The Shadow of the Moon

The Shadow of the Moon

Act 1: Drifting

Chapter 8: Preemptive Action

I stood in an alleyway in full tactical gear with my squad as surveillance monitored the building across the street and two down. Less than two weeks ago I had completed another fourteen weeks training with Princess Luna who ultimately kicked my ass, but taught me much more. She still beat me regularly, but now our fights lasted easily fifteen minutes rather than fifteen seconds. She was a hard one to get a feeling for; she could go from flirting to ass kicking in less than a second with left me guessing the entire time. In addition to learning to fight with her, I was taught crime scene analysis, advanced tactic movements, explosives, intelligence gathering and surveillance. It was very comprehensive but at the end she declared I was ready and I met the rest of the team, or at least the team I would be working with on hunting down the Seen. In was a strange name, but it didn’t make them any less dangerous. I remember hearing about them when I was still in the orphanage. They mainly bombed astronomical buildings or anything really that related to Princess Luna, claiming that she was still Nightmare Moon in disguise.

We had a break in the case thought last week. One of our analysts had found a shipment delivered to a Canterlot business address containing the right quantities and ingredients to create blasting powder. We found the owners of the building and asked some questions. As it turned out they had paid some contractors to renovate the building. We did some digging into the construction company that the contractors claimed to be from and found no record of one being filed with the Equestian Business Bureau. The names that the contractors gave the owners turned out to be fake too when he checked birth records.

Now we had the building surrounded by several teams and even invited the Special Solar Services to come help making it a joint operation between the Lunar and Royal Guards. The S.S.S. was Celestia’s equivalent of us, and I could see some similarities in the gear we used.

A voice came over the transmitter, “Alright, listen up teams, surveillance teams heard everything they needed to hear and intelligence says there are twelve ponies in the building, eight on the first floor and four on the second. Let’s make this quick, clean and quiet. Ready up and wait for my signal.”

My squad stood up. We check each other’s gear and bro-hoofed to signal everything looked okay and informal way of saying good luck and good hunting. I looked across the street at the S.S.S team.

“You night crawlers ready for this?” one of them asked over the radio.

One of the L.S.T.D. squads over heard this, “You bet your sun-burned asses we are.”

Laughter filled the com-link until command stepped in, “Alright, lock it up. On my mark move in on the structure and hold position on the doors. Three, two, one, mark!”

We poured out of the alley in a staggered column diagonally across the street. I looked around and see other teams approaching on their lines of attack. We stacked up against the wall outside the door.

My team leader whispered over the com-link, “Dark Talon set.”

Other teams began reporting in, “Star Light set.”

“Daybreak ready.”

“Morning Dew ready.”

“Eagle Eye had visual on the scene from above.”

“Command copies all. Alright that’s everypony. Breach on my mark. Three, two, one, mark!”

Daybreak squad busted down the door and my squad followed them through. It was exhilarating. I could hear the other soldiers commanding the ponies to lie on the ground and put their hooves on their heads. Daybreak, Star Light and Morning Dew took the ground level while my squad, Dark Talon, would have to take to top floor. This was the most dangerous part. We had the element of surprise on those on the first floor, but those on the upper floor had more time to prepare.

We went up the stairs carefully; the pony up front watching the top of the stairs while the second pony checked above. Over the radio the ground team confirmed the first floor was clear and secured. They began searching for intelligence that could shed light on the Seen’s activities. My squad continued without incident up the stairs with no problem but were greeting by a hallway with all the doors closed.

“They probably holed up in rooms. Sweep and clear and watch each other’s backs. Go,” my team leader ordered.

My squad split into two three-pony teams; on for each side of the hall. I was in the breach pony spot. I got in front of our first door and kicked it open and stood to the side while the other two ponies rushed in. I stood guard outside so that nopony stuck up behind us while they subdued the rebel inside. I heard a surge of energy from behind me. I had just started to turn when I just hit by something in the side and thrown against the hallway wall. The Seen unicorn in the room had fired a spell at me before my teammates had time to put a negation ring over his horn. He smiles wickedly before getting kicked in the face. My squadmates slide the negation ring over his horn and kick him again. His body slumps as he goes unconscious. Seeing they had it taken care of, I look down at my side. Breathing hurt which meant I probably broke a rib or two. The vest sustained most the damage as the battered steel plates now shown where the black fabric burned away. Once they secured the room and the pony within they joined me again.

"You still in one piece?" one of them asks.

"More or less so," I wince.

He nods, "Good, now let's keep going."

I moved up to the next door and repeated the process. My ribs were killing me now and kicking down doors wasn't helping. My team subdues other rebel inside.

I turn to the second breaching pony on the other side of the hall, “How many have you captured?”

“Two,” he replies, “You?”

“Same. That should be all of them, right?” I ask.

“This is Command, proceed with caution regardless.”

“Copy,” I respond.

By this time my breach team had joined me, and one taps me on the shoulder, “Hey, you mind if I get this one?”

I look at the door, “Be my guest.”

My squad member nods his head appreciatively and I take his spot. It was now my job to be first in and first to react. He lines up on the line and busts it right open, leaving it hanging on one hinge. I rush into the room and gagged at the sight before me.

“What the hell happened here?” my squad mate asks rhetorically.

“This is Command, what have you found?”

I hesitate a moment as my breach pony looks in to see what the fuss is about and barely holds in his lunch.

“Blood. Lots of it,” I finally respond.

“How bad?” Command asks.

I grab the camera from one of the pouches on my vest, “I’ll show you the photos when I get back.”

“Command copies.”

I turn to my breach partners, “Why don’t you two clear the next room while I process this room.”

They nodded their heads and exited.

I lined up the viewfinder and snapped the photo. I zoomed in and snapped a few more. I looked at the walls and took another snapped a few more. I tucked the camera back and sealed the pouch. I took on last look at the room shaking my head as I closed the door as best I could behind me.

“Command, I gathered what I could, but you may want to send an evidence retrieval unit and a clean-up crew,” I report.

“Understood,” Command responds.

The top floor had been cleared so my squad grabbed to prisoners and headed downstairs where we were greeted by the other teams.

“Everypony ready for exfiltration?” Daybreak leader asks.

Everypony nodded.

“Alright,” he gets on the com-link, “Command, we are ready for exfil.”

“Command copies. It is en route.”

He nods, “Thank you.”

We sat there in silence waiting, the adrenaline dying off my that everything had settled down. Shortly a large wagon pulled up outside.

“I believe that’s our ride,” one of the S.S.S. troops commented.

Everypony grabbed a captive and filed out the door. We laid the prisoner on the floor of the wagon while the rest of us piled in and sat on the sides. We began rolling back to the castle as we watched the retrieval teams go to work.

The pony next to me nudged me, “So I heard you on the radio. You said something about finding blood. What was it?”

One of the prisoners began laughing hysterically, “HAHAHAHAHA,SHE SCREAMED. SCREAMED AND SCREAMED. HAHAH-”

I cut his laughter short with a brutal punch that broke his jaw and dislodged some teeth. When he continued to chortle and spew blood everywhere, I grabbed him by his injured jaw in one hoof and punched him again with the other, this time knocking him out. I wiped the blood off on his coat.

I looked at the pony next to me, “You don’t want to know.”

The pony nodded slowly.

“Besides, you’ll find out soon enough during debriefing,” I add.

The only noise the rest of the ride was the sound of the wheel creaking and rolling over the cobblestones.

In the debriefing room, a large round table with a hollow center took up the middle of the room. Sitting at it were the Princesses, Captain Dusker, who turned out to be Command, and the squad leaders. Everypony else who had a hoof in the raid sat around it, listened and looked at the debriefing packets that contained a log of the radio communication, pictures that had been taken and who took them, and basic information from the mission brief earlier that week.

Captain Dusker was speaking, “I would consider this raid a success. We have twelve of members of the Seen captured for interrogation, stopped them from building and detonating any explosive devices, and suffered no casualties. However, looking at these pictures, I give pause at the ones taken by Lieutenant Midnight Shadow.”

Everypony had seen the photos. Most were in shock at what was there.

He continued, “With the council permission I would like to call upon Lieutenant Shadow to retell the events first hoof.”

The council consented. I stood up from my place and walked to hollow center where I could address the council. I turned towards Captain Dusker. He was a faded, deep blue unicorn with a bronze mane.

He began to speak, “Lieutenant Shadow, if you-”

“Excuse me Captain,” Princess Luna spoke out, “Would you mind if I question him?” She smiled sweetly. I looked at her surprised and as she looked at me her eyes sparkled softly.

He dipped his head, “Not at all ma’am. Please proceed.” He sat back as his horn lit up and brought a quill forth for him to take notes with.

She turned her undivided attention to me and the smile drifted from her face as it grew more serious, “Lieutenant Shadow, please relay the events that led you to discover what is in the photographs, please.”

I take a breath, “I was originally in breach position, but at the request of one of my squad mates who wanted to kick down a door, I shifted back to first entry. He kicked in the door and I charged in performing a standard sweep and clear tactic. Upon seeing the room empty I stopped in shock of the sight before me.”

“Could you describe what you saw for us please?” she asked.

I swallowed, “The room was covered in blood. There were four stakes drilled into the floor. The remains of a mare unicorn were tied to these stakes. The remains were in the center of a pentagram of sorts, of which I don’t know the purpose. From what I could tell, the mare was eviscerated and tortured. There were raw marks on the legs from where she tugged and pulled of the restraints. I speculate that cause of death was..,” I falter.

“Take your time,” Princess Celestia spoke up.

“When you’re ready,” Princess Luna added.

I steeled my nerves and took a breath, “I suspect cause of death was the magical inversion of her horn, driving it into her brain. This could have been as quick or as slow as the killer could have wanted, and I fear it was likely the latter of the two.”

“Sorry,” Captain Dusker, spoke up and looked at the Princesses who gave him a nod to continue, “But what makes you say that?”

“Her eyes sir,” I reply, “Her eyes. They been cut from the skull stuck in a visage of pure horror and pain. Not to mention her horn wasn’t fully inverted, suggesting the killer stopped when she had died. I found her eyes sitting on a table next to the wall where the following was written in what I assume is her blood, ‘We are watching.’”

The council erupted in discussion.

“EXCUSE ME,” Princess Luna shouted in the Royal Canterlot voice, and everypony fell silent, “Do you anything else to report?”

“No ma’am,” I shake my head.

“Alright, as of this moment, I want you to take the lead on this. Your field analysis seems to be quite detailed for only spending a few minutes in the room. I hope such eye for detail proves helpful in putting a stop to this mutilation of our citizens,” Princess Luna paused, “Does anypony have any dispute to Lieutenant Shadow taking lead on this?”

Nopony said anything, but varying expressions could be seen. Some of the squad leaders looked at me with sadly, having been saddled with going over such gruesome crimes. Captain Dusker sat expressionless, in thought. Princess Celestia looked approvingly at me.

“It is settled then,” she concluded, “You are to pursue those responsible by any means at your disposal. You may be seated.”

I walked away, burdened by my new found responsibility. In the back of my mind the old prophesy whispered,

“Both of you will fight to the death; up until the very last breath.

Win, save us all; lose and the night princess will fall.”

I pushed it away as I drifted off asking myself, “Who am I fighting?”

****

I heard the voices. They were getting louder, somepony was screaming loudly. I couldn’t tell who it was as everything sounded distorted but some primal part of my brain recognized it and told me to get up. My eyes snapped open. The bright light above me blinded me so looked away. My left eye had a hard time focusing. My right eye though caught the terrified face of what appeared to a nurse.

“Doctor he’s awake,” she said. Everything was still distorted.

“Give him just enough propofol to put him under again and get her out of here,” the voice I assumed was the doctor directed.

I looked around the room trying to see who “her” was. My right I zoned in on a dark blue alicorn fighting against medical staff trying to get to me.

“MIDNIGHT,” she yelled, reaching a hoof out to me as the staff ponies overwhelmed her.

“Luna,” I croaked. I felt a hoof try holding me down. I struck out with a head butt and felt it connect and the hoof went away. I rolled to one side and fell off the gurney and landed with a hard thump on the floor.

“AAAGGHH,” I cried out in pain. The nurse screamed. Every part of me hurt. I tried to lift myself up with my right foreleg but felt nothing happening.

“Restrain him quickly,” the doctor-voice said, “Before he kills himself.”

The primal voice in my head kept urging me to find Luna. I try to pick myself up with my left foreleg this time and barely made it up before I fell forward again. I felt something warm and sticky start seeping around me. The smell of copper filled the air. I tried crawling to the exit.

“Midnight,” I heard Luna shout from further away.

“Luna,” I croaked again. I couldn’t get my right foreleg to work with me so I kept pulling myself feebly with my left. “I’m coming Luna,” I continue to croak.

“You’re going nowhere,” nurse-voice said. I sharp pinch caught my in the neck.

“Luuunnnnaaaaa,” I croak one last time as the darkness over takes me.