“Departure”

NEW MANEBASSA OCEAN

WATT’S FORTRESS

SECRET ON HANGAR BOTTOMMOST LEVEL

“Seriously? I have to fly this vehicle, too?” Pan Cake, groaned within the tight inside of the Vulture gunship.  There were six seats with a different panel for different function at each seat.  The inside of gunship was basically one rectangular cylinder with little room to maneuver around.

“Why not?” High Hopes snorted, still wearing her skull mask. “We drew Straws. And you picked the shortest one”

The changeling moaned, shoving himself into the pilot’s seat “The last thing I’ll ever be good at is flying! I hope you ponies will eventually realize that.”

“Uh…Pan Cake…” Lipizzaner Shyly uttered.

“What?!” The changeling groaned, throwing up his holed forelegs.

Lipizzaner tapped on the cockpit window “There are dogs outside….a lot dogs. Um…not that you didn’t see them…I’m...just...worried.”

Pan Cake leaned out of his seat, finding some enraged dogs starting to race towards their Vulture Gunship. They started crawling on to the hull, trying to bash through the hull with their grey large fists.

“Oh crap! High Hopes, why didn’t you seal the hangar doors behind us?!” Pan Cake screamed.

“I thought you only told me to seal those doors, not the hanger doors”  High Hopes pointed to the main hatch on the roof of the gunship and the emergency hatches on the sides and ceiling, cover with duck tape.

Wasting no time as the dogs howled and kept bashing the dropship, Pan Cake sat back down and started to activate the dropship, pulling down various levers and punching random bottoms “I just hope I don’t have to do anymore flying today!”

The Vulture started hover off the floor and its back engine’s began to rotate and light up.

“I don’t think you will!”  Lipizzaner screeched, her white hoof pointing outside the cockpit window to a dog mercenary loading a rocket launcher

“So, Pan cake…is that a yes or a no? On the flying I mean.” High hopes asked, noticing the rocket dog outside.

Pan Cake reacted quickly and pulled a lever, not knowing what it would do.  It made the Vulture jerk upward, fast as a bullet.  It broke through the Hagar ceiling, clearing off any dogs still clutching on to it.  

CRASH!

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After breaking it way through multiple levels of the fortress, their Vulture emerged between the fortress walls and the tower, airborne and outside.

“Whew…that was two-times-too close, even for me.” High hopes breathed.

“So are they.” Lipizzaner taped the radar on the control panel.  It picked up three fast-moving red blips coming towards then.

Pan Cake leaned further into the cockpit window as saw that two broadswords fighters piloted by dog mercs and the Phoenix dropship that was used for the mission.  Pretty soon they begun unleash  barrage of bullets.

“I'm with you on that,” Pan Cake mumbled, as he swerved the Vulture away from its pursuers, getting ready for a huge air battle

High Hopes found a pair of shades out of nowhere and placed them on her face “Looks we got ourselves in a…Dogfight…”

“Yay?” Lipizzaner Questioned.

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WATTS FORTRESS, TOWER’s TOPMOST LEVEL

“Weapons free!” Silverblitz chanted, giving the order to fire.  As soon as we pulled our rifles up, Silverblitz magically yanked Night Roamer's Magnum out of her robot forehoof.  

The black mare then sprayed a jet of fire out of her hoof-strapped flamethrower.

Simultaneously, Blades threw up an overshield around each our coats, causing it to act like a glowing set of magical armor.  To follow it up, Silverblitz used his magic to produce a whirlwind, spinning some of the dogs back into the air before they fell on the hard floor.

Night Roamer was about to be launched into the air as well, but she locked her robotic foreleg into the floor.

We took this moment to run for cover.  I glided to behind one of the many statues in the room, while across from me November and Blades couched behind Watt’s bed. The captured and concussion-suffering colonel was also residing behind the bed too.

Instead of finding cover, Silverblitz had taken this time to turn invisible.

“It’s been five years after my mission on Hoof Kong, and all you managed to do was get me a better arm, Silverblitz!” Roamer taunted to the thin air where the PONI stallion hid.

Silverblitz reappeared out of nowhere, two knifes ready to be brought down on Night Roamer.

However, Roamer’s reflexes were quicker, as she brought up her robot foreleg in defense.  Silverblitz still gripped his knifes as they pierced through the metal.  However, Night Roamer shrugged The PONI stallion, along with his weapons, off, before she used her flamethrower to puff out clouds of fire.

After teleporting away before he was burned where he was standing, Silverblitz magically drew out his sliced pistol, firing off three rounds at Night Roamer’s head.  As Night Roamer used her robot foreleg to take all three shots, Silverblitz vanished once again.  

That’s when Night Roamer ordered to the dog mercenaries, “Get the hay up you dogs and root out the rest of those ponies. And one of you, call up the minotaur!”

“Oi, did she just say ‘minotaur’?” Blades asked me.

“Yeah I think she did, but one problem at a time, Blades!” I reminded her of the dogs.  If we had to fight a minotaur later, then so be it.

I popped out of my cover and pulled the trigger on my sniper rifle with Night Roamer in my scope’s central reticule.  But almost faster than light, the black pony did a quick roll out of the way, causing the bullet to imbed itself into a wall.  I ducked behind cover as more dog mercenaries began firing their assault rifles at the base of the statue where I hid.

Across from my position, Blades and November tried to hold them back by popping in and out of cover, with Blades using her magic to deflect the bullets away from her.  Silverblitz was still invisible, but he kept backstabbing, with two dogs falling every nine seconds.  But for every two dogs dead, two more crawled up the elevator shaft.  And during all this, all Night Roamer did was evade every single shot that was a hair away from killing her.

Damn…she’s like some bloody acrobat! Blades roared in her head.

On the other hoof, with my enhanced reflexes and dexterity, I made my sniper rifle perfect for close-quarters-combat. But I realized I was running out of ammo…a little too quick to realize it.

A dog lobbed a grenade at the statue I was taking cover behind.  I zipped away as it exploded, sending a million pieces of stone showering down on me.  Then another dog was able to put a few bullets into my wings, causing me to grunt in pain and loose grip of my sniper rifle.  

Blades safely teleported me to her position behind the bed.  November fired a 3-round-burst to the head of dog with another active grenade in his claws.  After three seconds, the grenade detonated and ignited most of the dogs in the room on fire (seeing that it was a firebomb grenade). This caused other grenades the dogs had belted to their vest to detonate and send their limbs flying. Night Roamer spiraled into a wall, and then lay still without a stir.

“Smashing Work, Lieutenant.” Blades admired, patting November on the back.

“I just did that?” November Flare wondered aloud.

“Don’t ask, mate.” The magenta unicorn replied “Course yah did! That’s why you’re on the team!”

For a second, there was a sudden silence; no dogs came up the elevator, no gunshots, or whizz of bullets.  It was an unusual kind of quite.  I didn’t anticipate it lasting long, though.

Silverblitz reappeared and placed a forehoof on the side of his helmet to contact Pan Cake. “Pan Cake…our situation is green.  No more targets coming up.  How are things on your end?”

“Pan Cake here; we kinda got caught in a…a dogfight…but ETA is damn quick.  Stand by for pickup.”

Although the fiery pain of bullets in my wings and my leg hurt intensely, I edged out of cover and snatched an assault rifle off the floor.  Then I hoofed towards Night Roamer’s still body, ready to fire a bolt though her head.  

All of sudden, Night Roamer leaped back up and knocked the automatic weapon out of my hooves. With similar speed, she started to throw punches at me. It seemed she had more cybernetics than her slightly-damaged robot arm.

However, the zebra chemicals kick in with full force as I blocked and punched.

Silverblitz, Blades, and November Flare pointed their weapons at Night Roamer as she and I battled, but they were hesitant to shoot, fearing they would hit me.

“Should we help Destiny?” Blades asked.

“I think you’ve got bigger problems!” A booming voice rang from the elevator shaft.

Instantly a muscular grey-blue Minotaur mercenary back flipped out of the elevator shaft and pulled out a large tri-barreled machine gun – the one usually mounted as a heavy weapons turret – from behind.  He had a bandoleer of gold bullets around his torso and twin rockets launchers on his back.  His yellow eyes were dwarfed by his massive horns and pink-grey nose. On his shoulder, was a scaled down version of an insurrectionist flag.

“You didn’t say anything about an insurrectionist minotaur mercenary!” Blades cried to Silverblitz

“I didn’t know myself that Watts hired one…” Silverblitz whispered

Beginning to stomp slowly towards them, the minotaur roared “I’m one lean, mean assertive machine! And the difference between a soldier and a machine is that one dies, while the other makes bullets fly!” Then he began to rev up his machine gun turret and widen his grin.

“Permission to take cover now, sir.” November Flare whispered to Silverblitz.

“Granted.” The PONI stallion hastily replied, magically disappearing.  At the same time, Blades Teleported behind a statue and November zipped to the bed next to Watts, barely evading the shower of bullets.

---

“C’mon you little pony!” Night Roamer hissed “Jealous of my implants?”

“Nah!” I replied dodging a strike and bringing down on of my own. “I’m just sorry you didn’t get an early start like I did.”

“Too bad your brother can’t see you like this.” Night Roamer taunted, as she blocked.

Unfortunately I took the bait, lunging towards Night Roamer “Once I buck you till your bratty flank is dead, he’ll see.”

Then Night Roamer laughed evilly, before she dogged my move, and then dragged to the floor by my wings. Before I could get up, she hefted her flamethrower at my snout

“Move, and you’ll end up tell him yourself” she threatened.

Now pinned to the floor with the barrel of hoof-strapped-flamethrower at my snout, I could see the huge minotaur merc keeping Blades and November behind the bed and statues.  The minotaur seemed to only care about pinning them there while Roamer took care of me.  Silverblitz was lucky enough to vanish, though.

Then a huge green-plated aircraft filled the corners of the shattered observation window’s view.  It had forward canons near the cockpit and four fins at the back. It looked like it didn’t need wings by hovering.  It took the minotaur merc twelve seconds to stop firing and fully notice it.

“Insurrectionist forces!” Pan Cake’s voice boom from a microphone inside the Vulture “Release our comrades and Watts, or we will take them from you by force.”

Still pinning me with her Night Roamers yelled, “Buffalofeathers! You think I’ll give up Watts this easy just because you’re in an aircraft?”

“No…it’s because you don’t have safe way out and you know it; this Vulture can bring down this tower on you before you can even consider an escape route. We’re offering you chance to live.”

“Wait, We are?” High Hopes asked over the mircophone.

Not really – I mean yes, yes! We are! Just give us Watts and you can walk away. Pan cake concluded

The minotaur merc looked for Night Roamer for an order.  I was actually expecting former to engaged the Vulture but he does seem smart enough to at least know that was not a good idea.

Night Roamer grumbled looking between me and the Vulture gunship outside.  I detected in her head if she was wondering if her life was worth her glory.  

However, the back earth pony hid away those thoughts as she hissed to the vulture, “My number one rule: Never Surrender.”

The next this she did was burn me with her flamethrower.  Which reminds me: You know the rule stop-drop-and-roll you’re taught in grade school?  Well, I already stopped moving and I was on the floor but at least a quick-instinctive-roll spared me from getting all on fire.

Instead, only the tips of my wings and my tail were on fire, the flames starting to chew away to the bones of my wing and begun to feel my tail shrink.  I sweated and panicked, unsure of what to do. The combined pain of my feathers and tail on fire, the bullet in my leg, and the shots my wings took was a little overwhelming. All I could do was pant, sweat, and breathe harder.

Slowly proceeding to finish me off as I danced in pain, Night Roamer laughed, “Hah! You’re a Filly on Fire!”

From behind Watt’s bed, November Flare saw me in my fiery pain and took the risk of flying to me.

The minotaur saw the November flying over his head so he started to rev up his machine gun. This caused him to turn his back on Blades, who decided to unload a full magazine into the minotaur’s bare back.  

After the shower of bullets, the minotaur was struggling to stand on his furry hooves. Blades wasted no time in levitating a fresh clip into her assault rifle and use one more magazine to force the minotaur down onto the floor.

Night Roamer was ready to engulf the oncoming November Flare in flames.  However, Silverblitz deactivated his invisibility and bought down two knifes on Roamer’s robotic foreleg. This time he jabbed them in deep and used them to tear off the cybernetic leg.  

This calls for desperate measures – Spec-ops style, as my broker would say. Silverblitz thought inside his helmet.

Sparks and computer chips from the robot leg rained down on the floor as Night Roamer cried in agony.

“Nothing personal, innie.” Silverblitz sneered.  The black earth pony silently redirected her anger from me to Silverblitz, engaging him with one foreleg her flame thrower.

November Flare landed beside me, with his tactical visor flashing from orange to red – a sign that a pony in front of him was dying or suffering. But his eyes showed the determination never to lose me again.

“Destiny – hold still! I’m going to apply the M-M-M to you.” November assured.  I tried to hold still as possible, feeling the fire on my wings eat away almost all my feathers and begin to lick the hair on my head/

When November slapped the heart-marked pack onto on my coat a brilliant white flash blinded me.  Frist I felt the pain of the bullets in my wings and backleg fad away.  Next, the fire on wings died out and I could feel my feathers and flesh growing back.  Once the flash was over, I felt completely rejuvenated – somehow, the bullets vanished, too.

November embraced me tightly cheering to himself It Worked! Oh thank Celestia and Luna a thousand times, It worked!

“You’re alive” November Flare cheered aloud.

“All thanks to your work, featherbrain.” I cheered back to my cousin.

November’s expression grew serious after that.  “C’mon – we have Watts and transportation – we’re leaving now.”

“Leaving? But what about Night Roamer?” I complained. “That brat deserves death for what she did to Cogneto.”

Rather than point me out that I was wrong or overemotional, November decided to quote a story that shook my heart. “Destiny, remember what Star Swirl once said your favorite novel? Aren’t there those who deserve death live? And those that die who actually deserve life?  No one can change what happened Destiny; we have to move on.”

I couldn’t believe that November had tried to use a quote from one of my favorite stories against me.

“It’s not fair!” I cried “I watched Cogneto die while Night Roamer just gladly terrorized me! I’ve been waiting years for this moment!”

“Destiny,” November pleaded “Remember who you were trained to become; a killer like Night Roamer? Or a defender, like Cogneto?”

Quietly turning my head to the black unicorn, I could see Night Roamer now was having trouble fighting Silverblitz with one hoof.

You royal-pony-scum may have Watts, but I will never surrender!  she thought.

Then I realized that Roamer wasn’t going to let go of her code soon.  I also realized she wasn’t using her flamethrower; either it had to be reloaded or she was too busy hoof-fighting Blitz at close range to use it.

“Hey Silverblitz! Cast that…’dead-spell’ on her!” I called out.  November was shocked at what I had said, thinking I still wanted to kill Night Roamer.

Still parrying from Night Roamer’s hoof swings, Silverblitz replied “I don’t know a spell for de- wait, you mean that cease-pulse spell, right?”

“Eeyup.” I nodded.

Silverblitz then put Night Roamer in a head lock.  As the black pony struggled, Silverblitz’s pointed horn passed the spell into Night Roamer’s body.  In a few moments, the black pony collapsed snout first onto the floor.  For the moment the fight was over.

I still begrudged Roamer for getting chance to live while deserving not to. But November was right about me needing to let go;  I couldn’t let myself become her.  

Sowe went back to our objective – I carried the unconscious Watts on my back.  Then November Flare and I flew to the upper hatch of the Vulture outside the observation window.

Silverblitz had self-levitated himself aboard, but only after he looted Night Roamer’s hoof-mounted flamethrower.

Yes…Yes…YESSSSS! I FINALLY HAZ IT! Silverblitz thought gleefully as he held the flamethrower in his mouth.

As for Blades, she saw the bleeding minotaur mercenary clawing back onto his knees, with two rockets launchers resting on his shoulders.  They were aimed right at the Vulture and Blades herself.

“How…will yah…like….these apples…ponayh!” the minotaur grunted, firing all the homing rockets out of their launchers.

In mater of a few seconds, Blades concentrated on her armor-lock spell.  First a glowing sea-foam mold enveloped around her.  Then, when the rockets were right in front of her she released the energy of the shield in the form of the shockwave.  That sent the rockets spinning off into the walls – causing to the foundations of the room to wobble briefly before returning still.

It also gave a change for Pan Cake to direct the Vulture’s forward canons on the Minotaur, who uttered, “Oh shi…”

Pretty soon, The Vulture blasted the minotaur into nothing but jelly. (I had to barf….)

“Blades, Move it!” Pan cake screamed in the Vulture’s microphone.  Upon his command, Blades galloped and took a leap of faith out the shattered window.

Unfortunately the Vulture had positioned a little too far away for a jump, and the magenta unicorn began to descend.

Silverblitz saw it coming and caught Blades with his magic, then safely levitated the unicorn onto the roof of the Vulture.

November Flare then took over the controls while Pan Cake detonated explosives under that airpad that he had set during his reconnaissance. The changeling thanked chrysalis in his head that wouldn’t have to stay at that base any longer.

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HOURS LATER, ABOARD The Justice

Silverblitz and I held our breath as Mendez read out reports and went through the gathered in footage from Silverblitz’s helmet, from the reviewing the plan of the operation in the phoenix dropship to evacuating on the Vulture.  His expression was that same as always when looking though anything; strict and fully concentrated.

He had a recently-lit Sweet Apple Cigar,  with the cloud of smoke making the room feel grayer than ever, and the suffocation in the air forcing us to tolerate standing here on our fours more.

“Well, then…” Mendez said, breaking the silence “…The main mission was a success; Watts is now in captivity and PONI has begun interrogations....”

Me and Silverblitz breathed out in relief thinking that this was going to over quite soon.

“But…” The chief interrupted “Capturing an insurrection colonel and a traitor to the UNSCOE wasn’t the only objective.  The secondary objective was to test the capabilities of a Greenhorn.”

I remained silent. Blitz complained in his head Then why did I to come in here first place!? Why doesn’t all of PONI tell me everything?  The only reason why he had to come here in the first place was because he was Indigo Team’s leader

Mendez then uttered “The scenario with those ODSSs, the socialization with others, even letting go of past issues with you One-seventeen….In those circumstances we – some of the UNCOE, PONI and  I- saw what a greenhorn was capable of in the world outside of CASTLE complex. However we also see that the expected strength and cold-bloodedness are largely lacked, compensated for socialization and comradery.”

“How so?” I wondered.

“There was going to more augmentations; they would have erased most if not all of your personality and made you fiercely loyal to the UNSCOE, and given you the chance to overcome any situation.  Halsey ordered after the Discord’s AI sabotage for those to be canceled.”

“So I’m told sir.” I uttered.  Maybe Halsey wasn’t cruel enough to take away our personalities; we already lost our moms and normal foalhoods.  Or maybe after losing Mudd Slinger she couldn’t stomach having another pony die from augmentations.

The chief gave a hesitant face for the first time, saying “…Although you greenhorns…could have been better, I’m afraid that we didn’t train you well enough. I saw you nearly get burned and shot, one-seventeen.”

Before I could ask, Silverblitz stated “What’s wrong with that? Form what I saw from Destiny-117, Lipizanner-039, and Baldes-204, they’re the best of the best.”

Seeming old already in the few days we haven’t seen each other Mendez groaned “But they are still ponies.  The greenhorns were meant to be better than anything – the strongest, the swiftest and the bravest of our warriors…”

I could hear Mendez drilling to himself in his head, …you failed…they’re just kids with augmentations and guns…

“Sir!” I sharply stated upon hearing Mendez’s thoughts “You saw us capture Watts and you saw me take down those ODSSs.  You didn’t even come close to failing us. And we didn’t fail because we had help from fellow soldiers. And this was a real word operation.  I’m proud to have you as my instructor who trained me for this.”  My voice wasn’t comforting.  Rather I was yelling and inappropriately loud.

Cranklin Mendez was tough and a war-horse-kind of unicorn. But he was still a pony all the same. He beated us up with shocks sticks…but he was getting old; I wanted him to be proud of us.

When the chief’s dark iris met my eyes and he said, “Well said…dismissed, one-seventeen.”  Then turned to Silverblitz, “I have some things to discuss with you…”

“Like how I dominated Night Roamer? Or led the team? Or heroically saved Blades” Silverblitz huffed

“No…THIS!” Mendez rumbled in his drill-sergeant-voice.  He was giving wicked smile as he did so.

As he did so, Mendez slammed a file with large letters ‘top-top-secret’ stamped on the front onto his desk.  Then he levitated a picture out of the folder, of two ponies romantically enjoying the sunset on Equestria from a castle balcony.  One of them was Silverblitz the other was….

Silverblitz’s jaw dropped so low it hit the floor “OH, LUNA’s Twinkling Mane! High Hopes said she wouldn’t show those pictures!”

Mendez found some newfound humor, snorting, “She didn't say she would show them to public…but now since she wants to be a part of the Greenhorn-II program, she needed to give me proof she was up to task of being an info broker.  She also wants to become the mess hall mare at CASTLE Complex.”

“I didn’t think you accepted in Hopes so easily; she not really the military type.” I stated

Mendez then frowned – that actually made me smile in my heart, because that was the good old chief Mendez I’ve known “I didn’t plan on it, but when somepony keeps spamming your skipe inbox with emails for recruitment even five seconds I had to take that raspberry-mane maniac and her property on board.”

“So…can I have my pictures back?” Silverblitz pleaded “It not fair that my personal items should be involved in this…”

Mendez then levitated all the pictures back into the folder and then tossed it towards Silverblitz.  He caught it kept it floating close beside him.

“Now dismissed….” Mendez began and then paused for a moment “What the hay? Do you hear that?”

After a while I heard music….coming from within the halls.

Silverblitz shook his head stating “Oh boy…High Hopes sure go confused when I told if it was possible she could start a party on this ship; I thought she meant hunting parties in her question.”

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Mendez stomped through the hallways to the Hangar where the Vulture was parked.  In the moments of our’s debriefing, High hopes had turned it into a full blown party.

Celestia-bucking-dammit, Mendez thinks. Parties were the last thing he loved, aside from insubordination to the UNSCOE.

To start, a performance stage had been laid out, but when examined closely it was actually the Vulture’s hulls torn open and laid out. A few of crew ponies around the ship snatched some daisy sandwiches and hay juice off newly set up tables.  Balloons, streamers, and treats of all kinds of colors decorated the old militarized hangar. I didn’t know how this was pulled off but is easier to accept reality than to question it.

On the stage made from the Vulture’s hull, Lipizzaner and High Hopes sang in a joyful chant:

"Don't be spoiled, don't start a fight.

Always be careful, here at night.

While bed you in a cozily lie.

When the Greenhorns-IIs arrive!

Steal you away without a trail

Any day, they’ll never fail

they'll steal from you, all you gots….

just like they did with Colonel Watts!"

The song carried on a few more lines, but I could come to see that Lipizzaner was getting over her shyness in front of crowds of ponies.  She was singing even better than High Hopes causing, more of the audience to pin their eyes on the albino.  I felt really happy for her.

“Take ‘eh gander at ‘em prancing ponies, lieutenant !” Blades stated to November.

“Yeah, quite a show.”  he added, munching on a daisy sandwich.

“Meh…I’ve seen better…” Pan Cake judged.

Silverblitz teleported to where Pan Cake and the rest of the team were, joining the conversation.

Mendez grumbled, “…one-seventeen, you and your team be ready for your next assignment in oh-three-hundred hours.” And he stormed out of the hangar thinking to himself, High Hopes just had to turn that anti-son-of-a-Cerberus gunship into a stage…Celestia dammit

As for me, I enjoyed blithe experience of party as long as it lasted.  When it was over, Silverblitz gave up the leader of Indigo Team to me, respectfully, saying that he and Pan Cake had other operations to deal with that were separate from ours. Before he did go, Blades thanked Silverblitz for ‘saving her rump earlier’.

However, High Hopes was able to get her hooves on some of Silverblitz’s pictures. She began showing us Silverblitz and Luna, spending time on a pre-invasion New Manebassa.  I honestly say they made a perfect match; they were tall, slim, and always were doing something fun.

I could tell Blades was jealous because her snout flushed red in anger because she had forgotten Silverblitz already was in love with some other mare.  November Flare was wondering how Hopes managed to acquire those photos. Lipizzaner giggled, thinking of how upset Silverblitz would be if he found out about these pictures.  As for me…looking at these kinds of pictures make you wonder if you should get a special somepony.

However, my duty as a Greenhorn-II comes first.  And I enjoyed it.

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SIGMA CLOPODIOA

CASTLE COMPLEX

Shunning away in the moonlight of Turvus while residing in Halsey’s underground freezing lab, two figures got onto the ‘Skipe-chat system’ and called up Lieutenant Corncob Keyes.

*Hey Halsey…*  Keyes waved on a computer screen, it edges outline in frost.

“Hay is for horses…I for one, am a lady, Corncob.” Halsey, the first figure, teased. She was so used to cold down here she wasn't shivering.

*Heh…sorry that I didn’t return you calls. I…couldn’t forgive you at first. But I should, because we shared a kid. And you are striking for a mare.* Keyes winked.

“Actually it’s me that should be forgiving.” Halsey uttered. “Half the greenhorns…it was…”

* Its okay dear; you're just a pony. That’s all anyone needs to love you.* Keyes comforted.

Halsey smiled “Thanks Corncob…I also I wanted to show you this.” Halsey waved for the figure to come out of the darkness and closer to the screen.

When the figure did so, Keyes gasped and started to tear up *Is that…?*

“Dad…” The second figure replied. “It’s me, Mudd Sparkle….”

Only he looked quite different; he was older, he was clad in Hellprancer armor, there was some peach fuzz around his snout and nostrils.  His eyes were in a purple so deep – even deeper than his mom’s - they reminded Keyes of a Twilight Sparkle’s eyes.  The scar on the back side of Mudd’s neck and his cutie mark remained, however.

*It’s okay to call yourself Mudd Sparkle in front of us, son.* Keyes assured.

“I do not bear the Sparkle Family emblem on my cutie mark; I’m not even a unicorn.” Mudd uttered.

*Well…you always had Twilight’s eyes.* Keyes refuted.

“And no matter what kind of pony you are or what you cutie mark is, Twilight’s blood will always be a part of you.” Halsey nudged her son’s shoulder playfully.

Mudd started down at floor. “Yeah…well…I…I wish I was fighting alongside my brothers”

*You’ll get your chance…* Keyes assured *You make a fine candidate for a hellprancer squad leader.*

Mudd thought to himself If I was any better I would be a greenhorn..