Ace Combat: Gryphon Assault

A/N: I based the events of this chapter on the first mission of Ace Combat: Assault Horizon, and the mission "Wolverines!" from Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2.

Equestrian Royal Air Defense Command (ERAD)

Stalliongrad, Equestria

5:34 PM

Inside the facility, which monitors all Equestrian airspace and waterways, one of the many radar operators spotted a cluster of contacts headed towards the Swayback Mountains from the north.

“Sand Delta, we're seeing a group of at least forty bogies in your sector coming from the north, can you verify?” he said as he monitored his screen.

“Heh, very funny, Station.  We don't see jack out here, it's all clear.” the radar operator at Fort Stable said after seeing that his scopes were clear.

“Sand Delta, be advised, we're running diagnostics to scan for malfunction.” the ERAD operator said.

“The skies are all clear, Station.  Looks like you have some phantom dots.” the Fort Stable operator replied.

The cluster then disappeared, and another similar cluster appeared to the west, passing over Arcadia.

“Uh, Sierra Foxtrot, we're seeing at least fifty bogies in your sector, please advise.” the ERAD operator said.

“That's a big negative, Station, our scopes are clear, don't know what to tell ya, solar interference?  We've had a lot of sunspot activity recently.” the radar operator at Everfree RAFB near Manehatten said.

The cluster then disappeared and another appeared near the east coast.

“Sierra Delta, we may have a minor ACS fault here.  Do you have anything on your scopes?” the ERAD operator said.

“THEY'RE EVERYWHERE!!” the air traffic controller at Mareami RAFB said in a distressed voice, nearly yelling over the sounds of warning sirens outside.

“Sierra Delta, repeat!” the ERAD operator ordered.

“I'm looking at fighter jets and transports over Highway 115, how the hell did they get through?!” the controller asked.

The ERAD operator suddenly tensed up, knowing that Equestria may be under attack.

“Stand by!  Attempting to contact the nearest unit in that sector.” he said.

“I read you, this is 2nd Brigade Combat Team (Heavy), 1st Battalion, 20th Infantry Regiment, Sergeant Rambo, acting commander of Hunter two-three.  Do you copy over?” Sergeant Rambo said, having heard the last few transmissions.

“All stations, be advised- satellite surveillance has been disabled.  Water Ears and Pave Paws arrays are inoperative at this time.” the ERAD operator said, informing all radar stations of the situation.

There was no denying it: Equestria was under attack!

(20 miles south of Seahorse City, Equestria)

(30 minutes later...)

Robert stared with steadfast determination out at the sky in front of him through the HUD of his F/A-18E as he and his squadron-mates sped towards Mareami at supersonic speeds.

Their mission was to assist the ERAF in maintaining air superiority over the city as their ground forces attempted to push the enemy back into the ocean.

He knew that Rainbow Dash was somewhere out there in the fight, and he was determined to help out at any cost.

“Shadow Flight, Stardust, we have multiple contacts, bearing 100, 65 miles, angels 11.  Stay sharp, IFF is attempting to identify.” the radar operator on Stardust, the Arcadian E-3 Sentry AWACS that was in orbit in Ocean City.

“Roger, Shadow Flight proceeding to Mareami to assist allied forces, keep us advised on the bogies.” Robert replied.  Robert's eyes went wide when the squadron approached the airspace in Mareami.

He could see several plumes of smoke rising from the city as well as tracers from Equestrian anti-aircraft batteries.

Numerous parachutes filled the sky as gryphon soldiers dropped in from IL-76MD Candid transport planes.

“Get ready, Shadows!” Robert ordered as he flipped on his master arm switch.  The other pilots did the same as they prepared for the coming battle.

“Stardust to Shadow Leader, bogies are confirmed hostile on direct course to Mareami.  You are cleared to engage and destroy.” Stardust said after confirming the contacts as enemies.

The Equestrian anti-aircraft batteries stopped firing upon the arrival of allied aircraft into the airspace.

“This is Clydesdale One, be advised, multiple contacts!  We have missiles in the air!” Captain Ace Swift, an ERAF Typhoon pilot said as he and his squadron engaged the enemy.

“Shadow Four, bandit closing with you, break right!” Angelo said to Megan as he spotted an Akaelian MiG-29S trying to close in on her.

“Shadow One, tally bandit at one o' clock, I have him!” Vidal said as he engaged an Su-27 in front of Robert.

“He's mine, Guts.” Robert said as he took over the engagement.

“I've got your back, boss, he's all yours.” Vidal replied as he took up a covering position behind Robert's plane.  Robert locked up the bandit and closed in for an AIM-120D AMRAAM shot.

“I've got tone...Shadow One, fox three!” Robert called out as he squeezed the trigger on his control column to fire the missile.  He watched as the missile flew off from under the right wing.

“I've got your six!” Vidal said.  He turned to engage an IL-76 Candid transport that was approaching from the beach.

“Shadow Two, Fox two!” he called out as he launched an AIM-9X Sidewinder heat-seeking missile.  He watched as the missile flew true and struck the Candid on the left side, tearing off the left wing.

Robert turned towards the first bandit and saw a black ball of smoke in the distance.  “Good shot, Blaze, he's down!” Angelo said as he confirmed his kill.

“Shadow Two, fox two!” Vidal called out as he struck down a MiG-29 with a Sidewinder.  “This is Edge, I've got one on my six, I can't shake him off!” Megan called out.

“Hang on, I've got you!” Angelo replied as he turned to engage the MiG-23.  “Shadow Three, fox two!” Angelo called out as he shot down the MiG.  “Thanks, Angel!” Megan said as she turned to engage the enemy.

“Clydesdale One, fox two!” Ace Swift called out as he fired an AIM-132 ASRAAM heat-homing missile at an IL-76.

“All allies, be advised, allied transports are inbound to drop infantry into the hot zones, watch your fire!” Stardust said.

Several Arcadian and Equestrian C-17As flew in and numerous parachutes came out from the cargo ramps as the infantry inside dropped into the city to secure the area.

“This is Clydesdale Two, I've got a missile coming at me, I'm turning to evade!” First Lieutenant Dumbbell called out as he turned to evade an R-73 Archer heat-homing missile that was fired from a MiG-35 that was at his 3 o' clock.

The missile hit the left wing, tearing half of the wing off.  Dumbbell managed to eject safely, dropping his plane into the nearby sports arena.

“Stardust, this is Shadow Three, we have an Equestrian fighter down near the stadium, I have a good chute on the pilot.” Angelo said as he spotted Dumbbell's parachute.

“Roger, directing Chariot Six-One for SAR, Chariot Six-Two remain in reserve.  Six-One, Six-Two, acknowledge.” Stardust said as he directed some assets in for the rescue of the downed pilot.

“Chariot Six-One, roger.” the lead pilot of the HH-60G Pave Hawk squadron replied.  “Chariot Six-Two, roger.” the wingman replied.

Over the next few minutes, the helicopters made their way near the stadium to extract Dumbbell, with Scootaloo's unit providing cover.

“Looks like they're targeting Highway 115!” Robert said as he got on the tail of another MiG-35.  “Fox two!” he called out as he took down the MiG with a Sidewinder.

“Target down!” Robert called out as he confirmed his kill.

Suddenly, a MiG-23 fired an R-60 Atoll heat-homing missile at Robert's plane!

“Whoa!” Robert exclaimed as he released a burst of flares and turned hard to dodge the missile, his body straining to stay conscious despite the high G-forces of the evasive maneuver.

“Baseplate, this is Alpha-Six, we're enterin' the city from the north and movin' in to secure the area!” Robert heard Applejack's voice say on the radio.

“Alpha-Six, roger, be advised, Arcadian infantry and IFVs are inbound to support you.” Baseplate replied.

Applejack's unit was moving in to help secure the city from the enemy ground troops that were attempting to secure a foothold on the city.

“Roger that, we sure can use the help, Alpha-Six out!” Applejack replied.

Robert got behind an A-50 Mainstay AWACS and shredded it with his M61A2 Vulcan 20mm rotary cannon.

“Delta Two-Zero to Stardust, we're assisting a search-and-rescue operation for a downed air-pony near the stadium.” Scootaloo said as she and the other gunships in her unit flew around, looking for enemy infantry.

She spotted a group of enemy troops on the rooftop of one of the buildings and cut them down with her M230 30mm chain cannon.  “Copy that, Delta Two-Zero.” Stardust replied.

“Stardust, can you keep those planes off us and the Pave Hawk while we bring it in?” Scootaloo asked.  “We're doing our best, Delta Two-Zero.” Stardust replied.

“Stardust to Shadow flight, we have an SAR operation underway near the stadium.  Keep the bandits away from the area.” Stardust ordered.

“Copy that.” Robert replied.  He and Vidal continued to engage the enemy while Angelo and Megan set up a RESCAP around the area where the rescue mission was taking place.

At this point, most of the enemy aircraft had been destroyed, with very few losses among the Arcadian and Equestrian forces.

“Guts, fuel status.” Robert said.  “Enough to take down two or three more.” Vidal replied.

“Roger that, wing, let's finish this!” Robert replied as he took down the last Candid with an AMRAAM.

“Stardust to Shadow Flight, four bandits coming from the east at a very low altitude, bearing is zero-nine-eight.” Stardust called out.

“Fuel is into reserves.” Vidal said.

“Moving to engage.  Guts?” Robert said upon hearing Vidal's fuel status update.

“I've got enough fuel for them.” Vidal replied.  “Roger Shadow Two, keep an eye on your fuel.” Robert ordered.

“Bandit on your back, LT, I'm taking him down!” Vidal said as he engaged an Su-27 that was trying to get on Robert's tail.

“Fox two, fox two!” Vidal called out as he took the shot.

The Su-27 went down in flames after being hit by Vidal's missile.  “You're clear.” Vidal said upon seeing his kill.

Robert then spotted a MiG-29 ahead of him that had what appeared to be a robotic gryphon painted on the nose.

“What the hell?” Robert thought out loud.

{Missile...*Beep*...Missile...*Beep*...} went the missile alert as the radar warning receiver went off in Robert's cockpit.

{Oh shit!} Robert thought as he turned to evade the incoming threat.

"OOF!" Robert grunted as the R-73 missile impacted the fuselage, which burst into flames and alarms began to blare within the cockpit.

“SHIT!” Robert exclaimed as he struggled to control his damaged aircraft, barely managing to turn it towards the ocean.

“DAMN!” he exclaimed as he looked around.  “Radar...dead.  Engines...” Robert thought out loud as he assessed the systems that were damaged.

“Get out of there, Lieutenant, eject!” Vidal said, hoping for Robert to punch out.

“Hit it. Get out, you're on fire!” Vidal pleaded.  Robert reached for the ejection handle and tugged with all his might.

The canopy instantly blew and the seat's rocket motor fired, propelling Robert out of the doomed plane, which exploded three seconds later, causing Robert to spin around in mid-air.

“Stardust, be advised, Shadow One is going down, Lieutenant Castellanos is out!” Vidal called out as he saw his flight lead eject.

Seconds later, Robert's parachute deployed, and he stopped spinning.  He looked around at the chaos and carnage around him.

“I have a chute!  I have a chute!” Vidal said as he spotted Robert's chute.

The MiG that shot him down buzzed right past him as he looked at it with a hateful gaze.

Seconds later, the MiG came around again, only to be shot down right in front of him.

He looked around for the source of the missile that avenged his shoot-down, and saw a familiar cyan Pegasus with a rainbow mane and tail flying towards him, an ACP missile pack on her back and twin M134 Miniguns mounted on her shoulders.

“Rainbow...” Robert said as he saw her approach.  He then looked down and saw that he was nearly fifty feet off the ground.

Several seconds later, he hit the ground and rolled himself around to distribute the force of the landing throughout his body.

As he cut off his chute, he saw Rainbow Dash land ten feet from him and the two rushed towards each other.

“Robert!  Oh, thank Celestia you're OK!” Rainbow exclaimed as she embraced him, careful not to hit him with her gear as she gave him a quick peck on the lips.

“Good to see you too, sweetheart.” Robert replied, thankful that Rainbow shot down the MiG that took him down.

“Look, I'm sorry, but I can't stay long, I gotta get back to my mission, but I am gonna let my guys know that you're OK and tell them where you are so they can send a rescue party for you.” Rainbow said.

“I understand, go get 'em, dear...and thanks!” Robert replied as Rainbow flew off, radioing in Robert's location.  Robert got out his survival radio and turned it on in case any allied units try to contact him.

“Blaze, this is First Battalion, Second Royal Marines, Captain Applejack, commander of Alpha-Six, y'all OK over there?” Applejack asked.

“Yes, I'm fine, I just had an unplanned landing, that's all.  It's great to hear your voice again!” Robert replied, relieved to hear another close friend's voice.

“Alright, Spectrum just gave us yer position, and we're comin' to ya, just hang in there, we'll be there in five!” Applejack replied.

“OK, I'll let you know when I see you, Blaze out.” Robert replied.

Suddenly, several bullets ricocheted from a nearby wall.  Robert immediately dove for cover and drew his M9 pistol.

{Shit, they found me, looks like I'm gonna have to hold out until AJ's unit arrives!} Robert thought as he saw four gryphon soldiers approaching from forty yards away.

Robert dropped two of them with headshots from his pistol before they returned his fire with their AK-47 assault rifles.

Robert carefully took aim and took the other two hostiles out.

His eyes grew wide when he saw another group of gryphons approaching.

The gryphon soldiers started firing, forcing Robert to get back behind the wall that he was using for cover.

“Alpha-Six, this is Blaze, be advised, I am under heavy enemy fire.  I need help, fast!” Robert said.

“Alright, ah'm gonna get ya some gunship support, just hang in there!” Applejack replied.

“This is Firestorm One, I read your last and we're on the way!” an Arcadian Army AH-74 Crossbow gunship pilot said as he flew towards Robert's position.

Robert took out several enemies before he had to reload.

“Shit, last mag!” Robert said as he slipped the magazine into the magazine well.

It looked like Robert's last stand.  Robert decided that if he went down, he would go down fighting!

He took out five gryphon soldiers with headshots before an explosion shattered the group.

“Huh?  What the...?” Robert turned and looked to see Applejack and some of her fellow Royal Marines, a wisp of smoke flowing from the M203 grenade launcher under the barrel of her shoulder-mounted M4-P carbine.

“Y'all OK?” AJ asked.  “Yeah, good thing you guys showed up, I thought I was toast for a second!” Robert replied.

Just then, the AH-74 flew overhead and came to a hover near the group, strafing the enemy positions with its M230 chain cannon.  “This is Firestorm One, engaging enemy troops!” the pilot said as he continued firing.

“Let's go while he has them distracted!” Applejack said, motioning for Robert to follow her and her squad.

Robert recognized one of the squad members as the group's dragon friend, Spike, who was now a lance corporal.

“Good to see you again, sir!” Spike said as he gave Robert a quick salute.  Robert smiled as he returned the salute.

“Good to see you again too, bud!” he replied.  Applejack led her unit and Robert to the parking lot on the other side of the stadium, where the extraction chopper would pick them up.

“Baseplate, this is Alpha-Six, we've located the HVI, he's uninjured and in good fighting shape!” Applejack called into her radio.  “Roger that, Alpha-Six, vectoring Chariot Six-One to the LZ for extraction.” Baseplate replied.

Robert spotted the Pave Hawk first and pointed it out to Applejack, who then threw a green smoke marker to indicate the position of the LZ, in the middle of the field.

The Pave Hawk landed near the smoke marker and everyone got on board.

“Hey AJ, remind me to have us stop for some apple cider when this is all over, I'm buying!” Robert said in a humorous tone.

“Heh, ah'm gonna hold ya to that, sugarcube!” Applejack replied with a chuckle.

The Pave Hawk lifted off and found itself under heavy enemy fire.  Several bullets went into the door gunner, killing him.

“HAYSEED!  SOMEONE GIT ON THAT GUN!” Applejack ordered.

“DON'T WORRY, I GOT THIS!” Robert said as he rushed to the gunner's seat.  Robert quickly studied the controls of the ponyfied M134 Minigun.  He quickly figured out that he can use his thumbs to press up on the trigger, which would normally be triggered by the gunner pressing up on it with his/her lower jaw while biting down on it, while using the hoof inserts to aim the weapon.

“LIGHT 'EM UP, ROB!” Applejack ordered as the helicopter continued to take small-arms fire.

Robert let loose with a brief burst from the Minigun, then another, annihilating the enemy troops below.

“YEAH, GET SOME, YOU FEATHER-HEADED S.O.BS!!” Robert yelled as he obliterated the enemy troops below.  Soon, the helicopter flew out to sea, taking a safe route to the AFS Kestrel which had left port three hours earlier.

The Pave Hawk landed on the carrier's flight deck and Robert was taken to the sick bay to be examined.  Once the examination was over, he was returned to active flight status.

Shortly afterwards, they got some disturbing news: an enemy squadron was headed for Canterlot.

What Robert didn't know, was that his squadron would end up participating in an very special, very important mission.

(“Hunter Two-Three” Humvee convoy)

(Two miles northwest of Seaddle, Equestria)

(6:00 PM)

Sergeant Rambo of the Equestrian Royal Army's 2nd Brigade Combat Team (Heavy), 1st Battalion, 20th Infantry Regiment was manning the roof-mounted M134 Minigun on his Humvee as the convoy traveled towards the city, where the battle was taking place.

The other gunners, like him, were scanning the area for hostiles.  Two of the gunners sprayed short bursts of fire at the few stray gryphons that flew towards them.

They could hear the jet noise and explosions from the fur-ball above them, as well as the drone of helicopter rotors.

Their mission was to help keep the enemy from overrunning the city.

Suddenly, as the convoy approached a neighborhood, an Akaelian BTR-80 came out from behind a nearby building and started firing at the convoy with its 14.5mm heavy machine gun.

“BTR!  Get out of here!  Get to cover!” Rambo ordered as several rounds from the BTR's gun went through the Humvee's windshield, narrowly missing the occupants as they rushed out.

Rambo's squad ran towards a nearby alleyway to escape the BTR's gunfire.  They immediately encountered a group of enemy infantry.

Rambo quickly gunned down three enemy soldiers with his G36P shoulder-mounted assault rifle.  His squad-mate, Corporal Dumbbell, took out a group of hostiles with his rifle's M203 40mm grenade launcher.

“Tagger, pop some smoke near that BTR!  We have to get past it!” Rambo ordered.  PFC Tagger grabbed a smoke grenade with his mouth and used his magic to hurl it at the BTR, which had stopped.

As the smoke from the grenade began to shroud the BTR, the infantry that had climbed out rushed for cover, but Dumbbell took one group of them out with his M203.

Tagger used his M249P SAW (Squad Automatic Weapon) to lay down suppression fire, most of the enemy soldiers being killed by the hail of bullets.

Rambo bravely rushed up to the BTR and planted a Semtex charge on each end of the vehicle.  He rushed to rejoin his squad at a safe distance and clicked the detonator.  The charges detonated, destroying the BTR instantly.

Rambo spotted another BTR in the distance on the other side of the parking lot that the squad ended up on after escaping the other BTR behind them.

Suddenly, they heard a loud bang, followed a split-second later by the sound of a rocket motor igniting.  Rambo looked towards the noise and saw an Arcadian Army soldier holding an FGM-148 Javelin anti-tank missile launcher.

Seconds later, the missile which had shot up, dove down and struck the BTR from above, destroying it instantly.

“Nice shot, buddy!” Rambo said to the human soldier.

“Hell yeah, we've got your back, pal!  Nice trick with the smoke and the Semtex on that other BTR, by the way!” the Arcadian soldier, PFC Jason Ramirez, of 5th Brigade Combat Team (Heavy), 2nd Battalion, 10th Infantry Regiment replied.

“Heh heh, I like your style, man!” Rambo replied.  “Back at ya, how about we shoot some hoops after this is all over?” Ramirez asked.

“Hell yeah, I'm down!  I'll even bring the whole squad!” Rambo replied.

The two squads grouped together and advanced as a single joint human-pony group.

“So, what's the story?” Rambo asked.

“Well, the enemy's primarily arriving by air, but these BTRs must have been deployed by sea, so it's safe to say that there must be some enemy ships not too far off the coast!” Ramirez replied before gunning down four enemy soldiers with his M4 assault rifle, which had a hybrid holographic sight with flip-up scope, tactical laser, flashlight and extendable stock.

“Hunter Two-Three, this is Baseplate, be advised, we have a Leopard 2 dead-in-the-water in a junkyard about two clicks north of your position, call-sign: 'War Horse'.  They're holding for now, but if we don't get to them in time, they'll be overrun!” Baseplate called up over the radio.

“Roger, this is Hunter Two-Three, we're on our way with Arcadian reinforcements!” Rambo replied.

“OK, let's go save that tank!” First Lieutenant Valdez, the Arcadian squad leader, said as the two squads moved out.

Half a click from the junkyard, they encountered an enemy Ka-50 Hokum gunship.

“Shit, get to cover!” Valdez ordered as the gunship started firing its machine gun it their direction.

Ramirez grabbed a FIM-92 Stinger MANPADS from a nearby supply drop.  He activated the seeker and took aim.

Once he had a solid lock, he fired the missile.

The missile slammed into the gunship's fuselage and the helicopter went down in flames.

“Nice shooting, Ramirez!” Rambo said.  They encountered another enemy squad as they made their way towards the tank.

“War Horse, this is Hunter Two-Three, what's your status?” Rambo asked.

“We're barely holding up!  Our main gun's down, but we've still got our machine gun!  There's only four of our guys left, it's so lucky y'all showed up!” Applebloom said as Lyra rotated the turret to aim the co-axial .50-caliber machine gun.

The tank's position was being swarmed by enemy infantry, some of whom were carrying satchel charges with which they intended to blow up the tank.

Valdez and Rambo's squads took up defensive positions near the tank as they fought off the enemy.

“Dammit, we need air support!” Rambo said as their squads slowly started taking casualties.

“Roger, we have a pair of Apaches on call, just give them the word!” Baseplate replied.

“Hunter Two-Three, this is Echo One with Echo Two standing by to provide close air support!” the Arcadian Apache pilot said, having heard their last transmissions.

“Roger, we're popping green smoke to indicate our position!” Rambo said as he tossed a smoke marker with his magic.

“OK, we see your marker, engaging hostiles!” the Apache pilot said as he and his wingman made their approach.

The human and pony soldiers looked to see a pair of Arcadian AH-64D Longbow Apache gunships approaching quickly at low altitude.

The two squads watched in amazement as the two gunships shredded the enemy forces with their M230 chain cannons.

“Echo One, this is Echo Two, you see any more down there?” the wingman asked.

“Negative, looks like we got them all!” the lead pilot replied as the two gunships circled around, watching for enemy movement.

The two squads set up new defensive positions around the tank while combat engineers were being flown in to get the tank moving again.

After a half-hour, the tank was back in action, supporting the effort to drive the Akaelians out of the city.

(Mareami, Equestria, near the downtown area)

(6:08 PM)

Lance Corporal Rarity, a Royal Marine sniper, was in her position in one of the high-rise buildings near the downtown area, her Barrett M82A1 sniper rifle, loaded with a full magazine of .50-caliber BMG rounds and fitted with a heavy-duty suppressor, resting on its bi-pod on a window ledge.

Her mission was to eliminate the enemy field commander who was in charge of the force that was invading Equestria.

With this commander gone, the enemy forces will be far less coordinated, and the allied forces will have an easier time clearing out the enemy.

Her spotter, Lance Corporal Moondancer, was using her M49 spotting scope to locate the target.

She soon spotted the enemy commander near a field tent in the downtown area's main square.

“OK, I think I've spotted him, get ready.” Moondancer said.  Rarity got in position and readied her rifle.

“Yep, that's him, positive ID on primary target.” Moondancer said as she recognized the commander from the intelligence photos shown to them at the mission briefing.

“Target range: one-thousand feet, wind: calm, humidity: ten percent, temperature: eighty degrees, estimated bullet flight time: point-five seconds.  You've got a damn good shot from here.” Moondancer said as she prepared Rarity with all the information she needed to line up a proper shot.

Rarity flicked off the safety of her rifle with her magic and used her hooves to support the heavy rifle as she took aim.

She carefully positioned the cross-hairs in a spot that would insure that the round would hit the commander dead center in the head.

She also began to carefully control her breathing to minimize the movements of the rifle.

“Elevation and windage set...adjusting for bullet drop and other factors...OK, I'm lined up...taking the shot!” Rarity said as she took a deep breath and slowly exhaled.

At the bottom of her exhale, she used her magic to pull the trigger.

*Poof!* The rifle fired silently, sending the bullet flying at high velocity.

Half a second later, the bullet reached the commander's position.

Rarity's careful aim paid off, for the bullet went through the commander's helmet, shattering his skull and blasting out the other side.

Rarity watched with a sense of accomplishment as she saw her target go down.

“Target neutralized, let's get out of here!” Rarity said as she used her magic to flick on the rifle's safety and levitated it onto her back-mounted weapons pack.

Rarity and Moondancer then finished packing up their gear and began their egress.

They made their way to the extraction point in the nearby park.

Several seconds after they arrived, an ERM MH-53 Pave Low helicopter landed in the nearby clearing.

“Well, that's our ride!” Rarity said as she and Moondancer got on board the helicopter, which lifted off seconds later.

Rarity and Moondancer smiled, knowing that their successful mission will greatly help the effort to put a stop to the Akaelian military's incursion into her home country.

Sure enough, without their commander to coordinate them, the enemy forces were forced to fend for themselves, and were quickly crushed in the Mareami and Seahorse City areas quickly.