“Come on bitch push it up. Come one, come on.. There you go!” Big Dog says while spotting me.

With a grunt I slam the bar down on the rack. Sweating and breathing heavy I stand up and let him get to his set. As he lies down the mechanical spotting arm swivels up and grasps the bar, at the sametime I do.

“So… when are... you and that Tymerian... gonna fuck?” Harris asks as he lifts the bar.

“I don't know man, with anyone else it would be different. I mean before Miiora Charlotte and I fucked all the time but it didn't mean anything. But with Miiora i… I don't know.”

Big Dog or veteran Harris an asshole but he isn't that bad of a guy, and besides Grayson there isn't anyone I would want by my side.

“Look, I don't know isn't an answer. And you fucked Charlotte, damn. The lizard is obviously crazy about you. Why not get in there?”

“I mean you have got a point there, ever since the crucible. Whenever I'm not here or she’s not with Charlotte she just kind of follows me around. It's like she’s latched onto me or something.”

“Well when you think about it it kind of makes sense. She grew up a slave, and you grew up in the PRC. On top of that, you did rescue her from slavery.” He says as I lie back down on the bench and he takes the bar.

“I'm just worried that I messed this up or something and this is some kind of Tymerian thing. I mean…” Big Dog cuts me off as I lift again

“Let me stop you right there Iceman. Look one you have a PDP with access to the networks and info on Tymerian culture. Look it up. Or two ask another of the same lizards, it isn't like Miiora is the only one around.” I rack the bar and stand back up facing him, his face is stern.

“I'll give you this advice bitch. A friendly face and voice to wake up to. Someone to remember you when you’re gone. You have a chance that a lot of potheads don't have Iceman. Dont let that go to waist.” He finishes as our PDPs begin to vibrate with a priority alert.

The rim of Big Dogs brown eyes flicker with red light as he opens link. While I take out my own PDP.

+Priority Alpha+
MOTH Team-1 report to the the spire, briefing room 2-B. Floor 586. For an important announcement.

Switching off my PDP as everyone starts to leave. I start to think about what Big Dog said. Maybe he’s right, so I take my PDP out and send a connection request to Miiora. I watch as the connection symbol rotates while on the way to the parking structure.

“I..i don't understand… why you want me to say my name…. this is my voicemail. Make my your voice my mail.” weird she usually answers immediately when I call.

“Miiora... we need to talk.”

MOTH Wilkinson

Wilkinson watched as the two Changelings with him chittered back and forth together. Slowly he’d began picking up some of the their language. As he watched them he couldn’t help but look at the station itself. It wasn’t a civilian station, but the design might as well made it one. Whoever had overseen its construction went for more of a design flare instead of the functionality of what the station could be.

A military station would have at least four ports, two main, two secondary, there would be no real windows, everything would come in via sensors, cameras, and scout ships.
Instead this station was open. It was almost like the UEC wanted someone to attack it, or perhaps it was more likely they simply were so arrogant that they believed no one would dare cross them.

Like Skuttle and Cheryl (Two names they chose from his short list of human sounding names) he was studying the actions of the UEC soldiers on board. So far their scans had provided them with a few choice bits of information.
There was at least four teams of six, two hornheads, no Pegasi, and what Skuttle called a CMF computer.

Apparently each station had a terminal like this one, and it linked the complete knowledge, ship placement, and weapon information on their shared net. Wilkinson wasn’t going to lie. Getting that kind of information would provide the kind of intell they needed to really stick it up the UEC’s ass and break it off.

Naturally the three of them had little to no real change of doing this alone, but then they were just studying the actions of the station. Which, hadn’t changed at all. He looked at Cheryl as she activated their encrypted signal. Quickly they relayed what they had learned, and then they relaxed.

“When we attack, we need to hit one of the secondary stations. I’ve noticed that they rarely check the right one, and I’m going to suppose because they have nothing of value stored in it. We go in there, work our way up, and take the station one level at a time.”

Skuttle nodded, “Sounds good, Queen Chrysalis should be arriving soon. Let's get set up.”

Avery Fallon

Spire command military command center
2169AD, 106 AC.

I arrived at the Spire for this important announcement before most of my brothers did. When I arrived and stopped by The Galley for coffee. From the drooping eyelids and jerky movements around me it was obvious that most of us were still slightly hung over.

I myself had a splitting headache from drinking with the other podheads last night.

“What do you think this important announcement is going to be?” Amp asked No one in particular as we grabbed a steaming cup of coffee from the vending machine.

“Don't know, Mate.” another voice said, turning I see a tall man in the ACU of the Nordic Empire.

“Hey your. Magic right?” I asked extending my hand.

“That's right. Caption Franklin Klyne, callsign magic. Nordic Empire SAS.” he says with a friendly smile taking my offered hand, shaking it roughly.

“That was some good work on Gudrin. Heard you and your team took out an entire UEC compound.”

“Ah you know, those were the good days. Before the ponies got their shit together.” He laughs clapping me on the shoulder.

“Yes I remember the good days when riding pony training camp was easy. Now? Zabud' ob etom! You would be lucky to get close to base.” another voice beside us says turning we see the stocky form of an SRA trooper. His companion beside him is an angry looking Chinese woman, who looks all of nineteen.

“And you are?” Franklin begins.

“Domitri Korcha. I am aerospace coordinator. Similar to your NAC combat controllers, SRA Spetsnaz.” The big russian says.

“Good to meet you Domitri. I am…”

“You are Staff Sergeant Avery Fallon. Recent recipient of the NAC medal of honor. Currently MOTH special forces, but before that you were a combat controller for your fleet. Veteran of the Polyps and Teska, campaigns against the Lankys, SRA, and the destruction of the Stranded colony on LV before the war. And since then you have been embedded with your marines and formers. Participating in both the Camelot operation, and Bagmare siege. As well have survived the Helghast massacre.”

“I’be never had my life story explained to me before mis?”

“Mow quake. SRA Spetsnaz.”

“Well I've never worked with so many special forces units all at once. Whatever this is its big.” I say shaking mis quakes hand as the rest of the MOTH’s and Helldivers began to arrive.

“Must have coffee.” Rage said shambling forward like a zombie.

“Maybe brass if finally gonna decommission your sorry ass.” bender said.

“You know that's almost funny?” Amp says smiling sardonically.

“The word is discharging by the way. You decommission a war ship you discharge a soldier.”

“Yeah but you ain't human dude. So you get to be decommissioned.”

“What ever”

Hijack plugged an ancient looking device into the Spire’s power system via a wide brimmed adaptor. Then he slipped two pieces of bread into the devices cooking sloughts. Bender, Big Dog and I started at him like he was crazy.

“Burnt toast, best hangover cure there is.” he says in his thick Texas drawl.

“Where in the he'll did you find a museum piece like that?” Big Dog asks.

“Amp’s House.” Grayson looked up from his coffee.

“You stole my toaster?” Harris ignored him.

“Hey you stole my toaster? My grandma gave me that!”

Harris whipped a fake tear from his eye. “Aw grandma gonna cry now?”

“Are you sure you have the power adaptor set properly hijack? It smells like your charring the bread. You probably should take it out.” I say as flames burst from the two slots on the device, Hijack unplugged it and fanned the top with his hands. It wasn't helping.

“Blime!! Put it out before one of the fire suppression bots comes in with its extinguisher grenades.” Franklin says frantically, as bender grabbed an extinguisher and sprayed it down with fire retardant foam.

Amp came forward and cradled the foam covers remains of his bread device.

“My toaster. You ruined my toaster.”

I groaned as I roamed the hall of the large station. Several of the mares stationed with me here believed this was important work. Keeping this primitive Mudball of a planet in the tight clutches of the Princesses meant keeping what few sapient beings here under careful watch and guard. I groaned as she stretched. Most of the others would be listening to another safety speech, or they might be catching some chow in the mess, but I was glad to simply enjoy a smoke, leaning against the wall I fished out a single cigarette.

The smell of it was slightly stale. That made more sense than I’d like admit. In truth I’d been here for well over two tours. I took a puff from the cigarette, looked, up and let a single smoke ring escape my lips. It made no sense for me to be here. I was the hero of Tartarus for Celestia’s sake. It had been through my actions that Grogar had been defeated, that the terror of that lunatic had been dealt with, but then again it had done something to me that tainted me in the eyes of most other ponies.

The other ponies were long lived, longer than most would like to admit, but it came at a different price. For me, well it had been my battle with Grogar that had changed things. I was, for all rights and purposes, practically timeless. I wasn’t immortal. A cut while chopping vegetables had proven that, but time didn’t affect me. I noticed that I hadn’t aged, a single day, in centuries.

I felt her horn itch, and reached up to touched it. It was funny, the only time it itched was when trouble was coming. But that was practically impossible here. After all, how would trouble find me? I was on a planet that was basically little more than a supply port. Granted, it was a supply port that was important, at times, but then again the last time their docs were full had been after they were forced from that human colony. Then it wasn’t used so much as a supply port, but rather a place for medical attention, and a few soldiers to collect their wits.

“Gusty!”

I wanted to roll my eyes. Automatically I knew whatever it was came down to some misplaced paperwork. Excitement just didn’t happen her. Still, I looked toward the calling voice and saw a younger Earth Pony. The mare neared her, put on a winning smile, and saluted. Cinnamon Apple wasn’t the brightest soldier, but she at least was enthusiastic about serving. Of course she’d heard, like several of the infantry, about the great Gusty’s battle against Grogar, how I moved against the powerful Necromancer, and in the end how I managed to lock him away in Tartarus for all time.

There was no doubt in my mind that Cinnamon wanted the same kind of notch in her belt. I watched as the mare dropped the salute after a moment and stood before me.

“What’s the news Private Apple?”

Cinnamon appeared to stand taller, if that was possible, and her eyes glinted with a sort of excitement that promised more than misplaced paperwork.

“We picked up something odd, an energy signature, but we don’t know where it is exactly.”

Energy signatures weren’t exactly exciting news, but then again when faced with practically nothing it could mean some kind of excitement. I finished my smoke.

“Alright, let’s go check this signature.”

There was absolutely no doubt the UEC had picked up that slight power surge. The Changelings had fantastic technology, the ind that made them practically undetectable when it came to close quarters combat. In truth, it was the kind of stuff only mentioned in old science fiction stories. Their cloaking device, for lack of a better name, made them practically invisible to both the naked eye and to every kind of sensory device we and the UEC had. The one flaw with the cloaking device was if there was a massive message coming in it would cause an unstable energy signature to appear.

Cheryl had explained that most of the UEC used those energy signatures to hunt their ships sweeping it around like a searchlight. It made sense to do that. After all, why not use your enemy’s flaw in their design to your advantage? We humans use a similar technique to search for our own Still, I didn’t like the idea that the UEC might know that we were sitting outside, waiting for them.

With any luck we will be able to slip passed their picket and make it to the transit point. As we bear the node and the edge of the UEC picket Cheryl turns to me with a quizzical look displayed on her face.

“What is it?”

“We have received a message. Nothing large enough to give us away, but the strange thing is that from what we can tell one it came from nowhere. And two every ship in the area also got the message.”

“That's weird. What did it say?”

“Playing it now.”

“Aegis shines to butterfly. Land of black, on emerald skies. Pain on spines, miles high. Throne of blood. Pattern: Black.”

A shutter goes through me. I lean forward gesturing to the transmitter and asking for permission and receiving it. They couldn't possibly be.

“Butterly shines the name. White sands on red seas. Aegis knows no fear. Power in the book, a sword at rest. A Cage in wait, While a giant sleeps. Pattern: Pearl.” my only wish as we make it passed the UEC picket line and begin the long voyage to the transit point is that I'm not to late.

Avery Fallon

When the rest of the COG special forces arrived there were close to forty of us in the room. Snafu and X with some Helldiver teams. Parts of MOTH Teams one, and four, and mixed personnel from the NE SAS, SRA Spetsnaz, and UAF Zulu.

I notice that there are still people missing from my team, and the other MOTH team in the room. As well as both Helldiver teams, making me wander what is going on.

Then the door behind us opens. We all stand up ready to fight as a unicorn pony walks in, with a purple dragon behind him. Ahead of them SOCOM Colonel Santiago walks with a large female changeling bringing up the rear.

As they take to the front of the room another smaller team of changelings walk in and take seats in the back. With another human man walking in behind them and sitting down.

“No way that's Casper Williams! He single handedly took down seven lankys with his siafu mech.” I whisper to Amp on my left.

“I hear he has the highest lankys kill count out of any mech pilot in the COG.” he responds in an early low tone.

“Good morning ladies and gentlemen. Please be seated.” He says, we do as we are told as the lights dim, and the wall display begins to light up.

“Now As we are pressed for time let's get down to business. As of o’h seven fifty solar time, we lost an entire forward base on the UEC world of Tearus. Active scans during the battle show massive energy fluctuations and discharges we haven't seen yet.” He changes the scream from the rotating gear of the COG to a multi spectrum image of a prefab base.

“There are the usual discharges of weapons and thermal energy usual from a battle of this scale. But her..” he points to a cluster of twenty roughly human thermal signatures who seem to be firing in the same direction, before playing the image.

There there is a massive spike energy on the display. That radiates out like a wave towards the cluster before it strikes. When the strange discharge is gone all twenty of the humans are gone.

Murmurs and rumbling erupt throughout the room as we begin to try to speculate what caused the effect.

“As you can see there is something powerful out there, but we don't know what it is. However our allies in the resistance believe they have an idea. General Honor medal.” General Santiago says before stepping to the side, as we fall quiet.

“What you have just seen, is a demonstration that you have truly gotten the UEC’s attention. That Mares and Gentlecolts was alicorn magic.” The unicorn says, as some of us write notes in our PDPs.

“That's impossible, the magic we’be dealt with before wasn't any where near that powerful.” one of the Helldiver says, earning nods from a lot of us.

“That is because Alicorn magic is more powerful than any unicorns, and rivaled only by that of a changeling queen.”

“If that is true then how did my team capture princess cadence?” Helldiver X asks.

“That is because you had surprise on your side, combined with the fact that princess cadence isn't as magically adept as the other three princesses.” The unicorn says before continuing.

“Now without the proper scopes or scanners we aren't able to determine which of the princesses is presently on the planet. But this knowledge is not the only piece of key information.” He then began playing the scream again, and our blood runs cold at what appeared next.

The image is blurry but it's silhouette unmistakable. A shape like one of the UAF siafu mechs, rolling with the UEC advance.

“Is that..” One of the Zulus asks prompting Santiago to speak up, taking honor medals place.

“Thank you general. We don't know yet. But our analysts are going over the data as we speak. Needless to say, we all know this war is going badly for us, and if we can capture one of their leaders we can force a surrender. But if not we have a contingency… Queen chrysalis.” General Santiago says before giving the podium to the large female changeling.

“Thank you general, now my changelings and connections in the UEC command tells me that there are two points of interest that you would want to hit. One.” she shifts the image to show a planetary image with two crosshairs on either side of the planet.

“One is a fuel and water depot for the UEC fleet in this sector. Destroy that depot and it will put their entire war effort of back foot as you say it. With the size of this target whichever team attacks the pipeline will have the full support of the resistance.” She says, before rotating the image and showing a smaller target. The purple dragon who had been quiet up unroll this point takes this time to speak.

‘So they are going to split us up, makes sense. Hitting them both at the same time.’

“This is research station farsight. Overseen by commander Rarity Belle, with research conducted by princess Twilight. Make no mistake, this will be the harder target, as it is the most likely to be housing the alicorn. As well as whatever projects Twilight has been working on.” He says his right fist balled so tightly orange blood slowly begins to ooze from his palm.

“Podheads.” General Santiago says as the lights turn back on and the screen is deactivated.

“You have each been selected for these tasks because you are the best, the elite, you will all know what to do. The success of your missions will be our key to a swift victory. We leave in one week. Dismissed.” We all stand and salute the general before filing out of the room in ones and twos.

As we file out of the room, I can't help but hope that I get placed on the mission to capture the princess.