As stealthily as possible, the Spartan fled farther into the forest. More equine soldiers appeared before the Chief could do anything, making retreating his only choice, unless their first contact to be fight between him and the equines.

One, two, then four contacts showed up on his motion tracker. The Spartan fled into the shadows and looked up in time to see a squadron of pegasi flying overhead, their golden armor glistening in the moonlight. They descended and landed in a nearby clearing, their swords at the ready. The Spartan recognized the equine soldiers as the ones from before.

“All clear?” one of the soldiers asked.

“Clear,” another responded.

“Five minutes, then we get back in the air.”

One of the soldiers reached into a bag strapped to his side and tossed a bag of what looked like oats to the other three, before taking out for himself and opened it.

The Master Chief sat there, watching the soldiers eat in silence, every second seemed like an eternity as he watched them eat.

Suddenly, something showed up on his motion tracker that made the Spartan clutch his assault rifle a little harder.

The Spartan watched as three, four, six, then over a dozen contacts showed on his motion tracker, surrounding his position.

“Chief, check your left,” Cortana prompted.

The Master Chief slowly glanced to his left. There crouched in the bushes was what looked like a wooden wolf, watching the equine soldiers. It seemed blissfully unaware of the half-ton super-soldier barely ten feet away from him.

“Keep still, I don’t think they notice you yet. I’m pretty sure they want to make a quick snack out of your pursuers.”

A slightly larger and darker wooden wolf came into view. It rose from its hiding spot and howled menacingly into the air, before rushing forward towards the equine soldiers. The soldiers turned in time to see the wooden wolf charge at them, but not in time to counter it. The wolf pounced onto one of the soldiers, knocking him down to the ground. As it bit and scratched at the soldier’s neck desperately, another equine soldier turned away from the wolf and his fallen comrade, before kicking it in its side, shattering the wooden wolf into bits.

“Timberwolves!” one of the soldiers called out.

“Stand your ground!” the squadron leader growled, bringing up his sword.

The rest of the pack charged at the four soldiers, whom went back to back, their blades glistening dangerously in the moonlight.

“Chief, if I were you, I’d take this time to leave,” Cortana advised.

“Right,” the Spartan agreed. As he started to rise and find a route out of the forest, something made the super-soldier stop dead in his tracks.

“Chief?” he heard Cortana question.

In his time on the battlefield, fighting desperately against the Covenant, trying to buy humanity just a little more time, he had to left many behind for the slaughter. That included many of his brothers and sisters, his fellow Spartans that he grew up with, training and fighting side by side.

This time, he wasn’t going to let the innocent fall to the slaughter, when he could easily stop this.

Before Cortana could even protest, the Spartan turned around and ran into the clearing, his assault rifle at the ready. Training his assault rifle on the timberwolves closest to the equine soldiers, he opened fire, reducing half of the predator’s numbers to splinters. Once his assault rifle clicked empty, the Spartan clipped the assault rifle to his back and rushed forward, grabbing a timberwolf by the neck and squeezing, causing its neck to explode into splinters.

The timberwolves turned away from the equine soldiers and turned to face this new threat, circling around the super soldier.

“Chief, we’re surrounded,” Cortana stated.

“I know.”

Two of the timberwolves rushed at the Spartan. Prepared for this, the Spartan slapped one of them aside, before bringing his foot down on its head. The other one latched onto the Spartan’s back, scratching away at the Chief’s shields rapidly. As alarms started to ring in his helmet, the Spartan reached behind him and threw the timberwolf to the ground. Before it could rise again, the Spartan unholstered one of his magnums and put two rounds in the wolf’s head.

The Spartan rounded on the remaining members of the pack, drawing his other magnum and training it on the pack. The timberwolves, knowing they’ve been bested, slowly started backing away. One stubborn wolf stood its ground, earning two rounds in the head. Seeing another one of their comrades fall, the rest of the pack turned tail and ran.

Satisfied that the threat was now gone, the Spartan holstered his magnums and drew his assault rifle, letting the empty magazine slide away from it before replacing it with a fresh magazine. He then turned away and faced the equine soldiers, who stood there, looking up at the super-soldier with wide eyes filled with a mix of awe, respect, and fear.

“Thanks...” one of them managed to mutter.

“Tell your purple friend that she might want to reconsider her plans to dissect me,” the Chief stated, before running past the four soldiers and disappearing among the trees.

“Sir, should we pursue?” one of the soldiers asked.

“No,” the squadron leader said, “he saved our flanks. He could have just sat there and watched, or killed us himself. But he didn’t. We owe him that much. Come on, let’s get back before somepony notices.”

The Equestrian Royal Guard had just finished setting up its command post outside of what was earlier confirmed as the wreckage of an extra-Equestrian spacecraft. In the center of the command post was what served as Captain Firewall’s temporary office, where he was coordinating search efforts for survivors and technology from both the wreckage and the nearby Everfree Forest.

Captain Firewall sat there, finishing writing up a report of the camps’ ready status addressed to the Princesses and General Ironhoof, when the Royal Guard assigned to the Captain’s tent walked in.

“Sir?” he asked.

“Yes?” the Captain replied.

“One of our pegasi squadrons made contact with an alien. The squadron leader is here to talk to you,” the guard explained.

“Alright, let him in,” Firewall said. The guard saluted and opened the tent flap for the squadron leader. The squadron leader nodded to the guard and walked in, standing at attention, saluting to the Captain.

“Sergeant Silver Bullet, 10th Pegasi Regiment. It’s an honor to meet you, Captain,” the Sergeant greeted.

“It’s good to meet you too, Sergeant. At ease. We have a lot to discuss. Please, take a seat,” Captain Firewall said, motioning to the cushions in front of his workstation.

Silver Bullet nodded, sitting down on one of the cushions. “My squadron was taking a quick break to get some grub. While we were eating, we were attacked by a pack of timberwolves, easily a dozen or more of them. We were likely going to be overran... but then one of the aliens emerged from hiding and decimated the timberwolves without breaking a sweat, sending the survivors scurrying with their tails in between their legs.”

“So, wait, they actually helped you?” Firewall inquired.

The Sergeant nodded.

“What can you tell me about this alien?” the Captain asked.

“The creature was easily seven, maybe eight feet tall, dressed head to toe in olive-drab armor. He possessed the strength of ten stallions, and his weapons fired projectiles just like what the Army is equipped with, just smaller and automatic. He also seemed to possess some sort of shielding. He seemed damn near invincible.”

“Indeed... is there anything else?”

“Yes... there is. Once the timberwolves were eliminated, he turned on us. Instead of killing us like I thought he would, he talked to us. In perfect Equestrian.”

The Captain raised a brow. “Are you sure...?”

“Yes. Ask any of the soldiers in my squadron if you don’t believe me.”

“Do not fret, Sergeant. I believe you,” the Captain reassured. “Sergeant, seeing how you’re the only one who actually knows anything about these aliens, what do you recommend we do?”

The Sergeant brought a hoof to his chin and scratched it as he thought. “It’s clear that they mean us no harm, if the fact that the alien saved our flanks shows anything. However, I don’t doubt that if we provoke them, they could easily wipe us out. I honestly think we should handle this peacefully. Instead of trying to hunt them down like animals, we should try to get them to come out of hiding and talk with us.”

The Captain nodded in agreement. “I think that’s for the best... Corporal?!”

The tent’s guard emerged from outside and stood at attention. “Sir?”

“Alert everypony that no more patrols may leave the base until I say otherwise. If the aliens show up, attempt communication and contact me. Anypony who attacks the aliens without being attacked first will be court martialed and punished severely.”

“Yes sir!” the guard said, saluting before leaving the tent.

“Sergeant, I want you to make sure your squadron gets plenty of rest. Once you have ensured they are getting their deserved R and R, come back here. I’d like you to be here when the princesses show up.”

“It’d be an honor, sir,” the Sergeant said.

“Dismissed. See you in a few,” the Captain replied.

Silver Bullet nodded and saluted, something the Captain returned, before making his way out of the tent.

Twilight looked out her window as a formation of Royal Guards marched by the Golden Oak Library, shaking the entire library as they passed by.

“T-Twilight?” the lavender unicorn heard a familiar shy voice ask shakily.

“Fluttershy?” She asked as she turned around, spotting the diminutive yellow pegasus standing in the doorway, “Can I help you?”

“Oh... well... I-I was wondering if I could stay over here for a few days... the Guard evacuated everypony near the crash... i-if that’s okay, that is,” she requested, doing her best to shrink from view.

“Of course you can stay here, Fluttershy. I’ll have Spike prepare the guest room,” Twilight said, rising from her seated position and making her way over to her shy friend.

“A-are you sure? Because...I don’t want want to intrude...” Fluttershy said, hiding behind her long pink mane.

“Yes, I’m sure. Don’t worry about a thing. What about your animals?” the lavender unicorn asked.

“Oh... the Guard has animal specialists to look after them... I hope they don’t miss me too much...”

“Don’t worry, Fluttershy. I’m sure you’ll be allowed to go back in a few days, maybe later tomorrow if you’re lucky.”

Fluttershy nodded shakily. “What are you doing... if you don’t mind me asking, that is?”

“Nothing in particular, just doing some notes on the crash, the possibility of alien creatures, what their technology could mean for Equestria, what they could look like, and what could happen if Equestria faced an alien invasion. I’m certain that’s what they are here for. Equestria has plenty of natural resources for the-”

“Um, Twilight?” Fluttershy interjected.

“Hmm?”

“How do you know they are... you know... invading us...?” she asked.

“It’s mainly just a guess... though they did attack me when I was investigating the area.”

The yellow pegasus gasped in shock, then started thinking about it. “Twilight... what do you mean by investigating...?”

Twilight’s face turned a bright pink. “Well... I sort of followed them...”

“When backed into a corner, and scared, an animal will defend themselves, Twilight. The fact that you are still here shows that the aliens didn’t mean any harm, they were just scared.” Fluttershy said knowingly.

“I dunno... it was pretty close...” Twilight said, thinking it over in her head.

“Don’t be so quick to judge... they might be peaceful and kind.”

Twilight remained silent for a moment as she processed this information. "I'm not so sure about that, Fluttershy. But you may be right. I suppose we'll just have to wait and see, and hope we don't enter an interplanetary war with them."

Master Chief Petty Officer Edward Buck stood over the corpse of a Covenant Elite, his combat knife glistening with it’s purple blood, slowly dripping down onto the floor below. It had been a challenging fight, something he would have not won when he was a simple ODST. But now, he, as well as the rest of his old squad, were now Spartan-IV’s, the new best of the best. The only downside as far as the former ODST could see is that they had to use Naval ranks now.

He honestly missed being Gunny.

“Bastard nearly got me,” Buck said as he turned towards the rest of Fireteam Firefly. “It would have dropped us in the rankings for sure. Thanks for help.”

“We thought you had him, and look, we were right,” Romeo said with a shrug.

“It doesn’t really matter. Mission accomplished. Drinks all around,” Dutch said, as the scenery began to shimmer and fade, revealing the UNSC Infinity’s massive VR room, used by the Infinity’s complement of Marines and Spartan IV’s to train. Though they typically took on other Spartans in training scenarios, they could also take on AI controlled by the Infinity’s smart AI Roland, whom sometimes actually made better opponents than actual Covenant.

“Nice job today, Spartans,” Roland said, his avatar appearing before them. “You’re now tied with Fireteam Crimson for second. Impressive. Please clear the room for Fireteams Sword and Talon. Thank you.”

“You heard the computer, let’s move, gentlemen.”

As the five Spartans made their way out the room, Mickey spoke up. “You guys hear about the new Halo they discovered?” he asked.

“You mean the one teaming with flood?” Buck inquired.

“Yeah.”

“What about it?” Romeo asked.

“FLEETCOM is talking about possible deploying the Infinity to try and clean off the ring, or at least hold off the swarm until we deactivate it.”

“No thanks,” Dutch said., “I know Spartans are supposed to be up for suicide mission and all... but that’s a bit much for me.”

“I wouldn’t worry about it, though,” Mickey replied, “it’s more likely they’ll just nuke the entire surface and recover whatever is left.”

“If there is anything left.”

"I dunno, those Forerunner ruins are pretty-"

“Hey, Spartans!” someone called out.

Buck looked over his shoulder and noticed a Marine running their way. “What’s up, Marine?” he asked.

After taking a few moments to catch his breath and regain his composure, the Marine spoke up. “Captain’s about to make an important announcement. You guys should head to the mess hall. That’s the closest room it’s being broadcasted at,”

“I guess I could use some chow,” Buck said with a slight shrug. “Let’s get a move on, Firefly.”

The Master Chief hid among the brush, watching the equine military camp set up outside of the remains of the Dawn. The camp was surprisingly large, seeming to circle the entire debris field. This would make getting back to the Dawn for supplies, ammo, weapons, and transports damn near impossible without hurting any of the natives, something the Chief wanted to avoid unless completely necessary.

“Chief,” Cortana spoke up, “I’ve noticed that every single patrol that comes back in isn’t going back out, nor are any new patrols going out. Either they have simply given up, or your actions earlier showed that you don’t mean them any harm.”

“Which means?”

“I don’t know, honestly,” the AI admitted. “I suggest we stay here and observe to see if their behavior doesn’t change in the morning, then we’ll act.”

The Spartan nodded in agreement. As he continued to watch the Equine camp through the scope of his sniper rifle, the Chief's mind wandered to Cortana's earlier issues. Cortana had become increasingly unstable since arriving on this planet, and even before then, something was wrong before they got onto the Dawn. It needed to be addressed.

“Cortana...”

“Hmm? Something on your mind, Chief?”

“What was with your earlier outbursts? You’ve been increasingly unstable since we got here,” the Spartan said, removing the AI’s data chip from his helmet and holding it in front of him.

“As I explained before, I’m fine,” she said, her avatar appearing on the chip. “It’s just the crash.”

“Something was wrong before the crash,” the Spartan pointed out.

“Chief, really, I’m fine,” she said, her voice and avatar distorting slightly.

“Cortana...”

The AI’s avatar turned away from the Spartan, instead looking towards the rising sun. “I was put into service eight years ago...”

“Eight years...?” he asked as he looked away, pondering this.

Cortana’s avatar turned back towards the Spartan. “AI’s deteriorate after seven, Chief.”

The Spartan went silent for a moment as he thought this through. "Halsey..." he said.

“Chief...”

“We need to find Halsey.”

“Chief, please.”

“She made you,” the Spartan said, “...she can fix you.”

“I won’t recover from rampancy, Chief.”

“If we could just get back to Earth, and find Halsey, she could fix this.”

“How?!” the AI demanded. “We’re stranded on a planet light years away from UNSC space. The sentient species on this planet are still using swords and centurion armor, so even if we got on good terms with them, they probably couldn’t help much."

"Remember... don’t make a girl a promise you can’t keep," Cortana reminded him.

Before they could continue, the duo noticed a pair of patrolling sentries trotting their way.

“We need to move.”

The Chief nodded, putting the AI’s chip back in his helmet and falling back into the forest.