Chapter 3
"So now, sis an' her friends are off in the Everfree lookin' fer him so they can calm him down 'fore he hurts somepony." Applebloom finished telling the story again. She had told Big Mac, she had told her fellow Crusaders, now she was explaining the situation to Granny Smith.
"Hmmm, I don't know too much about 'tanks' or whatever, but anycritter who stands between my family and a Chimera is a good soul in my book...speakin' o which, WUT IN TARNATION MADE YOU THINK YOU COULD GO THROUGH THE FIRE SWAMPS ON YER OWN LIKE THAT!?" Granny Smith shouted.
Applebloom went from fascinated with the mysterious tank to frightened and flustered in an instant. "Um-uh-well-uh-I-ah-I-I thought I could prove I was old enough."
"Nothin' proves age more than patience! An' yer gonna need it...YER GROUNDED!!!" Granny Smith decreed.
"WWWUUUUUUUHHH!!? BUT-BUT I-...yes ma'am." Applebloom relented. If it hadn't been for the tank, she would've been Chimera chow. She had proven beyond doubt that she wasn't as prepared as she thought. To her family, and to herself.
Granny Smith looked prepared to say something else when everypony suddenly felt faint tremors.
"Hmm, wussat?" Granny Smith asked no one in particular.
Big Mac, who had been silent the entire time, positioned himself between his family and the door as the tremors grew in intensity.
"Wait a minute...IT'S HIM!!" Applebloom shouted nervously and excitedly at the same time.
"IT'S THE TANK DOIN' THAT STOMPIN' OUTSIDE!!"
"Tank or not, he better not be knockin' down the day's harvest with that stompin'." Granny Smith stated.
"I'd be more worried about him blastin' us with his cannon." Big Mac said. He rarely spoke, but some things needed to be said.
With one final thud, the tremors ceased. A few seconds later, galloping hooves signaled a new arrival coming through the door.
"Applejack! Did'ya clear up things with the tank?" Applebloom asked excitedly.
Applejack looked nervous, but not so much that anyone had cause to believe they were in immediate danger. "Sort of...there is somethin' wrong with that fella...something similar ta Great Uncle Pineapple."
Everypony took a step back and gasped loudly. Applejack then explained everything they had learned about the mysterious creature named Audius, and Applebloom confirmed that what he said to her made more sense if he was living through a different battle.
"So, ya brought him here ta visit his sister...who he thinks is me." Granny Smith recapped not too pleased with the idea...but Cousin Pineapple meant a lot to her, and she made sure that any pink coated he mistook for Candy Apple played along for his sake.
"It's only ta keep him out of trouble while Twilight brings the Princesses up to speed. Then Princess Luna is gonna come here and see what we're dealin' with." Applejack explained.
Granny Smith went bug eyed. "YER TELLIN' ME THERE'S ROYALTY COMIN' TA MY HOUSE!? APPLEBLOOM! FETCH THE FINE ABYSSINIAN PLATES! BIG MAC! COLLECT ALL THE APPLES THAT AUDIUS FELLER KNOCKED DOWN! LET'S GET A MOVE ON!!!"
The Apple Family exploded into activity, with Applejack leading Granny Smith to Audius.
Audius waited outside the quaint farm. Crops of corn and fields of wheat were tended to by kinfolk that the Mantis Warrior had never met.
He watched a large and muscular young man oversee the harvest atop an equally impressive equine. The large red stallion paused before the Astartes until his rider spurred him futher down the path with a respectful nod to Audius.
His attention turned to a pair of women making their way towards him. One was his great niece Abigail, a young adult with a muscular figure that would've looked odd on common Imperial worlds, but Tranquillity II was a Feudal World, such worlds rarely suffered the weak.
The other woman...Audius had barely recognized her. The indoctrination process of the Adeptus Astartes took away a vast majority of memories prior to rebirth as one of the Emperor's Chosen. Audius did not even remember his mortal name, but he remembered his sister.
He had met her two years after earning his armor and ascending beyond the 10th Company, it was the only time he had ever had to look down at her, the only time she did not feel stronger than him.
Now, the rot of time had stripped her bare and left a withered crone in her place. Yet, the dry wrinkled skin still clung loosely to respectable muscles for her age, and she refused aid from Abigail and met Audius under her own power. "It's been a long time little one, I was beginning to think you would visit my grave before I saw you again."
"Agatha...time has not been kind to you sister." The Astartes replied.
Agatha shrugged. "Time comes for us all, even Space Marines age after centuries."
Audius smirked beneath his helmet. "Indeed. I see the crops are plentiful this year. Perhaps we can expect the populace to have leftovers after the winter."
"Aye, that's been the case for the last decade, and I plan to keep it up." Agatha replied.
"Truly!? You have brought such prestige to our legacy?" Audius exclaimed. Truly astounded that his sister had managed so much.
The old woman grinned smugly at him and crossed her arms. "Did you really forget who I am little one?"
"No sister. I...I am sorry. If we had another sibling...if I had not been chosen by the Chaplains, you would surely have been known by all the Imperium." Audius lamented.
Agatha was shocked for a moment, and then she was furious. "ARE YOU TELLING ME YOU SPENT ALL THESE YEARS FEELING SORRY FOR ME CAUSE I COULDN'T LEAVE THE FARM TO JOIN THE GUARD!?" The old woman shouted before slapping Audius across his helmed face.
"G-GRANNY!!" Abigail shouted, horrified that Agatha had just raised her hand to an Angel of Death.
"It is alright, I am her brother before any other title." Audius stated with a calming wave of his hand.
It was only the tank's monotone words that told Applejack that the outstretched claw he pointed at her was not a threat. Granny Smith, however, was calm as a critter around Fluttershy.
I knew it. If his sister were anything like me, then that's exactly how she'd respond ta sympathy. Granny Smith thought to herself as she continued, ignoring the pain in her back hooves from bucking the thing's knee plate.
"Now listen here Audius, ma and pa didn'teverbeg me ta stay. But they didn't have to. I knew what would happen if I left, an' it wouldn't be nobody's fault, just a tragedy...I tragedy I couldn't stand ta let happen. I chose ta stay on the farm an' give up the adventurous life. An' don'chu ferget it." She concluded, throwing a stink eye into the slit on the center rectangle that she assumed was where his eyes were.
Of course sister, my apologies. The walking tank droned in its creepy voice.
Any further converse was interrupted by the timely arrival of the ruler of Equestria's night: Princess Luna.
The Princess landed to the side of the tank and farm ponies with Twilight landing behind her.
The tank turned toward them, shaking the farm as it raised and dropped it's right hoof to turn its massive boxy body before, to Applejack's absolute shock, bending its body forward in an awkward bow. Chaplain Gabbath, I was told you requested my presence?
Applejack attempted to speak, but Granny Smith waved her off. "I think his memory done shifted. Let's let the Princess take it from here."
Her claim was backed up when Audius didn't react to the statement at all. Luna however did, and nodded to the Apple Family Matriarch before stepping forward to address the tank. "Yes...we requested you. It has come to our attention that your mind is...troubled."
The tank rotated its body at the midsection, lowering its headless torso to look at the ground away from Luna. Yes brother, this war...I know why we must fight, but it plagues me.
Luna, accepting the role of this Chaplain, nodded her head in understanding.
She knew very little of this creature and what he stood for, but even villains could be brought low by the strife of their own making...and their servants far more so. "Describe it to me. Tell me about the war from your eyes. The events that led to it, the reasons we made our decisions."
The tank paused for a moment, but obeyed what he believed to be a superior officer.
For generations, our Chapter has held back the horrors of the Maelstrom. Repelling assaults for horrible Aliens whose forms madden the human mind, and the foul Daemons of the immaterium and their heretical followers. For generations we drove them back, held the line...but never destroyed them.
We only needed precious few reinforcements to end the threat once and for all, but requests for aid were always denied. The Astral Claws attempted to build additional resources by refusing to pay their tithes...the blue blooded nobles that grew fat off our struggling declared them traitors and called in the Fire Hawks Chapter to take the tithes by force.
By request of Lugft Huron, we struck the Fire Hawks and sent them reeling. More Astartes Chapters were called in, the lines were drawn...and now we fight amongst ourselves while the horrors of the Maelstrom laugh at our backs.
...It's madness. If the forces erected to subdue us would only aid us, we could destroy the Maelstrom and the monsters that dwell within it once and for all...yet, they are content to force us into submission and leave us to our stalemate...It's madness!! The tank took a step forward as it shouted, but nopony reacted to the outburst.
"Hu...bu...they...I..WHAT!?" Twilight shouted.
"WHAT KINDA NO GOOD LOUSY VARMINTS WOULD DO A THING LIKE THAT!?" Granny Smith added.
"Ye..Yer tellin me, you were sent ta fight a war ya couldn't win, ya tried ta amass the resources ya needed ta win, an yer leaders sent more people ta take yer extra resources AWAY FROM YOU!?" Applejack inquired.
Nocreature in Equestria's history, not even Queen Chrysalis in all her selfishness, or King Sombra in all his greed, had ever committed such a heinous act of foolishness as what Audius had described.
Audius did not respond to them. Luna took this to mean the mentally damaged creature didn't know they were there. Audius looked to her for a response from his Chaplain, yet the Lunar Princess had no idea how to respond.
"Um...I...uh...I-I..ahem, I understand your frustration...'brother', but don't lose heart just yet. We will find a way to win this war, and then we will destroy the monsters within the Maelstrom. In the meantime, I believe you should rest...'brother', clear your mind to better focus on the task at hand." Luna stated as professionally as she could.
Understood brother, I will block these doubts from my mind and focus on the task at hand. Audius replied with another awkward bow.
Luna went bug-eyed. "Wait WHAT!? THAT'S NOT WHAT I-" Her response came too late as the walking tank was turning to march towards Ponyville. Seeing this, Granny Smith immediately ran out to stand in front of him again. "Oh hey there bro! Long time no see!"
Audius stopped in his tracks as his memories reshuffled around him. Sister, I believe it is no longer accurate for you to call me 'little one'.
Granny Smith wiped sweat from her forehead and briefly nursed her aching hip from having ran so fast so suddenly before resuming her act. "Ya may be a bit bigger now, but you'll always be a little one ta me."
The machine laughed in it's droning voice while Applejack walked up to the Princesses. "That was close." She stated.
Luna nodded absently. "He thought I'd sent him to war...with Ponyville." The Alicorn shuddered.
"Well, at least Granny Smith has him under control. Though I don't it's wise to base our well being on a charade. Is it possible we can heal his mind?" Twilight asked.
"We would have to probe his mind to find out, and if he's capable of sensing magical probes, he may react violently...he said that he had fought demons in the past." Luna shuddered, but then breathed out a calming breath. "Which means I will have to enter his mind through the Dream Realm. Beings with this affliction are always dreaming, and if I don't project myself or make changes, he won't notice me no more than he notices being surrounded by ponies."
"Well then, I'll leave it to you Princess, see you later Appleja-" "HOLD IT!!" Applejack interjected. "Soon as Granny Smith knew Luna was comin' she had us make a feast fit fer royalty. An' she ain't gonna let food like that go to waste. The last Mayor Mare had to reschedule at the last minute...the whole family gained 20 pounds."
Author's Note:
And that's the chapter. I'm sorry it took so long. I'm still going through a rough patch, but I am gonna see this story to the end, and I don't think it'll take more than 10 Chapters.
I don't know too much about farming, and even less about medieval farming, but I hope I did the lifestyle justice.(I'll accept all criticisms and consider changes based on suggestions)
I almost made Audius think Luna was a Reclusiarch and that Twilight was the Chief Librarian, but I figured that was too high up the chain.
Additionally, I finally got to download the song for Audius' tribute video. it'll be on YouTube titled Scars of War- Audius tribute. Enjoy.
That's all I got for now, I'll see you all next time.
