It was dark... A faint light was shimmering in the room. Then a voice in the form of a whisper came into the room.
“I think I found it.”
A flash of light filled up the dark room. A lone desk with a computer and a few others items was in the room. A light brown mare came into the room, face to the darkness, and gave a wave for somepony to come in. a stallion came into the room. This colt had a dark blue coat with camo armor on top. Using his magic, he lifted his helmet up, revealing his face. He had dark green eyes with a blue and green tinted mane. He turned to the mare.
With a deep but friendly voice, he said, “Good. This is the place. Go and keep an eye out for anypony. I need to get the information.”
The light brown mare nodded and said, “Make it fast Stargazer. I have a bad feeling about this.“ Star looked back with a smile, then headed over to the desk. Looking at the desk, Star saw that there was a nameplate on it.
Using his magic, he lifted the nameplate to get a better look. General Storm Catcher he read to himself. His eyes opened wide and under his breath he said, “Good this is his desk. i'm in the right place. I have to hurry!”
Star put down the nameplate, and moved over to the computer. Using his horn he turned on the computer. The screen came to life and the monitor’s bright light shined into his eyes. On the screen there was a logo clearly visible; “The UTE, United Tribes of Equestria.”
After the screen finished loading, flies came up on the screen. Star pulled out a small device and put it in the computer. A window opened and it read “Downloading Data.” Along with this another box appeared and read, “Do you want to proceed?”
Star stared blankly before he decided to put his hoof on the glass. He slapped his face with his hoof, a true hoofplant. “I really need to remember that the things that work in my equestria might not work in this world.”
He looked across the desk for a mouse to use for the computer. After he located it, he used his magic to move it around. Star clicked the “Yes” option and started the download. Peering into the darkness he saw his friend, the light brown mare. Letting out a sigh he looked at the download bar, then he looked down at the screen and saw an interesting file.
“Operation Hunt? Huh what is on it?.” He wondered out loud as he opened the file.
Opening the new file he found it to be full of logs. He was about to close out of the file before a certain date from one of the logs caught his eyes. It was only a few months ago, but he let out a gasp at what he saw.
“this is the date i was in twilight castle to be her guard, and when i first enter to this world, and the first human i saw, i wonder, what have happened before everything happened ” He scanned the document and found that it had been edited recently, approximately five hours ago. He looked to the top of the document was about to read.
Star looked into the dark hall and saw his light brown friend Shadow, just waiting there. She was sitting with her ears pointed and ready to tackle anything.
‘I'm really glad I brought her with me’ Star thought with a smile.
Shadow looked to Star And asked, “Have you found the information yet?” Her light blue eyes meeting with Star’s eyes. She always had a kind of look that gave her a loyal personality.
“No, I'm still looking. I hate these things.”
“Do you need help, Star?”
“No I think I found it”.
Shadow nodded and kept her silent vigil over the darkness. Look back to the computer Star got back to work. ‘Well, lets see what happened then…’ He thought before he started to read the log on the computer.
______________________________________________________________________________
It all started at that school, Canterlot high. Thats where the Operation Hunt began. let me started from the beginning. It at all started a few weeks ago. Someone had sent us a video. At first we thought it was a joke, but then we got some crucial information from the guys down in the space agency. Something felt off though. I was on my way to a briefing for my next mission, but Tele, the head of the space agency, ran up to me. Tele was a generally younger looking man with short, dark red hair. He appeared worried and I soon found out why.
“General Storm! I’m very sorry, but I need to talk to you, it's urgent.”'
“Tele, next time just watch where you going.” I said, but by the look on his face there was fear in his light red eyes. I could tell something had happened. “Hey Tele, are you alright? You look like you're about to faint or something.”
“I need to talk to you sir, like I said it's urgent.” as he fix his plan blue shirt
I knew this was no joke, he was never this bad when something happened. “I can't talk right now, I have a briefin-.”
Before I could finish, Tele cut me off. “I need to talk to you right now sir, something big is going on. We’re talking really huge.”
I was conflicted. I had to get to the briefing, but the worry in his voice told me something else. I had to reason with him, and thanks to my gathered skills and pure luck I was able to calm him down. “Tele, everything's ok man. How about you go home and take a shower. Maybe rest or eat something. I’ll come get you when I finish this, alright?”
Tele brought his hand to his face and replied, “Yeah… you’re right. I do need some food and a good rest. Maybe that will help calm me down. You know where you can find me.”
With that he headed to the Space Center. I had only been there a few times, but I know there are some good food joints and a quaint place for people if they need a rest. Usually it's only used in bad times, like if a meteor is gonna hit the earth.
I looked down to my watch. I was about to be late for my briefing. “If I hurry, I may just be able to make it.” While I was walking I couldn’t help but think about what Tele was worried about. Luckily I was able to make it to the briefing on time. It was nothing but a whole bunch of legal work and honestly wasn’t worth my time.
After the briefing I headed to the Space Center. At the Space Center, I found a bunch of ‘eggheads’ waiting for me. I knew I would never escape their evil clutches so I relented and walked inside.
“Ah! General! It's good to see you, though I don’t think we’ve been properly introduced. My name is Light Hunt, but you can call me Light… or Stone… or even Light Stone!” She smiled warmly at me. She had long black hair with light brown eyes. She had a white coat on, with a grey undershirt and grey pants. On her coat there was a logo that was a picture of a stone with light shining from it.
“Light, where can I find Tele?” I ask.
“Oh, alright. Follow me then.” She said, her warm smile never dropping for a second. She soon began to lead me all around the Space Center.
At one point we passed the Orbit Overview room, or OOV for short. Inside a group of scientists were working over a huge whiteboard. The scientists in the room all wore the same outfit as Tele is. Some had their white coats on, while others chose to not have them at all. Some appeared to be wearing their casual clothes, almost as if they had ran in in a hurry. Some of the scientists looked like that haven't shaved for days. One in particular had a magnificent beard, easily reaching past his collar bone. The one with a long beard had a long cord that they plugged into the side of it. As soon as the picture connected with the whiteboard, a picture appeared, thought it was odd. It had heat signatures and energy readings all over it. At first it appeared to be a nuclear warhead, but as I got closer and looked at it, I found something that I didn’t expect. It was actually a school and it was surrounded with radiation. It was higher than anything I’ve ever seen.
One of the scientists finally noticed me. When his eyes locked onto mine he nodded and elbowed his friend beside him. At first his partner was peeved, but when he pointed to me he understood. All the talking in the room stopped and they all looked at me. I guess they didn’t know much more than I did on the strange energy surrounding the school.
“General, are you coming or not?” Light asked, her smile still somehow not failing. I swear that smile must have been drawn on or something.
“Do you not know what is happening here?”
“No I don’t. I’ve been looking at that map and I still have no idea what happened and what caused it.”
“Alright then,” I said, giving up on getting any answers on the subject. “Might as well leave it to the professionals then.”
We went back to finding Tele. We started to reach the cafeteria when I hear even more whispers. As we approached the noise got louder. Inside the cafeteria was a buzz of activity. There were scientists everywhere.
“How many groups do you have working on this?”
As I got a better look around the room I found that there were laptops, whiteboards, and other equipment all around the room. The tables were filled with papers, diagnostics, and evaluations of what could possibly be going on. When I got inside the cafeteria all the scientists shut up and stared at me. As we walked through the cafeteria, it was filled with whispers.
“Did Tele call the General?”
“This is huge! What could possibly be going on?”
We made it to the other side of the cafeteria when we heard a yell. “GET BACK TO WORK! WE CHOSE YOU AS OUT TOP MINDS ON THIS! NOW, GET. BACK. TO. WORK!”
I turned around to try and find where the sound came from, only to see Tele. He was red with anger and looking obviously better than he had before.
As I was about to greet Tele, Light beat me to the chase.
“Tele! You’re looking better sir!” Light happily responded, her smile bearing deep into his soul.
“Thank you Light Stone, I am feeling quite better. We can than our local General for that one. He’s the one that ordered me to get a quick R and R.” Tele replied.
“It was nothing my friend. You were tired and hungry, and we both know you would not have stopped working until you dropped dead.”
We all laughed at that one, but our laughter fell short when we knew we had to get back to work.
“I can take it from here then.” Light said turning to me. “Well General, it has been a great honor to meet you sir.” She raised her hand for me to shake it. I hope we can talk again more some day.”
She answered with her never ending smile and a nod. “ I will make sure to tell Star I said ‘Hi’ for you.” Without giving me time to ask who star was, she promptly turned around and left from where we came from.
“Hey Tele, who is this ‘Star’ that Light was talking about?” I ask Tele, giving up on asking Light.
“Star? Oh yeah, Star is is one of Lights friends. Wait, she suggested one of her friends? She did saw she talked about you a lot, but I didn’t think she was serious.”
Star thought couldn’t help but think to myself. ‘She’s talking about me? No, that could never happen.’
I soon pushed the thought out of my mind. We had work to do.
Tele brought me into his office, which just happened to be in a little side room, adjacent to the cafeteria. I had to ask him, “Tele, what exactly is going on anyway?”
“Storm, I honestly have no clue. I have never seen anything like this before, which is why I called you. I hoped that you could have any possible clues or ideas on what exactly could be going on.” His face full of worry.
“I must apologise Tele, I have no idea what's going on myself. I’ll help, but I’m not promising much.” The gears in my head started to turn as I started to think about our situation for a solution. “When and where did you get these pictures?”
“Uhhh… Let me see here…” Telle said as he looked around his office. Upon finding nothing he moved over to his computer. Turning it on and opening it up, he clicked on some randomly assorted data files. “Let's see here….. Ah! Here we are. It says it came in… two weeks ago.”
I couldn’t help but to gasp at the strange coincidence. The video we received came exactly two weeks ago as well. If both the pictures of this strange occurrence and the video both arrived at the same time, then there must be a connection.
Tele looked away from his computer, shocked at my gasping. “Whats wrong? Did you get any clues or something?” I told him about the video we had received two weeks ago. “Are you sure these two things are connected?” I nodded in confirmation. “Well what are we waiting for?! We need to get the video now! Go and get it Storm, the guys down in the video shop owe me a favor so just tell them ‘this is for Tele.’ They’ll get the point. They should be able to work on the video and look at it for us.”
“I’m on it!” I told him as I dashed out of his little office to go find the video. I ended up scaring a few people as I ran out of the cafeteria, but that didn't matter. I started to formulate a plan in my head. ‘I need to get to my car and get to the base. That's my first priority. Then I need to get the video and give it to the video guys. Whatever is on this video must tell us what is going on.
Upon reaching my car I tore the door open, hopped in, and slammed the door shut. Shuffling for my keys, I plugged them into the ignition and started to drive off.
______________________________________________________________________________
After a short drive I finally arrived at the base. I quickly jumped out, slammed my car door shut, and ran into the building.
‘If I come barreling into the building, they’ll probably throw me out. Worst case scenario I freak people out, but I would rather not take that chance’ I think to myself as I slow down to a casual walk. Inside the main lobby I found the new guard, her name was maple her long corry brown hair. was showing with her happy face. she stop me do the normal procedures. i sigh and took it.
“General! It's good to see you! Are you doing ok? You don’t look to good.” maple said her caring was unbeveled as said as I passed by.
“Yeah, I’m fine Maple. I just came to grab something and get out. I won’t take long.”
“You sure General?” I nod in confirmation. “Alright, if you say so.” said maple
‘Well that went better than expected’ I think to myself. ‘Goodness, I really need to calm down. If I keep this up people may think I’m up to something. Me being a General won’t change people’s minds if they think I’m up to something.’
I calm down my pace and walk calmly through the halls. I arrive at the data room, which is where we keep all the videos and files we receive. You never know when a prank or joke that someone sends in may just be real, useful information. I rarely have to go in there myself, but it's best to know where everything is.
I took out my card and put it to the scanner. A green light and a ‘beep’ signals the doors unlocks, along with a feminine voice coming on through the speaker. “Welcome, General Storm.”
‘Oh god, they’re here…’
As the door opens, I hear several things being pushed around. When the door opened all the way I saw trash littering the ground. It may had been a long time, but it was in just as much a disarray as it was before. The two guys in the storage room smiled awkwardly at me as I walked in. One of them was overweight with greasy brown hair that barely passed his ears. The other was tall and thin with long blonde hair. I promptly ignored both of them and moved over to the computers. After sifting through boxes and trash I found a free computer and turned it on. Not even a minute after I found the computer did they start to bother me. I don’t hate them, but whenever I’m near them they make my skin crawl.
“So sir, what brings you in this neck of the woods?”
I turned around and looked the tall and skinny one directly in the eyes. “I’m looking for a file. It’s very important, so I would rather not be bothered.” I pulled out the USB drive I keep on my, just in case I ever need it when the other one speaks up.
“Well what file is it? Maybe we can help!”
My patience began to run thin with these two. “I looking for a VERY specific and VERY important file. As I said before I would rather work on it myself and not be bothered.” I say as I start to type the password into the computer. But one of them suddenly pushed me out of the way.
“Here let us help you! We happen to be experts in this!”
I couldn’t take it anymore so I cut them off before moving them away from the computer as gently as I possibly could without letting my anger get the best of me. I wasn’t a General for nothing y’know. “I know that no one ever comes down here, but that gives you no right to be the slobs that you are. ok?” That shut them up alright. I didn’t even feel bad for a second. “Clean this mess up and then find some air freshener. It smells horrible in here. And when I mean clean, I mean clean. I will go Drill Sergeant on you boys.”
They both look at each other before shrugging and replying in unison. “Alright boss, you win. We’ll get this room cleaned up ASAP.” The larger one then started to pick up the boxes across the floor. “C’mon Blizz, let's get this over with.”
After a while of searching through the database I find what I’m looking for. I started to download the file to my USB when Blizz, the thinner of the two stooges, spoke up. “Hey General, why are you really here?
“I’m just getting a video file from a few days ago. We got some people from the lab that wanna take a look at it. Nothing too big, but they just wanna exhaust all options.” The file eventually finished downloading and I unplug the USB and shut the computer down. “Oh! By the way, I’m going to set up a guard down here to make sure you can keep this place clean.
They both visibly paled at that. “B-but General! Please don’t put a guard down here. You know how strict and aggravating they can be!”
I couldn’t help but let out a sigh, “Alright. Here's what we’re gonna do. If, and I mean IF, you can keep this place clean throughout the week then I won’t set up a guard down here. I really need to go right now though, so I’ll send someone to check on you later.” They both thanked me as I turned to leave.
I start to walk down the hall when I looked down at the USB. The possibilities of what's going on and what could possibly be on this file surged through my mind. I should have focused on where I was going because I accidentally ran into someone. We both clash to the floor and I can’t help but let a grunt of anger pass my lips.
“Owwwwww, my head” Came a feminine voice beside me.
I turn to the girl that ran into me before getting off the floor. Keeping my priorities straight, I look around to find the USB. It was just outside the door that this girl came out of, alongside a bunch of paper files and folders littering the floor. I pick up my USB before helping this teenage girl to her feet.
I couldn’t help but feel bad for running into this girl. “I’m very sorry miss, I was in a rush and I wasn’t watching where I was going.”
“It’s ok, I wasn’t looking either.”
I look at the surrounding papers before crouching down to start picking them up. “So where are you heading lil’ lady?”
“I’m going to see my father!”
“So are you here with father then?”
She nodded and said, “Yeah, my dad works in the data room just down the hall.”
‘Funny, I could have sworn they didn’t have kids.’ “So which one is your dad?”
“My dad’s name Is Blizz…”
I didn’t really know how to respond to that. “Well…. I have to get going. Sorry about running into you again.”
“Ok, bye!” She said with a smile, not unlike Light’s glowing smile.
As I walked away, I turned around to get another look at her. She was wearing a dark blue longsleeve shirt with an orange vest. She had blue jeans on and short blond hair. On her shirt was a patch with her symbol, her symbol was a…
______________________________________________________________________________
Star let out a gasp, putting a hoof up to his mouth. Shadow had heard from the hall and she hurried in.
“What happened star?”
“I-I’m fine. I was just reading something off of the computer.”
Shadow couldn’t help but look at him in confusion. “Reading? What could you possibly be reading? You’re supposed to be getting the data!”
Star moved the mouse over to the download bar, only to see that it was still downloading the data.
“See? It still isn’t done. I was just reading this to pass the time,” Star said with a huff, “It's a log file written by General Storm himself!”
“Alright fine, but why did you gasp?” Shadow asked, worried that it was something horrible.
“It was one of those symbols that the humans have. Y’know, like our cutie marks, but not on the skin.”
Shadow giggled, “A cutie mark? Really? Star, I have known you for how long now?”
Star shuffled uneasily on his feet, “A few months.”
“And exactly how many times ha-”
Shadow didn’t get to finish her sentence when Star interrupted her. “I’ve seen that cutie mark before! She’s here somewhere, somewhere in Equestria...”
The room was filled with an uneasy silence. Eventually Star looked up at Shadow and said, “I saw her on the train when I was in Ponyville. Light Stone looks almost the exact same here in Equestria, even down to her Cutie Mark. I don’t know where she is now, but I’m sure I’ve seen her. Princess Twilight told me that there should be copies of all humans, but I never found a copy of my own. There wasn’t even a copy for any of my men. It's like we’re something else, not like the other humans. It scares me.”
Shadow tried to take in this surprise information. “Hmmm… That's an… interesting theory you have. You many want to talk to Princess Twilight herself about this, excuse me one second.” Shadow turned around and looked up and down the hall, “Good, nothing there.”
Star checking on the download bar, only to see it was still downloading.
“Hey Star, is it ok if I read with you?” Shadow asked, scooting up beside Star. “That is… if you don’t mind…”
Star tried, unsuccessfully, to hide his blush. “Y-yeah, sure Shadow.”
With that they both sat together and began to read.
______________________________________________________________________________
After I finished talking to the young girl, I made my way to my car. I dove into it, and hit the gas pedal, speeding off to the Space Center. Eventually I arrived at the Space Center and I headed up to the double doors of the building. As I ran into the building I passed a few familiar faces from the scientist I had seen before. They stood stock still and just watched me run by as if I was a crazy person. I forced my way past groups of scientists who were cluttering the halls.
I made my way to Tele’s office. On my way I patted down my pocket one final time, just to make sure I had the USB drive. I couldn’t help but breathe a sigh of relief as I felt the familiar weight of the tiny metal computer part. After a few minutes of walking and pushing past white-coated scientists I made it to Tele’s office.
I slammed his door open and yelled, “TELE! I GOT THAT USB YOU WANTED!”
Tele shot up out of his chair, knocking it to the ground. He let out a yelp as his head hit a lamp that was sitting on his desk.
“Storm… Don’t. You. EVER! Do that again. Ohhh jeez my head hurts now thanks to you.” Tele said fuming and rubbing the back of his head where it connected with the now toppled lamp.
“Hehe, sorry about that Tele. I’m just so happy that I was able to get…this.” I said, pausing to pull out the USB and flash a smile.
Tele just looked at it dumbfounded. “Am I supposed to know what this is? It's just a USB, we all have those.” He says as he opens a desk drawer and pulls out a small chain with multiple, colored USBs or varying sizes.
“On contraire my science friend, for it is what's on this USB that is important. I got all the video files right here.”
A look of comprehension dawned on him as he remembered what he sent me out to do in the first place. “Oh yeah, alright. Just give it here, I’ll get my buddy on the phone and we’ll send it off to him. He should be able to tell us everything we need about it. Especially if it's fake or not.”
Tele picked up the receiver of the corded phone that sat on his desk. “Hello?... Yeah its me, Tele... Look, I got something I want you to look at… Its a video we recieved recently, what I want you to do it find its validity and see if you can find any useful information. We’ll look at it ourselves later… Alright thanks, bye.”
I looked to Tele and shrugged, “Well what's next?”
“Nothing. I’ll call you if we find anything, though they said it will take some time. Go do whatever it is you do Storm. I need to get back to work.”
I turn to leave but stop and look back to Tele, “Tele, promise me you won’t work yourself too hard again.” I leave before he gets a chance to answer though, don’t want him trying to argue his point again. I leave the Science Center and go about business as usual. I still can’t let go what I saw. It took a while for them to find anything, but after a few days Tele called me up to the Science Center. We had a rather long conversation about the video, but he was reluctant to give me any information about it. He told me that he already contacted and gave the information to those of higher power than me, and he just wanted to let me know that he’s taken care of everything.
The next day, Commander Long Heart called me. He told me that he wanted to see me and it was urgent. I got suited up and made my way to the Commander’s office. Upon reaching his office he told me to sit down.
“General Storm Catcher. For months you have served your rack with honor and bravery. With all your past works and this information you found for us about the school, we at the board have decided to choose you for a very important mission. This mission is a hunt for the truth, but not any truth. This truth will change not just the fate of you and I. This truth change more than even your men. This truth, shall change the fate of our entire world, along with another world. A world of which none of us have ever seen or even heard of...” now i will set an investigation on the school. but what i found, may change not only my world’s fate, but a another world too...
______________________________________________________________________________
END OF LOG 001
“End of log one?! Why would he end it there?” Star said as he turned to Shadow. “Hey, you wanna read the next log?”
They both contemplated it, and with a final nod they both opened up the next log...
\
Star and Shadow sat there, staring at the glowing screen in silence. The computer sat upon the same dusty desk as it had been. Star used his magic to grasp the mouse of the computer. He moved it across the screen onto the log. Log #002.
“So… let's get started then,” said Star as the second log started to load.
Shadow scooted closer to Star, eliciting a small blush from the stallion.
____________________________________________________________________________
I was given the go ahead to begin with the investigation. Now all I needed to do was begin the work, and go into the field. I had to recruit new units, gather supplies, gather arms, and ensure we have proper medical equipment and personnel. Recruiting personnel was easy. I chose Tele, Maple, and a few other select officers that I felt I could trust. I was able to get thirty-five willing units. All together I was given forty-one people to work with.
Before I get into this, I'm not the type of person to be called sir or any title of higher power. I don’t care about the right or wrong way of being called, all I'm worried about is the skill and and determinants. I couldn’t care less in whatever you called me.
The first few days of the mission were filled with gathering supplies. We also used this time to make up a backstory. The backstory was more of a failsafe, just in case anyone started to ask too many questions and our stories wouldn’t get twisted. Me, Tele, Maple, and our group (twenty soldiers, five medics, five spies, and five scientists) all worked together to get to know each other and make up the backstory. Most of us were going to act as regular police officers, while the spies were going undercover to find as much information as they could.
After a week of making sure we had all our information together and gathering supplies, we started our investigation. Tele was the head of the scientists, Maple was the lead of the medics, and Skyflow joined me as co-commander of the soldiers. Skyflow was an older man who was a Major in the military. Another new addition was Charmer. Charmer was a new recruit who just finished his training as an undercover spy. Soul Life attended the same military academy as Charmer. Soul was considered one of the best strategists in the academy. She actually helped me make plans for our operation.
When all was said and done, I had to meet Chief Heartstone. I entered the police station and searched for the chief.
“Chief Heartstone?” I asked, peeking my head into his office.
The Chief was older than me by a good ten to fifteen years, having streaks of grey hair with a blue uniform on. He approached me and grasped my hand, shaking it, and in a hasty voice he acknowledged me.
“You must be Storm. Come in and take a seat,” he said, pointing to a chair in the room as he walked back to his desk. I took my seat and studied his appearance. Getting a better look, I noticed no scars on his face, although it was covered in stress marks and wrinkles. That could be attributed to to his old age.
“So, were you going to say something or not?”
I blanched, noticing that I was just studying him and not saying anything.
“Sorry, I’m still a bit tired after that long travel, y’know?” I rubbed the back of my neck, trying to play it off as me just being tired.
“Yeah, it really is a pain, isn't it?” the man sighs. “Oh well, what can you do. So, what’s the reason for you coming here anyway?”
“Well… I need full command of the station for a few weeks”
His smile fell at this. “Why? Would you care to give me some information as to why you’re gonna be taking over my station?”
Looking into his dark blue eyes, I told him “This is classified information. I’m afraid I can’t tell you anything more. You are also required to keep this information quiet. All you have to do is let my people come in and work in secret. We will take care of ourselves, just don’t bother us.”
Chief Heartstone visibly paled at this information. Nodding, he replied, “I’m glad that you are here, helping our city, but I’m going to warn you now; If any of your men hurt anyone or abuse their power for anything, they will be arrested.”
I liked his sudden determination. “You don’t need to worry, my people know what will happen if any of them compromises our mission. I must ask though, do you have any open rooms? A few of us need to set up some tools and organize our supplies.”
“Yeah, we have a few rooms open. There's a guy out there called Sky, tell him I told you that you can use the spare rooms.”
Before I could walk out the door, he cut me off.
“I may be an old timer, but I still have enough power to fight you off.”
I nodded and walked out, the look in his eyes showing he meant business. With that, I walked out of his office in search for the man named “Sky.” I found the man sitting at his deck. He was on his computer, wearing a light blue police uniform. Walking up to the desk, I rapped my knuckles on its surface to get his attention.
“Hey, you’re Sky, right?”
He diverted his focus to me, taking his eyes off his computer, “Yup, thats me! What can I do for you?”
“I was told by the Chief that you could show me where some empty rooms are for me to use.”
“Oh, alright! They’re just down that hall,” he said, pointing to a hallway just beside the Chief’s office. “The entire hall is empty, so feel free to use whichever room you want.”
I started to thank him, but he was already engrossed in his work again. I made my way past the various desks that filled the room to the hall that I was told I could use. Looking into the rooms, I noted them to be very spacious. There would definitely be enough room for my team. With that taken care of, I took out my notebook and started to write some notes to myself.
“Hmmm… Now who will get the first room? The last room will have to be our storeroom, of course, but what about the rest? I suppose the first should be set up for the medics. Next would be the eggheads, they should be next to the medics just in case. Soldiers next to them, and then lastly the spies. They’ll have to be put next to the supplies, they could set up the room to look like just another supply room. Yeah… that could definitely work.”
Satisfied with my work, I closed my notebook and put it into my pocket. I turned around and headed over to my group that were waiting outside. I told everyone my plans, and we headed over to the station. We took our time setting up the rooms and moving our boxes into the lobby. Once all the boxes and our supplies were in, I sent off the trucks and pulled out my notebook. I gave out instructions to each group on how I wanted them situated. Several officers were staring at us in confusion and curiosity, by I merely waved them off. They wouldn’t cause trouble for my group.
“Alright everyone, listen up!” The room fell silent as I raised my voice. “In here,” I raise my notebook, “is the instructions as to where I want you to be. Maple, you and the rest of the medics get the first rooms. The beaker breakers get the second rooms, I want you right beside the medics just in case one of you get hurt. You’ll also be right next to the soldiers just in case. On that note, the soldiers get the next room. Then the spies, and the last room is gonna be for storage. Now get to work, I want you all in order by the end of the day.”
Everyone started to file out and started moving their boxes. I had to ask a few of the soldiers to help the medics and scientists; though they were a bit reluctant at first, they realised they probably shouldn’t disobey my orders.
I made my way past the groups moving boxes and made it to the spies’ room. Inside was Charmer, a tall and lanky man with one yellow eye, the other being covered by a obsidian black eyepatch.
“General Storm! Why it's a pleasure to see you again, but what can I do for you?”
When he greeted me, all the other spies in the room stopped and saluted.
“Listen, I want all of you in the field. You three,” I pointed to three of the more younger looking spies, “will be ‘kids’ while the rest will assume the role of workers. It’s the weekend, so you have roughly a day to come up with your own backstories. I will need to know your backstories once you come up with them, of course.”
They all nodded and started working together to make their stories. I left them to their work, passing more soldiers moving supplies and other miscellaneous items around.
It was at this point that something hit me. Something very important that I should have never forgotten. “...I forgot to look for a place to sleep…” I groaned as I slowly lifted myself out of the chair. ‘Where am I gonna sleep? I need to find a motel or something. But first, I still need to check in with the other teams.’
As it turned out, all the teams were doing well. They were all working on their respective orders on their own, so I decided I could work on more personal matters. I figured I needed to walk around the town and see how the locals behaved. From what I had seen so far, this town was rather friendly.
Outside the station the sun was shining. You could hear the birds singing and cars rolling by. It was like a picturesque setting. I walked around the town looking for a hotel, or even a motel. After a peaceful, uneventful ten minute walk I found one. It was a quaint little motel with a few cars parked outside.
Walking up to the front office, I opened the door and was greeted with a man. He looked about as old as me, but he had orange tinted hair.
“Hi! Welcome to Hollow Hotel! I’m Softness, the manager. How may I help you, sir?”
‘He looks a bit like Lightstone. Maybe they’re related or something,’ I thought to myself. “Hello, I’m in dire need for a room, would there happen to be one available?”
His green eyes narrowed in thought as he pulled out a notebook and buried his face in it. As he fiercely studied the notebook, I looked around the lobby I was in. It had a friendly atmosphere, with a dark wood floor. The walls were covered in dark brown paint, and there were several pictures across the walls. Most were paintings, but there were a few photos of different people. Some were in remembrance, others of friends or family.
“Boy, this sure is a nice lobby. I hope the room looks at least as half as good as this place,” I said, trying to pass the time.
His only response was a murmur of agreement as he kept his face buried in the notebook. After a few more seconds of looking, he smiles and looks up from the book. “It looks like there is a room open!” He pulled out a pen and wrote some things onto the notebook, “Alright, now your name?”
“Put it in as Storm”
“Alright, and are you alone or with someone?”
“No, I’m alone. I’m just visiting.”
“Ok, now that that’s settled, we go to the price. It’ll be thirty dollars a night. How long will you be staying?”
I pulled out my wallet and gave him and handful of twenties, “Not for too long, but if that changes I have more.”
He grasped the bills in one hand and started counting. “Alright, here is your key to your room. You are going to be in room 205. Do you have any bags you need help with?”
“Oh, yeah. I just took a walk to find a motel and left my stuff behind. I’ll go get it in a bit.”
I stuffed the key into my pocket and made my way back to the station. I passed a few of my teammates, and it turned out that they were doing the exact same thing. Once inside the station, I walked over to the storage area, grabbed my bag, and headed over to the car that I was assigned.
“Storm! Wait up!” I heard behind me. I turned and saw Charmer walking up to me. “Alright Storm here’s the situation. Cloud, Lightning, and I are going to be the kids like you asked. Wind and Crystal are going to be the workers. We also have our stories ready.”
I nodded, mainly surprised that he had already come up with their stories that quickly. He told me a lengthy spiel of how him, Cloud, and Lightning are highschool kids who transferred to this school. Wind is an office worker who is on vacation, and Crystal is a construction worker who is in need of money.
“Alright, you and the others need to go to rest. You have a school day tomorrow.” I said, with a laugh at the last part.
I made my way back to the motel and found the sky slowly darkening. The sun was turning the sky a mix dark orange and a pronounced dark blue. I looked to the road; there were almost no cars passing by, and even fewer people walking about. Fatigue was hitting me hard, and I had to fight to keep myself awake.
‘I need a cold shower, that’ll wake me up’, I thought as I pulled into the motel.
As I was pulling into the parking lot, I noticed Softness. He was locking up the main entrance for the night. He stopped and looked at my car. As I turned off my lights, I waved at him. He was obviously tired, but he didn’t let that stop him from waving back. With a fake smile, he broke through his exhaustion.
“Have a nice night, Storm” he shouted, as he headed for his car.
I yelled back. “Thanks, you too,” He looked back at me, and smiled, this time genuine.
His smile could break through the darkest of nights. As Softness was pulling out of the lot, I pulled out the key that he gave me, reading the number out loud.
“Room 205.” I scanned the area for the steps that would lead up to my room. Finding them, I walked up and past some of the other rooms in the darkness, most of the motels lights having apparently broken at some point in the past. Finally finding my room in the inky blackness of the night, I took the key out of my pocket and after a bit of fumbling managed to unlock the door.
While opening the door, I noticed something move in the dark of the room. Leaving the key in the lock, I slowly put down my bags. Squinting, I tried to look into the darkness, but wasn’t able to make anything out. I carefully took out my phone and activated the flashlight function. With help from the flashlight I could finally make out the thing in the dark. It's was just a raccoon. We both stood still for a second, just staring at each other. Suddenly, it screeched loudly and made a mad dash for me. It ran around me and out the door, and, in the process, scared the living daylights out of me. I managed to turn around just in time to see the racoon dash way and down the stairs. Looking left and right, I checked if I could see anything else... and saw nothing.
“I need to sleep before I hurt something,” I looked down and saw the key was still in the lock, waiting for me to take it. After re-acquiring my key I walked in, closing the door behind me and locking it, lest the racoon decide to come back. In the dark, I managed to make out a lamp sitting on a desk of sorts. I walked slowly to the lamp, being careful not to bump into anything. After I turned the lamp on, its light filled the room. Now that I could actually see everything in the room, I made my way to the bed. There was one thing running through my mind, and that was sleep.
I placed my bag on my bed. Opening it, I pulled out a loose, baggy t-shirt and some comfortable shorts. I took off the clothes I had been wearing previously, and after tossing them in a unceremonious pile, I put on my far more comfortable loose clothes. After laying down in my bed, sleep claimed me within seconds.
We waited around for a few days for the spies gather some intel, which gave us time to establish our fake identities amongst the locals. This also gave our teams some time to train for any contingencies that may occur. Each of the teams were doing drills, as the spies were looking to information. I explored the town, scouting for things of interest, but found nothing for multiple days in a row. Until one day…
It started out as a normal day, and I was going on my usual patrol path. Then, while I was driving past the school, just about to finish my daily reconnaissance, I suddenly heard a faint shout.
“Officer!”
I turned to look in the direction the shout had come from and saw Lighting running towards my car. I slowed down so he could reach me. “What’s wrong?” I asked once he managed to catch up.
“I have some information for you, Sir.” he said, handing me a piece of paper “Here is a list of the girls who claim to be the ones in the video. From what I could find, the video and the OOV pictures were taken sometime in the last couple months. I’m sorry I couldn’t find an exact date. I didn’t have the time.”
With the job done, the spy did a quick salute and ran off to his next class. I looked at the list of names. “Sunset Shimmer, Applejack. Fluttershy, Rarity, Pinkie Pie, Rainbow Dash, and Twilight Sparkle. Interesting...” I muttered to myself.
I pulled out my notebook and stuck the paper inside for safekeeping, and started the drive to the station, intending to do some digging of my own. Once I reached the station, I went straight to the Intelligence room, and began to look through our files for any more possible leads. I sadly found nothing on the names. Good for them, but not for me.
When the day was done, I gave spies the names of the girls and ordered them get some intel on them. After a few days of waiting, we managed to find info on four out of the seven girls. I decided to infiltrate the school, to hopefully find out more about these girls, but as a precaution, I took Soulife with me in case things went wrong. Me and Soulife got into our outfits and headed for the school. I told her to take a separate vehicle. We start to make our way to the school. Suddenly, I heard Soul’s voice through the radio.
“So General why did you choose me?”, she asked.
I chuckled and answered “Because you are one of the top minds in the team! Heck, even Tele is scared of you, and he’s leading the eggheads! If the situation starts to become heated, you’d be able to get us out easily.”
She laughed a bit before answering.
“Yeah. I do kick his butt in chess. We played a lot of that while we were waiting for the spies.”
We both lapsed into silence as I stopped at a red light, with a group of kids crossing the street in front of my car. A boy wearing a parlor hat noticed me, then smiled and waved at me, and I waved back. Noticing he was being left behind by the others, he turned and started running off to catch up with the rest of his group.
As the light turn green, Soul’s voice came through the radio.
“So who are we looking for anyway?”
I start to tell Soul. “Were looking for six girls. Their names are Sunset Shimmer, Applejack, Fluttershy, Rarity, Rainbow Dash, and Pinkie Pie. There’s also one more called Twilight Sparkle, but she is missing; the spies can't find her.”
We fell silent. I was about halfway down the street when Soul speaks up. “Do you have any pictures of them?” I heard her ask
“No, we’re missing Fluttershy, Rarity, and Twilight. The pictures are with me, I’ll give you it when we get to the school,” I radioed back.
“Roger, so were missing pictures of three of ‘em,” she responds.
“That is right Soul. Once we get to the school we will ask to see them, and thanks to these uniforms, they should think we’re officers.” Turning my car, I started approaching the school.
Looking at my watch, I saw that it was one o’clock. I pulled into the parking lot, spotting Soul following me a short distance away. After driving around a bit to find a empty spot, I ended up parking on the outer edge of the lot. I got out of my car and gazed at the school, waiting for Soul to catch up. It seemed normal to me at first glance, but from the info my team was given, I knew we were going face to face with something otherworldly…
Good thing that I wasn't going in alone. I turned around and saw Soul getting out of her car. In my mind, I pictured the rest of my team and took a deep breath. Soul walked up to me.
“Storm, ready?
“Yeah, let do this” I start to head to the school
Soul looked at me and ask. "Is everything alright storm."
I told her that I was think of something. But see keep pushing it.
I really like how kind she is. That why I brought her to the school, to help communications with the girls, so they wouldn’t be afraid when we asked them to come down to the station. I handed her the files and told here that the pictures of our targets were in there. She opened and started looking at them.
“C’mon Soul, we need to get moving.”
She gave me a quick nod and we started to head for the school. The birds were singing, and there were some kids out heading out to the lot, presumably to get picked up. A few of them looked at us curiously. A kid wearing glasses saw us and nudged his friend sharply with a elbow.
“Hey! What was that for?” the kids friend said while rubbing his arm.
The kid in the glasses pointed at Soul and me. His friend looked at us.
“Dude… Why are there cops here?” He quietly asked.
“I don’t know Roar, maybe they’re on portal.”
“I need to call the others about this” He said while pulling his phone out.
“Roar you are making a big deal out of nothing.” He looked at us one more time and then turned away.
As we kept walking, I turned back to see Roar was on his phone and the glasses kid was reading. As I forced myself to re-focus on what we were supposed to be doing, Soul was talking to herself.
“I love her country outfit.” she muttered.
I looked over to her and saw that she was looking at Applejack`s picture.
‘Hmm, not bad, but not my type of clothes.’ I thought to myself and looked away.
Soul handed me back the file and said “I’m done looking at the pictures.” I put the folder back in my bag.
As we continued our walk to the school, we walked past another group of students. Some of them looked surprised, while others was just thought nothing of it and continued on their way.
As we entered the main building, we saw a large amount of kids moving busily through the halls. ‘The bells must have rung.’ I thought.
We started to make our way through the sea of high schoolers, and headed deeper into the building. I looked back to see if Soul was keeping up. She was managing, but getting slightly jostled by passing kids. The kids started to filter out of the hallway slowly, going into their classes. In what feels like ten seconds the hall was nearly empty.
There were a few kids still milling around, with a few of them passing by us. As we walked ahead we saw some kids just leaning against the wall staring at their phones. Soul, looking annoyed, walked up to them.
“Hey kids,” she started as they looked up from their phones. “get to your classes!”
A kid with green hair started to get going, but a kid with white hair kid just went back to looking at his phone. Soul, now even more irritated, walked over the the student. The kid looked at Soul and started to push himself up into a standing position.
“Did you not hear me? Get to class!” Soul exclaimed.This kid looked like he wanted to argue, but thought better of it when he looked Soul in the eyes.
He forced some words out. “Y-yes ma'am,” he said meekly, and started to jog after his friend, who had already started walking.
As we continued walking, I asked “Why were you so hard on that kid?”
“They are our future, and can achieve many great things if we can lead them down the right path,” she answered.
I looked at her, struck momentarily speechless by her passion. I turned back to face the hallway. We rounded a corner, when I suddenly crashed into someone, the force making me fall backwards and hit the ground with a thump. Disoriented, I opened my eyes and saw the person I crashed into. It was a lithe yellow skinned girl with light pink hair. Once I saw the girl, I picked myself up quickly and walked over to help her up.
“I'm so sorry, I didn’t watch where I was going,” I apologised, as I offered her a hand.
She seemed to hesitate for a second before accepting my help. I pull her up and apologised again. “I'm so sorry, I should have been looking.” I bent down and start to pick up her books, and Soul helped the girl to pick up the mess of papers.
Once that was cleaned up, I noticed the girl`s custom symbol on her clothes. Three butterflies. I ask. “So… You like butterflies? The girl souffle gasp and look at me. She nod at me and I heard her talk in a voice that sound so kind.
She said, “Yes i like butterflies” After that she looked down and stand up.
I stood up with her and said “There is no need to be shy, I won't I hurt you…” I smiled warmly.
The girl looked at me with a light smile and said. “Thank you officer.” I also asked her, “Before you go… Do you know where the offices are?” She nod with a smile and point down the hall.
I thank her and start to walk down the hall. Then she stop me. “Uhh… Officers?” Me and Soul turned around. “Sorry I was shy, but thank you.” I nod, and so did Soul. We went to our defined ways.
Soul asked “How did you know she was shy?” I told her. “It takes one to know one. Anyway, we need to get to the offices. We wasted a lot of time.”
Soul nodded at me, and we started to make our ways to the offices. After a few minutes of walking, we reached them. I opened the door, letting Soul walk in first, then I follow her. The offices was big; the lobby was about fifteen or 20 feet long. There were a few tables and some chairs. I looked on the table and saw a magazine lying on the table. On the front desk, I saw a night sky and light blue hair woman. She was on her computer, playing a game or something, I wasn’t so sure. Soul stopped and let me past her. I walk right up to the desk. Her nameplate said Vice Principal Luna. I cleared my throat. She stopped whatever she was doing and looked at me. She was shocked seeing me and Soul, and asked, “Officers? why are you here?”, looking dumbstruck.
I said, “We’re looking for a missing kid.”
The shock of what I said made her jump for her chair. She asked “What? Did someone kidnap someone?” Her face was filled with worry.
“Calm down ma'am. We’re looking for some clues, were sure no one got kidnapped, just missing.”
Her face started to calm down, just a little, but not all the way. “So is there anything I can do to help?” She asked.
I tried to calm her down a little, telling her, “Yes. I need to see the principal.” She noded at me, and went behind her desk and pull out a microphone and press it.
“Principal Celestia… Two officers are here and want to see you.”
Then the voice came over the intercom. “Let then in, sister.”
With that said, Luna walked to a door behind her and said, “She’s through here, officers.” I walk into the officers as Soul was following me. Once Soul and I got into Celestia's offices, she was looking worried.
“Come in and take a chair officers,” she said, trying to sound cheery. Soul and I took our seats, and Celestia started to talk. “What happened? Did anyone one get kidnapped?” Looking as worried as her sister
“We’re looking for some clues, we don’t think it a kidnaping yet…” I told her.
“But there is a chance it is?” she asked looking more worried.
“It is possible but we're sure it just a lost kid.”
I was trying to calm her down when Soul started to talk to the principal. “Not worry Principal Celestia… If it is a kidnapping, we will not rest until we find her, but there is a chance it isn’t a kidnaping. So try to calm down, we need your help.” she said, smiling warmly.
Celestia nodded and said “Whatever you need officers, I will help. What can I do for you?” Her attitude changed, and she smiled lightly. What Soul said seemed to have calmed her down.
I pulled out my notebook and tell her the names of the girls form the note from Lighting. “We just need to talk to six girls, there names are, Sunset Shimmer…” As I said the first name, Celestia forced her eye on me, as I continued. “Applejack, Rarity, Pinkie Pie, Fluttershy, and Rainbow Dash.”
She broke out of her trance and put a face really fast. “All right, I will call them in.” She walked out of the room. I decided to walk out as well, into the main room. When I stood up from my chair, Soul grabbed on my arm.
“I need to talk to you for a sec.” I was confused. Then she said. “Did you see Celestia’s face when you said Sunset`s name?” I told her no. I looked over at Luna’s desk, and I saw Celestia talking to Luna.
“They know something,” I told Soul.
“Yeah, something is off. Keep an eye open.” I looked at Soul, and she noded at me.
I walked out into the lobby and Celestia glared at me. She noded and she walk to the intercoms. I had to watch them close, but how? I had an idea. I pulled out my notebook and faked writing. I was really watching both Celestia and Luna… and thinking.
“What was that reaction from Celestia? They must know something, but what?” But that is something I can worry about when the girls get here. I have to keep them away from Celestia and Luna; if they know something, they will warn the girls and keep information away for me.
Then I heard Celestia's voice over the intercon. “The following students need to come to the main offices: Sunset Shimmer, Fluttershy, Applejack, Rarity, Pinkie Pie, and Rainbow Dash. Please report the main office.”
The intercons echo in the hallways. I got up from my chair, putting my notebook away in its pocket. I headed out into the halls, Soul following close behind. Once Soul and I got into the hallway, Celestia walked up and ask, “Where are you going?”
I looked at her and said. “I don’t want to take more of your time. Once the girls get here, we’ll take them to the station.”
She was surprised and asked “Why not just ask here?”
I said to her “If this is something other than a runaway kid, the girl may be in danger. I'm not taking a risk. If you was in my shoes, you would understand.”
She asked “Well, I hope you know what you're doing. Is there anything else we can do?”
I shook my head and said “We can handle it.” She looked worried
”I'm sure the kid just ran away for home,” Soul said, walking in view.
Celestia smiled. “Ok. If you find out more, please tell me as soon as you can.” She start to walk to her offices.
I turned and looked down the hallway. Two girls were walking to the offices. I poked my elbow into Soul’s arm. She looked at me. I pointed my head into the direction for the girls, and she looked at them with me. Once they come into earshot we start to hear them. “So Rarity, do you have any idea why were needed at the office?”
The other girl, Rarity, said “I have not the slightest idea, Fluttershy.” Rarity and Fluttershy turn the corner.
“If I may ask, who are you waiting for dear?” Rarity asked once she and Fluttershy had closed in, with Fluttershy attempting to hide behind her.
“Are you Rarity?” I asked her.
“In the flesh!”
The other girl poked her head out from behind Rarity. “Wait, you’re the same officers from before.” she said softly.
Rarity looked back at Fluttershy, exclaiming “So these are the officers that you crashed with!”
Fluttershy nodded at Rarity and said to us quietly “Thank you for helping me officers.” She smiled warmly.
“So why do you need us officers.”
“We need some help on a missing persons report.”
Fluttershy and Rarity gasp.“What happened?” Rarity asked loudly.
I cut her off. “Not one is hurt and it’s kidnaping, it’s just a run-away.”
Rarity calm down, but fluttershy was hyperventilating. As Soul and Rarity were trying to calm down Fluttershy, I saw two more girls approaching.
“Uh… Why is Fluttershy so upset?” one of the new arrivals asked.
The girls were Applejack and Sunset Shimmer. Sunset, looking worried, asked. “Officer why is fluttershy panicking?”
“We told her that we are looking for a missing kid. I told her the missing kid is a runaway but…” I looked back at Fluttershy. Fluttershy was curled up on the floor, rarity Kneeling to her level and patting her back, with Soul bending over trying to talk to fluttershy. I turned back to Sunset.
Applejack walk up to me and ask. “So… On the missing kid story. Who is it?’ Sunset looked at me and ask to.
I told them. “You will come with us, we need some information.”
Sunset was confusion at first then she nod it. “Why is fluttershy and rarity here?”
Before i could answer her, Rarity cut me off. “Oh, sunset, applejack hello! You have to forgive me. I did not see you dear, fluttershy got a bit scared.”
Applejack said. “It no big deal.” Sunset was nodding with applejack’s words.
Sunset ask me. “Me, applejack, Fluttershy, and Rarity. Is anyone else is coming?”
I said. “Yes.”
“Are their names are Rainbow Dash and Pinki-” Before she can finish, she’s interrupted by a voice from further up the hall.
“Come on Pinkie, let’s see what’s waiting for us at the main offices!”
“I’m hoping it’s a party!”
Rainbow saw the group and ask. “Why are there two cops here?”
Pinkie yell. “Let see what they want!”
I said to the group “I’ll take Rarity, Fluttershy, and Sunset, To the station. Soul can you take the rest?” Soul nodded.
Rainbow ask. “Whoa, who are you, and what is happening?”
I told rainbow “Were going to the station. We need to ask you and yours friends questions.”
Sunset said, “They need our help with something rainbow. Applejack can you fill them in?”
As Applejack nods, I yell out.”Ok girls follow me and Soul!” They nod and said yes or yeah.
I looked over to the offices, and i saw Luna and Celestia, looking at us with worry… I was starting to get a really bad feeling. What could they be hiding? We broke into two groups, with me and my party was heading to my car. I heard Applejack recapping the situation to Pinkie and Rainbow.
The kids that we saw before started to take some pictures of us. Once we got to the car, I unlocked it before walking to the back and opening the door for Rarity and Fluttershy.
“Oh, how well mannered!” Rarity said, impressed.
I open the passenger seat door for Sunset to get in. Once everyone was inside, I looked over to soul’s car to see if she was ready to leave. Looking at me, she nodded. Nodding back at her, I got into my car, and started it up. We start to make my way to the station…
______________________________________________________________________________
End of log #002. Do you wish to go to #003?
The screen was glowing softly in the dark. Star and shadow looked at one and another, internally debating if they want to read on. Star, using his magic, moved the cursor over the softly glowing “Yes”. Star looked at Shadow for an affirmative from her. She smiled and nodded, saying “What are we waiting for? Let read.” With a click, they read on…
