Chapter 1

Marine meets Equestrian

The loud sound of a Blackhawk's propellers was sounding in his ears, something that he had gotten used to in his tour of his least favorite place on earth. He looked around the chopper at his fellow marines. Each one had a different look on their faces. None of them seemed like they loved life, each also had wounds from the previous battle they had just gotten airlifted from. He looked down at his own gear, it was a bit tattered and bloody, but it wasn't his blood. It was the blood of Lance Corporal Adam Langston. He had taken a few shots to his right arm and thigh, once he fell to the ground the enemy decided to beat him to death. Alan was the only one who went back across the sniper infested street in a desperate attempt to save the young man.

He looked across his Kevlar vest and read the name that was stitched to his right breast pocket. 'Burning' he read to himself, a name that he used to hate, until he became the last line of Burning's on the planet. He looked down at his war torn M4A1 Assault rifle; it was a weapon that was handed down to him by his dying father when New York had been attacked by the Russians in 2023. He looked at the weapon for a moment, admiring the 'crafty' handiwork that his dad used to scratch in 'BURNING' next to the fire mode.

He looked up when he heard someone call his name "Burnings" it was his Sargent, Sargent Replens. "Yeah sarge" he called back, looking at the tall, strong man. "Listen, I know it's been a rough week, but I need you to find a few capable men. We just got our next assignment."

Alan looked at his commanding officer and shook his head "Sir, with all due respect, we aren't fit for another assignment. There's no way in hell anyone would agree to come with us" he said looking at the other soldiers that were all listening to the conversation. Alan sighed and straightened up a little "I would gladly kill more enemies for Langston Sir. When are we going?" he asked as he spotted Alpha base in the distance. Sargent Replens looked Alan in the eyes "As soon as you have a team ready"

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Alan didn't have a hard time looking for soldiers to help him. Half of his squad wanted revenge for what happened to Langston. The other half was in the Med-Bay getting patched up. Alan and his new team had already gotten briefed on their mission and were already on their way towards the Blackhawk that was revving its engines. Alan was the last one to get in; he was the newest Captain of the 405th Company. He sat down next to the cargo bay and gave the pilot thumbs up before the bay closed and the Blackhawk lifted off the ground.

For him the ride took hours. He was still saddened by Langston's fight for survival in a hospital bed in Alpha base. He slowly lifted his left arm to his face and looked at the mini GPS that was attached. It was a rough 45 miles away from their destination. He stood up and made his way to the Pilot's chair. He looked out the front window and saw a strange glow in the distance. He was about to ask what it was when the Blackhawk began to violently shake.

Alan stumbled backwards into the troop bay and landed on his back. One of the pilots looked back and yelled "INCOMING!" before the Blackhawk made a very violent shake that threw Alan against his empty chair. He scrambled upright into the seat just before the Blackhawk started spinning wildly. Alan squeezed his eyes shut and grabbed the nearby webbing to keep himself from flying around. He heard the whine of the engine and the yells of the two pilots. "Mayday, mayday! This Echo 419 we are taking heavy fire and are going down!" the pilot yelled. Alan opened his eyes in just in time to see a very bright green light.

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Alan couldn't believe his eyes. As soon as the green flash was gone, he was over a large town square somewhere near a large forest and a mountain. He looked down and saw something REALLY strange. It was a pink horse that was staring at the helicopter. The Blackhawk began to spin towards the large forest. Alan pulled himself back onto his seat and hung on for dear life.

The helicopter scraped a tree, simultaneously tearing off a side door and ripping the back propeller to shreds. The Blackhawk hit the ground with enough force to crush Thor into the ground. It tumbled a few times before coming to a fiery stop near a swamp.

Alan slowly regained consciousness as he heard a few shouts coming from a distance. Alan looked around; he realized he was outside of the helicopter and it was now night time. He grabbed his nearby rifle and tried to stand, but felt an agonizing pain shoot through his body. He looked down at his legs and noticed that his right leg was still under the Blackhawk's burning hull. He heard a moan from inside the chopper "HEY! Can you hear me?" He yelled. He waited a moment before a rifle flew out of the helicopter. "They're all dead!" someone yelled from inside. Alan looked up when he heard a sudden rustling. He lifted his M4A1 in the direction ready to fire.

The Corporal that was still alive jumped out of the chopper and landed next to Alan "Captain Burning!" he said and started digging around Burning's leg. There was a sudden yell that came from the bushes. Both Marines looked up in time to see two arrows fly towards the Corporal's body. One of the arrows hit his chest but the other planted into his left arm, he screamed in pain and pulled out his USP. A dark form walked through the bushes. The corporal fired at it multiple times, it dropped to the ground without a sound "Captain! I can't-" he couldn't finish his sentence because another arrow hit him straight in the neck, killing him instantly. Alan rolled to the right despite his broken ankle and aimed his M4A1 at the nearest bush. The sound of his weapon made his headache worse than it already was.

Alan held the trigger until he heard a 'click' he discarded the weapon and tried for his sidearm, but before he could pull it out, something hit the side of his head, hard. His combat helmet took the most damage, but the half hoof on the side of his head was almost enough to knock him out. He lay on the ground for a moment before lifting his injured head. He saw something bizarre. Horses. Dressed in golden armor. With crossbows and swords.

One of them looked at Alan and grunted "one of them lives sir what should we do?" it said to a slightly taller horse. It trotted next to the marine and looked at the bleeding body next to him. Take it to the castle, bring the weapons"

Alan clawed at the dirt, trying to reach his M4, only to get a hoof to the face.

Ooo

Shining Armor watched as his men dragged the limp body of the large creature behind him. He didn't know what it was. He did know that it was the last one alive, and he wasn't going to have it escape before the figured out where it came from. The last creatures that appeared had attacked Princess Celestia without remorse. And he would rather die than let that happen again. "as soon as we get there I want two guards by Celestia at all times" he said and looked at the large burning metal monster.

'Where did you come from' He silently asked the unconscious creature.