The Great Desert, Nile River, Early Morning

Marching in the darkness of the night I kept talking to the ghost of my little sister, her keeping me company made the lonely march feel less lonely but during our talk I realized that Shepard was a bit pissed that I let the Rachni Queen get the upper hand with my mind but he was pleased to see that she was staying out of trouble...but when I heard him speak up behind me I just gave him the finger before shooting an Incineration Sphere at him, full knowing it will miss him but it did help me blow off some steam...and speaking of steam, I forgot how cold the desert can be at night and since my armor was incomplete I felt the chills of the cold creeping up on me but the small speck of orange over the horizon told me that warmth was coming soon.

The desert sun slowly rose over the horizon as the sand dunes became numerous and varied in size, the temperature rapidly increasing as the sun began its climb toward the heavens just as the humid air left the surrounding area. The river water ripples and wavers as dragonflies and insects skitter across the surface as the fish swim through the current, my eyes scanning the surrounding area as I cupped my hand into the water and drank a mouthful of crystal clear water before dipping my hand back in again and again until my thirst has been quenched.

Walking along the river's edge I spotted a small plume of dust rise off in the distance, betraying whatever's position moving amongst the sandy dunes. The sand plume slowly rising as whatever it is was coming in my general direction as it slowly began to reveal the bulky distorted shapes of something bipedal lurking off in the dust cloud. As the sandy cloud resolves itself into fourteen bodies of varying shapes, as the figures got closer I leaned against the nearest sand dune and kept my right hand on my Talon pistol holster, expecting the worst.

The figure leading the group phased out of the sand cloud to be revealed as a Diamond Dog wrapped up in desert camouflaged wrappings as seven more dogs walked out of the cloud followed by five ponies and a single sheep. As the nomadic group got to the river the dogs unhitched the two earth ponies from the carts and let them get to the river first as the two pegasi with their own carts struggle not to stumble in the sandy soil. The sheep itself was having problems with standing up and as soon as it got to the edge of the river just plopped down and started to guzzle the water as if it was its last day alive, which by the way it was breathing and how fast it was drinking, it probably was.

Thinking it was a trading caravan by the way the carts looked with tarps covering the top along with the sounds of boxes jingling around from the cargo within. Looking one last time at the group as they set up camp by the river I made a quick analyst and thinking it over and leaving my spot on the dune and walked over to them.

The first one to spot me was the first dog to have walked out of the sand cloud for he has finished setting up his tent as he walked over with a paw on the pummel of his sword as he spoke up first, "Ho, traveler! What brings you out here by yourself?" his question making sense to the common person traveling alone but for me it was more along the lines of 'Walking back home'.

The group nears the end of setting up their own camp related tents as they begin to come over to the two of us to see what the commotion was about as the dog introduces himself as he keeps a firm grip on the pommel. "I am Cooper Emberbreak, former traveler of extraordinary places and seeker of rare treasures! Though all of that was a long time ago as I retired due to an encounter with a sand dragon...now I just seek out traders to safeguard against the threats of the desert." the dog said as the other dogs took up defensive postures as I kept my hand on the pistol grip, popping the button off the holster.

"My name is Roran Zidane, N7 Paladin and agent of Princess Celestia. I died recently and came back from the grave to carry out my oath, now I am just passing through this area until I can get back home or find something better." I said walking toward them until the silent monotone of my walking was abruptly broken with a loud thunk. I looked down and realized my left foot was standing over on a lid of an old chest still somehow intact and buried in the sand. I was overcome with curiosity, so I dug it out quickly with my one hand only to discover that empty but I smiled as I lifted out of the sand to take notice that this could be worth some price in bits at the first market I get to.

The dogs that was around when I found the chest scrambled over to me to see what was in it but when I popped it open and they saw that it was as dry as a sun bleached bone they backed up and turned away, making small whimpering noises as they retreated back to their camp as I looked around the chest to make sure it was not an illusion placed inside of it or a false floor board hidden at the midsection but feeling around for any segmented wood panels but there was sadly none.

"An agent of the pony rulers?" I nodded yes while carrying the chest back to their camp as I was motioned to the lead dog by another one that stayed behind to keep an eye on me. "So what brought you all the way out here in the Great Southern Desert?" I said that I was brought here to be revived by somepony that used dark methods to do it, but since I didn't know how Chrysalis managed to bring me back or if it was Death finally coming to keep with his promise. "Interesting...well, I was hoping that you were for hire since trekking this desert is dangerous business, but since you work for the pony crown all I can ask is that you assist us, for pay of course." he said with a hint of hope, and most likely that this desert was dangerous since he said that a sand dragon managed to beat his ass up and down the dunes since he probably found its home and scared his ass away.

"Sure, just put the pay inside that chest I found, I'll manage it from there, so just tell me what threats roam this desert and just worry about what might be coming from here." and I was later told that there was few threats to worry about but from what Cooper told me, the desert ants, sand traps, and even a group of bandits going by the Sand Fangs. The Sand Fangs are groups of renegade Diamond Dog that left the Dog Country and formed their own group. Now they terrorize the enter region, how they manage it is currently beyond me.

Taking a look at their camp I saw that it was fairly simple and easy for the common group of caravanning lifestyle, the fire pit in the middle of the camp is surrounded by varying sized rocks and the tens and bedrolls are scattered in a circle around it to make it appear they are a pack to any wild beasts roaming the desert for a quick meal. The dogs, ponies and sheep within the freshly erected camp rove around the interior as they begin to set up other little additions to the camp, manly small traps that could been easily set up and taken down when needed and even an awning to provide shade from the blazing sun that was now making its way to the middle of the sky.

Looking one last time at the camp I placed the chest just outside the group circle and laid down under the awning while staring at the others occupants with semi-interest, the few dogs that are not doing anything are playing cards over a blanket, the two unicorns are practicing their magic as those that are working are now retiring for the time being to get some rest. During the time in the shade a group of dogs and the lone sheep came over to me, seeing who exactly was allowed to be with them during the day as I tilted my head at them to see who exactly was coming and placed my head back on the sand as they came to a stop within a few feet.

"If you six got something to say than say it now cause your interrupting my train of thought at the moment. Not trying to be rude but if you are trying to talk to me you could have came here yourself." I said while grabbing a passing feather that came off one of the Pegasus lounging on a carpet resting their head on a small rolled up bedroll.

The sheep stepped out of the group of dogs and gingerly walks over to me, the sheep looked at me for a while before clearing its throat and spoke, which to my surprise was actually a dude since I couldn't tell what the fuck it was cause of all the fluffy wool on it. "Roran, it comes to my attention that when you spoke to the leader of the dogs here that you worked for the pony princess correct?" I simply nodded as I rolled the feather between my fingers watching it spin as he continued, "Well I have been wondering for a while now, how come that one of her agents is all the way out here? The Great Desert is not know for being the most hospitable for pony kind let alone anyone in particular besides the dragons and lizardfolk that live amongst the sands and rocks." I shrugged with my one arm before I let the feather fly from my fingers as I pulled my arm back to help myself off the ground as I sat up so I can be eye-level with the sheep.

"Well I am all the way out here because like I said, I died all the fuck way up north by Sombra, that fucking deceptive piece of shit unicorn ran me through and than I was fucking ejected out of the Crystal Kingdom in a large ass energy wave and left to die in the winter tundra outside of its borders. I wake up to find myself alive and all the way out here, if I knew where the fuck is here I could probably find myself back no problem." I said as one of the dogs pulls out a map and hands it to me and as I unfolded it my eyes popped open as I saw what I was looking at.

"Oh you got to be fucking kidding me...I thought I was in god damn Morocco not in the middle of fucking Nile River! God damn it this is gonna suck major ass to get all the fuck way up there." I shouted as I tossed the map back at the dog who gave it to me who flinched back along with the sheep as they watched me go on my tirade.

After a while I simmered back down and stroked my head trying to calm myself down as my mind started to rattle about how the distance needed to travel on my body along with how long it will take to get from the middle of the African Desert to England. My estimations says about three months of constant travel and use of various methods of getting back up.

'I swear...if my friends knew that I was alive and they found a way to send me a map there would have been two dots, one for where I am and where they are and they would have written this is you and this is us, get the fuck up here. And hurry up motherfucker you got a lot of explaining to do.'

As I was stroking my hair I dragged it forward to see if I had to get it trimmed and I saw something that made me realize that being dead for prolonged periods of time sucked. My hair went from its natural black color to snow white. Before I even open my mouth to start a second tirade I bit my tongue to prevent myself from shouting again as let out an explosive sigh before plopping back down onto the sand as the sun hits the center of the sky.

Before long I was nudged in the side by one of the dogs and climbing back to my feet I saw that they have begun to take down their camp and I assisted with what I could since I was only equipped with one arm and since we now had a spare chest I was required to pull my weight with this group by carrying some of their junk in the chest which oddly enough was able to hold the awning and the carpets before becoming hard to close and lock. The sun itself began its slow trek down the sky as we kept close to the river so we know we are heading north and know that are going off course or the wrong direction, the sheep has only told me about who they are and what they are carrying cause for some reason they are loaded up with spices, fabrics and even a crate full of gems, the crate has me confused since those are only worth so much since they are common back up north.

By the time it was about 5pm we ran into a problem...

"If you had told me that the sand traps of this time are as large as me and were smart enough to be mildly organized than I would have laughed in your face and called you out on it...but now...fuck I hate being wrong."

The sand trap that was in front of us was a large hole going down to reveal a pair of pincers but what we did not know was that it was all an ambush as eight ant lions came out from cleverly concealed holes in the dunes and near the river and before long we were cut off on all sides.

The ant lions was something that pretty much stuck to its same appearance from my time except for the major size difference and that instead of small insects being its next meal, it was us.

As the dogs fanned out and started to go after their assailants I was busy with the ant lion that was in front of me that just looked down at me for a second before charging forward and snapping its jaws shut as it angled its head low to go for my legs but I moved back fast into and quickly brought my fist down onto one of its mandibles as it snapped through it with slight ease and watched as green blood started oozing out like a corny old movie. The fight with the dogs against the other insects was not fairing so well as the one unicorn we had levitated one of the ant lions and threw it as far up as I can throw a heavy ass object into the air, which I would say five stories high, of course the bug survived the landing but could move for shit as four of its six legs were mangled or shattered all to hell. The two pegasus were trying to distract the bugs while the normal ponies did hit-and-run tactics which was working for the most part, the dogs were holding their own for now.

"Does anyone else think that this feels like deja vu right now?" I shouted as the same ant lion that just attacked me made another lunge and the same result happened, I brought my fist down on the other mandible and gripped the base of it and drove the pointed end down on its skull and watched it wither in the sand as it tried to remove the spike but only served to drive it in deeper into the ground as it gave one last spasm before dying.

'This does feel like deja vu....I know I did this before...but when oh....right...the rachni on some unclaimed planet before Shepard made the deal...eh it was a glorious battle...too bad that a few of them died in an explosion.'

Blood was spilt and bodily fluids dripped onto the sands and was consumed by the heat and sands as another ant lion fell to its wounds by having three spears driven through it as another burst into flames by the unicorn as he smirked in victory as the flames licked at its carapace before slithering under its armored plating and cooked it from the inside out. I saw one of the dogs get chomped in half as the mandibles tore through his shoddy armor like it was wet tissue paper as another was crushed into the sands before having his head torn off.

The battle ensued for longer than I had originally had hoped for as we had lost three dogs and one of the earth ponies to the ant lions. We spent a few minutes trying to gather ourselves back up and find the missing body parts of those dead or injured, the four corpses we lined up far from the river and was promptly burned in a shallow grave. These dogs were a superstitious bunch, they said that if they did not burn the bodies of their slain comrades or buried them in a proper grave that they would rise from the void and hunt for the flesh of the living, not really how zombies work but whatever floats their paddle boat.

Looking skyward I saw that we had wasted the entire day resting, traveling, fighting, digging and burning and resting again in that order, the entire day wasted but we had crossed decent enough ground and when the sun began its last decent over the horizon we set up our campsite again, the sheep now visibly scared and worried that this caravan was not worth the money he placed into, I simply didn't care about the others, they were expendable for all I care and they are serving their use for the time being.

Later that night under the stars I saw the few constellations I can recognize as the Little and Big Dipper and even Mars off in the distance, still baring the dark pock marked scars of the great war 16 million years ago, I could still see the twinkling of stars long ago that are now entering their last phases of existence, dying out and eventually fading away from the history of the galaxy. As I stared up at the stars I saw a figure glide over the desert clouds, the appearance was of a duck flying in reverse, I thought it was simply just a duck.

I was wrong.

2 Weeks Later

Two weeks of traveling has started to take its tool on me, the food I have been given for working along with the caravan has been paying off for the most part but the labor I had to exert to earn the meager amounts of food from them was demeaning to an officer of the Alliance Navy but it was a necessary evil for me to figure these people out, each of them had their own business in the coming town that was resting directly on the river and from what the map told me that the old location of Aswan was coming up but from the current map it says the Town of Shifting Sands, the actual name is something that made me wonder in amusement of the Lizardfolk's intelligence.

At the crack of dawn we dissembled camp and hooked ourselves up for the coming miles of sand ahead of us till we reach the wood and stone walls of Ssvlataeir and hope to god they have some sort of plumbing cause taking a shit in the dunes with no toilet paper is grinding on my nerves as well as my decency meter.

"So Roran when is it time for you to feed me? The last meal has left me wanting more of this so called 'Chora's Den', the atmosphere of such a place fills me." said Mirias, who has perched herself in my scraggly greasy two toned hair as a very small version of herself being able to hide in my hair with very little suspicion from the others.

I found out she has been following me for the past week when she was sitting on top of me as a scorpion and when I was about to freak out it made a hushing noise and when I saw the emerald colored eyes and that it even made a hushing sound in the first place tipped me off that this was not an ordinary scorpion but a changeling instead. The ensuing argument was settled that she would feed on me once every two days so we can keep up the appearance that sun is sometimes getting to me making me dizzy and disorientated and not being drained by a changeling. So far they were none the wiser and that I finally had someone to talk to even though she served a queen that fucking abused my head and made me relive the worst of my nightmares.

Lifting my hand and scratching my head for a while before finding the tiny changeling and scratching between her shoulder blades before removing my hand to cover my eyes as that was my signal that was for her to start feeding and I felt microscopic fangs prick my skull and began the feeding process, my mind going back to one of the times I went to Chora's Den and the few times I was there it always ended in a bar fight or me passed out drunk outside with a still full beer bottle in my hand.

"There it is! Ssvlataeir! Finally we can have a real rest and be able to take a load off, you human, just stay out of trouble will you?"

"As long as trouble doesn't find me, its all good. But the first sign these pendejos get on my case and start to annoy the shit out of me que por María Madre de Dios I am going to kick their fucking ass." I said before swaying a bit from the feeding than shook off the disorientation from it as we crossed the last dune and started down the gentle slope to the walled town for the day.

Upon approaching the town we were stopped by its occupants, and let me tell you people...these folk were for the most part as tall as I am, a few inches shorter but still as tall as me. I was roughly 6 feet tall with my armor but naturally 5 feet 9 inches, they would be roughly give or take 6 inches shorter than me without my armor. By far these people were as tall as I am but for the ponies and the lone sheep me, the lizardfolk and the dogs tower over them which amuses me to no end to always be the giant in the group cause I get to mess with the midgets.

The bipedal lizards gave us each an appraising look with their thin slitted eyes, they are wearing chainmail while wielding a wooden shield and spear, one had blue scales while the other had brown scales. Upon seeing our group they halted us and started to search us for anything so called 'illegal' but when they came to me, asked me to remove my armor so they can search me, I nearly unsheathed my Omni-blade into the closest ones throat but the sound of a deep throaty growl from behind them revealed to us a much larger lizard, this one clearly a foot taller than all three of us but upon seeing my missing left arm and that my helmet is gone, seemingly realizing that I was a great warrior that has suffered grievous wounds that has left me crippled but still capable of taking down threats with half the combat prowess that I had. This captain of the guard has seen his fair share of battles from the scars lining his face and on what little parts of his exposed chest I could see, the breakage in his scales and the pink fleshy scars was enough proof to me that he went through possibly hell and back. That and he is wearing a small dragon's skull on his head.

"Let this male through...his missing arm and eyes are enough to let him through, do not get in the way of a veteran warrior for he has seen the depths of the void. You traders are welcome to stay at the tavern but you, you can stay in the barracks of the town guard, we will have much to talk about." the captain said as he turned his back to us and returned to his post as we all entered after him, the two guards keeping their eyes on me and before the gates closed I turned around a bit while still walking, my eyes locking with their as I raised my right hand and gave them the finger while extending my Omni-blade before turning back and sheathing it back. Their faces was priceless.

This town...is something out of an story about the middle east, all the houses were boxy in appearance and appeared to have been made of lime stone of sorts or maybe even sand stone, either or these structures looked sturdy enough to withstand me if I got hammered and started a drunken brawl of sorts with the residents, that or I would go right through it like wet tissue paper.

Looking around the main road there was stalls set up along the houses, the stalls were roughly carts with one side open to the public while the other side was closed to act as the counter for the bartering and haggling of bits...or whatever these lizards use for cash. The plants were 100% cactus of the old days except instead of being green, they were brown, palm trees were ever present but they were low instead of being high up so shade was always present.

"Okay...first things first....I need a fucking bath, being dead for five months than resting up for roughly two months...god I swear I must smell like death or worse." I said as I tried to smell myself but my company that I came with were long gone as I saw them heading towards the tavern, which was oddly called the 'Laughing Coconut' and the sign out front was indeed, a coconut with eyes and a mouth laughing.

'I sure hope that is not a laugh bar cause if it is I am going straight to the barracks.' I mused as I began walking towards the tavern, little lizard children running around, their prismatic array of scales shines out their colors against the dull colored walls as the sun's rays catch their scales before being reflected off as a different color. The looks I started getting from the lizards was a constant mixture of confusion, wonder, awe, fear, and in one very odd case lust, and for that one case I quickly turned my eyes toward what I think is the female lizard and shifted my eye color from the blood red to pitch black with pin prick red in the center, all that served to do was grabbing more attention since I rarely ever shift eye color in public let alone use it for the intimidation factor that I was hoping for.

About half way to the tavern a lizard bumps into me and I instantly knew where this was heading, I barely felt through my armor his scaly hand grab my holster as he removed it from my belt and quickly began to run off, as I saw him begin to run I instantly yelled out "Run Forest Run! Cause when I catch your retarded ass I am going to fucking tear you a new asshole!" and as I said that he turned his eyes to look at mine as I extended my Omni-blade and gave chase, his eyes widening out in fear as he turned tail and sprinted away from the group as they opened up to reveal the path to the both of us.

As the thief started to run down the main road he took a left through the crowd and went straight into the alleyways as I jumped onto the first stall I saw that was closest to the building and than leapt at the building before grabbing the edge of it and yanked myself up as I ran on the rooftop, my glaring eyes keeping track of his movements as he rushes past children and adults alike to escape the coming punishment and pain that I will bring down upon him.

Chasing down the thief through the alleys was easy enough as he kept getting bumping and falling over people trying to escape me but as he got back onto the main road and started heading toward the main gate, the two guards there heard what happened are waiting to capture him but as he saw the two wielding their spears and was pointing at him with the sharpened point he skidded to a halt and turned around only to catch my fist with his face.

When my fist collided with his face I heard the sound of his dagger-like teeth crack and shatter from the impact, his mouth ejecting bits and pieces of his teeth along with his blood as he fell in a crumpled heap on the dirt road and as he weakly tries to bring himself to his knees I brought my foot down onto his back forcing him back down, the sounds of bones creaking and cracking filled the air as the two guards begin to approach the two of us along with the crowd that saw the whole thing unfold. As the thief fell back to the ground I forced my right foot under his belly and with my unnatural strength I lifted him off the ground before kicking him into the air a few feet before raising my fist at the right moment for him to fall directly on it where his gut is located, his body's reaction is to discharge everything that was in his stomach in the past few hours onto the ground.

Sneering at the thief with great disdain I reach down and yank out of his already weakened grasp my holster, and still inside it was my revolver, untouched and still smelling like old blood, grease, and metal.

"Disgusting filth...you should have been eaten at birth, no one in their right mind would rob someone in broad daylight, in public, and especially if the one you are robbing has the power to bend and snap metal easily, let alone your spine. Now let me clean you off, the hard way." I said before grabbing him by his tail and slowly dragged him near the wall closest to the lake and started to twirl him around, gaining momentum and before long threw his thieving ass over the wall and into the lake, a distinct splash sound was later heard as I went back to my business, the lizards that saw the beat down unfold quickly went along their daily lives as my eyes locked with theirs.

Walking back to the inn I found out real fast that as I walked through the open door that it was not exactly what I was expecting. The interior looks like a normal tavern, complete with a large central hearth, numerous tables and chairs, even a polished red wood bar. The patrons all seemed to be happy and pleased with the environment they are in dressed and interacting like normal people, if normal people were diamond dogs and lizards. The atmosphere inside the building is warm and friendly and the few that give glances in my direction immediately divert it away, probably heard what I did to the thief that tried to rob me.

The patrons that were gazing at me quickly returned to their prior business as I walked through the tavern, looking for the group that I had traveled with and a loud whistle and a wave of a paw I strode over to the group who has taken residence of a corner booth, all of them drinking out of a coconut with a tiny umbrella on it through a straw. If I was told back than that 16 million years from now the people of the future would still be drinking the typical islander drink than I would have called him out as a liar, but seeing it now, it makes me feel like a jackass. Upon finding my gaze on their drinks one slid down my way, the leader of the dogs giving me a curt nod as he resumes his drinking, my hand lifts the coconut drink to my face, my eyes scrutinizing the beverage and hoping that this was safe for me to drink but realizing that all the shit I went through recently and all the food I ate as well, this one drink wasn't going to kill me.

I hope.

49 Laughing Shell Drinks Later

"Hey man...you thinksh I gots a chancesh with her?" I said as I slurred my words, my body wobbling like a pinball as the other slightly and full on drunk patrons nod and than pushed me toward the female lizard on the other side of the bar, her friends busy chatting to her and the few times I looked at her she was casting glances at me and when I caught those glances she quickly looked away.

As I stumbled my way across the bar my eyes kept bouncing around in my skull, clearly unfocused from all the apparent super booze that was in that coconut drink of theirs, my feet was just barely preventing themselves from stumbling over on each other, my vision was full on Drunk Mode and my speech was as slurred as the next drunk man.

Upon reaching the female I realized that I was fucked from the beginning but I kept on going knowing that I was either going to have a great time or get into a massive bar brawl. As I got up to her I saw that as soon as she got a glimpse of me she turned away quickly and her friends that are with her started giggling and giving me 'come hither' stares as their tongues dashed out of their lips trying to entice me but in my drunken state I had no idea what was going on.

But knowing me when I am drunk I know exactly how this is going to turn out.

What I did not know was that her mate was watching this unfold and when I finally said something that crossed the line he came over and told me to back off, and in my drunken state I told him to go fuck himself, which is sadly not the smartest thing I said but being drunk, I was allowed some reprieve but when he took a swing at me, I dropped the ball and returned the punch, of course this turned into an all out brawl between me and five other lizards, I won but because I was an outsider I was given the boot.

"Come on man I can't believe your doing this shit to me man...just because I had way too many coconuts doesn't mean I am *belch* drunk..." I stammered as four buff lizardmen carried my ass out of the tavern and in one motion threw me out like a spear at prey.

Picking myself up off the dirt road and dusted myself off and staggering around I realized that it was now night time about 6pm and that the sun was well gone past the sand dunes and the skies were now star-filled darkness.

"I guessh I can shleep it off now...." I mumbled to myself before going to a one way alley and sat in the corner balled up to keep warm.

ROAR

'Fucking hell....'

As I opened my eyes I saw flames, burning cacti and tress and buildings bursting from the fire heating the rock buildings till they exploded from the heat and pressure. Jumping and climbing onto a building a I saw that the figure I saw in the sky a week ago was now actually a dragon, a dragon who was now burning the town down while picking up anyone it could get its talons on.

As I got to the main road I saw the leader of our caravan, the sheep, get picked up by the dragon than promptly eaten as I saw bits of burning wool float down to the ground. I nearly shat myself as it circled back and came towards me, flames burning down in a straight line as I quickly raised my shield and crouched down, my Omni-shield protecting me from the heat of the flames and as the dragon flew by me I collapsed my shield in time to fire off two psi-blasts that nicked its left hind leg and it let loose another roar but this one I am not sure of annoyance or pain but either way I pissed it off.

Scanning the area I saw that a few parts of the wall has collapsed and are blocking the way out of town, the dragon lazily turning around now taking its time to finish this town for good. Jumping roof top to roof top I got to the closest gate and started helping the guards moving the rubble out of the way and as soon as the large chunk of the wall broke down the lizards started pouring out of the town like rats from a sinking ship, all of them carrying what they could and in a hurry to escape the fiery inferno behind them.

"Everyone get the hell out of here! Town Guards make sure the women and children get out safely, do not let the dragon get close to them! You One-Arm! Help us!" the grizzled captain said as he fired a bolt from his crossbow at the dragon, the measly metal tipped bolt bouncing off its scales but it only served to annoy the dragon even more so as it swooped back for another pass but this time directly towards the main gate where both the captain and I are standing, him being on the road while I was standing on top of the gate getting ready to pounce on him the first chance I get.

Taking this chance to survey the area I only see the smoke of the raging fires of the town, the smell of burning flesh of unfortunate victims and the wails of the young crying out for their mothers, the same scene on Earth...but this time I can actually do something about it.

My eyes keep scanning the area, looking for anything or anyone that can assist me with taking this dragon down now and ending the assault before any more lives are lost but as my eyes searched around I saw it again, the cloaked figure standing idly on a rooftop staring at me, those eyes...the empty black eyes staring back at me....but this time this was real, the being was here...on the rooftop....looking at me. The roar of the dragon took me out of my stupor to only see that it was right behind me and on instinct I jumped at it with my Omni-blade out and praying to whoever has the time to listen, I stabbed my blade right above its tail and that only pissed it off even more but from the sudden searing hot pain into its very lower spine the tail's nerve endings got fried and it goes limp as the dragon, now unable to steer without its tail, goes crashing into the center of town with me still on its ass as the impact dislodges me from its rump and hurls me over its head, and from the momentum, my foot hitting its snout, and my body hitting a cactus.

"Thank you god that I am wearing my armor....otherwise this would have been comedy gold right here...and very painful." I groaned out as the cactus fell over with a prickly crunch sound as it started to leak the juicy water it stores within its core but is now being sucked up by the hungry sands of the desert. Pulling myself up in time to narrowly dodge a limp tail swipe as the dragon reasserts itself and roars right in my face, its breath was terrible enough to make the most fragrant of flowers to wilt on contact and those with thin airs to burst into flames from how fowl it is, spittle and saliva fly from its maw as it covers me from head to toe, my eyes closed as it just splatters all over me.

As I opened my eyes I saw the dragon was looking right at me, its eyes glaring a hole through my head as I ever so slowly wiped my face of his spittle, flinging it on the ground and repeated the process until my face was moderately clean and as I opened my eyes again I saw that the dragon was grinning at me while I was giving it a scowl.

"That was....the second most...nastiest....fucking disgusting.....thing....to have ever happened to me....in the history of sixteen million years of my life....and dear god I had my mouth all open and shit! God...oh god I think I am going to...to...." I was cut off as I turned around and gripped the cactus and threw up, just unloading 50 coconut shots, two plates of fried lizard tail, and one bowl of haybacon. The dragon chuckled to itself as it watched me lose my lunch and gag from how atrocious that was, but having to scrap that stuff off with one hand, and to still smell like bad dragon breath, I had put a hand to my stomach as the smell started to make me feel woozy again. The dragon saw that as my weakness and as it tried to bite me in half I barely managed to duck before giving that fucker an upper cut in the jaw.

Everyone that was watching when the dragon ate dirt from the dive bomb were cheering as they saw the upper cut but when the dragon came too he actually manage to sink its teeth into my lower half, my armor prevent it from ripping right through me but it started to shake me like a ragdoll, trying to rip me in half as I flailed about but I managed to grab its nostril and put a crushing pressure grip on it, forcing a small yelp on it as it let go for a second to send me flying into a brick wall as I bounced roughly off of it and brought my shield up as it let loose a torrent of flames upon me, the intensity of the heat was turning the dirt to glass and the vegetation into piles of ashes but the flame breath was cut short as it roared out again but from the sudden pricks it has been receiving from the spears of the town guard and in that moment of distraction I turned off my shield and turned it back to its blade form and created a weak Throw and turned it on myself as I landed on top its back before bringing it between its ribs but was thrown off when it beat its wings and took to the skies as I gripped to the end of its tail, now back to partial life as it took flight.

The dragon knew I was holding onto its tail but since I had only one arm and that it was being used to hang on for dear life it rose high in the sky, trying to get me to let go and plummet to my death but I was not taking any chances so I held onto that fucker as if it owed me money, and owed me money it did as it did a complete 180 degree turn and came back down like an arrow, the air screaming by the both of us as it hurled itself to the sands and before it could crash into the ground it snapped open its wings and created enough g's to drag me to near-unconsciousness as I let go in time for my body to be flung by its tail as my legs quickly become embedded into the sands up to my waist.

"And this is how the great savior of the Crystal Empire ends, slain by the mighty dragon of the desert, such a shame to put you down but you have interfered with my hunting."

"No, this is how it ends for the arrogant dragon that overstepped its reach." I said as my eyes turned to its deathly visage, my right palm glowing an unstable violet and black as I launched all of my biotic energy at it, its mouth opened up to consume it, thinking that it was magic and that it would do nothing to it, but instead when I turned my hand into a fist, violet light shone through its scales and moments later the beast bloated like a overfilled water balloon before exploding into meaty chunks and bits of bone, its head landing directly in front of me as its mouth gapes open in surprise and shock, its tongue hanging out of its head as blood started pooling at both ends.

After what felt like an hour I heard the sounds of feet and what I think is hooves and paws walking on the moist blood soaked sand as I waited for help and the first thing I see was the captain of the lizard guard, missing a bit of its tail but with a large ass smile on his face. His spear was prodding the dragon's head as I just stared at him for a while until he got the invisible message and helped me out of the and but as I began to fall over from the great amount of exhaustion and fatigue I had placed upon myself to perform that blast to ensure my own life was spared from yet again another early grave.

The destruction to the town was great but it will survive but for the coming weeks or months it would required to be rebuilt but it will endure.

The party they threw for me was just like the one the krogans threw for me when I helped a group kill a thresher maw for its meat.

It was going to be epic.

The following day

As the sun began to rise I put on my armor, my clothes were finally cleaned after 7 months of being dirty and smelling like rotting meat now smelling like fresh rain, and my hair, still two toned but no longer felt greasy or smelled like old person. I grabbed my supplies that the lizards have gave me for the trip and told me the safest route back north was to follow the river and stay hidden when resting, they placed over my normal armor scales from the dragon, or what was left of it after I forced it into a violent explosion that left it pretty much nothing to see. The secondary set of armor that is now draped over my own is roughly like the guards chainmail but instead of interlocking metal loops, dragon scales, and from what I know of dragons from the books I read, their scales are highly resistant to heat so in essence fireproof to a certain degree, and that they can easily bounce off magic so also magic resistant, not that it would do much since my biotics always interfered with it but it helps to have a little extra. Its skull, waiting outside the main gate for me, resting on a sand skiff so I can easily haul it across the sandy wastes.

"Be safe pony agent, just know that you won't be forgotten, unless of course we forget to remember such a feat. A dragon exploding from magic, something that will make even the most ancient of dragons wonder who is capable of such a feat. You best watch yourself for news spreads faster than the plague in these sands."

I only nodded as I walked past the caravan group and to the main gate, my skull waiting for me as I plucked the rope from the sands and started walking north along the eastern side of the river, the skull still blood red and hanging to small bit of muscle.

'Dragon Slayer...Thresher Maw Slayer....Reaper Slayer....Bandit Slayer....man I really need to get a fucking medal for all the shit I do...maybe open up a museum for all of my awesomeness...this skull would be perfect for the center piece of my home...hell would make an excellent addition to my bedroom, place it nicely over my bed...hehe sweet.'

2 Months Later

"Wow....looks like the German landscape hasn't change over the millennia....*sniff sniff* and damn does it still have that sweet pine scent....this is way better than the fucking deserts....Just North-East and I am finally home....now where did that lass said her city was again.....was it, that way?" I said as I kept dragging my dragon skull, now sun bleached and bone white from its time spent in the sun and that my dragon scale armor was gone, traded it to the lass that is now following me, and her constant pestering of who I am and where did I get my armor from, still thinking I am some sort of hairless diamond dog but no matter how many times I told her I am not she just giggled at my frustrated face and bops me on the nose with her paw before skipping ahead and telling me to follow her.

It has been a week since I paid for her service as a guide back to Equestria but god damn can she cook a mean squirrel stew. Hell when I tried to cook it once she yelled at me to stop, pushed me out of the way and took off where I stopped and made it better, I had no idea what I was doing at the time.

This girl that is currently my guide, she has yet to tell me her name, but what she calls herself is something that I could never say because even I can't say it without fucking it up badly, but from her appearance alone, she looks sorta like the gremlins in the very old Earth movies, but way taller, exactly my height but smarter and not as devious as those little shits. These gremlins though, I can tell are hell a lot smarter than the movie gremlins. As I said, she looks exactly like them, she is completely covered by beige fur, her eyes from when she was wearing her cloak was pure black but now they are pink as cotton candy, strange color but still not the strangest to be seen. If you compared Gremlins to the Diamond Dogs you would see striking similarities but that is where it ends, they look a bit more well...like gremlins than dogs, they are smarter than dogs, and they can actually speak like a normal person, except she has a german accent and from what she told me, her city is in Germany, right where Berlin used to be.

"So...are you going to clue me in on where we are going, or do I have to guess?"

"Ja, you have to guess pretty human, you may have paid me to be your guide but you didn't ask about what the guide's services entails to. You paid in gems but you have yet to pay the other part of our bargain, information on where you got your armor from, that is nothing this place has ever seen before." she said, her voice was like the typical german girl except it sounded more Swedish than German but it is still pretty damn awesome to hear.

Taking a chance to look her over as I kept marching behind her, the skull behind me creaking a bit on top of the sled I had to improvise since the sand skiff only worked on sand and once we had hit rough dirt than grass and snow I knew I had to change tactics. As I looked her over I saw that her crossbow that she carries outside of her cloak, looked more like mechanized than wooden contraption, underneath the bow itself was a cylinder and from the thin openings all around it, it stored approximately 20 bolts, readily to be fired in rapid succession, it also had a scope of some sort on it so I can tell that her people must have at least made telescopes or binoculars of sorts. Instead of a typical normal sword like what most people would use, she carries instead a machete and it has a serrated edge to the front side and an angled edge on the back side, a dual purpose weapon. For a fact I know she is wearing armor, I saw her wearing my dragon scales and leather armor of sorts, and I could tell it was leather because that nice rich brown color is always leather. I even felt it on accident when she accidentally tackled me when she was running from a manticore.

We ate good for a week.

During the marching we came upon a wonderfully strange sight, more strange to me than to her, the city she said she was leading us to? It looked England during the industrial revolution, I saw a few factories within the city, large stone walls encircled the city in a protective shield from the outside world, all the houses were Victorian styled and were all next to each other preserving space, in the center of the city was a large building, my guess the mayors house or whatever kind of government they had at the time.

"A beauty isn't she? The city of Nouakchott is a jewel of the Solusian Republic, and you may be wondering how we got this far, to answer that you would have to uphold a vow of silence to never repeat this to anyone ever besides my people. We must speak with the Lord for you to understand....erm....this is going to be complicated." she said as we got to the gates and without warning they were raised by two giant gears as the iron gate was raised to let us in but as soon as we reached its threshold it stopped and went in reverse as it closed itself.

To describe the actual city itself? Steampunk. That is all I need to say, everything here is steam-powered, the homes were being heated by steam as the snow around their homes were melted and only collected on the streets, the streetlamps were also steam powered, the blue flames flickering as we traveled down the road until we reached a small station as she used it I was busy trying to figure out how they managed to do all this but I just saw small pieces of technology that is eerily similar to human tech, but that was until it slapped me in the face that this was all human tech in its own way. On the streets were gremlin-like mech's, a single large steam pipe on its back as smoke billowed out as it swiveled side to side looking for the scourge of society. There was small trollies moving about, there was no cars but everything moved with extreme precession...something that oddly reminds me of the Citadel.

"Girl are you sure that....wow...are those mechs? How the hell did you even manage..." I said as I waved at pretty much everything in sight, "all of this! Hell even the ponies who were probably alive a lot longer don't have shit like this!" I said in complete shock that they are beyond pretty much everything by most likely a couple hundred years.

My guide simply smirks at me before getting approached by a contingent of guards, all of them wearing what I think is bulletproof vests of sorts but is covering their body from neck to knee, their helmets also has their ears built into it, providing flexible protection for them, and in their paws, the same kind of crossbow my guide has but with an attached blade to its underside, a bayonet of sorts. As they talk to each other in their own language, almost as much as the diamond dogs I take a look around the area we are in and found it to be nothing more than the common streets of any other city except, its all steam powered.

The sudden feeling of something sharp prodding my side was enough to pull me away from my observations to return my gaze to my guide who is looking giddy for some reason but when I tried to ask as to why she is like this she just goes off about something called the 'Pylon' and that I was somewhat a part of it, and on that end the guard contingent formed around us in a box formation and got onto the nearest empty steam barge and as she pulled back a lever it roughly coughed to life and before long it started to ratchet down the road toward the large building in the center of the steam city, my eyes constantly casting looks at the occupants of the barge, seeing their eyes locking on mine before looking away when I teasingly shifted them to my death stare, seemingly making a few unnerved from the stare alone but before I can scare another couple guards the barge comes to a complete stop, knocking me off balance as I go through the open window and fall out to go head first into a bush as half my body is out of the window, my arm flailing about trying to find a grip of some sort to pull myself out.

The large building in the center of town, from afar looked like a mansion, but up-close it was more of a fortress than a mansion, it has large metal walls, ballista's line the wall along with smaller versions between them, effectively forming a harpoon barrage if the worst came to greet them.

"Wow....locked up tighter than Fort Knox....he...hehe...old world reference." snickering to myself as I felt another prod from one of the guards and before long I felt six paws grab my legs and yanked me out of the bush in time for me to swat away the leaves and twigs that tagged along, the mess was easily removed but the front door to the fort? It was inlaid with gold and had a large sigil of the crossbow but with two wings coming from the sides of it, not sure what it means but I shrugged and followed the guide through it, hoping for answers as to why they wanted me for their device or whatever the flying fuck it is.

The lass pushes open the door as more guards started to follow us in, just abandoning their posts to see what the fuss is about, obviously they had failed Protection 101. The hall to the main part of the fort was lined with old ass pictures, some of them so faded from the years that you would have to be the person to have painted it or saw it before it succumbed to its age to know what the hell it was, and there was the paintings that looked recent, and the overly recent of a few days ago.

As we reached the main room of the fort I had a stupid moment as my foot snags onto the carpet as I swear out loud as I go face first into the floor, my armor clanking a bit as I hear my nose crack from the impact, everyone that was present started to snicker and laugh but upon getting to my knees I brought my fist down while sending out a biotic pulse into the ground, throwing those that were not paying attention or had sure footing as those that were not paying attention were knocked off their paws and onto their asses, the ruler of this city, not sure what to even call the bastard, started to laugh and as I got up the guards had their crossbows pointed at my head but when I started to glow with biotic energy the lord made a deep throaty noise and they all lowered their weapons and backed off while I kept my Nova at the ready.

"So...Yvonne, you brought an outsider into our lands when I had instructed all of our kind to never leave the safety of the walls for out of fear that the outside world would corrupt and taint us to self destruction...your reasoning for bring this being here better be a good one...or it will be both your heads." the way this dude speaks, reminded me of Councilor Udina...that fucker really had to go.

The ensuing yipping and growling begins as the two bark it out (Pun intended) and as I stood there wondering what the hell is going on I spot what they called the 'Pylon', it was a basically a powered generator attached to a satellite control relay, in essence a spy sat station.

I don't need it...

But I want it.

Walking over to the machine I tapped its the keypad that was glowing weakly for gods know how long it was going with how little power it has left in its batteries so I did what comes naturally to save technology that I want to use for as long as I possibly could.

I raised my palm at it and used Overload on it, the screen turns off for a split second before turning back on as it went from .0124% power left to roughly 39.54% power left in its triple celled power core.

"And that was your problem...damn thing needed some juice...now lets see if I can spy on Equestria from here...." I said aloud as the two stopped their verbal debate as their heads turned to see me typing as good as I possibly can with just one arm, my fingers flying around the pad with reckless abandon until the screen pops up with a picture of deep space and with a few more taps on the pad, it rotated around to face Earth, in all of its glory.

Tapping more command lines the lens zoomed in a bit, breaching past the Earth's atmosphere as it came upon England and the fringes of Europe and another several taps revealed a large section of Equestria's borders, two more taps turned into Ponyville, the apple farm, and parts of the Everfree Forest, one tap than turned straight to my home and it was still standing except I saw my sweet YMIR-Cuddles going on a short patrol out front before being lifted back to the third floor storage and before it could close I saw Rainbow Dash zip out of the gates, heading straight for her cloud home with what I think was my book on 'Aerodynamically designed ships' and upon further zooming in it was. I facepalmed as I realized how much of a nerd she is for when it comes to being the fastest flier ever. Going back to my home I saw that there was no lights on, not even a sign of life besides the fleeing mare and as I dragged my finger around Ponyville I saw that Kira was sitting at a café with Fluttershy and Rarity, having a chat but since this satellite is probably running on fumes I couldn't listen in on their conversation but knowing those three...it was probably something boring as hell so in a hurry I dragged my finger across the screen to some random spot in the forest to see a river serpent with a mismatched moustache talking to Discord, and in a moment that scared the shit out of me, Discord looked towards the sky, gave a toothy grin, than waved his lion paw at the sky before resuming his chat.

"How the hell did that motherfucker know I was spying on him! I was watching him from fucking orbit!

Discord's POV

During my chat with Steven Magnet I felt a chill go down my spine as I felt something watching my every move, and usually that was only Celestia to make sure I was not causing too much chaos or disturbing the peace, but this watchful gaze was more cold than motherly warmth. I tilted my head toward the watching gaze to see a faint twinkle in the sunny sky, and I knew that was no star, stars only appear at night and since this is not my rule, it had to be something not of this world....and there is only one man that would spy on me with something that is alien.

So I promptly raised my lion paw and waved at Roran, knowing full well this will cheese him off to no end as to wonder how I know it is him, probably at this very moment he is yelling at the nearest pony as to how I caught him. Chuckling to myself I bid Steven a farewell and snapped my talons to return to Roran's home, wondering where he left the remote control to my television...

Roran's POV

"Fuck you Discord! Fuck you!" I shouted before shooting a psi-bolt at a potted plant watching it explode into dirt and dust.

"Well that was completely unnecessary...but what was it that you were doing to the Pylon? How did you activate it and how come we could not?" their lord said as the guards stood their jaws agape and probably with their thumb up their ass surprised, Yvonne was too busy staring at me the same way as the others.

"Well...you aren't human that's why. This machine is a MK IV Black Cat Stealth Satellite Terminal, its not a power generator of some sort but an espionage station to spy on others, or in my case, spying on my friends...and now that I got this to work for another 15 years..." I said as I typed in it a few more times and my Omni-tool lit up as I closed the new window with an agreed folder to its name. "And now I finally have claimed another piece of my people's past...and I know figured out how your kind as evolved to the point of having steam technology...you found plenty of my species tech and reversed it for yourselves....pretty damn smart..."

The unanswered question remained hanging in the air and everyone knew what it was.

Can you help us create more of it?

"No" was all I said before the guards snapped to attention and brought their crossbows back at me.

"Can we make an agreement of some sort? With this we can finally re-unite our race under a single banner and end the countless years of bloodshed." the lord said in an almost pleading manner, his voice restrained from bursting into a tyrannical yelling contest but knowing that I can further advance his people to unite all of them...I knew he has to play diplomat with someone that was far superior to him.

I looked back at him than to my missing arm than toward the guards and then finally to Yvonne who was by now waiting for me to say something but I simply turned my back to them as I typed back into the terminal as it gave a happy chirp and then turned itself off for the moment.

Turning my gaze back at the lord I gave my own toothy grin, the same that Discord gave me as I gave him my response.

"Fine, but I want somethings in return." I said and in that moment I became more than just a cybernetic human.

I became...awesome.

1 week Later

'Okay time to go over the checklist...'

'One repeating crossbow with spare bolts and bayonet...' I turned to the table as I spotted my forest camo weapon. 'Check.'

'One comb and toothbrush' I spotted the classic Elvis Presley comb sitting next to the basic toothbrush, the bristles were all lined up and the little tooth cleaner at the bottom of it was nice and pointy...perfect for a prison shank. 'Check.'

'One set of Gremlin Scout Armor with modified Left Arm attachment...gun metal grey coloring....' I looked it over on the table, the helmet seemed to fit them more than me but since I didn't get much of a choice on major modifications...it would have to do, its left arm has been temporarily filled with a skeletal metal limb to give it weight and that if I used momentum for it, it would be like I swung a left hook...a left hook with a large blade attached to it. 'Check.'

'One backpack filled with beef jerky, apples, peaches of some sort...and five water skins...check.'

'Two pick-axes for mountain climbing...' I looked on the table and saw the pair, wrapped together by leather straps, 'Check.'

'And lastly...one bottle of Barkandi 151 vintage....' I grabbed the bottle and looked it over before placing it back down, 'Check.'

"Okay that is everything I wanted...now Lord Osiruas, as we had agreed upon, to turn the terminal on you must first tap the power button, and to spy on the area you are looking for just drag your paw onto the screen to anywhere on the planet...just try not to destroy that satellite by crashing it...there is only one of its kind left. And those schematics on blimps should prove useful for you." I said as I strapped on my Gremlin Scout armor, it completely covered my Paladin gear and it actually made me look whole and complete, something that I have been lacking for the greater part of half a year.

Front Gate of Nouakchott

"Well Yvonne, this is where we split...try not to do anything stupid with my spy satellite...I really don't want to know that someone is spying on me while I take a shower...that shit was creepy enough when those assassins did that." I said recalling that exact moment, it was back on Omega when I started working for Aria, and those poor bastards never stood a chance with that grenade already thrown at them.

"Oh quit worrying boy, just take your reward and get out of here, but remember this, if you have any other bit of information or technology you don't need just send it to us, you will be compensated for it." she said as she threw me my crossbow that she snuck out of my pack with a smirk on her face.

"Ya ya ya I get it...damn you girls are so...so...fuck it." I shouted as I walked off, the Equestrian borders a months march from here but the delay was worth it...in a way.

Near the Rhine River, Old Site of Cologne

The sounds of clashing metal and deep howls filled the night as it roused me from my slumber, not even in the middle of the sweet Germany forest could I get a moment of fucking rest.

Slowly stretching and pulling out my crossbow and pulling back the bolt into firing mode, my left hand being nothing more a clamp to hold it still when firing as it acts as a bipod of sorts. The smell of meat from my campfire was quickly extinguished as it started to rain and very quickly a torrential downpour as two armies started to fight it out right in front of me below in the low valley. My dragon skull resting quietly as my sleeping bag within its maw stays dry as the teeth prevents water from seeping into its jaws, cleaning those serrated chompers is worth having it.

The two sides were intent on wiping the other out completely as bolts and arrows from both sides go flying, howls of pain and death filled the air as both sides pull out all stops to win the battle. Spheres from one side are tossed over the enemy as they explode in a conical direction sending shrapnel toward their foes as the other side launched spheres of their own but upon impacted they exploded into liquid flames. Humanity's weapons still being used even when they have been downgraded to the old ages.

This is humanity's legacy.

A legacy of death.

One that I will leave a mark to be told for centuries.

Smiling under my helmet, knowing that the enemy of either side will think of me as a stray soldier of either side will engage me in open combat, combat that gave me a superior advantage for I was a master of dealing death.

"Death...prepare your scythe...I might fill your monthly dead quota."

Extending out my Omni-blade I yelled out in sadistic glee and charged down the hill.

The Grim Reaper is going to war.

Author's Notes:

Enjoy.