In the exact moment that Bell opened fire and brought down one of the guards with a headshot, all hell broke loose. The man with the suitcase was shepherded up the gangway by two other guards, and their team leader quickly opened fire with his AK47. The incoming rounds prevented Bell from getting a clean shot, and he fell back into cover.

"What's the plan, Adler?" Bell called out, sliding a stray FFAR rifle to Dragonfly, who nodded and chambered a fresh magazine. Adler tossed a flashbang grenade into the open, and used hand signals to indicate a wave of suppressing fire.

Bell and Maddox swung their weapons up and opened fire, dropping the first Guard and a few others who were undoubtedly alerted by the gunfire, and had come to investigate. Bell turned to see the lights in the ship's windows and bridge were coming on, one by one.

"That ship's getting ready to bolt!" Crewe growled, dropping two hostiles with his XM4. "We need backup, now!"

"Viking 1-1, this is Bell, where the hell are you?" Bell spoke over the radio.

"We're on station, strike time. Transport Hueys landing now, can you mark targets?"

"Affirmative!" Bell replied. "Primary target is the cargo ship at point 1-7-7. Hit the engines, make sure it doesn't get out of the harbor!"

"We copy, Bell. Engaging."

As the two Cobras flew overhead, Woods swung over the crate he had been using as cover, and motioned for the team to advance. As the team opened fire as one, pushing towards the gangway, Bell noticed something rotating towards their positions on the upper deck.

"DUAL MG! Take cover!" Bell cried as the turret opened up, shredding the position the team had occupied, and sending scraps of wood and metal into the air.

"We can't get onto the gangway with that turret up!" Holt growled, ducking behind a shipping container as the turret swung around to engage the two CIA gunships.

"Conway, you got eyes on that gunner?" Crewe called over the radio.

"Affirmative. Taking the shot." Conway replied, and a gunshot from a Pellington 703 echoed from a nearby balcony. The turret's gunner fell backwards, and the gun went silent.

"Go now!" Conway replied, rechambering a round and dropping a second hostile equipped with an RPD. "I'll thin the herd as you go!"

"Check, push up!" Crewe yelled. As the three Huey helicopters, each bearing a team of US Marines, hovered over the courtyard, the marines rappelled down, and soon dove to cover. A Marine Sergeant rushed towards Crewe, and handed him an IR designator. Crewe nodded and activated the device, marking the ship's midsection.

"Viking 1-1, target marked! Engage!" Crewe yelled.

"We've got a target lock, firing now." one the Cobra pilots replied, and a volley of machine-gun fire tore through the deck, destroying not only the turret, but it also eliminated the stacked-up hostiles that were entrenched on the deck.

"Deck is clear, move up!" Crewe said as they sprinted up the gangway and onto the Pantheon. As some of the Marines secured the deck and others headed for the bridge, Adler motioned for Bell and Mason to hit the lower decks.

"We're going after the fucker with the briefcase?" Bell asked.

"Yep, and see if you can get him alive. The more we know, the better." Adler said. "We'll handle things up top. Get moving."

Mason nodded and quickly exchanged his M16 for Woods's Hauer 77 shotgun, knowing the rifle would not perform well in close quarters operations, such as sweeping the lower decks of a cargo ship.

Bell loaded a fresh magazine into his Krig 6, and Mason led the way down the stairs, the attached flashlight on the Hauer providing light for the two of them. After ten minutes of searching, the two of them had cleared every room except for one.

"Where'd that guy head off to?" Mason growled as they approached the bulkhead. "We've checked the dorms, mess, mail room, hell, even the goddamn latrines, and nothing."

"If he's still here somehow, we'll find him." Bell nodded, opening the door. The two of them looked over a maintenance room full of tools, machine parts, a broken computer, and other mechanical accoutrements.

"Someone's been busy here." Bell shrugged, looking over the computer. Apart from scorch marks on the case and a small crack in the screen, it seemed like it could be repaired if one had the parts and skills to do so.

"Busy doing what, is what I wonder." Mason scoffed, looking through a filing cabinet laden with technical manuals in various languages, such as English, German, French, and Russian. "These guys are building something techy, that's for sure."

Bell then noticed a nearby bookcase laying slightly ajar. Beckoning Mason over, the two of them pulled it back to reveal another bulkhead door.

"You sweep, I'll clear." Bell said to Mason. Mason chambered a fresh shell into the Hauer, and Bell prepped a stun grenade.

"3...2...1…now." Mason called as Bell owned the door and tossed in the grenade. After it detonated, the two men burst through..only to find themselves bewildered at what they saw before them.

Inside the room, which had clearly been an auxiliary storage area, a metal square platform, crisscrossed with cables and electrical wiring, rested in the center. A trio of computer terminals lay nearby, each of them were also connected to a server bank. A generator, most likely hooked up to the ship's power plant, hummed quietly in front of the square platform.

And scattered around in several neat blocks were crates of firearms of all shapes and sizes, extra parts and attachments, cases of lethal and tactical grenades, and other necessary materials such as batteries, maps, pads of paper and ballpoint pens...if something was needed to train, arm, or sustain a military force, it was there to be found.

But what stood out the most out of all that could have, was the object in the center of the platform, anchored to the ground by metal staples. An old-looking, elegant mirror made from blue crystal, intricately carved and designed.

"What the fuck is this supposed to be? We came all this way for a mirror?" Mason scoffed incredulously. "Come on, let's go find that fucker with the suitcase. He's got to be here somewhere."

"I don't think so." Bell replied, heading over to a computer terminal and motioning for Mason to look over his shoulder. "We've swept everywhere else. This is it. Lemme see if I can get into this terminal."

Bell powered up the main computer, and to his surprise, no password was required for entry. As he browsed through the files, he noticed a document labelled "Transport log". Opening the document, Bell checked his watch for the time, and scanned the log.

"According to this, our guy with the suitcase "transported" seven minutes before we got on the ship, if I'm right." Bell mused. "But what transported him, and where did he go in the process?"

"Good question." Mason said. "The only thing that really stands out here is that mirror. Why have all this tech just lying around an old mirror like that?"

"Unless…" he said. "No fucking way."

"What?" Bell asked.

"I'd bet that mirror's the transporter, or whatever it is that we're looking for here." Mason said. "Just think about it. All this tech must be some kind of a facade to throw us off our game."

"Then we have our objective." Bell said, powering off the computer. "Radio Adler, tell him to get the rest of the team down here, now. And make sure Dragonfly is with them.'

"I'm on it."

====

"Goddamn." Woods said several minutes later, as the rest of the team looked around the room. "If this doesn't scream mad scientist, I don't know what would."

"Certainly seems that way." Simms said. "You got any ideas, Dragonfly?"

"Yeah, a few. My name's Troy Piers, by the way." the agent replied. "I think Mason's right, and that mirror's the transporter to Equestria, whatever that may be."

"You sure about that?" Adler raised an eyebrow.

"Yeah, dead sure. What else could it be? There's nothing around here that screams "portal"." Piers said, gesturing to the expanse of the room.

"He's right." Bell said from the computer. "According to this, they found this mirror about a week before the first delivery went out, and since then, they've been sending more things through every so often. Going off that and your timeframe, Piers...that mirror's our best bet."

"Then let's find a way to move it to safety." Adler said. "We can't leave the ship unattended. We should scuttle it."

"Cargo elevator's our best bet to reach the deck." Woods said, finding the controls. "Viking 1-1, this is Woods. We've got some cargo we need to move over to the North Dakota. Got a cargo hook on you?"

"This is Huey Chariot 1-1, negative on the cargo hook." the lead Huey Pilot replied. "But if you can get it to the bow's helipad, we'll radio for a Chinook to pick you guys up."

"Roger that." Bell said, downloading every file he could from each computer and transferring them to spare hard disks. Once everything of value was secured, the team gathered on the lift. Crewe gave a thumbs-up, and Woods threw the cargo lift lever before hopping up.

As the doors to the deck opened, the CIA agents brought it towards the bow, and despite the crystalline construction, the mirror was rather easy to carry. After a cargo Chinook arrived several minutes later, and the mirror was secured, the CIA team and the Marines evacuated.

"Viking, we're clear, and all valuable intel is secure." Alder radioed. "Sink the ship, fire everything you have. Make sure there's nothing left to recover."

"Roger that." the Cobra pilot replied. "Firing."

As the choppers flew off towards the waiting North Dakota, the Cobras unloaded their ordnance. The ship, already full of fuel and munitions, detonated in a spectacular blast. The Cobras then followed the Hueys and Chinook back to base.

"So, what happens now?" Bell asked as he looked at Adler, who was eyeing the tightly-secured mirror.

"We get back on the hunt." Adler relied. "Once we get to this Equestria, we find The Emissary...and we put him six feet under."

Author's Note

Update!

Yeah, Equestria will come in next chapter. I needed a bit more setup than I had originally planned to make this chapter work.

Also, Troy Piers/Dragonfly will be joining the main team alongside Bell, Adler, Woods, and Mason.

Next time - The Equestrian side of things, and the CIA team transports through the Mirror in pursuit of the Emissary.