Destiny is that which we are drawn towards and fate is that which we run into.
Wyatt Earp

Matt sat against the half-dissolved tree, simultaneously impressed and frightened by the changeling queen. She sat in front of him, covered head to hoof in the blood of the slain roach, and cackling maniacally. The sun had already begun sinking below the horizon, casting her in eerie long shadows.

"Uh, you good, Dory?" he asked, starting to question her stability.

Her laughter died to a giggle as she said, "Yep. Never better."

Oookay, then. "We'll, if you're sure, let's gather up the boys and meet the locals." He looked her up and down, then added, "... And get you cleaned up while we're at it."

The troopers regrouped with Matt and Dorylus, donning their rucks once again. He looked them over, making sure none were injured. Satisfied, they approached the Appleloosan barricade, stepping around the Zerg corpses littering the battlefield.

When no one greeted them at the barrier, Matt turned to Dorylus.

"We weren't too late, were we?"

"No," she said, a flash of irritation crossing her face. "Ponies are skittish on the best of days. I've heard of them boarding up their windows over a single zebra showing up in town."

Matt grumbled. "So they're racist, too. Great. Can't wait to see what their leaders are like..."

"From what I've heard, the Princesses are much more reasonable," Dorylus said, but sounded like she didn't believe her own words. "Although, even they aren't too fond of changelings. At least, the ones not under King Thorax, anyway."

"Who?"

She waved a hoof. "I'll explain later."

I'll hold you to that. "So what do we do, yell to get their attention?"

Dorylus stepped closer to the barricade and said, "Let me. They wouldn't understand you, anyway."

Right, translation spell. "I thought you said they didn't like your kind?"

"They don't," she huffed. "But I've got to at least try."

Dorylus looked down between her hooves looking troubled. After a long moment she took several deep breaths and shouted at the barricade.

"Ponies of Appleloosa! I am Queen Dorylus of the High Desert Changelings! I and the people with me mean you no harm, and we ask that you let us in!"

When Dorylus had said "ponies," Matt was thoroughly expecting to be looking at the reincarnation of Mr. Ed. As it was he was pleasantly surprised that the three heads that popped up looked far less animalistic than he anticipated.

They were unmistakably equinoid, of course, but no one would have mistaken them for the beasts of burden that had accompanied humanity since time immemorial. Their heads were far larger and bulbous, with comically huge expressive eyes and short muzzles. To Matt's surprise, their coats and manes were in a wide range of colors, as if each one had grabbed a random color sample or two from a paint store and chosen it as their color scheme. Amusingly, almost all of them seemed to be wearing wide-brimmed cowboy hats.

Huh. Replace the apple trees with prickly pear, and I'll feel right at home, Matt thought, grinning behind his helmet. However it quickly faded with his next thought. Wait, apple trees? He looked at the orchard behind them, confirming that yes, those were indeed apples hanging from their branches. How the hell...? Okay, creatures from Old Earth mythology being here are one thing, but regular plants and shit? Way beyond coincidence. Where the FUCK are we really?

One of the "ponies," a blonde one with green eyes addressed Dorylus in their alien language, the pitch of its voice sounding more masculine than anything else. Based on his tone and scowl, it didn't sound like he was particularly pleased with her proposal.

"No, we're not one one of Thorax's. We-"

The pony interrupted her, shouting something angrily.

"We had nothing to do with that! Look, if you let us in we can ex-"

Another angry interruption. Matt glanced down at Dorylus and saw one of her eyes twitch.

"WILL YOU SHUT UP AND LISTEN, YOU FLEA-B-"

This time Matt interrupted her, tapping her on the shoulder.

"Dory, calm down," he said, pulling her aside. "Getting mad's gonna get us nowhere fast."

She groaned in frustration. "They won't even listen to me! How am I supposed to convince them to let us in if they won't let me get a word in edgewise?"

Matt turned and eyed the ponies, who wore a smug smirk on each of their faces. Matt scowled, not looking forward to having to work with the obstinate lot.

Yep. Just like home.

He sighed. "Ask what it'll take to let us in."

"What!? We just saved their flanks, and now we're letting them make demands?"

"I know, but look, sometimes you've just gotta be the better man, you know what I mean?"

She looked him in the eyes, clearly not convinced. After holding his gaze for a long moment, she closed her eyes and sighed. "Fine. I'll ask them." Turning back to the ponies, she reluctantly asked, "What do you want?"

The blonde pony leaned forward with a knowing smile and cupped a hoof around his ear. Whatever he asked sounded suspiciously taunting.

Dorylus rolled her eyes, but humored him with forced words. "What do you want from us that will convince you to let us in?"

The three ponies popped down behind the barricade. Behind it, Matt could hear soft whispers as they talked it over.

"What a bunch of assholes..." Matt muttered.

For some reason, Dorylus found that incredibly amusing.

They waited several minutes before the ponies showed their faces again. Matt didn't know what words they used, but based on how the blonde one was pointing his hoof at him, he didn't like the direction this was going.

Dorylus looked between Matt and the pony. "... You're sure? He doesn't speak our language, I have to use a translation spell."

The pony gave a short response that probably meant something along the lines of "figure it out."

"Alright, well... The ponies want you to go in and talk to the sheriff... alone."

"And how exactly am I supposed to talk to them?"

"They just said to, and I quote, 'figure it out'."

Figures... "Any ideas?"

Dorylus scratched the back of her neck nervously. "Just one. I can cast the translation spell on you directly, but it'll only last a couple hours."

"Better than nothing, I guess. Here's hoping I can convince them before time runs out." Matt chuckled weakly. "Not sure how far I'll get with grunts and hand gestures alone. Did they say anything about my weapons?"

She shook her head.

"Alright, tell them I agree to their terms." As she announced their approval, Matt turned to the troopers and dropped his ruck. "Well, here goes nothing. Stu, you're in charge until I get back. GOTWA is just me going into town to see the sheriff. If I'm not back in two hours, or 'diplomacy breaks down,' you boys come in. Try not to kill anyone, though."

"Rah, Sar'nt."

Dorylus waited for him to finish, then asked, "Ready?"

"Do it." Her horn glowed as he felt a tingling in his ears and throat that quickly faded. "Is that it?"

She nodded. "Should be. Try it out."

Matt took a few steps towards the barricade and shouted, "Can y'all understand me?"

The ponies' eyes widened but they didn't hesitate to reply. "Yep, sure can," the blonde one said in a thick drawl. "Come on over, Ah'll show ya to tha sheriff."

"Good luck, Matt," Stuart said teasingly. "Lay that 'charm' of yours on 'em."

Matt tsked and said, "Yeah. Ask any girl I've ever dated how well that goes."

"Ha! What girls?"

"Exactly." He turned back to the barricade, slinging his rifle across his back. "Alright, I'm coming over!"

The barricade was only about two and a half meters high and clearly made from the trees in the orchard. Given that the Zerg must've first attacked fairly recently Matt was astonished at how quickly they'd established their defenses, primitive though they were.

Not bad, but I'd still prefer a prefab bunker any day.

The rough bark of the logs made it easy to get a hand and foothold; scaling the wooden wall was easily done. When Matt reached the top he swung his legs over and observed the other side. True to Dorylus' word, the small frontier town he saw looked only big enough to house a few hundred at most, and the nearest building was hardly ten meters from the barricade. Despite its small footprint, the surrounding area was packed with what he assumed were the buffalo. The huge ungulates eyed him fearfully from within large, colorful teepees. Curiously, many of them sported long bird feathers tied to their curving horns.

Matt dropped down, conscious of the many eyes staring at him. He couldn't blame them for being nervous; not only had they just been attacked by the Zerg, a frightening idea for anyone, but now another unknown creature was entering their midst.

"Alright, Blondie, lead the way."

"Sure thang, pardner. Name's Braeburn, by tha way. Sorry fer tha less'n pleasant welcome, but ya've seen what we been dealin' with out here. Still got no idea what ya are or why ya'll're here, but now ain't tha time to be picky."

"Braeburn" waved his hoof, gesturing for Matt to follow. Now that he stood on flat ground next to him, Matt saw that the ponies were even shorter than Dorylus; their heads being barely as high as his waist. Curiously, they all had some kind of symbol on their flanks, of which Braeburn's was a single red apple. He led Matt through the buffalo camp, feeling their eyes follow him. A pang of sympathy shot through him when he saw some of them attempting to hide small forms with wide eyes behind them.

Fuck, of course they've got kids here...

"I'm Sergeant Hobbes, and I'm not the one you should be apologizing to, but I'll save it for later."

"'Sergeant', huh? Take it yer some kinda soldier type? I ain't never seen nopony like you 'round these parts."

"Yeah, something like that. It's a long story."

"... And ya've been wand'rin' around with a changelin' queen? Ya mind explainin' that bit ta me?"

"Like I said, it's a long story," Hint, hint, dumbass. "If you want to hear it, stick around when I talk to the sheriff. If you think your day's been bad, wait'll you hear about ours."

"Still though, ya sure 'bout tha changelin'? Did it tell ya 'bout what they did few years back?"

"Can't say it came up in conversation, no."

"They attacked tha capitol, tried staging a coup."

Hmmm... I'm guessing that might be what Dory said she had "nothing to do with." She's been nothing but honest so far, so I'll give her the benefit of the doubt, but still, probably wouldn't hurt to ask her side of the story.

"That's a pretty damning accusation."

"Ah'm tellin' ya, it's true. Sure, them reformists under Thorax are a'ight, but I don' know 'bout tha rest'a them."

Matt sighed. "Give her a chance. Her hive's been through a lot recently."

Braeburn stopped in his tracks and looked back at Matt.

"... Them critters hit them too, huh?"

"Yep. Wiped out every living thing there."

Braeburn's eyes shot wide before covering them with a hoof in shame.

"Aw, shoot... Me'n mah big mouth again... Look, Ah'm real sorry, it's just..."

"Yeah, yeah, look, I dont mean to be rude, but I'm kinda on a timer here with this translation spell she gave me. The sooner I talk to the sheriff, the sooner we can all get on the same page, yeah?"

"Right, right, sure, come on." Braeburn pulled his hat low over his eyes and ducked his head slightly. He looked like a beaten dog.

As they passed the buffalo camp, they came to the rustic buildings that made up Appleloosa proper. The town reminded him of the few spaghetti westerns the Koprulu Terrans had from Old Earth. Except, of course, for everything being nearly half the height he was used to.

It's like walking into a damn time machine. I have to wonder though, why apple trees out here? They couldn't think of a crop better suited to the dryness?

"Alright, here we are. Normally Ah'd give ya tha traditional Appleloosa greetin' but uh, Ah don' think now's tha best time."

"It's fine. Let's just get this over with."

Braeburn led him up to a green building with barred windows. Matt was, admittedly, a little disappointed that he didn't see "SHERIFF" written in big, old-timey letters on top.

Of course not, you dolt, they don't speak English.

"Wait righ' here. Ah'll, uh, give him a warnin'."

"Okay, but keep it short. We're on a time hack here."

Braeburn disappeared within the building, and Matt could hear frantic, muffled voices within its walls.

He crossed his arms and tapped his foot, rapidly getting impatient. Looking around, he realized that the narrow streets were bare, and whenever he looked at an open window a rubber-necked pony immediately slammed it shut, only to crack it open when they thought he wasn't looking.

Dory wasn't kidding. These ponies are skittish. I suppose I cant blame them here, though.

A few minutes later, Braeburn opened the door and waved Matt inside. As he entered, he removed his helmet, more out of habit than respect. He had to almost squat just to fit through the door, and even once inside, he still had to duck his head to keep it from scraping the ceiling. The interior was fairly bare bones, with little more than a pair of iron-barred jail cells and a broad oak desk. Behind it sat a tan pony with the most majestic handlebar mustache Matt had ever seen. On his blue vest was a silver five-pointed star, clearly a badge.

"Sheriff," Matt said, nodding his head respectfully. Much as Mar Sarans like him tended to dislike authority, the marshalls and sheriffs held a special place in their hearts.

The mustachioed pony balked at Matt's imposing frame, but managed to clear his throat and say, "Silverstar, Sheriff of Appleloosa at your service good sir. Braeburn here says we have you to thank for fighting off those critters. "

"An' not a moment too soon, too. We were jus' about outta dynamite when they showed up," Braeburn added.

"Sergeant Matthew Hobbes, Terran Dominion Marine Corps. Pleasure to meet you, sir."

"'Terran Dominion'? Can't say I've ever heard of it."

Matt sighed. How many times am I going to have to explain this? Might as well start timing myself. "I'll keep it brief since I'm on a time limit here, but long story short, my men and I are aliens. We were stranded here while fighting the Zerg, the creatures you've been dealing with. It'll be almost a month until my people can send reinforcements, but until then we've been tasked with hunting down and killing the Zerg to the best of our ability. We're here to help you fight them as best we can, but we need to get to, uh, 'Canterlot' as soon as possible to coordinate with your leadership."

Braeburn and Silverstar gaped at him long enough for Matt to grow impatient. Eventually, they looked at each other before the sheriff pressed his hooves into his eyes, groaning.

"I knew it. Ain't nothing under Celestia's sun that could do something like this. It ain't natural, I tell you."

"To that, I agree," Matt said, nodding.

"Alright, start from the top, Sergeant. Who, exactly, are your people?"

"Like I said, I'm from the Terran Dominion. We're the largest and most powerful Terran nation in a region of the galaxy called the Koprulu Sector. My men and I were fighting the Zerg on one of our fringe worlds when our unit took heavy losses and were forced to come here through an old warp gate that dropped us in the desert on the far side of the mountains. We've been on the move ever since then."

Silverstar massaged his temples as he processed what Matt said.

"Had I not been witnessing this with my own eyes, I'd say you're a complete loon. But I've got twenty five dead ponies and buffalo, and so far you've apparently been the only one capable of fighting these... 'Zerg', so you have my attention. How much do you know about them?"

"We fought two major wars and who knows how many localized conflicts over the past thirty years. I'd say we know quite a bit."

"You're telling me that you, an alien empire, fought entire wars with these bugs?" Silverstar's face blanched. "What kind of enemy are we dealing with?"

"The kind that consumes entire worlds and civilizations. If you want proof, talk to Queen Dorylus."

"Right, the changeling." He frowned. "Why exactly should I let one of them in my town? We have enough problems as it is, the last thing I need is another bug trying to suck out what life we have left."

Why, you little- Matt felt a vein pulse in his forehead as he struggled to keep his temper in check. Rather than shouting, he opted for leaning forward over the sheriff, bracing his hands on the table. Silverstar's pupils shrank to pinpricks as Matt loomed over him.

"Sheriff, let me make myself abundantly clear to you. Queen Dorylus has been nothing if not honest and respectful to me and my men, and I'm proud to consider her a friend and ally of the Dominion. As of right now, her and whatever changelings happened to be hiding among you are the only survivors of her hive. We want to help you fight off the Zerg, but we need to be able to cooperate. Quite frankly, I don't care what happened between the ponies and changelings, because if you and everyone on this planet don't put your differences aside and work together, everything you've ever known and loved will be wiped from existence.

"I'm not speaking in hyperbolics here, Sheriff, we Terrans know firsthand what the Zerg are capable of. If you want to know, ask Sergei Ivanov, one of my men. His homeworld used to be one of the most heavily defended planets in Terran space, and the Zerg scoured it of life in a matter of weeks. The Zerg are the single greatest threat your world has ever faced, and you can take that to the bank.

"I want to help you, Sheriff. We don't have to, but I want to. But I need your help too. My men are tired and need rest, Queen Dorylus needs to regroup with what's left of her hive, and above all else we need to speak to your leaders to coordinate a defence."

Matt pulled back to give the sheriff his breathing room back. Silverstar closed his eyes and lowered his head, tapping his hoof on the desk. He shot a skeptical look at Braeburn.

"Sheriff, are we really gonna turn down help now? Ah mean if that changelin' was willin' to march right up to the wall with no disguise and jus' ask ta come in, Ah don't think it's a ruse."

Silverstar turned back to Matt, then slammed his head into the desk with a frustrated groan.

"Alright, Sergeant, you've made your point. I'm not gonna turn away somepony asking for help, especially when they can pull their weight and then some. Go ahead and retrieve your stallions, we'll see about setting up some lodging for you. Just wait for me or Braeburn to get you when we've got things squared away... And go get the changeling too. But we'll be keeping an eye on it- ...her. If she tries to pull anything, it's on you though, understand?"

"Rah, sir."

Matt pulled his helmet back on as he turned to leave. Behind him, Silverstar said, "Braeburn, go get Thunderhooves. We need to talk." He waited until he was in the main street before keying his radio.

"Stu, this is Matt."

"Hey man, how'd it go?"

Why does he sound so down? "All things considered, I'd say pretty good. They'll let us in, and they're setting us up with lodging. Go ahead and bring everyone in to the center of town, we'll regroup and wait for them to set things up."

"And Queen Dorylus?"

"Her too. Took some convincing, but they agreed to take her in. Guess it's hard to turn down help when you just watched them mulch the insides of a roach."

"Heh, yeah that'll do it. We're heading out, see you in a minute."

"Ah, thank you, Specialist Ivanov," Dorylus said as the enormous Terran wiped the Zerg's blood off of her with a small brown towel he'd pulled from his pack.

"I think at this point we can do away with formalities, dyevushka. Just call me Sergei."

"Okay... Sergei. What was that you called me?"

"Dyevushka? It means 'young lady.' You seem like you're about my daughter's age."

"Really? How old are you?"

"Forty one, by our calendar. I'm not sure how much that is to you."

"He's old enough that his kids are our age, if that helps," Stuart said. With a laugh, he added, "It's kinda a problem when we have company parties and everyone keeps trying to hit on his daughters."

"Fortunately they're smart enough to not want anything to do with you gopniki."

"Ha!" barked John. "I don't know 'bout that Sergei, Mike and Svetlana seem to get along pretty well."

Dorylus snickered. She didn't need to be a changeling to see Mike's embarrassment even through his helmet. Even in spite of everything the Terran troopers had been through they somehow managed to keep their spirits high. She could tell they were exhausted by their ordeal, and that the horrible tragedy of their comrade's deaths weighed heavy on their minds. And yet, here they were laughing and joking with each other like any group of friends.

... Or family. She choked back a sob.

"Something wrong, Dory?" Sergei asked, his tone growing concerned.

"It's fine, I'm just... thinking about Mother again."

"Ah..." A wave of grief from Sergei hit Dorylus like a tsunami. "I understand, dyevushka. More than you might think."

"Do you?" she countered, a bit more rudely than she intended.

"I do. I'm from Tarsonis, you see."

"I know, Sergeant Hobbes mentioned that."

"What he didn't mention was that Tarsonis was the worst loss in the First Great War." He was sitting beside her now, watching the Appleloosan log wall. "The Zerg swarmed the planet. It's defenses had never failed in dozens of major battles, but the Zerg crushed them all. It had a population of almost two billion at the time, and in weeks it was a barren wasteland. Most of the planet didn't have enough time to evacuate, since they attacked through New Gettysburg: the densest population center of the entire world."

Sergei took a deep, ragged breath. "I was eleven at the time. My family and I barely had enough time to run out the door before the Zerg swarmed our housing block. But my father, he... he and the other men in the block took up their weapons to fight back the Swarm, long enough to buy the women and children time to reach the evacuation shuttles. I- I watched a hydralisk drive its claws into his chest before the dropship doors closed. My mother was almost inconsolable after that, so I had to step up and be the 'man of the house,' so to speak."

Then he turned to Dorylus and removed his helmet. Unlike Sergeant Hobbes' tanned, smooth skin and thick black mane, Sergei was shaven bald, with pale skin weathered by life and age, and gray eyes. Then he reached forward and placed a gentle, albeit heavy arm around her shoulders, giving her a comforting squeeze.

"I don't tell you this to make you feel bad for me, Tsarina, but to let you know that you aren't alone in what you're going through. One way or another, we're in this together, and you can count on us to help hold you up."

Dorylus sniffed and wiped her nose, then leaned into the Terran.

"Thanks, Sergei."

They five of them waited in somber silence, then they heard a one-sided conversation from Stuart.

"Hey man, how'd it go? ... And Queen Dorylus? ... Heh, yeah that'll do it. We're heading out, see you in a minute."

He picked up Sergeant Hobbes' pack and said, "We got the green light. Over the top, boys and girl."

Matt and company sat on the porch of the sheriff's office, watching him, Braeburn and a huge buffalo with a large feathered headdress run around frantically. The sun had long since set, leaving them sitting under the light of a few oil lamps. Braeburn and Silverstar seemed to be spending an awful amount of time in a larger, three story building.

As they waited, a cluster of a little over a dozen ponies and buffalo started nervously edging towards them. At first, Matt was irritated by the audience. After watching them for a while, however, he noticed that they weren't staring at the Terrans.

They were staring at Dorylus.

The young changeling queen noticed them as well, and a rare expression of happiness graced her face. She stood and made to approach them, but to Matt's surprise, they all rushed forward and crowded around her before she could take two steps.

With a bright flash of green, each pony and buffalo was suddenly replaced by the unmistakable black chitinous form of changelings, albeit with a few differences. For one, they were all about the same size as the ponies, meaning Dorylus towered head and shoulders over them. Their horns, manes, and wings were shorter, but most strikingly were their eyes being solid green domes with a white spot that moved in relation to where they looked.

The entire time, they assaulted Dorylus with questions. Thankfully, the translation spell had yet to wear off.

"Princess, what are you doing here?"

"Has something happened?"

"Why haven't we heard from the hive?"

"What are these monsters?"

"Who are these people? Why are you with them?"

"Changelings!" Dorylus finally shouted, silencing them and causing them to shrink back slightly. Her ears drooped at their reaction. To the surprise of everyone present, she lunged forward and embraced as many of the changelings as she could with her long forelegs, tears streaming down her face.

"I'm so sorry," she said between sobs. "I... I have terrible news."

She then launched into retelling everything that had transpired over the past couple days. Matt hadn't heard the full story either, and as such he was almost as shocked as the changelings. He felt his anger well up inside of him as he heard the story. The changelings themselves were shocked and horrified. Matt felt awful for them learning days after the fact that their friends, families and queen had been brutally murdered.

After listening for a while, Matt noticed that their words stopped making sense. He concluded the translation spell had finally worn off, so he tried to turn his attention away. Looking around the town, Matt found that the changelings' commotion had drawn the attention of the townsponies, who were now openly watching and listening to Dorylus tell her story from windows, alleys, and even the rooftops. Even some of the buffalo braved leaving their teepees to listen in. All of them bore looks of shock.

Then the changelings started talking, presumably telling their side of being attacked by the Zerg in the town. Though he couldn't understand the words, the atmosphere of the town shifted from shock to grief. No small number of the ponies and buffalo had to turn away with tears in their eyes.

Eventually Dorylus started talking again, this time more upbeat, and Matt and the troopers became increasingly aware that everyone's attention was now on them. Dorylus seemed to pick up on the presence of her audience, as she raised her voice to make it easier for the town to hear. When she finished, the ponies, buffalo, and changelings all were watching them with wonder and awe.

Matt shifted uncomfortably, then saw John stand up out of the corner of his eye, remove his helmet and bow dramatically, eliciting a thunderous cheer from the whole town.

"John! Sit the fuck down, you idiot!" Matt hissed. The last thing they needed was to make a fool of themselves.

"Hey, folks need heroes, sar'nt. To give 'em hope."

"Uh huh."

"'Sides, it's the closest thing any of us scouts are ever gonna get to some kinda respect. God knows the Corps won't give it."

Despite himself, Matt snrked. "Yeah, when you're right, you're right. Just don't let it go to your head."

To his credit, John didn't stay standing for long. He quickly sat back down with the rest of the troopers. Dorylus spoke a few additional words to the changelings who quickly dispersed, casting hope-filled glances back at the Terrans. With green flashes, they reverted back to their disguises, surprising the ponies and buffalo with the knowledge of what some of their friends actually were. Whether or not that would stay the same, Matt wasn't sure.

As they left, Braeburn approached and spoke to Matt. Unable to understand him, he turned to Dorylus.

"Oh! Right, he says that they got some rooms in the hotel portion of the saloon for us to stay in and to follow him."

"Thanks. Hope you didn't tell anyone stuff we can't live up to."

"Oh, no, only that you're our last only hope for survival," she teased with a wink.

Matt blanched. "That's not funny."

Dorylus just giggled. "It's a little funny."