Chapter 70: Stiskrieg
Part 1: Familiar Crisis
TIME: 06:12 ERDT
DATE: War Day 660/24 Primaus, 1004 C.S.
LOCATION: Ponyville, Kingdom of Equestria
I was up early. It was winter, it had snowed the previous night. I had slid out of the bed that AJ and I shared in.. well, it's not a barn, any more, is it? It's more a small home. The former loft was now our marital bedroom. The kids had their bedrooms, and we hand ours. AND! We had central plumbing. Which.. which really helped me in the mornings. I didn't need to run outside to unleash the dragon. Finally, though, the nursery.. it was finished, and awaiting its occupants.
I went downstairs, habitually cinching up my pistol belt. To the kitchen, and into the ice box. I was filled with a desire to cook. Breakfast. For my family. Pretend the war is a million miles away. Be a father, if only for a bit.
Eggs. Turkey bacon. Steel cut oats. Dried apples and raisins. Biscuits (Scones, but savory, not sweet). Coffee.
Smelling the smells, Rolfe was the first one down stairs.
Rolfe: "Uhm.. mornin' daddy." He slid into his chair.
K: "Hey, son!" I beamed. "Hungry?" I gave him a big hug.
Rolfe: "Mmmm! Always!" He giggled a bit. "I'm glad you're home."
K: "I'm glad I'm home, too." I served him. "Let Daddy know if you want more."
I sat down with my own meal.. which included a very thick steak. Ribeye, actually.
Remember my threat to eat both the guards and the royal official? Well, actually, this steak was from King Milk-Sum. Yeah, I did it. And I didn't care.
Rolfe: "Heee-! I haven't shared a table with a king since yesterday!" He poked the steak. "Mean ol' King!"
K: "Want a bite?" I offered him one.
Rolfe: "Sure!" He opened his mouth, accepted the meaty treat, and chewed. "Mmm.. not bad.." He looked back at his oatmeal and eggs. "These're better, though."
K: "Heh." I ate, as Applejack and the girls came downstairs.
Rolfe: "So, what'cha doin' today, Daddy?" He perked up.
K: "If I can get away with it, nothing of importance." I nodded.
Applejack: "Sounds good, hun.." She hugged me from behind, as the girls hugged me all over.
Koringo: "Papa make foods!" She giggled.
Pomme: "Oui. Papa makes good breakfasts!" She helped Koringo into her chair.
Applejack: "Coffee!" She grabbed a cup, and poured it. "Hot dog!" And she stole a bite of my steak as she served the girls. "Hmpf. Y'all told me he's raight tender fer a cow.." She chewed and swallowed, but I could tell, she did this more to spit on his grave than anything.
Pomme: "Another day with PaPa. I like zis sitskrieg!" She beamed me a grin.
Koringo: "Hai! Papa stay and play wif us!" She giggled again, and nommed her oatmeal. "Ooo! Shrivel grapes!" Raisins, her favorite.
Rolfe: "Hey, Dad?" He eyed up from his food. "Can you teach me to shoot, today?"
K: "I.." I looked down, knowing what that meant. He was 12, almost 13, he was getting close to that age, and there was a chance he'd be a cadet officer before the war was over. "..yes." I got a little choked up at that.
Applejack: "Naow, Rolfe, hun, don'cha'all go thinkin' jest cuz yer daddy's the best general in the world, y'all have ta live up t'that. Yer your own stallion, sweetie." She gave him a one-arm hug.
Rolfe: "I know. But I want to make sure I can help protect my sisters, an' my Granny, if I have to!" He looked at Pomme. "I can't ask you to do all the work!"
Pomme: "Oh! Dear brozer!" She beamed with pride.
K: "I have such a wonderful family." I just smiled.
Applejack: "Yeah-huh." She gave me a peck on the cheek as she collected the breakfast plates. "Come on, kids, help mama wash up."
I just watched, sipping coffee.. I had the dreadful thought that I would either be immortal and watch them all preceed me, or I would never be allowed to enjoy the peace after this war ended. Both thoughts made me tear up...
TIME: 12:44 ERDT
K: "A little more to the left." I corrected him, through the spotting scope.
Rolfe: "Yeah!" He adjusted a bit, and fired.
K: "There you go. Right on the money." I patted him on the head.
Rolfe: "Hahaha! Now I can help protect everyone!" He leaned over and gave me a hug. "I love you, Dad."
K: "I love you, too, my son." I hugged back.
Neither of us cared about the difference in species. We were father and son. And that's all that mattered. In that moment, Father was teaching Son how to defend the homestead, how to protect himself in a dangerous world - a rite of passage. I was thankful I was able to enjoy this moment.. with.. my son.
That is, until Ochre Wave came up at a full gallop.
SSGT Ochre Wave: "General K!" He stopped just short of us, panting hard.
K: "Ochre! What is it?" I got up off the ground. "JACKIE! WE GOTTA PROBLEM!" I looked at Rolfe. "Go get your mom and Uncle Mac." I nodded.
Rolfe: "Right, dad!" He took off at full speed.
K: "Breathe, Ochre. Breathe." I patted him on the back.
Ochre Wave: "Sorry.. *huff-huff* ..sir, I ran all the way from Princesston." He heaved a couple times, as Mac came up with some water.
K: "Princesston?! That's ten hours on the hoof! That's about halfway to Manehattan!"
Ochre Wave: "H'yess.. sir.." He wheezed. "Train... had to stop for several hours.. couldn't wait.. *huff* ..the harbor, at New Heaven!" He pointed in the rough direction of New Heaven, Cobneticut. "It's a crisis, sir! We need you! And the princesses!"
K: "What's going on at New Heaven?" I looked at AJ. "Get the girls, get our travelling stuff." I nodded.
Ochre Wave: "Boats and boats of them, sir!"
Mac: "Tirek? Herdiets!?"
Ochre Wave: "No, sir! Refugees! COWS!" He waved his forelegs.
Well. This was a familiar crisis...
TIME: 19:22 ERDT
LOCATION: New Heaven, Cobneticut
LCOL Haber Dasher: "General! Princess Luna!" He bowed at us.
K: "Haber! Good to see you. It's been over a year." I gave him a pat on the back.
Luna: "Colonel." She nodded to him. "Pardon, I am tired. I was woken early to come here."
COL Haber Dasher: "You must come with me, please.. this is an absolute crisis!" He escorted us to the Harbor.
The Cobneticut State Militia was out in force, having formed a guard perimeter around the harbor area. I could see at least ten large, and two dozen smaller ships afloat in the harbor, as well as numerous much smaller vessels, some in sinking condition, littering the waters. In the distance, three Alpha-Class Corvettes were arriving from Baleston.
On the shore? Hundreds of cows. Possibly as many as a thousand. From all walks of life - some clearly lower class, some upper class. And many Griffons.. servants of the Cows.
Water was being passed out as best as possible. Hay was being set out. They were being tended-to as best as the city could manage, given the space available.
K: "Oh, God, no." I shook my head. "This.." I turned to Luna. "We can't let them in."
Luna: "K! Why not!? They're suffering!" She was honestly shocked at my words.
K: "Because they won't change. They'll keep to their cultural traditions and never attempt to integrate with the Herd. I've seen this happen before. More than once, my nation has tried to help allies of theirs, in nations they became militarily involved in - you know, save the ones that helped us, and their families, and any other deserving souls. The Hmong, the Somalis.. it doesn't matter. They never, ever integrate. They're brought over as whole communities, or in such clusters as they make their own. These communities take over the natives' own, or create enclaves, where the natives are not welcome.. even attacked." I waved my hand at them. "The whole reason we gave up on them was because they demanded we SERVICE them! DIE for them! Like it was EXPECTED that we give up everything - and they didn't care!" I looked at the refugees.. there were calves among them..
Luna: "Surely.. K.. you can't.." She looked down.
K: "You know I'm speaking the truth. I know - you want to help them! They're suffering, and our culture never turns someone away that's in need. No matter what." I looked up at the mass of cows. "Even if they're a toxic contaminant to our culture, or a danger to us."
Rarity: "You must have some solution locked up in that head of yours, K." She patted me on the hip. "I know you - you're not really that cold-hearted."
K: "Starlight would be.." I almost said 'having a cow' "..furious, right now, if she knew about this. It plays right into her fears." I shook my head.
Twilight: "So.. what do we do, K?" She sat back on her haunches.
K: "Feed and water them overnight. Then we send them to Arooster County, Maine. There were a couple possible town sites I saw when we were up there. Have them construct their own town. We provide them the materials, nothing more. They either sink or swim. And no Griffons are allowed to go with them - either they're repatriated to Griffon lands, or they're allowed to leave the region and settle where they want. But they absolutely cannot keep their servants." I leaned on a fence post. "The only thing we can do to prevent what I just said, is to destroy their culture. Completely." I turned and faced Luna. "And all their calves are to be taken into protective custody for a year. They get their kids back if they manage to build a town for themselves. During that time, we educate the kids like they were ponies - self-reliance, tolerance, friendship, kindness, equality."
Luna: "That's.. very.."
Dash: "..extreme, but, I think I get it." She was, of all people, the one that chimed in. "It's like.. when we had Griffon kids in Junior Flyer school.. they tended to keep to themselves, never let us in on anything.. us ponies.." She looked at Fluttershy.
Fluttershy: "Dash is right.. as much as I hate to admit it." She sighed, and looked down.
K: "We break their culture. By force. And they absolutely cannot ever be allowed to call themselves any kind of successor state to the Kingdom of Cowrea. Ever." I nodded. "I made Kang eat that promise, and I will do likewise."
Luna: "What if they can't?" She looked at me.
K: "Then, come next winter, they starve." I shrugged. "We'll provide them with basic food through the planting season. Come Harvest time, the food aid stops. They absolutely must stand on their own four hooves." I shook my head. "They can't become several thousand charity cases. Not only would that put a strain on the kingdom's resources, it would be asking ponies to give food to people who simply expect hand-outs with no thanks, no gratitude, and an anti-pony racist attitude."
Luna: "That's.. harsh. One year to adapt?" She shook her head.
K: "I know, but it has to be this way. If we go easy on them, if we over-help them, they'll just continue their toxic culture.. maybe not so much at first, but over time, they'll grow more and more back into it, until they're a toxic sore on Equestrian society as a whole." I slowly shook my head. "Find me a leader of their community of refugees. I'll meet with them and lay it all on the line."
Luna: "Of course, My General." She hugged me briefly, and moved off with Colonel Dasher.
I lost the war in Cowrea because I failed to understand who I was risking lives for. Now, they were at our shores, begging for our help. THIS time.. I would not lose the Peace for the same reasons I lost the War.
[End of Part 1]
Part 2: Adapting the Crisis
TIME: 21:01 ERDT
DATE: War Day 660/24 Primaus, 1004 C.S.
LOCATION: New Heaven, Cobneticut, Kingdom of Equestria
Udd-Park: "YOU ASK US TO STAHVE!!!" He screamed in my face.
I was in conference with some.. well.. society cows, basically. They had crowned themselves the leaders of this gaggle of bovine.
K: "And you must not, ever, claim to be the successor state to the Kingdom of Cowrea." I was very terse in my tone - I'd already told them they'd not be getting unlimited food aid, and would have to grow their own.
Udd-Park: "UN-AK-SHEP-TA-BURR!" He bellowed. "YOU ABANDON US! YOU OWE US! WE MUST SELECT A NEW KI-"
*PAM!*
I lowered my smoking Masterson revolver.
Udd-Park's corpse lowered itself to the ground.
K: "No." I looked at the rest of them. "One less mouth to feed." I stood up. "Now, you will listen to me. You want our help? You want to settle here? You will abide these terms. Period. Or we throw you back into the sea." I was calm, but furious. "First, you will have your Griffon servants taken away. They will be sent elsewhere. Second. Your calves will be taken into protective custody for one year - if you fail to grow enough food to feed yourselves and them, we will keep them for another year. If you breed more calves, we won't lift a finger to save them, if you cannot feed yourselves and starve to death." I waved my revolver threateningly at each of them in turn. "Third, you WILL grow all your own food. If you want money, you must grow cash crops. We will provide you with all of the necessary materials - wood, wire, glass, nails, screws, tools, and seed. Fourth. You will never, ever, at any time, in any way, suggest you are a successor state to the Kingdom of Cowrea. If we find out that you're plotting something.." I cocked the hammer back, dramatically. "..it will be dealt with as High Treason to Princess Celestia. Which is punishable by death." I shrugged. "But, hey, no, please, don't let that stop you - your king fed me VERY well." I narrowed my eyes at them. "Fifth, you will all take an oath of loyalty and one of citizenship for Equestria. You will be Equestrian citizens, not Cowreans. You will never again be Cowrean. Ever. You will worship Her Royal Highness, the Princess of the Sun, and Her Royal Highness, the Princess of the Moon. You will adapt our calendar, our culture, our traditions. Our language." I nodded slowly. "Your culture led to the destruction of your nation. To allow its people to survive, that culture must be completely eradicated. After your town has proven its ability to survive, pony settlers will be moved in to your town. You will be forced to racially integrate."
Moo-Tak: "Dese terms..!" He rose up.. until I rested the revolver's barrel IN his nose.
K: "I lost 172 ponies because of your degenerate, decadent culture, your racism, and your ingratitude. 212 more won't be able to fight any longer - to say nothing of being able to return to their old lives. They lost EVERYTHING! You all earned this. All of you. Now, if I am to protect Equestria, and at the same time, preserve your lives, I have no choice but to destroy that toxic culture, before you use it as a cudgel to socially attack and bash native Ponies, or worse, make them your servants.. that's not how things are done, here." I tapped the revolver against the cow's nostril.
Hum-Pok: "..the hyoomin is right.." A much smaller bull stood up. "I am Hum-Pok, son of Hum-Tak. I am carpenter. Those who do labor are looked down on in our society. I am only revered because I am master craftsman. Artist. My things are in high demand." He nodded slowly.
K: "You. Speak. Tell me everything that's on your mind." I de-cocked and reholstered - partly to show HIM specifically that I meant him no harm, and as a lesson to the others.
Hum-Pok: "We have moo'ved to their lands, we have begged them to help us. Shourld we not examine why?!" He leaned against the railing he was next to, but turned his head to look at the others. "Is because they abandon us? NO! We abandon them in our hearts FIRST!" He clomped his big hoof on the rail. "WE BRING SHAME TO OUR ANCESTORS! YOU do not represent us! You have only moo'ney! WE have de heart an' spirit to keep our people going! US! De worker class! YOU be lazy, have servants, and expect everyone to feed, water, and wipe you.. not us. WE will not be dragged down into the bog of history with you!"
K: "I see." I nodded. "And you promise to make them work, make them do their share, and will refuse them food and let them starve, if they don't lift a hoof to help your community?" A tough question.
Hum-Pok: "Better. I take hammer to them." He tapped his skull.. at exactly the same point used by butchers to terminate bovine before processing. "YOU doom our nation! If General had met wirf us first, instead of you, MAYBE I STILL HAVE MY HOME AND FAM'RY!" He bellowed. "It is YOU, the RICH, the CONNECTED that KILLED US!" He looked me square in the eye. "You make me da leadah. You give me authority over them. I earn our keep here. I make us Cowreans a proud, brave people once again." He turned to look at them. "Not fat, sloppy, farm bovine!" Then back to me. "Neveah again! I swear it!"
K: "Okay. Luna?" I turned to her.
Luna: "Until such time as the Royal Government of Equestria deems you ready for free and fair elections, I, Princess Luna, designate you, Hum-Pok, Interim Mayor." She patted him on the shoulder.
The rest of them seemed ready to come out of their seats.. I kept one hand on my Masterson, ready to draw. I didn't see it, but even Spike was ready to back my play.
K: "Any.. objections?" I gazed at them, smugly.
Han-Soo: "And if we did?" He glared at me.
K: "I'd shoot you right here, for treason." I kept my expression the same, as I answered him. "Hum-Pok. Any objections if I dispose of this corpse?"
Hum-Pok: "That? No. We berieve that when the body dies, the soul escapes and goes to the afterlife.. the body just a pile of meat, nothing more. I hear hyoomin like steak." He gave an inhaling snort. "We actuarly have very good Kebob recipies.."
Han-Soo: "EATING OURSELVES IS FORBIDDEN!" He snarled.
Hum-Pok: "Nothing wrong with serving Father to guests." He grinned wickedly, and hefted his hammer in one fetlock.
Han-Soo: "..indeed..." He looked away.
K: "Well. That's settled. Hum-Pok, I'm going to assign you a squad of Rangers for the night, just to make sure there's no.. accidents." I smirked at the high society cows. "You know, in my world, they have a saying among humans that choose not to eat meat - that meat has a face. Around here?" I got right in front of Han-Soo. "Meat can beg for mercy, like proper prey." And pet him between the horns. "And I can cull those truly dangerous to the survival of the herd, with zero remorse."
Han-Soo: "Ergh." He just grunted, refusing to look me in the eye.
Gaze: "Oi'd be careful, mate. He loves beef livah." He snickered.
Norfy: "And I hear tell his wife is very good at extracting it, while keeping the rest of the carcass alive." He gave Han-Soo an icy gaze.
K: "Down with the Old World, up with the new. In the morning, Hum-Pok, I'm going to sit down with you and pick out a town site, write up a charter, and get you all started. You'll have the rest of the winter to build shelters. In spring, you plow and plant. In summer, you groom the crops. In fall, harvest." I patted him on the shoulder.
Hum-Pok: "And mabey, you have more brisket for your ice box by then." He glared at the other high society cows.
While I did not particularly enjoy being mean to them, I knew what had to be done. I knew they had to give up everything that got them to where they were, if they were to have any hope of moving forwards as a species, a people. That meant empowering a dangerous cultural revolutionary like Hum-Pok.. destroying the very things that caused us to abandon them.. and rebuilding from scratch.
[End of Part 2]
Part 3: New Construction, Old Destruction
TIME: 10:01 ERDT
DATE: War Day 665/29 Primaus, 1004 C.S.
LOCATION: Arooster County, Maine, Kingdom of Equestria
We arrived at the Town Site with the Maine State Militia's Engineer Regiment. Their only actual job was basic assistance. For security, I had the 2nd Royal Rangers under Dex Runner, and the Canidan Ranger Detachment under Havoc. My command train went ahead of the Herd. Applejack and Ambrosia were both with me.
K: "Alright, move the train back to the siding." I informed the Conductor.
Conductor Cargo Bills: "Yes, General." He nodded, and headed for the engine.
Ambrosia: "All the cargo's unloaded, K." She nodded. "This looks like a great place for a town.." She nodded, and pointed to the distance. "There! There's a nice river for irrigation." Then to the low hills. "Those'll be nice places to put homes.. good drainage." She paced around. "Really, this is a great spot!"
K: "No kidding. The passenger train will arrive in a couple hours with the new settlers." I shrugged. "'Brose, have the Engineers get all the cargo set out into piles. Get the area plotted out, and have them stack the materials at each plot when you do."
Ambrosia: "Sure thing, K." She smiled, and off she took.
Applejack: "Ah hope we're doin' th' right thing, here.." She frowned. "..ah knew some'a them ponies that died."
K: "Everyone deserves a fair chance to make a clean break from their past. As Pinkie keeps saying, that's something I seem to be able to get others to do." I shrugged. "And make them friends, in the process."
Havoc: "Where'ya want us, K?" He paced up with Barker.
K: "You and Dex go scout and scour the area for about a five kilometer radius from the center of town." I waved my hand out. "We may have had the Maine State Militia report nothing unusual, but you never know."
Dex: "Like, no kidding." He nodded to Typhoon Surge. "Come on, Ty."
Typhoon Surge: "Aye, suh!" And off they went.
I moved over and started giving the Engineers a hand or two. Applejack's great strength came in handy. When Ambrosia was done calculating the plots, we started setting everything up. Each Plot had a prefabricated house package. All they had to do was follow the instructions.
Each house package came with all the tools needed to build a house, an outbuilding, and clear space for a large garden - we calculated rough acreage required to feed the population from a purely agricultural standpoint. The cows primarily ate grasses and vegetables. But, not just any grass - it had to be alfalfa, fescue, ryegrass, or Timothy grass. In addition, like Ponies, they needed barley, corn, oats, and wheat for a balanced diet.
We knew the majority of arable land on their individual home sites would be dedicated to growing these high quality grasses, while the gardens would likely grow things like corn, carrots, or even pumpkin. The seeds were all available to them from a central source that the Engineers were setting up - I would give them THAT much. A secure storage for the seeds, so they could focus on building their homes.
It was winter, so, no planting could really be done. Food aid was delivered to the site the day before, and the Engineers were constructing a secure location for it. Again, I wanted them to focus on home construction for now.
Several Farms were also pre-packaged and shipped out here. These packages, designed for multi-acre lots, included a house, barn, silo, and a couple of other outbuildings. If they wanted to raise chickens for some reason, I would make certain that Chicks would be sent here for them.
This was, all of it, a start.
The real challenge would be getting them to play ball with all of this, and actually go THROUGH with developing their own community. I had a feeling that at least some would - the former Lower Classes of their society. I had doubts that the Upper Classes would change.
About an hour later, though, Ty and 2nd Squad came running back at full gallop.
That was all the warning I needed.
K: "ENGINEERS, GET TO YOUR WEAPONS! TAKE COVER BY SQUAD! COMMS, CALL IN THE BACKUP UNITS, NOW!" I directed.
Sgt. Crabber Case: "AYE GENERUL!" C> "This is Special Event Team Arooster, Company two - SETA Two - to backup team! Alpha Actual's calling for reinforcements! Get here QUICK!"
K: "TY!" I called out to him, furiously motioning him over to the trench I'd been helping dig.
Second Squad all jumped for the trench at the same moment, rolled over, and presented arms - I noted that they were all down to one or two mags each, and their Machine Gunner didn't have a belt. Though, an Engineer handed him one, and he quickly jacked it in place.
Sgt. Crabber Case: "ONE HOUR, GENERAL!" He called.
K: "Ty. Talk to me. What're we facing?" I got down by him.
Typhoon Surge: "Iss a real pisser, suh." He nodded to the distance. "Giant spiders. Dunno where they came from, either! All of a sudden, they were comin' outta th' woods, suh!"
K: "Well, THAT sounds familiar." I grabbed the mic from the Ranger Compspony. C> "Alpha Actual to all Ranger Teams - full retreat, best possible speed, back to the Town Site! All callsigns, acknowledge!"
Sgt. Wave Cruiser: "Sorry, sir, we already tried that. We're the only ones." He shrugged.
Applejack: "OH, NO!" She looked over at me, her face in terror. "NO! Dex an' Havoc!"
K: "Mm." I nodded. "AMBROSIA!" I called out. "GET OVER HERE!"
She slid right over the top of the trech.
Ambrosia: "What'cha need, K?" Thunderer was aimed at the direction Ty's team came from.
K: "You, me, AJ, second squad, we're going back for them." I nodded. "Ty, load up on ammo, make sure you all have a day's rations, and be QUICK about it!"
Typhoon Surge: "AYE, SUH!" He nodded to his Squad. "Let's go, lads! Arm up, pack up! NOW!" He ushured them out of the trench.
K: "MAJOR WINDLASS!" I called out behind me.
Major Marmalade Windlass: "YES, GENERAL!" She called back.
K: "Stay dug in! When the reinforcements get here, have the Ranger Platoon call in to us, and prepare to follow! Infantry and Artillery dig in HERE!" I pointed at the ground. "Construct hasty fortifications! Get ready to defend!"
Major Windlass: "YES, SIR!" She acknowledged.
K: "Alright.. Ty?" I stood, not seeing any opposition.
Typhoon Surge: "Aye, suh. One sec." He was grabbing an extra musette bag of hand grenades. "Come on, Lads!"
I started advancing towards the wooded stand about 700 meters from the town site, with AJ at my side, and Ambrosia behind me with Typhoon's squad. I had no idea what to expect, other than a mysteriosuly familiar foe.
TIME: 11:14 ERDT
K: "HOLD!" I held up a fist, and took a knee. "Ty!"
Typhoon Surge: "Aye, suh?" He moved up.
K: "Where'd you make contact?" I scanned the trees about 40 meters ahead of us.
Typhoon Surge: "Mm.. ovah there, suh." He pointed to a position about 35 meters left of us.
Sure enough, discarded magazines, empty 40mm casings, and discarded metal belts.. and spider corpses.
The same spiders from underground outside of Crystalpolis.
K: "AJ, those are the same ones! Look!" I pointed.
Applejack: "Sho'nuff.. what's goin' on here?! Whut in tarnation!? We gotta be hundreds'a kilometers from thar!" She snorted.
Ambrosia: "No clue.. I have no idea what's going on, K." She shook her head.
K: "Alright.. advance carefully. We need to find our friends before they become spider food. And watch out for fragile ground! Ambrosia..?" I nodded to her.
She shouldered Thunderer and got her ground probe out, and started moving just a bit ahead of us.
Applejack: "I r'member last time, y'all fell int'a some kind'a sewer system're somethin'.." She growled a bit.. she was quite unnerved.
Cpl. Periwinkle Stream: "General!" She hissed from the right flank.
I looked over to where she was indicating, and saw a near-dead spider that Second Squad had shot up. It had three legs left working, and was trying to get itself away from the area. It was also dragging a squirming, writhing cocoon.
K: "Follow it. Don't intervene just yet." I said, taking second position behind Ambrosia, but keeping my aim on the monster..
..where was it going?! Why?! And what connection did this have with the Crystal Kingdom incident?
[End of Part 3]
Part 4: Tunneling Desire
TIME: 11:17 ERDT
DATE: War Day 665/29 Primaus, 1004 C.S.
LOCATION: Arooster County, Maine, Kingdom of Equestria
We advanced slowly, following the wounded Spider, with Ambrosia out front, probing the ground, and making sure we didn't fall into any holes. She stopped, nodded to me that she found a weak spot, and proceeded to probe a quarter circle around it, before whipping out a small paint cylinder, and splashing paint on the ground to mark it.
We followed.. and she probed.. and finally, we saw a huge opening at least 30 meters across.. the spider moved to go inside.
I raised my Bradley/Gavin C-7 and aimed right at it, firing twice, and hitting it in the head.
K: "Medic!" I pointed to the cocoon.
Private Plaster Patch advanced quickly, and cut the cocoon open with his Bradley bayonet. Inside was Sergeant Panters.
Panters: "K! I t'ought that was you!" He shook off the webs. "Man, we got ambushed! Ya wouldn't believe it!" He shook the spider webs off of his Baby Beaver (copy of the Merrill Commando Machine Gun), and checked the belt.
K: "Where's the others?" I shrugged.
Panters: "Far as I know?" He shrugged. "Prol'ly down 'dere." He nodded at the hole. "I was th' last one, so.. I tried headin' for friendly lines. That sucker jumped me at the last second, I put half a belt in 'em, an' he managed to web me up!"
K: "Alright. Fall in." I shrugged. "You or Chompers lugging the coms, today? Probably Chompers, huh - you got the belt-fed."
Panters: "You bet it, pally." He shrugged, as Ty and the others examined the hole.
Ambrosia: "I can get ropes down here. We're going to need several." She frowned. "And because I know YOU so well, K, you could probably jump down there with a few others. There's enough webbing to break your fall. Other than that, I need to go back for more rope."
K: "Panters, Ty, Applejack, Patch." I pointed. "Ambrosia, take the rest of the squad, exfil carefully, come back with rope. Tell the rest of the Engineers to stay put. Mark the trees and your path back here, let them know to have the Ranger Platoon come to us as soon as they arrive."
Ambrosia: "You got it, K." She patted my shoulder, and off she went.
K: "Alright.." I safetied my rifle, and looked into the hole. "Yeah.. looks like we can just jump on down there." I shrugged.
Typhoon Surge: "Let me go first, suh." He stuck his foreleg out.
K: "You sure? I usually go first.." I shrugged.
Typhoon Surge: "Aye, suh. But, if it can't hold MY weight, it's got no prayer holdin' yours. Patch can fly, at least." He nodded to him.
K: "Yeah, true.." I shrugged. "Alright, Lieutenant." I nodded. "We'll cover you. Patch, be ready to pull him out."
Pvt. Patch: "Yes, sir." He nodded.
Panters, Applejack and I aimed down into the hole.. we couldn't see any movement, but that's to be expected. Spiders remain motionless unless striking prey or repairing the web. Really, the cartoons never had anything like this, so, I was, admittedly, out of my depth.
Ty safetied his weapon, and carefully stepped off the edge, letting himself fall down into the webbing below. As expected, he fell through the first layer, but he got completely tangled in the second.
Typhoon Surge: "Ahhh.. bit of a miscalculation, here! Not enough weight!" He was.. just about immobilized. A spider came from a hole just above him and to his right. "Not to alarm anybody, but I think I'm lunch!"
K: "Hold STILL!" I sighted in through the ELCAN Specter scope.. right over the head.. and fired three times.
The spider jerked, and curled up, falling into its own web.
Pvt. Patch: "You Ambelonians and your understatement humor, sir." He chuckled. "Orders, General?"
K: "I'm jumping down there.. with Applejack." I nodded. "Get in my arms, Honey."
Applejack: "Oooo.. now THIS might be a bit'a fun!" She safetied her Chaffee and climbed up into my arms.
K: "If this goes pear-shaped, shoot the spiders before they bite us, eh?" I nodded to Patch.
Pvt. Patch: "I'll try, sir." He nodded.
Panters: "Ehh.. I'll stick it on semi-auto.." He smirked.
I leapt.. I wanted some altitude to make sure I had enough kinetic energy to break the web. And, I did. I managed to miss Ty by about half a meter, and we fell all the way to the bottom.
It was a Cistern.. just like the Crystal Kingdom.
K: "Come on down, Patch! Panters!" I encouraged them.
Applejack: "Yew alright, Ty?" She got him free with her apple-hilted knife.
Typhoon Surge: "Just fine, ma'am." He nodded.
Patch flew down.. being a Pegasus, of course, this was no issue to him. He was.. actually the color of normal Band-Aids, with some freckles, making him more pale than AJ. His hair was brownish, cut short.
Panters just jumped, from one wall to another, avoiding the webs, until he Parkoured his way down. He came up with the Baby Beaver, aimed and ready, and selected to Full Auto.
K: "Alright.. move slow and careful. These.. if I'm right.. they're tunnels like a sewage or storm water drainage system. I have no idea what we'll find, but I expect to see the largest tunnel turned into a feeding chamber. We need to get to them before the Spiders decide it's meal time." I motioned, and we went down the first tunnel we could find.
Ty, Patch, and Panters all got out flashlights and affixed them to different spots on their uniforms, so they could see where they were going.
Mine was one of the Pony-issue Bite Flashlights, as was AJ's. We just stuck them in our mouths.
I marked the walls in Pinkie's Super Duper Pink Chalk.. I still kept a few sticks of it, ever since Marelin.
I tried to follow the denseness of the spider webs as best I could. Splitting up was a bad idea, I knew that, even though the tunnels were laid out in a grid. We'd just have to hope we got lucky.
Actually, it struck me how identical to the Crystal Kingdom ones, these tunnels were. They were very clearly poured concrete, and crafted in sections, like modern water tunnels were.
After about ten minutes going in a rough zig-zag, I found a discarded Morgan pistol.
K: "Hold up." I said, kneeling down to pick it up. "It's a Morgan." I nodded, and ejected the magazine - five rounds left. Examining the slide, I saw Dex's cutie mark on it. "This was Dex's."
Applejack: "Ah hope he's awlright.. shoot, Vy'd never fergive us if we let somethin' happen t'him.." She murred.
K: "Barrel's slightly warm.. still smells fresh." I held it out to Panters.
Panters: "Fired no more'n twenty minutes ago, General." He nodded, taking a sniff.
K: "Come on." I stuck the magazine back in, and stuck it in my cargo pants pocket.
After a bit more, and another turn ot the left, I almost tripped over a Canidan Ranger hatchet. I picked it up, and hefted it. Bella's name was on it. I passed it back to Panters, who stuck it in his gear.
Typhoon Surge: "Think we're hot on the trail, suh." He nodded.
Another turn.. and, now, Spiders. Several of them. I motioned for everyone to hide as best as they could.
I got my suppressor out of my webbed gear, and stuck it on the end of my Bradley. Ty and Patch did likewise. The suppressors kept the 7x40mm rounds from shattering ear drums in these tight quarters as we dispatched the arthropods.. five or six careful shots, all to the head or eyes.
Pvt. Patch: "Definitely on the trail now, sirs." He nodded.
K: "Up ahead.. I can see light." I pointed. "Flashlights off, keep it quiet."
We crept into the tunnel, only to have it start to widen.. another large cistern. No.. more like a giant septic tank. The light was coming from a throne area..
..a throne?
I rose to a stand, eyes down sights.. and advanced. I started seeing cocoons.. most of them struggling and squirming. Slowly.. slowly.. but, I looked down, and realized, we'd been walking on webs this whole time.
Whoever this was, they KNEW we were here. Moreover.. they were expecting us. I indicated this to the Squad, and slid Applejack to my near right, to cover the front, and Panters to the back, to cover our six.
I then made sure an impact fuse grenade was loaded into my Gavin. I nodded to the others, and took point, relaxing my grip on my rifle.
K: "ALRIGHT! Whoever you are.. why don't you come out, and we can stop playing these games.." I announced, as everyone put their heads on swivels, to cover all 360 degrees around us. "I've been walking on your WEBS this whole TIME! I know.. YOU know.. precisely where I am."
Descending from the celing, and soon joined by several dozen spiders of all sizes from the sides, and rear.. was a very large, very ferocious looking Arachne..
..a Spider Queen. How fitting.
[End of Part 4]
Part 5: Dastardly Web of Lies
TIME: 11:33 ERDT
DATE: War Day 665/29 Primaus, 1004 C.S.
LOCATION: Arooster County, Maine, Kingdom of Equestria
K: "Ahh.. shit." I frowned. "ALRIGHT YOU!" I pointed to her with my offhand. "What do you want?!"
Arachne: "Ooooo... the human indeed!" She chittered to herself.
K: "It's been a while since you've seen one?" I tilted my head.
Arachne: "Ohhh.. not really." She shrugged. "Somnabula made such a convincing human."
K: "You're working for Tirek, then?" I tilted my head, slowly sliding my primary hand's grip towards the Gavin's trigger bar.
Arachne: "Eh.. he asked of my services, through her, some time ago." She looked at the tunnel walls. "We can't go far from our precious tunnels. Or I'd've accepted." She shrugged.
K: "Was that your spiders I met, over a year ago, in the Crystal Kingdom?" I plied her.
Arachne: "Oh! Yes, my little northern nest.." She blinked her eyes (all eight of them) at me. "..that WAS you, then!"
K: "Indeed it was." I nodded. "I didn't fancy being food, so.." I shrugged very slightly.
Arachne: "Few do, these days." She sighed. "There was a time when Griffons would sacrifice their most dastardly, to us."
K: "Mm." I nodded very slightly. "So. Was this to get my attention, or..?"
Arachne: "Well.. actually, it was." She nodded to me. "I saw you on the surface. I had to.. see you in person."
She lowered herself all the way to the ground, and moved towards us.. I had to gently hold my offhand out to keep Applejack from attacking. She stopped about a meter from me.
K: "Simple question - why?" I tilted my head a bit.. and let my primary hand slide very gently back to my Bradley rifle trigger.
Arachne: "Do you know what Umbrals are?" She lowered herself to my level.
K: "I've heard of them - Lord Sombra used to be one, until he changed himself, and I altered him further with a wish from The Wishing Star." I nodded.
Arachne: "Ah! That makes this easier." She nodded, and crossed her arms. "The Umbrals created us." She rose up a bit. "Rather, they created me." She shrugged, with her arms wide apart.
K: "What reason?" I nodded very slightly to her.
Arachne: "Simple. Capture or destroy the Crystal Heart - the only thing that can, apparently, kill them." She blinked. "But, that's not true, as I found out. The Rainbow of Light, the original one, can destroy them as well. The Crystal Heart CAN kill them, but.. it banishes the ones not killed, and they can rise again." She crossed one arm under the other, and pressed her finger and thumb to her chin.
K: "What do you want from me, then?" I nodded very slightly to her.
Arachne: "When the Umbrals found out I was trying to double-deal them, they cursed us to forever be trapped close to our tunnels - there used to be a Crystal Kingdom city, here, you know? Moreover, it was also a City of the Ancients. From the Empire of Harmony. I think.. they called it.. Caribou?" She tilted her head.
K: "Republic of Harmony.. yeah.. I think that'd fit, geographically." I nodded slightly to her.
Arachne: "If we leave the tunnels for too long, either the Sun will shrivel us up, or the Moon will blind us." She shrugged. "And if we do so too close to the Crystal Heart, our own hearts will implode. Hence, why I moved us here." She looked at the walls. "It was a very slow process.." She frowned. "..we could only move on truly moonless nights, or risk harm."
She lowered herself all the way to my level, and reached out, putting her hands on my shoulders.. which drew Applejack's aim.
K: "Easy, honey." I nodded slightly to her.
Arachne: "I need you to break the curse." She looked right at me.
K: "What?" NOW.. I was confused.
Arachne: "Only the Human of Legend can do it." She nodded. "You see these huge spiders?"
There, indeed, was a very distinct species and size divide between the spider troops we dispatched before, and the ones before us now.
K: "..yes.."
Arachne: "These ones.. here.. close to me. We used to be Ponies. Crystal Ponies.. Mixed-Bloods. The Umbrals did this to us. I found that when we created offspring, they weren't the same. They were.. like drones from a beehive." She nodded, and released me.
K: "How do I fix this? Do you know?" At this point, I indicated that everyone lower their weapons.
Arachne: "When you find the Rainbow of Light, you must combine its energy into your sword.. once you do, you can destroy the Spider Crystal that keeps our true forms captive. The Crystal is here.. believe me, I'm pretty sure Tirek wanted to grab it and make us his slaves." She sighed in relief when we lowered our weapons. "There, see? I am not.. not potentially.. your enemy." She nodded to her brood, and they went and freed the others.
K: "I'll do it." I nodded. "Safeties on, everyone. This isn't what we thought it was."
Typhoon Surge: "Ah.. grateful for that one, suh." He stood up straight on all four legs.
Applejack: "'N why'di'nt ya just say so?" She blinked at her.
Arachne: "Would you have believed me?" She narrowed her eyes at her.
Applejack: "Nah." She shrugged. "Ah'm sorry."
Arachne: "You're Honesty, Applejack.. I think the yellow one would have trusted my words, though." She frowned a bit.
K: "Tirek explained everything, then. Rather, Somnambula did?" I tilted my head.
Arachne: "Yes. Right down to how to contact him if I captured them. The thing is, he was promising me dominion over the Crystal Kingdom's undergrounds if I succeeded.. I don't WANT territory, human! I WANT to go back to what I was!" She flapped her arms. "He thought I was evil. I'm not. I'm simply me."
K: "I have to admit.. I wasn't sure if the Spiders were a force of nature, or an organized enemy. Given the.. the reality of Tirek trying to round up Confederates to help him rule all.." I shrugged.
Arachne: "Still, though.. you were willing to listen. As I'd hoped." She nodded.
K: "Alright." I nodded. "Chompers.. you free, over there?"
Chompers: "Yeah, K." He came over, and untangled his comms pack mic from his backpack and the webbing over it.
K: C> "Alpha Actual to all callsigns. Condition Blue." I nodded. "No more killing."
Arachne: "Thank you." She nodded a bit.
K: "You have my word, the second we find the Rainbow of Light, we will be back to restore you." I held out my hand.
We shook on it.
Arachne: "So.. do you have a name? I'm Silky Webslace. At least, that was my Pony name.." She tilted her head to me.
K: "K---- K---. Just call me K, everyone else does." I shrugged. "This is my wife, Applejack, and my friends Typhoon Surge, Panters, and Patch.." I nodded to the ones being freed. "That's Dex Runner, Havoc, his mate Bella Donna, and those are Dex and Havoc's troops."
Dex: "Dude.. what's going ON here?" He paced up, pulling webbing off.
K: "We found someone that Tirek wanted to make an ally, but was, instead, someone who could potentially be our friend." I nodded to Silky.
Havoc: "Works for me!" He snickered. "I've got enough enemies!"
Bella Donna: "No kidding, dear." She nudged him.
K: "Anyway.. up above, we're going to build a new town. I think calling it Caribou would be a perfect name. Neutral, respectful to the old, that sort of thing." I nodded. "There'll be Cowreans, here. Ahh.. I'm sure there'll be a few that don't want to behave, so, you might end up with plenty of food." I shrugged, my arms wide.
Silky: "Sounds fine to me!" She giggled. "I look forward to your return, K."
K: "If I don't, I'm dead, simple as that." I nodded to her.
Silky: "Seeing how loyal your friends are, I believe that." She bowed a bit.
K: "Alright, everyone, let's get out of here." I gestured to the exit, just as Ambrosia and the rest of Ty's squad arrived. "Perfect timing! We're leaving."
Ambrosia: "Oh! Good." She nodded. "These tunnels can be confusing.. well built, but I needed to make a map.."
And, there, I learned, that sometimes.. an ally, or at least a non-threat.. isn't always what it seems to be. I certainly could have played that much differently and ended up in a dense firefight where a single stray round could have killed a friend. Instead? We made a new one.
Perhaps what Pinkie's been saying, about me finding friends, isn't so wrong, after all?
{End of Chapter 70}
