Nick and his team led the seven ponies to the Depot, neither side not really speaking to the other.

Except for Pinkie Pie. Her mouth never seemed to stop moving, constantly asking questions, speaking so fast that the agents didn't have time to respond to them.

"Alright, inside." Nick said. The ponies looked at a rather drab building marked with "Supply Depot".

"This it?" Rainbow asked.

"Sorry, we had first class suites at the Ritz, but those got booked." Ryan said. "To answer your question, miss, yes, this is it."

"Inside." Nick said. They entered, and while the agents dealt with the JTF, who were inside moving supplies, the ponies and Spike found seats on a pile of crates.

"Some welcome." Pinkie said. "Wonder what's going on? And why'd they bring us all the way here?"

"And here is certainly not pleasant." Rarity moaned. "My mane is absolutely filthy!"

The Agents walked over a few minutes later, carrying four folding chairs. They set them up, and sat down.

"So." Nick said. "Names?"

"I'm Princess Twilight Sparkle, of Equestria."

"Rainbow Dash."

"Pinkamena Diane Pie!"

"F...Fluttershy."

"Rarity."

"Applejack."

The agents nodded.

"Nick Sykes." the leader said. "That's Logan, Harper, and Kyle."

"So, what happened here?" Twilight asked. "I figured the wall wasn't for show."

"It's not." Nick said. "Long story, but welcome to spectacular Manhattan, in New York City. Or at least...what's left of it."

"What's left of it?" Rarity asked, confused. "What could possibly…"

"We'll tell you." Nick said, pulling out a tablet. "Or better yet, show you."

Nick browsed for a few seconds, then hit PLAY on a video file.

"This is something I put together, to remind me and my team of what we're up against." he said. "Take a look."

Twilight saw a city horizon appear on the tablet, and all of the Equestrians realized it was Manhattan. Then, there was a male voice.

"You know that this Black Friday, you can sleep in…"

There was more garbled voices, then,

"Retailers are calling this their…"

There was images of people hurriedly buying merchandise in various stores…

"Millions of dollars in cash sales, changing hands…"

Suddenly, intercut with images of various people were images of what Twilight realized was bacteria or a virus.

"It appears to be a previously unknown variant of The Flu, catching many experts off guard…"

Images of contained panic started to appear, including hospital rooms and people wearing breath masks. Then out of the blue, sirens were heard and panic started to appear as text read "ARMY MOVES INTO MANHATTAN." Scenes of what the ponies and Spike assumed were soldiers trying to maintain order.

"Leading with unconfirmed reports of a Smallpox outbreak…"

"...a highly rehearsed scenario…"

"...and National Guard units converging on a Hospital in Central Manhattan…"

Then, Twilight and the others saw images of all means of transportation out of the city slowly being cut off.

"A very real danger…"

"More deaths than AIDS, more than Ebola…"

Then, a man on a podium spoke.

"Let me stop you there. This is not a panic situation!"

Then, in a store, Twilight and the others saw a man shoot another in the lower chest or leg over medicine, SWAT units in formation, and scenes mass chaos.

"...an ENTIRE American city, locked down!..."

Then, images of the dead being buried and fighter jets tearing through the sky flashed before them, along with a naval blockade of the city.

"...Known as Green Poison, Central Park has been converted to a mass Burial Ground…"

"...reports of gas line leaks, fires, power outages, the Government seems…"

More images of burning buildings and SWAT Units knocking their shields to intimidate rioters appeared...

"...We're expecting another night of widespread looting!..."

"The people of New York are begging…"

"Where were the cops?" an angry man yelled

"All of our first responders are either dead or…" as the images of a world pandemic appeared.

"With no resources available…" on an image of a document marked with "Directive 51".

There were more scenes of violence, police using Tear gas, the city descending into total, uncontrollable chaos, the Rikers Island Facility being overrun…

"We're being treated like animals!"

"It's not our job, we're not trained for this!" said a SWAT operative, and that was the final thing the ponies and Spike heard before Nick pressed PAUSE, and the video ended.

"What...happened?" Rarity asked, absolutely floored. Fluttershy was on the verge of crying. The others were just...shocked beyond words.

"That is the state of affairs, here in Manhattan." Nick said. "If you want to know the details, that'll take longer. But we don't have time."

"Ditto." Kyle said. "JTF radio channel just flared. Rioters are attacking the BoO at the Post Office."

"Ready up!" Nick said. "And you seven are coming with us."

"Into that...warzone?" Twilight said, not sure she heard correctly.

"Yep." Nick said. "Stay behind us, keep your head down, and stick to cover. Let's move."

Twilight glanced at her friends nervously, and they all nodded uneasily. Nick loaded a fresh magazine into his P416 assault rifle, and the eleven of them headed to the gate. After a quick decontamination, they entered the war-torn area of Pennsylvania Plaza.

====

Twilight and the others were told by Nick not to look around, but she couldn't help but disobey. The city, true to her thoughts, was in a state of total destruction. Burned-out stores and buildings, areas covered in yellow coverings marked with "QUARANTINE", and…

...Bodies. Dead humans hidden among the carnage.

"How'd they all die?" Fluttershy whimpered.

"Various causes. Mostly Green Poison, or they got shot." Harper said. "Everyone here in Manhattan shoots to kill. And Nick, we'd better hit the gas."

"Right, double-time!"

The agents took off sprinting, and the ponies, though able to keep pace, struggled slightly. Even Rainbow took to the air to keep up. As they entered the rudimentary perimeter of the Post Office, Nick and his team took cover behind a ruined Taxicab. Twilight and her friends could see several humans wearing urban apparel and masks firing guns at the green-clad JTF.

"JTF squad, identify." Nick said into his SHD shoulder tag.

"Who the hell is this?" said a voice.
"SHD Agent Nick Sykes." Nick replied. "On your right flank. We're engaging now. Give us cover."

"Roger that! Just do it soon! We're losing guys here!"

"Noted." Nick said. "Logan, stay here and pick them off. Guard our guests too. Rest of you, weapons free."

Nick, Kyle, and Harper advanced into the open, and Nick took his shot. Firing a burst at a Rioter armed with a Submachine gun, Nick furrowed as the man fell.

"Watch out!" the leader cried. "Get those fuckers!"

The other Rioters advanced on the agents. Nick swiftly identified them. Two riflemen, a grenadier, and a rifleman armed with a stolen RPK-74 Light machine gun.

"Move up! Focus the gunner!" Nick yelled. Logan affirmed over his SHD radio, and dropped the Grenadier with a shot to the head. Harper suppressed another rifleman, leaving him to be shot by one of the JTF soldiers on the ramparts. Kyle's machine gun downed the last rifleman, and the agents advanced to the barricade.

"Clear?" one JTF soldier asked with relief.

"Clear." Nick said.

"Thanks for the help." the soldier replied. "Dispatch, this is Bravo Squad. Situation under control. Division Agents saved our sorry asses. Head on in."

"What about those things?" a soldier said, pointing to the approaching ponies. Nick looked at the man, and pointed to them.

"They're with us." he said. "And you'd better not shoot them."

"Yessir." said the soldier. The ponies were shepherded inside, and Twilight had to sigh. For a Base of Operations, it certainly didn't seem like one. The inside was dirty and unkept, with a few civilians and JTF soldiers milling about.

"Agents!'"

The eleven of them turned to see Lau come in, supported by a soldier.

"I just got off with Division command." she said. "Seeing as Louis Chang is dead, I'm in charge here. And as for our guests...well, they thought it best for them to formally announce themselves, just to tell the people of Manhattan they're not a threat.."

Before they could reply, the radio in the corner spoke for them.

"Hello, Manhattan. This is Rick Valassi, and you sorry bitches are listening to Wouldn't You Know It, the Tri-state area's favorite pirate-radio podcast. And do I have a story for you. We aren't alone anymore, New York. I have confirmed reports of seven extraterrestrial contacts made at Camp Hudson. From what I could gather, they looked like horses you'd see in some kids cartoon or shit like that. And they didn't land in a UFO, they dropped out of the sky through some portal straight in front of the Camp Hub. Apparently they were taken into custody by the JTF, but what's that to us? We're fucking dying out here due to the Green Poison, and now we have ALIENS in Manhattan? You're probably loading your gun right now to go alien hunting, but in all honesty, It's going to be okay, at least to me. Why, you ask? Because we've got bigger shit to deal with than aliens. Once again, This is Rick Valassi, signing off. Good luck, and I welcome our new alien friends. At least, I hope they're friends."

The ponies looked at the civilians staring at them nervously. Twilight then looked at Nick.

"Cat's out of the bag now." he said simply. "Go ahead. Make history."

Twilight and her friends slowly walked forward, and introduced themselves.

====

After the initial panic was calmed by the JTF and the Division agents, Twilight found the civilians to be full of questions and not as scared as Twilight had thought they'd be. The various children were laughing their guts out at Pinkie Pie's antics, and Rarity was helping sew some clothing. Twilight, however, was dead tired.

"You alright?" Nick asked.

"Yeah." Twilight said. "What's next?"

"You're talking to the whole of Manhattan, that's what's up next." Nick said. "We managed to get a radio setup working, so you and your friends can make a broadcast on local radio. With some help from Mr. Valassi."

Twilight and her friends reluctantly headed to the tech wing, where Lau was speaking with a man who had to be Rick Valassi. He was weaselly-looking, with a sharp face.

"So, there they are." he said. "I'm Rick Valassi, nice to meet you all. Radio's hot, so go ahead. tell the whole of New York what's going on."

Twilight and her friends took the mic, and thus began a broadcast that would change the world.

"I suppose you've already heard about us, but let me and my friends introduce ourselves. I'm Princess Twilight Sparkle…"

Author's Note

Update!