One year after the bombing...

Steadily coming to coming to senses, the half-asleep Zacora moaned in daze as she fell in and out of consciousness trying to make head or tails of her situation.
But up till now... all she could gather was that, where ever she was, it was dark. Too dark.
Not to mention, she was unable to move any of her outstretched limbs, other than her head. And whatever she was laying on was freezing cold...!
"What is this misfortune that has befallen to me...?"
Just as her eyes were beginning to adjust, a dazzling light blazed her sight. Almost blinding her as she was forced to screw her lids shut again.
"Ah see you're awake..." A voiced echoed from a blindspot to her left, "An' it's about time. I was startin' to worry if I killed you, not that ah don't wanna... It's just that yer too valuable to lose at the moment. The Boss certainly won't be happy."

"Who... Who goes there?! You had better release me, or I swear...!"
"Ya swear... What? What are ya gonna do? 'Put a curse on me'?" The southern tone mocked, "Fer yer information Zacora, I'M the one who call the shots 'round here. As fer you? Well, ya ain't got shit on me. I'll give ya that much... I mean...! At this moment in time, you can't even lay a non-existant finger on me...!"

The mare taunted and jeered as Zecora could only helplessly lay there, enduring the sticks and stones...
However, she just couldn't shake the feeling of familiarity that plagued her mind.
"Oh! Ah jus' realised! Ah forgot to introduce myself...! How rude of me." The voice insincerely apologised.
The platform Zecora was laying on suddenly began to tilt forwards...

"Well, ya see... Ah'm not the pony everyone once knew. Ah'm no heroine o' honesty, those days are over..."
Honesty? What kind of pony fights evil with honesty of all things...? Only one mare would be capable-
"No..." She uttered in a stage whisper; her eyes narrowed to dots. "It cannot be...!"
"Oh, but it can Zecora." She said, stepping ominously towards the light were her outline slowly shaping itself.
The platform finally stood horizontal, allowing her to see, yet again, more darkness outside of her spotlight.
"To mah friends, familiy and local ponies of Equestria, I was known as 'Applejack'. A so-called 'Element of Honesty' and complete lame an' borin' excuse for a Mare. May she forever rest in peace...
Cus of the boss, ah've truly found my calling in life."
An orange figure with a brown stretson hat and red bandana around her neck revealed herself to a flabbergasted Zecora.
She bore a polished revolver on the holster of her belt and with her crystal blue eyes, smirked maliciously.
"Ah am the sharp shooter everypony fears... Ah am the red dot in the centre of the cross-hair...!
Ah am The Silver Bullet!
But yew can just call me Sylvia."

"A-applejack..?! But what happened to make you waver, between the role of villian and a savior?!"
The Southern pony dramatically gasped and pointed to her chest, poorly acting hurt as she replied, "Zecora...! Are yew sayin' that ah'm no good for nobody...? I'll have you know-"
"Enough time wasting, Sylvia." Another spoke among the dark, "Remember what you came here to do."

'Sylvia's' eyes widened in a surprise as she turn around and gazed up at the large figure, and with a little hint of fear to go with it. "A-ahem! Right, sorry 'bout that Boss...
Ok... Let me get to the point. Zecora, ol' pal o' mine..." She used the term very loosly,"Ah need your help. Me and my fellow associates have been workin' reeeeeal hard on this... project, should we say, and despite each and every last effort, we can't seem to complete it to a grade A standard."
"And of what use do I, a lone zebra, propose to likes of you?" Zecora spat back with a slight venom in her voice.

"Well! Words been goin' 'round these parts that you have a phenomenal understandin' of this whole... errm bio-whatchamacallit. Point is! You know yer way around specific potions, right? Now, all I need is your know-how to finally finish the toil of mah project. Nothin' much, really! So, whaddoyasay, pal?" Sylvia gave her a friendly nudge, "C'mon...! Help a friend out!"
Zecora sighed, returning Sylvia's 'friendliness' with a mixed look of hate, composure and unfamiliarity, as she replied saying,
"This knowledge you speak of, I have nothing... As for evidence of our bond, you have yet to show! You are not the Applejack I used to know..."
Any hint of merriment, weather forced or genuine, slowly drained from her face. Being completely replaced with disappointment at its finest.
"*Sigh*... Ah see how it is..." Sylvia muttered of to the side of her, "Ah really, honest to God, was hoping it wouldn't come to this. Ah was hopin' that this would allllll just go off easy, that you comply and everyone stays happy... Yet you..."
She tensed her face in rage.
"You have the audacity to lie to me?"
With a one smooth motion, Sylvia reached out and grabbed a lever. Holding her hoof in place...
"I hate liars..."
Electrical currents surged through Zacora at the very moment the switch was flipped. She screamed and twisted and writhed in nothing but pain and agony as light blue sparks lit up the room. All the while, Sylvia's deadpan cold expression silently bathed in every second of every moment the liar outright failed to fight off the shocking torture.
"AHHHH! Hah hah- AHHHHHHRGH!! H-halt!! I'll- AGH- I'LL SPEAK!! P-pl-EAS!"
A smile, at last, returned to Sylvia as the words reached her ears.
"So, ya finally decide to come to yer senses, eh?" She pushed the lever back, ending the current and allowing Zecora to hang her head as she panted.
"Hah...Hah... What do you... require to calm... your desire?"
"I already told ya...! Just a few potions. But, let's be honest here, was it really that hard to jus'... join me? Well? Was it worth the pain to change yer mind...?"
Zecora had no words; her position remained unchanged...
"Erm...? Helllooo? Equestria to zebra? Oh my- Are you even listening to me?"

"Beware..." Zecora's voice whispered like the wind as her eye showed nothing but white, "A prophecy..."
"A... What now?"

Two ponies... Of brave and bare...
Will arise in years of time; in thick and scarce.
Ones who dare step hoof in your abode. Ones who dare destroy your home...
These soldiers are a legend like no other...!
For these warriors wear justice on their brow and toil on their flanks!

Try as you might... Even when one falls, the second will cover.
Your weakness.
Your despair...
Your undoing...!
They approach...

And know, may you bring destruction to this land, but she'll restore the peace of it...
For she is, and forever will be-

BANG!BANG!BANG!
The revolver cracked, leaving three holes in the now deceased zebra. Two shots in the head and one in the head, a guaranteed kill.
All the while Sylvia stood there, gun stuck in place of where she had aimed.
"Out of all the ponies in the entire world... Only you pissed me off this much. Tck... some prophecy that was..."
She held up a walkie-talkie.
"Hey, fellers! The Hostage didn't cooperate... Move to plan B. The Prototype."

...
'She couldn't of read the future... Right?

...

!

Coordinates: 254654765
Mission 1: Twilight Sparkle, if you are reading this, I hope all is well... Please, be careful and stay alive. You're our best hope. If in doubt, remember your training... you'll need it. Remain calm. Even if things seem hopeless, there'll always be a way out. I believe in you.
We believe in you...

Somewhere in the thickest parts of the Everfree...

The square, pitch H.O.P.E base was dimly lit that night and even bore a leaf green camouflage on its roof. And with it's low hanging buildings and dead silence enshrouding the place, it could keep hidden for God-knows how long. Truly, the hide and seek champion of buildings...
"...So then I say, 'Hey man, it ain't my fault your heads denser than Iridium.'"
"What...! No way! That guy takes no shit from no pony, with absolutely no exceptions. If you really said that to 'im, I'd be talkin' to a pill of mush right about now."
The two Changeling pair casually conversed with each other, approaching the com pad next to the unnecessarily oversized metal door.
"Yeah, I learned that the hard way... with a hella of a lotta cardio." The first one pressed the button and paused. The com clicked.
"Password?"
"Ah, right, the password... what was it again...? Oh! Wait, I remember!" He cleared his throat. "...La li lu le lo."
A long silence filled the air briefly before the mechanics of the door began to whir, opening it with a monumentally slow pace.
"What kinda idiot came with 'la li-whatever' as an idea for a password...?"
"I dunno, man. Sylvia, probably. She's always been pretty shit with naming things..."
"Well, can't disagree with that."
And after what felt like one year of waiting, the gates had finally opened and the changlings entered.
But upon entrance, the first changling felt a stinging pain spike the back of his head. "Argh...! The hell?" A hoof rose to try and itch away the pain.
"Huh? What's wrong?"
"I-I don't know, man. I just feel... just...I... I dun't feeeel so..." His sight was nothing more than a haze as he collapsed onto the floor.
"Wh-whoa! Hey, Hugo! You alright? Hugo...? C'mon buddy, wake up!" The second frantically shook his fellow friend as the look in his eye lids went lopsided. "Ahh, crap! Gotta call- Oof!" A hoof swiftly met the side of his face and, before he could react, was lifted into the air whilst being chocked out by a strange force.
A purple lit horn was the last thing he saw before he was brutally slammed into the wall at great velocities, falling unconscious because of it.
'Ok, now with that out the way, better inform Bianca...' Sparkle thought shaking off the dust on her shoulders. She spared the limp bodies a glare, 'Well... Not the cleanest kill, but it works...'

P T T

---------<[000.00]>

--

MEMORY

[Colonel S. Berry] 140.88

[Bianca M. D. S. Aveiro] 140.92 <-----

[----] ---.--

[----] ---.--

Calling

Sparkle: Bianca, do you copy?

Bianca: Loud and clear, Sparkle! How's the first day on the job going for you?

Sparkle: Swimmingly so far. Could've been quieter...

Bianca: Soooo.... I assume you've broken in?

Sparkle: You got that right.

Bianca: Hehe! Well, I expected nothing less from the best...!

Sparkle: You're too kind...

Bianca: And you're too stiff. Come on! It never hurts to take a compliment...!

Sparkle: Yeah, yeah... Anyway, have you uploaded the building schematics yet? I could use a little bit of navigation if I wanna get through this place safely.

Bianca: Errm, well... there's kind of a problem with that...

Sparkle: That being...?

Bianca: I tried to breach the security cameras to get a vague location of what's where. But, I was stopped by a firewall. And with my levels of hacking, I just can't find my way through... Sorry to say this, but your on your own for now.

Sparkle: Is there any way I can help?

Bianca: Actually, now that I think about it... If you were to directly shut down the cameras, then I could potentially reboot them and bypass the wall.

Berry: But until then, you have to find your own way through Sparkle.

Sparkle: Colonel? How are you on Bianca's frequency?

Berry: Let's just say, that the Codec isn't just a one-way call. That doesn't matter though...! What does matter is that you safely sneak into the base and save our captive soldier. Got it?

Sparkle: Yes, sir.

Bianca: Oh, and by the way. How's that sneaking suit working out for you...?

Sparkle: Can't lie. It does its job to a brilliant standard. Sound suppression, endothermic material, camouflage... It really is State of the art.

Berry: Right. And its lined with kevlar, offering great protection against knives. But Sparkle, even with that, you're naked.

Sparkle: Yeah... Come to think of it, why didn't you send me in with any weapons?

Berry: Think of it as... A first day test or even training on the go. In situations like these, improvisation, adaptation and stealth are vital. Besides, you should find a gun or two lying around there somewhere.

Sparkle: I see...

Berry: But remember Sparkle. Priorities come first, anything else can wait. Nothing is more important than the mission at hoof. Good luck, soldier. We're counting on you.

Call Ended

As if on cue, the moment she hung up was the moment the seemingly lifeless corpse she beamed in the back of the head began twitching and gurgling. This earned him an unsurprised look for the looming soldier. She had only shot the back of his head with a compressed laser of magic; must've burned something important... Still, in all her years of training, she rarely ever focused on magic or spells or whatever. Mainly because she was put into an Earth-pony division camp.
So with her lack of experience, she could only use telekinesis (barely) and shoot mediocre beams.

'Hugo' didn't seem too hot after that blow. He swung his head aimlessly around as he blabbered non-sense.
"*Sigh*... Maybe I shouldn't of gone so harsh on him..." Sparkle contemplated, placing one hoof on the side each of Hugos' cheeks and swiftly snapping his neck. Just as was about to leave him to his peace, she noticed a gleam of refracted light coming from his hip.
A gun was found at his holster.
Sparkle snatched it, analysing the weapon, "Hmmm... A SOCOM, eh?" She identified, "Not the best of pistols, but it'll do."

She packed the gun in a belt of her own and looked ahead of her. A double door stood there, in the distance.
The only thing between her... and her mission.
This was the beginning of something big.
It was time to save lives.

She approached the door.
She placed a hoof on both handles.
She swung the door open...

And immediately, a hoard of changling eyes snapped in her general direction.
Silence...

...

....

......

"!"

"Intruder!!"
|A L E R T|
|/!\/!------|
|99.99/!\/|

Sparkle slammed the door shut as a every changling there charged for her.
Her time was limited and death approached.
She searched the room desperately for a saving grace. 'Shit...! What do I do...? What do I do? What do I-!?'
Then there it lay...
"Aha!"

The doors barely put up a fight.
A tidal wave of bug ponies flooded into the small hallway, guns and magic at the ready.
"Where did she go?!"

"What?? She disappeared!"

"Impossible!"

"Wait!" One exclaimed," Over there, the exit! That's the only place she could've gone! After her!"

"Yeah! She won't get far...!"

"No mercy, fellas!"

Every last one of them took to the skies, ground and forest. All dissipating and spreading out to cover more ground.
And so, the inside went quiet once more... Not even a gust blew through to break the cold air.

However, in the shadow of the darkest corner... In the edge of the hallway... Something shuffled.
In the ensuing chaos and disorder, something remained.
Somepony remained...
Completely hidden in plain sight...
Inside a cardboard box.

"That... was too close," Spakle stated, removing the box from over her, "I can't just be letting myself get to carless... But anyway, I must get back to mission at hoof...!"

Wondering back into the room, she managed to examine it properly.
It was similar to an office building reception, with a receptionist counter, a waiting bench, carpet flooring and all that jazz...
To the left of the room was a door labeled 'Cafeteria'. 'Yeah... probably nothing important in there.'
To her right was an elevator with stairs next to them. 'I need to search the first floor before I go up.'
To her front was an unmarked door. Where it leads to...?

Probably another room.
With no other option, she went forwards. Finding that behind said door was much more than a room...
There was a gigantic field of grass with stone paths leading to and from a carousel in the centre and splitting in 3 other different directions. The 2 meters of land away from the path was cover by thin-ish trees.
It was almost too scenic...

Sparkle cautiously trotted her way to the centre. Pulling out a box of cigarettes , ones she had snuck in before briefing, lighting up a single one with a compressed laser and taking a long puff of the nicotine. Breathing smoke out to the Luna's star bright night sky...
The second she placed a hoof at the foot of the carousel, her cigarette was suddenly snatched away by a a small object too fast to see. She glared at the approximate area of direction the thing flew by her. The still-lit cigarette had been hit by a sharp pointy blade of steel: A Kunai.
Sparkle then quickly turned her head to where the kunai could've been thrown from.
No pony was found.
"Who ever is there... I know you're watching me." She announced looking behind her at every turn, "Show yourself."

"You don't doubt your senses... Impressive." A cold and firm voice spoke out. "You're already better than any of my foes; I can feel it."
"Who goes there?!" She snapped back to the carousel with her SOCOM in hoof, aiming to fire. The stallion that stood there leaned on one of the poles on the entrance. He wore this weird, loose, yet sharp and elegant pitch black robe with long red scarf and an arrow shaped metal plating on his head facing downwards towards the diverge of his eyes. He bore a sheathed katana on his back.
With all the details lining up. It was clear... That the stallion standing in front of her... Was a Ninja?

"Good evening... Solid Sparkle."

Author's Note

OK, first off.
So sorry for not uploading more frequently! Outside life gets pretty busy...

But I was hoping I could make it with a...

Behind the scenes

So basically, this is where i'll give you my first hand experience, thoughts and deleted choices that I had in the making of this story.

Anyway! Subject for today... Applejack and friends!-

-So while this story was still not out, I had been thinking over the plot. Mainly, the villians.
I thought 'Hey, if Sparkle should ever grow as a character, it should be through her friends.'
But that was the problem...
In a time of war and missions, ol' Sparkler would possibly never find time for her friends. Yet, I really wanted to involve them in the story, not in too major role, but just significant enough...
Hence, Pinkie Mantis and Sylvia bullet!
I AM about to spoil a bit of the plot, but not to a massive degree.
So if you wanna keep your mind clean for the future of this story, don't gloss over the black bar...
But still it does ruin quiet a bit of my story, SO DO NOT READ.

Unless you don't care for spoilers...
So, I do plan on involving all of her friends in this mess... And I plan on each and every one of Spakles friends deaths to impact her on an emotional level. Even if she can't remember...

Well that's all I have for today... Let me know what you want me to talk about in the next behind the scenes...!
And if you did enjoy this chapter, be sure to give it a like. I greatly appreciate the support I'm getting now. Like, seriously, Thank you!

But, until next time...
Have a good one!