Harmony: Heroes of Gimlé - Arc I: Rainstorm

Planet Earth, The National Republic of America, Outskirts of Area 10 (Badlands), July 19th, year 2053 AD, 11:32 AM -

"Oh, gee! I hope nobody finds me out here all by my lonesome!" shouted Dr. Mac Tíre at the top of his lungs as he dragged, what appeared to be a large, metal luggage case on wheels behind him as he walked past the shattered remains of what may have once been a pleasant suburban neighborhood, now reduced to ruins. Though Mac Tíre was still wearing his lab coat and glasses, he now wore battle armor underneath, keeping him safe from both the elements and potential enemy attack. "I sure am glad none of those stupid drones from the Silver Legion are around!" he shouted, "Guess that idiot Alexeev finally decided to give up and admit that, I, Dr. Gideon G. Mac Tíre, am the better scientist!" Just then, something leaped out of the window of a nearby house, landing with a loud, metallic thud. The humanoid creature slowly stood up, revealing itself to be a robot with what appeared to be an assault rifle for a right arm, it seemed to study Mac Tíre for a moment before taking aim at him with its weapon and firing. Mac Tíre barely had time to take cover behind his luggage case before being shot at, though, he merely smiled confidently. All according to plan... he thought smugly, even as the sound of ricocheting bullets intensified as the machine drew closer and closer.

Planet Gimlé, Equestrian Airspace (en route to the Trottacan Jungle), April 24th, year 2, Reformation era, 1:16 AM -

"Helloooooooo? Gimlé to Rainstorm? Are you in there?" Rainbow Dash asked Rain, who had been sitting across from her onboard the Wonderbolts' airship. Snapped out of his thoughts and brought back to reality, he looked around at Rainbow and the other Wonderbolts, all of whom were in their blue and yellow spandex, and fastening on sleek, dark-blue armor plating over top of it.

"Yeah, yeah, I hear you," Rain answered, "I was just thinking about something."

"Such as...?" Jasper inquired.

"Leave him be," Spitfire ordered as she holstered what appeared to be small, twin sub-machine guns, "I'm sure he's got a lot on his mind. That's all." It was true, a million thoughts had been running through his head during the flight to their destination. Why was he thinking about the past so much as of late? Who was it that was targeting the elements of harmony? What was the nature of the device Agent Furlong had given to him? Did it have something to do with his disappearing agents? And just what had Furlong been doing that allowed him to sneak into Lyra and Bon Bon's house?

It was then something Furlong had said forced its way to the forefront of his mind. Something that - in the grand scheme of things - seemed largely inconsequential, but nevertheless took him by surprise. "Hold up!" Rain shouted as he stood up, "Furlong has a wife!?" he exclaimed in shock. Before anyone else could react, Spitfire practically leaped at him, a look of confusion and shock vivid on her face.

"What do you mean 'Furlong has a wife!?" Spitfire demanded.

"He mentioned it earlier!" Rain explained.

"So that creepy guy has a wife, but I don't?" Spitfire sadly remarked, not noticing one of her fellow Wonderbolts - one with light-blue skin, a light-gray mane, and reddish-purple eyes - giving her an annoyed look. Let it go, Fleetfoot, let it go... she thought to herself angrily as the Wonderbolt sitting right next to her - a pegasus with pale, cornflower blue skin, a dark, grayish-blue mane, and emerald-green eyes - addressed Spitfire.

"Uhh... Sir?" he asked, "Who are you two talking about?"

"let's go over the mission one more time before we arrive," Spitfire said, completely ignoring the question and leaving the pegasus looking a bit confused.

"Let it go Soarin, let it go," Fleetfoot advised him before Spitfire continued.

"We've gotten word that an old military outpost has been taken over by bandits," explained Spitfire, "Old Moss Mare Spire was originally a combination wizard's tower and church built to honor a powerful nature spirit, but was abandoned several centuries ago. It then came back into use after the Evermourn plague as a research outpost to study the local flora and fauna but was abandoned yet again about half a year ago - for reasons that are still under investigation. A few months back, however, a large group of bandits took up residence there and have been using it as a command hub for their ketamine trade."

"So, we're going after a bunch of drug dealers?" Rainbow asked, "Shouldn't we just leave something like that up to regular law enforcement?"

"I'm with Dashy on this one," Jasper added, "Besides, isn't ketamine just some kind of morse tranquilizer, or something?"

"Yes, it's used to tranquilize morses and other large mammals," Rain interjected, "But in creatures like us, it's used as a 'party drug'. In ponies, however, when introduced to their bloodstream, it reacts to their magic and produces a potent, psycho-alchemic reaction. It allows any pony using it to relive any moment in their life, but more positively. You get to relive the worst day of your life, but have everything come out sunshine and rainbows, while the best day of your life gets to be even better," Rain explained.

"Sounds like it would be highly addictive for more reasons than just chemistry," reasoned Jasper.

"It is," Soarin confirmed, "But it's also far more physically and mentally damaging to ponies than it is to other races. In addition to all the normal health risks from being addicted to it, there's the added drawback of the magic toll brought on by the alchemic reaction, which not only breaks down the body but the mind as well. Over time, it will destroy a pony's ability to tell the difference between reality and fantasy, cause them to develop false memories while losing their real ones, then lead to violent psychotic episodes, then finally... their brains just...shut off..." Soarin finished glumly.

"Sounds like you're quite familiar with this stuff," Jasper remarked. Soarin was quiet for a moment, then responded.

"...My big brother... He got hooked and... he didn't make it..." Soarin answered.

"Soarin, I'm so, sorry," Rainbow said, "I never knew you had a big brother, let alone..."

"I don't talk about him much..." Soarin explained.

"Sorry, kid. I didn't mean to pry," Jasper apologized.

"It's cool. You didn't know," Soarin replied with a weak smile.

"Hold on though," Rainbow Dash interjected, "Potions have magic tolls too?" she asked Rainstorm.

"Certain ones, yes," he answered. "The kind and severity vary, and potions like health potions have theirs paid through certain super-condensed protein clusters within the potion itself, but all magic comes with a toll that must be paid. Granted, some of the negative side effects from ketamine use in ponies is likely due to a magical rebound - which is what happens either when you screw up a spell you're trying to cast, like what happened when Twilight botched Starswirl's unfinished spell, or when you lack the physical, mental, or spiritual means to cast the type of magic in question. Rebounds are never anything to scoff at," Rain explained.

"I see..." Rainbow said, "But, that still doesn't explain why this isn't a job for normal law enforcement."

"Two reasons, Crash," Spitfire said, addressing RD by her Wonderbolt's moniker, "One; these bandits are especially tough and well-equipped. Normal cops going in with standard police equipment would get chewed to pieces. The second reason, and why we're not sending in normal mercs, or guards to clean house instead, is because we need as little collateral damage as possible, so we can try to trace where they got their resources from. They managed to establish themselves far more quickly than your usual bandits, and their hardware is military-grade - plus, the strength and overall quality of the ketamine is far more potent than normal...and it's being dealt exclusively to ponies... Because of this, it's possible...that Saddle Arabia may be involved," Spitfire finished grimly.

"Wow..." Rainbow's voice trailed off and a fearful look came over her face, a look mirrored by everyone else in the back of the ship.

"Saddlic blood-magic would explain why this batch of ketamine is so potent and why it's being dealt exclusively to ponies," Rain surmised.

"So...this could be the start of a full-blown war with Saddle Arabia..." RD said, looking a bit pale as she spoke.

"Correct," Spitfire confirmed. "That's why we need to take the Moss Mare Spire back ASAP so, we can start determining whether or not the old kingdom is involved or not." she then took out a small remote control and clicked a button on it, causing a holographic display of their target to appear. The image depicted a large stone building nestled amidst the jungle trees, with a massively tall tower jutting up from the center of the structure, with numerous castle turrets dotting it all the way to the top, countless vines hanging from them. One of the Wonderbolts there whistled loudly at the scale of the construct, while others murmured to each other. "The place is using both arcane and standard radar to pick up any non-friendlies coming in by air, and they have aura-sensitive sensors all over the ground, making it impossible for us to just walk there without setting off security," Spitfire explained.

"That's where I come in," Rain said, "I don't have any magic of my own, so magic-sensitive security won't respond to my presence."

"Exactly," Spitfire confirmed before continuing, " First, we'll drop Rainstorm and his familiar off just outside the enemy's perimeter, then circle around while we wait for Rainstorm to hack the security system so he can prevent them from alerting anyone once they realize what's going on as well as give us clearance. Then, we just have to make sure to avoid as much collateral damage to the site and anything inside of it as possible while we neutralize the hostiles inside." And that's when I'll use the device Furlong gave me... Rain thought to himself. He then stood up and held out his hand to Spitfire, who nodded and took out a plastic baggy containing a hand full of twigs and leaves.

"What's that?" Rainbow Dash asked as Rain pulled out a fist full of the baggy's contents.

"Samples from the terrain I'm gonna be going through," he replied before taking out a small phial filled with a gray, smoky-looking liquid, then threw it hard against the floor, causing it to shatter and release a narrow cloud of smoke, just big enough to obscure his entire body from view for a few seconds. Suddenly, his clothing and armor appeared to absorb the cloud, causing the color of his attire to take on a night camo pattern which blended closely with the foliage in his hand.

"Aww, man," Dash exclaimed, "Why don't we get some kind of cool stealth armor?"

"Funny you should ask," Fleetfoot said, smiling at her as she turned a dial on the armor she was wearing clockwise, causing the blue on it and her spandex underneath to darken to a dark, midnight-blue. Rainbow quickly looked for a dial on her armor, and sure enough, she found one in the exact same place as on Fleetfoot's armor, then turned it counter-clockwise, causing it to turn a bright white. "Clockwise for night camo, counter-clockwise for winter camo," Fleetfoot explained. After Dash adjusted the dial again, she managed to set it to night camo.

"So awesome!" RD exclaimed excitedly.

"New from EPU R&D," Spitfire explained.

"Spitfire, we're here, Ma’am," informed the pilot over the intercom as Rainstorm attached silencers to the ends of his pistols before holstering them again. The airship lowered itself as much as possible, though it was unable to land due to the trees in the way, though this proved a non-issue for the merc and his familiar. Rainstorm opened a sliding door on the side of the airship, with magic runes around the doorway - which prevented any depressurization from occurring when opened - and used the Ashcaster to repel down, using a cable of ash, to the jungle floor below, Huginn close in tow. When the ash cable dispelled, the airship flew off, leaving the two of them alone in the jungle. "Ready?" Rainstorm asked Huginn, who nodded in agreement before the two of them synced their senses just as they had when looking for the CMC's a few days earlier, then headed off to the spire.

Mayor Mare was sitting at her desk, looking over all her files on Rainstorm, lost deep in thought over what had happened hours earlier. She had seen the fight between Twilight and Rain and had heard from eyewitnesses what the fight had been about. While she still had her doubts about Discord living there - or rather, dropping in periodically to annoy the locals and visit Fluttershy - she knew Ponyville was the best place to keep an eye on him. However, the revelation about the details of Lord Tirek's assault on Canterlot Castle and the gruesome injuries inflicted upon the merc, as well as Twilight's alleged involvement with his facial scars, left her confused about a great many things. "*sigh* Maybe I should ask Furlong about him?..." she asked herself out loud.

"I take it you mean Rainstorm?" asked a familiar voice. Mayor Mare looked up to see Agent Furlong standing in front of the door to her office. She smiled as she stood up and walked over to him.

"It never fails to lift my spirits when you appear in front of me like that," she said before the two of them embraced and exchanged a loving kiss. She then backed away and returned to her desk, "Yes, dear," she responded before sitting back down. "...How much of what he said is true?" she asked, a dire look across her face.

"*cough-cough-cough* Here's what I know," Furlong said as he took a seat in a chair in front of Mare's desk, "With the exception of Twilight knowingly leaving Rain to fend for himself during that exam, it's all true."

"All of it?" Mayor Mare asked, to which Furlong nodded before continuing.

"Though, it seemed that Discord is also the one that saved Rainstorm from Tirek's attack - not that he's in any mood to hear that the being he hates the most right now is the same one that saved his life. As for the exam, the staff and faculty covered their tracks well. An investigation was launched, but nothing definitive could be found proving that anyone other than Rainstorm himself and one Professor Flintsteel was at fault - and even then, it couldn't be proven that either one had intentionally done anything wrong. Not that it matters much anyway, as the professor seems to have been nothing more than a scapegoat, while Rain seems to have been outright set up, with most of the evidence against them either being circumstantial at best or...overly convenient for anypony's taste. Of course, the school got its way in the end, as even though pegasi and earkin are still allowed and even - on an official level anyway - encouraged to attend classes there, nopony is brave enough to try," Furlong explained.

"*sigh* As horrible as that is, it still leaves the matter of his reputation as a mercenary in question. From what I've read about him, he sounds like just another headhunter," Mayor Mare stated. Furlong was quiet for a moment before responding.

"I won't lie, he's definitely got a ruthless streak in him, but he's never broken any laws outright," said Furlong.

"How about that bandit leader at Fort Jagged? As bad as he may have been, Rain could have easily killed him quickly as opposed to torturing him to death, and last time I checked, mercenaries aren't allowed to cause undue pain and suffering like that," Mayor Mare countered.

"...Normally, you'd be correct, but...considering the circumstances, he was let off with a warning *cough-cough*. If you need to know what those circumstances were, take a look at these," Furlong said as he handed Mayor Mare a manilla envelope. She opened it and found two legal documents within.

"A marriage certificate, and...an adoption form... His name is on these! What are you saying?" Mayor Mare said in surprise.

"First thing you need to understand is that there's a difference between what we call 'bandits' and what Rockjaw was. A bandit is basically just your run-of-the-mill criminal, they rob ponies, deal drugs, run organized crime - even kill if they have to, but it's all just a means to an end - profit *cough*," Furlong paused for a moment as he suffered a coughing fit, then continued once it had passed. "Rockjaw wasn't a bandit. He was a raider. Raiders are far fewer, but they're also far crueler and way crazier. Torture, murder, slavery...even...the very worst things you can think of...they do it all because it makes them happy. They're evil, pure and simple."

"I know what a raider is, but I fail to see what...!" Mayor Mare's voice trailed off as she started to realize the truth.

"*cough* Starting to get it now? The two ponies he cared for the most...were among Rockjaw's victims. Forty-six-year-old Wallflower Blush...and...six-year-old Morning Dew," Furlong said as Mayor Mare covered her mouth in horror. "I think you of all ponies can understand how grief can fuel vengeance and make you do things you'd normally never do. After all, if it wasn't for your desire for revenge, I wouldn't be here right now." Mayor Mare fell silent for a while, then spoke up again.

"...Are you sure you want me to authorize all of Twilight's new defense proposals?" she asked Furlong.

"I came back to town specifically to authorize an increase in security in person," Furlong explained, "As for doing it Twilight's way, it makes things easier for everypony. Either way, with so many of our agents having disappeared from their posts over the last several months, we need all the help we can get."

"I take it, we still don't have any leads on the cause of the disappearances?" asked Mayor Mare.

"Not yet, but with any luck, Rainstorm may be able to find some answers at Facility Seventeen," Answered Furlong.

"...Moss Mare Spire..." Mayor Mare's voice trailed off, "...That's where the Slipstreams were stationed several months ago when they..." her voice trailed off again before she asked Furlong a question. "I'm not asking you as a colleague or as the overseer of this base, but as your wife...what are the chances that Snap and Allgood are still alive?"

"You couldn't have known that everypony at Facility Seventeen would disappear," Furlong responded, much to Mayor Mare's annoyance.

"That's not what I asked you," she replied sternly. Furlong gave a defeated sigh, followed by a brief coughing spell and then responded.

"Until Rainstorm completes his assignment, I can't say for sure, but... You should prepare for the worst," he informed her.

"Then, are the rumors true? Is Saddle Arabia involved?" Mayor Mare asked.

"I hope not," said Furlong, "Because if they are, then based on the reports on the type of hardware the bandits at Moss Mare are packing, I'd have to say Equestria is quite literally outgunned," he answered, a worried look on his face.

Rainstorm was frozen in his hiding spot in the bushes at the sight before him, I'm seeing things... I have to be... he thought to himself, though he knew his eyesight wasn't failing him. He had made it to the entrance of Moss Mare Spire and found two bandits guarding it - one an earkin, and the other a griffon. This wasn't shocking, but what was shocking were the weapons they were carrying. The two guards were armed with modern-looking assault rifles, which Rain was only too familiar with. Those are Micxor 51G Lances... Cutting edge back in the late twenty-tens and early twenty-twenties... But...those are Earth weapons...the only one I know of on Gimlé capable of producing weaponry like that is..., Rain gave his head a small shake to try to refocus on the task at hand.

This is bad... Huginn thought as he observed Rain from a tree branch above and slightly behind the mercenary as he drew his pistols and took aim. Normally Rain's armor is more than a match for the usual firearms people in this world use. Even enchanted, nothing short of high-power military-grade, enchanted rifles and shotguns at no more than a few feet away can punch through deep enough to cause any real damage beyond some bruises, flesh wounds, or - at worst - some cracked bones. But if he gets shot by one of those..., Huginn thought to himself. Both him and Rain knew he would have only one shot - literally. He had to instantly kill both lookouts before either of them could make a sound because, even if neither of them shot him if they alerted the others, he would be a dead man. Rainstorm focused, took aim at both enemies and squeezed both pistols' triggers at the same time.

Two muffled pops rang out at the same time as, near instantaneously, a bullet punctured both lookouts' skulls, right between their eyes, but before he could even exhale, Rain noticed that both guards were falling forward and would land on top of their guns. "Shit!" Rain exclaimed under his breath as in one fluid motion he holstered his pistols, then fired two ashen cables from the Ashcaster - one from the top port, and the other from the wrist port - and grabbed both weapons from the dead men's grasp just before they hit the ground. He reeled in both cables, drawing the guns to himself through the air and easily caught one while fumbling the other, nearly pulling its trigger. He made an audible "eep" as he got control of both guns, after which he slowly turned to look at Huginn, at which point, they both let out nervous, yet amused chuckles under their breath with one another. "I think I almost crapped my pants," Rain mused.

"If after all that, you'd managed to grab both guns, only to fire one off..." Huginn cawed quietly, still trying not to erupt into laughter.

"I know, right?" Rain whispered back, "Good thing for us, I believe I have an improved muzzle that can silence this thing completely and should fit it just -!" he stopped mid sentence as both rifles crumbled into dust. "...W-what the?..." his voice trailed off as he stared at his hand and noticed it had an earthy smell, mixed with the scent of plant life.

"Did...I miss something?..." Huginn quietly cawed in confusion.

"You and me both... I guess..." Rain whispered as he took a small, empty phial out of one of his pockets and sprinkled what little was left of the gun that was still in his hand into the receptacle, then placing it back into his pocket. "Analysis of the remaining alpha timberwolf samples should be finished by the time we get back to the castle so, I'll get the lab ready to analyze this sample next," Rain explained, "In the meantime, I need to get word to the Wonderbolts about this."

"It's dangerous, but you're right. Using communications so close to the spire might tip off the enemy to our presence, but that won't matter if the Wonderbolts charge in and get mowed down. Besides, we can't risk Rainbow Dash getting killed, the whole reason we're out here is to make it easier to protect her and the other elements," Huginn cawed to Rainstorm who nodded in agreement before taking out one of the communicators he and everyone else at Twilight's Castle had gotten from EPU R&D and set it to connect him with RD's.

Rainbow Dash was waiting with the other Wonderbolts and Jasper when she felt her communicator start to buzz. Surprised, she took it out and answered it, "Hello?" Rainbow asked confusedly.

"Thank God, you're close enough for the signal to reach without a relay," Rain quietly said.

"Does this mean you already got into their security!?" Rainbow asked excitedly.

"We've hit a bit of a snag - put me on speaker," instructed Rain. Dash did as she was told by opening the compact mirror-looking device further so that the top half lay completely horizontal with the bottom part. This caused a holographic projection of the top-half of Rain to appear and seeing this, the others on board gathered around her to listen to the merc.

"You have to know how dangerous it is contacting us like this. This must be serious," Spitfire said grimly.

"I do, and it is," Rain said, "The weapons these bandits have... They're really advanced. Too advanced. If they land a hit on any of you, you're done."

"Are they really that powerful?" asked Spitfire, "Half the reason I sent you down there with just your familiar is that I thought your armor would be more than enough protection for you. Do they have some kind of super enchantments or something?"

"I doubt they use any magic at all - which is our only saving grace," Rain stated, sparking further confusion among Jasper and the Wonderbolts. "The thing is, they're far more advanced than almost any other firearms on the planet. Capable of single-shot, semi-automatic, and even full-automatic fire, effective at short, medium, and long-range. Then, to top it all off, it fires armor-piercing rounds - as in, my kind of armor," he explained.

"Did you fieldstrip one of these things or something? Sound like you know a lot about them," asked Jasper.

"No, I never got the chance. The two I was able to get my hands on self-destructed before I could really do anything with them," Rain said.

"Then how do you know so much about them?" Soarin asked.

"Because there were always plenty of these rifles in the hands of soldiers back where I came from," said Rain grimly. Everyone on board the airship exchanged confused looks with one another until Spitfire spoke up.

"...You're not talking about Canterlot, are you?" she asked. Rainstorm slowly shook his head no, then replied.

"I mean from my homeworld," he elaborated.

"But the only one with any knowledge on how to make weapons like that would be..." Jasper said, his voice trailing off.

"Yeah...it would seem that between the weapons and the chemically superior drugs, the person supplying these bandits...would have to be me," he said,his concern audible in his voice.

"Bullshit!" shouted Rainbow Dash. "Rain can be a jerk, and mean, and yeah - he's pretty violent, but he'd never help bandits out or make drugs that ruin pony's lives or anything else like that!" Spitfire tried to speak up, but Rainbow continued. "Boris said you fell out of the sky as a little kid along with a bunch of junk. Maybe somepony got to that stuff before the guards could collect all of it and found something in that mess that let them recreate these weapons, or maybe somepony else in the military sold us out!? Hell, maybe the same thing that happened that night happened in Saddle Arabia and their scientists managed to reverse-engineered whatever dropped out of their skies! Why would Rainstorm fight so hard to protect the CMC's or help us right now if he was just going to betray us by dealing drugs and weapons to our enemies!?" Rainbow shouted. Rainbow Dash... Rain thought to himself in surprise. Of all the things he hadn't been expecting to happen during this mission, he was honestly more shocked by Rainbow Dash jumping to his defense than he was by coming across Earth weaponry. Before he could answer, Jasper spoke up.

"It could all be part of the long-game," suggested Jasper, catching everyone off guard. "The thought had crossed my mind that everything from the CMC's kidnaping, to the display in front of the townsponies, to even agreeing to come along on this mission, could all be apart of a long-term plan to assassinate one or more of the elements of harmony," he explained. Rainbow Dash was shocked and appalled, Rainstorm had taken care of Jasper after he'd gotten injured the other day, then had gone out to save Scootaloo and the other CMC's lives, she'd talked to him and gotten to know him. Sure, he'd not been very nice to any of them when they'd first met, but he'd been trying to be more kind and patient with all of them - even Twilight, though she admitted to herself that he hadn't had much success in regards to the Princess of Friendship. She was about to interject when she heard Rainstorm give a quiet chuckle.

"Thanks for the vote of confidence, Jasper," he said, still trying to keep as quiet as possible out of fear of discovery.

"Yeah, with friends like you, who needs enemies!" RD exclaimed.

"Rainbow, I was being serious," Rainstorm informed Dash, much to her obvious surprise. "Even if Jasper had suspected any treachery from me, if he still thought I might be in league with any of Equestria's enemies, there's no way in Hell he'd just come right out and say so to my face. So, by him telling me that he had been suspicious of me just now, it shows that he's, at least, fairly certain I'm not a traitor," explained the mercenary.

"It's true, Dashy," Jasper said, "I thought from the start that he might be dangerous, but after keeping an eye on him for a while, my instincts tell me that he's totes on our side!" he exclaimed happily.

"Oh...sorry about what I said, Jasper," Rainbow said, feeling somewhat ashamed of her outburst.

"It's cool, Sweetpea. Besides, I was kinda being a dick just now, so I deserved some ass-chewing," reasoned Jasper.

"And I've known Rain long enough to know he may be an idiot at times, but he's no traitor," said Spitfire.

"But, you make a good point, Rainbow Dash," Rainstorm said. "My world was full of myths and legends about things out-of-the-blue just disappearing into thin air. Everything from treasure to individuals, to whole civilizations, and even entire island nations vanishing overnight. It's possible that countless things throughout the Earth's history have found their way to Gimlé over the millennia."

"Come to think of it, we do have a lot of legends about all kinds of weird, otherworldly things that have fallen out of the sky. That could actually explain a lot of it, Rainstorm," Fleetfoot surmised.

"I never knew you knew so much about Equestrian mythology, Fleetfoot," Soarin said.

"Meh, I like reading about history and legends during my free time, that's all," explained Fleetfoot, prompting Rainbow to snicker at her.

"Nerd," she teased Fleetfoot.

"Hey, swan-dived into any good trash cans lately, Crash?" said Fleetfoot teasing back before the two of them noticed the serious look on Spitfire's face.

"Of course, Dash's other theory has merit as well," Spitfire said, "As disturbing an idea as it is, we can't ignore the very real possibility that the classified knowledge we've obtained from that night has been leaked to the enemy... perhaps even by somepony with a high level of clearance in Canterlot," she explained. Rainstorm tensed up as a chilling thought entered his mind as he stared at her for a minute before speaking.

"So...what kind of information was the military able to acquire from the wreckage that came here along with me?" he asked her.

"Sorry, but I'm not at liberty to say," Spitfire replied, much to Rain's annoyance.

"Can you, at least, tell me if the phrase, 'Project Krishna', sounds familiar?" he asked her again.

"I said, I can't answer you," Spitfire repeated herself, but much more sternly. The two looked into each other's eyes for a while before Rain spoke again.

"Then I'll find out for myself..." Rain said.

"Uh...what's 'Project Krishna'? Soarin asked. Rainstorm looked at him for a moment, then answered.

"If it falls into the wrong hands...then it's the end of all life on the planet," he answered before closing his communicator, leaving everyone there in stunned silence.

"'The end of all life on the planet'? What the Hell is that supposed to mean?" asked Soarin nervously. Rain put his communicator away and turned to face the entrance to the spire and began walking towards it.

"'Project Krishna, isn't that the -?" Huginn started to ask but was cut off by Rain.

"Yeah. It looks like my priorities have changed. I need to make sure that no information on the Vishvarupa System falls into anyone's hands - that includes Equestria's," he told Huginn.

"I doubt there's any information about their weapons here though. Even if these bandits’ bosses have any data on Vishvarupa, I don't think we'd find it here," Huginn tried reasoning.

"Then I'll have to make sure none of the bandits here know anything about it themselves and if any do, I'll have to kill them before the Wonderbolts can take them into custody," said Rain.

"But half the reason for their mission here is to interrogate the bandits here for information about the one supplying them! Do you really think they'll just let you undermine their whole operation like that?" asked Huginn. Rain was quiet for a second before answering him, his voice dripping with venom.

"If worse comes to absolute worse, I'll bring this whole place down with all of us inside!" he said coldly.

"B-but our mission is to protect Rainbow Dash and the other elements of harmony! You promised Shining Armor!" Huginn exclaimed.

"This trumps everything else!" Rain snapped, "If I had to, I'd fight both Shining Armor and even Princess Celestia to the death to keep the secret of that horror buried. Such an evil can never be resurrected - EVER!" Just then, they heard something in the bushes behind them. They turned just in time to see a ferocious manticore leap out at them, but with a single, fluid motion, Rain used an ash cable to whip the creature right in its left eye, causing it to leap back shaking its head and whimper in pain. "Get lost," Rain hissed at the beast before it scurried back off into the jungle, yelping the whole way. He then turned and entered the building, Huginn perched on his shoulder.

Meanwhile, on the top floor of the spire, a stone-gray pegasus with a greasy, shoulder-length, dark-brown main, matching short tail, and vivid green eyes seemed to be talking to someone else via a small, crystal ball. The stallion wore various small earrings, rings, and bracelets, along with a small green vest with many zippered pockets, a pair of dark blue jeans, and short black boots. "So, you think there are any other pests headed our way?" he asked the figure on the other end of the crystal ball.

"More likely than not," replied a raspy voice coming from a pair of glowing green eyes appearing within the crystal ball, "You may do with the others as you see fit, Granite Gust. As for the monkey, I want you to capture him alive and get all the information he has about weapons technology you can from him - in particular, I want to know more about this 'Vishvarupa System'. If it's as dangerous as he lets on, it could be worth millions to the right ponies...even billions..."

"Then consider it done, boss!" the pegasus exclaimed, and with that, the eyes faded from the crystal ball and Granite Gust pocketed it and turned to his men. "Well, fillies and gentlecolts, let's roll out the welcome mat, shall we?" he said with a confident smirk.

Rainstorm hadn't been sneaking around the inside of the building for long when a voice came across the intercom, "Hey there, mister monkey-stallion!" Granite Gust's voice cheerfully called out, "I have no doubt you're already inside and that you have friends somewhere nearby so, I'll be nice and make you a deal. Turn yourself in and answer all of my questions, and I won't have my boys kill them when they find them, otherwise..." his voice trailed off. Damn... Rain thought to himself as he took out the small cloth doll he carried with him and gave it a squeeze. When he looked at it he saw the doll was enveloped by a shadowy aura, at which point he returned it to his pocket, Just as I thought. I haven't triggered any security within the spire itself, so I must have been spotted by someone, but who? I was certain the two guards I shot were the only ones there. So, where was...!

Rain's eyes widened as he realized his mistake. The manticore!... he thought to himself as he pulled a pager from one of his pockets. It must have been acting as a guard dog the whole time!... Rookie mistake, Rainstorm!... he thought to himself as he pressed the button on the pager, causing its counterpart in the possession of Spitfire to start buzzing from within her pocket. "Land this bird immediately!" she ordered the airship's pilot, who did as they were told after finding a small clearing nearby just big enough to land.

"You think they intercepted his warning earlier?" Fleetfoot asked as they touched down.

"I doubt it," Spitfire said, "Somepony must have spotted us or Rain and alerted the others."

"Or, that bastard tipped his real allies off, and they're probably on their way to capture us!" said a yellow-eyed pegasus stallion with a dark-brown mohawk.

"Now, Hotstreak, don't go jumping to conclusions," said an older pegasus stallion. He was light-blue gray with a dark-blond crew cut and goatee with streaks of gray in his mane, along with pale-violet eyes. "Besides, if he were going to turn on us, then why give us a fighting chance by warning us about the enemy's hardware?"

"Open your eyes, Air Striker - the rest of you too!" Hotstreak shouted at the other Wonderbolts, "None of us know anything about this dude! At the very least, he could have been captured after he sent us that communication and forced to talk!"

"You're wrong," Spitfire said, drawing the attention of everyone there, "First of all, I've known that stallion for years. He's loyal to a fault - especially to Equestria. He would never betray this country. Secondly..." Spitfire's voice trailed off for a moment as she remembered something from the past.

Spitfire stood there in the middle of Fort Jagged, mouth agape, as Rainstorm stood there amongst a sea of carnage, bodies, and craters strung about in all directions. Rain was naked from the waist up, badly injured, and covered in blood, holding the corpse of a raider by the throat. "Come on, Rain, it's over..." she said nervously as she slowly approached him from behind, "He's dead, they're all dead. You're safe no- !" as soon as she was next to him she stopped dead in her tracks. Though Rain's eyes were still open - as a mixture of blood and tears continuously flowed from them - she could tell he was no longer conscious. She then tried prying the dead raider from his death grip, but despite her best efforts, she couldn't get him to let go.

"What a monster..." a gruff, authoritative voice proclaimed. The voice came from an unusually tall and burly, golden-skinned, pegasus stallion wearing golden armor, who had a black mane in a crew cut with different shades of gray running through it with a matching short tail. His strong orange eyes glared daggers at Rainstorm as he approached, revolver in one hand, sword in the other, almost seeming to be unaware of Spitfire's presence.

"Lieutenant General Thundercall!" Spitfire said in surprise, not having expected him to show up in person. He then took aim at Rainstorm with his revolver and cocked its hammer. "W-what are you doing, sir!?" she asked in shock.

"I've never trusted this bastard!" Thundercall said with a cold anger in his voice as he sheathed, "Ever since that thing landed in Canterlot, I've had a bad feeling about it! I have no idea why it decided to sneak in here, or why it slaughtered everypony here, but -!"

"You think he's responsible for all these civilian casualties!?" Spitfire angrily interrupted him as she positioned herself between the two, "You want to know the reason he broke in here and fought through all these raiders himself!? It's because -!"

"Quite frankly, Captain Spitfire, I don't give a damn!" Thundercall said, cutting Spitfire off mid sentence, "Whatever that thing's reasons were, I doubt they were noble. I've been keeping an eye on it ever since it was little, and everywhere it goes it leaves a trail of corpses in its wake. Now, I order you to stand down!" he growled at Spitfire.

"No, sir," she growled back, "He's an innocent citizen of Equestria, and the whole reason I joined the military was to protect its ponies. Furthermore...he's family... So, I'm afraid I'm unable to follow that order!"

"Please!" Thundercall snapped, "First of all, I'm telling you there's nothing 'innocent' about that butcher! Secondly, that thing is no citizen of this country - and nothing you, Major General Boris, or Princess Celestia can say will ever change that! Finally, on the matter of it being, 'family', just because it was married to your sister for a whopping one month before she finally came to her senses and divorced its ass, does NOT make it family! Now, I won't tell you again, out of my way!" he said as he took careful aim, preparing to fire. Before he could move another muscle, the raider's body flew towards him, though it caused him no harm as he batted it away midair with one swing from his other arm, but when he returned his attention to the two warriors in front of him, both he and Spitfire were shocked to see Rain standing in between them, his eyes and expression still blank.

"R-Rain..." Spitfire said under her breath.

"He's...unconscious!..." Thundercall said in shock, not having realized Rain's condition until just then. His arms are broken...legs too... Is...that one of his ribs sticking out?... Ancestors...the amount of will power it must have taken to keep fighting in this shape... And yet, he's still pushing himself to shield Spitfire...even though he's out cold... He must have sensed the murderous intent I was feeling towards him and thought I was going to shoot Spitfire...so, his body acted on its own to protect her... And here I thought you could only do something like that if you had strong magic in you... he thought to himself as he sheathed his sword. At that moment, a sound from above him caught his attention and he turned around just in time to pluck a heavily battle-damaged Huginn out of the air as he tried to attack him from above. "Your Rainstorm's, aren't you?" he asked as the familiar tried in vain to claw at his armored hand holding it.

He then tossed the bird at Spitfire who caught it and turned away. "I still don't trust him and if our investigation shows that he's even remotely responsible for this raider attack, or any civilian deaths, I'll see to it that he's punished to the fullest extent of the law... That said, however, for now, I'll send for the medics. It's the least I can do...for somepony that was trying to protect my daughter..." Thundercall said before flying off to get help.

"Secondly..." Spitfire said as she returned her focus to the present, "...You can't begin to imagine the amount of pain he can endure... These bandits could torture him for months and he'd be no closer to cracking, trust me on that!" she exclaimed.

"Ma’am, we may have a problem!" shouted one of the pilots from the cockpit.

"What now!?" Spitfire demanded.

"Sensors are picking up seven - no, eight airborne hostiles en route from the spire, and... they're armed!..." the pilot added grimly.

"Who did what isn't important right now," Air Striker said calmly, "What matters is taking down the enemy before they can report our location. Luckily for us, they're past the range of the spire's security, so we can engage them without worrying about Moss Mare's defenses triggering. It's just a matter of getting past their weapons," he said, stroking his chin in contemplation.

"Sounds like you need an expert in aerial stealth combat," Jasper chimed in, "Lucky for you, you're in the presence of one of the best in the business!"

"Now you're talking!" Hotstreak said with a smirk as he headed towards the exit, "Just leave everything to me! Those marrons will be deep-sixed before they even know what hit them!" he proclaimed confidently as he slammed his fist into the palm of his other hand.

"...I think...Jasper was referring to...himself..." said an exasperated Fleetfoot.

"No way in Tartarus am I leaving this up to one of Rainstorm's lackeys! This rookie's probably never even seen any combat before in his li- !" Hotstreak suddenly found himself unable to so much as make a single sound or move a single muscle due to the overwhelming ominous sensation coming from Jasper. He slowly turned his head to meet his frigged gaze and started shaking like a leaf. Jasper stared at him for a moment before smiling warmly at him.

"Don't worry about a thing, any of you. I won't allow any harm to come to you. You have my word!" he said before exiting the airship and flying up high into the sky.

"...W-what was that...horrible feeling just now..." Hotstreak asked, his voice shaking.

"You dumbass!" Rainbow Dash snapped at him, "He's not Rain's lackey, and he's definitely not some rookie! That's Death's Wings Jasper!" she informed Hotstreak, leaving him speechless. As Jasper flew higher and higher into the sky he drew out a small, silver device the size of his hand as he thought about how best to deal with the coming threat. I've heard about the weird firearms that Rainstorm uses. If those bandits have anything of the sort and anyone of them gets a clear shot, my armor won't do much against it, even at long-range... Even if they don't hit me, if any of them get the chance to warn their buddies about us, this could turn really ugly, really fast... Then, for a second his mind wandered back to a few days ago at the Apple family's farm. He was still embarrassed over having been knocked out so easily that day and felt guilty that Rain and the CMC's had been forced to face such danger without his help.

"I won't let them down again!" he said out loud, "I have no choice but to use that!" he said. He then cleared his mind and focused inward, deep into the depths of his very soul and finally spoke, but when he did so, his voice reverberated and seemed to come from somewhere deeper than just his vocal cords alone. "Dance in fatal silence - Muerte Tranquila!" he said under his breath. His short, green feathers started to turn such a dark shade of green that they appeared black, his once dark-yellow beak turned an almost black shade of gray, and a whimsical, swirling, dull neon-green pattern appeared across his body, while his irises took on a matching pattern, his pupils taking the shape of crossbones. With that, he flew still further up into the air, all without making a single sound and headed off in the direction of their would-be capturers.

The bandits in question were closing in fast on the Wonderbolts' airship, each one armed with an Earth assault rifle and using short-range comms to communicate with one another while in flight. "If I remember correctly there should be another clearing up ahead big enough for a small or medium-sized airship to land. Whoever came here with that Rainstorm guy could be waiting there for him to get back. Copy?" the pegasus stallion leading them asked, the other bandits agreeing with rogers over their comms.

"I don't know about this..." said a male dragon who was the third furthest back in the loose formation, "...I thought for a second I sensed a huge spike in someone's magical aura right before it vanished," he said, unaware that the griffoness bringing up the rear of the formation had just been cut in half right down the middle in mid-flight by something moving too quickly to be seen. "I've got a really bad feeling about all this..." he added as another bandit - this one right behind him - was also cut down.

"I don't care about your 'bad feelings'," the pegasus bandit said mockingly through his commlink, unaware that more and more of his comrades were being defeated in the blink of an eye, "As long as we stick together and don't lose the element of surprise, this will be the easy work of ten minutes - maybe fifteen! Copy?... Do you read me?..." he asked in exasperation, waiting for confirmation from the dragon, but a minute past and he heard no response. "*sigh* We've been over this you dumbasses. When I'm done talking, you say 'Roger' so I know you heard me. Remember?..." he asked as he turned around, only to see that he was the only one still in the air. Before he could respond he heard a voice that seemed to come from all around him.

"Actually, 'Roger' is used to confirm you've received and understood your orders. 'Copy' means you heard what the other person was trying to tell you," the voice said cheerfully. The bandit was looking in all directions frantically when he felt something hard and metallic tap him on the back of the head. He whipped around to see Jasper flying in place right behind him, holding the unconscious dragon under his right arm while brandishing a revolver in his left hand. The bandit tried to say something but found to his surprise he couldn't make a noise, and before he had the sense to shoot Jasper, he took a bullet to the forehead, falling lifeless to the jungle floor. Jasper then flew back with his captive to the Wonderbolts.

"I'm baaaaack!" chortled Jasper as he touched down next to the Wonderbolts airship.

"Wow, what's the deal with the new look?" Rainbow Dash asked as she and the others tied up the still unconscious bandit Jasper had brought with him, "I hardly recognized you at first. What gives?"

"Ah, so that's what it looks like," said Air Striker as he stroked his chin, "I've heard stories about Death's Wings Jasper's Muerte Tranquila, but I've never had the pleasure of seeing it in person before."

"'Mutty What?'" asked Rainbow Dash and Hotstreak in unison.

"'Muerte Tranquila'. It's my Arcane Manifestation!" Jasper explained, "Think of it as a way to upgrade your magical skills or your special talent. For example, I can make almost no noise and completely conceal my aura without any effort whenever I want, but I can amplify this ability like crazy by calling upon my Arc-Manifest's name - Muerte Tranquila - to temporarily change myself in such a way as to have complete control over all sound within range. Of course, the boost to my strength and speed ain't too bad either!"

"And by the looks of it, yours is an Amalgam between Mutation type, which alters your physical form, and Field type, which lets you use continuous ranged effects," Air Striker added.

"Righto!" Jasper said as he slowly reverted back to his original form.

"If you can transform like that, then why didn't you go in and disable the security!?" Hotstreak asked incredulously.

"Don't forget, the whole point of sending Rainstorm in on his own in the first place was because and unauthorized magical energy too close to the spire will set off its defenses," Spitfire said, "Even if Jasper can keep other ponies from sensing him, doesn't guarantee the spire's sensors wouldn't detect him. Besides, there's the Arcane Toll to consider."

"Is that like some kind of super magic toll or something?" Hotstreak asked.

"Yes," Air Striker answered, "However, an Arcane toll is much heavier, though, it may not come due right away."

"Trust me, I'll be paying it several hours from now," Jasper informed them, "For now though, we've got a mission to complete!"

"Oh...I knew I had a bad feeling about this..." said the dragon bandit as he started waking up, "So much for bringing the intruders back in ten minutes..."

"So, you were sent here to capture us?" asked Hotstreak, "Let's see what else we can get our new guest to tell us about," he said just as they heard a thunderous roar from somewhere above. All of them looked up in time to see a massive, blueish-white, winged reptilian beast soaring overhead. "S-sweet Celestia, don't tell me that's your mom or something!?" asked Hotstreak fearfully.

"Gee, racism from ponies, who would have ever guessed?..." asked the dragon bandit sarcastically. "That's a drake. They're feral beasts - the same to my people as wild horses are to ponies like you. Damn thing would eat me just as quickly as it would everyone else here," he explained.

"But, I have a dragon friend that turned into one of those, and I've seen other dragons that are like that all the time! What's the deal with that?" asked Rainbow Dash.

"*sigh* My peoples' magic works a lot like pony magic, it's affected by our emotions. On top of that, we can change into our drake forms if we want, though, some have to learn how to do it, while others can't stop themselves from transforming. Dragons like the former Dragon Lord, Torch typically stay in drake-form partially because the larger form of a drake is pretty intimidating - especially to non-dragons, and partially to limit the strain on their own bodies caused by the strength of their own magic. If certain dragons like Torch stayed in his true form all the time, their own magical power would start to rip their bodies apart from the inside out," explained the bandit.

"So, it's just a big, dumb lizard. What's it doing here then?" Hotstreak asked.

"Drakes like tall places to roost," answered the bandit, "Moss Mare Spire's the tallest place around here so, the local drake population likes to take a go at taking over the spire every now and again, but they never get close."

"Why's that?" RD asked as they all continued to watch the drake fly towards the spire. As soon as the massive beast had crossed the threshold into the range of the spires sensors, huge pulses of pale-blue light came surging up the spire, all the way to its pointed top where a large sphere of electrical energy started to form. Within seconds its size was nearly that of the drake and a moment later, it fired at the creature in the form of a giant bolt of lightning, engulfing the creature in electricity and sending its badly charred remains flying off in the opposite direction. "Oh...that's why..." Rainbow said in a stunned tone of voice.

"Well, looks like you're gonna be coming along with us, buddy!" Hotstreak informed the bandit as he started walking towards him.

"You're kidding, right?" Soarin asked in disbelief.

"Think about it," Hotstreak replied, "If that security system didn't lash out at those guys and they were supposed to bring us back to the spire, then their security clearance would probably let us through so long as we're with at least one of them. Right?" he asked the bandit who merely jerked his head away, refusing to acknowledge him. "We've got to try. If that traitor Rainstorm's warned them about us, then -!"

"Hold on! You think that Rainstorm monster is with us?" interrupted the bandit, "We're surprised anyone's dumb enough to work with the Grand Reaper. Do you really think we're as stupid as you!?" he asked incredulously. "Anyone who gets too close to that...thing, is cursed to die a horrible death! No, thank you!"

"Oh, so he's not a traitor, he's just an idiot...and cursed..." Hotstreak said bluntly.

"Didn't take much for you to change your mind, did it?" said an audibly annoyed Fleetfoot.

"I can always tell when somepony is lying to me! He may be a dirty bandit, but he's an honest dirty bandit - at least when it comes to this," explained Hotstreak. "Now, let's get going. The enemy clearly knows we're nearby, so we don't have time to wait for Rain anymore. They may already be destroying valuable evidence regarding who's helping them out, not to mention that they may already be preparing to move their product out of here. That means a ketamine epidemic like Equestria's never seen before, and the country's already got more than enough fires to put out as it is!" he exclaimed.

"Can't believe I'm saying this, but Hotstreak has a point," said Spitfire.

"Now, we're tal- ! Hey!" Hotstreak shouted in protest upon recognizing the insult.

"Let it go, Hotstreak, let it go," said Fleetfoot reassuringly as she patted him on the shoulder, though Spitfire seemed to ignore them.

"If they get any of that junk out of here, a lot of ponies could have their lives ruined - or even ended! I'm sure Rain can take care of himself, but he can't be in two places at once. If there's even a chance we can get at least one of us through there to help him, then we have to try!" she said.

"Alright, I'll go!" said Rainbow Dash, "If anything goes wrong, I have the best chance of dodging that lightning blast!" Before she could grab the bandit, Air Striker put a hand on her shoulder.

"No offense, Crash, but I think I should go. I'm fairly skilled at dealing with lightning-based magic, so I might be needed to disable that lightning weapon and besides that, you're too important to risk on some test," he told her, causing Rainbow to scowl as she looked him dead in the eyes.

"If this is about me being the Element of Loyalty, then forget it! I'm a fighter and a grown mare. I don't need to be babied!" She was about to argue further, but Air Striker held up a hand and shook his head before elaborating.

"It's not - or, at least, not in the way you think," he said, "Yes, being one of the Elements of Harmony is a factor, but not in the sense that we have any intention of coddling you - quite the opposite. I'm sure that if it were up to the Captain, instead of being pent up in that damn castle and having to wait for others to fight your battles for you, you'd be wings up and hooves on the ground looking for the terrorists who attacked you. There's a reason more pegasi enlist in the EPU than any other race that calls Equestria home. We're warriors one and all dating all the way back to our ancestors in ancient times. It was our ancestors who were the first to follow the first alicorn, Acusilaus, into glorious rebellion against the Old Empire. It was a pegasus who originally conceived the idea of the EPU in the first place. We know full well that your talents are wasted sitting around and doing nothing, which is why we can't afford to risk losing that talent on this! We're going to need you more than anything or anypony else once we're inside. Understood?" Air Striker asked Rainbow, who stood in stunned silence for a brief moment before responding.

"Alright, sir," she said calmly.

"Then it's decided," Spitfire said, "Sparky, you'll take our new friend here and see if you can get past the spire's defenses, but the moment you so much as think you sense the slightest electrical surge building up from there, abort and return here ASAP! Got it?" she asked Air Striker. He nodded his head, grabbed the captive bandit, and took off for the spire.

While all of this was transpiring, Rain and Huginn were making their way up the spire, fighting off groups of bandits at a time as they went. "Stealth mission,” they said. "'Just have to plug in the stupid device he said'! I'm gonna plug Furlong's head down his neck and out his ass after this!" snarled a very unamused Rain as he took cover behind an arch in front of a door in the hallway he was in as he reloaded his pistols. Huginn was suspended upside-down from the ceiling, his head turned at a one hundred eighty degree angle so that his point of view was normal, giving Rain a literal bird's-eye view of the hallway.

"Careful, we've got six more idiots coming towards us," he cawed at Rainstorm just as six bandits came into view.

"We're still linked, I see em'!" Rain responded nonchalantly at the familiar as he took aim from behind his cover, taking full advantage of Huginn and his shared vision to shoot each of the attackers right between the eyes while avoiding ever entering the path of their firearms - all of which seemed to be more Earth weapons like the ones wielded by the guards from the entrance. Huginn fluttered down from the ceiling to land on Rain's shoulder and the two continued down the hall towards where the now-dead bandits had come from. "Just our luck that they got smart and disabled the damn elevators once they figured out we wouldn't go down easily!" Rain complained as they ran down the hallway, only to run into another bandit, this one brandishing a wicked-looking black sword with a serrated blade.

"YOU POOR FOOL!" shouted the unicorn bandit as she charged towards Huginn and Rain, "You now face the dreaded Demon's Fang - a sword handed down through the strongest members of my clan! It has never once failed to claim an enemy's life so, come and meet your do- !" she was cut off mid sentence as her sword and the hand holding it were pinned to her body. Unfortunately for her, this did not stop her from running, though it did distract her long enough for her to run headlong into an aerial clothesline maneuver executed by Rainstorm, whose expression was unchanged as the two hit the stone floor, leaving the bandit gasping for air. Rain released the ashen restraints pinning her hand and sword and picked up the weapon to examine it as Huginn, who had taken to the air just before impact, returned to his shoulder.

"*sigh* What is it about you swordsmen-types that you always have to give your opponent a breakdown of just how 'badass' your sword is, huh? Gives the other guy all the time in the world to do this to you," he pointed out before turning his full attention to the sword as he turned his back to the bandit and slowly continued down the hallway once again. "You see this, Huginn?" he asked as he stopped and stared at the sword intently.

"Yeah... It's just a cheaply-made sword with a few low-level durability enchantments on it..." he cawed with exasperation, "It doesn't even look like it can cut anything." With that, Rain tossed the sword behind him, causing it to hit the bandit on the head, blade first, bouncing off almost harmlessly and leaving only a small, red mark on her forehead causing her eyes to tear up a tiny bit.

"Thing is barely more than a display piece," Rain said to the bandit, "Stick to half-ass cosplaying at backwater conventions, dumbass," he advised her before heading off at his original pace once again.

"T-to overpower Demon's Fang so easily... Such a thing shouldn't be possible..." the bandit said out loud to herself, "Truly, this Rainstorm is every bit the monster the rumors said he was..." Rain was running down the hallway as fast as he could when he heard a fearsome roar as he passed a window to the outside. He slowly backpedaled towards the window to look for the source of the noise and saw a drake in the distance.

"Oh, for fuck's sake!" he said wide-eyed as the beast flew in their direction. "Normally, this might be a good thing, but if that damn creature wrecks the place before we get what we came here for..." his voice trailed off as the drake made its way towards the spire. Just then Rain and Huginn felt a massive surge of magical energy start to rise up from deep beneath the spire, all the way to the top.

"This must be the spire's defenses!" Huginn cawed as more and more energy began to build up somewhere above them. Then, in a flash of blinding light, a lightning bolt shot out from some distance above them, striking the drake and blasting it away.

"Amazing..." Rain said in astonishment, "That's right... This place is supposed to be built over a major faultline. The spire must be designed to soak up the kinetic energy emanated from the constant seismic activity, store it, and use it as a power source - not only giving it plenty of juice but effectively defusing any potential earthquakes in the process..." Suddenly, they heard the sound of a door opening from behind them. They turned to look and saw a stringy looking griffon wearing a face mask and rubber gloves step out.

"How am I supposed to get this junk ready for transport with security going off all the time! I mean, this place was designed to hold back armies of sorcerers for days, I think we can last an hour or two with some big-assed flying gecko taking pot shots at us. Drakes or no drakes, I'm tempted to pull the plug on security for an hour or two so I can get my job done!" he griped more to himself than anyone else as he hadn't noticed the others just yet.

"'Pull the plug on security' you say?" Rain said wickedly as he towered over the fearful griffon as he cracked his knuckles and glared evilly at him. "Please, by all means do go on... I insist..." Back in the command center for Moss Mare Spire, Granite Gust and his henchmen were just now learning how badly their situation had deteriorated.

"Slow down and explain it to me again, calmly this time!" Granite ordered someone over a radio, "Okay... Yeah, I figured that would happen. Then what?... He did what!?... And your artifact had no effect on him whatsoever!?... So, you don't think Demon's Fang works on actual demons and that's why he beat you!?... O-okey... Just...keep an eye out for any other intruders. Over and out. Shit!" he swore loudly, attracting the attention of the other bandits, "That was Star Blitz! Turns out, this Rainstorm asshole may not even be mortal!" he said as he shut his eyes tight and rubbed the bridge of his nose. The bandits looked at each other in confusion before looking back at Granite.

"This wouldn't happen to have anything to do with her trying to attack that guy using that sword of hers, and then getting her ass kicked, would it?" one of them asked.

"How did you know?..." Granite asked with a raised eyebrow.

"Figures," another bandit said, "That prop sword's faker than my ex's tits!"

"Wait, Demon's Fang is fake!?" Granite shouted in surprise.

"I thought it was obvious... She bought it last month in Los Pegasus for, like, fifty bits, remember?" asked yet another bandit. "You... You didn't actually believe all that horseshit she was going on about, with it being forged by Nightmare Moon using her own blood and it being a clan heirloom, or whatever her origin story for it was this week, did you?..."

"*cough-cough* How's the team we sent to collect Rain's partners coming along?" Granite asked, quickly changing the subject.

He believed every word of it... the bandits thought in unison, feeling a great deal of embarrassment for their leader.

"Well?" Granite a bit more impatiently asked again, this time as he walked over to the center of the room. At the room's center was a glowing crystal ball nearly the size of a basketball resting on a waist-high, thin pillar, which resembled vines made of stone, and surrounding it were two cheap metal folding chairs, and one cheap, worn-looking lawn chair. A unicorn sat in each chair, staring intently into the crystal ball.

"I'd rather not. You'll just yell some more," said a unicorn mare sitting in one of the chairs, invoking an annoyed, angry look from Granite.

"Dead," answered a unicorn stallion sitting to her right, "Except for one, they're all dead,"

"Oh, goody!" Granite said through gritted teeth. "Any more wonderful news?" he said sarcastically.

"One of Rainstorm's allies seems to have captured our survivor and they're headed this way," explained another unicorn mare sitting in front of the crystal ball.

"*sigh* I know I'm going to regret asking this... Could you bring up a visual?" Granite asked. The unicorn nodded and looked back at the crystal ball, her horn lighting up as she did so. A moment later a holographic image of Air Striker flying towards the spire carrying the tied-up dragon bandit in his arms. Granite Gust recognized Air Striker's Wonderbolts armor immediately and threw his radio across the room.

"Celestia, damn it all!" he bellowed at the top of his lungs, "He came here with the Wonderbolts - the fucking Wonderbolts!"

"Boss, what should we do!?" asked one of the unicorns around the crystal ball. Granite rubbed the back of his head nervously for a moment as he racked his brain to try and think of a solution.

"H-how far out are the transport ships!?" he asked one of his bandits.

"The first one should be here in about ten to fifteen more minutes!" he answered. Granite began grumbling and messing with his mane.

"We could just revoke Snaggle's security clearance," offered one of the crystal ball unicorns, causing everyone there to look at him in shock.

"But, if we do that the spire's defenses will fry him along with that Wonderbolt, won't it?" asked another one.

"No, no, he might have something there..." Granite said, the gears in his head starting to turn. "As long as we can keep Rainstorm on his own, we should be able to keep him from shutting down security, but if he gets any outside help, there's a serious chance we could lose Moss Mare to the Wonderbolts. If that happens... After G.E. went to all the trouble of taking this place personally...'' The other bandits all looked as if they had just seen a ghost.

"Wait, you mean G.E. - the G.E. took this place themselves!?" asked one of the bandits fearfully.

"Yeah. It seems this whole operation is directly endorsed by The Endeavor itself," Granite explained. At this, everyone there broke out in a cold sweat.

"I-I always thought The Endeavor was just an old pony's tale..." one of the bandits said in a hushed voice.

"Nope, it's as real as they come," said Granite, "And this is my chance to impress them! Of course, if we lose this place, we'll have more than The Endeavor to worry about. G.E. doesn't accept failure - not from anypony. They probably already know that Snaggle already let himself get caught, which means, even if we beat these assholes, get the info they want, and figure out this weapon system G.E.'s so damn curious about, they'll still kill the poor bastard in the worst way possible. In the end, lightning strike's a lot quicker and a lot less painful a way to go," he finished grimly. The other bandits looked at one another for a moment, then looked back at Granite and nodded in agreement.

Several floors below, Rainstorm was dusting off his hands, content with his work. "Thank you, my good sir, that was quite the informative little discussion!" he cheerfully chortled to the griffon bandit, who was badly beaten, barely conscious, as well as bound and gagged with the rope with which he was also being suspended by the wrists and ankles from a ceiling fixture that most likely had been intended for a large chandelier or similar such apparatus. Rain playfully gave the semiconscious bandit's beak a boop, causing him to sway ever so slightly through the air and emit a groan, invoking a chuckle from the mercenary.

"Bit much, don't you think?" cawed an exasperated Huginn from Rain's left shoulder.

"Hey, he's alive this time, ain't he?" asked Rainstorm defensively as he turned to leave the room. They were about to return to the hallway when Huginn noticed one of the crates of ketamine was open.

"Hold on a minute," Huginn cawed to Rain, “I should analyze that junk. It might tell us more about who made it and where it comes from."

"Good thinking. I'll keep an eye out for anyone while you're doing your thing." Rain returned to the hallway and leaned out of the window. The night sky was nearly cloudless and brimming with countless stars as a gentle breeze blew a whiff of the sweet night air directly into his face. Thanks to the physical and mystical design of his filtered balaclava, though it blocked quite a few allergens, toxins, and other harmful airborne substances, it did not restrict his ability to talk or breathe in any way nor did it hamper his sense of smell in the slightest. He took in a deep breath of fresh air and sighed as he thought about what his next moves should be. That guy said that not too far from here, there's a secret passage that leads to the systems control array. If I go there and remove the coupling for this "Thunder-god system's" friend-foe directory, then the failsafe should kick in and prevent the weapon from being fired at all. Once I do that, the others can swoop in and clean house while I get Furlong's data... Once I've made sure it's not what I think it is... If it is, however, I may end up having to- ! Rain was jolted out of his thoughts when he heard a deafening squawk coming from the room behind him as his vision and hearing returned to normal.

He ran into the room and found Huginn lying on the floor next to the crate of drugs in a puddle of blood. "Huginn!" he called out to him as he rushed to his side to assess the damage, but it was too late. The bird lay there, a mixture of blood and foam bubbling out of his open beak with his legs sticking straight up in the air, while his vacant eyes were staring wide open. "Damn it all!" Rain said angrily as he continued examining Huginn's dead body. As he did so, he noticed the blood around the familiar was bubbling as well, and holding a finger near it, he noticed a great deal of heat emanating from it. "I should have figured this shit would have some kind of protective measures against attempts at chemical or alchemical analysis! Sorry, buddy," Rain apologized to Huginn as he pulled out a pouch and unceremoniously stuffed Huginn's remains into it, then tied the pouch to his belt and collected a sample of the drug before leaving the room.

"Well, at least, it can't get much worse..." he thought out loud to himself just before another surge of energy started building up through the spire. "Ohhh, why did I have to go and shoot my goddamn mouth!?" he furiously asked himself out loud as he went back to the window once more to try to see what was happening. Looking out he could see a faint speck off in the distance, "Dear God, don't tell me...!" he said panic-stricken as he could just make out two tiny figures in the distance, one appearing to be a pegasus in dark armor, though they were too far off to discern any further details. Before he could react further, a massive lightning bolt shot out from the top of the spire once again and in an instant, the two figures were gone. All Rain could do is stand there in shock, hoping against hope neither of the two figures had been Rainbow Dash or Spitfire.

Chapter 9: Finished