S.S.D.D... Wait, Ponies?! (EDIT)
Fiver sighed loudly, fumbling with an extra magazine. Other than the constant whirring and humming of the Pelican's dual engines, the dropship's loading bay was fairly quiet. The mission they had been put on was a rather unusual one, as issues with an unknown assailant had been troubling the UNSC for some time now. Entire bases destroyed, strategic generators lost, even entire UNSC battleships gone missing. Their duty was to observe the takedown of a mock base. It was built in the hills that bordered the main colony that was based on Harvest. It would be up to them to eliminate their enemy as soon as they chose to strike. However, there was no intel on this attacker, as everyone that had a possibility of seeing it wasn't alive to describe them.
A playful shove almost knocked him onto his face, had it not been for his biologically augmented reaction-time. He whirled on the culprit in an instant. Fortunately, it was only the team's sniper, Hodge. He rested a gloved hand on Fiver's shoulder. "Hey, kid. Just noticed you looked more worried than usual."
Fiver shrugged him off. "Yeah; Aren't you worried by the fact that we're going in without ANY intel on the enemy? No strategies, no tactics, nothing."
"My, my, always one to gripe, eh, Fiver?" Came a female voice, the sarcastic tone obvious. Sam, Team Theta's leader, took the seat across from him. "Look, I think we've been in situations a lot more suicidal than this one. Besides, ONI's smart enough to know when to abandon a lost cause. Why? Not suicidal enough for you?"
Fiver scoffed. ONI just didn't want to have someone with the knowledge that they could be beaten. However, she did have point. ONI couldn't just let a group of terrorists run amok, doing as they pleased with military resources. "You're right. They really don't have much a choice, anyhow." Fiver replied, shrugging. "If this keeps up, even our reputation's at risk."
The drop light above them suddenly flickered on, bathing everybody in an eerie red light. Not wasting any time, Sam stood up. "Everbody up!! Check your gear and get your heads straight!"
Theta team consisted of six people. Hodge, Sam and Fiver were three. Their heavy-weapons/pyrotechnic tactician, Shaun, made four. Montana, the team medic, was their fifth member. Theta's silent CQB, Blade, made six. They rose in unison, securing magazines and weapons to themselves.
Slinging his MA5B over his right shoulder, Fiver tightened the strap to ensure it wouldn't come off in the fall. He also clipped his sidearm into the holster, taking care to strap the lid down for good measure.
The back hatch opened, revealing a howling void. The wind became very loud, making normal speech inaudible. They switched their audio to their radios, securing a private channel. Sam keyed her mic. "Okay, make sure you grab a 50 Cal before you leave. You're going to need it to keep an eye on the base. Try not to break the quiet unless you spot our assailants. Flash me if you acknowledge."
All four acknowledgement lights winked green. Fiver hesitated, then clicked on his own acknowledgement light. Ignoring the delay, Sam keyed the mic again. "Pelican is touching down momentarily. Remember where you're supposed to be, since we don't have time to check the map again."
The radio crackled a second time, a deep male voice on the other end. "This is HQ. Just a reminder: Make sure you have a positive ID on the contact, then ask for clearance to engage. HQ out."
The loading bay doors dropped down behind her, revealing a pitch-black forest outside. "Pile out! Go!" Sam hissed. Flicking on his night vision, Fiver hopped out of the Pelican, observing the clearing they had landed in. It was situated on a large slope, the clearing falling away towards the start of the trees. The hill loomed up behind them, keeping them hidden in the shadow of its peak.
"Get to your positions, people. We've only got a few minutes until the base goes hot." Sam barked. "Remember, don't shoot until you have a positive ID on the target. We can't risk revealing ourselves to them otherwise." Sam advised.
"Relax; I doubt that our raider will take this bait anyways." Hodge said, shrugging. "It's too obvious."
"Cut the chatter and get to work." Montana growled, silencing the sharpshooter. Wordlessly, they split up, each member of Theta team working towards their own hiding spot. Fiver's was the farthest away from the drop zone: a two-klick sprint to a thick copse of trees on the west part of the hill. He took off, tearing into the underbrush.
~~~
Fiver crouched low, carefully opening up the bipod for the S2AM. He turned on the night vision scope, turning the darkness in the scope a sickly green color. "I'm in position." He whispered, careful not to disturb the dry leaves that surrounded him.
"This is it, guys. Wait for a positive ID on the target before you shoot. Got it?"
Four acknowledgement lights winked on. Fiver's remained dark.
"Fiver, did you read me, how copy?" Sam asked again.
There came a pause, and Fiver's reply came. "Acknowledged. Fiver out."
Fiver squinted, focusing on the brightly lit base. He frowned. If Hodge was right, and they never come, we'll just be leaving an actual tactical vantage point completely vulnerable. Fiver shook his head. No. Don't even think about it, Fiver. You've been wrong before, its going to happen again if you keep up this mindset. He thought.
His eyes followed a guard that had just turned the corner of a container. The UNSC insignia was emblazoned on the right shoulder of his outfit. The three chevrons indicated his rank as a sergeant. Fiver watched as his hand reached for an unseen object. The sergeant's voice crackled over the radio. "Theta team, are you in position? How copy."
"Affirmative. We see you, sergeant." Sam replied.
"Alright. Wish me luck. Banks out." The sergeant's radio cut off as he walked back behind the container.
There was a rustling of leaves, and a small snap of a branch that came from behind Fiver. Fiver froze, his whole body tensed up. Too big of a movement to be a small animal… Fiver thought quickly. He heard smaller rustling as whatever was behind him advanced closer. His free hand clenched and unclenched nervously. Now or never. It knows I'm here.
In a swift movement, Fiver kicked out with his legs in an attempt to knock its legs out from under it. Tripping his assailant successfully, he planted his knee on the ground, turning and launching himself towards the creature. He tackled it, pinning it in a powerful headlock.
There came an "Oof!" from it, and it struggled feebly in his grasp. He chinned on his external audio speakers to talk to it. "Heh. I've got you—" Fiver's word flow stopped momentarily, the initial shock of what he was seeing completely impairing his speech altogether.
He was holding some sort of horse-looking creature. Instead of a normal long, narrow face of a normal horse, it had a short snout, and an enormous pair of eyes, which were crossed. One of its pupils drifted about lazily, as if mirroring the other eye's moves, except it was inverted. It struggled for breath, one eye gazing pleadingly into his.
Feeling a pang of sorrow for the creature, he released it. It fell on its side, gasping raggedly for breath. Feelings of pity and regret flowed through Fiver. However, his instinct told him this could be their raider. He unclipped his sidearm, crouching slightly. Now that he had it in full view, he was able to get a good look at the rest of the details.
It had a long, yellow mane, as well as a tail to match. What appeared to be a picture of some bubbles was tattooed on its flank, which gave off a mysterious sheen. A small pair of feathery wings were tightly folded over its back. Overall, it looked like something out of a cartoon show, or a wacky character on a cereal box. And whatever it was, it certainly wasn't native to Reach.
It sat up, shaking off the dizziness brought on from the lack of air it suffered before. It turned to face him, cowering slightly at the sight of the firearm. It gasped loudly, wringing its hooves and backing into the dry leaves noisily. Fiver's eyes narrowed, bringing the sidearm to bear. "Hold it. No noise, or I shoot."
The pony stopped, but it could not stop shivering. Its eyes were now wide with fright, its small chest heaving with deep breaths. Fiver keyed the mic. "Fiver here. I've got some sort of creature here… It's possible that this thing may be the raider we're looking for. It tried to ambush me a few seconds ago."
There was a muted crackle and Sam's voice came back on. "What the..? Can you send me an image from your command uplink module?"
Fiver tapped the "record" button on the small camera mounted on the side of his helmet, giving all of his teammates a view of the creature that sat before him.
There was a pause, and a burst of laughter came from Hodge's mic. "W-what is that thing?!" He managed to sputter between laughs.
"Cut the chatter before I come over there, Hodge." Shaun warned, his voice dripping venom.
"Heh. Looks adorable. Friend of yours?" Montana asked sarcastically.
"Just get it out of here, Fiver." Sam ordered. "Resuming radio silence. Theta lead out."
"Wait, this thing could be--!"
"You think a horse-thing did all this?! Be realistic, Fiver. That thing is NOT capable of wiping out several UNSC bases and even destroying a Halcyon-class light cruiser! Get real. Sam out."
Fiver turned on his external speakers again. Now feeling a burning sensation in his cheeks, Fiver knelt next to the pony, replacing his firearm and putting his hands in front of him to show that he meant no harm. To his dismay, the creature scrambled backwards, pressing itself up against a tree. Fiver sighed. At least it was going to be easy to scare this thing off.
He slowly stooped to one knee, preparing to scare it off when a shot rang out, and the tower watchman tumbled from his next. A sickening thud was audible, even from the distance Fiver was at.
Fiver dove for the rifle, frantically searching the area. "Contact! Contact! Anyone see where that came from?!" He whispered, almost forgetting to turn on the mic.
"This is Overwatch. That's a negative." Hodge replied.
"They must be using a suppressor of some sort." Montana advised.
"Whoa; there goes another guard!"
"This is Overwatch; sniper appears to be to the east of the base. They're in the treeline. I
can't get a clear shot."
"They're sitting ducks! Can't we do something?!"
"Cut the chatter, Theta!"
"Blade, here. Contact spotted. Engaging."
Sporadic gunfire could be heard in the distance on the far side of the base. A few muzzle flares could also be seen. The flares continued to move alongside the base's perimeter, Blade's outline and a mysterious figure moving in and out of the light. "You think that's our guy?" Montana asked.
"Doesn't matter; we'd better contact HQ!" Sam replied.
The radio crackled to life, and the baritone voice from before was heard. "No need. You are cleared to engage all hostiles. Good luck, Theta. We're counting on you."
An alarm began to wail, the base's inhabitants springing to action. Dozens of squads of UNSC marines began patrolling the base, combing for any attackers. The radio transmissions flooded Fiver's helmet.
"Charlie Two-Niner, this is HQ. Take your team and sweep the northwest edge of the base."
"Copy that. We're oscar mike. Charlie Two out."
"HQ, this is Delta Six-Eight. Garage is filled with some sort of smoke."
"Copy that, Delta. Use thermals if you have them."
"Contacts! East end of the base!"
What?! More contacts?!
"This is HQ. Bravo Four, what is your location?"
"East barracks, second floor! Send some help over here!"
"Copy that. Alpha Six, get your platoon over to the east barracks and assist Bravo Four."
"On our way. Cmon, boys! Double time!"
"Man down! Get a medic over—"
Fiver squelched the transmission. He didn't need to hear any more to know what was going on. He turned to the pony behind him. "Stay here." He said firmly, clicking the safety off on his MA5B. He slid down the hill, easily hopping over the perimeter fence. Rolling to his feet, he sprinted towards the nearby barracks, dropping his shoulder and ramming into the door.
After climbing a set of stairs, he reached the second floor of the barracks. Carefully, he leaned against the door. Strangely, there was no noise inside. His instinct telling him to slow down, Fiver removed his fiber-optic camera and slid it under the door. His HUD's cam revealed several bodies on the ground. A cloaked figure was crouched over some sort of device; it was too hard to see from where he was.
Retracting the camera, Fiver aimed at the door, taking a deep breath. Keeping the sight trained on the door, his right leg delivered a powerful kick onto the iron, knocking the metal plate off of its hinges. A loud clang echoed through the hallway, followed by the cough of his silenced MA5B. However, when he entered the room, the cloaked figure had disappeared.
His eyes quickly searched the room, scanning the rows of bunks, behind the footlockers, underneath the bottom bunks, and even among the bodies. He stepped cautiously from the doorway, careful to check the two corners upon entering. His boots made contact with broken glass, which crunched loudly underfoot. Lights occasionally washed the room in a sickly white glare before receding, and the base's siren was audible outside. An eerie silence descended on the room.
Fiver was about to lower his weapon when a large red dot appeared on his motion tracker. And it was behind him. Whirling around, his sights rested on the pony he had encountered earlier. Her eyes were still crossed, sure enough. Fiver was quick to lower his guard. Great… Now this thing's following me. "Sheesh, don't scare me like that." He breathed. "I thought I told you to stay put up there, little guy."
"Girl." It stated flatly, staring through Fiver's polarized visor. Its eyes straightened momentarily, piercing Fiver's essence. "I'm a girl." She repeated.
If Fiver hadn't been wearing a helmet, his jaw would've hit the metal barrack's floor. "You can talk?" He managed to rasp.
The pony's eyes went googly again, the pony's demeanor returning to a happier, more relaxed state. "Yep! At least, I'm pretty sure I'm a girl. I have eyelashes… does that help?" Fiver nodded absentmindedly.
The burst of static from Fiver's radio brought him back. "Fiver! What's the situation in the barracks?!" Sam's voice crackled.
Fiver pressed the speaker closer to his ear, barely able to understand her. "All the guards here are dead, Ma'am. Four casualties, and no sign of the enemy. The pony is back, too. Apparently… she can talk."
"She?! What in—oh, shit!" A bit of scuffling could be heard over the mic. Her voice came back after a few seconds. "Sorry. Had to relocate. Anyways, get a move on to the northwest side of the base. There's some sort of mechanized anti-infantry unit tearing up the marines over there. Do whatever it takes to get it down. Can't have our support shot to pieces before we even find out who we're fighting. How copy, Fiver."
"Affirmative, lead. Fiver out." Clicking off the mic again, he started hustling down the stairs, ignoring the blip on his motion tracker. Great. Now I have to keep this thing from getting shot up too. He groaned mentally.
Replacing the MA5B on his back, he removed the M19 SSM Surface-to-Air missile launcher from its magnetic holster. Luckily for Fiver, the Spartans were still given the older version of the launcher, the Jackhammer V2.1, which still had lock-on capabilities. Perfect for someone not too experienced in explosives. Hefting it on his right shoulder, he hoofed it towards the sounds of a loud whirring noise.
Rounding a corner, he quickly fell back behind it, almost bumping backwards into the pony. Both of their eyes widened in horror as the entire corner of the building was slowly eaten away by some mysterious force. It wasn't long before they both realized that it was simply a powerful hail of bullets tearing through the concrete. When the fire stopped, Fiver risked a quick glance around the ruined building.
A huge biped of some sort wielding twin miniguns on both of its arms was clearly visible, as well as a polarized cockpit and missile launchers sprouting out of its back. It looked like something out of a very old video game, but come to life.
Tossing a couple of flashbangs around the corner, Fiver fell back, waited for the twin thumps, then rounded the corner once more, falling to one knee. The robot was temporarily blinded, firing off randomly, but in the wrong direction. Holding the trigger, Fiver waited for his HUD to track the target. However, something was wrong with the targeting function. Cursing loudly, Fiver held the reset button for the launcher's targeting interface.
The biped was apparently recovering from the flashbangs much quicker than Fiver expected. It soon began scanning the area again, a small rod appearing from its back and bathing the area in an eerie green light. An audible beep was heard from Fiver's launcher, causing the biped to whirl towards him.
Adrenaline pumping through his veins, Fiver brought the thirty-pound launcher to bear, holding the trigger once more. As soon as the reticule turned red, Fiver keyed the mic. "Fire in the hole." Releasing the trigger, he fell behind the wall again as the explosion rocked the remains of the building he was hiding behind.
Dropping the Jackhammer missiles and drawing his MA5B again, Fiver quickly advanced on the ruined vehicle. However, he was disappointed once again when he saw that the cockpit was thrown open, the seat and passenger missing.
"Huh. Must've eject—OOF!" Fiver started, interrupted by a violent kick on his backside. Knocked forward, he rolled to his feet, crouching low to regain his balance. His MA5B slid a ways away at the pony's hooves. However, instead of grey, they were orange.
The realization slowly hitting him, Fiver's eyes traveled upwards until he met a pair of fierce green eyes. It was another pony, identical to the one seen before. This one's eyes were straight, and a large, charred cowboy hat sat on its head. Its enormous green eyes squinted menacingly. "Now, look what ya done, now. Ya gone an' wrecked mah fav'rite mech!" It exclaimed, readying a large wrench. From its voice, Fiver judged that it was female as well.
Fiver reached for his firearm, although he couldn't find it. Dammit! Must've left it back up near my first position! Fiver thought, cursing his carelessness. He crouched in a low stance, raising his fists to protect his face. Fiver stayed on his toes, bouncing a little as he did so. He felt for his combat knife, quickly bringing it to bear.
The pony leapt at him, wrench flourishing. "Cm'here!" It cried, swinging downwards at his head. Fiver shoulder-rolled left, narrowly avoiding the metal wrench as it collided with the ground, shattering the cement. It stuck there, the metal head buried in the concrete. The orange pony struggled with the tool furiously, but it was stuck fast. Planting his right foot as he stood up, Fiver immediately sprang off of it, breaking out into a full-on sprint.
Drawing his arm back, he readied himself to bring the blade down on the hapless pony when Sam's voice boomed in his helmet. "HOLD IT, FIVER! ONI WANTS THEM ALIVE!" He hesitated momentarily, which gave the pony all the time she needed. She brought her rear legs back, then bucked Fiver backwards. Dropping his knife in shock, Fiver flew backwards about seven or eight feet before rolling to a stop.
Tasting copper, Fiver gingerly propped himself up on one knee. Looking up, the orange pony was now advancing, readjusting her hat so it sat in a more comfortable position on her head. She balanced on two legs, wielding the wrench in her forelegs. A menacing grin was spreading across her features, causing Fiver to gulp audibly.
But he wasn't giving up yet. He forced himself to stand, despite the screaming protests of his back and chest. He had to be careful, lest one of his broken ribs puncture a lung. His eyes darted around his HUD, making a quick diagnostic check. Luckily, his motion tracker and minimap still worked, although they wouldn't help him much in the fight. Unfortunately, his shields weren't recharging. His inter-suit pressure had also equalized with the outside atmosphere, meaning she had broken the outer shell of the suit.
A single kick did that?! Fiver thought. Sam's voice crackled over the mic again. "Kid! You okay?!"
Fiver doused his anger with a torrent of self control, struggling not to verbally bite Sam's head off. "I'll manage." He stated flatly. Wincing as he crouched low again, he brought his arms up to his face, once again readying himself to fight. "I thought HQ just told us to wipe these guys out?" He asked, anger seeping into his voice.
"ONI's commands override everything. You know this. Sam out."
His mind racing, Fiver knew he couldn't dodge another one of those wrench strikes without mortal injury to himself. He'd just kill himself slowly instead of dying quickly by her hand. Or hoof.
He nearly jumped out of his skin when a shot rang out, the bullet narrowly missing the orange pony's head. She shoulder-rolled behind the burning wreckage of her mech, a scowl on her face.
Hodge's voice burst through his helmet's speaker. "I gotcha, kid! Now get out of the open! I don't know if the other sniper is still—"
"Yeah, yeah! Just shut up and relocate!" Fiver retorted, although his voice belied gratitude.
"Relax, I'm sure—" Another muzzle flare. Hodge suddenly fell silent, his comms cutting off in a burst of static. Just arriving behind the building, Fiver gazed in horror at the hill where his late comrade was just sitting. He cursed Hodge's carelessness, hobbling off away from the conflict. He managed to grab an MA2B from a dead marine. He grimaced at the ugly sight. It was another bullpup weapon similar to the MA5B, but it lacked an ammo counter and Auto-HUD link up, forcing him to use the iron sights on the gun.
"H-hey! Everyone still with me?!" Hodge cried out.
Fiver nearly died of relief. "Hodge! Don't scare me like that!" Fiver sighed.
"Wish I had a photo of the look on your face, buddy! Now move it! I've got to deal with this little thorn in my side." Hodge said. Fiver watched in awe as the hillside suddenly lit up with activity, Hodge's S2AM ringing out across the base and the other sniper's muzzle flares appearing in various spots. From what he could tell, that sniper was one agile son of a bitch.
He felt a tap on his shoulder. Adrenaline still coursing through his body, Fiver was quick to whirl on the foe, only to find the grey pony again. She squeaked in terror, backing up a few paces. Sighing a little (from what little breath he could draw in), Fiver brought a single finger to his visor, giving her the universal sign to keep quiet. She nodded, trembling a little from nervousness.
Another blip on his motion tracker. It was yellow, signaling that it was friendly. Sam materialized from the dark, appearing next to Fiver. "Hey, kid. Didn't want to see any member of my team get picked off without my help."
Still a little angry at her for her prior interruption to his rout with the orange pony, Fiver ignored her, edging around the corner. "Just watch my six while I clear the area." He said.
Clicking her safety off, Sam grunted in irritation. "Don't forget your place, rookie." She growled.
Sam keyed the mic again. "Theta, regroup at the south guard tower. Repeat, regroup at the south guard tower. Flash if you acknowledge." Two acknowledgement lights winked green. Hodge's winked red for obvious reasons-he was still engaged. Blade's was dark for a few seconds, then winked red. Probably because he was still engaged with the contact he had spotted at the beginning of the conflict.
A few minutes later, Shaun arrived, lugging his 50 caliber rifle. "Drop those. We're not going to need them in such close quarters." Sam stated.
Without hesitation, the Spartan tossed it to the cold concrete. "Whatever you say; less weight for me." Shaun said, rolling his shoulder which had become sore from carrying the 30lb rifle.
Hodge shuffled in a few minutes later, carrying only his pistol. "50 Cal ran out of ammo." He said woefully. "Had to leave Vanessa behind in the firefight."
A burst of static over the comms caught everybody's attention. "Theta lead, I think I found Blade." Montana's voice crackled.
"Blade? Is he alive?" Sam asked warily.
There was a long pause, and Montana replied with a dreary, "That's a negative. Must've died by serious blood loss. He's got cuts all over."
Sam was taken aback. "What?! The hell did he get hit with? There's no way something can cut through MJOLNIR armor that easily…" Sam thought, her voice trailing off.
Fiver was about to interject when Montana suddenly let out a gasp. "Wha-?! Oh… Who're you?" He asked to no one in particular.
Impatient, Sam keyed the mic. "Spit it out, Montana! What is it?!" She demanded, stressed over the loss of Hodge and Blade.
Hesitantly, Montana replied, "It's another one of those things… Uh, the thing that Fiver saw." He said.
The hairs on the back of Fiver's neck rose when he realized who it was. "Montana! Those things are hostile! I was attacked by one driving a mech!"
Montana's voice registered shock. "What?! Hostile?! Why didn't you—" His mic cut off suddenly, followed by the thudding of something jostling around.
There was a long pause as they waited for a response. "Montana? Montana, respond, how copy?" Sam asked. They were met with more radio static and the occasional panicked trooper coming in over the channels. "Montana, hit your acknowledgement light if you can hear me, over." Sam asked again. Their spirits fell when the light remained dark.
After waiting for another several minutes, Sam punched a container, denting the steel and chipping the paint. "Damn it! We've got to pull out." She cursed.
Fiver's jaw nearly hit the ground again. "What?! Seriously?" He asked.
"Whatever could take out Blade and Montana can't be normal." She glanced at the pony that sat behind Fiver. "Or human, for that matter. Now that we have intel on our enemy, we can retreat and report to HQ."
Shaun sided with Sam. "I agree. We've got the advantage of being hidden for the moment. Besides…" He shivered visibly. "I have a bad feeling about this mission. It feels like this time, instead of being the hunters, we're the ones being hunted."
As Sam called for their evac bird, Shaun and Fiver were left to watch the perimeter. The pony followed them closely, looking a little more on edge, but still not losing her happy demeanor. Now even more curious of her stance on the situation, Fiver's curiosity grew as to if this pony was really a civilian. "What's your name… uh… ma'am?" Fiver asked, giving up on thinking of something else to call her.
"My name's Ditzy Doo, but most call me Derpy." She replied cheerily. Fiver was amazed at how even in the depressing atmosphere, she could still be happy. Maybe she was a little on the slow side…
"I can see why." Shaun mused, risking a glance back from his digital sights on his MA5B. Fiver nudged Shaun none-too-gently. "Hey! Be nice!" he hissed.
Derpy took no offense. "Cuz, it's my name, silly!" This only made Shaun laugh loudly, but Fiver was relieved when she laughed with him, although a little confused. At least she isn't really catching on, here… Fiver thought quickly.
Shaun lowered his rifle. "Anyways, where are you guys from?" He asked.
Derpy's face lit up. "Well, I'm from Equestria!"
Shaun nearly laughed again. "Equestria? Once again, a very fitting name." He snickered.
Luckily for Shaun, Derpy missed the harm in this statement and continued. "Yep! It's under the rule of the Celestial Monarchy. There's Luna, who controls the moon…"
Fiver tuned out as Shaun and Derpy continued to talk about Equestria, droning on and on about what there is to do for fun, food, exchanging and sharing certain quirks of their respective worlds. Surprisingly, there seemed to be a lot in common. Except the fact that everything in their world involved much more sugary and vegetarian options.
Their heartfelt chat was cut short as they came up upon the same clearing where they had been dropped off. Sam keyed the mic again. "Vulture Six-Two, This is Theta team. We're ready for evac. Can you pick us up?"
A raspy male voice crackled over the comms. "That's a negative, Theta. ONI gave me specific orders that you subdue ALL of the remaining hostiles and bring them in for interrogation."
Sam kept her cool. "We've already lost two of our own, and we've got one wounded. Also, we've already captured one of them. She'll go to ONI for questioning." She replied quickly.
There was a long pause, and then Vulture replied, "Okay, one evac bird en route. Remember: It's your ass ONI's gonna chew out, not mine."
Fiver chuckled weakly. He'd rather face ONI's court-martial than certain death by a colorful equine.
Hodge coughed behind them. "Motion tracker's saying we've got hostiles. Four, by the looks of it."
"Copy. Four contacts from the west." Shaun replied.
"Ma'am, recommend we move into the bushes opposite the clearing from them."
Sam was about to reply before a sudden bullet passing inches from her face shocked her into action. "MOVE, THETA! MOVE!" She cried, diving into the foliage. Fiver, Hodge and Shaun followed, pressing their backs against three thick oak trees.
Fiver attempted to peek out around the left side of the tree before jerking his head back to avoid being shot in the face. Cursing under his breath, he switched his MA2B to his left hand, moving to his right and risking another glance. When no shots came, he fired two short controlled bursts into the bushes opposite them. Unfortunately, he had obviously missed, as the suppressing fire resumed, except now zeroed in on both sides of the tree.
Shaun and Hodge weren't faring any better, obviously pinned.
"Guys! We need to clear the LZ! Pelican says they're not risking a hot dustoff!" Sam cried. She removed a smoke grenade from her ammo pack. "Smoke going out! Move on my mark!"
The metal cylinder traveled eight feet or so before being shredded by a well-placed shot from a sniper rifle, from the sound of the bang. Smoke spewed from the container, filling the clearing.
"Go! Go! Switch to thermal!" Sam roared, whipping out her MA5B and firing several bursts into the bushes.
Fiver wondered why he hadn't done so earlier in the fight before chinning the thermal VISR option. The darkness disappeared, replaced by a sickly green. Three red blotches occupied a group of thick beech trees ahead, giving them fairly decent cover. He hoped they didn't have thermal, too.
Sam and Shaun headed right, leaving Hodge and Fiver to take the left. "Flashbang going out!" Hodge cried, turning away as he flung a black cylinder towards the trees. Fiver barely had time to close his eyes and shield his visor before the entire forest burst into a white flash. Blinking spots from his eyes, Fiver rushed in, tackling one of the assailants. He raised his fist to hit it in the face, adrenaline pumping. His opponent brought its arms to its face, preventing such a blow from ever connecting.
Fiver felt a sudden pressure on his stomach, suddenly finding himself flying upwards. He landed on his back several feet away, knocking the wind out of him. Rolling to the left, he barely avoided the assailant's... sword?! He scrambled to his feet, sizing up his attacker.
It looked like it was wielding two swords, although it was hard to tell with the thermal vision. However, he noticed the tips were still warm from blood splatters. Definitely swords.
It charged forward, soundlessly padding towards the Spartan. It swung one sword violently towards his right. Fiver parried with his forearm, twisting his hand around so he secured its wrist. Or what he thought was its wrist.
It swung its other sword at the Spartan, to which Fiver simply repeated his previous maneuver. Securing both arms, he rammed his helmet into the creature's face once, twice, thrice before releasing it. It tumbled backwards, knocked senseless.
He slowly stood straight, looking around for his comrades. Sam was assisting Shaun bind one of the creatures with Teflon rope while Hodge was...
Hodge was laying prone, unmoving.
Fiver's eyes widened. "Sam! Check Hodge's vitals! He's not moving on my scope!"
There was a pause before Sam keyed the mic. "Hodge... He's gone."
Fiver felt a knot form in his stomach, until a second realization hit him.
If he's dead, then where's the one he was fighting...?
Instinctively, Fiver shoulder-rolled, narrowly avoiding a sniper round from decapitating him. He stayed low, keying the mic. "Sniper! Hit the deck!" He hissed.
The two Spartans obeyed, save for their captive, who simply struggled relentlessly in its bonds.
Fiver swept the area, his thermal scope picking up nothing. A click from behind him and a tap on the back of his helmet told him all that he needed to know.
"So much for 'special operatives'. What is there to underestimate?" Came a taunting female voice.
Fiver had already begun to see flashbacks when a muffled thud came from behind him, and the voice suddenly going quiet. He turned around to see the creature collapsing and Sam standing in its place, a pistol in her hand. "What a bitch." She spat before helping Fiver to his feet.
"Vulture Six-Two. LZ is clear. We've got one KIA, but we've secured four more captives. Requesting immediate dustoff." Sam barked.
"Affirmative. We're right on top of you."
It wasn't long before the Pelican dropship arrived. It circled the area once before landing in the middle of the clearing. Sam and the remaining units of Theta team dragged their captives into the light, now getting their first glance at their opponents.
The four that they had knocked out were colorful equines, bearing similar anatomy to Derpy. And their colors ranged from orange to sky-blue, dazzling the Spartans. In addition, some of them had horns and wings while others had a lack of both thereof. Strangely enough, there were none that had a horn and a pair of wings.
As the SPARTAN-IIs waited for the bay door to open, they noticed that one was awake. It was an alabaster unicorn, or so they had dubbed it. "Cut these binds this instant, you ruffians!" She cried.
"Who's the ruffian that killed three of our own team?" Sam growled. "You're lucky you're wanted alive."
Suddenly, the bay door opened, its mechanical whine music to everybody's ears.
Sam took a step towards the opening bay doors. "C'mon, Theta. We're leav—"
She flinched as a loud *BANG* went off, a single bullet passing through her helmet. Her external speakers exploded into static as she tumbled backwards, settling in the dead leaves and staying there, unmoving.
Shaun roared, turning to the opening loading bay doors only to be knocked a few feet back from the blast of a M90 shotgun. He somersaulted backwards, falling flat on his face and laying still.
Fiver crouched, firing the MA2B blindly through the bright lights that assaulted his vision. A few of the bullets were deflected back by some sort of forcefield, a few making their way back towards Fiver and causing his shields to flare in protest. A sudden kick to his visor knocked him backwards, snapping his head back as he collided with the ground.
His vision quickly blackening and now blocked by a large splotch of dark red on his visor, Fiver squinted through the blinding light.
Two figures stepped out of the dropship, clearing the area with their salvaged UNSC weaponry. However, instead of people, they were practically identical to the ones that he had engaged in the clearing minutes ago.
Fiver instinctively moved his right arm to hit the mic, but winced when a familiar alabaster hoof stomped on his wrist, pinning it to the ground.
"Sorry, dear. You're not going anywhere." Came an airy voice. The hoof twisted cruelly, causing Fiver to groan in pain. He looked up, staring at the unicorn's evil grin. "H-how...?" He croaked.
The unicorn's horn glowed blue, and a small butterfly knife floated near her head, dancing in her telekinetic grip. "Magic, dear." She said.
He turned his head to the left, searching for any weapons to use. A few feet away, Derpy sat in front of his MA2B, her eyes wide in horror. He reached out to her, palm up, motioning for her to kick the weapon over. However, before he could react, a second hoof, this time lavender, slammed on his left bicep.
"My, my. How interesting. Are you some sort of 'special operations' characters?" Came a second voice, tinted with curiosity. The pony carried an enormous sniper rifle, at least seven inches longer than the S2AM. Presumably the one who had killed Sam and Hodge.
Fiver gritted his teeth. "Why are you doing this? Who the hell are you?!" He hissed.
"We don't leave anypony behind." Said a fourth, which sported a creamy yellow coat and a long, flowing pink mane. She toted the M90 shotgun Fiver had seen take down Shaun when the hatch opened.
A baseball bat poked his helmet. "Now, I think it's time for a little payback." Came a scratchy female voice. A messy polychromatic mane filled Fiver's vision as the sky-blue Pegasus brought back the bat in preparation for a swing. The same one that they had knocked out earlier.
However, she was stopped when Derpy leapt in front of him, holding up her hooves. "Wait! This one's not bad! He saved me when Applejack was about to kill us both!"
The purple one shrugged. "We're supposed to keep him alive, anyhow. The Princess wants one for interrogation. Rainbow is just applying some natural anesthetics." She explained.
Princess..? Interrogation?
Derpy smiled and stepped aside. "Okay, then, Rainbow Dash, he's all yours!"
Fiver struggled to raise his arms, but the hooves held him fast. "W-wai—"
The bat met the side of his helmet, sending stars bursting into his vision and knocking the Spartan out.
"Sir. Team Theta's signs just flatlined."
"You positive?"
"Yes, sir. All six are KIA."
"My god." The figure leaned back, massaging his face with his palm.
"What now, sir?"
"Call in Blue Team."
"Blue Team? They're still en route to HQ from securing rebel warheads."
"Just get them here. I've got an assignment for them."
