Bat One Shots
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"Flare Needs a Haircut"
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>Be Anon
>Live with Flare, the bat pony guard
>She was meant to be looking after you, since you were an alien in this world, but you swear you looked after her more often than not
>Lately, her mane had been getting longer, and she absolutely refused to have it cut, citing a bad experience with the hairdressers and something called poison joke
>It had always been just slightly longer than regulation length, but it seemed that now her attachment to the guard had been loosened for her assignment with you, she’d let herself go
>Normally, you wouldn't have cared, but as her mane and tail got longer, stray hairs of hers kept finding themselves in odd places
>It was well kept horse hair, but it was still horse hair
>You had to do something to rectify the situation
>And this was how you found yourself carefully setting a shiny red apple on the rug, taking cover around the corner. Taking hold of the net line, you concealed yourself around the corner
>For minutes, you waited patiently
>Your prey was good, but predictable
>She was aware that you wanted her to get a haircut, and the two of you had played a deadly game of cat and mouse for the past week
>There is no hunting like the hunting of a mare
>You tensed in preparation as you saw a dull grey muzzle poke around the corner on the other side of the living room, pointing towards the apple
>You steadied your breathing and remained quiet
>Patience, Anon...
>A minute passed and soon her head was around the corner, eyes darting around the room, a hoof raised in an uncertain step
>Her eyes passed over your hiding place vacantly. Clearly, her mind was more on acquiring the apple than determining whether the apple was a trap
>She paused
>It set your teeth on edge
>Flare took an uncertain step forwards, her full attention on the glistening apple
>She snuck towards it, belly to the floor before pouncing, claiming the bait
>You stepped out into clear view and let her see you before closing the trap
>You grinned

>She screeched in shock and moved to flee
>Too late, motherfucker
>Suddenly, the concealed net flung up around her as you pulled the line, rushing forwards to secure your catch before she could struggle free
>She screeched and flailed in the net
>”Anon! What in Tartarus are you doing! Let me go!”
>Not in a million years
“You’re getting a mane cut! I’m getting tired of finding your hair all over the place!”
>Her eyes widened in disbelief and her struggling became wild
>”Anon! No! Let me go! I don’t wanna mane cut! They almost shaved me bald last time!”
>You flung your weight on top of her, securing the netting before getting up and hauling her to your back
>Bat in a net
>”I hate you! I’ll never forgive you for this!”
>She tried to pound at your back with her hooves but her strikes were ineffective due to her constricted position
“Trust me, you’ll thank me later.”
>"Never! I will not yield!"
>How cute
>You marched out of the house in silence with the still struggling bat
>Needless to say, the looks you received were odd, and not because you were essentially a giant talking monkey, but because never once did Flare stop shouting profanities
>You did your best to ignore her
>It was a god damn challenge in and of itself
>Eventually though, you reached the promised land
>The hairdressers!
>It was at this point that Flare seemed to have tired herself out and resorted to muttering at you angrily.
>"It's for your own good, Flare."
>You'd finally get to have a shower without encountering hair
>The only occupant in the store looked up in shock when you entered
>"Mr Anonymous what brings... Is that Flare? Why is she in a net? Care to explain...?"
"Sorry Madame Coiffure, but Flare here needs a haircut and she absolutely refused to come willingly."
>"Ah, I see. It's quite a shame, she has wonderful hair, such a pleasure to cut, even as a filly. You can set her down here."
>"She's going to butcher my mane!"

>Madame Coiffure ignored Flares outburst as she gestured to one of the chairs, moving to the back afterwards
>You released Flare from the net and set her down in the chair, and she didn't struggle, for which you were relieved
>She didn't even look at you
>You did not need feels of guilt
"Look... Flare... I'm sorry, but you really do need a haircut."
>She huffed and turned her muzzle up at you
>You sighed and stepped aside as Madame Coiffure stepped up, her magic simultaneously maneuvering Flares mane and a pair of scissors as she set to work
>You'd had your own hair cut here a couple of times, but only now, watching her work, did you realise just how good she was at what she did
>She didn't so much as cut Flares mane, rather, she sculpted it
>Soon, she set to work on her tail, styling it shorter without making it looks as though chunks were taken out of it
>When she was done, Flares mane and tail looked almost exactly as it had when she came in, just shorter, and back to just slightly beyond regulation length
>"There we go, dear, all done. You really should come in more often."
>"Butcher."
>Madame Coiffure offered her a wink and turned to you
>You thanked her on behalf of Canterlot as you offered her payment
>Flare was already out the door and you offered Madame Coiffure a quick apology before taking off after Flare
>She didn’t look back at you as she kept up a determined trot, forcing you to half jog.
>You managed to fall in step behind her, not saying anything as you snuck looks at her face.
>Angry, you could understand, but Flares was simply impassive
>A thought crossed your mind of the other guards finding you hacked up and dumped in a ditch somewhere
“You don’t hate me do you?”
>No reply, not even an acknowledgement
>She pushed ahead of you and went into her home, leaving you to close the door as she went and sat on the couch, staring at the wall
>Oh dear. She looks mad now
>You sat beside her and gazed at the wall with her

“So... You look good. Did you get a haircut recently?”
>She scoffed
>This is the S.S Icebreaker on our maiden voyage
“I heard some big ape thing dragged a pony through town today, sounds like that ape thing should buy some apples as an apology.”
>”Anon?”
“Yes?~”
>”Shut up.”
“...Okay.”
>...
>”She didn’t cut my mane too short did she?”
“No, and if she did, no one would notice you next to the giant bald ape.”
>She snickered
“...Does that mean you forgive me?”
>”Get me apples. Then we’ll talk.”
>There goes your weekly government paycheck
>It was totally worth it

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"Flare the Firebat."
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>Alarms blared loudly as the battlecruiser was put on full battle readiness.
>”All marines, prepare for drop.”
>That meant you too, you are Flare, and you are a Firebat
>The clip clop of your hooves sounded down the hall as you made your way to the prep bay with the humans.
>The deck shuddered as something impacted the hull and you broke out into a canter. There was no way in Tartarus you’d let yourself go down with the ship
>You made your way down to the end of the line to your fitting station, and quickly ripped your body suit from your locker, unzipping it and stepping in quickly, the deck shuddering again
“Damn it. Damn it. Damn it.”
>Zipping up the suit properly, you settled your wings against your sides and moved over to the outfitter, setting your hooves into place and rearing up, waiting
>Mechanical arms sprang forward, each holding different pieces of your power armor, others with arc welders and various other tools
>The hoof guards locked into place and rose, a mechanised prosthesis’ adding a meter to your height as two of the arms came forward, locking your barrel within an armored framework, another pair of arms lifting your forehooves up to your sides
>Next came the machinery, along your spine and fore hooves, you felt tiny pinches as the neural uplink set into place as the mechanical servos were added along the exoskeleton
>The mechanical arms began to place and weld heavy ceramic plates to the exoskeleton that was being locked into place around you, covering many of the more delicate electronics in preparation for the titanium plating
>Your hooves were locked and sealed into place at the elbow and knee joints of the suit, tiny pinches indicating that they were now linked to the suits computer
>The mechanical arms backed away for a moment, retrieving several heavy metal plates, your twin linked flamers, and the plasma cores that would power the suit
>You gazed ahead and remained still as the metal plates were welded and bolted into place
 
 
>A pair of arms came forward and inserted the plasma cores into your chest piece as the primary core was placed and bolted to the back of the suit, the exhaust conduits whirring and blasting out heat.
>Your gaze was filled with the holographic display of your weapons, vitals and other information as the suits software booted up, bringing the power armor online.
>A pair of large tanks was then set against your back and locked into place, a faint buzz sounding out as the containment field rose up around it.
>The mechanical hands came next, the arms slotting them into place before clamping the flamers onto your wrists.
>Another pinch, and you could suddenly move your arms and legs, the final arms coming forward to set the pauldrons on, the heavy metal weighing you down slightly.
>Their work finished, the arms retreated as you took a step forward, moving much like any human thanks to the neural conversion software built into the suit.
>The deck shuddered again and you strode forward, clenching and unclenching your hands, getting used to having giant metal hands as you made your way to the hangar.
“Out of the frying pan...”
 
>Be marine.
>This world was pretty much doomed, and you got to stand on guard, pulse rifle in your armored hands in preparation for the inevitable rush
>The Zerg had come
>The massive hive ship in low orbit would breed and drop Zerg organisms endlessly until shot down.
>Or until this world had been consumed
>The ground rumbled as the siege tanks switched to their artillery modes
>A transmission came in over your hardsuit radio and you tightened your grip on your pulse rifle
>”Zerg wave coming in from sector twenty two dash twelve dash sixteen! Megalisk on the ground!”
>You were pushed aside as a Firebat lumbered past
 
>Be Flare now.
>”-epeat! Megalisk on the ground and inbound!”
>A Megalisk?
>Now there’s a head for your mantle if you ever heard of one
>The hydraulics of your suit hissed as you moved to the front of the firing line
>You towered a full metre over the other marines, and you watched them scatter to clear a path for you
>The ground trembled again and you spied forward, eyes squinting as you made out clouds of dust and smoke over the skyline at the edge of the plaza
>And you spotted it with your own eyes, you were a bat, you had no need for a helmet
>The highly volatile gases that supplied your wrist mounted incinerators also had a tendency to leak from the tanks containment field
>Not exactly a good thing if you were wearing a helmet
>You quickly found yourself vaguely wishing you’d kept your helmet on as the first wave of Zerglings came out of the woodwork, or rubble, rather, the taller Hydralisks visible amongst their ranks
>The incinerators fired up with a flick of your hooves, and you brought one up as the firing line around you brought their weapons to bear
>”Hold fire...!”
>The wave of creatures approached, the thundering sound of their charge filling the plaza, playing counterpoint to your fellow marine’s silence
>”Wait for it.”
 
>You held your ground, an armored boot digging a little into the pavement as they came within range of the siege tanks.
>Silence reigned for a split second as the order to fire came down. The silence died a thunderous death as the line of siege tanks fired their first volley, the shells impacting amongst the Zerg ranks, throwing many in the air and annihilating others.
>The wave of Zerg continued, unabated as the marines opened fire next, further withering their lines.
>The would be upon you in any moment.
>Within seconds, a group of Zerglings rushed your position, and you brought your incinerators before you.
“Flame on!”
>A slight squeeze of your hooves triggered the duel incinerators, sending a wave of superheated plasma from the weapons.
>The Zerglings had but a few seconds to screech and stagger before they were cooked within their own carapaces.
>With a hole blown through, you brought an arm down leaning on the barricades before you for support as you leaped over the obstacle, your free arm still belching forth a cleansing gout of fire.
>Soon enough, the plaza began to shudder beneath the weight of several Ultralisks as they entered the fray. Two buildings collapsing completely as the Megalisk fought it’s way into the plaza, charging forwards.
>You were right in its path.
>Perfect.
>The defensive line behind you crumbled beneath the sheer weight of Zerg organisms, and in your infinite wisdom, you suddenly decided that the best place to be was on the Megalisks back.
>The pavement before you exploded upwards, a Hydralisk shrieking at you, its talons raised to strike you down.
>You screeched in shock, jumping forwards and tackling it to the ground, stepping up with it pinned beneath your boot, you torched its head mercilessly.
>A shadow passed over you as the Megalisk blocked out the meagre sunlight, approaching at speed.
>There would be only one chance to do this.
 
 
>Leaping off of the charred Hydralisk, you charged forward, unsheathing a pair of titanium machetes as you quickly judged where the Megalisks limbs would fall.
>Ignoring the glancing blows dealt by the zerglings as they charged past, you whipped out a pair of titanium knives the size of your legs and leaped forward, the powered assist helping to drive the blade into a gap between the Megalisks chitin as its leg crashed into the pavement.
>Carried along with its charge, you steadily used the knives to climb up, confident that it wouldn’t notice you driving your knives into it.
>You finally managed to get on its back without it being any the wiser.
>Turning your head, you heart sank as you noticed that the Megalisk had simply battered its way through the defensive line. One of the few remaining siege tanks took a shot at it and managed to stagger it to one side, sending you sprawling along its back, scrabbling for a hand hold to keep yourself from falling off.
>Somehow, you had managed to pull yourself back up.
>Only one thing for it now.
>You ran along its back and towards its head, moving under the crest.
>The chitin plating was weaker here.
>Well... Weaker than the rest of it.
>You drove your knife in and dragged, the hydraulics groaning with the strain as the knife slowly carved a line through the heavy plate.
>The Megalisk didn’t seem to take to kindly to that as it roared and reared up. You would have plummeted from its back if the knife had been wedged into it.
>You bounced a little as it dropped back to all fours and charged forwards, bringing yourself to your feet, you pulled the knife out and stowed it, jamming the mechanical fist into the crack you had created.
>Pushing your other hand in, you braced yourself and began to lift, the suit groaning with strain, the hydraulics hissing loudly as its power was pushed to the absolute limit, the Megalisks plating coming up slowly as you pried it upwards.
 
>A total lack of resistance followed a sickening crunch as the plating cracked and fell away, leaving the Megalisks vulnerable insides revealed.
>Layers of muscle coated its insides, but without the chitin, it was little match for any ballistic weapon.
>Let alone your wrist mounted flamers.
bracing yourself on either side of the gap you jammed both hands in, pausing a moment before triggering the flamers, sending searing hot plasma burning through its muscle structure, spine and throat.
>The Megalisk roared in pain and charged forward, and you struggled to maintain your position.
>You took hold of the edge of the gap for extra support and angled your free hand towards its head.
>The plasma seared its way slowly forwards and the smell of burning meat assaulted your nose as the stream of fire worked its way to its brain.
>Humm... Smells like... Victory.
>With a final roar, the Megalisk staggered and collapsed, its momentum carrying it forwards as it slowly came to a dead stop.
>Silence reigned as you jumped off of the ruined Megalisk, a light shower beginning as you looked around, the only sounds were those of the continuing fight in other areas of the city.
>Your eyes went skyward, towards a few plumes of smoke as you picked one at random and trudged off towards it.
>You wanted to be where the smoke was.
>Time to earn your apples, Flare.