Shatteredby Joseph_TannerChaptersChapter 1: Rise and shine...Chapter 2: TrippinChapter 3: Hard ResetCrew InfoChapter 1: Rise and shine...My problems began the day the Arabian Starvation began… That day several of us were summoned to Canterlot for instructions. Only a dozen of us at first. Not all of us were soldiers, however. There were mechanics, doctors, and other professions as well. I never liked the idea of going to Canterlot, since once they already made us leave, but orders are meant to be carried out, so I DID go there in the end. The convoy from the Wasteland departed. IT consisted of 2 medics, 3 mechanics, the rest of us were gunmen. Some were Snipers, some Pointmen, and some of us were Juggernauts. I myself was honored not to fall into any of those groups… Soon you’ll see why. We were travelling in 4 vehicles, all humvees with mounted Miniguns. The other soldiers and I managed to get close relatively quickly, while the doctors kept their noses high, thinking their PhD’s made them more important than us. “Careful, you’ll end up with something stuck in your nose,” One of my comrades noted to them. “You only chose the army just because you were too dumb to go to college,” Replied a doctor. “Oh? At least I know how to defend my own ass. You on the other hand, technically couldn’t hurt a fly, thanks to that Hippocrates oath of yours... “ Replied the sniper next to me. “Is that a threat?” The doctor replied, thinking he was winning the argument. “If you would be as smart as your PhD needs you to be, you would know by now, that our job is to keep you safe, dirtbag,” Replied the gunner from above, pacing around. The doctor only looked at me in surprise and opened her mouth. “Unbelievable! I can’t comprehend how rude your men can be, Captain,” She noted. “Oh? What’s that? They aren’t meeting your standards?” I asked with a serious tone. She only shook her head in response. “Well, it’s not the bread slice that’s small, doctor. It’s your face that’s too huge,” I replied with a taunt. My men broke out laughing, why the doctor remained silent until we arrived. When we did, it was nice to finally stretch our limbs once again. It was starting to feel like we were in a tin can, like a can of sardines. The drivers dropped us off, and returned home, as they and the gunners were a different Group. “Good luck, Captain!” One of the drivers shouted to me before they left. The town guards greeted us with a somewhat friendly grin and nod, which we returned, and made our way toward the castle, hands empty of weapons. Most of us had our nanosuits, as you need to be at least an Officer to get one. I, as a Captain obviously were in that group, while the others were at least Second Lieutenants. The doctors had theirs, so did the mechanics, since the built in I.S.I.S function would be of help. It did save the time it would take for them to go get a wrench, or some bandages, that’s the only reason they had theirs. On our way to the castle one of the bystanders threw a rock at us, but one of the snipers caught it, and threw it back at the one who threw it, hitting dead center. “Don’t make me come over there,” She warned the colt, who just walked away, scrubbing the area where the rock hit him. “They either don’t get what we’re trying to do here, or they think we, as Humans aren’t allowed to beat their ass… I don’t know, they might think they are actual citizens, while we’re just moving in…” One of the mechanics exclaimed, as we approached the castle gates. The guards stopped us for identification. “Names, ranks, classes” Said one of them. “Adrian Shephard, Second Lieutenant, Sniper,” “Sarah Kerrigan, Lieutenant, Sniper,” “House, PhD, Doctor,” “Freeman, PhD, Doctor,” “Pearce, Second Lieutenant, Pointman,” “Connor, Second Lieutenant, Juggernaut,” “Vance, Mechanic,” “Vince, Mechanic,” “Jackson Brenks, Lieutenant, Pointman,” “Zaytsev, Lieutenant, Sniper,” “Jason, Second Lieutenant, Juggernaut,” And last, I too introduced myself.”Joseph Newman, Captain, Commander,” The guards nodded, and allowed us pass without a word. We made our way into the castle, and changed direction for the throne room. “Why the throne room, sir? Why not the barracks?” Asked Vince. “Because I was told the sisters themselves want a word with us too, and it wouldn’t be nice for us to make them walk,” I explained, soon arriving to said room. The guards once again just nodded, and let us pass. It was an Inside joke for us. We only saluted royalty or the Generals themselves. The doors opened, and we lined up next to one another in front of the sisters, me at the very end. The Generals and Professors were standing beside the sisters, and we saluted them all… At least those who had to did, damn doctors… “Captain Joseph Newman, step forward,” Said General Omnis. I stepped in front of the middle of the line, and ahead a few steps. “Yes, ma’am?” I asked. “After all of you receive your instructions, you will stay a little longer,” She replied. “Yes, ma’am,” I exclaimed, and stood back in line. “Ladies and gentlemen…” The General continued. “I’m sure you wonder why we had called you here… Or… Why it was you who we called… It is simple. The Saddle Arabian Prince had come to Canterlot weeks ago in person, and alone, just to apologize for Ishtar’s Invasion decades ago. We agreed to forgive them. Now, we are asked to help said nation by dispensing rations. Their food supplies are low, and plants are dying. Your role is to go to a small town named Stoneden, set up a dispensing station, and give out rations as the documents the Captain will receive dictate. For questions, turn to the Captain and ask after he’s available.” She continued. “Dismissed!” Yelled General Mortis, and everyone left except me. The professors approached me and asked me to walk with them. I glanced at the Generals, Omnis nodded, so I left with them. “So, Captain Newman… You may wonder what we intend with you,” Prof. Adrian said. “A little,” I replied. “We are running an experiment, a newer version of the nanosuit, to be exact,” Prof. Itrix continued. “And what do I have to do with it?” I wondered. “We thought you might be willing to do some tests on the field for us…” Prof. Adrian replied. “What do I need to do?” I asked. “Follow, and you’ll know,” I followed them to the underground lab, where we walked and walked, until we came to a locked room. Both of them produced their keycards, and swiped it on the scanners, opening the door. Inside the room were three glass tubes, nothing inside. “Here we are, Captain.” Itrix exclaimed. “And where is the suit?” “In that tube,” “What?” “It’s in there,” “Is it invisible?” I wondered. “Yes, but I doubt you would ever use that feature. I’ve read your files… You don’t just go in guns blazing, but either do you spend most effort on sneaking and such… You just so happen to find the best cover, and time your shots,” He explained, and pressed a button in front of him, causing the lid to open. “All yours,” “What can I expect?” I wondered. “It will detect your current nanosuit at first. It will then overwrite its code, causing it to separate from your body and replace it. It will also store data from the replaced suit and adjust to your requirements. It will monitor your vitals and everything the old one did,” Itrix explained. “What’s the difference between the two?” “The values, Captain. Your current model only enhances your reflexes, speed and strength by a mere 50%. That model over there will do 200%,” “Why do I have a feeling this will hurt…” I muttered and walked up to the lid. Reaching inside I felt like it was only air, but soon I blacked out and woke up in a hospital bed. “Wh- What happened?” I asked the doctor beside my bed. “Ah, Captain Newman, is it? You were brought here by Professors Adrian and Itrix… It seems your sudden change of equipment was a little too much for your body,” He explained. “How long was I out?” “Less than an hour,” “Good... “ I replied and got up. “Good luck, Cap,” He said, and let me leave. The first thing I did was find the professors again. “Ah, I see you’ve gotten the adjustments…” Adrian said. “Which almost got me killed, yes,” I corrected him. “Is there a question you have?” “What else is different in this model?” “The I.S.I.S, it’s an updated version. Until now you needed to at least hold the item you were to store at least once. Now you can produce objects never even touched. It’s also now linked to your weapon management system, and fill restock ammunition in the magazine while you fire the same firearm,” “You mea-” “Yes, you will never run out of ammo,” He assured me. “Those are all the differences… But I would like to remind you, that you are still mortal, and can be killed if certain conditions are met, such as a clear path for a bullet to any of your vital organs. Yes, the suit does provide protection, but don’t expect it to take every single blow you may get. Rest assured, it’s damage absorbing ability recharges over time… Just… Don’t over work it,” He warned me. I nodded, and left to find the others. They were at the throne room when I found them. The suit felt a little heavier than the other one did, even tho it morphed into the same outfit. We all seemingly wore simple fabric military camoflage uniforms. Pants, coats, and tank tops under neat with a baseball cap of the same colors. The only difference was that the mechanics and doctors wore differing attires. The mechanics wore blue jumpers with blue hats, while the doctors wore brown pants, blue shirts, and labcoats. “And so, the first becomes the last,” General Altamir noted as I stepped in, quickly joining the line. “Now that you all are present, here are the details…” Omnis took over the conversation. “We will give you instructions and updates for your mission through Captain Newman, who is also in charge of what all of you do during the mission. Obviously, we trust his choices, and authorize him to decide whether or not to send any of you back, and ask for a replacement. This is only accepted it one of you misbehave, or disregard orders,” She explained, then looked at the non-military personnel. “The four of you will also obey him… If you know what’s good for you,” She added. “Any questions?” “What exactly is our task? Ma’am?” Asked Pearce. “Dispense food in Stoneden… Were you not paying attention?” She threw back. Pearce only stared at the floor from there on. “Any other questions?” “How long will our mission last?” I asked. “An undisclosed amount of time, I’m sorry to rip you away from your families like this, but we found you the most able to do this,” She explained. “Anything else?” We didn’t have any other questions. The General simply looked at the sisters, who nodded. “Before you leave, the sisters have a few words to you,” She exclaimed, and we turned our attention at them. “While you are in Saddle Arabia, please keep in mind, that you are not only representing yourselves, or your species, but also our humble homeland…” Celestia reminded us. “And regardless of what is written in the history books, keep in mind, that the individuals you will meet had done nothing against us,” Luna continued. We saluted, then replied with a standard “Ma’am, yes, ma’am,” In unison. Except Dr. House… “What? I was meant to do it too? Doctors too?” She wondered. “What do you think?” Freeman reminded her, since he had saluted however. “Well, maybe next ti-” At this point stepped into front of her. “Listen up, you disrespectful pile of filth…” I addressed her in front of everyone else. “From this moment you do what I say. If I say you jump, you ask how high. If I say you drown, you ask how fast. If I say you die, you ask how painful. I’m in charge, I’m the boss, and if you can’t bring your own lazy ass to do one of the most basic things I will not risk taking you only to embarrass me, the others, and everyone else! Salute and apologize, or else I’ll give you something to practice your PhD on!” I yelled at her. She quickly jumped into a salution and loudly apologized to the sisters. “Louder!” “I’m sorry!” “LUDER!” “I’M SORRY!” “LOUDER YOU MAGGOT!” “I’M SORRY!” She yelled at the top of her lungs. “All right, all right, shut the fuck up, you’ll break the windows…” I replied, only embarrassing her. “One more time like this and you’ll be sitting on your ass on you way back, understood?” She briefly nodded in response. “Thought so,” I said, and stood back in the line. “Dismissed, you can go now.” Omnis exclaimed. We saluted and left. While doing so, I kept an eye on her. We walked down to the barracks, where several cargo trucks were packed with our supplies, and things we were going to need. The drivers were eager to start off too, same thing for us. “One person will be in the cargo bay in each truck to cover it’s back. The rest is up to your choice,” I informed them. There were 4 trucks. “Who volunteers?” I asked. Pearce, Jackson, Connor, and Jason silently made their ways to the trucks, each of them fixed an M60 onto the cargo door before we got off. “So Stoneden it is, Cap’n?” Asked our driver. “Just follow the GPS, before I take the wheel instead,” I replied, exhausted of people’s bullshit. The driver shut up, so did the rest of us in the jeep. The silence nearly drove us crazy all along. Thankfully, we soon got there. “Time’s up Captain, here we are,” Said the driver, waking some of us. We got out of the cars, and unloaded the trucks. Needless to say, the doctors though they were exceptions. They weren’t, so I let them know by throwing a crate of canned food at them to catch. Freeman caught it, and joined the others, while House insisted she remains out of it. I sighed and jumped off the truck, crate in my armpit. “You take this crate and either follow the others, or you get no rations the rest of the week,” I warned her. “What day is it again?” She asked. “Tuesday,” I informed her. “In which case,” She said, then reached for the crate. “I thought so. One more disobedience, and I won’t warn you. You won’t eat, and I won’t care,” She nodded and left with the others. “A little too much, Captain?” Asked Pearce, just stepping next to me. “What makes you think so?” I wondered. “She’s not trained to handle that much without food sir,” He reminded me. “Then she does better stay in line and work, or learn metamorphosis,” I replied with a grin. “Your call, Cap,” Pearce exclaimed with a chuckle, and walked off with the others. I’ve known him for a few months, but he was the only one I know from before the mission. He’s a good guy, loyal, obedient, strong and fast thinking. After spending some time thinking about House’s behavior I continued unloading the trucks myself as well. We soon finished unloading, and the convoy returned without us. The group quickly gathered around after being done. “Everyone here? I hate repeating myself,” I said to them before giving instructions. I quickly scanned through the line, nobody absent. “Good. Everyone. I repeat, Everyone…” I said, looking at House. “Begin setting up camp. I’ll tell the mayor we’re here,” I said. Most of them saluted and replied affirmatively, the others simply weren’t required to. I headed toward the tallest building in the middle of town, but on my way some of the residents stopped me. “Can I be of any help, sir?” Asked a colt. “Not to me,” I replied, and passed him by, but he came after me and blocked my path again. “Are you sure?” He asked on a questionable tone. I produced a night-stick and held my hand up ready to swing. “Step out of the way,” I warned him. “Or else? You’ll hurt me?” He asked. “If I must, I will,” I replied, taking a step toward him. “Okay, okay, geez.” He replied, stepping out of the way. I just walked on without reacting to him, soon coming to the doors. I knocked twice, and it opened, revealing a surprised pair. “Yes?” Asked the mare. “Good afternoon. Can I come in?” I replied. “Sure,” The colt replied, allowing me in. “Take a seat, something to drink perhaps?” He asked. “No, I’m sorry, I’m not here to chat, or for dinner,” I explained. “Then why, friend?” The mare wondered. “I’m Captain Joseph Newman, Human Branch of the Equestrian armed forces,” Their faces changed a lot afterwards. “Oh…” The mare said. “Leave… Now…” The colt continued. “You might want to listen to what I have to say, sir,” I replied. “I SAID GET OUT OF MY HOUSE!” He replied, unaware of our intentions. “I can assure you, that you will regret me leaving now,” I warned him. He didn’t say a thing, but threw himself at me out of nowhere, knocking me to the ground. I used my left arm to push his head as far as I could from mine to the side, producing a syringe filled with heavy sedatives in my right hand with the suit. I jammed it into his neck right away, and threw him off, hoping the mare wouldn’t attack as well. Fortunately, she didn’t, and was the wiser. “I’m all ears,” She said after I caught my breath. “He’ll be fine… He’ll wake up in an hour or two,” I explained for first. “As I said earlier, I’m Captain Joseph Newman, we’re here by order of General Omnis,” I continued. “And what are you doing here, Captain?” She wondered. “We were told to set up camp near town, and give away a specified number of food rations each day. For that, we’ll need your help with the administration, so we can make sure nobody got two rations, and that everyone has at least one a day,” I replied. “I see. Tomorrow we will have every resident gather in the town square, perhaps that can help you,” She offered. “Yes, well, that would help a lot.” I replied. “You should go now. It’s getting dark,” She reminded me. We said farewells, and I returned to the camp. We ate our dinners, and went to sleep, except one, who stood the night watch. The next morning we allowed Connor to rest, having finished his shift. “Listen up, I won’t repeat,” I said to get their attention. “Today we will take all residents into administration, so we can keep track who had how many rations, and when they got it,” I exclaimed, then looked at the mechanics. “We will need the mobile database set up, how long will it take?” Vance and Vince swapped glances, then Vance replied. “An hour will do, sir,” The two were siblings. I had read all the other crew members files before going to Canterlot as well. Vance and Vince were at the level of Prof. Adrian’s knowledge when it came to any machines. Computers, vehicles, any mechanism it was, they knew it like the back of their hand. I nodded in response, and looked back at the others. “You’re all dismissed until further notice. Don’t leave perimeter,” I instructed them, and they began minding their own business, as much as they could anyway, in the heat of the blazing desert. As for me, I sat down and tried looking up the crew info once again, but the same thing happened. Coincidentally, while I was holding my tablet, mainly used for non-verbal communication, I received an incoming call. It was from General Omnis. “Yes, ma’am?” I asked. “Captain Newman?” She asked in return. “Yes, ma’am,” I replied, enabling my camera. “What’s the status?” “The mechanics are setting up the mobile database. As soon as they finish, we will begin administration,” I explained. “Anything else?” “Last night the mayor attacked me. I sedated him,” I continued. She only nodded understanding it. “Understood. Prof. Adrian is uploading an update to your, any only your nanosuit soon. Good thing all of your suits have remote access, isn’t it?” “What is the update for, ma’am?” “It will help you keep track of rations in storage, so none can be stolen without a trace,” “Uh, ma’am?” “I’m here,” “May I ask when will the database be fixed?” “What do you mean?” “The files on the others I was sent aren’t loading properly, some aren’t at all,” “Oh, it’s on purpose. If you meet them in person, it helps build a better connection between you. Remember, even I don’t know how long you’ll be there,” She replied, and ended the call. “You piece of…” I tried to make a remark. “Morning Cap,” Connor greeted me, having woken up. “Go join the others, I’ll let you know when we have things to do,” I informed him. He nodded and walked by. I laid down for a nap until the twins were done. “Uh… Captain?” Asked Vance. “Eh? I’m up…” I replied, climbing out the bed. “We’re all ready to go,” Vince exclaimed. “Good… Good… Grab the tools and come along. Call the others to the town square,” I replied, and went just there, before the others would arrive. I spent a short while talking to the mayor and his wife, then the others arrived. At first empty handed, not to look threatening. “Listen up, everyone!” The mayor yelled. “Stand in a line after one another so these men can start recording your information!” He continued, and the citizens began doing so. It went smoothly, Vince and Vance did the administration. Vince made photographs, Vance wrote down the info we needed. Name, gender, race, age… The population was around 200, it was around 6 pm when we suddenly heard some louder arguing. We turned to look, one of the citizens claimed that “We’re trying to take their soul with the camera,” I briefly sighed and joined the arguing two. Most of the others had their night sticks ready, but at waist level, waiting for something to happen. I stepped close and called them off with the usual hand signal: The left hand palm at chest level, preparing my expandable nightstick instead. “Sir, what’s the problem?” I asked. “Don’t YOU know what it is?! You’re trying to take our souls!” He replied. “Well, the others before you are just fine,” Connor reminded him. “You brainwashed them!” The colt threw back. “Sir, I must ask you to leave, or else we will have to remove you from the area,” I warned him. “What? You can’t ask me to leave! I live here!” “Not the town, the town square. You are delaying the line. The faster we finish, the sooner you all get your food,” I explained. “I’m not going anywhere without my food,” “Then stand back in line, and help with the administration,” Vince threw in. “No way,” The colt replied. “In that case, I must ask you to leave. We will be forced to remove you otherwise, which will result in a day without food as penalty,” I warned him for the last time. “You won’t convince me,” He exclaimed. I lifted the night stick mid air and told him to leave, but with no results. His persistence left me no choice, but to hit him in the foreleg, causing him to go limp on said body part. “Leave, now,” I said again, but he didn’t leave. “Pearce…” I simply said, putting away my weapon of choice, as Pearce stood next to me. “Arrest him,” I said. He nodded and produced a set of restrainers, designed for equines. It worked just like hand cuffs, but it was made so the size can be adjusted around the hooves. “Wh- What? You can’t, you’re foreign authority!” “And your problem,” I reminded him while Pearce tried to approach him. “You can’t!” Yelled. “You’re making a scene, stop resisting, or else we will be forced take more serious actions,” Pearce warned him. At this point a few of us were eager to see how it ends. The colt only turned to run, but 20,000 volts made him stop, spazzing on the ground. Shepherd managed to unplug him in the end, and restrained him. I signaled them with my hand to bring him back to me, so they dragged him all the way back. With a sharp whistle I made sure everyone is paying attention. “From now on, you either accept and do as we say, or you WILL die,” I exclaimed louder than usual, so those from far can hear. The line was still intact, nobody ran off thankfully. The mare in front of me looked at me confused, and slightly scared. Then the mayor and his wife rushed to me. “What’s the meaning of this?! I’M in charge here!” He exclaimed. “If so, go ahead, feed your citizens, because we sure won’t,” I replied. “Okay guys, pack the things, we’re leaving!” I yelled back to my comrades, just to intimidate the mayor. “You can’t! Your task is to be here and help!” He replied. “I can just write a report stating that you declined our help. You can guess who’s going to have more credibility…” I reminded him, then turned my back of him. After taking a couple of steps he changed his mind. “Wait! Stop!” He yelled. “What is it?” I asked. “Fine, you can be in charge…” He muttered. “I can’t hear you,” “You can be in the lead, okay?” “Still can’t… You know, we’re here to take care of your asses. If you won’t do what we tell you, you will literally die, without us firing a single bullet,” I reminded him. “A bullet?” He asked. “What’s that?” I produced a pistol and took out a bullet from the magazine, showing it to him. “You know what this does, don’t you?” He shook his head in response. I loaded the bullet back and stood up. “Cover your ear,” I warned him, and approached the captive. “What are you doing to me?” “You my friend… Will make a fine example…” I replied, and shot him in the gut. The crowd either looked away, cringed, or stepped back, while the colt yelled in pain. I was not finished yet. I produced one of the wrist knives, which we all just called Trick in the sleeve, and jabbed him in the chest many times, letting the sands beneath him run red. “Everyone who does not follow our words of advice, rebels against, or attacks us will follow!” I let them all know, then injected the body with enough Krokodil to make it disappear within the next hour or two. “I hope I made myself clear!” I continued, and let things continue in their pace. The registration ended without a problem, so we managed to dispense everyone’s first dose of rations. We returned to camp after we finished, only to go back to the square the next day. This going back and forth continued for months, even years, when one morning I woke up to a message on my tablet. <1 New Message> [Open] ←- [Dismiss] <Captain, I would like to be the first to congratulate you on the one year anniversary of your presence in Stoneden. We highly value your dedicated service thus far, and are pleased to inform you, that a replacement group will be arriving today. They may arrive any time, as their speed depends on the weather. In case they arrive, seek Lieutenant Isaac, so you can fill out the documents about your replacement. The fact that we are replacing you and your team DOES NOT MEAN that we are not pleased with your performance. In fact, it means the opposite. We are pleased, and for this, we reward you all on your return to Canterlot. Please pass this information onto your squad in word, or show them this message.> I was so happy to leave this bowl of sand… So I wasted no time and send the message over to the other’s tablets, so they can read it. It was around breakfast when we gathered around to eat and talk as usual. We got a little close under those years, it was half a decade we spent there… After finishing the breakfast, we waited a few hours, and the replacements arrived. My men greeted their comrades, while I talked to their superior, exchanging info they may want to keep in mind, such as local traditions and such. Fortunately Lieutenant Isaac kept in mind the difference between us in ranks, and paid full attention, so it was easy to talk to him. In the end, he thanked me for the info and left to sort his men out, as I returned to mine, and prepared to leave, when a cloaked mare came to us. Unfortunately, it was a restricted area, so it was no surprise that she was soon greeted by staring down some barrels. She slowly walked toward us, as we had our weapons away. “Stop, and identify yourself!” Said one of Isaac’s. She refused to say a word but revealed her face. “I won’t say again!” The soldier yelled at her, finger on the trigger. I just pulled my pistol and put it to his head. “Go ahead, shoot, but so will I,” I warned him. He froze in shock, so i knocked him out with the butt of the gun. “Captain, what’s the meaning of this?” Isaac wondered. “Your subordinate was about to open fire at an unarmed citizen of Saddle Arabia, who’s visibly harmless,” I explained, putting my sidearm away. The mare only approached me with a smile. “I see your eye and heart is clear, so are those of your soldiers... “ She exclaimed. “What are you doing here, ma’am? You’re not supposed to be here,” I informed her. “I was guided here… The goddess Nazar guided my path to you…” She explained. “Who?” I asked. “Ah, so you know not…” She muttered. “The lord Nazar is a Goddess of ours. Nazar is the embodyment of care, love, and protection,” “Oh, I see,” I replied. “She herself spoke to me in my dream, telling me to come today,” She informed us. “And… Who are you?” “I am a mere priestess, who serves in the temples most the time, praying for a better world with the other priests and priestesses… Priesti? Ahem… Anyway… Nazar herself asked me to pass these onto you for your past years,” She said, producing a few neck jewels from her cloak, giving one to everyone in my squad. “May your lives from now on be filled with peace…” She said, ending her speech. We thanked her and wished her the same, before leaving on our way back to Canterlot. It was around noon when we arrived, and went to see the Generals and sisters. We stood in the throne room, when finally prof Adrian arrived as well. “Ahem. Greetings, ladies and gentlemen… We appreciate your efforts in the past years, now, you all can return to the barracks back at home, with the exception of Captain Newman. Captain, please follow prof. Adrian…” Gen Altamir exclaimed. I did as requested, and followed the professors. We returned to the same lab, it looked like it was the first time i set foot there. “What’s up, doc?” I asked from Adrian. “I believe it is time we take that suit off of you now, as the experiment is over…” He replied. “Please, lie down on your back onto this desk,” He continued. “Uhh… Sure…” I replied, having a bad feeling. Suddenly I found myself surrounded by glass, standing, strapped to the table, with some liquid pouring in from the bottom of the tank my table turned into. “What are you doing to me?” I asked, a little scared, even myself. “Ending the experiment…” He said, prof Itrix nowhere to be seen. My bad feeling about the situation became true, and had no idea what he was planning. “You see, Captain… Now that you can do nothing against it, I’ll tell you the details of the experiment... “ He said with a grin, walking back and forth in front of me, the two of us the only in the room, no cameras. “Haven’t you said it’s to test the new suit?” I asked confused. “Haha… No… We installed a small backdoor into your suit, and while you thought you’re just helping them, you were our involuntary spy all along…” “What?!” “That’s right, everything you learned about them is now in our database… Those five years of info are enough to kill them slowly without them noticing it too..” He explained. “Why are you doing this?” I asked. “Because they deserve it… They are the reason Altamir and Itrix died all those year ago! They are the reason Omnis’s parents died! THEY DESERVE EVERYTHING THEY WILL GET!” He began to yell like a maniac. “So you’re the only one who knows about your plans… You’re sick…” I told him. “I’m sick? Oh, Captain… YOU’RE the one who shot that colt and nearly gutted him on the first few days… YOU’RE the one who took hundreds of lives on orders from someone else… AND NOW YOU CAN’T DO ANYTHING! YOU’RE MINE NO-” *Bang* *Splat* “Jeez!” I exclaimed, as Adrian’s brain splattered on the other side of the tube. As his body slowly slipped down leaning against the tube, the blood began making its way down with it, but I was far from okay, as the liquid was still rising. The chunks of what was left of his head made it hard for me to see, but I knew someone was in the room, as I heard someone using the terminal’s keyboard. The liquid stopped to rise and quickly began to drain, as the lib opened I was greeted by Vince and Vance, later with a pistol in hand. “Come on Cap, we need to get you out of here as soon as we can…” Vance exclaimed. The restrains let go and I was free again, but confused even more. “What’s this? Explain! Now!” I replied. “We’ll explain everything later. Just grab a gun and come on. Shoot everyone who aims at us,” Vince explained. I did as asked and the three of us made our ways to the barracks, where we got one of the humvees and slipped away unnoticed. “Where are we going?” I wondered. “Home,” Vance replied. [End of Chapter 1] Chapter 2: TrippinWe drove for a long time, from Canterlot all the way to the edge of the Wasteland, into a larger city. We just continued going and going, until we turned down to an alleyway, where we were greeted by a few masked men pointing guns at us. At that point I was not sure to wait for their instructions, or listen to my instincts, and was about to act, when I heard the response. “Calm down, they’re with us,” Vince assured me. “Take it slow, nice and easy, put your hands up to where they can see them, and you’ll be fine,” I put my hands up slowly, the twins got out the car, and opened the door for me. “What’s he doing here?” Asked one of the gunmen. “We brought him here,” Vance replied. “Are you out of your mind?! He’s one of them! He’s a soldier!” “Yes-Yes, I know… Come on, I’ll explain inside, before someone sees us,” She replied. We did just that, but I still held my hands up. “Come on, come on,” One of them said, dragging me by the sleeve. We went down some stairs, a few coded doors, and in the end, I was sat down in a barely lit room on a plastic chair. Some random rugrat with blue jeans and a leather jacket sat down in front of me, and closed the door. “So, what do you want?” He asked. “To get out,” I replied. “Why did you even come here then?” “Because I was forced to,” “Right… How did they get you?” “Prof.Adrian went insane. He said everything I saw heard and learned in the five years in Stoneden is now in the central database, and will be used to kill them. He was about to flood me with some yellow shit, but Vance shot him, and they got me here,” I explained. “What’s your name?” “Joseph Newman,” “Newman it is… I’m Jason, good to know you,” He replied, holding a hand. As I reached to shake it he held out his other hand with a pistol in it. “Here’s your options…” “What?” “You either take the pistol and stay with us, a group of freelancer mercenaries, a promise of safety, or my empty hand and leave. Be warned, that now probably most of your former comrades are looking for you with a bullet with your name on it…” He explained. I took the pistol. “One more for your V.2.0 suit huh? And another one for the team, too… Welcome to the team,” He exclaimed jokingly. “So, what did I just do?” I wondered. “Let me give you a walk…” He said, and showed me around the place. I recognized the layout, it was a standard city bunker for war time, which they managed to crack open. He showed me the rooms, some anyway, turned out a few of us actually lived there, while others came in like they would to a regular workplace. That day was spent with meeting the others, and learning the basics i should know, until we decided to have some burgers at a nearby place. A few of us decided to have fries too, it was nice that they paid for mine too, since I had no cash on me. We had fun, until some dirt rag pulled a pistol in the cashier and took a hostage. There were only 2 of us who chose to come, both of us had our pistols ready under the table, but I put mine away. I didn’t care much about how it ends, I still had the suit on afterall. “Everyone get on the floor! Now!” He yelled. I slowly stood up with my cup in my left hand, and turned to look at him. “You too!” He yelled. “I’m just getting some soda, bro,” I replied. “I won’t say it again!” He yelled. “Just… A… Soda…” I said, slowly walking behind him, while he turned to keep an eye on me. I put my cup into the machine, other hand in pocket. I slowly flicked the machine on, it began spilling me a good cold beverage. I then slowly turned around and began making my way back to my seat, but stopped in front of the gunman. “Come on, get moving,” He said calmer than before, I guess he started trusting me, or maybe he was just over confident… I quickly threw my drink at him, successfully blinding him for a few seconds, which were enough for me to produce a nightstick, but before I could hit him he was about to point and shoot. I managed to hit him in the shooting elbow, resulting in his pistol flying out of his grip. I swung my arm back, hitting him in the face and knocking him backwards. Unfortunately he fell and hit his head on the counter. The cashiers seemed relieved, while both them and the customers began to cheer, either for me, or just from happiness, I didn’t care. “Call an ambulance… And the cops,” I told one of the cashiers. She nodded and pulled her phone. I went to talk to another one while she did it. “You should hire a security guy,” I noted to him. “I know, right? This is like what… The fifth time this month…” He replied. “Hey, good job tho,” I nodded, and we returned to the base they took from the government. “How did it go?” Asked Jess. The thing is, we, with me joining recently, were a group of about half a dozen. Mainly we were either hackers, drivers, shooters, doctors, or spies. Jess was one of a kind, she was the only person I would call a scientist among us. “You were right, *Buurp* Their burgers are good,” Jason replied.He doubled as an expert driver and shooter I heard. He and I were the only shooters i knew of in our small group, of which he seemed to be the leader of. “Told ya,” She replied with a grin. “Anything else happened?” “Watch the news tonight, you’ll know,” Jason threw back, and left to his room. “What’s he on about?” She wondered. “Some dude ran in with a gun, and wanted the cash. Let’s just say I didn’t approve,” I explained. To this, she stopped whatever she was doing at the computer and turned to face me with her chair. “How did he look?” “Green pants, red beanie, dust protector mask, black jacket, white shirt,” I replied as good as I could remember. She sighed and slowly buried her face into her hands. “Hi hou hi hi?” That was all I could make of what she muttered through her hands. “What?” “Did you kill him?” “I was trying not to, why?” I pondered. “Damn it… It was my brother… I told him not to do it…” She replied. “Well, his mistake, his problem,” She continued. “I didn’t know,” I assured her. “No, not your fault… We barely kept in touch anyway. I could care less of him to be honest,” She replied. “That means no hard feelings, right?” “Yep,” “Cool,” I said with a grin, which she returned, then dove back into what she was doing on the comp. I was glad that went so smooth, having not angered her unwillingly. I was wondering where the others were, so I decided to see how they were. The base was large, since it was designed to house over a hundred people, with countless facilities of all kinds, so unless you had a phone, it was hard to find the other in that maze. “Hey, Vance?” I asked through said device, well, the counterpart in my suit anyway. He wondered. “What are you up to?” He said. “My bad, go on,” I assured him, and hung up. Since Jason and Jess were busy, Vance was going to sleep, and the others were away doing their thing, I chose to go for a walk. I just made sure to let at least Jess know where I went. I closed the door behind with my keycard, Jess gave it to me the other day. I had no exact goal in mind. I just wanted to help time pass. At first I wanted to see a pub, but chose to return to the burger place instead. As I approached the corner, I began hearing the sound of police sirens. Great, at least they came at the end. I thought to myself, then turned the corner, only to see the entrance blocked by the police, as an officer was talking to the cashier I talked to with a notepad and pen in hand. I could not hear a thing they said yet, but I saw the cashier mouthing something like. ˝It was him˝ Then pointed at me. The officer put his notepad away and turned to face me. I just continued walking toward them, hands on pocket as usual. Needless to say, at this point I wore clothes similar to Jason’s, just differing color. “Excuse me sir, I’d like to have a few words with you,” He exclaimed. “Sure, go ahead,” I replied, taking my hands out of the pockets. “Witnesses confirmed that there was an attempted robber here earlier, were you present at the time?” “Yes, I was,” “Few say that the suspect was armed with a 9mm handgun, can you confirm this?” “I’m not sure what caliber, but yes,” “Employees stated that you decided to fight the robber, is this true?” “Yes, I did,” “That’s enough for now. I must ask you to enter the vehicle and come with me,” He said. “My only choices are to go by myself, or be forced to, aren’t they?” I asked. “Looks like you’re a smart guy huh?” He replied. I sighed and sat down on one of the back seats. I remained silent until we arrived, when he and a few others took me to a typical interrogation room. “Take a seat,” Said one of the cops, pointing at a steel chair in front of a table of the same material. I did as requested. It seemed to not have been enough, as another one came up to me with handcuffs. She didn’t have to ask, I did what I would’ve had to anyway. Then the previous officer sat down in front of me. “What am I charged with again?” I wondered. “Oh, don’t worry… You have nothing to do with the law…” He replied with a grin. “Come again?” “Not the usual way anyway… You have a large bounty on your head, Captain, it will pay me well,” He exclaimed, and just seconds after the crook from the burger place came into the room, bandages around his head and the arm I hit in a cast. “What’s this?!” I wondered, having had enough of shady people recently. “A surprise,” He said. “Wh-” I was cut short by a good 20k volts, and knocked out. The next thing I remembered was me being tied up tighter than anything I could compare it to. There were at least 5 armed guys around me, in a van, being taken somewhere. Needless to mention, none of actual law enforcement. Fuck My Life… “Awake so soon? It’s a pity you have to go back…” Said one of them, before I was hit in the face with the butt of a gun. The next time I woke up I was strapped to a makeshift bed with nobody around. I lied on that bed for hours without anyone coming in. It’s been 4 hours there, when I began hearing rumbling and such. I was not sure if it was the sensory depravation kicking in, or finally something was actually happening. Soon after I began hearing a familiar sound… Gunfire… I only grinned as I did most the time I heard it. Soon after the door was kicked in, a masked woman standing there. “Hic est cooperiunt me, et vade,” She said. I recognized her choice of words. She was speaking Latin… She said “Here he is, cover me and get out,” Or something like that, it’s been years since I practiced that tongue. She cut me free and pushed a pistol into my hands. “Age, si vos es questus,” (Come on, we’re getting you out,) I nodded and followed her. We stopped in the doorway, taking cover on the sides, while the firefight continued on the other side. She simply moved her hand enough to make me look at it, she was counting down on it. 3...2...1...0. She leapt forward opening fire to the right, I followed just moments after, only to be shot in the chest, the bullet went through me, between the ribs, avoiding any organs. It was at this moment I realized I no longer had the suit. I felt much more vulnerable. “Ut non te occidit, ire!” (Don’t get yourself killed, go!) I was still on the floor, and began crawling my way back, where the others got me out of the building. They were waiting in 3 vans, turns out I was held in a village in Arabia, thankfully, not Stoneden… None the less, you can imagine what they needed 15 gunmen for. Two of them picked me up and literally threw me into one of the vans, where only one person was. A white streak over the sleeve. “Come on, let me patch you up…” He said, reaching for his bag of medicine. “Get off, I’ll be fine,” I threw back. “Fine,” He said, a little offended. Soon enough all the vans were full, and we departed from the town, only to see the building explode minutes later. Our trip was seemingly short, when we arrived they opened the door for me. I stepped off, only to see the same woman. “Come on, we’re going to have a talk, and you’ll know what will happen,” She exclaimed, holding a hand out to me. “I can walk, thanks,” I replied, declining it. I followed her to a wherever she was taking me, trusting her, since they got me out of there. “A glass of water maybe?” She wondered, taking a seat in front of me. “I’m fine,” I replied, doing the same. “You’re at one of our safe places. You can rest here, you need to heal up,” “What happened back there?” “They took off your suit. They were modern mercenaries, nowadays known as Fixers. They wanted to turn you over to Omnis, but we had an informant among them. Sadly, he’s gone by now, but we managed to pull you out,” She explained. “And what’s next?” I wondered. “Right now we’re trying to make contact with your friends, and let them know you’re fine. Once we reach them, we will take you back to them. Until then, let the docs help fix that hole. We don’t want them thinking we did it to you,” She continued. I agreed. Hopping in uninvited with a hole through me surely wouldn’t have been a good idea. “Tell me a name to remember for this favor,” I replied. “Oh, you’ll know when we need it returned,” She assured me. “Sounds ominous… And, what’s the name to the face I’m staring at?” “Wouldn’t YOU like to know?” She asked with a grin. “Go, rest, tomorrow I can offer you a few more answers,” She continued. I was tired, so I took the advice and went to sleep. The next morning seemed to come earlier than usual. Other than that, I found a bulletproof vest, and the exact same equipment the C.E.O used. Catastrophe Evasion Office. You see, Catastrophe Evasion was responsible for dispatching Firefighters and Law Enforcement, unaffected by Omnis’s words. I put the equipment on, then found a badge in one of the pockets as well. I hid my pistol by tucking it under my pants under by waist, the butt hanging out, covered by my shirt. At last, I also managed to find that woman. “Seems it fits you well. Consider it a gift,” She greeted me. “You did this? How did you get it? It’s impossible to smuggle these!” I replied. “Who said we smuggled them?” She asked, producing a pistol from one of the drawers of her chair, placing it on her table. “Don’t judge, we have our methods... “ “I haven’t said a word,” I noted. “Anyway… Good news is… We managed to make contact with some guy named Jason…” “You did?” “The problem is… Uh… I’m joking, there’s none… Come on, we have to go,” She replied with a grin. “Playing still?” I wondered, arms crossed. “Don’t make me drag you all the way…” She replied. I followed her to one of the vans, and we left their base. We drove, drove, drove and drove… “Sorry for the broken radio, I sent word for it to be fixed but nope, apparently I haven’t…” She noted, barely keeping both of us sane from the hours. “We’re close now,” She said as the view changed to that of a cliff side. “Great… Great…” I muttered, having no clue what to say. “Don’t talk much?” She wondered. “Nope,” I replied, things began getting awkward. “No useless talking, only when must… I’m starting to like you…” She said with a grin, while I just rolled my eyes. “Come on, say something! I’m no enemy here!” She tried encouraging me. *Sigh* “What do you want to talk about?” I wondered. “I don’t know… Anything? Tell me about yourself,” “Like you don’t already know me... “ I muttered, then continued. “You expect me to tell my childhood and the usual stuff? The same I was asked many times before?” “Yup…” She replied, only looking at me out the corner of her eye. “Before you begin, could you open the glove compartment and give me what’s in it?” I reached to open it, but it wouldn’t do so. “It might be stuck…” I noted, and continued trying for a few more pulls, but it didn’t give. “Nonsense, it can’t be… “She said, reaching over with a hand, trying to still look at the road. “Watch the road! I’ll get this open!” I warned her, but she didn’t listen. Just seconds later she managed to break the thing open. “See? I told you it will o- GET DOWN!” She yelled all of the sudden. I did just as she told me to, as a single gunshot rang out, then we went off-road. “Damn snipers… Hang on!” She muttered, trying to drive safely down the hillside. She managed to stay in control all right, until we crashed into a tree, well hidden by the forest ahead. The next thing I remember from the impact was the airbag breaking my nose and blocking most of my view. I managed to deflate it, since my kidnappers forgot the Sleeve Tricks, then went on to deflate hers. She seemed to be knocked out, or even dead. I was not sure at the time. I managed to drag her out of the van, several meters from the van. I set her down leaning against one of the trees, as I sat down next to her to rest. “Fuck my life… Why can’t I have just one ordinary day…” I muttered, sick of having no rest in the recent 10 years. “I know… Right?” Asked a familiar voice. “Well, at least you’re fine,” I muttered with some relief. “With an almost broken arm, surely,” She replied. “Now what?” I wondered. “We take a deep breath and get our shit sorted out?” “Sounds fine,” I said, agreeing. “Just five minutes more, right?” She asked. I just replied with a brief “Mhmm..” As said, we stood up. “Now, let’s find the van…” “Why?” I wondered. “It probably burned down by now,” “We need the cargo from the back, I knew something like this may happen,” She explained. “What is it?” “You’ll see…” She replied and tried making her way back to the van far in sight, when I heard a noise that wasn’t fitting. A long whistle. “RPG!” I yelled, tackling her to the ground, only to hear the rpg hit the van, followed by someone loudly yelling. “FUUUUUUUUCCCKKKK” In the distance. “You okay?” I asked. She only gave me a thumbs up, as her face was buried in an ants nest, quickly brushing those off who clung on to her as she stood up. “Good call… We need to continue on to the North,” She said, shortly after looking at her compass, which she produced from who knows where. “We have a lot of time until night, until then, we need to move on through the forest, since it covers us,” “Good idea, lead the way,” I replied, and we began making our way through the woods, until we came to a ravine. “Now what?” “Give me a sec to think…” She said, pondering. “Aaaaha!” She said all the sudden, and stood next to a moderately large tree. “What’s in your head?” I wondered. She pulled a combat hatchet from the sheath I haven’t noticed until then, and with a few hits, the tree fell, creating a bridge. “Wanna go first?” She wondered. “Nice one… “ I said, and stepped onto the fallen trunk, but when I was halfway there, the sniper shot the trunk, blowing it apart. I ran for it and jumped, barely landing one hand on the other edge. “Fuck…” I muttered from the surprise. “Well… Now what?” She wondered from the other side. “Chop down another one?” I suggested. She got to another tree, and reached back for a good swing, but the blade of her tool never made it to the trunk, and the sniper fired again, shooting off the shaft. “Fuckin hell!” She yelled, throwing the handle away. “We need to make a distraction…” She said. “Go, find dry stuff, branches, poop, grass…. Then bring them here. I’ll find some flint, so we can set that on fire,” “Smokin em out?” I wondered. “Okay,” I replied, and set out to my task. Hours later I managed to get back with a ton of shit… And branches, and grass... “Good, now catch!” She said, throwing a small black rock my way. I managed to catch it, but then I asked. “Where’s the steel to it?” I asked. “I thought you have some Tricks up the sleeve,” She said, hinting. “Riiight…” I replied, and managed to set the flame. It took a few minutes for smoke to rise. “What now?” I wondered again. She produced a knife from her ankle, and took a few steps back. “Why the fuck not... “ She muttered, and took a running jump. She jumped off the edge and pulled her legs up as close as she could, jumping 5 meters of the 6, then edging the knife into a crack. “C’mon!” She said. I reached down and pulled her up. “Nice jump… Gotta teach me that one,” I said, patting her on the back as she regained her breath. “Maybe next time… “ She replied, patting my knee in return before we continued on our way. We walked and walked, while we were eventually shot at by our lovely friend from above, until it got dark. “Got the flint still?” She wondered. “I’m just gonna get shit to burn…” I replied confirming. “That’s not the only thing that burns…” She replied with a grin. I only flipped her off as I walked off, sighing at her jokes. After gathering enough things to start a fire I returned to her, and to my surprise, she already had some makeshift hammocks made, another hatchet in hand, already chopping firewood. “How long was I away?” I wondered. “Didn’t YOU keep track?” She asked. “Nope,” I replied, and started the fire. “This will come good later on… Now, off to sleep…” She exclaimed as we sat near the fire. “You sure it’s safe?” “He knows we know he’s after us, it would be a mistake to come any closer… Plus I know the type of sniper our friend is… They take no pride in shooting still targets…” She explained, and got in her hammock. “If you say so…” I muttered, and did the same. [End of Chapter 2] Chapter 3: Hard ResetI fell out of the hammock, and stumbled to my feet. I saw her pinning who I can assume to by the sniper on the ground. “Damn it…” He muttered. “Now you talk… Who sent you?” She asked our friend. “As if I would talk,” He replied. She pulled a pistol and shot him in the thigh. “Nice try fucker, I won’t tell,” He continued, not reacting to it with even a flinch. “I won’t waste my time… You get one more chance, or a bullet,” She warned him. “You know my choice,” He replied, then spat at her. “I was hoping I did,” She replied, then shot him in the face. “One less guy to play paintball with,” I said from behind. “Yep, let’s get going… We should be there soon anyway, and with him out of the picture, we won’t have to hurry. “I hope we get there soon… I can use some calm time…” “So could I…” She replied as we walked on. After a while of silence she came with a question. “So… Can I ask something?” “Yep,” I replied. “Yesterday… Why did you help me get up? You could’ve gone on without me,” “The same thing you got me out of that village,” I replied quickly, tho I was still pondering at the question. We returned to no talking afterwards for the rest of the way… To the sight of a town completely walled off from the outside, large metal doors, guarded by soldiers in what seemed to be exo-skeletons. “What the fuck is this?!” I asked loud. “A bunch of Grunts and Brutes,” She replied, handing me binoculars. “The guys with the thicker armor are the Brutes, they got a pretty much impenetrable armor,” “They must have a weak spot…” I muttered. “Damn right they do,” She replied, lying on the ground with an M107 sniper rifle. “Where the fuck do you get this stuff from?!” I wondered. “You’re not the only one who got a hand on a nanosuit,” She replied. “Are you sure you can take them out?” “Who said I will? Their suits need a constant supply of energy and oil for the machinery. If I hit the battery or oil tank on their back it will send em flying all ways,” She explained. “Well, since you don’t intend on passing by unseen, why won’t you just go balls to the walls and use an RPG?” I inquired. “Why won’t you just walk past them with the shit you got on?” She threw back. “You’re the one who immediately pulled a rifle,” I reminded her. She rolled her eyes and crossed her arms, standing in front of me. “If you insist on prioritising the least violent way, fine, but I’ll have a few smoke bombs ready. We’re gonna see if we can get in through them,” She replied, she seemed a bit annoyed. I guess she wasn’t a born pacifist to say the least… We slowly walked up to said gate, where the same patrol stopped us. Before we got there she managed to whisper a few things. “1 Mech, 3 Brutes and 8 Grunts… You sure about this?” I nodded and continued. “Hold it there,” Said one of the grunts. “Yes?” I asked confidently, trying to play the role my attire represents. He opened his mouth to talk, but before he did, he took a good look at me, then shut his mouth. “Who’s she?” He wondered. “She’s…” I had no clue what to tell, it was obvious I needed to lie. “She’s one of the experimental border hunters, haven’t you heard?” “Border hunters? Never before,” He replied. “Well, it will be their job to keep the borders clear, instead of wasting us to stand here instead of conquering new land…” I explained. He seemed to believe my made up story. “Right… Go on,” We walked past him and approached the large metal door. “One second…” He said. I looked at her, she had a small, grey ball in her hand, staring me in the eye, waiting for a not. I turned around to reply. “What?” “What were you doing out here?” “I was showing her around, the environment, the forest, so she’ll know it a little better,” I replied. “Makes sense, okay, never mind,” We did it, we got past them finally… “Told ya it won’t be that hard…” I said, trying to mock her passive aggressive attitude. “Where was that meeting point again?” “Don’t you know the way from here?” “Not from here… First time I went there I had no other choice, was on a back seat and almost shot,” I reasoned. “Riight…” She replied and pulled her phone. It rang out. “C’mon….” “Jason?” “Yeah, we just passed the South gate. Can you send someone for us? We don’t know the way…” He seemed to be having a problem. He hung up. “Asshole… Is he like that all the time?” She wondered. I just pulled my shoulders. *Burrr* *Burrr* “What?” Jason replied, the hung up again. “Motha fu- Gah!” She replied, and threw her phone at the ground, which bounced as high as she threw it from. I couldn’t help but chuckle at the scene. “S-sorry…” I managed to spit out while doing so. Soon we heard sirens coming near. “I have a feeling that means our ride is near…” I muttered, wiping the grin from my face. I was right, we saw a car pull up and drift into stop in front of us. “C’mon guys! Hurry!” Said the driver. We got in and held on. “What now?” She wondered. “You either keep your heads down or shoot back!” Replied the driver. It was enough for her to lean out the window with a GL-79 and shoot at the cars behind us, who, needless to say were the police… Some of the cars flew, the road had a crater in it, preventing them from following us. “Effective… The fuck did you get that from tho?” Asked the driver. “Eyes on the road!” I yelled, pulling my own sidearm. “Huh, hers is better,” He said, and looked back on the road. Unfortunately a few turns later a few more of the patrol cars started to chase us. “When I kill the engine and shut the lights you keep down,” He said and pulled into an alleyway, took a sharp turn left and stopped the engine. We waited sometime there until the police passed. “Now, give me your money,” Said the driver all the sudden, pointing a sawed off shotgun back at us. “What the fuck?” “Jason said it will be an easy job, and nothing about the two of you. I’m just gonna pop a cap in both of ya and get your cash, then tell em the police shot ya’ll,” “How about no?” She wondered, then shot him in the back of the head through the seat. “Geezus…” I said. “What? You saw it! He was gonna kill us! I ain’t gonna die to a small time criminal like his ass!” She tried to explain. “This once I’m glad you did it,” I threw back, and got out of the car with ringing ears. “Ugh, what are you again? A terrorist or something?” I asked, since she called the guy a small time criminal. “You must be a sniper, cause you’re damn right,” She replied. “And so the irony of life sets in… An ex-soldier saved by terrorists… Not that I regret it…” I began to ponder. We spent the rest of the day getting back to the bunker. *Kock* *Knock* *Knock* “Yeah?” Asked Jess through the intercom. “It’s me, Joseph,” I replied. “I see, we have a camera up there you know. What of your friend?” “She got me here,” I answered, the door opened and we got in. Jason soon enough came to check on us. “I see you two are fine,” He noted, holding a hand to me as a greeting. I slapped it away. “You out of your mind? The guy you sent tried to rob us then kill us!” I threw at him. “No shit, really? Next time I won’t hire that guy I guess…” “I doubt anyone will,” She threw in. “Good thing I didn’t send one of us then,” Jason replied. “Now, thanks for the visit, and fuck off,” “Beg your pardon, dickwad?” She threw back, not leaning against the wall anymore. “You heard it right. Get your ass out of here!” Jason yelled back. “Dude, she got me here and saved me. I would’ve died without her!” I tried convincing him. “Joseph, we’re better off with her gone. Her kind is not appreciated anywhere!” He exclaimed. “It’s okay, just keep out of my sight from now on,” She replied and punched the wall on her way out, leaving a crude dent in it. “She could’ve hit you instead…” Jess leaned in to whisper, then left to one of the labs. “Trust me, she’s one of the two kind of people you want to avoid…” Jason told me. “Explain,” I replied crossing my arms. “There are two radical groups, both are considered terrorists by the government,” “Wouldn’t our enemy’s enemy be our ally?” I pondered. “Not these ones,” “So who are these two?” “Here’s a hint: One considers Luna as a god, the other, same, with Celestia,” “So we have the Lunatics and… Uh…” I tried to make a joke but barely made one. “What can be related to the sun… Hmmm… Tan? Sunglasses? Heat? Hotheads?” Asked Jeff, one of the shooters, offering a hand for high five. “Good enough,” I replied, high fiving him. “You done?” Jason wondered. “What? It’s worth a joke,” I replied. “Just… Stay away from them… Keep the badge, but lose the rest, some of the fixers might mistake you for target practice,” He advised me, then left to his room. “You might want to do that one,” Alex noted passing by with a few smaller crates. I went to my room and did so, keeping the gun and badge. I chose to take a nap, so I leaned back and got at it. It must have been hours later when I heard my phone ring. I pressed the unlock key on the side, and my eyes began to burn. Don’t you all hate when this happens? I quickly dragged the slider down to adjust the brightness, then looked at the screen. “1 missed call…” I muttered. I looked at the logs and called back. It rang out for a while. Said a familiar voice. “Jason might be the boss in the group but not of mine,” I replied, recognizing the caller. She wondered. “Fine… What time is it?” <4:19 am, I have an offer you will be interested in, but I won’t be alone… And if you come, I doubt Jason would allow you back, just to make it clear to you> She explained. Then she hung up. I chose to go, just from curiosity, but before doing so I left them a thank you and good-bye letter. It was darker than usual but I managed to get there by 4:23. “Glad you came,” She said, wearing full combat gear, all white with golden trim. “So this is the guy you talked of,” Noted the man next to her, same gear, but all dark blue with black trim, crossing his arms. “Let me guess, he’s the lunatic, while you’re the hothead,” I said to her. “Yep… Heh, hothead… That’s a new one, tho,” She noted. “So, what’s the offer you mentioned? I’m still half asleep, and I got no clue how long I can stay up…” I cut to the point. “If you want to, we can get you back to Canterlot to do your duty once again, but with a new face, name, and body,” Said the guy next to her. “I’m interested… What’s the plan?” I wondered. “Easy. You come with me, we take your memory from your body, get you a new body, plug it back into that one, and dump the other somewhere in the sewers and viola! All we will need then is for Lumen’s guys to hack into the database and create your alias in there,” He explained. “Just to make things equal, Malov, remember our deal, okay?” Lumen threw in. “Yeah, yeah, I remember… We get him back in there, so he can do us both a favor by keeping the sisters safe, I know,” He said, tired of her to some point. “What do you say?” Lumen wondered. *Sigh* “I’m in, just so I can get closer to Omnis as well…” I noted, and went with the two of them wherever Malov took us. It was less than an hour, and I woke up in my new body. “Rise and shine, uh…” Said Malov. “What should be your new name?” He wondered. “Whoever’s body this was,” I threw back. “Lucy Stillman it is…” He replied with a grin. “WHAT?!” I yelled, looking down on me right away, to my relief, I did not have a female body. “Gotya… But seriously, your new name is Ryan Knight, copy that? Your age is 25, and just enlisted, so we will get you into the next shipment to the training camp…” He explained. “Great, thanks for the help,” I replied. “I’ll take him from here, come on,” Lumen said, and managed to fit me in, basically bribing a few employees and having connections. At last, I was on my way to the camp before night. “Thanks for the help, I got the phone so we can keep in contact,” I said. “You’re the one doing us both a favor,” She said with a grin and left. [End of Chapter 3] Crew InfoIt's been 50 years since Etarr's defeat, and things were going well. After receiving the summoning to Canterlot, Captain Newman sits down, and reads the provided information about his yet to meet comrades. He sat down to his computer at his office, seeing a new folder on his desktop he opened it, revealing 11 new files, each with a different name. The first one caught his attention. Opening it showed him the profile of a soldier. Name: Adrian Shephard Age: 25 Class: Sniper Rank: Second Lieutenant D O B: 1930.12.01 Race: Human / White Height: 1.8m / 5.9ft Weight: 56Kg / 123lbs Hair: Brown Eye: Green BIO: Ex mercenary. Traits: Precise, works best alone, no family. "This guy looks promising..." *Clicks next profile* Name: Sarah Karrigan Age: 23 Class: Sniper Rank: Lieutenant D O B: 1932.04.02 Race: Human / White Height: 1.7m / 5.5ft Weight: 45Kg / 99lbs Hair: Red Eye: Black BIO: Mother of two, passed academy as head of class. Traits: Impatient, violent, easy to anger. "I might keep and eye on her... As long as she remains passive, we'll be good," He commented, then checked the next file. He sighed, and scrolled past their files. Name: <_____> Pearce Age: <_____> "For fuck sake! Why can't someone fix this damn thing for once?!" He asked angrily, but there was no response. *Sigh* "Next we have..." *Beep* *Beep* *Beep* "Shit, I'm out of time..." He muttered, simply folding the laptop shut, and ran off toward the rally point.
Chapter 1: Rise and shine...My problems began the day the Arabian Starvation began… That day several of us were summoned to Canterlot for instructions. Only a dozen of us at first. Not all of us were soldiers, however. There were mechanics, doctors, and other professions as well. I never liked the idea of going to Canterlot, since once they already made us leave, but orders are meant to be carried out, so I DID go there in the end. The convoy from the Wasteland departed. IT consisted of 2 medics, 3 mechanics, the rest of us were gunmen. Some were Snipers, some Pointmen, and some of us were Juggernauts. I myself was honored not to fall into any of those groups… Soon you’ll see why. We were travelling in 4 vehicles, all humvees with mounted Miniguns. The other soldiers and I managed to get close relatively quickly, while the doctors kept their noses high, thinking their PhD’s made them more important than us. “Careful, you’ll end up with something stuck in your nose,” One of my comrades noted to them. “You only chose the army just because you were too dumb to go to college,” Replied a doctor. “Oh? At least I know how to defend my own ass. You on the other hand, technically couldn’t hurt a fly, thanks to that Hippocrates oath of yours... “ Replied the sniper next to me. “Is that a threat?” The doctor replied, thinking he was winning the argument. “If you would be as smart as your PhD needs you to be, you would know by now, that our job is to keep you safe, dirtbag,” Replied the gunner from above, pacing around. The doctor only looked at me in surprise and opened her mouth. “Unbelievable! I can’t comprehend how rude your men can be, Captain,” She noted. “Oh? What’s that? They aren’t meeting your standards?” I asked with a serious tone. She only shook her head in response. “Well, it’s not the bread slice that’s small, doctor. It’s your face that’s too huge,” I replied with a taunt. My men broke out laughing, why the doctor remained silent until we arrived. When we did, it was nice to finally stretch our limbs once again. It was starting to feel like we were in a tin can, like a can of sardines. The drivers dropped us off, and returned home, as they and the gunners were a different Group. “Good luck, Captain!” One of the drivers shouted to me before they left. The town guards greeted us with a somewhat friendly grin and nod, which we returned, and made our way toward the castle, hands empty of weapons. Most of us had our nanosuits, as you need to be at least an Officer to get one. I, as a Captain obviously were in that group, while the others were at least Second Lieutenants. The doctors had theirs, so did the mechanics, since the built in I.S.I.S function would be of help. It did save the time it would take for them to go get a wrench, or some bandages, that’s the only reason they had theirs. On our way to the castle one of the bystanders threw a rock at us, but one of the snipers caught it, and threw it back at the one who threw it, hitting dead center. “Don’t make me come over there,” She warned the colt, who just walked away, scrubbing the area where the rock hit him. “They either don’t get what we’re trying to do here, or they think we, as Humans aren’t allowed to beat their ass… I don’t know, they might think they are actual citizens, while we’re just moving in…” One of the mechanics exclaimed, as we approached the castle gates. The guards stopped us for identification. “Names, ranks, classes” Said one of them. “Adrian Shephard, Second Lieutenant, Sniper,” “Sarah Kerrigan, Lieutenant, Sniper,” “House, PhD, Doctor,” “Freeman, PhD, Doctor,” “Pearce, Second Lieutenant, Pointman,” “Connor, Second Lieutenant, Juggernaut,” “Vance, Mechanic,” “Vince, Mechanic,” “Jackson Brenks, Lieutenant, Pointman,” “Zaytsev, Lieutenant, Sniper,” “Jason, Second Lieutenant, Juggernaut,” And last, I too introduced myself.”Joseph Newman, Captain, Commander,” The guards nodded, and allowed us pass without a word. We made our way into the castle, and changed direction for the throne room. “Why the throne room, sir? Why not the barracks?” Asked Vince. “Because I was told the sisters themselves want a word with us too, and it wouldn’t be nice for us to make them walk,” I explained, soon arriving to said room. The guards once again just nodded, and let us pass. It was an Inside joke for us. We only saluted royalty or the Generals themselves. The doors opened, and we lined up next to one another in front of the sisters, me at the very end. The Generals and Professors were standing beside the sisters, and we saluted them all… At least those who had to did, damn doctors… “Captain Joseph Newman, step forward,” Said General Omnis. I stepped in front of the middle of the line, and ahead a few steps. “Yes, ma’am?” I asked. “After all of you receive your instructions, you will stay a little longer,” She replied. “Yes, ma’am,” I exclaimed, and stood back in line. “Ladies and gentlemen…” The General continued. “I’m sure you wonder why we had called you here… Or… Why it was you who we called… It is simple. The Saddle Arabian Prince had come to Canterlot weeks ago in person, and alone, just to apologize for Ishtar’s Invasion decades ago. We agreed to forgive them. Now, we are asked to help said nation by dispensing rations. Their food supplies are low, and plants are dying. Your role is to go to a small town named Stoneden, set up a dispensing station, and give out rations as the documents the Captain will receive dictate. For questions, turn to the Captain and ask after he’s available.” She continued. “Dismissed!” Yelled General Mortis, and everyone left except me. The professors approached me and asked me to walk with them. I glanced at the Generals, Omnis nodded, so I left with them. “So, Captain Newman… You may wonder what we intend with you,” Prof. Adrian said. “A little,” I replied. “We are running an experiment, a newer version of the nanosuit, to be exact,” Prof. Itrix continued. “And what do I have to do with it?” I wondered. “We thought you might be willing to do some tests on the field for us…” Prof. Adrian replied. “What do I need to do?” I asked. “Follow, and you’ll know,” I followed them to the underground lab, where we walked and walked, until we came to a locked room. Both of them produced their keycards, and swiped it on the scanners, opening the door. Inside the room were three glass tubes, nothing inside. “Here we are, Captain.” Itrix exclaimed. “And where is the suit?” “In that tube,” “What?” “It’s in there,” “Is it invisible?” I wondered. “Yes, but I doubt you would ever use that feature. I’ve read your files… You don’t just go in guns blazing, but either do you spend most effort on sneaking and such… You just so happen to find the best cover, and time your shots,” He explained, and pressed a button in front of him, causing the lid to open. “All yours,” “What can I expect?” I wondered. “It will detect your current nanosuit at first. It will then overwrite its code, causing it to separate from your body and replace it. It will also store data from the replaced suit and adjust to your requirements. It will monitor your vitals and everything the old one did,” Itrix explained. “What’s the difference between the two?” “The values, Captain. Your current model only enhances your reflexes, speed and strength by a mere 50%. That model over there will do 200%,” “Why do I have a feeling this will hurt…” I muttered and walked up to the lid. Reaching inside I felt like it was only air, but soon I blacked out and woke up in a hospital bed. “Wh- What happened?” I asked the doctor beside my bed. “Ah, Captain Newman, is it? You were brought here by Professors Adrian and Itrix… It seems your sudden change of equipment was a little too much for your body,” He explained. “How long was I out?” “Less than an hour,” “Good... “ I replied and got up. “Good luck, Cap,” He said, and let me leave. The first thing I did was find the professors again. “Ah, I see you’ve gotten the adjustments…” Adrian said. “Which almost got me killed, yes,” I corrected him. “Is there a question you have?” “What else is different in this model?” “The I.S.I.S, it’s an updated version. Until now you needed to at least hold the item you were to store at least once. Now you can produce objects never even touched. It’s also now linked to your weapon management system, and fill restock ammunition in the magazine while you fire the same firearm,” “You mea-” “Yes, you will never run out of ammo,” He assured me. “Those are all the differences… But I would like to remind you, that you are still mortal, and can be killed if certain conditions are met, such as a clear path for a bullet to any of your vital organs. Yes, the suit does provide protection, but don’t expect it to take every single blow you may get. Rest assured, it’s damage absorbing ability recharges over time… Just… Don’t over work it,” He warned me. I nodded, and left to find the others. They were at the throne room when I found them. The suit felt a little heavier than the other one did, even tho it morphed into the same outfit. We all seemingly wore simple fabric military camoflage uniforms. Pants, coats, and tank tops under neat with a baseball cap of the same colors. The only difference was that the mechanics and doctors wore differing attires. The mechanics wore blue jumpers with blue hats, while the doctors wore brown pants, blue shirts, and labcoats. “And so, the first becomes the last,” General Altamir noted as I stepped in, quickly joining the line. “Now that you all are present, here are the details…” Omnis took over the conversation. “We will give you instructions and updates for your mission through Captain Newman, who is also in charge of what all of you do during the mission. Obviously, we trust his choices, and authorize him to decide whether or not to send any of you back, and ask for a replacement. This is only accepted it one of you misbehave, or disregard orders,” She explained, then looked at the non-military personnel. “The four of you will also obey him… If you know what’s good for you,” She added. “Any questions?” “What exactly is our task? Ma’am?” Asked Pearce. “Dispense food in Stoneden… Were you not paying attention?” She threw back. Pearce only stared at the floor from there on. “Any other questions?” “How long will our mission last?” I asked. “An undisclosed amount of time, I’m sorry to rip you away from your families like this, but we found you the most able to do this,” She explained. “Anything else?” We didn’t have any other questions. The General simply looked at the sisters, who nodded. “Before you leave, the sisters have a few words to you,” She exclaimed, and we turned our attention at them. “While you are in Saddle Arabia, please keep in mind, that you are not only representing yourselves, or your species, but also our humble homeland…” Celestia reminded us. “And regardless of what is written in the history books, keep in mind, that the individuals you will meet had done nothing against us,” Luna continued. We saluted, then replied with a standard “Ma’am, yes, ma’am,” In unison. Except Dr. House… “What? I was meant to do it too? Doctors too?” She wondered. “What do you think?” Freeman reminded her, since he had saluted however. “Well, maybe next ti-” At this point stepped into front of her. “Listen up, you disrespectful pile of filth…” I addressed her in front of everyone else. “From this moment you do what I say. If I say you jump, you ask how high. If I say you drown, you ask how fast. If I say you die, you ask how painful. I’m in charge, I’m the boss, and if you can’t bring your own lazy ass to do one of the most basic things I will not risk taking you only to embarrass me, the others, and everyone else! Salute and apologize, or else I’ll give you something to practice your PhD on!” I yelled at her. She quickly jumped into a salution and loudly apologized to the sisters. “Louder!” “I’m sorry!” “LUDER!” “I’M SORRY!” “LOUDER YOU MAGGOT!” “I’M SORRY!” She yelled at the top of her lungs. “All right, all right, shut the fuck up, you’ll break the windows…” I replied, only embarrassing her. “One more time like this and you’ll be sitting on your ass on you way back, understood?” She briefly nodded in response. “Thought so,” I said, and stood back in the line. “Dismissed, you can go now.” Omnis exclaimed. We saluted and left. While doing so, I kept an eye on her. We walked down to the barracks, where several cargo trucks were packed with our supplies, and things we were going to need. The drivers were eager to start off too, same thing for us. “One person will be in the cargo bay in each truck to cover it’s back. The rest is up to your choice,” I informed them. There were 4 trucks. “Who volunteers?” I asked. Pearce, Jackson, Connor, and Jason silently made their ways to the trucks, each of them fixed an M60 onto the cargo door before we got off. “So Stoneden it is, Cap’n?” Asked our driver. “Just follow the GPS, before I take the wheel instead,” I replied, exhausted of people’s bullshit. The driver shut up, so did the rest of us in the jeep. The silence nearly drove us crazy all along. Thankfully, we soon got there. “Time’s up Captain, here we are,” Said the driver, waking some of us. We got out of the cars, and unloaded the trucks. Needless to say, the doctors though they were exceptions. They weren’t, so I let them know by throwing a crate of canned food at them to catch. Freeman caught it, and joined the others, while House insisted she remains out of it. I sighed and jumped off the truck, crate in my armpit. “You take this crate and either follow the others, or you get no rations the rest of the week,” I warned her. “What day is it again?” She asked. “Tuesday,” I informed her. “In which case,” She said, then reached for the crate. “I thought so. One more disobedience, and I won’t warn you. You won’t eat, and I won’t care,” She nodded and left with the others. “A little too much, Captain?” Asked Pearce, just stepping next to me. “What makes you think so?” I wondered. “She’s not trained to handle that much without food sir,” He reminded me. “Then she does better stay in line and work, or learn metamorphosis,” I replied with a grin. “Your call, Cap,” Pearce exclaimed with a chuckle, and walked off with the others. I’ve known him for a few months, but he was the only one I know from before the mission. He’s a good guy, loyal, obedient, strong and fast thinking. After spending some time thinking about House’s behavior I continued unloading the trucks myself as well. We soon finished unloading, and the convoy returned without us. The group quickly gathered around after being done. “Everyone here? I hate repeating myself,” I said to them before giving instructions. I quickly scanned through the line, nobody absent. “Good. Everyone. I repeat, Everyone…” I said, looking at House. “Begin setting up camp. I’ll tell the mayor we’re here,” I said. Most of them saluted and replied affirmatively, the others simply weren’t required to. I headed toward the tallest building in the middle of town, but on my way some of the residents stopped me. “Can I be of any help, sir?” Asked a colt. “Not to me,” I replied, and passed him by, but he came after me and blocked my path again. “Are you sure?” He asked on a questionable tone. I produced a night-stick and held my hand up ready to swing. “Step out of the way,” I warned him. “Or else? You’ll hurt me?” He asked. “If I must, I will,” I replied, taking a step toward him. “Okay, okay, geez.” He replied, stepping out of the way. I just walked on without reacting to him, soon coming to the doors. I knocked twice, and it opened, revealing a surprised pair. “Yes?” Asked the mare. “Good afternoon. Can I come in?” I replied. “Sure,” The colt replied, allowing me in. “Take a seat, something to drink perhaps?” He asked. “No, I’m sorry, I’m not here to chat, or for dinner,” I explained. “Then why, friend?” The mare wondered. “I’m Captain Joseph Newman, Human Branch of the Equestrian armed forces,” Their faces changed a lot afterwards. “Oh…” The mare said. “Leave… Now…” The colt continued. “You might want to listen to what I have to say, sir,” I replied. “I SAID GET OUT OF MY HOUSE!” He replied, unaware of our intentions. “I can assure you, that you will regret me leaving now,” I warned him. He didn’t say a thing, but threw himself at me out of nowhere, knocking me to the ground. I used my left arm to push his head as far as I could from mine to the side, producing a syringe filled with heavy sedatives in my right hand with the suit. I jammed it into his neck right away, and threw him off, hoping the mare wouldn’t attack as well. Fortunately, she didn’t, and was the wiser. “I’m all ears,” She said after I caught my breath. “He’ll be fine… He’ll wake up in an hour or two,” I explained for first. “As I said earlier, I’m Captain Joseph Newman, we’re here by order of General Omnis,” I continued. “And what are you doing here, Captain?” She wondered. “We were told to set up camp near town, and give away a specified number of food rations each day. For that, we’ll need your help with the administration, so we can make sure nobody got two rations, and that everyone has at least one a day,” I replied. “I see. Tomorrow we will have every resident gather in the town square, perhaps that can help you,” She offered. “Yes, well, that would help a lot.” I replied. “You should go now. It’s getting dark,” She reminded me. We said farewells, and I returned to the camp. We ate our dinners, and went to sleep, except one, who stood the night watch. The next morning we allowed Connor to rest, having finished his shift. “Listen up, I won’t repeat,” I said to get their attention. “Today we will take all residents into administration, so we can keep track who had how many rations, and when they got it,” I exclaimed, then looked at the mechanics. “We will need the mobile database set up, how long will it take?” Vance and Vince swapped glances, then Vance replied. “An hour will do, sir,” The two were siblings. I had read all the other crew members files before going to Canterlot as well. Vance and Vince were at the level of Prof. Adrian’s knowledge when it came to any machines. Computers, vehicles, any mechanism it was, they knew it like the back of their hand. I nodded in response, and looked back at the others. “You’re all dismissed until further notice. Don’t leave perimeter,” I instructed them, and they began minding their own business, as much as they could anyway, in the heat of the blazing desert. As for me, I sat down and tried looking up the crew info once again, but the same thing happened. Coincidentally, while I was holding my tablet, mainly used for non-verbal communication, I received an incoming call. It was from General Omnis. “Yes, ma’am?” I asked. “Captain Newman?” She asked in return. “Yes, ma’am,” I replied, enabling my camera. “What’s the status?” “The mechanics are setting up the mobile database. As soon as they finish, we will begin administration,” I explained. “Anything else?” “Last night the mayor attacked me. I sedated him,” I continued. She only nodded understanding it. “Understood. Prof. Adrian is uploading an update to your, any only your nanosuit soon. Good thing all of your suits have remote access, isn’t it?” “What is the update for, ma’am?” “It will help you keep track of rations in storage, so none can be stolen without a trace,” “Uh, ma’am?” “I’m here,” “May I ask when will the database be fixed?” “What do you mean?” “The files on the others I was sent aren’t loading properly, some aren’t at all,” “Oh, it’s on purpose. If you meet them in person, it helps build a better connection between you. Remember, even I don’t know how long you’ll be there,” She replied, and ended the call. “You piece of…” I tried to make a remark. “Morning Cap,” Connor greeted me, having woken up. “Go join the others, I’ll let you know when we have things to do,” I informed him. He nodded and walked by. I laid down for a nap until the twins were done. “Uh… Captain?” Asked Vance. “Eh? I’m up…” I replied, climbing out the bed. “We’re all ready to go,” Vince exclaimed. “Good… Good… Grab the tools and come along. Call the others to the town square,” I replied, and went just there, before the others would arrive. I spent a short while talking to the mayor and his wife, then the others arrived. At first empty handed, not to look threatening. “Listen up, everyone!” The mayor yelled. “Stand in a line after one another so these men can start recording your information!” He continued, and the citizens began doing so. It went smoothly, Vince and Vance did the administration. Vince made photographs, Vance wrote down the info we needed. Name, gender, race, age… The population was around 200, it was around 6 pm when we suddenly heard some louder arguing. We turned to look, one of the citizens claimed that “We’re trying to take their soul with the camera,” I briefly sighed and joined the arguing two. Most of the others had their night sticks ready, but at waist level, waiting for something to happen. I stepped close and called them off with the usual hand signal: The left hand palm at chest level, preparing my expandable nightstick instead. “Sir, what’s the problem?” I asked. “Don’t YOU know what it is?! You’re trying to take our souls!” He replied. “Well, the others before you are just fine,” Connor reminded him. “You brainwashed them!” The colt threw back. “Sir, I must ask you to leave, or else we will have to remove you from the area,” I warned him. “What? You can’t ask me to leave! I live here!” “Not the town, the town square. You are delaying the line. The faster we finish, the sooner you all get your food,” I explained. “I’m not going anywhere without my food,” “Then stand back in line, and help with the administration,” Vince threw in. “No way,” The colt replied. “In that case, I must ask you to leave. We will be forced to remove you otherwise, which will result in a day without food as penalty,” I warned him for the last time. “You won’t convince me,” He exclaimed. I lifted the night stick mid air and told him to leave, but with no results. His persistence left me no choice, but to hit him in the foreleg, causing him to go limp on said body part. “Leave, now,” I said again, but he didn’t leave. “Pearce…” I simply said, putting away my weapon of choice, as Pearce stood next to me. “Arrest him,” I said. He nodded and produced a set of restrainers, designed for equines. It worked just like hand cuffs, but it was made so the size can be adjusted around the hooves. “Wh- What? You can’t, you’re foreign authority!” “And your problem,” I reminded him while Pearce tried to approach him. “You can’t!” Yelled. “You’re making a scene, stop resisting, or else we will be forced take more serious actions,” Pearce warned him. At this point a few of us were eager to see how it ends. The colt only turned to run, but 20,000 volts made him stop, spazzing on the ground. Shepherd managed to unplug him in the end, and restrained him. I signaled them with my hand to bring him back to me, so they dragged him all the way back. With a sharp whistle I made sure everyone is paying attention. “From now on, you either accept and do as we say, or you WILL die,” I exclaimed louder than usual, so those from far can hear. The line was still intact, nobody ran off thankfully. The mare in front of me looked at me confused, and slightly scared. Then the mayor and his wife rushed to me. “What’s the meaning of this?! I’M in charge here!” He exclaimed. “If so, go ahead, feed your citizens, because we sure won’t,” I replied. “Okay guys, pack the things, we’re leaving!” I yelled back to my comrades, just to intimidate the mayor. “You can’t! Your task is to be here and help!” He replied. “I can just write a report stating that you declined our help. You can guess who’s going to have more credibility…” I reminded him, then turned my back of him. After taking a couple of steps he changed his mind. “Wait! Stop!” He yelled. “What is it?” I asked. “Fine, you can be in charge…” He muttered. “I can’t hear you,” “You can be in the lead, okay?” “Still can’t… You know, we’re here to take care of your asses. If you won’t do what we tell you, you will literally die, without us firing a single bullet,” I reminded him. “A bullet?” He asked. “What’s that?” I produced a pistol and took out a bullet from the magazine, showing it to him. “You know what this does, don’t you?” He shook his head in response. I loaded the bullet back and stood up. “Cover your ear,” I warned him, and approached the captive. “What are you doing to me?” “You my friend… Will make a fine example…” I replied, and shot him in the gut. The crowd either looked away, cringed, or stepped back, while the colt yelled in pain. I was not finished yet. I produced one of the wrist knives, which we all just called Trick in the sleeve, and jabbed him in the chest many times, letting the sands beneath him run red. “Everyone who does not follow our words of advice, rebels against, or attacks us will follow!” I let them all know, then injected the body with enough Krokodil to make it disappear within the next hour or two. “I hope I made myself clear!” I continued, and let things continue in their pace. The registration ended without a problem, so we managed to dispense everyone’s first dose of rations. We returned to camp after we finished, only to go back to the square the next day. This going back and forth continued for months, even years, when one morning I woke up to a message on my tablet. <1 New Message> [Open] ←- [Dismiss] <Captain, I would like to be the first to congratulate you on the one year anniversary of your presence in Stoneden. We highly value your dedicated service thus far, and are pleased to inform you, that a replacement group will be arriving today. They may arrive any time, as their speed depends on the weather. In case they arrive, seek Lieutenant Isaac, so you can fill out the documents about your replacement. The fact that we are replacing you and your team DOES NOT MEAN that we are not pleased with your performance. In fact, it means the opposite. We are pleased, and for this, we reward you all on your return to Canterlot. Please pass this information onto your squad in word, or show them this message.> I was so happy to leave this bowl of sand… So I wasted no time and send the message over to the other’s tablets, so they can read it. It was around breakfast when we gathered around to eat and talk as usual. We got a little close under those years, it was half a decade we spent there… After finishing the breakfast, we waited a few hours, and the replacements arrived. My men greeted their comrades, while I talked to their superior, exchanging info they may want to keep in mind, such as local traditions and such. Fortunately Lieutenant Isaac kept in mind the difference between us in ranks, and paid full attention, so it was easy to talk to him. In the end, he thanked me for the info and left to sort his men out, as I returned to mine, and prepared to leave, when a cloaked mare came to us. Unfortunately, it was a restricted area, so it was no surprise that she was soon greeted by staring down some barrels. She slowly walked toward us, as we had our weapons away. “Stop, and identify yourself!” Said one of Isaac’s. She refused to say a word but revealed her face. “I won’t say again!” The soldier yelled at her, finger on the trigger. I just pulled my pistol and put it to his head. “Go ahead, shoot, but so will I,” I warned him. He froze in shock, so i knocked him out with the butt of the gun. “Captain, what’s the meaning of this?” Isaac wondered. “Your subordinate was about to open fire at an unarmed citizen of Saddle Arabia, who’s visibly harmless,” I explained, putting my sidearm away. The mare only approached me with a smile. “I see your eye and heart is clear, so are those of your soldiers... “ She exclaimed. “What are you doing here, ma’am? You’re not supposed to be here,” I informed her. “I was guided here… The goddess Nazar guided my path to you…” She explained. “Who?” I asked. “Ah, so you know not…” She muttered. “The lord Nazar is a Goddess of ours. Nazar is the embodyment of care, love, and protection,” “Oh, I see,” I replied. “She herself spoke to me in my dream, telling me to come today,” She informed us. “And… Who are you?” “I am a mere priestess, who serves in the temples most the time, praying for a better world with the other priests and priestesses… Priesti? Ahem… Anyway… Nazar herself asked me to pass these onto you for your past years,” She said, producing a few neck jewels from her cloak, giving one to everyone in my squad. “May your lives from now on be filled with peace…” She said, ending her speech. We thanked her and wished her the same, before leaving on our way back to Canterlot. It was around noon when we arrived, and went to see the Generals and sisters. We stood in the throne room, when finally prof Adrian arrived as well. “Ahem. Greetings, ladies and gentlemen… We appreciate your efforts in the past years, now, you all can return to the barracks back at home, with the exception of Captain Newman. Captain, please follow prof. Adrian…” Gen Altamir exclaimed. I did as requested, and followed the professors. We returned to the same lab, it looked like it was the first time i set foot there. “What’s up, doc?” I asked from Adrian. “I believe it is time we take that suit off of you now, as the experiment is over…” He replied. “Please, lie down on your back onto this desk,” He continued. “Uhh… Sure…” I replied, having a bad feeling. Suddenly I found myself surrounded by glass, standing, strapped to the table, with some liquid pouring in from the bottom of the tank my table turned into. “What are you doing to me?” I asked, a little scared, even myself. “Ending the experiment…” He said, prof Itrix nowhere to be seen. My bad feeling about the situation became true, and had no idea what he was planning. “You see, Captain… Now that you can do nothing against it, I’ll tell you the details of the experiment... “ He said with a grin, walking back and forth in front of me, the two of us the only in the room, no cameras. “Haven’t you said it’s to test the new suit?” I asked confused. “Haha… No… We installed a small backdoor into your suit, and while you thought you’re just helping them, you were our involuntary spy all along…” “What?!” “That’s right, everything you learned about them is now in our database… Those five years of info are enough to kill them slowly without them noticing it too..” He explained. “Why are you doing this?” I asked. “Because they deserve it… They are the reason Altamir and Itrix died all those year ago! They are the reason Omnis’s parents died! THEY DESERVE EVERYTHING THEY WILL GET!” He began to yell like a maniac. “So you’re the only one who knows about your plans… You’re sick…” I told him. “I’m sick? Oh, Captain… YOU’RE the one who shot that colt and nearly gutted him on the first few days… YOU’RE the one who took hundreds of lives on orders from someone else… AND NOW YOU CAN’T DO ANYTHING! YOU’RE MINE NO-” *Bang* *Splat* “Jeez!” I exclaimed, as Adrian’s brain splattered on the other side of the tube. As his body slowly slipped down leaning against the tube, the blood began making its way down with it, but I was far from okay, as the liquid was still rising. The chunks of what was left of his head made it hard for me to see, but I knew someone was in the room, as I heard someone using the terminal’s keyboard. The liquid stopped to rise and quickly began to drain, as the lib opened I was greeted by Vince and Vance, later with a pistol in hand. “Come on Cap, we need to get you out of here as soon as we can…” Vance exclaimed. The restrains let go and I was free again, but confused even more. “What’s this? Explain! Now!” I replied. “We’ll explain everything later. Just grab a gun and come on. Shoot everyone who aims at us,” Vince explained. I did as asked and the three of us made our ways to the barracks, where we got one of the humvees and slipped away unnoticed. “Where are we going?” I wondered. “Home,” Vance replied. [End of Chapter 1]
Chapter 2: TrippinWe drove for a long time, from Canterlot all the way to the edge of the Wasteland, into a larger city. We just continued going and going, until we turned down to an alleyway, where we were greeted by a few masked men pointing guns at us. At that point I was not sure to wait for their instructions, or listen to my instincts, and was about to act, when I heard the response. “Calm down, they’re with us,” Vince assured me. “Take it slow, nice and easy, put your hands up to where they can see them, and you’ll be fine,” I put my hands up slowly, the twins got out the car, and opened the door for me. “What’s he doing here?” Asked one of the gunmen. “We brought him here,” Vance replied. “Are you out of your mind?! He’s one of them! He’s a soldier!” “Yes-Yes, I know… Come on, I’ll explain inside, before someone sees us,” She replied. We did just that, but I still held my hands up. “Come on, come on,” One of them said, dragging me by the sleeve. We went down some stairs, a few coded doors, and in the end, I was sat down in a barely lit room on a plastic chair. Some random rugrat with blue jeans and a leather jacket sat down in front of me, and closed the door. “So, what do you want?” He asked. “To get out,” I replied. “Why did you even come here then?” “Because I was forced to,” “Right… How did they get you?” “Prof.Adrian went insane. He said everything I saw heard and learned in the five years in Stoneden is now in the central database, and will be used to kill them. He was about to flood me with some yellow shit, but Vance shot him, and they got me here,” I explained. “What’s your name?” “Joseph Newman,” “Newman it is… I’m Jason, good to know you,” He replied, holding a hand. As I reached to shake it he held out his other hand with a pistol in it. “Here’s your options…” “What?” “You either take the pistol and stay with us, a group of freelancer mercenaries, a promise of safety, or my empty hand and leave. Be warned, that now probably most of your former comrades are looking for you with a bullet with your name on it…” He explained. I took the pistol. “One more for your V.2.0 suit huh? And another one for the team, too… Welcome to the team,” He exclaimed jokingly. “So, what did I just do?” I wondered. “Let me give you a walk…” He said, and showed me around the place. I recognized the layout, it was a standard city bunker for war time, which they managed to crack open. He showed me the rooms, some anyway, turned out a few of us actually lived there, while others came in like they would to a regular workplace. That day was spent with meeting the others, and learning the basics i should know, until we decided to have some burgers at a nearby place. A few of us decided to have fries too, it was nice that they paid for mine too, since I had no cash on me. We had fun, until some dirt rag pulled a pistol in the cashier and took a hostage. There were only 2 of us who chose to come, both of us had our pistols ready under the table, but I put mine away. I didn’t care much about how it ends, I still had the suit on afterall. “Everyone get on the floor! Now!” He yelled. I slowly stood up with my cup in my left hand, and turned to look at him. “You too!” He yelled. “I’m just getting some soda, bro,” I replied. “I won’t say it again!” He yelled. “Just… A… Soda…” I said, slowly walking behind him, while he turned to keep an eye on me. I put my cup into the machine, other hand in pocket. I slowly flicked the machine on, it began spilling me a good cold beverage. I then slowly turned around and began making my way back to my seat, but stopped in front of the gunman. “Come on, get moving,” He said calmer than before, I guess he started trusting me, or maybe he was just over confident… I quickly threw my drink at him, successfully blinding him for a few seconds, which were enough for me to produce a nightstick, but before I could hit him he was about to point and shoot. I managed to hit him in the shooting elbow, resulting in his pistol flying out of his grip. I swung my arm back, hitting him in the face and knocking him backwards. Unfortunately he fell and hit his head on the counter. The cashiers seemed relieved, while both them and the customers began to cheer, either for me, or just from happiness, I didn’t care. “Call an ambulance… And the cops,” I told one of the cashiers. She nodded and pulled her phone. I went to talk to another one while she did it. “You should hire a security guy,” I noted to him. “I know, right? This is like what… The fifth time this month…” He replied. “Hey, good job tho,” I nodded, and we returned to the base they took from the government. “How did it go?” Asked Jess. The thing is, we, with me joining recently, were a group of about half a dozen. Mainly we were either hackers, drivers, shooters, doctors, or spies. Jess was one of a kind, she was the only person I would call a scientist among us. “You were right, *Buurp* Their burgers are good,” Jason replied.He doubled as an expert driver and shooter I heard. He and I were the only shooters i knew of in our small group, of which he seemed to be the leader of. “Told ya,” She replied with a grin. “Anything else happened?” “Watch the news tonight, you’ll know,” Jason threw back, and left to his room. “What’s he on about?” She wondered. “Some dude ran in with a gun, and wanted the cash. Let’s just say I didn’t approve,” I explained. To this, she stopped whatever she was doing at the computer and turned to face me with her chair. “How did he look?” “Green pants, red beanie, dust protector mask, black jacket, white shirt,” I replied as good as I could remember. She sighed and slowly buried her face into her hands. “Hi hou hi hi?” That was all I could make of what she muttered through her hands. “What?” “Did you kill him?” “I was trying not to, why?” I pondered. “Damn it… It was my brother… I told him not to do it…” She replied. “Well, his mistake, his problem,” She continued. “I didn’t know,” I assured her. “No, not your fault… We barely kept in touch anyway. I could care less of him to be honest,” She replied. “That means no hard feelings, right?” “Yep,” “Cool,” I said with a grin, which she returned, then dove back into what she was doing on the comp. I was glad that went so smooth, having not angered her unwillingly. I was wondering where the others were, so I decided to see how they were. The base was large, since it was designed to house over a hundred people, with countless facilities of all kinds, so unless you had a phone, it was hard to find the other in that maze. “Hey, Vance?” I asked through said device, well, the counterpart in my suit anyway. He wondered. “What are you up to?” He said. “My bad, go on,” I assured him, and hung up. Since Jason and Jess were busy, Vance was going to sleep, and the others were away doing their thing, I chose to go for a walk. I just made sure to let at least Jess know where I went. I closed the door behind with my keycard, Jess gave it to me the other day. I had no exact goal in mind. I just wanted to help time pass. At first I wanted to see a pub, but chose to return to the burger place instead. As I approached the corner, I began hearing the sound of police sirens. Great, at least they came at the end. I thought to myself, then turned the corner, only to see the entrance blocked by the police, as an officer was talking to the cashier I talked to with a notepad and pen in hand. I could not hear a thing they said yet, but I saw the cashier mouthing something like. ˝It was him˝ Then pointed at me. The officer put his notepad away and turned to face me. I just continued walking toward them, hands on pocket as usual. Needless to say, at this point I wore clothes similar to Jason’s, just differing color. “Excuse me sir, I’d like to have a few words with you,” He exclaimed. “Sure, go ahead,” I replied, taking my hands out of the pockets. “Witnesses confirmed that there was an attempted robber here earlier, were you present at the time?” “Yes, I was,” “Few say that the suspect was armed with a 9mm handgun, can you confirm this?” “I’m not sure what caliber, but yes,” “Employees stated that you decided to fight the robber, is this true?” “Yes, I did,” “That’s enough for now. I must ask you to enter the vehicle and come with me,” He said. “My only choices are to go by myself, or be forced to, aren’t they?” I asked. “Looks like you’re a smart guy huh?” He replied. I sighed and sat down on one of the back seats. I remained silent until we arrived, when he and a few others took me to a typical interrogation room. “Take a seat,” Said one of the cops, pointing at a steel chair in front of a table of the same material. I did as requested. It seemed to not have been enough, as another one came up to me with handcuffs. She didn’t have to ask, I did what I would’ve had to anyway. Then the previous officer sat down in front of me. “What am I charged with again?” I wondered. “Oh, don’t worry… You have nothing to do with the law…” He replied with a grin. “Come again?” “Not the usual way anyway… You have a large bounty on your head, Captain, it will pay me well,” He exclaimed, and just seconds after the crook from the burger place came into the room, bandages around his head and the arm I hit in a cast. “What’s this?!” I wondered, having had enough of shady people recently. “A surprise,” He said. “Wh-” I was cut short by a good 20k volts, and knocked out. The next thing I remembered was me being tied up tighter than anything I could compare it to. There were at least 5 armed guys around me, in a van, being taken somewhere. Needless to mention, none of actual law enforcement. Fuck My Life… “Awake so soon? It’s a pity you have to go back…” Said one of them, before I was hit in the face with the butt of a gun. The next time I woke up I was strapped to a makeshift bed with nobody around. I lied on that bed for hours without anyone coming in. It’s been 4 hours there, when I began hearing rumbling and such. I was not sure if it was the sensory depravation kicking in, or finally something was actually happening. Soon after I began hearing a familiar sound… Gunfire… I only grinned as I did most the time I heard it. Soon after the door was kicked in, a masked woman standing there. “Hic est cooperiunt me, et vade,” She said. I recognized her choice of words. She was speaking Latin… She said “Here he is, cover me and get out,” Or something like that, it’s been years since I practiced that tongue. She cut me free and pushed a pistol into my hands. “Age, si vos es questus,” (Come on, we’re getting you out,) I nodded and followed her. We stopped in the doorway, taking cover on the sides, while the firefight continued on the other side. She simply moved her hand enough to make me look at it, she was counting down on it. 3...2...1...0. She leapt forward opening fire to the right, I followed just moments after, only to be shot in the chest, the bullet went through me, between the ribs, avoiding any organs. It was at this moment I realized I no longer had the suit. I felt much more vulnerable. “Ut non te occidit, ire!” (Don’t get yourself killed, go!) I was still on the floor, and began crawling my way back, where the others got me out of the building. They were waiting in 3 vans, turns out I was held in a village in Arabia, thankfully, not Stoneden… None the less, you can imagine what they needed 15 gunmen for. Two of them picked me up and literally threw me into one of the vans, where only one person was. A white streak over the sleeve. “Come on, let me patch you up…” He said, reaching for his bag of medicine. “Get off, I’ll be fine,” I threw back. “Fine,” He said, a little offended. Soon enough all the vans were full, and we departed from the town, only to see the building explode minutes later. Our trip was seemingly short, when we arrived they opened the door for me. I stepped off, only to see the same woman. “Come on, we’re going to have a talk, and you’ll know what will happen,” She exclaimed, holding a hand out to me. “I can walk, thanks,” I replied, declining it. I followed her to a wherever she was taking me, trusting her, since they got me out of there. “A glass of water maybe?” She wondered, taking a seat in front of me. “I’m fine,” I replied, doing the same. “You’re at one of our safe places. You can rest here, you need to heal up,” “What happened back there?” “They took off your suit. They were modern mercenaries, nowadays known as Fixers. They wanted to turn you over to Omnis, but we had an informant among them. Sadly, he’s gone by now, but we managed to pull you out,” She explained. “And what’s next?” I wondered. “Right now we’re trying to make contact with your friends, and let them know you’re fine. Once we reach them, we will take you back to them. Until then, let the docs help fix that hole. We don’t want them thinking we did it to you,” She continued. I agreed. Hopping in uninvited with a hole through me surely wouldn’t have been a good idea. “Tell me a name to remember for this favor,” I replied. “Oh, you’ll know when we need it returned,” She assured me. “Sounds ominous… And, what’s the name to the face I’m staring at?” “Wouldn’t YOU like to know?” She asked with a grin. “Go, rest, tomorrow I can offer you a few more answers,” She continued. I was tired, so I took the advice and went to sleep. The next morning seemed to come earlier than usual. Other than that, I found a bulletproof vest, and the exact same equipment the C.E.O used. Catastrophe Evasion Office. You see, Catastrophe Evasion was responsible for dispatching Firefighters and Law Enforcement, unaffected by Omnis’s words. I put the equipment on, then found a badge in one of the pockets as well. I hid my pistol by tucking it under my pants under by waist, the butt hanging out, covered by my shirt. At last, I also managed to find that woman. “Seems it fits you well. Consider it a gift,” She greeted me. “You did this? How did you get it? It’s impossible to smuggle these!” I replied. “Who said we smuggled them?” She asked, producing a pistol from one of the drawers of her chair, placing it on her table. “Don’t judge, we have our methods... “ “I haven’t said a word,” I noted. “Anyway… Good news is… We managed to make contact with some guy named Jason…” “You did?” “The problem is… Uh… I’m joking, there’s none… Come on, we have to go,” She replied with a grin. “Playing still?” I wondered, arms crossed. “Don’t make me drag you all the way…” She replied. I followed her to one of the vans, and we left their base. We drove, drove, drove and drove… “Sorry for the broken radio, I sent word for it to be fixed but nope, apparently I haven’t…” She noted, barely keeping both of us sane from the hours. “We’re close now,” She said as the view changed to that of a cliff side. “Great… Great…” I muttered, having no clue what to say. “Don’t talk much?” She wondered. “Nope,” I replied, things began getting awkward. “No useless talking, only when must… I’m starting to like you…” She said with a grin, while I just rolled my eyes. “Come on, say something! I’m no enemy here!” She tried encouraging me. *Sigh* “What do you want to talk about?” I wondered. “I don’t know… Anything? Tell me about yourself,” “Like you don’t already know me... “ I muttered, then continued. “You expect me to tell my childhood and the usual stuff? The same I was asked many times before?” “Yup…” She replied, only looking at me out the corner of her eye. “Before you begin, could you open the glove compartment and give me what’s in it?” I reached to open it, but it wouldn’t do so. “It might be stuck…” I noted, and continued trying for a few more pulls, but it didn’t give. “Nonsense, it can’t be… “She said, reaching over with a hand, trying to still look at the road. “Watch the road! I’ll get this open!” I warned her, but she didn’t listen. Just seconds later she managed to break the thing open. “See? I told you it will o- GET DOWN!” She yelled all of the sudden. I did just as she told me to, as a single gunshot rang out, then we went off-road. “Damn snipers… Hang on!” She muttered, trying to drive safely down the hillside. She managed to stay in control all right, until we crashed into a tree, well hidden by the forest ahead. The next thing I remember from the impact was the airbag breaking my nose and blocking most of my view. I managed to deflate it, since my kidnappers forgot the Sleeve Tricks, then went on to deflate hers. She seemed to be knocked out, or even dead. I was not sure at the time. I managed to drag her out of the van, several meters from the van. I set her down leaning against one of the trees, as I sat down next to her to rest. “Fuck my life… Why can’t I have just one ordinary day…” I muttered, sick of having no rest in the recent 10 years. “I know… Right?” Asked a familiar voice. “Well, at least you’re fine,” I muttered with some relief. “With an almost broken arm, surely,” She replied. “Now what?” I wondered. “We take a deep breath and get our shit sorted out?” “Sounds fine,” I said, agreeing. “Just five minutes more, right?” She asked. I just replied with a brief “Mhmm..” As said, we stood up. “Now, let’s find the van…” “Why?” I wondered. “It probably burned down by now,” “We need the cargo from the back, I knew something like this may happen,” She explained. “What is it?” “You’ll see…” She replied and tried making her way back to the van far in sight, when I heard a noise that wasn’t fitting. A long whistle. “RPG!” I yelled, tackling her to the ground, only to hear the rpg hit the van, followed by someone loudly yelling. “FUUUUUUUUCCCKKKK” In the distance. “You okay?” I asked. She only gave me a thumbs up, as her face was buried in an ants nest, quickly brushing those off who clung on to her as she stood up. “Good call… We need to continue on to the North,” She said, shortly after looking at her compass, which she produced from who knows where. “We have a lot of time until night, until then, we need to move on through the forest, since it covers us,” “Good idea, lead the way,” I replied, and we began making our way through the woods, until we came to a ravine. “Now what?” “Give me a sec to think…” She said, pondering. “Aaaaha!” She said all the sudden, and stood next to a moderately large tree. “What’s in your head?” I wondered. She pulled a combat hatchet from the sheath I haven’t noticed until then, and with a few hits, the tree fell, creating a bridge. “Wanna go first?” She wondered. “Nice one… “ I said, and stepped onto the fallen trunk, but when I was halfway there, the sniper shot the trunk, blowing it apart. I ran for it and jumped, barely landing one hand on the other edge. “Fuck…” I muttered from the surprise. “Well… Now what?” She wondered from the other side. “Chop down another one?” I suggested. She got to another tree, and reached back for a good swing, but the blade of her tool never made it to the trunk, and the sniper fired again, shooting off the shaft. “Fuckin hell!” She yelled, throwing the handle away. “We need to make a distraction…” She said. “Go, find dry stuff, branches, poop, grass…. Then bring them here. I’ll find some flint, so we can set that on fire,” “Smokin em out?” I wondered. “Okay,” I replied, and set out to my task. Hours later I managed to get back with a ton of shit… And branches, and grass... “Good, now catch!” She said, throwing a small black rock my way. I managed to catch it, but then I asked. “Where’s the steel to it?” I asked. “I thought you have some Tricks up the sleeve,” She said, hinting. “Riiight…” I replied, and managed to set the flame. It took a few minutes for smoke to rise. “What now?” I wondered again. She produced a knife from her ankle, and took a few steps back. “Why the fuck not... “ She muttered, and took a running jump. She jumped off the edge and pulled her legs up as close as she could, jumping 5 meters of the 6, then edging the knife into a crack. “C’mon!” She said. I reached down and pulled her up. “Nice jump… Gotta teach me that one,” I said, patting her on the back as she regained her breath. “Maybe next time… “ She replied, patting my knee in return before we continued on our way. We walked and walked, while we were eventually shot at by our lovely friend from above, until it got dark. “Got the flint still?” She wondered. “I’m just gonna get shit to burn…” I replied confirming. “That’s not the only thing that burns…” She replied with a grin. I only flipped her off as I walked off, sighing at her jokes. After gathering enough things to start a fire I returned to her, and to my surprise, she already had some makeshift hammocks made, another hatchet in hand, already chopping firewood. “How long was I away?” I wondered. “Didn’t YOU keep track?” She asked. “Nope,” I replied, and started the fire. “This will come good later on… Now, off to sleep…” She exclaimed as we sat near the fire. “You sure it’s safe?” “He knows we know he’s after us, it would be a mistake to come any closer… Plus I know the type of sniper our friend is… They take no pride in shooting still targets…” She explained, and got in her hammock. “If you say so…” I muttered, and did the same. [End of Chapter 2]
Chapter 3: Hard ResetI fell out of the hammock, and stumbled to my feet. I saw her pinning who I can assume to by the sniper on the ground. “Damn it…” He muttered. “Now you talk… Who sent you?” She asked our friend. “As if I would talk,” He replied. She pulled a pistol and shot him in the thigh. “Nice try fucker, I won’t tell,” He continued, not reacting to it with even a flinch. “I won’t waste my time… You get one more chance, or a bullet,” She warned him. “You know my choice,” He replied, then spat at her. “I was hoping I did,” She replied, then shot him in the face. “One less guy to play paintball with,” I said from behind. “Yep, let’s get going… We should be there soon anyway, and with him out of the picture, we won’t have to hurry. “I hope we get there soon… I can use some calm time…” “So could I…” She replied as we walked on. After a while of silence she came with a question. “So… Can I ask something?” “Yep,” I replied. “Yesterday… Why did you help me get up? You could’ve gone on without me,” “The same thing you got me out of that village,” I replied quickly, tho I was still pondering at the question. We returned to no talking afterwards for the rest of the way… To the sight of a town completely walled off from the outside, large metal doors, guarded by soldiers in what seemed to be exo-skeletons. “What the fuck is this?!” I asked loud. “A bunch of Grunts and Brutes,” She replied, handing me binoculars. “The guys with the thicker armor are the Brutes, they got a pretty much impenetrable armor,” “They must have a weak spot…” I muttered. “Damn right they do,” She replied, lying on the ground with an M107 sniper rifle. “Where the fuck do you get this stuff from?!” I wondered. “You’re not the only one who got a hand on a nanosuit,” She replied. “Are you sure you can take them out?” “Who said I will? Their suits need a constant supply of energy and oil for the machinery. If I hit the battery or oil tank on their back it will send em flying all ways,” She explained. “Well, since you don’t intend on passing by unseen, why won’t you just go balls to the walls and use an RPG?” I inquired. “Why won’t you just walk past them with the shit you got on?” She threw back. “You’re the one who immediately pulled a rifle,” I reminded her. She rolled her eyes and crossed her arms, standing in front of me. “If you insist on prioritising the least violent way, fine, but I’ll have a few smoke bombs ready. We’re gonna see if we can get in through them,” She replied, she seemed a bit annoyed. I guess she wasn’t a born pacifist to say the least… We slowly walked up to said gate, where the same patrol stopped us. Before we got there she managed to whisper a few things. “1 Mech, 3 Brutes and 8 Grunts… You sure about this?” I nodded and continued. “Hold it there,” Said one of the grunts. “Yes?” I asked confidently, trying to play the role my attire represents. He opened his mouth to talk, but before he did, he took a good look at me, then shut his mouth. “Who’s she?” He wondered. “She’s…” I had no clue what to tell, it was obvious I needed to lie. “She’s one of the experimental border hunters, haven’t you heard?” “Border hunters? Never before,” He replied. “Well, it will be their job to keep the borders clear, instead of wasting us to stand here instead of conquering new land…” I explained. He seemed to believe my made up story. “Right… Go on,” We walked past him and approached the large metal door. “One second…” He said. I looked at her, she had a small, grey ball in her hand, staring me in the eye, waiting for a not. I turned around to reply. “What?” “What were you doing out here?” “I was showing her around, the environment, the forest, so she’ll know it a little better,” I replied. “Makes sense, okay, never mind,” We did it, we got past them finally… “Told ya it won’t be that hard…” I said, trying to mock her passive aggressive attitude. “Where was that meeting point again?” “Don’t you know the way from here?” “Not from here… First time I went there I had no other choice, was on a back seat and almost shot,” I reasoned. “Riight…” She replied and pulled her phone. It rang out. “C’mon….” “Jason?” “Yeah, we just passed the South gate. Can you send someone for us? We don’t know the way…” He seemed to be having a problem. He hung up. “Asshole… Is he like that all the time?” She wondered. I just pulled my shoulders. *Burrr* *Burrr* “What?” Jason replied, the hung up again. “Motha fu- Gah!” She replied, and threw her phone at the ground, which bounced as high as she threw it from. I couldn’t help but chuckle at the scene. “S-sorry…” I managed to spit out while doing so. Soon we heard sirens coming near. “I have a feeling that means our ride is near…” I muttered, wiping the grin from my face. I was right, we saw a car pull up and drift into stop in front of us. “C’mon guys! Hurry!” Said the driver. We got in and held on. “What now?” She wondered. “You either keep your heads down or shoot back!” Replied the driver. It was enough for her to lean out the window with a GL-79 and shoot at the cars behind us, who, needless to say were the police… Some of the cars flew, the road had a crater in it, preventing them from following us. “Effective… The fuck did you get that from tho?” Asked the driver. “Eyes on the road!” I yelled, pulling my own sidearm. “Huh, hers is better,” He said, and looked back on the road. Unfortunately a few turns later a few more of the patrol cars started to chase us. “When I kill the engine and shut the lights you keep down,” He said and pulled into an alleyway, took a sharp turn left and stopped the engine. We waited sometime there until the police passed. “Now, give me your money,” Said the driver all the sudden, pointing a sawed off shotgun back at us. “What the fuck?” “Jason said it will be an easy job, and nothing about the two of you. I’m just gonna pop a cap in both of ya and get your cash, then tell em the police shot ya’ll,” “How about no?” She wondered, then shot him in the back of the head through the seat. “Geezus…” I said. “What? You saw it! He was gonna kill us! I ain’t gonna die to a small time criminal like his ass!” She tried to explain. “This once I’m glad you did it,” I threw back, and got out of the car with ringing ears. “Ugh, what are you again? A terrorist or something?” I asked, since she called the guy a small time criminal. “You must be a sniper, cause you’re damn right,” She replied. “And so the irony of life sets in… An ex-soldier saved by terrorists… Not that I regret it…” I began to ponder. We spent the rest of the day getting back to the bunker. *Kock* *Knock* *Knock* “Yeah?” Asked Jess through the intercom. “It’s me, Joseph,” I replied. “I see, we have a camera up there you know. What of your friend?” “She got me here,” I answered, the door opened and we got in. Jason soon enough came to check on us. “I see you two are fine,” He noted, holding a hand to me as a greeting. I slapped it away. “You out of your mind? The guy you sent tried to rob us then kill us!” I threw at him. “No shit, really? Next time I won’t hire that guy I guess…” “I doubt anyone will,” She threw in. “Good thing I didn’t send one of us then,” Jason replied. “Now, thanks for the visit, and fuck off,” “Beg your pardon, dickwad?” She threw back, not leaning against the wall anymore. “You heard it right. Get your ass out of here!” Jason yelled back. “Dude, she got me here and saved me. I would’ve died without her!” I tried convincing him. “Joseph, we’re better off with her gone. Her kind is not appreciated anywhere!” He exclaimed. “It’s okay, just keep out of my sight from now on,” She replied and punched the wall on her way out, leaving a crude dent in it. “She could’ve hit you instead…” Jess leaned in to whisper, then left to one of the labs. “Trust me, she’s one of the two kind of people you want to avoid…” Jason told me. “Explain,” I replied crossing my arms. “There are two radical groups, both are considered terrorists by the government,” “Wouldn’t our enemy’s enemy be our ally?” I pondered. “Not these ones,” “So who are these two?” “Here’s a hint: One considers Luna as a god, the other, same, with Celestia,” “So we have the Lunatics and… Uh…” I tried to make a joke but barely made one. “What can be related to the sun… Hmmm… Tan? Sunglasses? Heat? Hotheads?” Asked Jeff, one of the shooters, offering a hand for high five. “Good enough,” I replied, high fiving him. “You done?” Jason wondered. “What? It’s worth a joke,” I replied. “Just… Stay away from them… Keep the badge, but lose the rest, some of the fixers might mistake you for target practice,” He advised me, then left to his room. “You might want to do that one,” Alex noted passing by with a few smaller crates. I went to my room and did so, keeping the gun and badge. I chose to take a nap, so I leaned back and got at it. It must have been hours later when I heard my phone ring. I pressed the unlock key on the side, and my eyes began to burn. Don’t you all hate when this happens? I quickly dragged the slider down to adjust the brightness, then looked at the screen. “1 missed call…” I muttered. I looked at the logs and called back. It rang out for a while. Said a familiar voice. “Jason might be the boss in the group but not of mine,” I replied, recognizing the caller. She wondered. “Fine… What time is it?” <4:19 am, I have an offer you will be interested in, but I won’t be alone… And if you come, I doubt Jason would allow you back, just to make it clear to you> She explained. Then she hung up. I chose to go, just from curiosity, but before doing so I left them a thank you and good-bye letter. It was darker than usual but I managed to get there by 4:23. “Glad you came,” She said, wearing full combat gear, all white with golden trim. “So this is the guy you talked of,” Noted the man next to her, same gear, but all dark blue with black trim, crossing his arms. “Let me guess, he’s the lunatic, while you’re the hothead,” I said to her. “Yep… Heh, hothead… That’s a new one, tho,” She noted. “So, what’s the offer you mentioned? I’m still half asleep, and I got no clue how long I can stay up…” I cut to the point. “If you want to, we can get you back to Canterlot to do your duty once again, but with a new face, name, and body,” Said the guy next to her. “I’m interested… What’s the plan?” I wondered. “Easy. You come with me, we take your memory from your body, get you a new body, plug it back into that one, and dump the other somewhere in the sewers and viola! All we will need then is for Lumen’s guys to hack into the database and create your alias in there,” He explained. “Just to make things equal, Malov, remember our deal, okay?” Lumen threw in. “Yeah, yeah, I remember… We get him back in there, so he can do us both a favor by keeping the sisters safe, I know,” He said, tired of her to some point. “What do you say?” Lumen wondered. *Sigh* “I’m in, just so I can get closer to Omnis as well…” I noted, and went with the two of them wherever Malov took us. It was less than an hour, and I woke up in my new body. “Rise and shine, uh…” Said Malov. “What should be your new name?” He wondered. “Whoever’s body this was,” I threw back. “Lucy Stillman it is…” He replied with a grin. “WHAT?!” I yelled, looking down on me right away, to my relief, I did not have a female body. “Gotya… But seriously, your new name is Ryan Knight, copy that? Your age is 25, and just enlisted, so we will get you into the next shipment to the training camp…” He explained. “Great, thanks for the help,” I replied. “I’ll take him from here, come on,” Lumen said, and managed to fit me in, basically bribing a few employees and having connections. At last, I was on my way to the camp before night. “Thanks for the help, I got the phone so we can keep in contact,” I said. “You’re the one doing us both a favor,” She said with a grin and left. [End of Chapter 3]
Crew InfoIt's been 50 years since Etarr's defeat, and things were going well. After receiving the summoning to Canterlot, Captain Newman sits down, and reads the provided information about his yet to meet comrades. He sat down to his computer at his office, seeing a new folder on his desktop he opened it, revealing 11 new files, each with a different name. The first one caught his attention. Opening it showed him the profile of a soldier. Name: Adrian Shephard Age: 25 Class: Sniper Rank: Second Lieutenant D O B: 1930.12.01 Race: Human / White Height: 1.8m / 5.9ft Weight: 56Kg / 123lbs Hair: Brown Eye: Green BIO: Ex mercenary. Traits: Precise, works best alone, no family. "This guy looks promising..." *Clicks next profile* Name: Sarah Karrigan Age: 23 Class: Sniper Rank: Lieutenant D O B: 1932.04.02 Race: Human / White Height: 1.7m / 5.5ft Weight: 45Kg / 99lbs Hair: Red Eye: Black BIO: Mother of two, passed academy as head of class. Traits: Impatient, violent, easy to anger. "I might keep and eye on her... As long as she remains passive, we'll be good," He commented, then checked the next file. He sighed, and scrolled past their files. Name: <_____> Pearce Age: <_____> "For fuck sake! Why can't someone fix this damn thing for once?!" He asked angrily, but there was no response. *Sigh* "Next we have..." *Beep* *Beep* *Beep* "Shit, I'm out of time..." He muttered, simply folding the laptop shut, and ran off toward the rally point.
