Sergeant Deans heavy footsteps were accompanied by the clip-clop of two different ponies hooves. His hands were balled into fists and his eyes were constantly analyzing every detail. Things seemed to pass by in slow motion as the group made their way forward. A trio of guards passed them on the left, two of which gave him a heated glare. The third shied away with his ears splayed back. They began to mumble and grumble behind Deans back, but he ignored it. He had to find his stuff.

"Your belongings are being held in the barracks at the moment. We were going to try and find out how everything worked but Midnight Flow advised that we wait for you to wake up and show us." Shining kept pace by trotting at Deans side, Twilight remained silent and contemplative just opposite him.

"Smart of him to do so. My weapons aren't the same as what the Elves use. They are more sophisticated and advanced." Dean noticed a gradual increase in ponies wearing armour. Some held spears and swords, but more than a few held what looked to be looted weapons from the Dark Elves. The group passed a large hedge and came upon a massive training ground. A shooting range lay a few hundred meters away with only a few ponies occupying the shooting zones. Dean watched as a familiar orange maned Pegasus leveled a bow towards the target, drew back, and fired. The arrow flew straight and true as it struck the center bullseye.

"I would like to speak with that Pegasus." Dean gestured with a thumb towards the shooter. Shining gave him an incredulous look but otherwise simply nodded his head.

"I can arrange that. What exactly are you trying to put a team together for? Wait a minute!" Shining galloped ahead and pivoted in place, forcing Dean and Twilight to stop in their tracks. "Is this your goal? To take command of my forces and force them on suicide missions?"

Dean stared at the white unicorn for a second, thinking of a way to answer the question. He heard Twilight huff in irritation beside him and knew that she was likely about to try and scold her brother. Dean knelt down in front of the prince in order to seem less intimidating.

'She can be pretty naive sometimes.'

"I'm not trying to do anything of the sort. The longer the Elves are left to their own devices, the bigger the chance they have at finding this little Resistance you have going here. I intend to take the fight to the Dark Elves. I've been shown what they did to your species, treating them like animals. Where I come from, it is the duty of a soldier to fight slavery and oppression. I don't go on suicide missions either, I go on missions to win. It's my job as a member of the RSTF." Dean stood back up as a look of relief spread across Shining Armours face. The trio began walking once more.

"What's an RSTF? Is that your countries Royal Guard?" Shining analyzed the training grounds critically, scowling every time he saw somepony slacking off.

Dean chuckled lightly as he reached up and tapped the insignia on his left breast. The Prince had to crane his neck up in order to properly see the logo.

"RSTF stands for Rangers Special Task Force. Where I am from, we are the deadliest and most efficient soldiers in Human history. We are equipped with the most advanced gear the world has to offer and are the main line of defense against the Orith. And before you ask and I have to go on another long story, the Orith are an alien menace waging Genocide on my people. That is why I have to get back home as soon as possible, we are losing and we need every available person in the fight." Dean saw a massive concrete building come into view as the group made another turn. The structure seemed rustic and utilitarian. Arrow slits were spaced every so often along the walls, causing Dean to snort. The barracks reminded him of an old British fort he had visited as a kid, Fort Henry or something. The squat and imposing building before him looked downright Medieval! He would have hated the layout if it didn't provide a beautiful view of the ocean.

Shining Armour merely whistled as they approached the double oak doors. Two Earth Pony guards sat on a bench off to the side, playing a game of dice. When they saw Dean however, they both jumped up and drew their swords, completely missing the fact that two of their superiors were standing just off to the side of the imposing Human.

"Stay back Elf, I-I'm warning you!" The first guard sounded young, almost a teenager. His short sword was vibrating slightly along with the rest of his body. Dean figured the poor pony was utterly terrified.

"I'm not going to hurt you, kid. I'm not an Elf either." Dean held his hands up in what was supposed to be a calming gesture, but the second pony must've thought he was reaching for a weapon.

"I've got 'em lad!" The guard that was flanking around suddenly launched at Sergeant Dean. Twilight cried out, her and Shining having backed up to witness the exchange. She had nothing to worry about however as within the blink of an eye, both guards were laying on the ground, disarmed. It was then that the they noticed the Prince and Princess standing off to the side.

"Princess, Captain! Get away from the Elf, get help!" The Guards Pony quickly got back to his hooves and brandished a dagger towards the soldier before him. Dean simply smirked.

"Put away your weapon lieutenant. Sergeant Dean here is on our side!" Shining Armour walked over and laid a hoof on the Lieutenants side. After a second of contemplation, the guards pony resheathed his dagger.

"Why is this thing roaming around? I thought that Elves weren't permitted in the Resistance?" The guard turned to address his Captain. Behind him, the younger guard was still on the ground, quaking in fear. Dean noticed this and bent down. The Guard shied away from the sudden movement and closed his eyes, his ears pinning against his head.

"I'm not going to hurt you kid." Dean's voice was soothing and friendly, he even added a touch of a smile as he reached out and offered his hand to the stallion below him. He saw the guard peek out from under his helmet and stare at the hand.

"The Dark Elves never offered their hand in friendship to us." He analyzed Deans face and ears, then his bulky armour. The guard cautiously lowered his hoof into Dean's hand. He flinched when Deans fingers closed around his leg, but upon being hoisted up, he looked at the Sergeant in awe. "And it appears that you are not entirely similar to them either. What are you?"

"I'm a Human. The only one on the planet. I've been called a few names since I got here, The Demon of Metal, Elf, Asshole, but I just like to to go by Sergeant or Sergeant Dean. What's your name kid?" Dean adjusted his head wrap.

'I wonder if they brought my helmet back too?'

"Private Swift Spear, sir." The pony continued to look at the Human in awe. He had no idea what a Human was, but if the Sergeant was anything to go by, they must be pretty awesome! He hadn't even seen the soldier move before he was on the ground and disarmed. Swift Spear had always been one to go with the flow. If this thing wasn't an Elf, which was now obvious, then he was okay with that. If only the rest of his species was more like him.

"Well, Swift Spear, how about you help me find Midnight Flow? He's a good friend of mine and I'm told he's been holding onto my stuff for me."

"Sure thing, Sir! Oh, uh, you can call me Swift if you would like." Swift trotted up to the doors and quickly wrapped his hoof around the knob. The door began to slide open with a mighty creak and Dean winced at the noise. "Right through here Sergeant. Midnight is an officer so he is in a different part of the building." Swift quickly trotted through the doorway.

'Hopefully my luck plays out and all the ponies accept me like Swift here."

Dean took a deep breath, and walked through the doors. The first things that greeted him were the cheers and yells as he stepped inside. The room before him gave Dean a heavy sense of nostalgia as his legs carried him forward. Bunks lined up in groups spread out across the large room, all neat and properly made. The concrete floors were swept until they shined and the walls were devoid of any wear and tear. If it weren't for the group of Ponies standing and cheering on a wrestling match, Dean would have called it home.

"Elf!"

The sudden cry caused Dean to cringe internally, though he kept his mask of professionalism as he stopped walking. He knew that any sudden movements could lead to him being mobbed.

Ponies scattered and ran about in a frenzy. Some took cover behind their bunks, some ran towards a door in the back. The rest formed a wall of flesh and fur as they surrounded the Human from all angles. Dean snorted.

"Come quietly or we will use deadly force. You may have gotten the jump on us, but there isn't any escaping." A brave Pegasus pony stepped forward from the crowd and glared at him. Her glare turned to Swift as she noticed the Earth Pony for the first time. "Swift? I knew you were green, but I never knew you were coward enough to join the enemy. You will be dealt with once we get this Elf to the dungeon." The pony took a cautious step forward, causing Dean to raise an eyebrow. She continued to grow closer, as did the rest of the crowd. All were tense and ready to spring into action at the slightest movement. Dean caught sight of a unicorn levitating some sort of skiv into the air beside him. Dean's eyes darted around the assembled group, taking into account every move.

"He's not the enemy, Stormfly! This is Sergeant Dean, he's a h-" Swift was cut off as Stormfly growled. her ears folded slightly in aggression.

This content has been misappropriated from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.

"I don't care what you have to say, traitor. The Elf knows he's beat, look at him, quaking in his boots." This caused Dean, who was tensing even more, to raise an eyebrow. His fingers silently curled into fists at his sides as he prepared.

'This is NOT how I planned this to go! That, and my hopes of them being like Swift have been obliterated. Stupid, Dean!'

"Whoa, what's going on here?" Dean breathed out a shaky sigh of relief as Midnights yell echoed through the room. His shoulders visibly relaxed.

"Taking out the enemy and a traitor, First Lieutenant Midnight." Stormfly growled out. Dean didn't dare take his eyes off the crouched pony. He really did not need a repeat with the nurses... albeit deadlier.

"At ease Corporal, Sergeant Dean is on our side. He's the one who rescued the Princess and got her here safely." A few eyes in the crowd widened, Swift Spears especially. Muttering started to break out among the guards and more than a few looks of suspicion were thrown towards the Sergeant. Dean spotted the Charcoal coloured Night Guard making his way through the crowd and smirked.

"But Midnight, sir, this is an Elf! A bucking Elf! They invaded our country, razed our villages, and murdered and raped innocent ponies. He's a monster!" Stormfly's eyes narrowed. "I don't give a buck, these things killed my sister!"

Dean's eyes widened as the Pegasus suddenly shot towards him, then they narrowed. He needed the military arm of the Resistance to understand he was a friend, but also not something to be bossed around. He was on a tight schedule and was taking a risk by doing what he did next.

Dean sidestepped the Pegasus as she swung a mighty punch at his head. He watched as her eyes widened in both fear and surprise as he avoided her. Both emotions were swiftly erased from her face however as one of his hands suddenly reached up and clamped around the back of her neck. He made sure he wasn't choking the pony as he halted her forward momentum with a step back. Stormfly squealed in a very unladylike fashion as she found herself struggling lightly to breath. Her hooves flung about wildly as her eyes widened in panic. Shouts of outrage and fear filled the room as the ponies all backed away. None of them had seen the Sergeant move and were now terrified of him. Their fight or flight instincts told them to get away from the danger while their training demanded they attack. This resulted in chaos as ponies tripped over their hooves in confusion. Dean watched as the chaos slowly came to a standstill, even Midnight was shocked by Dean's display. The man in question slowly turned the pony in his grip to face him. He was surprised by the defiant face of the mare she she crossed her front hooves together.

Their eyes locked and Dean frowned. The Pegasus mare in his grip scowled and started to feebly swing her hooves at Dean once more. What little armour she had clinked with every move of her body, but Deans grip was like iron.

"Just kill me already. You bastards have already taken everything, I'm just another pony to kill. You aren't going to be leaving here alive either way, I can guarantee you that." The Pegasus stopped her struggling and seemed to grow limp, but her eyes remained focused on Deans face as he stared at her.

A tension began to build in the air as the two beings stared at each other. Ponies who had initially hid started to come out while a few others bared their teeth. Dean's eyes slowly moved from the Pegasus to scan the rest of the crowd. They were all ready to fight him to the death, even with one of their own at his mercy. Dean looked back at the Pegasus and he sighed.

"You have courage, soldier." And then everyone in the room got the surprise of their life, including Stormfly. Dean gently bent down and placed the violent Pegasus on the concrete floor. Stormfly's look of anger turned into one of confusion and shock as she stared at him. Dean smirked and stood up once more.

"You all have courage. Even when facing insurmountable odds, you continue to fight for your freedom. Hear these words, I am not your enemy, the Elves are." Dean spun in a slow circle as he regarded each and every soldier before him. Each was staring at him with their full attention, albeit in visible confusion. "I could have killed every single one of you a few minutes ago if I chose to, but I didn't. My enemy is your enemy! You don't have to trust me, hell, you can have every once of hatred for my well being if you want, but my fight is not with you. I saw what these Dark Elves were doing to your kind, I saw what they do to prisoners. Do you know what I did when I witnessed these things." Dean turned once more and regard Stormfly, who had her head cocked to the side. Not a single pony spoke, they all seemed to hold their breath.

"I killed them."

Dean crouched down in front of Stormfly once more, who was looking at him in awe. "I'm not asking to be your friend, I'm not asking you to outright trust me. I am asking for your alliance, so that we can get rid of the Dark Elves and free your species." Dean stood up and glanced around. All the ponies were looking at him with various emotions. Some still held hate, some held awe, but many held shock.

'Not my best speech, but I think I got my point across.'

After several more seconds filled with tense anticipation, Midnight Flow cleared his throat loudly. All heads seemed to turn to him and he scowled.

"Alright Sergeant, come with me so we can get your things." Midnight turned and began to walk off, parting the sea of ponies like a quadruped Moses. Dean moved to follow him but took an extra moment to look down at Stormfly. The mare was staring at him with an emotion he couldn't place, though he was happy she and the rest of the guards were no longer harassing him. He looked away and took off after Midnight. Dean heard hoof steps follow him and assumed that Swift Spear was following along. He briefly wondered where the two members of royalty had gone but banished the thought; he'd find them soon enough. As the Sergeant's heavy boots clunked after Midnight, his thoughts began to wander. The guards had a lot more training than he had anticipated. They recognized a threat who was outright stronger and faster than them and chose to surround and keep distance. Dean had no doubt that he would have been mobbed had Swift Spear not been there.

"On the left here. I have everything we brought with us in this room." Midnight opened the door he had mentioned and gestured for the two to stop. Midnight fixed Dean with a glare and snorted. "What you did back their, Sergeant, was stupid. Those ponies would have killed you in a heartbeat had Swift not been there. You are lucky." Dean crossed his arms.

"That may be, but I had to show them I wasn't an enemy. If I came in here hiding behind royalty or a superior, then I would look weak and they would never trust my word. They don't trust me yet, but it was a giant leap towards it. Had I walked in here and had the Prince and Princess deal with it, I'd probably get my throat slit in the night at some point." Swift shivered at Dean's comment.

Midnight Flow regarded the Human for a few seconds before snorting in bemusement. "You are full of surprises, Sergeant." Dean could only smirk at that.

Midnight opened the door and the trio proceeded into the room, Dean having to duck to fit under the doorway. Upon looking around, the three moved towards the giant pile of objects in the far corner. The room was occupied by a single bed pushed against the wall along with a table and cordless lamp. Dean wondered where the power came from as the ponies didn't seem capable of creating batteries yet.

Both ponies jumped as Dean cried out and rushed towards the pile, his heavy footfalls seeming to shake the room. Both ponies had folded their ears at the initial sound and were now glaring at Dean.

"What the buck was that for? That hurt my ears!" Swift growled out. His face turned a shade of red when Dean began chuckling.

"And here I was, thinking that some fuzzy ponies might have tried to experiment on you! But not this time! Ha!" Dean proceeded to stand up along with what Swift assumed was a large metal club. It was a fantastically intricate design and was covered in some sort of mottled forest colours. Swift tilted his head in confusion.

"What is that? I don't think I've seen a club with such an odd shape." Swift stepped closer as Dean turned to look at him.

"It isn't a club, my people moved past such primitive weapons centuries ago. Though they do tend to be used in riots and the such." Dean looked down the sights of the rifle towards the floor and checked the safety. Satisfied that all the basics were in order, he began looking around the gun with a more scrutinizing eye. A layer of dust had seemingly built up all over the modified SCAR-H. After being unused for such a long time, he figured he would have to clean his weapons if he wanted to ever use them. "It's my rifle, a very versatile weapon. The one I will be carrying with me later will be my pistol, but I'll need to clean both if I want them to work properly. Now where did... ah-ha!"

Dean placed his SCAR against the wall and started rummaging through the pile once more. After several seconds, he held up a gray, sophisticated looking helmet that matched the bulky armour and quickly placed it on his head, not bothering to remove the bandages. The strap then came to life, causing both ponies to jump.

"I didn't know your helmet could do that! You've always taken it off by hand!" Midnight trotted forward and took a closer look at the protective gear. A metallic clip was stationed in the middle of the strap, connecting the two straps into one. The straps split into a V towards the ears and onto equally distanced locations on either side. The top of the helmet seemed to be padded in some sort of course fabric, but just by looking at it, the Pegasus could tell there was layer of something hard underneath. The helmet seemed to bend somewhat near the Humans neck, reaching down even more and covering his ears. The overall colour was the same dark gray/black of Deans armour; just by looking at him gave Midnight the feeling he was looking at something from the far future, albeit on two legs. Midnight noticed a very subtle red light, almost invisible even at close range. He suddenly blinked and found that Deans face was way to close for comfort. The Human soldier visibly showed this by leaning back and tilting his head away, but never looking away from the Pegasus.

"Sorry Dean, I got carried away examining your equipment." Midnight spoke in a rush as his cheeks tinged red, causing Dean and Swift to chuckle. Midnight quickly glared at Swift, shutting him up instantly. This time Dean chuckled, but was unaffected by Midnights withering glare.

"S'alright Midnight, even some soldiers back home where in awe by my battledress. And no, I can't explain what everything is. It's classified for the most part. The most I'm allowed to say is I am wearing an Exo-suit with very special armour." Dean caught Swift about to ask a question, but upon answering he immediately caused the pony to close his mouth.

"Lets get everything sorted, then I can catch up with Twilight and Shining. Thanks for holding onto my stuff Midnight, I owe you one. Or should I say, lieutenant?" Dean smirked as Midnight blanched.

"Even if I am a higher rank, I consider you my acquaintance or even friend Sergeant Dean." Midnight looked up at the Human and smiled. Dean smirked back.

"Alright Midnight, I'll call you by your first name if you call me by mine. You to Swift, you aren't getting out of this one either." Dean looked down at Swift Spear, who audibly gulped.

"Is that okay with you Lieutenant Midnight?" Swift asked as he looked at Midnight.

"I believe so. Also, I would like to apply you for a promotion later for helping Sergeant Dean here. I think you've earned it." Midnight smiled as Swift Spear's jaw dropped, Dean snickered and turned back to his sorting. "I must go and report to Captain armour, then I will come back to help you move things, Dean."

"Sounds good, and thanks again for keeping my stuff safe." Midnight nodded before he and Swift disappeared out the door once more leaving the Human to his lonesome. Dean looked around the room once, and then his mind went into work mode, something that was drilled into him since his early training. He quickly strapped on his radio and holstered his pistol, swinging it on his finger before slamming it into its home on his side.

"Now where was I, oh right! My nine-bangs!"