War in Equestria

Maverick looked up at the setting sun from the library balcony, the horizon painted red. The weather had picked up slightly, a light rainfall landing on the umbrella set over the soldier watching the night sky edging its way closer. The balcony door opened and Maverick looked back, Hunter making his way over to his Alpha unit. Hunter sat down under the umbrella next to Maverick and stared at the twilight sky, stars starting to become visible.

“Reminds you of Umbra, doesn’t it?” Maverick asked, turning his head to look at his Beta unit. Hunter stayed silent for a second, keeping his glance at the horizon.

“Where did you live before you came to Umbra, Maverick?” Hunter asked, his eyes shifting towards the houses and shops of Ponyville below. Most of the ponies had gone inside, a few still out in the streets making their way to their homes. A few rays of moonlight made their way through small holes in the clouds above, a flash of lightning followed by a low rumble in the distance occasionally disrupting the quiet night.

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Well, I can tell you now that it wasn’t like Umbra. Years and years of manufacturing and factory emissions finally took their toll on the planet. Earth was finally coming to a stand still, resources running low and the toxins in the air killing millions over the years. You would have to wear a filter almost every second of the day if you didn’t want to suffocate. Earth was turning into a living hell.

Then we found Lambda, the eleventh planet we found that could be suitable for human habitation. The other planets we had spotted out either had very extreme conditions to the point where you would only be able to survive a year or so, and with that, Lambda was the planet of choice. Of course, there was always the problem with the creatures that were already living there. The military decided to go ahead and barge in with no consent from the indigenous population. Lambda was based mainly on animal and insect type creatures, no sign of intelligent life on the planet, but that didn’t stop them from fighting back. The military barged in and killed everything in its path, taking everything for themselves and continuing on without mercy. After a few decades of development and construction, civilians were finally let in to Lambda in the year twenty two ninety six.

Of course,  history tends to repeat itself, and soon enough wars started to break out, the new Lambda population beginning to fight over territory and other aspects of the new planet. After a while, things started to settle down and humans started to become the majority of the lifeforms on Lambda, along with the animals from Earth that had been brought along with. Not too long after the discovery of Lambda, we spotted another planet fit for humans, the planet Umbra. We didn’t take long to fly out there and start to establish colonies, the military taking no hesitation to find another world to explore.

However, this time the indigenous population wasn’t as willing to give up to us. They seemed to be passive when humans started to build, but as time went on they started to become more protective over their home land. Unfortunately, so did some of the civilians that were brought to Umbra were as well. Riots and public assassinations began to increase in number as the people saw what the military was doing to the peaceful planet, and the Umbra Revolution came into play in twenty five twenty six. I was only eleven when I heard of the news that the military were beginning to recruit soldiers to come to Umbra and fight along side them, and what do you know, five years later they come to my doorstep and take me off to Umbra. Although I missed home and my family, seeing that planet was beautiful, a new planet barely touched by the toxins that had overwhelmed Earth.

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“But... that’s all behind me now, the military wants both of us dead and I don’t think we’re going to go back to Umbra without a gun pointed to back of our heads. This is our home for now, Hunter, this world filled with... ponies, pegasi, and unicorns.” Maverick said, chuckling to himself a little as he finished. Hunter’s eyes had sank a little, a slightly sad expression on his face. Maverick looked at him with a worried expression.

“Maverick... can I ask you something?” Hunter asked. There was a flash of light in the distance, coming from the Everfree forest, followed by a small pop.

“You know you can ask me anything, Hunter. Go ahead.” Maverick replied. Hunter sighed and looked down at his hooves. Hunter’s heart was pounding within his chest, eager to ask Maverick about what he was, but scared of the answer.

“...Am I... a Bet-” Hunter was cut off by Twilight yelling from downstairs for Maverick and Hunter to come down. Hunter closed his mouth and sighed, looking out at the horizon again. The sun was gone, the rainfall beginning to pick up as Hunter and Maverick sat on the balcony.

“Are you a what?” Maverick asked.

“...Nothing, don’t worry about it. Let’s go see what Twilight wants.” Hunter said as he and Maverick got up. Maverick watched as Hunter walked inside and let out a worried sigh.

“Something’s up... I just don’t know what.” Maverick thought to himself as he bit down on the umbrella handle, taking it back inside. Maverick set it down next to the balcony door and walked downstairs, Hunter standing next to Twilight and Spike. Maverick walked down the stairs and over to the group, a letter levitating in the air in front of them.

“It’s a letter from Princess Celestia, she says to go to the Everfree forest entrance as soon as possible.” Twilight said, keeping her eyes on the letter.

“What for?” Maverick asked.

“I’m not sure, it doesn’t quite say why.” Twilight said as she rolled the letter up.

“Alright, let’s get going then. Come on.” Maverick said as he and Hunter walked towards the door. Twilight followed them, Spike staying behind for safety measures.

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Maverick, Hunter, and Twilight walked up to the bridge leading across the stream that connected the path from Ponyville to Everfree. The rain had picked up to a minor downpour, barely anything visible on the outskirts of Ponyville. The three ponies stared at the Everfree path as something started to walk towards them, the sound of hoof steps in the mud growing closer.

“Stay where you are, don’t come any closer!” Maverick yelled into the darkness of the Everfree forest, his voice echoing in the distance. The hoof steps stopped and Hunter turned on his and Maverick’s night vision.

“Hunter, Maverick, is that you?” A familiar voice called out in the direction of the pony on the outskirts of Everfree, responding to the sight of Hunter and Maverick’s glowing green eyes. Maverick squinted his eyes to find another pony along side the other.

“General, nice to see you here, what do you want?” Maverick asked.

“Zulu here has informed the military of his findings, and I must say, this world is quite a sight.” The general said as he started to walked across the bridge with Zulu.

“Stay right there, general. Answer my question.” Maverick said in a more stern tone. The general smirked and came to a halt in the middle of the bridge, Zulu standing at his side, staring at Hunter and Maverick with a new mechanical right eye.

“This world intrigues me, not only that the population is intelligent life, also that it seems to have quite a large amount of land and resources. I would like to further explore this world, that is, if you allow us to. I have almost the entire military base ready to come through that inter-dimension unit back on Umbra and wreak havoc on this planet. If you cooperate, we will not engage the indigenous population and you two will be taken with a group of troops back to Umbra. If you choose to push back against us, we will open fire and we will take this world by force. Your choice.” The general said. Hunter and Maverick looked back at Twilight, who shook her head.

“Looks like you’re going to have to put up with a bit of a fight, general.” Maverick said as he and Hunter looked back at the two soldiers on the bridge. The general’s smirk turned into a slight frown and he nodded at Zulu.

“Zulu to dimension reception, orders from general are to bring the soldiers through the dimension unit on Umbra and begin the march through the forest to the town. Expect resistance.” Zulu said. The radio in the stealth unit cracked and a quiet ‘Yes sir’ came through.

“Good luck, Maverick, you’re going to need it.” The general said, turning around and heading back into the forest with Zulu.

“Aren’t you going to stop them?” Twilight Sparkle asked as the general and Zulu disappeared into the Everfree forest.

“The order to begin the attack has already gone out, there’s no use in stopping them right now. Besides, we have to get back to Canterlot and warn the princesses, I would assume that they want to begin preparing for our military.” Maverick said. Twilight nodded and she put her hooves on the two soldiers next to her, the three of them disappearing with a teleportation spell a second later.

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[Four hours later]

“Alright, ponies! We are facing a threat unlike any before!” The sergeant yelled at the squadron in front of him. “They are intelligent and they do know how to fire back! Do not hesitate to put a bullet in their skull when you see one! While they may be in the form of ponies, their uniforms are not like ours, so open fire on them at any time! Luckily, we have two of their soldiers gearing for battle to fight along side us, they will inform us about any threats that could be beyond our handling!” The door behind the sergeant opened and Maverick and Hunter walked out, both of them wearing a dark blue uniform.

“Here they are, Hunter and Maverick. Have at it, colts.” The sergeant said and he stepped out of the way.

“Alright, there are several types of soldiers that I do want to warn you about.” Maverick said. “They are highly dangerous and should be taken out first. The first is a stealth unit, a mainly mechanical, highly trained killing machine that can be tapped into to do whatever the operator tells it to. They are extremely stealthy and focus on using melee weapons. Do NOT let them get close to you or let them get their weapons in your path. Second, there are Alpha and Beta units. They will be distinctive due to their glowing green eyes, since it is night time and they will need the night vision. They are highly lethal, very strong, and can heal completely within the first hour of receiving a bullet wound. Once they are wounded, make sure to finish the job.

The third, I will not spend that much time on, but I will go over it in case they do decide to bring one in. The third is a Giga unit, an immensely powerful being able to uproot trees and haul them at over one hundred miles an hour. They are noticeably bigger from the rest of the soldiers and will NOT hesitate to kill you. Though I doubt they will bring one in, keep your eyes open for them. There is one other type of super soldier, but they are extremely rare and are only used in very desperate situations, so I won’t go over them. Other than those three, the regular soldiers shouldn’t be too much trouble if you take them on one by one. Good luck, everypony.” Maverick finished up his little speech and was met with the Equestrian soldiers stomping their hooves on the ground. The group of soldiers dispersed and began getting into position at the edge of Ponyville facing the Everfree forest.

“Nice work, Maverick, you seem to know your stuff on your military.” The Equestrian military sergeant said as he walked up to Hunter and Maverick.

“I was stationed there for about seven years, I’m pretty sure I know most of the things that go on in the base.” Maverick replied.

“I guess that seems fair. Now, about this other unit that you are talking about, how do you know that it will not be sent in to attack us?”

“This special type of unit is very rare and extremely difficult to find a perfect specimen for to make it without any consequences to the test subject. They are only deployed on last stands and very desperate situations. Their violent nature and enormous strength can put the soldiers that are deployed with in it danger and may end up in more friendly casualties than enemy.”

“I see, I will have to take your word on that.”

“Have the ponies of Ponyville been evacuated?”

“Yes, they are on their way to Whitetail woods at this very second. What of the elements of harmony? Where are they?”

“The six mares are back in Sugar Cube Corner for now, in case something should happen and any of them are hurt. They should be safe there for now.” Maverick said.

“Sir! We’re seeing something coming from Everfree!” A soldiers yelled from the outskirts of Ponyville. Maverick and Hunter nodded at the sergeant and they ran over to the front line where the Equestrian arm had set up. There were multiple flashes of light followed by loud pops coming from the Everfree forest. They were different from lightning flashes, and the pop following afterwards did not sound like thunder.

“Do you think that is them?” Hunter asked Maverick.

“No doubt that it isn’t. Everypony get to your positions and fire when I give the command!” Maverick yelled. The two Umbra soldiers flipped forward the barrel on their guns and locked it to the rest of the gun, the straps on their rifles wrapped around their front right legs. Maverick and Hunter raised their right fore legs and set them on the sandbags in front of them, aiming at the Everfree forest. There was a distant sound hoof steps splashing through mud, accompanied by the sound of multiple weapons being loaded and machines being set up. Hunter and Maverick flipped on their night vision and peered into the darkness of the forest across the bridge. There were multiple platoons of Umbra soldiers setting up spotlights and sandbags.

“Hunter, turn off your night vision. Get ready to fire on my mark.” Maverick said as he pushed down on the switch on the back of his neck. Hunter nodded and he did the same, the green glow fading from both of their eyes. The spotlights that had been set up by the Umbra soldiers exploded with light, revealing the numerous amount of soldiers aiming their guns at Ponyville.

“FIRE!” Maverick yelled. The rainy night quickly transitioned to a night of bloodshed and terror, one world fighting for their home land, the other fighting to strip it away from them.

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“Get some heat on those troops to the far right, they’ve got us pinned down over here!” Shouted an Equestrian soldier as he ducked under cover, multiple bullets flying over him and implanting into the mud. The night sky was lighting up with every shot fired from each army along with an occasional strike of lightning.

“I’m on it!” Maverick yelled over the gun shots coming from the borders of Everfree and Ponyville. Maverick leaped over the sandbags he was taking cover behind and aimed down his sights, pulling the trigger back on the automatic rifle attached to his right fore leg as he stabilized on another pile of sandbags. The bullets flew across the empty space between the two armies and made contact with several of the Umbra soldiers, a red mist forming in the air around them.

“They’re down!” Maverick shouted as he ducked down behind the sandbags in front of him.

“Maverick, Alpha unit at your ten out in the open!” Hunter yelled as he ran from behind a pile of sandbags to one of the buildings close to the border of Ponyville. Maverick nodded and peeked over the sandbags, spotting a pony running out of cover, his eyes glowing vibrantly green. Maverick quickly set up again, aimed, and pulled the trigger, the Alpha unit falling to the ground with a bullet in his head.

“How many of them are there!? We’ve been out here for almost an hour!” One of the Equestrian soldiers said as he dashed from cover to cover, eventually setting down next to Maverick.

“The military base we were sent from had approximately one thousand and five hundred soldiers either still in training or fully fit for combat and around three hundred Alpha and Beta units ready for combat. They probably didn’t want headquarters or any of the other military bases to know about their discovery so they could keep this world to themselves, so they have to run out of troops eventually!” Maverick yelled. A grenade landed on the ground next to Maverick, and instinctively, he swung his fore leg down at it, sending the grenade off across the battlefield from where it came from. There was a loud explosion, followed by multiple yells of pain from the Umbra soldiers.

“Maverick, they’ve started to switch to plasma and laser weaponry! They must be running out of men!” Hunter yelled as a thin beam of red laser flew past him, creating a small explosion as it made contact with the ground further into Ponyville.

“Alright, I think it’s time to bring in the elements to show the general what Equestria can really do! Keep the Umbra soldiers occupied!” Maverick yelled as he pushed off of the sandbags and started running towards Sugar Cube Corner.

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“Fluttershy, come out here! They’ll be here any second to get us!” Twilight Sparkle shouted as she pounded on the closet door, Fluttershy hiding within it. The yellow pegasus didn’t say anything, her frightened mumbling continuing from the inside of the supply closet. The door to Sugar Cube Corner burst open and Maverick ran in, only to be tackled by Rainbow Dash as he began to speak. They rolled across the floor and came to a stop, Rainbow Dash’s hoof on Maverick’s neck.

“Oh no, you’re not getting-! Oh, Maverick.” Rainbow Dash said, thinking that it was an Umbra soldier.

“Yes, it’s me! Who else would it be!?” Maverick shouted, lightly pushing the blue pegasus off of him as he got up.

“Anyways, the Umbra soldiers seem to be on their last soldiers and they’ve switched to a more lethal tactic. We need you six in order to end this, I see you all already have the elements on. Where is Fluttershy?” Maverick said, looking around the room.

“She’s in here! Come on, Fluttershy, we need you!” Twilight yelled, pulling at the closet door handle. Maverick impatiently stepped over to the door and Twilight moved out of the way, the door ripping off of its hinges a second later in Maverick’s hooves to reveal Fluttershy’s backside sticking out of a box, her head buried in the cake making supplies within her cardboard shelter.

“I’ll pay for that, don’t worry about it. Come on, Fluttershy!” Maverick said as he picked up Fluttershy and put her on his back, the yellow pegasi looking around frantically and stretching out her hooves to grab the box she was in. Maverick and the six ponies ran out into the rain, Rarity hesitating a little before stepping into the mud outside of Sugar Cube Corner. They ran through Ponyville, the sounds of the battle growing as they winded through the streets. Maverick and the six ponies came to a stop at the corner of the street leading to the battle between the two armies, the sound of gunshots and high pitch laser pulses coming from down the stretch of road. Maverick set the yellow pegasi on his back on the ground, Fluttershy still shivering slightly with fear.

“Alright, what I need you six to do is activate the elements and aim for the border of Everfree, that is where most of the Umbra soldiers are. Hurry!” Maverick yelled over the explosions coming from the outskirts of Everfree and Ponyville. Applejack, Rarity, Pinkie Pie, Rarity, and Twilight walked out to the middle of the street, each of them with a scared yet determined expression on their faces. Maverick turned around to find Fluttershy curled up in a ball, shivering from fear.

“Oh for the love of- Fluttershy! We need you, get over here!” Maverick yelled, his patience beginning to flat line. Maverick picked up Fluttershy again and put her on his back, walking to the far left of the street, the elements in a line formation.

“Fire when ready, girls!” Maverick shouted, the yellow pegasus on his back slightly more concentrated.

“Alright, ladies, let’s show them what Equestria is made of!” Twilight yelled, and the six ponies began to glow, Twilight’s horn emitting a vibrant magical aura.

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“What in the hell is that!?” The Umbra soldier yelled, his jaw almost dropping as he stared at the blinding glow piercing through the gloomy night.

“I don’t know, it doesn’t look like any sort of artificial light source! Men, switch your attention to the light in the town, focus all mortar and gun fire on the target! Take it out!” Colonel Etheridge shouted over the gunfire landing around him. Isaac took out his radio and fumbled around with it for a second, trying to open it with his hooves, the radio snapping open after falling in the mud.

“General, the ponies seem to be... charging some sort of weapon! What are your orders!?” Isaac yelled.

“Remain in your positions and keep fighting! I want that town locked down by sunrise! Do you hear me soldier!?” The general yelled through the radio.

“Yes... sir!” Isaac yelled unsurely and he closed the radio.

“Colonel, look!” The soldier next to Isaac yelled, pointing his hoof at the sky above Ponyville. Isaac peaked his head over the sandbags and the gun fire stopped, the colonel beginning to understand why. Almost every single soldier on the battlefield was staring at the rainbow beam streaming from the end of the road, arcing its way towards the Umbra soldiers position.

“Everyone get your ass down!” Isaac yelled at the top of his lungs. The majority of the Umbra soldiers knelt down and covered their heads, the other soldiers still staring in awe at the mortar like rainbow heading directly for them. The rainbow shot made contact with the ground, but not with the expected results from the Umbra soldiers. The beam soaked into the ground and disappeared, seeming to have been erased from existence.

“Was... that it?” The soldier next to the colonel asked, uncovering his head and looking around. Isaac looked up from the ground and around the edge of the forest, the rest of the Umbra soldiers doing the same. A low hum of laughter started to emerge, along with a few mutters that the attack was a failure. The colonel began to laugh himself, but was interrupted by a small shock of multicolored lightning erupting from the ground and making contact with the rifle strapped to his fore leg, the rifle disintegrating after the element of harmony discharge bursted on the weapon. The colonel gave his fore leg a confused look and looked at the soldiers around him, their weapons disintegrating as well as more and more bolts of rainbow lightning made contact with their weapons.

“Ponies, open fire!” Hunter yelled from behind the building at the border of Ponyville. Gunfire pierced the silence of night and the Umbra soldiers went back into cover behind the sandbags and trees. Isaac opened the radio beside him in the mud and yelled into it over the cracks of lightning, rainfall, and gunshots.

“General, the ponies have... god damn it, I don’t know! Our weapons have been destroyed along with the mortars and we have to way to protect ourselves! We are heading back to your position in the forest!”

“What!? How the hell did that manage to happen!? Never mind, just haul your asses back to the dimension reception area! Move!” The general shouted through the radio, a sense of frustration and anger in his voice. Isaac shut the radio and put it in his uniform pocket.

“Retreat! Get back to the general’s position!” Isaac shouted. The Umbra soldiers began to run back through the forest, but another obstacle appeared that they were not expecting. Loud barks and growls came from deeper in the forest as the Umbra soldiers fell back and timberwolves began to emerge from the darkness of Everfree, their glowing yellow eyes filled with the lust to kill.

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“We did it!” Hunter yelled as he watched the Umbra soldiers seep into the dense forest and the Equestrian soldiers burst out into celebration, even the wounded. Hunter turned his attention back towards the end of the street, Maverick and the six ponies making their way towards the overjoyed army. Maverick walked up to Hunter with a smile and set Fluttershy down, the once frightened pegasus now calm and slightly bouncing up and down with excitement along with her friends.

“That was one hell of a battle, probably even more fierce than some of the revolts back on Umbra, but we managed to pull through. Good job, Hunter, you did good out there.” Maverick said, hugging his Beta unit and Hunter returning the gesture. A quiet ‘Aww’ came from the six spirits of harmony, each of their heads tilted sideways. Aside from Rainbow Dash, who was slightly amused at the two soldier’s display of emotions in public. Maverick let go of hunter and turned to face the six ponies, all of them still equipped with the elements of harmony.

“And we couldn’t thank you six anymore than we can the soldiers that fought along side us, you saved a lot of lives. Unfortunately... we did lose some ponies during the battle. I’m sure they will all be missed.” Maverick said.

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The general stood at the doorway of the dimension transfer chamber, patiently awaiting for the soldiers to return from Equestria. There was a bright flash of light followed by a loud pop and a group of thirty soldiers fell onto the ground of the dimension transfer chamber, all of them soaking wet and muddy.

“Where is the rest of the men I sent in?” The general asked as he walked into the room. Isaac stood up and wiped off some of the mud on his uniform.

“We lost a very large portion of the men that were sent in during the battle, and we lost even more when we were heading back to the dimension reception area because of some... creatures made of sticks. They resembled the modukai here on Umbra, somewhat. They moved like them too, fast and agile. All lot of the soldiers that were caught in their grasp didn’t make it...” Isaac said, coughing a little afterwards, a small blotch of mud landing on the floor. The general let out a slightly frustrated grunt and clenched his fist.

“Isaac, I want you to take the remaining soldiers from the attack and transfer them to Delta base along with the soldiers that stayed behind on Umbra. Speak nothing of the world we have discovered to the Delta base soldiers and tell them we were overwhelmed by an attack by the protesters.” The general said.

“Sir, what about you?” Isaac asked.

“Don’t worry about me, I’ll stay behind and keep and eye on the base for a day or so. Get moving, colonel.” The general said. Isaac raised his hand and saluted the general, leading the soldiers that had come through with him out of the dimension chamber a second later. The general was left alone in the dimension chamber, the footsteps of the soldiers slowly fading as they walked through the hallways and out into the quiet Umbra night.

“I will not except defeat so easily...” The general said quietly to himself. He walked out of the room and down the hall to the left, making his way to the Beta and Alpha unit enhancement lab.

“UAMS, prepare the rapid enhancements for a Giga unit.” The general said as he walked into the room at the end of the hall. UAMS (Umbra Automated Military System) spoke through the speakers within the room.

“General, the rapid enhancements are only used in dire situations and may end in failure, are you positive that you want to begin the process of creating a Giga unit?” UAMS asked.

“Don’t question me, just prepare the enhancements.”

“Yes sir.” A small tray flipped out from the wall, multiple syringes with a blue liquid inside laying on the padded table top. The general walked over to the table and picked up one of the syringes.

“Let’s see you stand up to this, Hunter and Maverick.”

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I did not take the time to read over this one and scan for errors, so there may be a few spelling or grammatical errors in there, but just inform me of them through a message if there aren't too many. Next Chapter: With Hatred, Comes Death (Part One) Estimated time remaining: 1 Hour, 40 Minutes