Mission
Lights and explosions go on and off all around me in the night.
Someone is screaming or yelling, cant tell to tired.
I see someone over me trying to get my attention I just stare. Watching the soldier above me, seeing his lips move but only hearing whispers and a load ringing in my ears.
I'm on my back feeling numb and cold. Which was weird cause it's summer in Iraq.
Iraq? Oh yea. I remember now.
I lean up a little and looked down at my body.
Seeing that I still have a waist. That's was a good sigh along with my, feet?
My eyes adjusted to the night to our teams medic tightening a tourniquet on my right leg.
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My eyes pop over as wake up from my dream. I feel my self breathing hard and smoked in sweat. I get my baring's strait and see where I was at. In a light dimmed room, my room. I get up and walk over to the light switch when I realized I forgot something. Something important. My leg.
"Aw shit-!" I let out before nearly face planting the steel reinforced floor.
'What a way to start the morning', I thought.
I pushed my self off the ground and balanced my self on my one good leg. Reaching out to the switch once more to brighten up my room. It wasn't vary big, 'Not that I wanted one.' Least of all when I got this assignment seven months ago, I thought to myself as I look out the window into hyper space.
That's right fokes. I'm Chief Warrant officer Byran Sharp and I'm in space and I fly small fast space ships thought it all in a much bigger ship, not only that I'm also one of the best rooky pilots in the US army. Or I should say 'was' before the air force decided to steal me for there own special needs. I wasn't the only one too. They picked up pilots from all the branches, mines the coast guard, hehe.
I sit back down on my bunk and open one of the draws underneath pulling out a dry t-shirt throwing the one I had on into the laundry hamper. I look over to the stump on my right leg and sighed at the sight remembering the dream. No a memory.
Nearly six years now that I think about it séance being crippled by insurgents. RPG to the leg will do that. I hated having to do nearly ten months of rehabilitation just so I can run again and be back in the fight. An another year too to switch MOS's, going from enlistment infantry to a warrant officer and getting into flight school was not an easy thing to do nor was a simple thing. Still hated trying to get thru all those med board meetings.
Pushing the memory to the back of my mind I get dressed in my flight suit to start my day. Looking over at the clock on my nightstand I still have a good three hours before I need report in. I could lay back down and go back to sleep for another hour If I wanted to. But seeing that memory again threw that plan out the window and into hyperspace.
Rolling up my pants leg to reveal my stump I reach over and grab my prosthetic leg. Placing the fake leg over my stump I strap it on and rolled the pants sleeve back down. Putting on my SGC issued boots along with my hygiene kit in hand. I leave my room and towards 'the head'. At least I think that is the term the navy use for there bathrooms on ships, thou the thought of this ship being in the position to the Air Force... Dose the Air Force even have its own nickname for there bathrooms? Like for the army its latrines. Got make a mental note to ask one of these guys.
Making my way down the corridor passing fellow crew from the second shift saying hello to several that past me. I walk into the latrine and started doing my business at the sink. After ten or so minutes at the sink with a clean face and brushed teeth I went back to my room and drop my kit. Later with that done I made my way to the mess hall for some chow.
After walking down several corridors, armored bulkheads and hallways I reach the mess 'finally'. I instantly recognized my wing men and partner in crime Flight Lieutenant Hake, but wants to called Billy instead. He may out rank me but still became good buddy buddies on our off time. He was sitting all by himself with his head in a book and sipping coffee. I grab my tray of food and walk over to the table he's sitting at.
"Morning sir."
He looks up from his book and smiled "Morning Sharp."He replied.
I sat across the table from and started chowing down some strawberry poptarts with a side of hash browns and bacon. We chatted up on the current mission assailment. How we were suppose to drop some space mines in an area where we hope is were where the Lucian Alliance ships exit hyperspace.
"So do you know anything about the system the LA's are trying to get, sir?" I asked the LT
He takes a sip of his coffee. "Not much other then the brief." he replied "The system has a only one out of four planets that can support life according to the probe we sent with only one being able to support life. The one that's closest the sun and has a moon. The SGC says they are unsure if the planet has a stargate or not. there still looking"
"What's your take on what the alliance want the planet for?" I asked before eating a strip of bacon.
"From my knowledge of the surrounding systems it could make a descent staging area or a lessening post. There may be even areas there that could be useful for mining down there." The LT explained before taking a sip of coffee. "The probe also got strange power signals from the plant. Surveillance data couldn't come up with anything cuss of its massive stormed."
We talked some more till I finished eating. If there is one thing the air force is good for its getting us good food on these missions. "I'm going to get ready and get preflight check on my bird before we head out, do you know when were suppose exit hyperspace LT?" I asked getting up from my seat.
The LT pulls back his sleeve revealing a watch. "Should be about a little over hour. I'll be down there with the rest of the guys pretty soon. Make sure you got everything you need." I nodded at his advice, dumped my tray in the trash ben and exited the mess.
After making the wrong turn twice and getting lost. 'I swear I'll never get use layout of this ship' I found my way to hanger two of the Helm. I walk past the shelves of equipment and found a mechanic.
"Hey buddy" I sad to the mechanic
He turns around " Hi chief whats up?'
"Do you know if anyone has checked Spartan-6 yet for a preflight?" I asked.
He looks at a clipboard hanging on the wall before turning back at me "Not yet chef, Spartans-6 thought 8 is next on the list to be checked. My sergeant should be along with the rest of my guys were finishing up prepping Spartans-1 though 5 pretty soon for the up coming mission. Is Spartan-6 your interceptor chef?" the mechanic asked
I nodded my head. He reaches over to grab a different clipboard off the wall and hands it to me. "Here's your F-302's BI manifest if you want to go over it yourself and do the your pre-flight yourself. I'll let my deck Sargent know when he comes around.'
"Thanks" I said as I take the clipboard off his hands.
I walk down the line to the second to last F-302 on the left side of the hanger. I climbed up its stars and walk across its right wing Opening up to its storage compartment behind the pilots seat in cockpit. Pulling out my personal key to open the storage unit.
I looked inside and tallied down everything that was on my check list.
Most of it was personal gear thanks to the new rages we got last month which allows to basically put whatever we want in our emergency units, as long the commander of the ship allows it. Mine Included a disassembled M4 marksman carbine with the ACOG CCO. I didn't like the P-90 that everyone one else has. sure its got a grate rate of fire and good for close combat, but I prefer hitting my targets every time instead of haft or a fourth of the time. Also burns thorough ammo like crazy. Going over the disassembled parts I get the since of recognition from my time as a enlisted soldier.
My Plat carrier with its anti-staff plates inside that the SGC's R&D cooked up for us. (I remember the demonstration they showed us when getting shot with one point blank and then had to get shot ourselves, never again.)
The three day MRE rations and water pack. Personal med kit, full combat load for M4 and a little extra for the extra long fights (270 5.56m) and 9mm (60 9mm) for my side arm that's siting inside the cockpits glove compartment. I wanted to but a 45.insted of the 9mm but it was a required since everyone else had one.
Everything was there Including the one item that wasn't on the list. My family's keepsake pine box. Only two people on this ship knows about this box, the ships CO LTC Nylund and my flight leader CPT Bear. As well as what's inside.
Pulling the box out of its hiding spot under the armor, I looked around to see no one around as I pull out my small key that opens it. Lifting the lid it revealing my family's hunting revolver and its ammo of .40-70G in the box. The heavy revolver had been modified and restored many times through out the my family's history all the way back before the first world war. My grate grate grandfather gave it to his son when he went to war to fight the Germans, then he gave it to his son so on and so forth till it came to me. Somewhere along the years someone in the family added a Match Barrel to decreases its firing spread and larger cylinder for more ammo.
I quickly run the finger along the bullets silently counting them making sure that all sixty rounds were there plus the six already loaded. (66)closing the box up and putting it back in its safe place I continued my BI check list. After everything was checked and were it was suppose to be. I sat down in the pilots chair and started doing some electronics checking the controls.
Turning on the power I looked over my instruments and going over everything.
Almost on cue the deck sergeant walks up the stares.
"Making yourself conferrable I see chief" the sergeant said
"Just doing some checks of my own along with the BI on board sarg. Here's this ships BI manifest, I'll get done with my pre-flight checks then get out of your way.' I said before going back to the controls. After twenty minutes I hop out of my chair and get down from my fighter.
Getting down from the fighter and I look over to the side and watch them prep my ship with eight AIM-120 AMRAAM missiles load up my the ammo for its railguns. I look at my watch and did the math in my head. We should be close to exiting hyperspace pretty soon. 'Mite as well go get my flight gear on and be on stand by.' I thought as I left the hanger.
Around the corner was the locker room for the pilots, couldn't get lost from that even if I wanted to. I found my locker, which proudly says 'W2 Sharp' and started putting my gear on barely even realizing it. Hearing someone snickering I turn to see Warrant officer Oliver sitting on the bench trying to suppress a snicker.
"Why are you getting dressed up chief expecting trouble so soon?" he said smiling
'When you get your leg blown off suddenly you'll know' I thought at him. "Just being jumpy I guess. In this line of work nothing can prepare you for what's coming. Am I wrong" I said.
"Nope, you ant wrong there. I remember being on the Odyssey having lunch one moment then being attacked by Replicators the next and suddenly theirs four Ori motherships firing there beam weapons at us."
"Never a dull moment then" I replied
Oliver just laughed "That's right. Mite as well do the same just in case." he said walking over and opening his locker. "Hell they could already be and we just don't know it or we do are job and sit on are asses for the next who knows what waiting for them to show up, am I right"
"...." I give the guy a blank stare. "You just had to do it".
"Do what?'
"Dude you jinxed us, you fucking jinxed this whole mission" I pointed at him "Now something most definitely will go wrong"
He shook his head and smiled before putting on his gear. "Now that's being paranoid Chief. Nothing is that coincidental, your just fooling yourself"
The locker room door opens and in comes the CPT Bear and LT Hake with the rest of the Spartan pilots. They all went to there lockers and stared to get there on. I peer my eyes over to CPT Bear to get a good look at him. If there was any way to describe him in one word it would muscular. The 6.1 Dark skin officer loved his workout sessions. If he wasn't In the pilot chair, sleeping or maintain his bird the guy was working out. Real understanding guy to on the few accounts I have talked to the man. Turning back to my locker I zipped up buckled up my gear and reached for my helmet.
Suddenly we hear the ships intercom go off with the ships XO's "Attention all hands prepare for deceleration from hyperspace in 3... 2... 1"
Suddenly everything around us just faded then focus itself. Also something I'm never getting used to on these ships.
But you also never forget the feeling sensation and sounds sound of explosions. Especially if you can feel on the ship your on. As the ships titanium armorer gets pounded.
Alarms and red lights flashed around us
Looking over at the Cpt and he looking over at me and together we knew what's happening.
We were under attack.
meanwhile
Somewhere in the equestrian wasteland
'Its going to be another one of those days" thought the female griffin Nava Fetherbon as she flew as fast as she could down the hallways of the old Ministry of Awesome building away from the pack of ghouls that was coming up behind me.
"Be an easy job they said, just a few ghouls they said what a load of buffalo shit!" She said sarcastically turning the corner and almost going face to face with another ghoul that used to be a earth pony.
The ghoul let out unpony like sound as it charged her though a weak wall. She let out guffs of pain as she felt something snap on my side. As the female griffin got up the ghoul was on her once more. With all the strength a griffin like her has she threw a claw forward hoping to claw it away. Instead something six wonders of nasty happened. Her claw missed its head and it embedded in the ghoul pony's neck tarring to shreds and unleashing an un holy stench and geiser of green undead slime.
The ghoul pony let out one more sound before falling over dead. From Nava's claw up to my elbow was covered in the undead smooze. "I'm going to charge that settlement double for this." she said to no one.
Whipping away the undead gunk off her arm she steps back out in the hallway and hears the sound of more hooves echoing down the hall. The pack of ghouls from earlier is catching up. The griffin spread her wings to fly away and receiving pain in return. She looks back to see her left wing was dangling and limp, meaning useless.
"Fuck my feathers. Guess I'm going guns blazing after all on this one" the griffin said as she holstering the mini gun off her back.
Now things will be fun.
Taking a few steps back she held the mini gun close in one claw and drew a chrome colored apple, a frag grenade.
Tossing the grenade. she see it bounce off the wall and around the corner. Counting the seconds in her head she hear the satisfactory of the explosion going off. An a grin on her beak from the sight of a leg fly into view. Seconds past as the surviving ghouls pop around the corner some of them bleeding heavily. The female griffin congratulated on there survival by giving them a nice spray of 5mm rounds to there undead faces. After the several ghouls pop around into view and several dead ghouls later they finally stooped coming out the wood works.
Just to be on the safe side the griffin waited about a minute to be sure that was it no more surprises and the like to pop around uninvited. Satisfied that no more was coming the griffin slung the big girl over her shoulder and onto her back also feeling the pain from its weight, popping off the tab of the med-x needle the last one that she had and 'appalling' it to her wing. Feeling the pain lessen slightly. Rapping it in some healing bandages to finish up. She then drew a 45+ colt pistol out and started to do a little scavenging in the nearby office.
After several draws, filling cabinets and desks later. Finding some caps and two cans of cream (yuck). Thinking back to the building plans the main security room for this buildings should be somewhere on this floor. 'If there's anything that I can salvage from this disaster it be there' the griffin hoped.
Opening the office next door reveled little to claim this was the buildings security station. Other then the front desk with a row of steel wall lockers behind it and the work bench in the corner. With only her in the room she walk past the desk and over to the work bench first. She instantly see several useful tools that could use back at the workshop or trade later on. A set of retches, some screwdrivers, a bottle of wonderglue and what looks like magical air compress nail gun. Didn't matter to me, adding them to my pack for her unicorn friends, Essential and Clockswork could look through and sort out later. There was also a ammo crate off to the side. Reaching down and pulling one aside Nova opened it up revealing a haft dozen insanitary grenades. "Wow, what kind of security station has grenades like these lying around. Ponys 200 years ago sure are wei-" It suddenly accord to the griffin. " Whoever had these mean there must be something valuable up here the no pony wanted to see." Something important and expensive as the egger griffin thought with a grin.
She gathered the grenades then went to clean out the wall lockers. Two of them held a bunch of ammo, mainly 10mm, 5.56 and 12 gage. The next two held the weapons for the ammo she collected some low grade assault riffles, a few weathered 10mm pistols and a single pump action shotgun along with two battle sattles for ponys. Nothing for griffins. Pocketing everything in her magical bag. (Fucking magic)
After doing a one over of the office again for anything else for valuables the young middle age griffin exited the security room and mad her way down the hall past several offices and stopped short of a sigh with a arrow pointing at a door that said simply 'Labs'
"This looks like the place" she said. With her colt in one talon she pushes open the door revealing the next room.
On the first look around revealing a small room, from the griffin's point of view it looked like a regular lobby. from the benches and the front desk. That was then she saw the sealing turret above the front desk.
Nova reared back into the hall waiting for the a spray of beams or bullets to pelt the wall. Instead nothing came her way. Carefully Nova stuck her head out and eyed the turret. It had not powered up. Seeing the turret was no threat, she continued though the lobby to the front desk. Nova saw a small computer that still showed live on the front desk. She eyed the little terminal on the desk then up to the unpowered turret above. She shrug her shoulders and found the computer to be unlocked.
Nova preset a few keys and the screen popped up with several icons. one of them was to activate the security systems. Nova looked up at the little turret.
'Yea not touching that'
Another tab was to unlock a door. She preset a button an d hard a the nearby door click.
The rest of the terminal was just filled with logs. Most of them looked unreadable so she didn't bother looking through them. Instead just went to the now unlocked door.
Now Nova was in a strange hallway of some kind. Instead of walls of plaster, steel or brick it was walls of glass. On one side looked like the science labs alright but disappointment soon crept in. The place looked trashed, ransacked and looted to the bone. Someone beaten her to the punch. Walking down the glass hallway she past by a few piles of pink ash and green goo with melted glass with slightly burnt floors. Only one group she new could beat her.
"Dame Enclave"
It was the only explanation. From the sighs of battle that shown on the walls. The Enclave love of magical energy weapons and that the stars collapse long ago along with the elevators. Nothing could clime up. Only griffins and Pegasus could make there way up here. She didn't know any griffin gangs other then the few griffins in Talon company that used magical energy weapons and they don't come around in these parts vary often. So Enclave it is then.
The labs held little to none of value. The only thing worth taking was a pare of healing potions in what she assumed was the clean up area.
After searching the labs and coming up empty she came across something that caught the griffins attention.
'Wasn't this building MOA hub?' she thought while looking at the door. Which held markings of the ministry of Arcane Science. With nothing to really to do she pushed open the door to reveal a single office space. Not surprising it was ran sacked. Papers scattered and file folders littered the floor.
Looking around she was drawn to the back of the office where a work board held. On it was several documents of strange drawings of symbols and photo graphs all making links around some large circular object.
Something felt odd about this situation, and not the 'I'm also going to charge extra for this' kind of odd.
Leaving the room Nova went down the hallway and peered out a window to get a look around the outside. The area surrounded her used to be the town of Detrot in Equestria, but if she looked west she could see the mountains the marked the territory of what used to be the griffin kingdom.
Looking down below she saw a dim light coming from the lobby of the MOA hub she was in. Most likely her buddies Essential and Clockswork waiting for her to come back.
Deciding that she hasn't encounter anything else that was hostile besides the last pack of ghouls she took down she believed the place was clear. Out of curiosity Nova went back to the office with the strange MAS office and looked at the odd circle again. Liking the odd Circle she pocketed some the drawings and photos thinking that they would look nice back at her place.
Returning to the open window she stretched out her wings a bit. With that bandage she wont be able to fly for long. Shouldn't be to much of a problem, she just needed to glide down it shouldn't be to hard.
With her front haft out the window she hear a distant roar. To her it sounded between like engine be reeved up on high (She herd it once on a sky bandit when Clockwork was experimenting with its levitation talismans) and a missile. Hearing this roar for a few seconds a whistling sound came to her senses. Looking around She saw something break through the cloud covering ahead of her.
It as some sort of air craft but none she ever seen the Enclave used. It was also trailing smoke and fire from its side and rear. She eyed the strange air craft as it flew past her and the hub. She continued to eye the air craft and saw it land down the street the edge of town just about a dozen blocks away from where she was at.
'Maybe we can turn this scavenger hunt around with that Enclave tech.' the thought coming to her.
Jumping out the window she glided down the as fast she could without hurting her wing to much down the buildings entrance. Where she found Essential and Clockswork up on the street.
"Hey guys" the griffin called out"
The two unicorns looked up. "Hey Nova, did you get a look at what flew over?" The dark brown coated Clockwork unicorn. "Sure did and it land down that way and so are we." She said with a smile
"So I'm guessing from the your damage wing and the lack of stuff your caring means not you didn't have much successes in the hub." deadpan the orange coated earth pony Essential.
"That's right, Enclave beat us to it but not this time. Cant do anything about that. But that ship flew past and I saw it crash land not to far away If we harry we can get there before anyone else dose."
The two pony nodded in agreement, they ready there weapons and three raced each other on there way to there next paycheck.
