Task Force Harmony

March 31st

Spirits were high among Task Force Harmony. As soon as Cipher had been cleared by the EDF medical center, he'd reported to everypony that they were ready for deployment. As there was no pressing threats to Equestria that needed to be investigated at present, he took the opportunity to give the team some much deserved time off. The seven ponies had gone their separate ways for several weeks, to relax and catch up with those closest to them. Rainbow Dash had returned to Ponyville with intent to have a small 'I'm a badflank special operative' party, only to find that Pinkie Pie was still out of town and several other ponies she'd planned to invite were unavailable as well. She'd settled for helping out with the weather patrol a bit, reconnecting with some other old friends and fellow Wonderbolts, and generally getting those overdue naps finished, just like old times.

Ultimately though, duty called again before long and as the month was drawing to a close she was recalled to Canterlot to check out revisions made to her armour. The rest of the team had been gathered in good time and by sunset everypony was ready to go again, Cipher leading them toward the armoury where the combat ready versions of their suits had been moved to from the Institute. Although the familiar air of business was back among them, things were a lot calmer as they exchanged greetings with ponies they passed and details on what they'd been up to with each other.

"You know, I don't think you've ever mentioned if you've got anypony special to you outside the defence force." Rainbow casually asked Healing Wave, trailing near the back of the group. They all knew the way well enough to not need to keep exact pace with Cipher.

"In my line of work, you learn not to get too attached to ponies for, obvious reasons. At the same time, I don't really give myself much free time. Add in the fact both my parents have passed on and no, nopony's waiting for me outside these walls," Wave admitted, sounding, for the first time Rainbow could remember, a little sad about that fact. "I've been on the move a lot as well, this team's the first time I'd been with the same ponies for over two weeks straight in years. I'd almost forgotten how good it feels."

Wave's eyes noticeably went toward Aurora as she said that last part, watching the young stallion chatting with Bulwark just ahead of them. While everypony looked more relaxed from the break, he definitely seemed better off for it than any of them. Gone was the high-strung, aggressive unicorn he'd been the last time they'd seen him, now back to being a good-natured, if still slightly outsider, teammate. Considering how tense things had been between those two for a long time, Rainbow couldn't help but grin at that look. Before she could give it any further thought, the group arrived at the armoury and she shifted back into business mode as they headed inside. The weapons stores were deserted and a pair of privates were standing guard by the armour racks, though upon seeing Cipher enter they saluted and left with a small look of relief visible.

"Poor kids, having to stand watch over something they couldn't know about." Cipher commented as he headed to a set of racks that had been closed and locked. A note had been stuck to the door and he pulled it off quickly to read through.

For the eyes of Col. Cipher only, by order of Supreme Commander Luna of the Equestria Defence Force.

Harmony-cla-you know what? Just going to call it the Spec Armour Mark one point one revisions list:

- Managed to integrate a spell for vocal modification into the mouthplate, allowing an extra level of disguise...Assuming your enemies can't remove it.
- Increased range of communication through the helmet to two hundred feet.
- Added separation points to the chest plates of the third layer for ease of entry and exit. Still need to put the first two layers on first.
- Reinforced the plastics in the visor in an attempt to increase magic protection. Please provide feedback on visibility changes.
- Slight thinning of the flank armour to provide space for equipment bags.

Let me know how it all feels, hope it serves you well, Cipher!
Moondancer

P.S. Keys are in the rack on the left

Cipher chuckled to himself as he put the note away and fetched the key, quickly unlocking the rack and opening it up. Waiting inside were seven sets of the same armour, each tailored to each pony's body and fitted with a label above each with their names and ranks. Aurora raised a slight eyebrow at being listed as a private but didn't comment, watching as Cipher took his helmet down from the shelf it rested on and studied it for several seconds before undoing the latch and putting it on.

"Hmmm, comfy," He commented as he flicked his ears to check how much they could move and fitted the mouthplate back into position. Dropping the visor down and looking back at the others, his eyes were just about visible through it's grey tint. "How's the-Whoa! Didn't expect that."

Nopony needed to ask what was wrong, or why he quickly undid the mouthpiece again. Instead of his usual voice, it had come out deeper and distorted, to the point that it was hard to tell if a mare or stallion had said it. Each of them had jumped slightly at it, completely caught off guard by the sudden change.

"Yeah, you're gonna need to talk to Moondancer about that." Water Flare commented, getting an approving nod from Rainbow.

"I am," Cipher agreed over Flare's little squee of happiness. "Alright everypony, suit up but, keep the moutplates undone for now."

For the next few minutes, the only sounds from anypony were small grunts as they took their armour pieces and fitted themselves into it. Aside from a minor moment where Flash Sentry got his wing trapped between the rubber and protective layers, everypony managed to figure out how to suit up relatively quickly and before long they were all marvelling at both how well their individual pieces fit and how comfy they were. Both Rainbow and Flash flexed their wings to check how they felt while covered and found themselves unimpeded, while Wave checked her magic was still functioning. With a small gap between her horn and its protection, everything was still in working order.

"I know, I'm impressed too," Aurora commented as his own magic aura faded, keeping his visor over his eyes as he looked at Cipher. Though none of the others drew attention to it, his eyes were more visible when paled. "Permission to goof off for a moment, Sir?"

"You know you can use my nickname sometimes, Soul," Cipher replied. "And, granted."

"Look mom, I'm a soldier now!" Aurora replied with a huge grin. Compared to how he had looked when he'd first arrived, the sight was so silly yet satisfying, coupled with knowing who his mother was, that the others couldn't help but laugh.

"Yes you are, and I for one am glad of it." Bulwark finally replied, Cipher and Rainbow nodding in agreement.

Before anypony could make any further moves, the sound of somepony entering the armoury drew their attention. Cipher sighed slightly, muttering something about express orders as he went to see who it was. Aurora lifted his visor and looked over in curiosity, tensing slightly as the glimpse he could see confirmed that the pony that had come in was Nebula, still bandaged up from the last time they'd met. The sight made him wince slightly and he glanced away, sighing slightly as he felt one of the others place a hoof on his shoulder in support. They both knew better than to dwell on it though, focusing again as Cipher returned with a serious look.

"Orders have come in from Princess Luna, everypony check your suits and head for the command center immediately!"

Even at the best of times, the command center that directed the assets of the Equestria Defence Force where they were needed most across Equestria was rather dark compared to the rest of the headquarters. Now that night had fallen though, it was even worse with only a few lamps for illumination and less ponies manning the control stations. Most ponies suspected it was a comfort thing for Princess Luna, though nopony had ever been willing to ask. Each of the walls were lined with several points where unicorns of the EDF's Logistics Branch received scrolls from units on duty, guard posts and civilian centers before passing orders on throughout the army. The center of the room was filled by a map of the continent and the lands that surrounded Equestria. The Crystal Empire and Yakyakistan to the north. The Griffon Territories to the east. Zebahi, Saddle Arabia and the Mintoris Islands to the south, and the Undiscovered West. Flags were set out across the map, their colour denoting priority, though with only the firefly lantern hanging over the table for direct light it was hard to judge which was which right now.

Cipher's eyes narrowed as he studied the map, waiting for the princess to arrive. The rest of the team was standing behind him, waiting ready and keeping their mouthplates and visors off for now. The last thing they needed was to accidently startle anypony. Putting his mind back on track, his gaze went over the situation map, updating himself. Most of the flags were simply for units patrolling the borders, though a few seemed to be on monster guard duties in the Hayseed Swamps and Everfree Forest. The latter had become more important to keep secure considering its proximity to Ponyville, which contained both a number of high-quality farms and the castle of Princess Twilight Sparkle. He'd led more than one excursion into those woods before he'd been promoted to a position that generally took him off the front lines and didn't envy the poor souls that had to stay out there.

His thoughts were interrupted by the sound of a pony teleporting to the entrance of the command center. Considering Aurora was still right behind him, he snapped to attention, the others doing the same immediately after. Luna stepped into the center a moment later, once again decorated in her commander armour. The blue glow of her magic lit the room further as she was carrying several black bags, smaller and more compartmentalized than regular saddlebags. She laid them out on the edge of the map table and motioned for the team to be at ease.

"I fear we don't have much time, Colonel, so I'd like to start the briefing immediately," Luna said, her tone completely serious as she looked over the map. "Your team is being deployed to the San Palomino Desert."

Even with his years of experience, Cipher felt his nerves rise as he looked at the lone flag in the desert of southwest Equestria. Luna's light was illuminating clearly now showing just what level of threat it was; Code Black, critical threat to Equestria, deploy elite units or Elements of Harmony only.

"Understood, ma'am," He replied, managing to keep his voice free of expression. "Mission parameters?"

"HVT verification and suppression, SAR as a secondary," Luna glanced up at the ponies behind Cipher. "Has anypony present not heard of Starlight Glimmer?"

"I, ah," Aurora slowly raised his hoof, though none of the others seemed to think badly of it given his age and background. "I'll settle for the short brief on her."

"She's an extremely powerful and dangerous unicorn," Cipher said as he turned to face Aurora. "Effectively started a cult in the Patchwalk Mountains twenty five years ago that was broken up by the Elements of Harmony. It took the full skills of Princess Twilight to capture her and she was placed in the Canterlot dungeons for attempted rehabilitation. At least until she escaped two years ago. This is the first hint there's been at her location since then."

"We suspected something brewing in that area," Luna continued. "A number of ponies who were reported missing over the past few months were last seen in towns on the fringe of the desert. A member of the Recon Corps was deployed to investigate, but we lost contact with them a week ago. Then three days ago, I was approached by a rather agitated Pinkie Pie, she gave us a location and intel on the area. We hope that by acting quickly, and using the cover of the night to our advantage, we can bring her in before the situation escalates any further."

Luna pulled several photographs from one of the bags and laid them out for the team to look at, keeping two held in her magic. Most of the pictures gave a clear view of the, for lack of a better word, compound. Three rows of identical two-story stone houses, providing enough housing space for approximately a hundred ponies made up the majority of the space, capped off at one end by another pair of the same houses and a small oasis surrounded by several fields producing durable crops at the other. One of the long edges was walled off by a rock cliff that trailed off out of sight, the rest of the perimeter was covered by a twenty foot tall wooden fence broken up only by a gatehouse on one of the corners. The final photograph was seemingly just of a patch of desert.

"Looks like Starlight's style alright," Rainbow Dash commented as she studied the pictures, glancing up and seeing the look Luna was giving her. "I know what you're thinking, your highness, but I don't know much that can help. Twilight only told me a bit about what she was like the second time they met, but she sounded like a whole different pony."

"I suspected as much," Luna murmured before continuing, pointing to the desert photo as she did. "I will teleport you to your entry point to the north of the area, just beyond the rim of the cliff. Approach under cover of darkness and assess the situation from your vantage point. There are likely to be a lot of civilians in the area, situation unknown, but your priority is to confirm the targets and, if you think the objective possible, neutralize them. Once either the objective is secure or you have fallen back to a safe distance, Private Aurora will teleport back here, providing coordinates for me to extract the rest of you and make our next move from there. Due to the nature of this operation, each of you have been equipped with restraints and magic suppressors, as well as medical supplies."

"Interrogative," Bulwark spoke up, everypony's gaze turning to him. "Who's the second target?"

"The second target is only suspected to be on site, though given how likely it is she helped Starlight Glimmer escape in the first place the odds are increased." Luna explained as she showed the last two photos, pictures of the targets. The first was pink coated, blue eyed and purple maned with aquamarine highlights, unmistakably Starlight Glimmer. The second was an amber coated unicorn, though before the others could get a closer look, Cipher picked up both photos and placed them into the bag again.

"I'll know her when I see her." He replied a little quickly. Aurora glanced at the others before using his sensory magic for a moment. Whatever Cipher had seen, it had him frightened. Neither he or anypony on the team commented on either of those though.

"Cipher, I understand your worry," Luna started, eying him with concern. "If you think you are unable to fulfil the mission..."

"I'll be alright, ma'am. I can't be picky about what I have to do at this level." He replied, sounding more confident in himself.

"Very well then, stand ready, ponies." Luna lifted each of the bags up again and placed them on everypony's flanks. The bags had seemingly been styled for the armour as they sat in place without being obstructive.

"Task Force Harmony, I just want to say that I know every one of you can do this. Now, team names only from here, and let's show Starlight Glimmer just who she's dealing with!" Cipher said to the others, each of them saluting and fitting their helmets properly again before he turned back to Luna and nodded. She stepped round to their side of the map, horn flaring with light, gathering strength for several seconds before a blinding flash went through the command center. By the time it faded, seven ponies had vanished, deployed in full. Luna brushed a few drops of sweat from her forehead and turned to one of the logisticians that had shielded their eyes in advance.

"Update the situation log please, time and date. Operation Spellbreaker has begun."