Near the Coast of Cape Town, South Africa
10 Days after Departure from Roanoke, United States

11:07 PM, Local Time

As a trio of rubber go-fast boats tore through the waters off the coast, Bell slowly looked over the side of the watercraft and motioned for the others to slow, as their objective was in sight.

Outside the main harbor in Cape Town, the cargo ship Pantheon, their target, lay silently, though the many lights on deck and across the hull indicated plenty of activity. As the boats hit the beach and came up onto the sand, Park retrieved the several waterproof duffel bags that carried the team's weapons of choice, several lethal and tactical grenades of various types, ballistic armor, and other pieces of essential tech.

Such as the prototype AN/PVS7 Night Vision goggles that each team member had attached to their tac-rig or belt. Though mainly meant for aviation, these goggles were modified to be worn on the head, and be worn alongside gas masks.

Which was good, as the team had no idea what nasty surprises could be waiting aboard the Pantheon.

"Are we good?" Mason asked as the last go-fast boat docked, and the Requiem team disembarked, with Crewe at the front. He merely nodded and readied his customized XM4, and motioned to a nearby access road.

As the team stacked up, Bell tightened his grip on the Krig 6 assault rifle he had chosen for his primary. The Belgian rifle was fresh from the armory, and Bell could still feel the undamaged grip tape on his palm.

Then, Crewe held up a fist and motioned to take cover, as a Soviet-made truck rolled down the road, with a trailer bearing several crates attached. The truck stopped nearby at the entrance to the shipyard, and three men disembarked, one carrying an AK47. The leader of the three spoke into an intercom, and the doors opened slowly, and two men in black, also equipped with assault rifles, the French FFAR in this case, approached.

The three Russians showed the two unknowns the trailer, and they were waved through. As the truck left and the road settled into silence once more, one of the men in black stepped aside to light a cigarette.

However, during this interaction, the CIA Team had been moving through the brush towards the left wall, and Crewe, remaining unseen by the man, unholstered an extendable baton. A few quick strikes sounded out, and Crewe wrestled the merc over to the intercom.

"Tu es Français, non?" he asked in French.
The man gave a nod, then tried to go for his knife, only Crewe was two steps ahead. The blade was soon knocked away, and the CIA Agent tightened his grip.

"Oeuvre la porte, maintenant." Crewe said. The man slowly pulled out a keycard, and swiped it. The door opened, and Crewe knocked the man out before searching him further.

"You never told me you spoke French." Maddox said quietly.

"I had to, one time." Crewe nodded. "Long story. Let's get a move on, team."

As the Agents entered the complex, with those carrying rifles attaching suppressors, and those carrying shotguns pulling out their already-suppressed pistols, such as Woods, Holt, and Simms, they soon noticed a security station guarded by two riflemen.

Crewe and Bell dropped them both with headshots, and then turned off their radios once they reached the bodies to avoid any chance of the deceased being called over their comms. Once everyone was past the door and out of sight, Crewe locked it and shuttered the windows.

"Alright, let's see if we can find a map of this place, or any good intel." Mason said as he and Woods searched through a filing cabinet. "Bell, check those cameras. See if you can find our guy."

"Roger that." Bell said, hopping onto a nearby terminal. As he sat down, he noticed a sticky-note on the left side, near the keyboard, with text written in pencil on it. Bell rolled his eyes upon realizing what the note was meant for, scoffing that nearly all the bad guys they'd gone up against had a hard time keeping their computer passwords out of sight.

Such as the Soviet training site where Bell had first learned of Operation Greenlight and Perseus's infiltration.

Bell swept through the cameras until he located a feed of a man in a suit shirt and jeans lying in a cell.

"I've got eyes on Dragonfly." Bell said quietly. "He's in a holding cell near the gangway to the ship. We can pick him up and take out the ship in one move."

"Good work." Crewe replied. "Mason, Woods, get anything?"

"Shipping manifest." Woods said, handing the clipboard and the paper packet it held to Maddox. She raised her eyebrows upon reading the contents.

"This Emissary guy does have connections. That trailer we saw earlier was carrying a Soviet-made arms shipment. AKs, Grozas, even a few KS23 shotguns. And it gets worse."

"How?" Conway asked.

"Those three guys we saw being let in are Spetsnaz training instructors." she noted. "The Emissary isn't just packing serious weaponry, he's also got the guys to teach whoever he wants how to use them."

"He's building up an army." Holt said. "Where's he sending those guns?"

"Says here they're going to Site Bravo, Northwest Equestria." Maddox said. "That Equestria term again...I'm starting to think that Dragonfly was onto something in his journal."

"Then let's get a move on." Adler said. "I've got a plan."

"Mason, take Bell, Woods, Park, and Simms,, and go rescue Dragonfly and find out what he knows. Crewe, you and your team are with me, as we're going to find the destination of that shipment."

"Use stealth techniques and keep radios clear for necessary comms." he continued. "Once we have both objectives, we can call in the cavalry and go loud if we have to."

"Check." Crewe replied as he unlocked the door. As Adler and the Requiem strike team headed out, Mason motioned for Bell to take point as they snuck out of the security station.

====

Bell felt back in his element as he led the team through the dockyard, occasionally bypassing or killing and then concealing a guard or two. Judging from the guard's customized weaponry and full loadouts on their tac-rigs, they were well-equipped.

Almost too well equipped for Bell's taste. Whoever was behind this knew how to outfit troops effectively.

As they approached a small warehouse, Bell slid the door open and took out a flip lighter, faintly illuminating the area. Bell motioned everyone inside, and they soon found a locked prison door.

"How do you want to play this?" Woods asked, covering the entrance with his pistol, though his Hauer 77 Shotgun was also ready should they need to go loud. Bell took out a tomahawk, and noticing the rusty, unmaintained hinges, pried them off easily.

As he entered the cell, a figure moved in the corner.

"You're Dragonfly?" Bell asked. "CIA?"

"Yeah." the man replied, groaning slightly. "Mind giving me a hand?"

Bell picked the lock on his restraints, and helped him to his feet. Mason offered the agent his sidearm, and Dragonfly thanked him before taking it.

"You can hold your own, right?" Woods asked.

"Yeah, I can. Studied up at Langley before heading here." Dragonfly replied. "What's the plan? I thought the CIA would send more guys."

"They're securing intel on the shipment's destination." Mason said. "What can you tell us?"

"I can tell you for sure that the Emissary keeps mentioning this Equestria place and often, "returning home" along with it." Dragonfly replied. "He's already got a full company of mercs from all over Europe and the Soviet Union over there, along with a good amount of guns and tech. All trained by former Spetsnaz he somehow recruited."

"Plus, he also mentioned three sites where he's storing his gear. Alpha, Bravo, and Omega. Not sure what's at each one individually, though all three have a considerable amount of weapons stashed there."

"That's fucking bad news." Simms growled.

"It gets worse. Apparently, wherever this Equestria is, he's got connections there, too. He's mentioned somewhere called Ponyville and Canterlot a few times, though a place called Thorne's Glade seems to be his favorite. Whatever he's up to, it's not good."

"Then we'll stop it." Bell nodded. "Adler, you get all that?"

"Yep." Adler replied over the radio. "We're heading to the Pantheon now. Link up with us ASAP."

"Roger that." Mason said. "Let's go."

The others nodded, and Dragonfly soon retrieved a ballistic vest and a suppressed FFAR rifle from a nearby weapons crate. As they snuck through the facility, Bell asked Dragonfly why there weren't as many guards as expected.

"Most of them are on the ship for most of the day." Dragonfly replied. "The only time they usually get off is to open the gate for people or to head to Cape Town to grab stuff like food and fuel." Dragonfly replied. "Would've been my saving grace."

"Then how'd you get caught?" Woods asked.

"Apparently the Emissary needed someone to do his finances." Dragonfly replied. "He took my cover story, and I was working here about three nights a week, balancing his books."

"I must've dug too deep, because one night after I left for the safehouse, I got jumped and dragged back here. They kicked the shit out of me, locked me up, and that was that until you showed up."

"Hold." Bell said as the agents soon took cover behind a shipping crate. A man wearing a suit, carrying a briefcase and a duffel bag, accompanied by several heavily-equipped men, stood in a clearing, looking over a series of crates. The man handed his clipboard and bag to a nearby soldier, and plucked an AK47 out of one of the crates.

He inspected the weapon for flaws or damage, and then placed it back as neatly as it had been stored. Seemingly satisfied, he wiped his hands and retrieved his bag and clipboard.

"Is everything in order, sir?" a soldier asked.

"Yes, all appears to be just so." the man replied. "Have this shipment loaded and sent though the portal as soon as possible. It appears our presence in Equestria has not gone unnoticed. Apparently someone, or somepony should I say, went all the way to Canterlot to report on us. I guess our disposal of those three lumberworkers was seen after all."

"What are your orders, sir?" another soldier, the leader by the looks of him, asked. The man placed a hand to his chin in thought, and then spoke.

"Have our colleagues at Site Bravo ready up for potential intruders, human, pony or both. And if the Equestrians respond how I believe they will...tell them to capture any Equestrian alive with both a horn and wings, as I want to deal with any of those...personally. They should be the most noticeable."

"Kill whoever else accompanies them."

As the men left, the Agents looked at each other and raised their eyebrows, with Mason mouthing "What the fuck" to Woods.

"What the hell is going on here?" Bell asked.

"Don't know." Adler said as his team approached. "But we need to stop that shipment and get to this Equestria, by any means necessary."

"Call the cavalry." Mason said. "We'll need a diversion to get onto that ship. Likely a loud, explosive one in this case."

"Roger that." Bell said. "Dakota Actual, this is Bell. Send the cavalry, I repeat, send the cavalry. Grid 0125, targeted location is a large cargo ship near our position. Hit 'em hard and fast."

"Copy." said the Naval Coordinator on the other end. "Air Cav flight en route, lead helo's callsign is Viking 1-1. Three Hueys, two Cobras. Requesting confirmation."

"Check, confirm." Bell replied. "Viking 1-1, this is Bell. Copy?"

"Copy." the pilot replied. "Awaiting your mark to open fire, Time to target is two minutes."

"Roger that. Standby."

As the CIA team moved towards the gangway, Bell and the others took cover and lined up their weapons at the mercs patrolling the upper deck. Bell knew they had the element of surprise on their side, along with their inbound reinforcements.

He just hoped it would be enough to stop whatever was to come.

Bell took in and released a breath, removed his Krig 6's suppressor...and opened fire.

Author's Note

Yeah, the shooting starts next chapter as the CIA moves to take the ship and eventually winds up in Equestria. Also, expect a follow-up chapter shortly.

Next time - The CIA moves into to secure the ship, and soon deploy into the unknown world of Equestria in pursuit of the Emissary. At the same time, Princesses Luna and Twilight arrive in Thorne's Glade on their own mission...