Alhardir let out a small sigh as he strode down the hallways of the monastery.

”What I wouldn't give to have a day where I don't have to worry about the enemy banging on our door...” He lets out a sigh as he gazes at the architecture, at blank walls that were supposed to house murals of the greatest deeds of the Marines. Only one wall had been painted so far, showing a glorious scene of the Defense of Trottingham, Lunar Templars were cutting down ogres and changelings while Solaris Knights cleansed the harpies with bolter fire. The painting was dominated with different shades of red and orange, depicting the fires of battle burning through the entire city as the marines held their ground and eventually began to push the forces of chaos back.

The Reclusiarch pursed his lips as he thought about something.

”Chaos... This chaos... Isn't like the warp-chaos... These creatures aren't madness given form... they still have much of their original size if not shape... Whatever the source of this chaos is, it can't possibly be from the warp. So that begs the question... If these ponies can so readily use their 'magic'... Why has nothing from the warp shown itself?” He kept thinking and puzzling over the question, seeking the answer until his neutral face slowly but surely shifted to a small frown at coming up with nothing.

Within minutes he finally reached the balcony overlooking the small town at the base of the mountainous Monastery to the Empresses, The twin Colossal statues of the Alicorn sisters watching over the town in a silent vigil. While the anthromorphing process had gotten to a seventy percent retention rate, there was still less than ten percent retention for the space marine processes, especially not for the ones involving the Wolf Pack, who refused to use any methods of breeding new marines than what they already had. So far starting the rumor of gigantic wolves roaming about the wasteland that used to be the Crystal Empire.

They had even begun quietly experimenting with the griffons, zebras and Minotaurs. Still no successes, but they were getting close.

Alhardir caught himself as he was about to sigh again, he had been doing that a lot lately and if he didn't catch himself soon enough it would become a tic for him, one that he really didn't want to deal with later. After taking a deep breath and straightening himself he made his way down to the depths of the monastery, to the forge where he could get the plates that would be engraved with his prayers to the empresses so that their soldiers could remain pure in battle and would never fall again to the travesty that had been Las Pegasus, the small colony had been why there were more dreadnoughts in service. It had been a bloody day... A day they won, but bloody nonetheless.

{[DW]}

Sergeant Firestorm of the twenty-second Brigade, one of the first batallions of ponies to be completely made of Anthromorphed ponies, gazed at the different buildings in town as he walked down main street, already there were forges and clothes stores being erected to help with the slowly growing demand for weapons and modesty. While it was still not a big deal to not be wearing clothes since many of the population's pony instincts were still intact, he still caught himself staring a bit more at the mares that had been changed than he would've considered proper, so he naturally had been completely behind getting the clothes stores built. He had even gotten a sharp-looking military uniform that had been laced with leather-tree sap leather for added protection when he wasn't wearing his carapace armor.

Already he was smiling at the sound of hammers ringing on metal to make swords and armor for their troops, doing away with any fancy designs and working to provide as much protection as could be afforded for the job. His hand drifted to the left side of his chest, one of the blades the harpies used, twisted and mangled just like them, had come so close to piercing his heart that if it had not been for the armor he had been wearing he would've died. A shudder threatened to make its way up his spine as he thought back to Las Pegasus, making him frown just a little at the near-failure they had.

“No... better to know that we won than that we lost... Like the Crystal Empire...” He mutters.

Much of Equestria seemed to be... less bright... now that the Crystal Empire, and the Crystal Heart itself, had seemed to vanish from existence with that unnerving trace of darkness that chilled you more than any cold ever could.

No! No thinking about it, He had to be positive, if they all started to give in to despair then the chaos that was approaching would pick them apart, he had to be strong, for him... For his town... For Equestria...

… For the Empresses...

{[DW]}

He could smell it... The chaos... It wasn't right... It held a foul taint on anything it touched and refused to give up any ground.

Ticondrius scowled as he looked out at the shifted landscape, only a few miles from the small colony that his squad was guarding.

Rolling hills that had been changed into a vile mixture of plaid and stripes like a horrible patchwork quilt, trees that had shifted into giant candy canes and even fauna that had been changed to disgusting warped forms of what they once were.

Rabbits that now had horrid stilt-like legs...

Ponies from other colonies who had been changed into a darker, greyed form if they hadn't been horribly morphed into changelings.

Dogs who began to walk on their front paws like a mockery of their physical forms and of the laws of the universe.

Ticondrius spat on the ground towards the deformed lanscape before he slid his helm back into place and walked back to the settlement. Once inside he looked to each pony he passed, a pang of grief spiking through his heart with each pony that used to be part of the crystal empire, sitting with less than acceptable living conditions all because of an enemy that refused to back off.

It had even been a few days since he had heard from the monastery about the condition of their Chapter Master. He had smelled the taint on Astelan, could smell the taint where the capital of the Empire had been... He knew something happened... But if he kept his thoughts on it he would've driven himself into paranoia. He had to be strong for all the other ponies who were looking to the Lunar Templars: Wolf Pack for strength... The pack had to be an unyielding shield for those who didn't deserve the fate that so many others had received. He could feel the chill in the air again, that instinct that had never driven him wrong before...

...Chaos was stirring again.

{[DW]}

I groaned as I held my head once more, the pounding headache refusing to leave me in peace no matter how quiet the room was and no matter how hard I prayed for guidance from the Empresses. No matter what I did, that damn pain persisted...

“...Empresses... Hear my prayers... Let my brothers never fall to your enemies, watch them as you do me and grant them the strength to continue in this never-ending tide of blood and evil... Empress Luna... Herald of the night... Patron of the Templars... Grant your sons the strength to strike down the chaos... Give them the strength to protect those who cannot protect themselves...” I take a small breath as I feel moisture running down my right cheek. I gaze into the light-green visor of my helmet, the face of my own armor staring back at me with the neutral gaze that so many others saw.

“Empress Celestia... Herald of the Sun... Patron of the Knights... Give us the resolve to burn away our fears... allow your sons and their charges to purify the battlefield with bolt and flame... bringing peace to a world at war... Give us the courage to move forward... to never back down... to never retreat in the face of fear. Your sun grants life, while Empress Luna's moon grants us rest... Both are beautiful and dangerous... I seek your guidance... because I hear whispers of what happened in the empire... I cannot understand them fully... but I feel their pain, I feel their sorrow... Please... Give us all the strength to fight until the war is done... until the world stands in peace, with every being unified...”

I let out a shuddered breath as I place a gauntleted hand against my eyes, wiping away the unbidden tears as thousands of faces flash across my vision... once the fear in their eyes bringing me pleasure as I crushed them in the name of the empresses... Now their horror making me realize just how much of a monster I was becoming. I let out one last prayer...

“...Please... Keep me from becoming like the monsters we fight to protect your ponies from... don't let them know our pain...”

Author's Notes:

ALL THE FEELZ!!!

Anywhoozle, I hope you all liked this look into the world of the marines when they weren't slaying in the name of the Empresses!