Blood and Shadows

Operation: Mended Wounds

Location: Outer Illesia, Changeling's Hive.

Date and Time: September 25, 2037. 22:48 Hours.

Subject: Rainbow Dash

Objective: Infiltrate Changling Hive undetected and rescue trapped Wonderbolt squad.

[Optional]: Retrieve enemy intelligence and destroy Changeling Hive

I had heard of cryogenic sleep but never did I think I would experience it first hand. As I stepped out of the sleeping chamber, I instantly stopped shivering, as the air outside was much warmer. The men in the air ship had come to release me from the chamber, and they were wearing jackets? I guess it was way colder than I thought, and the air outside the chamber was just a lot less cold than the air inside the chamber. I was still shivering a little, as I realized why they were wearing jackets. The bay where all the sleep chambers were stored was freezing! I warmed up a little, but only to the point that the frigid air would let me. One of the soldiers noticed how cold I was, and kindly took off his jacket and gave it to me. It wasn't anything compared to the treatment Twilight got, but it was a start. As I dawned the jacket and left the room with the two men, I decided that I'd get laid ASAP when I got back from this mission. Only problem was, that Twilight was big competition, she was a princess after all, and had 'physical' needs that rivaled mine. But that would have to wait for now, I was on a mission.

The C-130 cargo plane we were on was modified to act as an airship: It could almost hover in mid air and was stable enough that you could balance spinning plates with ease. The ship was code-named Falkon, although I don't understand why it wasn't with a 'c' instead of a 'k' but I guess that wasn't up to me. I approached the drop bay, and gave the soldier his jacket back and thanked him. He simply nodded and the two of them left as the door started to open.

"This is Cubby Leader calling Raven, come in Raven. Over." Lyra's voice came in over the implant

"This is Rainbow Dash, no need to be all serious." I hummed as the wind started leaving the room. There was no answer from the other end, then I realized why, "Over."

"Da- I mean Raven! We use code names to hide identities! The enemy could be listening on this broadcast right now! Over!"

"Lyra, if the Changelings had a use for these radio frequencies, then they wouldn't have sleeper cells in our bases! Over."

"Good point, but it can't hurt! Over."

"Fine, what do you want Cubby Leader?"

"Ahem..."

"OVER!"

"I just wanted to say good luck and apologize for not being awake to give you your new gear! I had a new Rig all prepped for you but it needs to be applied to your arm in a certain way. When you come back then I'll hook it up. Over."

"Ly- Cubby Leader, from now on, put Gear Head on the comms? Over."

"Okie doke. Cubby Leader, over and out."

Fuckin' Lyra, she was cool but she got on my nerves sometimes.

As I fell through the air, I waited to spread my wings. This was how it was meant to be, my wings I mean. They weren't restricted in any way, and I could soar freely through the air, just like back before the invasion. My new M4 with a built in suppressor was strapped to my chest and my pistol was holstered to my hip. I decided to go light this time, and leave a bunch of the grenades behind, all I were carrying were flash bangs and EMP's. I was good with the flash bangs, but these EMP's were a whole new concept to me: a grenade that could fry enemy electronics, even through walls. But the thing I didn't like was that it fried mine too, but only for a short while.

The treeline was close now, and just before I reached it, I spread my wings wide and pulled up hard. My belly skimmed the treetops as I flew across the sky, keeping as low as possible. I looked up, yearning to go higher, but if I did then I'd be caught for sure. Now, I could see it clearly, the Changeling hive. Picture a Changling, holes and all right? Well the hive looked about like a giant Changeling version of a termite hill. It had at least four peaks, and each was riddled with its own holes, each an equally as accessible entry point. I chose the hole at the highest point in the tallest tower, and I'd work my way down from there.  I swooped in to find out that the space was used as an attic, and no guards were nearby, but I could hear them underneath me. They scuffled about, doing this and that, they sounded busy. Maybe that's whey nobody noticed me zoom up the side of the tower and dash inside. Whatever the case was, they didn't know I was here, and I planned to keep it that way.

Time to see if any of Shadows talent rubbed off on me I silently thought to myself. I cracked open the attic entrance and peeked out below me. Two Changelings were wandering about, on guard duty in front of some door. I was about to jump down and get them both when one of them started talking.

"Why do you we need to guard the weapons cache?" The first one said, pacing back and forth

"Because the queen told us to." the second replied, calmly leaning back in a chair

"Yeah but why did she tell us?"

"I dunno, but it's probably important! Don't question what the queen asks!"

"Well, we never have to guard it any other night! Why tonight?"

"Probably something to do with that Wonderbolt squad we captured."

"You think that somebody might be coming after them?"

"It's a possibility, and it's not them anymore."

"Huh?"

"It's just him, they killed everyone on that squad except the captain in an attempt to break him, but he's really stubborn."

Those heartless shits.

"Well what do they plan on doing?"

"I think I heard somebody say something about cutting off his fingers one at a time? Or some form of ancient Japanese torture. There was a big debate on it, it was funny 'cause the guy was right there the entire time! I could see him squirming at the mention of letting bamboo grow inside him!"

Fuck this, I need to act now before they scar this Wonderbolt for life, if he isn't already...

The pacing one replied, "Well if you ask me they should-"

Then, I dived out of the attic and did a combat roll up to the first Changeling. When I got out of the roll, I pulled out my knife and planted it in the first one's chest, and in one fluid motion, I shot the other with my sidearm. Before the first one could scream in pain, I held the gun up to his head, "Shout, and I'll make sure you die with no fingers!" I quietly yelled at him.

He clamped his mouth shut, and then he quietly said, in a very scared voice, "What do you want, I'll tell you anything! Just let me live!"

"I'll think about it, but first, I need some information."

"Okay! Okay! What do you want to know?"

"First off," I said, pulling him closer to me, "We're gonna play a game!"

"What game?" He sounded much more scared now

"You're gonna pick a number between one and ten, if you choose correctly, then I'll let you live!"

"Oh god, uh...um...seven?" He asked, closing his eyes

"Darn, lucky guess." I said, even though I never had a number in the first place

"Okay, please let me go!"

"Okay, but first how do I get to this Wonderbolt?"

"You head down two floors, and head into the door labeled 'Interrogation Quarters.' When you go in there, the Wonderbolt will be in cell G!"

"Hmm, you've been very good so far. How about another game?"

"Please, no more?"

"Fine, suit yourself." I said, pulling the trigger

The Changeling fell lifeless to the floor, and I dragged both bodies into the weapons cache room. I advanced to the stairwell, and sneaked my way down two floors. I was about to go through the door to the second floor, and found it was locked. A couple Changelings came up the stairs, I looked around and my only escape was back up. I went up to find two more headed down, I was trapped. I flew up against the bottom of a flight of stairs and prayed that they wouldn't look up. I held my breath as I pressed myself harder against the moldy bottom of the stairs. I could hear the Changelings walking beneath me and above me. Please don't look up, please don't look up, please don't look up! The were talking about football but my heart was pounding too hard in my head to hear them. The ones above me remained silent, which scared me more because then I wouldn't even know if they'd seen me. The ones below me opened the door to the second floor and proceeded through it. I was about to fly through it when the two above me rounded the turn, blocking my path. I tossed a mini-mic through the doorway, and hoped that it would be enough for a doorstop. The Changelings passed the door as it swung shut, but my microphone held it slightly open. They continued walking under me, and rounded the corner to the floor below. I flew at the door, picking up my mic in the process, and shut it behind me. The two Changelings that passed through were already halfway down the hall, and I started reading the labels on the doors.

Weapon's Modifier, Grenade Room, Firing Range Storage, etc. It took me a while to find the Interrogation Quarters, and when I did, I found the door to be locked. I was about to take my knife and break the lock, but voices came from the other side.

"Yes I agree, that would suffice nicely." It was the Queen!, "Our latest prisoner has been very problematic, and an acid treatment would be the perfect thing to make him talk." Her voice was closer to the door now.

I quickly flew up and attached myself to the ceiling, as the door opened below me. Chrysalis and some Elite in a lab coat walked out.

"I'll have more shipped to you by morning, we'll have this sorted out and this dunderhead will be singing for you in no time." The Elite told the Queen

"Fantastic! I look forward to the trade!" The Queen said.

"Now, on to more pressing matters," The Elite continued as they walked down the hall, "I believe that the death of your operative in BLACK was tragic, but he must be replaced effective immediately!"

The door was closing now so I dashed inside. The room was bleak, grey walls and doors that looked like those of an insane asylum. Each of the eight doors in the room had a letter on it: A,B,C,D,E,F,G, and H. I peeked in the window of cell G and saw the Wonderbolt, curled up on the floor facing the wall. I went to some controls on the wall and unlocked the door. I slowly opened the door to present myself, but the Wonderbolt shot up and tackled me to the floor.

"YOU BITCH! I'M NOT TELLING YOU ANYTHING!" He yelled, hovering a shiv made out of a chicken bone. He was about to jab it into me when he realized I wasn't an enemy, "Oh sorry." He apologized, as he got off of me.

I brushed myself off and readjusted my gear, he continued to talk, "Hey, do I know you from somewhere?"

I looked up and saw the Wonderbolt who I was saving, it was Soarin! I tackled him with a big hug and he had this huge grin on his face. When I finally released him he stood there, his cheeks had lit up now. Scratching the back of his neck, he asked, "Uh, thanks for saving me and all, and the hug is appreciated...I guess...but who are you?"

At first, I was shocked, how could he have forgotten me that quickly? Then I realized I was dubbed in black now, thanks to the agency I worked for. I laughed and looked at him, "You mean you don't recognize me, Foxy?"

He seemed very confused, then he contemplated what I said and realized who I was. He shot into me and gave me a huge hug. When he finally released me he had tears in his eyes, "Dash! What happened to you? Why are you black? I thought your rainbow look was way sexier!"

I blushed at the statement, then realized this was no time to turn into a blubbering mess, we were in the hive, what was Soarin thinking? "Soarin, we gotta get out of here! I got an escape plan, we can go out the way I came in!"

"What way is that?"

"We can get to the top of this tower and fly our way out of here!"

"Oh uh, that could be a problem."

"Why?"

Soarin lifted his wings, both of them were clipped. I knew Changelings were cruel, but taking away a Pegaus's ability to fly? That was just wrong. "Soarin..." was all I could manage to say, as I thought about how painful it must be to know you can never fly again. The holes in his wings seemed like something you would see in a horror movie, they weren't small holes, I could fit my hand through these.

"Don't worry Dash, I'll be fine, I just can't do anymore flying..." he looked at his feet as tears streamed out of his eyes

"Soarin, I can't imagine what sort of pain you're experiencing right now, but we need to get out of here! I'll cry with you as much as you want later, but a Changeling could walk through that door any minute!"

"You're right," Soarin said, collecting himself, "Let's go."

I led the way, as we navigated the stairwell to the first floor. Instead of sneaking our way past things, we just silently put a hole in each Changling's head. After some careful navigation through the lobby, and some close calls in the front courtyard, we made it to the front gate. We ran out and into the woods, and then I thought about Soarin's clipped wings. I stopped and he turned around, "What's wrong? We're home free now!" he asked.

"After what they did to you? They need to pay..." was all I said before I flew off to the weapons cache. I slipped inside, and went straight for the C4. I linked it to a trigger and armed everything I could find. I grabbed as much as I could, and flew out through the attic. I let the C4 rain down on the hive, and flew off, setting off alarms in the process. I noticed Changelings beginning to leave the hive, so I pressed the trigger. Everything went white, and I took the opportunity to dive beneath the treetops and rejoin Soarin. We ran off as Changelings rapidly hurried about, fixing as much as they could, only setting fire to more of the structure. I called in a evac chopper and when they asked why, I just told them to get it here ASAP.

Soarin looked miserable, his wings were clipped, his suit was torn, he had burns on most of his body. There were a few cuts on him, and part of his mane was ripped out. Not to mention but he smelled like a wet dog that died on the side of the road and rotted for a few weeks. All I could think to do was just hold him, he didn't need to say he was hurt, I could tell. We sat there, in the grass for a while, just me holding him, until the chopper showed up. I helped him up, and helped him into the chopper. I hadn't noticed it before but he was limping. When he got in, a soldier looked at me and said, "What's wrong? Why couldn't you fly?"

I looked at Soarin, and the soldier did too. The soldier had a look of realization as he noticed the holes in Soarin's wings. He simply shut up and went to give him medical attention. I jumped in the helicopter and we took off. We flew for a while, and the soldiers bandaged Soarin up, he wasn't bleeding, it was just protocol to bandage any possible wounds on an HVT. I planned on getting some intelligence while I was there, but the fury that balled inside me at the sight of Soarin's state just totally threw the thought from my mind. How could they do something like this to him? Why didn't he just tell them what they wanted to know? I guess there was no use thinking about it now. The soldiers finished with Soarin and went to the cockpit, I walked up and sat down beside Soarin. I put my arm around him, and let him lean into me. It was funny because normally Soarin would say something like, 'shouldn't I be holding you? I am the guy after all!' or something along those lines. But he just sat there, silent, with a glazed look in his eyes. He mumbled something and I couldn't hear it very well.

"What did you say?" I asked him

he mumbled again

"Speak up Soarin."

"I said..." he mumbled it again

"Soarin I can't hear you."

"They...They killed them...right in front of me..."

I sat there, silent.

"They killed them all, one by one. Each one died in a more painful way than the last...I should have told them what they wanted to know, then...they'd still be here..."

"Soarin, you did what you needed to, you had no control over what happened..."

"They died, because I wouldn't speak...It's my fault they're gone..."

"Soarin, you know that's not true...they would envy you right now if they saw how you stood up to the Queen. You held out, you didn't break."

"I broke, I broke before they killed my team," Tears were coming from his eyes now, making my chest wet, "but I carried on, because I knew that if you heard of me dying like some worthless Wonderbolt, who broke down and revealed everything, then you might be ashamed of me...to have had me as a squad mate..."

"Soarin," I lifted his face to mine, "you have been my squad mate for my whole campaign, if I didn't want you as a squad mate, then I would have made that clear. Those men died, they died knowing that you wouldn't tell that bitch anything, and that it made it worthwhile to them. If you had told the Queen what she wanted, then she would have killed you all then and there, and you would have all died for nothing. You didn't break, you held your own, you attacked me thinking I was the Queen. You were far from breaking Soarin."

He wiped a tear from his eye, and looked at me like those hobos on street curbs do, with immense sadness in their eyes. All he could manage to say was, "They're still gone, and I still have to live with that experience every day that I live."

"Well from now on, we're living through it together. You won't have to face this alone, Foxy."

He sniffled, "Thanks, foxy." and he barely managed a smile. After a few moments of silence he leaned in and we just embraced one another for the ride home.

But one thing kept bugging me at the back of my mind:

The Changelings knew we were on the offensive now, which meant the Elites would know too. It was probably really stupid of me to blow that place up without lifting some intelligence first, but that's in the past. Now the Elites will be  merciless, and we need to strike at them with all we have. That's just the problem though...

What if all we have, isn't good enough?