting memories fled in terror and horror as I looked around.  Truly looked around, and saw that I was standing outside the cavern and well within the killing fields from earlier today.  With the sparkling stars watching from above, only one thing came to mind as I grasped the now gore encrusted helmet.

"Oh fuck."

20. Corrupted Earth

Every heartbeat drummed in my ears, a constant thump thump thump while I did my best to affix it over my head.  Internally, I was screaming at myself and my stupidity.  'Rookie mistake you fuck stick!  Fuck  FUCK!'  So long as I could get the armored shell back on quickly, it would be okay.  Slimy grit and gore scraped against my skin as I forced the helmet on.  It wasn't straight, it wasn't clean, but lined up enough for the latches to catch as both hands forced the small levers into place with a sound click.  Most of my vision was obscured with the gore and dirt that graced the front of my helm.  The same offal that lovingly coated my face and neck in my haste.  Through the small areas that weren't smeared, I could get a sense of where I was at least.  As the small bundle of cables clicked into place, navigation markers burst into life on my displays.  A slightly distorted view of the world soon followed as I mentally triggered the cameras inset into the unit.  Out of everything, there was one thing that drove me from fear into anger.  The simple note that was still gently flashing in the corner of my vision.

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Quietly, I turned my back on the remains of the shattered city and shuffled toward the gaping hole behind me.  Step by tender step, I approached the cave entrance.  That is when something came to my attention.  A soft beeping that increased as I neared the caverns.  After a moment of contemplation, I realized why it was so familiar and easily forgotten.  When you get used to hearing a radiation detector beeping every second of every day, you just zone it out.  Still, it was enough to give me pause.  A few steps back, and the sound decreased.  A few yards and the unit was silent.  Interesting.

"Seven, are you working yet?  I could use some help here."

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"Damned computers are going to be the death of me..."

With only one way left to test my theory, I took off into the cavern that was my home for far too long.  The constant beeping quickly became my friend once more as the gaping edifice swallowed me whole.  When entering the chasm, the location made me happy the minotaurs did not seem to possess cannons or other siege weaponry.   From the entrance to the pony encampment was a straight line of sight.  For the record, I had my doubts that the massive creatures would be any threat now that there was something more for the ponies to fight for.  Celestia's recovery and the rescue of the prisoners seemed to do wonders for morale.  I did my best to hurry through the camp, but was still met with questions and comments as I was partially coated in blood once again.  They were all met with an upheld finger in the hopes that "hold on a minute" was universal.

Through the camp and into the tunnels I traveled.  Past the massive figures of waiting drones and through somewhat decluttered passages, three figures followed me.  Doing my best to ignore them, my pace quickened.  The sound of armored boots thumping to concrete contrasted wildly against the clicking of hooves in the distance as I contorted my body past a support drone welding brackets to the blasted door.  Soon enough, the ever familiar armored entrance to my vault awaited with opening doors.  Be it magic or the RFID chips imbedded in my armor, I didn't care.  Before I stepped through the gates, my waiting fingers flipped up a panel inset in the wall to press a large red button.  Following the same routine that was beaten into me from years of training, I stepped onto the faded yellow footprints painted on the floor and braced for what was to come.  I really hated this part.

Through the section around where I stood, a loud squeal rang out as amber lights flashed around.  There was a difference between radiation decon and foreign contaminants after all.  Through the strobing light and screaming noises, I could see two princesses come to a stop in the distance.  A haggard stallion stood with them with a mixture of curiosity and weariness on his face.  Then again, I imagine I didn't make too good of a first impression on him as I stood there yelling at the ceiling as the pipes above did little more than gurgle and choke instead of shower me with an assortment of chemicals.  Typical government engineering.  I guess I would have to do it all by hand.  With a squeal of tired metal, the drawer under the button opened to reveal a decon kit within.  Sighing softly to myself I reached in to get this mess over with.  The first sheet of many was tugged out of the drawer.  Whatever bureaucrat decided this needed to die.  What was the point of "emergency decon" if the system failed and you had to wipe down *everything* with a set of glorified paper towels?

At first, it had been frustrating.  Soon, it turned into far more than that when the buzzer and lights stopped and the ponies approached.  Twilight didn't seem content to let me be alone with my irritation, and proceeded to try to introduce myself to this "Shining Armor" fellow.  Truthfully, I just ignored the vast amount of what she was saying and mentally filed it away for later reference like so many safety briefs in my past life.  'No, First Sergeant I have no idea where my freaking reflective belt is after all this time.'  Eventually, I got enough gore off my helmet and chest to where it was safe to enter my unit.  Finally.  With a gesture to follow, I headed through the armored doors and waited for the room to be declared safe.  I'll admit that it was really hard not to laugh as the door shut and Twilight got a face full of compressed air when the nozzles powered up.  The sooner I could get this helmet off and clean my face, the better.  It was starting to reek of rotten gore pretty bad.

Idly, I dragged one of the aptly named 'M291 Chemical Decontaminating Wipes' around the base of my helmet and grimaced from the amount of gore pressed into the crevices.  It really didn't help that the kit I was using looked to have been made in the late 1980's.  Freaking government spending.  At least Shining Armor had stopped staring at me constantly.

"So let me get this right.  Shining is your brother, Captain of the guard, a crown prince, AND Cadence's husband?  You ponies have some weird fairyland standards on things."

All I could do was chuckle as the white stallion snorted at me.  Really wasn't a talkative one once the helmet came off.  Twilight and Cadence were making up for it with all sorts of questions.  It all boiled down to one thing.  Nobody knew why Seven was down.  None of the royals were keeping him busy with questions.  Everything had just cut off abruptly.  It left us in kind of a blind spot really, as the only sources of intel on the outside world were either in my upturned helmet or on the displays around the room.  Considering there were no drones in the air at the moment, that pretty much left a map of the city with the sensors overlaid on it.

"So here is a question for you three.  When I was outside, the sensors didn't show any of your 'magic' but started screaming when I came back into the cavern.  I don't suppose you could tell me what is going on with that, or is my gear just faulty like everything else down here?"

Little did I know this was going to turn into a lecture on magic while I scrubbed bits of minotaur off my visor.

"Magic permeates the world," Twilight began in a well rehearsed tone, "everything is coated in it.  It allows the pegasi to fly, the earth ponies to do their feats of strength, and unicorns to harness the energies around us.  Every pony is special in one field or another.  Cadence is love, and my brother's was in creating defensive barriers."

That last line cut off the snort of derision that was building at 'special power of love.'  

"Could you repeat that last bit one more time?

Before either of the princesses could answer, a somewhat masculine voice came from the corner where Shining sat.  I was wondering when he was going to say something, or even do something besides stare at stuff.  Then again, I wasn't about to get hung so I cut him some slack.

"My skill is magical shields and barriers.  Those few ponies and I kept a shield around the palace for two weeks before it fell and let the minotaurs in.  It was long enough for my wife, sister, and the remainder of the army to get away in any case."

Now that was something I could appreciate.  Smart enough to know when to hold, fold, and more importantly when to bluff.  That could be very useful in the long run for getting the hell out of this glorified cave.  Being able to create safe zones would be an incredible asset.

"Shining, you and I are going to have a long talk about tactics later.  I think we can come up with a few surprises for our friends upstairs.  First though, I need Twilight to spare her lecture and answer my question though.  What makes the cavern so different from the surface?  It's important."

After a moment's contemplation, the purple one answered in a way I didn't expect.

"To summarize, it would have to be that the caverns here contain the largest deposit of magical crystals we have found to date.  It is how we managed to keep the minotaurs at bay for so long, as the mage corps can tap into the stored energies of the world down here.  On the surface, it is just the passive magic of the world."

Before I could open my mouth to reply, the lights in the vault flickered and died.  Everything was cast into ruddy hues as the only source of illumination was crimson text flashing on the displays over and over as everyone looked around in concern.

CRITICAL FAILURE: AI CORE OFFLINE

CRITICAL FAILURE: AI CORE OFFLINE

CRITICAL FAILURE: AI CORE OFFLINE

CRITICAL FAILURE: MAIN POWER OFFLINE

CRITICAL FAILURE: MAIN POWER OFFLINE

CRITICAL FAILURE: MAIN POWER OFFLINE

From the black, a condescending voice trickled forth, like oil on water.

"Well isn't this just a delightful complication..."

"DISCORD!  What did you do this time?!"

My helmet met the floor with a loud clatter as I rose to my feet.  Hands grasping the grip of my slung rifle, it naturally found a home braced against a shoulder.  With little more than two small gestures, light burst from the flashlight attached near the muzzle and the safety clicked off while I whirled toward the corner the voice slithered from.

"Oh, but I'm not over there dear human.  I'm over here."

I'll openly admit that fear was kicking in a little bit as whatever this thing was played with us.  As I turned back and forth trying to find the voice, it took everything I had not to muzzle sweep the ponies.  Everytime I turned toward that gritty voice, its location would change."

"You know, it is rude not to introduce a friend.  Don't you remember that lesson PRINCESS Twilight?  I might just play with our human friend until you do what friends should."

"Ugh..."

The new noise caused me to spin on a heel, brightly outlining the three ponies in the glare of the weapon light.  Just a moment, but a moment none the less where a large caliber weapon was pointed squarely at the trio.  Without thought, my thumb snapped the safety back on and dropped the tip of the rifle toward the floor.

"Shit!  Sorry guys.  You know this Joker?!"

Through the shadows cast by the light I could see all three of the ponies fidgeting uncomfortably.  As the same irritating voice came from behind the trio.

"Oh, I'm sure they could regale you with many stories of our adventures.  The time they froze me in stone is good.  I rather do enjoy the ballad of the Blue Flu, although I do understand why these three are still somewhat irritated about it.  My personal favorite is that one time that I helped Luna find a book that would lead Twilight to a secret catacomb below Canterlot.  Then she doesn't have the gall to even say hello after I lead the minotaurs on a wild chase to help the ponies escape."

Naturally, this is a perfect time for my weapon light to flicker and die.  Thankfully, from the darkness a small orb of light burst to life.  Before I even had a chance to panic about magic and my death, Discord spoke again.

"Yes yes, I do know your aversion to magic.  This is much more mundane than that.  I just borrowed the batteries from your flashlight for a moment so I could do something."

From the small pool of light, a being that I really don't know how to describe stepped forth.  Not out of the light really, the light just flowed off of it like water from someone getting out of a pool.  Discord itself was...something.  A patchwork of animals in a grotesque design.  Where I assumed there would be frankenstein style sutures, the flesh just flowed together naturally.  Either way, it was disconcerting as anything I'd experienced before to see a true chimera of nature strutting about.  Even stranger was a simple red toolbox clutched in one of his hands.

"So, lets see what we can do about that power failure and pesky AI, shall we?"

21. Electrical Shorts

With the flashing crimson light illuminating the spectacle, I knelt and picked my helmet off the floor before donning it with the usual series of dull clicks.  Through the whole process the flashlight was casting harsh shadows across the room as I shouldered the small pack containing my maintenance tools.  Hopefully this wasn't going to be a hard fix.  

"Twilight, you wanted to see how some of this stuff works, right?  I could probably use a hand or at least a second set of eyes for the repairs anyhow.  Discord, I'm not really sure who or what you are, but so long as you stay out of the way you are welcome to watch.  Cadence.  Considering the power is out and we have no way to contact Celestia or Luna right now, could you and Armor head back to the camp when I get us out of here?"

A small chorus of questions graced my ears, but Discord grabbed my attention once again as he dug around in a panel inset into the doorframe.  Before I could object, he pulled a large geared wrench from the recess and held it out to me.

"Before you ask dear boy, yes I knew what you were going to be looking for.  Magic is bad for you and all that, blah blah.  That leave just this little gizmo to get us out of here, and considering everypony else in here is magical in some way or another that leaves the elbow work to you."

After checking to make sure my rifle was securely draped across my torso, the wrench slid into my outstretched hand.  Mentally, I as muttering to myself about having a head injury or something as the wrench pressed into the thick doors with a dull click.  You know, it is kind of awkward to be grunting and panting from exertion while four "people" watch on wordlessly.  Forget "kind of."  Seriously awkward is more like it as my breaths came out sounding like something closer to an asthmatic breathing through a tube.  Either way, the rotations passed as I worked.  Every clicking and ratcheting movement was retracting the large locking bolts for the vault doors.  The whole while, the red "network lost" text being displayed in the corner of my vision was getting more and more concerning.

Eventually, the bolts receded enough to lock into the open position with a sharp "clack" of steel against steel.  Grasping the wrench at the pivot point, I leaned into it and pushed.  With the sound of a sliding tombstone, one of the ancient doors cracked and creaked open.  At first, little more than a sliver of light from the tunnel.  Soon enough it turned into a deluge of pulsing crimson light that cast the tunnels in barely visible gloom.

"Once we seperate, feel free to use your magic to light the way.  I just don't really want to come down with a sudden case of death before then.  Hopefully we'll get power back on soon enough.  If anything comes up, we'll be down the hall.  You won't be able to miss us."

After stepping to the side, the small group filed through the door with myself taking the rear.  Hating myself for following regulations, I tugged the wrench out of the door as I stepped through the edifice.  There was so much joy in me as I began the process to shut the vault in the same method.

Ten Minutes Later...


Cadence and her husband had quickly headed down the tunnel toward the camp while I worked.  It was strange to see light with a light pink taint to it when she used her "magic."  Ponies are weird, enough said.  As Discord, Twilight and myself walked down the passage bathed in soft white light from my lights, Discord was eerily silent for something so strange.  Twilight was looking at everything in a new light, no pun intended.  I could see the information implanted in her mind registering as she looked at random bits of the facility.  Soon enough, we were stepping past the silent form of a shut down support drone, the same one that had been mounting brackets to the concrete walls.  Through the cleaned up "doorway" I had hastily made, and toward the same corner that had started all of this insanity.

Most people would have overlooked the importance of this hallway.  Then again, most people didn't know how finely balanced the world was in regards to things working.  As we turned down the side passage, I was already rummaging through my pack to extract a lighting strip.  It really just looked like little more than a series of domes embedded in a strip of metal, but it was much more than that.  The first dozen feet or so of the hallway were studded with a series of latch embedded panels.  Behind these lay the primary breakers and assorted computers that ran this section of the facility.  With this in mind, I stuck the light strip to the opposite panels above head height before giving the first of several domes a tug.  When detached from the base they could be placed anywhere within reach of the built in power cables.  A moment or two of dull thumps and a depressed button threw the hallway into golden light.  Finally able to see, I set about unlatching one of the many panels.

"Discord, could you start on the other end and start opening the panels?  It is pretty easy, just press in the base of the latch and then pull out on the top to unlock.  If you or Twilight see anything burnt or broken looking, let me know."

I had nearly gotten the final latch on the panel disconnected before Twilight started asking questions while Discord worked.

"Seven told me a little bit about how all this works, but he didn't go into any real detail.  Could you show me later?"

Sighing softly, I set the first of many panels on the ground leaning against the wall behind me.  With the cover removed, a massive fuse bank was revealed along with a series of electronic ports and sockets.  Ignoring the alicorn for a moment, I fished a small tablet out of my pouch and mounted it to a matching clip built into the panel.

"Twilight, I know how to fix this stuff.  If anyone knew how this really works, it would be Seven, and he is kind of broken at the moment.  Yeah, I'm an engineer but the military means that more in the 'engineering' holes into stuff and fixing stuff in the field.  Designing it, hell if I know."

Thankfully she appeared to take that at face value with only a soft "oh..." crossing her lips.  More important things to do than babysit at the moment anyhow.  Thankfully, it appeared that Discord had managed the first of his panels while I was talking.  After clipping a cable into my tablet and one of the many ports on my panel, the screen burst to life with scrolling debug text.  That was good, it meant that there was still power somewhere.

"Okay, that panel over there should be the main power switch box.  See all the small switches?  There should be a small window next to each of them.  If the switch is to the left, that means it is on.  If it is in the middle with an orange marker in the window or to the right, it is either popped or off.  If you see any ones with orange, let me know what the small number next to it is so I can test that system."

A soft "umm..." broke my concentration and made me look up.  Both Discord and Twilight were looking at the panel with a look of confusion their faces.  

"Alex my dear boy, what does it mean if everything has orange next to it?"

"There is no possible way..."

I'll openly admit that I was surprised by Twilight nodding along with Discord waving his...paw...thing at me to come over.  A few steps later, fear forced it's way through me.  EVERY breaker was popped and showing a warning condition.  Every single one.  There was only one thing that could do that.

"Fuck... fuck... Discord, help me open this panel.  NOW!"

Three steps left and an outstretched hand later my fingers pushed the first lock, only to have the entire sheet of metal clatter to the ground in front of me.  As my eyes scanned the panel in front of me, terror was slowly taking hold.  What Seven said in the early hours of my "morning" was making more and more sense.  The first section of the AI core was revealed in the golden light, and I was scared.  Next to every solid state unit was a breaker showing orange.  One after another as my eyes drifted downward until my stomach fell with it.  Where there should have been a large cylinder set into a socket with mounting clamps and carefully laid out wiring was just a mess of severed, scraped, and bare wiring.  The AI core was gone.

It took a moment for the missing core to truly register in my mind.  Twilight was the one to snap me out of it with a wonderfully smart question.

"From your reaction I'm guessing that something important went there, right?  Seven didn't really explain that much to me."

Pausing to calm myself for a moment, I had to remind myself that if Seven didn't tell her, she really had no idea what was going on here.  So many thoughts were tearing through my head, and the foremost one was finding who took Seven and getting him back with or without bloodshed.  Hopefully with.

"Twilight, that big hole is where Seven WAS.  Given that both the panel fell off when I touched it, and the fact that he is missing, I think it is a good guess to say that someone stole the fucking AI core.  I'll do my best to explain later, but we have bigger issues to take care of.  I need both of you to go back to the camp and let everyone know that nobody is to leave the area until I find Seven, and nobody is to get back here.  Trust me, they won't like the results."

"...but."

"Twilight, someone STOLE the AI core.  I have no idea if they know how to use it or not, but they pretty much crippled everything I have down here.  Sabotage is not something I take kindly on.  So please go.  I'll be heading that way shortly.  If someone was suicidal enough to try to take Seven offline, they are probably smart enough not to sick around and catch my wrath for it.  You too Discord."

Without saying anything else, I spun on my heel and headed down the passage toward the sleeping drone.  I only paused long enough to detach my tablet from the first panel before rounding the corner.  From behind, I could hear the duo heading the other direction at a good pace with some unintelligible muttering coming from one or the other.  Screw em.  More important things to worry about over ponies and chimera creature things.  I loomed over the support drone for a moment before sliding a small recess to the side and plugging my tablet in to awaken it.  As text scrolled, it was time to take the kid gloves off.

User ID:ARodriguez

Password:*****************

>>>Authenticating please wait...

>

>

>NAF O/F-7 Heracles ONLINE>Awaiting command

While the system logged me in, I was already planning how to find Seven.  Each AI core had a RFID tag built in for part identification.  I'd need to be able to get close enough to trigger the system.  Once that happened I'd be able to track the bastards down and get Seven back.  With this in mind, I started to wake the rest of the turret, drones and Control.  A few moments later, all units were showing online and in <limited> network status.  Good enough of a start I guess.  After unplugging from the first drone, my fingers started tapping out commands on the digital keys for the drones.  

The O/F-7 back here would start clearing the section of the facility where my (thankfully sealed) vault was.  Any creatures that weren't me were going to have a bad day.  Rules of engagement were simple.  Disable if possible, kill if necessary.  No warnings to be given as nothing was supposed to be back here anyhow.  The turret would issue a single warning shot if anything came from the pony encampment.  Anything from within the vault or several tunnels next to it would meet immediate lethal force.  All were set to message when or if contact was made.  Content that my orders for those two units were good, the tablet was slipped back into storage before I gripped my rifle tightly and began to jog down the tunnel toward the cave entrance and where Control was resting.

As I jogged down the dark passage, several messages scrolled through the status screen at the corner of my vision.  They gave me some semblance of hope at least.  It was the little things that would help.  Control and the airborne drones were warmed up and ready for launch after being issued orders.  That was my first stop after all.  Beyond the few drone status messages, there was one that did get my attention and make me pause for a moment to address it.

>>>Limited network functionality available at this time.

>>>One way burst communication available.

In the shadows of Control and the smaller drones, I decided to put that to use.

###Send burst transmission> User(s): Twilight Sparkle, Luna, Celestia, Cadence

###Do not respond. Network down. Seven missing. Obvious sabatoge.  

###Drones online and securing facility. Lethal force authorized.

###Launching Control and others to search city.  Will follow to encampment and explain shortly.

As the small confirmation light blinked in my displays, I set about plugging into the support drone that Control rested on and issuing the needed commands.  In the end it boiled down to Control and the drones circling the city at high altitude and using a tight band radio to try to light up the RFID marker on the AI core.  If they found the core, it would use the others to triangulate the position and give me a live view of the position.  Hopefully whoever took Seven would be close.  If only I knew then how wrong I'd end up being.  After launching the aircraft, three of the four remaining support drones would setup a small firebase to secure the mouth of the cavern.  Hopefully two light machine guns and a 40mm grenade launcher would be a good deterrent.  The last drone would stick near me in case I needed to leave the area.  The extra firepower could be invaluable.  Assured that everything was in order, I did the last two actions available to me.

Press the "Launch" button for the airborne drones and to start the support tasks was one.  With a jolt, the four support units started crawling toward the large blasted hole in the wall and out toward freedom.  That just left following the drones out and explaining myself to the ponies while the drones searched.  This was going to be fun.

It was with a smug sense of satisfaction that I watched the ponies part for the oncoming drones as they inched through the encampment.  Wide eyed ponies stepped aside to make way for the large machines that crawled past.  When they were clear of the camp, a barely audible rumble started filling the air.  Parked side by side, the support drones tilted their beds upward slightly and aimed the aircraft toward the cavern entrance.  The rumble was turning into a soft whining as small rings of blue flame with gold centers sparked to life behind each craft.  Every pony in attendance just stared out of amazement or fear. Four small bursts of flame came from below control, as if it was aching to lift off.  For a moment it looked like the small aircraft were going to lift the support craft to the skies as they tugged against the clamps holding the units together.  Finally, the first of several locks came loose and Control shot into the air.

With a thunderclap and gust of hot wind Control screamed out of the cavern and into the darkened sky above.  Seconds later the other airborne drones followed to begin their search.  Silence reigned in the cavern as several hundred pony faces all turned toward me with a wild assortment of looks ranging from confusion to incredulity.  That was, until something strange happened.  A pink blur popped up next to me in a shower of confetti, taking every ounce of willpower in me to ignore my reflexes and not to shoot the pony in the face.  Weirder still was the fact it was talking in perfect English without the translator software.

"That was AWESOME Lexxy!  Can you do that again later?"

WHAT.  THE.  FUCK.

22. Blood from Stone

Thankfully before I could reflexively push the pink...thing away, the same rainbow hued pony from earlier swooped down and dragged her wiggling and writhing into the crowd.  The crowd that was doing little more than staring at me while they got their first good look at the human.  Wonderful.  Well that was until a massive voice burst across the cavern from the side opposite of me.  The voice was both sound and pressure, making fabric and fur alike wave under its fury.  Through my armor it still rattled my teeth as the translator software scrolled in a corner of my vision and a monotone voice recited in my ear.

"This is Sergeant Rodriguez.  He is both our ally and ambassador to his people.  Any affront to him is an insult to the crown.  With that said, he is looking for some items of his that were removed from the crypt recently.  The largest should have been a metal canister about the size of a large filly.  If you have seen anything, please report it immediately to your superiors."

Well, that wasn't exactly what I was expecting, but sure whatever.  I'll take it.  As the ponies milled around, several bursts of color were working through the crowd.  Well, dividing the crowd to be more precise.  The assortment of equines parted like a sea as both royals and officers strode through.  Kind of odd to see in motion, but everything since I had awoken had been odd.  Par for the course and all that.  Before I could get caught up in the oncoming mire, I reminded myself to issue one more set of commands.  A few finger swipes on my tablet sent the Raven drone to perch on the rock face above the cavern entrance and act as a network repeater.  A moment later, comforting diagnostics were scrolling down the pad.  The final pair of notices brought a small, yet grim smile to my face.

>Connected to AWACS... Network Status <Secure>

>All units beginning SAR AI Core "Seven"

With that taken care of, I tucked the pad back into its proper resting place just as the gaggle of ponies reached my position.  Several of them I had been introduced to already, mainly being the royals and Armor.  The rest were ones that I had seen throughout the camp doing different tasks.  Leading the way was the grim looking behemoth of what I could only assume was a red pony from the small bits of fur that poked out from under blackened and bloody plate mail.  I still had no idea how it effectively used a maul as a weapon, but there had been lots of surprises lately.   Beyond that monster, there was the rainbow colored one that always appeared suddenly.  She, and I'm assuming a lot here from the figure it was a she, was simply wearing a mixture of silver chain and scale mail.  The leading edges of her wings and hooves all seemed to have some manor of blade attached, and made me somewhat wary.  It also reminded me how much worse it could have been when I woke up.

The pink one was quietly following in the footsteps of the Valkyrie.  Her previously scattered hair looked deflated and limp to match the depressed look on her face.  In the back of my mind, I could swear that I saw this pony manning a cannon at some point in the melee.  Flanking her were the royals and three ponies that made my mind hurt.  First was a golden pony wearing a stetson.  The hat I could get around.  What got me was the pair of hand scythes strapped to her sides over a mixture of padding and simple plate.  Either way, if she could use a weapon like the big one, she would make one hell of a mess.  The final two were...confusing.  They wore no armor and carried no weapons, yet walked with the confidence of one who has seen many battles.  The first was a spotless ivory unicorn with a purple mane.  Yes, the colors.  I know.  The second was a yellow and pink pegasus that looked at me with a mixture of anger and sorrow.  Both parts of the duo wore little more than a set of saddle bags.  Any other thoughts were pressed to the side as the massive pony stopped shortly with the crunch of gravel before running into me.  He was close enough for his breath to fog the armored windows of my helmet.

Knowing that this was probably going to be a long conversation while the drones searched, I unlocked the armored faceplate of my helmet and rotated it up with a few soft clicks as it locked.  It certainly made an impression on the ponies as a few of them, including the large one reeled back a hair.  Granted, with the emergency procedures done by Seven didn't do much to improve my looks.  Moreso was probably the odd colors of light reflecting on my face from the displays embedded in the glass.  Thankfully, Celestia took this chance to curb the awkwardness somewhat.

"Sergeant, I'd like to introduce you to the leaders of our... resistance.  You have already met Captain Armor and from what I've heard, had an interesting encounter with Rainbow Dash.  All of the ponies present are the leaders of their various units.  Since you've already met, Rainbow Dash is the leader of our Stormwings.  They are a creation of my sister that blends the speed and agility of the best pagasi flyers with their inherent elemental magics."

As Celestia spoke, the rainbow maned one did little more than nod her head softly with a small blush at the praise from Celestia.  Moments later, the hardened and distrustful look came over her features yet again as she brought her gaze back toward me.  Even with my armor enhancing my hearing, I couldn't hear what the pink one was whispering in Rainbow's ear.  Either way, it broke the stony countenance slightly.  It was just a hint of a grin and small laugh, but it was a start.

"Pinkie Pie, is there anything you would like to tell the group?"

That made the pink one snap her head up like a scolded child before she tried to keep a straight face while using her frazzled mane as a screen.  She failed miserably.

"I...I was asking Dashie if she thought he could shoot lasers out of that red eye of his."

It was pretty apparent that the group was expecting me to take grave insult as they all turned toward Pinkie before swiveling my way again as it was damn hard to keep from laughing a bit.  Freaking laser eye.  That would have been useful more than once in the last afternoon or so.  Note to self: get Seven to have the nanites fix the rest of my face.  Where metal and skin met was a bit chilly even in my temperature controlled armor.

"Don't be mad at her.  That was kind of funny.  Only sort of funny but it's been a rough day and a half for everyone.  Would be neat if I could do that though."

"I know!  You'd be like PEW! PEW!  I'M FIRIN' MAH LASER!"

If it were possible to facepalm in my armor I would be.  That pink menace was going to be the cause of many headaches, I could already tell.  A soft chirping and flashing red icon in my vision grabbed my attention just as Luna opened her mouth to speak.  Apparently the network reacts differently with the royals, as all four pairs of their eyes glazed over for a fraction of a second.  Being linked like I was, I already knew what was going on.  Control had found Seven.

Yanking the tablet out of it's pouch, I pulled up the feed from the drones and was graced with a bird's eye view of a shattered city.  Great heaps of shattered stone marked where buildings once were.  More importantly was the three heat traces that somehow had passed through the sensor network without tripping anything.  Somehow they were only seen on IR, not regular cameras.  Despite that, I could clearly see the large outlined canister between the figures.  Once again, my fingers went to work on the ever familiar tablet.

"They found Seven.  The network is back up for now, so if you need me just message me.  The facility is still off limits until we get this figured out.  I'm heading into the city to find Seven but will be leaving three support units here in case the Minotaurs come back."

With that said, a free hand grasped the armored faceplate and tugged it down.  The darkness within my fully armored helmet was welcome as the new displays flickered to life and began scrolling information.  Most importantly was the confirmation for the orders I had issued.  I could already hear one support drone whirring softly as it started to inch its way out of the cavern.  

>AI Core <Seven> set as: High Value Target>No collateral damage allowed

>Unknown units in vicinity HVT: HOSTILE

>Rules of Engagement: Immediate LETHAL force authorized

>Units en route to intercept HVT

"One of the drones is outside the cavern as well.  The display on the rearmost support drone will change camera views every few seconds so you can see what is going on with Seven as well as outside the cavern.  I've gotta go, those bastards are already outside the sensor net."

With that, there was little left to do but a quick chamber check to make sure my rifle was loaded and then run toward the darkened city.

Fifteen minutes.  Fifteen fucking minutes I've ran across this shattered city.  Through it all, I've not come across a single living thing, just burnt out homes and collapsed businesses.  Some of the fires had burnt so fierce that it cracked and crazed the stone sidewalks.  The random scribble writing of the ponies only seemed to drive home the fact that I truly wasn't in my time anymore.  A dull buzzing had started a minute or two ago as the first of the airborne drones got a safe shot at the creatures that were dragging the AI core down a side alley.  From the white spatter on the display, I'm going to mark that as a kill.  Pretty sure one of the white blobs was a severed leg or something.

Either way, life was starting to get a little more interesting.  Control had spotted a small group of minotaurs slipping through the remains of buildings and down alleys toward where the last pony was holed up.  Presumably to recover Seven from the soon to be deceased ponies that stole him.  Control couldn't get any clear shots, so I had decided on a hail mary.  The support drone was simply lobbing grenades into the distance toward where the AWACS estimated the cows would pop up.  It gave me enough cover fire to slip down one of the last side streets.  I barely had enough time to dive behind a collapsed wall before a burst of green energy ripped down the street screeching like a madman.  Naturally, that is exactly when a series of high pitched chirps grabbed my attention.

>Hostile and HVT moving away from position at rapid pace.  No firing solution available at this time.

>Hostile units will intercept HVT before solution can be found.

Looking at the map, there was only one place they would be heading with the AI core.  The bastards were trying to get it back to the castle.  It was the only "safe" area in the city.  This was going to turn out to be one hell of a mess, but there really wasn't any time to do anything but double down on insanity.

###Send burst transmission: User(s): Celestia, Luna, Twilight Sparkle, Cadence

>They are taking Seven toward the castle.  No other activity on the streets hostile or otherwise.

>Issuing new orders for the support drones.  Two will enter city, two will defend cavern.

>Keep yourself and ponies near the drones.  We are retaking your capitol city tonight.

>New ROE accepted.  AI Core <Seven> HVT

>HVT Scorched Earth ROE accepted.  Exclusion zone approved

>All other none associated units <Hostile> Lethal force authorized

###Camouflage settings> Dynamic optimization

God help me if this doesn't work.  If those bastards manage to get Seven near the castle, Control will drop it's entire payload on top of the AI core.  With that in mind, I triggered the camouflage routines in my armor and began to sprint down the street toward where Control said the minotaur units were headed.  Echos of my pounding feet traveled with me as the armor did its best to cushion each step.  To most, I would only look like a smear of color while moving.  It took too much power to render backgrounds while running, so the system would just adjust as needed to "blend" me in somewhat...ish.

I never did pay any attention to the shattered and dismembered pony that Control shot.  It was little more than a blur out of the corner of my vision as I ran past.  If I had noticed sooner, it would have saved me so much trouble later...

23. Starfall

The stone buildings and pathways seemed to pass as a blur while I worked my way though the city.  Thankfully it seemed that both the oncoming Minotaur forces and the ponies that escaped with Seven seemed to hit a bump in their plan.  Canterlot thinned out appreciably as you neared the palace, buildings giving way to what had once been lush gardens.  Both parties knew crossing the no mans land was a death sentence from above, as evidenced by a moderate sized spattering of gore across several bushes.  The feed in the corner of my vision scrolled command after command as Control calculated and maneuvered drones to keep the hostiles pinned.  

Stopping to catch my breath, I kneeled behind a fallen section of masonry and double checked my equipment.  The suppressors were snugly attached to my weapons, and all were loaded.  All systems checked out on my armor and medical systems were primed just in case.  I sincerely doubted that a musket could damage my armor, but stupidity kills you pretty damn fast.  From the noises erupting through the city, it sounded like the ponies and their drones were having an interesting time through the occasional thump of an exploding grenade or rip of automatic fire.  No casualties were on my board yet, and considering the firepower on my side I hoped to keep it that way.

Content that all was well so far, I resumed my crouch just in time for a path and markers to appear on the real time imagery displays.  Control was doing a fine job of keeping things under control so far, but sometimes the plans seemed to be a little insane.  Either way, at least something had a plan better than "get Seven back."  The moment the first marker flashed green I was off, sprinting toward the cover that Control marked.  It wasn't ideal but a step in the right direction is still a step.  Or in this case, it was more of a "leap through a destroyed window," but still.  You couldn't even hear the ruckus I made when landing in what appeared to be a burnt out toy shop.  Toys that once would have been beautiful crumbled beneath my boots as I skid to a stop, waiting for the signal to move again.  What had happened to this town was a shame, it must have been beautiful in its prime.  In its own way, Canterlot shattered as it was, it was still beautiful through the limited color of my night vision.  Any other thoughts were forgotten as a bright  warning flashed on my displays.

>SHELTER

>SHELTER

>SHELTER

>FIRING FOR EFFECT

Knowing the "kiss your ass goodbye" position so well, I did my best to tuck against the scorched masonry of the toy store.  It only took a moment, but a moment and a heartbeat was all I had to spare.  Apparently Control was done fucking around with trying to get a clean firing solution and resorted to the tried and trued method of killing stuff.  Superior firepower.  Everything seemed to stop as a keening wail came from the darkened skies above.  My vision was fixed on the video feed while I cowered among the shattered childhood of so many foals while the night turned to day when a second sun appeared above the city.  Even through my armor the concussion forced the air from my lungs as the camera feeds flickered out.  Either way, I knew the end result was the building sheltering the minotaurs and all within was little more than a glowing pit of molten stone.  Breathing was hard as the pressure on my body faded, leaving me panting just as the hated map marker turned green.  Once again I was off to work my way toward where the ponies were huddling, hiding in fear of the drones that circled above like demonic sharks.

Elsewhere...

Big Macintosh was a hard stallion to impress.  Yet impressed he was by the machines the human had assigned to support his soldiers.  Between those things and the magics wielded by the unicorns there had been nary a single enemy to fight.  At first, the princesses felt that keeping the majority of forces together was the best plan as the three races could back each other up hoofedly.  He agreed with their balanced approach until seeing those things ply their bloody trade.  Nopony had even seen the minotaurs setting up an ambush inside a razed house until the first machine...drone acted.  At first, it was just a sudden movement of the housing that contained a group of lenses.  Immediately after, the entire top of the unit swiveled and coughed.  That was it, just a soft cough until a house at the end of the street burst into flames and bits of gore rained into the street.  Even at that distance it was easy to tell the...parts were minotaur.

From there, the pattern repeated themselves between the drones before the princesses began to talk among themselves.  It still was strange yet comforting to see Celestia walking the streets of her city again.  At least it was until he caught view of the look gracing her face.  What was once regal and calm was a stormy sea of wrath and anger before she began issuing orders.

"Big Macintosh, yourself and five of your best are to escort my sister and I.  Split the rest of your forces to escort the drones to clear the city.  One third of the unicorns and pegasi will go with each drone, with the remainder staying with the Elements as their fast reaction force.  Princess Twilight will teleport her team from the cavern entrance to wherever needed when a unicorn uses a flare spell.  As for us, we are going to meet up with our human to help him recover Seven before moving on to the palace."

Every pony present was awestruck to be hearing war orders from Celestia.  Luna, Cadence and Twilight yes, but it was different to hear it from the normally motherly Princess, let alone the terrifying look on her regal face.  Any other thoughts were forgotten as a banshee wail came from across the city and everything was bathed in harsh light for a heartbeat.

Finally, I'd reached the edge of the gardens where the ponies were still pinned down.  Whenever one of the creatures moved toward an exit of any form, that area would be engulfed by a burst of weapons fire from the drones above.  All in all, they were pretty well perfectly contained.  The challenge would be managing to take out two hostiles without getting injured myself.  As such, I was studying the thermal camera feed to see if there was any rhyme or reason to their movements.  The AI core was nestled in the heart of the house the ponies inhabited and relatively secure.  The two signatures seemed to be moving about randomly so it would be down to luck when it came time to solve my little problem.  

Rubble scraped against my armored feet as I ducked behind bits of cover, working toward the windowless wall I had decided to enact my violence on.  It seemed that every time the drones would shoot at the house, the ponies would seek refuge against the solid stone walls.  With the right tool, hardened cover became little more than cover and that was the entire crux of my argument.  A few commands later, the drones started to whip around barely above the rooftops, firing small bursts into the polished stone walls.  Meanwhile, I was tinkering on the opposite side of where I needed to be.  Thankfully the soft compound I was shaping would quickly change that problem.  It only took a moment to affix the shaped charge to the wall before I found cover again.  As I lay face down on the grass next to a small retaining wall planted with shrubs, the oddest thought came to mind.  I was laying on the freshest grass I'd seen in god knows how long, and I couldn't even smell it through all the filters in my armor.  With this on my mind, I flipped up the cover on the detonator in my hand, slid the safety to the side, and pushed the big red button before everything burst into color.

The concussion wasn't so bad this time.  Joys of using shaped charges I guess.  Despite being behind a short wall, small chunks of rock and grit pummeled my armor before I started to rise.  Acrid smoke and dust from pulverized rock swirled around me as I stepped toward the ragged hole through the wall.  I could already see that the charge had worked better than imagined.  Bits of pony were spattered across what was once a tastefully decorated living room.  The hardwood floors creaked as I settled my weight onto them, rifle up and traveling with my eyes in search of the other pony.  The only lead was a streak of iridescent blue goo leading into another room as if someone...pony was dragging something behind them.  Thankfully my armor muffled most of my footsteps as I neared the corner leading into the next room.  With a thought, I dialed the camo up to maximum for now.  I'd only have a minute or two, but it was better than nothing.  

Knees bent and rifle shouldered, my bulk slipped around the corner tightly against the wall.  The muzzle of my weapon panning back and forth as I tried to find the last pony.  The blue streak lead toward the room where the AI core lay as an ominous feeling began building.  Every doorway was cleared while I progressed, the small stairwell was clear as well, with the strangely colored fluid becoming more prominent.  That's when I heard it.  Thin raspy breaths of someone, something on it's last legs in the next room just before the sound of snapping wires reached me.  Caution had no place now as I strode boldly toward the noise ready to gift the pony with oblivion.  I did not expect this though.  

Sprawled across the AI core was something I'd never seen before.  It looked like a pony in spots, but black plates jutted out from under it's fur in spots.  What should have been normal eyes were little more than blank spheres of color.  More importantly was the fact that it was both bleeding copiously on the cylinder AI Core from a severed foreleg and attempting to rip out wiring with what remained of its  horn.  It was too close to risk a shot, but three thumping steps brought me closer as my camouflage ran out of power.  Recognition appeared to cross the being's eyes for a fraction of a second before the muzzle of my rifle collided with the back of its skull and forced it off of Seven.  Only for a second before my rifle bucked in my hands and spattered bone and ichor across the floor.

Seven appeared to be in rough shape.  Most of the external case was covered in dents, dings, and shredded wiring.  Thankfully nothing appeared to have gotten into the main panel as I rolled the unit over.  Soft clicks met my ears as I released the catches holding the panel in place to reveal the heart of the AI Core, only to be met with a series of illuminated red displays.  I'm not a network engineer but screens flashing red is usually seriously bad.  As I fished around for my tablet, there were so many different thoughts swirling through my mind.  Thankfully training won out as I yanked the armored computer out and connected it to a socket inset into the core and diagnostics began scrolling.  

###Send burst transmission: User(s): Celestia, Luna, Twilight Sparkle, Cadence

>AI Core secured.  Unknown damage.  Attempting diagnostics.

>Will update as possible.

Words left me as the damage scrolled down the screen.  Power supply is critical and the drives SCRAM'd to keep from frying.  Downside is it would take another high end computer to bring Seven back online IF I could find something to plug him into.  The chassis back at the facility was pretty well destroyed so that left only one option that I was loathe to type out, but type I did before pulling out the needed tools to strip the casing off the core.  A small pile of scrap metal and screws quickly scattered across the room, some leaving small trails of that strange blood when they rolled through it.  Soon enough I had the emergency power unit and solid state components removed.  It was just in time as a dull scream was sounding from the destroyed garden outside.  Careful of the components, I placed all the tools back in my pack before picking up what remained of Seven.

Every step seemed to take an eternity as I crossed the blood stained and ruined house.  The paintings of various family members stared down at me disapprovingly as I traveled.  The one of a light grey mare with white and lavender hair seemed to glare at me before I crossed the threshold.  She looked eerily familiar for some reason.  Control had barely touched down in the gardens before the jets had started what remained of the grass to smolder and smoke under its engines.  The airborne drones circled, seeking for anything that could be deemed a threat to Control while it was grounded.  A panel was already open and waiting for me on the underside of the unit that followed commands to the letter.  Reaching into the recess, I withdrew a bundle of cables and began attaching them to the AI Core when Control chirped softly.  Immediately one of the drones peeled off and thundered across the city with a dull roar.  Finally the last connection snapped into place and I could slide the remains of the AI Core into the socket inset in Control for safe keeping before the panel automatically began to close.

The moment I was out from under the lumbering bulk of Control, its engines throttled up to a tooth rattling howl before it shot into the air and was lost to the dark.  The escorts went with it, albeit in a quieter method that allowed me to hear the soft jangling of armor plate and clopping of hooves against stone.  Turing slightly, I was surprised to see Celestia and Luna leading a small and occasionally bloody kill team into the gardens.  I guess it was time for part two of the evening's festivities.

24. Fireborn

"Glad you could make it.  Hope the Minotaurs haven't been giving you too much trouble."

Through the armored displays the party didn't look too much worse for wear.  It was a little unnerving to see a few small spatters of blood on Celestia's horn and golden armor though the rest of her was untouched.  The rest of the group was eyeing the newly healed princess warily as if there was something I had missed.

"I have spent far too long asleep and away from the world, especially when my sister and my little ponies needed me most.  Any thoughts on how we should move from here?  The vast majority of Canterlot was devoid of Minotaur forces and it appears that they have retreated to the palace.  A frontal assault would be suicide of course."

None of the ponies seemed amused when my giggles turned into full on laughter after a second.  The Queen bitch  who just about deep fried my ass by complete accident was talking about suicidal actions?!  Then again, it was a sobering thought to think that the minotaurs had managed to nearly assassinate her with a surprise headshot.

"Sorry.  It just really mistranslated what you said."  Not my smoothest lie but hopefully one I could play off.  "Ahem... Anyhow, like you were saying, a frontal assault is probably suicide, but unless you have a secret path in or out of the castle it's really the only plan we have.  Bottling the enemy up would just give them time to organize and get ready for us.  Nailing them while they are panicking is the way to go.  Considering all the drones are assigned and Control is largely inaccessible at the moment, it might get interesting.  I could probably get it to spare the power for one shot without too much system stress though.  Question is, where?"

A short time later...

For the record, ponies are an interesting species but some of the stuff they can do makes no sense.  I'm not even talking about the hooves that are flexible enough to grip things, I can deal with that.  Being on the back of a freaking flying chariot is a vastly different thing.  This plan was probably the most insane thing I'd ever heard, but hey nothing wrong with helping allies understand asymmetrical warfare.  It would probably be called racist, but as I looked around the chariot the ponies with me seemed to be chomping at the bit for some payback.

I should be flattered that they placed several of their specialists in the same chariot to 'ensure my safety' but I still wasn't pleased that the prismatic pain in the ass was included in that batch.  Things to take care of later.  Rainbow Dash had suitably impressed me with her little side task from earlier in the evening and proved to me at least that she was the fastest pegasus around.  For something so brightly colored, she was able to get near the palace wall and place a beacon without being spotted.  That bright green dot in my hud was the whole point of this plan.  The beacons location was also my mental escape from being on a rough hewn chariot with no safety gear several hundred feet in the air.  Bit by bit, I watched the distance counter tick down to the start of the fireworks.

>>>All will be well Alex.  Regardless of what happens this night you'll be considered a hero of our ponies.

Not exactly what I wanted to hear or consider, but that was immaterial when the ticker hit zero and a simple button was pressed on my tablet; the one labeled 'FIRE.'

"CLOSE YOUR EYES BOYS!"

Nothing could override the bleating alarm in my helmet as the beacon pulsed green, green, red, and the screaming started.  A heartbeat was all it took for a small star to be born next to the castle wall.  Just a heartbeat to superheat the beautiful stained glass and stone work.  A fraction longer for the overpressure to shatter whatever bonds held it all together and shower the inside of the throne room in molten rock and incandescent glass.  Part of me felt sorry for the minotaurs inside, but it was a very small part.

"Release!"

That was the part of the plan I didn't like.  Seeing three support drones and their now unpiloted chariot sailing through the newly made window into the heart of the castle was sort of awe inspiring though.  Their programming was simple but good.  If it was minotaur and still alive, make it not be.  Circling a hundred meters away, I could still hear the weapons firing like I was in the room.  The party really started when the first pegasi sped into the rapidly cleared landing zone, quickly followed by chariots full of enraged ponies set on payback.  

The royal chariots and guards were the next to pile in.  By the time I landed, it was a abattoir instead of a seat of power.  The once white marble and magnificent tapestries were spattered with gore and bits of flesh.  I never expected stepping onto marble to make a squelching noise either.  Thankfully my helmet was tightly fastened and the filters were working.  It had to smell wretched in here.  Ponies were amassed by the topled throne across the room, but there was something else to attend to.  Namely the three drones presenting to me with open hatches.  Rainbow kept an eye out while I fed ammo into the hoppers of the waiting machines.  Their grenades were yet unfired thankfully.  I had a backup plan with those.

The occasional gunshot interrupted my work, but as a whole the throne room large had silence descend on it.  With a sharp tug on a charging handle, the final gun was reloaded and the drones not to quietly drove toward the cluster of ponies.  They appeared to have the chamber locked down tightly and would know what was happening better than myself.  It didn't turn out to be a big mystery though.  The ponies had placed their thick shields over a tunnel that lead down and out from the throne room.  That same tunnel is where the occasional shot rang out from as well.

Fucking tunnelling cows...

25. The Dark Below

"You've got to be kidding me."

Apparently the minotaurs weren't exactly happy with being bottled up in a dank hole.  The armored forms of the guardsponies shuddered with every impact and shot against their stacked shields.  Nothing was getting through the layers of wood and metal, but they flinched at every hit.  Big Mac of all ponies stood aside in his gore encrusted armor while eyeing the stack of metal and meat warily.  How he could swing that massive warhammer in his jaws, I'd never know.  Never want to get in front of it either.

"Me and mine can take care of the 'taurs down there if ya like.  Been itching for a good fight."

Whenever he comes back online I'd need to remember to thank Seven.  The translation software was literally saving my life at this point, even if it did get glitchy at some points.  Mac didn't seem too enthused when I shook my head 'no' however.  

"I'm going to need you and your specialists here protecting the royals Mac.  I'll take care of the tunnel myself since we have no idea what is down there.  Just keep the throne room secure."

After a moment's pause, he only muttered a single word.  A word that I could see him using to express a variety of things.

'Eyup."

The icons for the airborne drones were still showing 'Offline' after the last shot as expected.  It would just be the ponies, support drones, and me for a while.  Going to be interesting I guess.  Still, it was a lot more firepower than they had before so it is a step up.  It also gave me an idea.  The primitive screwheads seemed like they could only figure out the basic firearms.  It would be a good time to introduce them to my own form of shock and awe.  With that idea in the forefront of my mind and tablet in hand, orders started getting typed out.

###Princesses, I don't want to speak out loud in case the minotaurs can hear me.

###Mac and his specialists are going to stay here and help you hold the throne room.

###The drones will remain here to assist as well.

###I'll be heading into the tunnels momentarily.  For their safety, nobody is to follow.

A small chorus of thanks and questions scrolled across my displays while I dug through the cargo compartment of a support drone.  Tenderly I slipped out two of the palm sized power banks and clicked them into the corresponding sockets in my armor.  It only took a moment for the extra power to show in the system reserves.  Better safe than sorry and all.  

"Pull the shields aside on the count of three and get into cover.  After I go in, recover the hole and only open up if the Princesses say it is me."

"Three."

"Two."

"One"

The guards scrambled in a clatter of metal away from the now looming hole in the ground.  More importantly was the yells of rage coming from the pit as the minotaurs charged out of the chasm.  Or at least tried to.  The shattered marble crunched against my boots as I sprinted toward the hole, ignoring the soft coughs coming from the drones.  Armored plates were already falling in front of the viewports when the first grenades shot into the hole.  A burst of light and sound erupted from the abyss a fraction of a second before the screams.  Great flashes of flame shot out of the hole a heartbeat before I leapt into hell.  Before my feet could hit earth and stone, the guards had already started piling shields against the hole and trapping me in with the minotaurs.  Or more accurately, they were trapped in here with me.

Breathing through a recycler doesn't sound anything like the movies.  The weirdest things come to mind when you are stepping between the still smoking remains of probably half a dozen hostiles.  Apparently they don't react well to a combination of flash bangs, riot grenades, and the engineer's best friend, thermal grenades.  Not that I can imagine that being blinded, rendered deaf, sprayed with a mixture of rubber balls and irritants, all before being lit on fire was a pleasant sensation.  All the crap in the air was also why my armor remained sealed.  I had no idea what was down here, so better play for overkill.

To say that the tunnel was large was a bit of an understatement.  Past the initial slope down, it quickly broadened into smooth features that I was too familiar with.  It started with a tickle at the back of my mind, but every painted marker on the walls built and built on my paranoia.  Other than the occasional flickering torch in the distance, everything was dyed pale green through the night vision.  From the clock, I could tell that I'd only been in the tunnels a  few minutes but it could have been years.  There wasn't a single sound except the crunch of concrete against my boots and the soft hiss of my rebreather.  Depressingly enough, it was as silent as a tomb down here and it only made me wonder where the rest of the minotaurs had disappeared to.

You know, it is always right when you say something like that when things go crazy.  Just me all alone in a pitch black tunnel when sobbing echoes down the concrete halls.  If my heart hadn't already been pumping hard and fast in my ears, it would be from the sorrowful and eerie sounds serenading me with every step.  The further I travelled, the louder and more pitiful the noises became, quickly turning into a orchestra of pained screams and yells.  I wanted to run, but that would give away my position to whoever was down here.  I could only suffer in silence as I moved toward the creature I already felt sorry for.

Rounding a corner, there was a figure backlit against one of the flickering torches.  Two of them guarding a doorway but trying to watch the spectacle within.  Somehow I had a feeling that I had found my destination.  Pulling back around the corner wasn't hard in the blackness.  I could see fine, but the minotaurs couldn't see or hear me.  It only took a moment to feel a familiar shape in one of my pouches, a quick look to confirm a dimpled shape with green and black striping.  After all these years, I still repeated the mantra of 'Safety, pin, throw, cover' when the grenade flew from my hand and landed in the doorway with a clatter.

"What's that?"

It was really hard not to laugh when both minotaurs kneeled to look at the flashbang.  It was really hard not to when it went off in their faces and lit one on fire.  His screams were even louder than the ones coming from the room, but were perfect cover for a second.  My rifle rose against my shoulder to bring the glowing reticle up to the face of the second minotaur that was still reeling.  A loud cough and sharp shove from the rifle sent the guard down in a shower of gore.  Not that his compatriot was in any shape to notice, especially when an axe buried itself in the back of his head, before another armored minotaur stepped into the hall.  His eyes were glowing even through my night vision and making me very uncomfortable.

"Stop screaming, worm.  I've been waiting for you Ancient.  My master will pay your weight in gold for me to bring your shattered..."

Call me an asshole, but I knew where that speech was going, and considering I like living I did the only thing that came to mind.  I think a flicker of comprehension went through the minotaur's mind as I leaned into my rifle.  The bastard tried to raise his other axe but didn't get too far when thunder rippled down the hallway.  With the night vision I could still see the gore that used to be his head smeared across the walls.  All the blood and violence couldn't prepare me for what was in the room.

26. The Dark Within

It's one thing to step from the dark into the light, but another thing entirely to step into light that contains something even darker.  Even with everything I'd seen in my years, all the blood and gore, nothing could prepare me for what was whimpering in the corner trying to get away from me.  Huddled and shaking at my approach was one of the bug ponies.  It larger than the rest, but looked like it had borne the brunt of the minotaur's wrath.  Chitin was cracked and spattered with a mixture of blood and bodily fluids that made me thankful for the filters in my suit.  What disgusted me the most was that the creature presented itself to me, like it assumed I was one of its captors and wanting a round with the prisoner that couldn't get away.  Trying to escape would have been impossible with it's wings tattered and horn sheared off, even if it weren't for the shackles that went through the holes in the bug's legs.  All I could do was stare while my mind processed the sheer 'what the fuck' of the situation.

"Kill me...please just kill me.  End it you bastard!"

That sure as hell snapped me out of it though.  I had no idea those bug ponies could talk and that made this so much worse.  There really was only one thing I could do.  Carefully I stepped across the room with the rifle ready just in case.  Over a puddle here, around a lump of something indistinguishably organic there, but every movement making the bug squeal and scream louder as it cowered into the shadows.  It was a bit startling to realize that my optical camouflage was still running, so the creature only really saw a hulking shadow stepping into the room.  No wonder it seemed to panicked after the death of its torturers.  With a thought, the camo disabled and color began to flow across my armor once again.  

"You... you're... you're not one of them?  If you aren't from Minos and a child of Crete, what are you?  What do you want?!"

The high pitched buzzing voice quickly vanished into gibbering panic as I raised my hands, palms out to show they were empty.

"I'm not going to hurt you.  I'm here to help get you out of here, nothing more.  The ponies are recapturing the palace so it'll be safe soon."

It is really hard to judge a reaction when it goes from relief to rage and fear in a heartbeat.  I did end up taking a step backward when the 'thing' lept to the end of its chains screaming and trying to rend me limb from limb for a moment before collapsing to the floor and sobbing into the disgusting mess coating everything.  The only word I could understand between the wailing was something about children.  The bugpony didn't even react as I stepped closer, grimacing behind my helmet at the squelching my boots made with every step.

Even as I kneeled to inspect the chains, the prisoner didn't even move or acknowledge my presence, just continuing to sob.  Removing the pins through the thing's legs would be impossible in the field.  The shackles were driven through the limbs so long ago that the skin had begun to grow over the metal.  Short of surgery beyond my skillset, they'd be in there a long time.  The same went for the pins driven into the creature's neck from the collar, poor thing.  That left detaching the chains from the shackles, and that would certainly be more interesting.  

You know how you can occasionally get that magic sense of 'oh shit?'  As I reached for the first chain, the prisoner looked up and started to speak.  From the look on it's face, I knew it was saying not to touch the chains but I was already too far into the movement.  One thudding heartbeat later, my fingers touched the cold metal and caused a symphony of color to erupt in my vision as my feet went out from under me.

I wish I could describe the clatter a fully armored and armed person makes when getting hurled across the room.  Kind of like if you put all the pots and pans from your kitchen into a bag and swung it into something while screaming like a girl.  A manly girl, but girl none the less.  The same raspy voice was dragging me out from the visual fireworks between both my eyes and flickering displays with the mantra of 'please don't be dead' over and over.  My only response was  a groan as I stood and realized that I had a killer headache and no amount of cleaning would get the smell of this gunk off my armor.  The flickering radiation detector was concerning to say the least.

'What the hell was that?!"

Whatever response it was going to make was cut off as the whole palace shook.  Even deep underground I could hear the bellow of something huge and enraged.  Time to get the fuck out of dodge.

"Forget that.  Can you walk?  We need to get the hell out of here now!  Touching the chains is bad, I get it, so if you follow me can you make it out?"

Rummaging around in my pouches I found a 'solution' to the problem.  Not elegant, probably dangerous and stupid, but it could work.  There was a raspy 'yes' from the thing while I began dragging the shattered minotaur corpses toward the prisoner, leaving gore filled streaks behind me.  

"This isn't going to be pleasant and I apologize for it.  Really, it's going to be gross as fuck.  BUT it is the fastest way to get out of here.  By the way, what do I call you besides 'prisoner' or 'bug pony?'  Oh and please don't move at all until I'm done."

If horse...things could grimace it was doing it now as I slid hunks of minotaur between the thing and the chains.

"Chrysalis... I used to be called Chrysalis.  Queen of the Changelings before all this started, but who knows how many are left now."

Another body wedged against the...er... Chrysalis before I got started on the main event.

"Well, lets get you out of here and see about finding some more of your kind.  For right now, you might want to cover your ears since it's about to get very loud in here."

The moment there were hooves covering her ears, I slipped the final cord loop nice and tight around the corpses limbs.  I might not be able to touch the chain without getting nuked, but apparently these bastards could.  

"Fire in the hole."

Just a shift of my thumb to press the detonator and the room turned white for a heartbeat.  Even through my helmet my ears hurt, must have been much worse for the bug.  Sighing, I wiped another layer of fresh gore off my armor as small chunks of meat rained down around the room.  At least the chains were severed by the detcord as well, and there was only the rough equivalent of one body to move now, so that was easy.  I thought all was well until she looked up at me and screamed.

"ARE YOU OKAY!?"

It's an odd thing to look down and realize there is a hank of chain jutting out of your armor, just dangling there and teasing you.  I hadn't felt anything, but checked myself over just in case.  No damage reported beyond the armor taking the hit and no meds dispensed flashed across the screens so that was some good news.  I still didn't want to touch the chain just in case though.

"Yeah, it's just stuck in my armor.  Lets get out of here though."

Heading through the tunnels was slow going.  Camo was a no go and I had to have lights on so Chrysalis could easily follow.  We didn't come across any more minotaurs or anything else really, but the Queen wasn't really much of a talker either.  Not that I could blame her any.  Any hopes of good news were dashed the moment my armor linked up to the network again.  All of the support drones were showing offline with severe damage states and low or no ammunition with safety overrides in place.  Unsnapping a light from a pouch, I knelt to hand it to the bug pony.

"Trouble ahead, follow me but be careful."

I didn't even wait for an answer before switching systems on my armor and plunging the hallway into darkness and stony echos as I sprinted up the tunnel.  The sounds that were filtering down couldn't be called encouraging in any way or form, screams of pain and rage filled the air with every step.  Gravel crunched underfoot as I bolted up the path and burst into the light to see another form of hell.

Pony soldiers were huddled behind whatever scraps of cover they could find from a firing line of minotaurs at the entrance of the throne room.  Both Luna and Celestia were being cared for by their soldiers for what looked like gunshot wounds.  Sliding into cover near the royals, I startled a few guards by accident before disengaging the camouflage.  Leave it to Big Mac to be the calm one through it all, looking my way.

"Took your time didn't ya.  We were about to finish the damn cows off since we were bored of waiting."

The monster of a pony didn't even flinch when a musket ball ricocheted off his paldron in a shower of sparks.  I had one idea at least, still working on it as I slid the last of my medical supplies across the floor towards the royals.  Hopefully they'd be able to explain how to use the stuff.

"I'll make you guys some cover.  Try to collect your wounded while I try to get a drone back here."

A quick nod was all I got from him, but it worked.  Sighing internally, I fished out my last couple grenades.  There were more in storage, but having none in a firefight is bad.  The first throw landed perfectly when the can started spewing grey smoke everywhere at the feet of the minotaurs.  The second had just left my hand when it felt like I'd gotten kicked in the head.  Everything went black and white for a moment while I kneeled.  Every display was going haywire, the armored glass an inch from my eye was cracked and crazed with blinking red lights next to the panel showing a broken seal.  Screams and the soft crackling of fire at least told me that the second grenade landed well too.  

No real time to bitch about it,  I grabbed the armored visor and slid it down over my eyes and pressed till it clicked.  Digital stuff can fail, but it is still a sight better than irradiation or getting shot in the eye a second time.  Thankfully, the ponies were already hard at work dragging their wounded into cover and lobbing the occasional shot back toward the half blinded and flaming bastards across the room.  I never even heard Chrysalis slip into cover next to me, but I sure as hell heard the impact of a hammer into the marble next to me.  Looking up I only saw black plate and a very pissed off Big Mac.

"What's she doing here?!"

"Prisoner in the tunnels.  Torture.  Deal with her later when we aren't getting shot at?"

Thumping the hammer next to the Queen one last time to get his point across, the monster pony calmly walked through the oncoming fire like a stroll through the rain.  God Damn.

"HE'S HERE!  HE'S HERE!  ANCIENTS SAVE US!"

Everyone looked up at the Queen screaming before the throne room doors were bodily ripped off their hinges by a hulking minotaur in glimmering plate armor and carrying a massive broadsword.  What threw me off the most was the flaming halo above the creature's horns and how the armor appeared to be part of the creature.  Even the still smoldering minotaurs kneeled in front of it, regardless of magic or firepower being thrown their way.  It only took a moment to realize why, as the air rippled around the creature and stopped everything dead.

"Forerunner!  I know that you are here, cowering amongst the detritus of this forsaken city.  It is our holy duty to cleanse the ponies and their alicorn abominations from this world.  A holy duty given to us by the writ of your kind to the children of Minos, firstborn of Crete.  Step forth from the shadows and help us banish the wicked from our sight.  Step forth and be known to Ebon Blade, Paladin and Governor of Equestria!"

I'll admit that I thought about it for a moment before looking up to see the scattered human armor and occasional skulls among the minotaurs.  Ebon Blade had a voice that could command armies to obey, but my answer would still have to be no.  Behind my small cover, I made sure my answer was ready.  A quick swap to one of the two 'special' mags I'd been given.  It's amazing how much you can tell from a bullet by a little paint, but the white, black, and green rings said it all.

###Celestia

###Luna

I don't know if this is going to work, so if you guys have any magic left it would be nice.  Pretty sure this guy is going to kick our asses unless you two can do something awesome.

Looking up, the two wearily nodded at me for a moment before their eyes brightened.  Each of them had a pony pressing an ampule into the soft spot on their inner...thigh.  The bright yellow screamed 'stimulant' even from a distance.  With that I stood and raised my response...

28. Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?

North American Coalition

Victoria Armory

AI Blackbar BIOS v. 21.7.1

Bootstrap I...in progress...done.

Bootstrap II...in progress...done.

Bootstrap III...in progress...done.

Bootstrap IV....in progress...done.

Diagnostics...in progress...1,273 errors found.

Diagnosing errors...1.03 percent of drive critically fragmented.

Rerouting damaged sectors...done.

Purging sectors...complete.

Rebuilding code from secure backup...in progress...

Connecting to hard mounted unit...

Streaming incoming data...

Processing...

ALERT!  HIGH VALUE PERSONNEL IN CONTACT!

Reboot incomplete.

Partition repairs...1.0 percent of CPU dedicated to repairs.

Connect to local battlenet...complete.

Repeater located...connecting...complete.

18 friendly mechanical units in combat ready status.

Authenticating codes.

Codes authenticated.

Linking to Virtual Intelligence Node 061.

Initiating launch sequence.

High Value Personnel tagged.

Friendlies tagged.

All others assumed hostile.

ROE issued...extreme prejudice.

Repairs complete.

Artificial Intelligence Core at 100 percent status.

Artificial Intellegence Zero Seven Three Niner Exigent Continuity Bias...ONLINE

ASSUMING DIRECT BATTLE CONTROL.

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