The Master Chief felt his body disassemble into millions of atoms, before reassembling seconds later. The feeling was much like when he was teleported around the surface of Installation 04.

The Spartan looked around, finding himself still inside of the warthog. However, he was no longer inside of the wreckage of the Forward Unto Dawn, instead finding himself in front of a large palace.

And he was now surrounded by pony soldiers, swords and spears drawn.

“Out of the... whatever that is!” one of the soldiers shouted.

“Stand down, guards!” a voice boomed, louder than the sound of a scorpion’s main cannon firing. Spartan-117 looked up to see Princess Luna hovering over the warthog, her eyes glowing a fierce blue. The sight was quite intimidating.

“My apologies, Your Majesty!” the lead guard responded, as all of the guard realized their mistake and bowed before the princess. “With the crash in Ponyville, we have been ordered to--”

“I care not for your excuses! Be gone!” Luna boomed, before landing beside the Chief’s side of the warthog. “If you guards want me and our guest to forget this mess, you’ll ensure that all of this stuff makes it to my observatory, safe and sound!”

The Spartan was about to protest, but the look the princess gave him told him to keep his trap shut.

“I’ll take my weapons. They can get the rest,” the Chief said, hopping out of the warthog and maneuvering his way to the back.

There wasn't much the Spartan could recover from the wreck, only a couple weapons cases, some ammo, and the rocket launcher Princess Luna found.

“Come along, Spartan!” the princess called out, walking away from the hog. The Spartan nodded, slinging the rocket launcher over his shoulder and picking up a weapons case in each hand.

The Chief followed the princess into the palace and through its grand halls. Most of the ponies avoided the Spartan like the plague, though some of the nobles whispering slanderous remarks to each other. Most of them watched the Spartan uneasily, keeping a close eye on his weapons.

The deeper the two went into the palace, the less civilians there were, and instead were replaced by a growing number of guards.

The princess stopped at a doorway, guarded by four ponies dressed in dark armor. They were a subspecies that the Spartan hadn't seen before. They looked like a hybrid of pony and bat. They seemed much more intimidating than the guards and soldiers the Spartan had come across previously. In addition to their intimidation factor, these guards were also armed like the soldiers, carrying rifles as well as swords.

The guards bowed in unison before the princess, something the princess, much to the surprise of the Spartan, returned.

As they all rose together, one of the guards, his pitch-black armor decorated in red war paint, stepped forward.

“Good evening, Princess Luna,” he greeted.

“Good evening, Lieutenant Ardent Moon,” she responded.

“We weren’t expecting you to bring company. Shall the servants prepare refreshments for two?” the Lieutenant inquired.

The princess glanced towards the Spartan.

“No thanks,” the Spartan said.

The Lieutenant nodded. “The refreshments will be up immediately, Your Majesty.”

Ardent Moon tapped his hoof against the floor. Upon hearing this, the two guards nearest to the door opened it and held it open for their princess.

“Please enter, and alert us if you require anything,” the Lieutenant said.

“Thank you, Lieutenant,” Luna said, as the junior officer and the princess bowed to each other.

The two passed by the guards, the Spartan nodding respectfully to the Lieutenant, as they walked through the doorway, the guards outside closing the doors behind them. Beyond them was a stairwell.

The two quickly ascended the stairs and entered a large room at the top. The walls were painted a dark blue, and were adorned with beautiful paintings of past heroes and the night sky. At the opposite end of the room was a balcony, where several small telescopes were standing.

But the main feature of the room was the skylight, allowing the Spartan to see most of the night sky from inside the room.

“Please, make yourself at home, Master Chief,” Luna said with a smile.

The Spartan nodded, placing one of the gun cases on a table near the center of the princess’s observatory, undoing the clamps and opening it. Inside of the case were two M7 SMG’s, accompanied by ten sixty round magazines, loaded with 5x23mm M443 caseless rounds. Inside it were also two suppressors and red dots that could be installed on the SMG’s, transforming them into M7S’s.

As the Spartan went to work stripping down the SMG’s and cleaning them, Princess Luna took a seat on a cushion at the opposite end of the table.

“What are you doing?” she inquired.

“You have to to clean these out every so often, otherwise they break when you need them most,” the Spartan explained, finishing with the first SMG and moving onto the second.

“I see. I would assume you wouldn't have to clean futuristic weaponry such as yours," the princess commented.

The two sat in silence as the Chief continued to work. At one point, a few servants came in and placed out some tea and snacks. The Spartan ignored these treats, still unsure if it'd be safe to eat their food or not, while Luna picked up a cookie and gingerly nibbled on it.

After several long moments of silence, with only the sounds of Luna sipping on tea and the Spartan fiddling with his weapons, the alicorn spoke up. "Spartan... in our earlier meeting, you mentioned a race of aliens known as the Forerunners. Is that correct?”

“Yes," the Chief answered.

“I have something to talk to you and your blue friend about regarding the Forerunners. Do you mind?”

After a moment's hesitation, he shook his head and finished up with his last SMG, then removed Cortana’s chip from his and placed it on the table. Cortana’s avatar showed up a few moments later.

“Give me a moment,” Luna said, rising from her cushion and walking over to a bookcase filled with aged tomes. After scanning through the various tomes, she took out a particularly old book and examined it, before placing it on the table.

“While ponykind and our fellow sapient species are ignorant of this, me and my sister have already known of the existence of the Forerunners,” Luna said, taking a sip of her tea before opening the book.

As the princess opened up the tome, a slim, dusty piece of metal fell out of the book and landed on the table. With the press of a button, the piece of metal activated and displayed a large hologram of a planet. The hologram was so large it practically consumed the entire

“What is this?” the Spartan asked.

“It’s a map of this world, 10,000 years ago, millennia from before Equestria even existed. It was scanned by an alicorn scout ship near the end of the Era of the Alicorn,” she explained, flipping the page.

“The alicorns have reigned over the local star system for eons. Our influence spread over this star system and several nearby ones. All this was thanks to the Forerunner relics that were leftover on our home planet.”

“If your species was this advanced and were spread across the galaxy, what happened to them?" the AI suddenly asked, "Why are you now using such primitive technology?”

Luna closed her eyes, considering her next words carefully. “This book covers everything up until near the end of the Era of the Alicorn. We were only children back then. All I remember is that we were left on this planet with a dozen other foals and some soldiers. This planet was discovered only a few years before the end of the Era of the Alicorn, so nopony got around to colonizing it.”

“As for our lack of advanced technology, we weren’t left with much. Just food and these books. However... according to the information we have, this planet has plenty of Forerunner artifacts. We would go there ourselves and harvest whatever technology there is left, but me and Celestia both agreed that our little ponies are not ready. History would most certainly repeat itself.”

“Chief,” Cortana said, turning towards the Spartan, “what if there is something there to help us get home? Or, maybe even help with my rampancy?”

The Master Chief looked towards the princess. “Is there any way we could get access to these relics?”

Princess Luna nodded. “I’ll organize an expedition. A good place to start would be the original capital of Equestria, which was built over an underground Forerunner structure, perhaps a bunker. It was abandoned long ago, so the wilderness has overtaken it, which means the castle grounds are likely very dangerous.”

“I think I can handle it,” the Spartan stated.

The princess shook her head. “No. Even with your armor and weaponry, there are many unknowns involved. We’ll have to bring a guard escort.”

“They’ll only slow me down,” the Chief said.

“Not these guards. Trust me,” Luna replied. “We’ll leave in the morning. You can sleep up here. Get plenty of rest... you’re gonna need it.”

The Chief looked around, examining his new, yet, surprisingly familiar surroundings. He found himself on a hill overlooking what appeared to be a school. The sounds of children playing and laughing filled the air.

Realization hit the Spartan moments later. He was back at his old school, before he met Halsey. Before he was kidnapped at the age of seven and trained into a soldier with an unmatched killing capability. Before the Covenant. Before the Halo Rings. None of that mattered back then, when he was a carefree child.

The Master Chief looked down to see a large group of children rushing the hill. Most of their faces he couldn’t place a finger on, but he could identify a few of the faces. He could spot his brothers and sisters among the crowd, pushing and shoving each other in an attempt to get to the top of the hill and challenge the king. Samuel, Kelly, Linda, Fred, Will, and Kurt, all there mixed in with the crowd.

His brothers and sisters emerged among the crowd, having brutally beaten down the others. They charged the Chief with eyes full of fierce determination. While the Master Chief’s movements were refined and super-fast, much like they are in the present, the movements of his brothers and sisters were sloppy and chaotic. The Spartan easily took on the others, knocking them down the hill one by one, until only he and Samuel-034 remained.

They stood there, unflinching, staring each other down. Neither of them willing to make the first move.

Before either of them could make a move, the school and the surrounding area turned into an inferno, the sounds of play being replaced by blood-curdling scream of pain and agony.

The Chief was briefly distracted by this, looking up into the sky as he watched a fleet of Covenant cruisers descend from the heavens, their excavation beams burning the planet to glass.

“This place will become your tomb...” Cortana’s voice echoed from the heavens. Spartan-117 turned back to his brother, only to find him replaced by a Covenant elite, an energy sword held tightly in its claws. The elite let out a hearty, guttural laugh as it picked up the kicking Spartan, whom was unable to do anything but spit in the alien’s face.

The elite growled, wiping the spittle away from its face before impaling the Master Chief with his energy sword, then throwing him into the fire, where his fellow Spartans burned.

“This is how the world ends...”

“Wake up, Spartan!” Luna shouted, shaking the fretful super-soldier. She was awoken early by his thrashing and cries of anguish. She was shocked that her observatory wasn’t invaded by a Royal Guard response team.

The princess soon realized her mistake, as one of the Spartan’s hands shot out, grasping the blue alicorn by the neck. The alicorns long life flashed before her eyes as he tightened his grip around her neck.

Thankfully, seconds later, the Spartan loosened his grip and let her go. The princess choked and regained her breath

The Master Chief rose from the floor, glancing down at the princess. “Are you okay?”

The princess coughed a few times before rubbing her throat. "Yes, I believe I shall live."

"I apologize, ma'am. I-"

Luna held up her hoof to his face, signalling him to stop, as she shook her head. “I understand. I’ve been there myself... do you have dreams like that often?” she asked.

The Spartan didn’t answer.

“I see... there are ways to stop them, you know. If you ever need any help, please, ask me.”

“I’ll keep that in mind.”

The Princess nodded, rubbing her neck lightly with a grimace. “Thank you for not crushing me, Master Chief. I am certain it was well within your capabilities.”

The Spartan remained silent.

“Master Chief, I suggest you gather whatever you want to bring with you. But try not to go overload, Spartan,” she said. “I must gather our escort. I’ll come back in ten minutes to retrieve you.”

“Understood,” the Spartan said. Luna nodded to the Chief, before trotting out of the observatory.

“Chief... what if we don’t find anything useful inside of the temple? What if we’re just wasting our time?” Cortana asked.

“Then we’ll wait. Someone will eventually come along and find us,” the Spartan responded, clipping the SMG’s to his legs.

“I certainly hope so,” Cortana said as the Chief grabbed a battle rifle and some extra ammo for all of his weapons.

“If we don’t escape, Chief, and I end up going rampant... I just want to say it’s been an honor serving with you, John,” the AI said.

“Don't say that,” the Spartan said, picking up a few fragmentation grenades.

After a few moments, Princess Luna poked her head into the observatory. “Are you ready, Spartan?” she asked.

The Master Chief nodded.

Luna waved him along. “Come on. Our chariot awaits.”

The Spartan and the princess quickly made their way through the palace’s halls, their footsteps echoing down the nearly empty corridors.

“Where is everyone?” the Chief asked.

“Save for a few guards and servants, there isn’t many around at sunrise. Which is good news. We don’t have to launch in the afternoon rush,” Luna replied.

The two then walked in silence. The Master Chief took this time to examine what the Spartan guessed was princess’s combat loadout. She was wrapped in a worn, tan cloak, which completely covered most of her body. If it wasn’t for both her wings and horn sticking out, and her large stature, she would've been likely unidentifiable as the princess she really was. At her sides were two large blades, similar to scimitars, which were kept in place by two midnight blue sheaths with her mark on it.

Once they exited the palace, the Spartan caught a glimpse of what would be accompanying them. Five of those bat pony soldiers stood in formation, their rifles balanced against their shoulders. They stood there, unmoving, looking more like statues than living creatures. Like Luna, they were all adorned in worn, tan cloaks, hiding their identities to only the most observant. Next to them was a single chariot, all pulled by standard guards.

The princess walked towards the guards. They stood at each other for a moment, before they bowed to each other in unison.

As they rose, Lieutenant Ardent Moon stepped forward, holding his rifle out to the princess. “On behalf of the Lunar Guard, please accept this rifle. It has served us well, and it will serve you well.”

The Princess smiled, taking the rifle and giving it a quick once over, before sling it over her shoulder and bowing to the Lieutenant. “I thank you for this gift, Lieutenant.”

Another guard walked forward and handed over a bandoleer holding ten magazines. After the guard helped the princess with the bandoleer, they shared a quick bow and the guard fell back into formation.

“We await your order, Your Majesty,” Ardent Moon said.

“Mount up,” ordered the princess.

It was a rather short and uneventful flight to the old castle. Unlike what the Chief was used to when he was being flown in a combat zone, there were no shoot down sentries, no banshees waiting to ambush him, and no anti-air turrets on the ground. Just a short, peaceful flight, with only some slight turbulence once they got over the forest past the Dawn's crashsite.

The chariot passed over the castle once and began it's descent. It passed the walls of the castle and landed in the overgrown courtyard. The moment the chariot touched down, the Spartan shoved the doors open and rolled out of it, bringing his battle rifle to bear. The Lunar Guards followed his lead, quickly fanning out and setting up a tight perimeter around the chariot.

"Sector's clear!" one of the guards shouted.

"Excellent," Lieutenant Ardent Moon stated, before looking back at the chariot, "We're clear, your majesty!"

The princess stepped out of the chariot, unslinging her rifle and examining the area around her. For a moment, she appeared lost in her memories as she seemed to space out for a few moments. But quickly shook out of that and got her head back in the game.

"Lieutenant, you and Corporal Moonshine stay with the chariot," Luna ordered, "and set up a perimeter with our drivers. The Spartan, the others and I will go on."

"Copy that. Good luck, Princess." the Lieutenant said.

"We should be fine, Lieutenant. The chamber's guardians were deactivated long ago," the princess said, before turning to the others, "Come along, Spartan. I have point."

As the Chief rose from his position and followed the princess away from the chariot, his motion trackers lit up with movement. As soon as it appeared, however, it was gone.

'Odd', the Master Chief thought to himself.

The shattered glass from the castles long shattered windows cracked underneath the metallic boot of the Spartan as he and the Lunar Guards accompanying them followed the princess through the castle's halls. As the princess had told him earlier, the castle was indeed reclaimed by nature and was slowly falling apart. Luckily, they hadn't run into any wildlife beyond a few rabbits, who ran away in terror the moment they spotted the Spartan.

Suddenly, the princess stopped and held up her hoof. The Spartan stopped in his tracks and took a knee, while the Lunar Guards checked their surroundings.

"Do you hear that...?" Luna asked the Spartan with a low whisper.

The Master Chief listened for what she was talking about. After a few seconds, the Spartan heard it too.

The laughter of children.

"Why would foals be this deep in the Everfree?" one of the Lunar Guards wondered aloud.

"Come, we must investigate." the princess said.

As the five followed to source of the laughter, the laughter was soon replaced by singing.

"Ring around the rosy..." the voice sang, "a pocket full of posies."

The five turned the corner and found themselves outside once more, this time in a small playground with old rusted and falling apart playground equipment. At one time, it must have been filled with children, but now, it was empty.

Except...

Three foals stood in the middle of the playground, staring at the five.

"What are you three doing out here?" the princess asked concerned, racing towards them, "Do you have any idea how dangerous this place is? Where are you parents?"

Instead of answering the question, the children continued to sing. "Ashes... ashes... we all... fall... down..."

And then, the three smiled. But it wasn't a normal smile. It was an evil, sinister one. One so sinister that it gave the princess pause.

"What are you?" she asked.

"Chief," Cortana said with a distorted voice, "I'm picking up multiple contacts on your motion tracker."

Several green bolts, similar to a plasma bolt from a plasma pistol, flew towards the princess. The Spartan raced forward and stood in front of the princess, his energy shields easily absorbing the bolts. A swarm of what appeared to be a hybrid of pony and an insect flew over the ground, firing these same bolts at them. One of the guards were hit in the head by one, instantly killing them.

"CONTACT! CONTACT!" one of the two surviving Lunar Guards exclaimed.

"IT'S AN AMBUSH! RETURN FIRE!" the princess ordered.