G.I. EqG

Chapters

Snakebite
Alpha Dogs
Den of Snakes
The Science of Magic 2
Enlistment

Snakebite

Canterlot City, Virginia. By all outside appearances, a perfectly normal – if strangely secretive – secluded city. Recent reports from the rest of the nation and world have shown unusual events around the city, but no one knew what they were.

Except for those whom these events were point-blank on; a certain collection of students of the local Canterlot High School. The Rainbooms had become sort of local celebrities ever since the Fall Formal when magic first entered this world from the land of Equestria, and while very few of them were complaining, one of them did have some… concerns.

“I still find it almost impossible to believe.” Twilight had had these concerns for what must have been weeks now – ever since the incident with Wallflower Blush and the Memory Stone – but she’d held her tongue in voicing them until now. “How has no one from the government found out about our magic yet? We’re all over the internet.”

“Yeah, but have you seen some of the comments on that stuff?” Rainbow Dash pointed out as she kicked a soccer ball around. “Everyone outside town thinks that was just CGI.”

“That just confuses me more. There have to be at least a few people who believe it’s real.” Twilight pointed out. “Probably powerful people.”

“Relax, Twilight. What are you worried about; the government abducting us to experiment on our magic?” Sunset asked with a smirk. “I can tell them how badly that went for me if that happens.”

“Considering how obsessed with understanding magic I was when we first met, I doubt that’ll work,” Twilight argued, her face falling as she remembered the Friendship Games again.

“Hey now, don’t do that. Ya didn’t know what you were dealin’ with back then.” Applejack pointed out. “But now… well, I’d say we all do.” She smirked as she effortlessly hoisted a bench next to their hangout point at the statue plinth above her head with one hand.

“Yeah. I guess we do.” Twilight smiled as she floated her textbook over from her backpack with her telekinesis to start working on her homework.

“I’m afraid I have… other concerns.” Rarity remarked as she looked around. “Has anyone else gotten the feeling recently that we’re being… watched?”

“I thought you liked bein’ the center of attention, Rarity,” Applejack smirked as she set the bench down.

“Oh, I’m certainly not averse to it. I simply have a problem with feeling as though someone is stalking us.” Rarity pointed out as she looked around, her wording immediately making Fluttershy hide behind Rainbow Dash.

“Oh, thanks.” Rainbow glared at Rarity sarcastically.

Rarity realized her blunder almost immediately. “Oh dear. Forgive me, Fluttershy; I didn’t mean anything by it.”

“Y’know, I wasn’t gonna mention anything about it, but… I caught a pretty weird scent the other day.” Spike noted.

“Weird how?” asked Rainbow.

“I’m not sure how to describe it; just sort of… off.” Spike shrugged… before his nose perked. “There it is again.” Almost immediately, Spike started sniffing toward the scent, and the girls – their curiosity piqued – followed him down the street from the school.

As they walked, Pinkie Pie glanced over and saw a blonde man reading the newspaper on a bench nearby, and while he clearly didn’t have his eyes on her, Pinkie had the suspicious feeling that he was watching her and the other girls. “Is that the guy you’re smelling, Spike?” she asked jovially, pointing back at him.

Spike looked and shook his head. “No, it’s not him. But I don’t know who or what it is,” he assured… right before he bumped into seemingly nothing.

“What the…?” Sunset remarked as she looked at the space in front of the group… and saw a strange shimmer in the air in front of them which suddenly faded to reveal a strange man in tattered brown clothes and silver body armor and unusual black marks around his empty white eyes.

“Hello, lovelies,” he smirked in an accent Sunset couldn’t place – almost like a combination of who knew how many all at once.

“Where did you come from?” Pinkie asked in surprise.

“And who are you?” Rainbow asked, instantly on the defensive.

The man simply chuckled cruelly. “If I had a dollar for every time someone asked me that question, I could retire in luxury in the Bahamas,” he smirked, drawing what looked like a trench knife from his belt and holding it menacingly almost as a prompt for the girls to take a half-step back.

“And what would the answer be?” Rarity asked nervously.

“Well, truth be told, there are too many for me to choose from. I’ve used millions of names – so many in fact that I can’t really remember if any of them were mine.” the man smirked as he adjusted his grip on the knife. “But most often, I prefer to be called… Zartan. And right now… you’re my paycheck.”

“What are you talking about?” Twilight asked, curiosity filling her mind along with fear.

“All you need to know is someone’s paying me and mine a fortune to bring you in.” Zartan smiled… before he suddenly drew a curved hand cannon and pointed it at the girls. “So don’t bother trying to run; it’ll just make this more difficult.”

Another pistol cocked nearby which concerned the girls more. “Well, how’s that for funny? I was just about to say the same thing to you, Zartan.” It was the guy from the bench, wearing a Hawaiian shirt and holding a gold-plated pistol he’d clearly drawn from the holster strapped to his chest pointed at Zartan.

“What the heck is happening?” Rainbow asked seriously.

“Well, well, well. Chuckles. I should’ve figured you’d be sent out here as well.” Zartan remarked.

“You know us Joes, Zartan; we can never let you and your Dreadnoks have your fun,” Chuckles remarked.

“Oh, of course. I knew I was forgetting something.” Zartan smiled as he pressed a button on his belt before he quickly fired his pistol at Chuckles, a small grenade firing out at his feet. Chuckles barely managed to jump out of the way before it hit the ground and quickly returned fire, his bullets missing the mercenary as the girls quickly started running.

But they didn’t get far as they heard motorcycle engines and bikers whooping toward them, all of whom looked like complete savages armed with chainsaws, blowtorches, and the like. “Whatever’s going on here now, I think I speak for us all when I say I want no part of it.” Rarity pointed out.

“Don’t rightly see we got a choice. Time to power up.” Applejack said quickly as she grabbed her geode, with the others quickly following her lead and readying their powers.

Chuckles wasn’t sure what they were doing, but that was mostly because he was busy as he scowled at Zartan as they were both caught behind cover in their gunfight. “You didn’t honestly think I’d come out here alone, did you? Without the Dreadnoks?” Zartan smirked cruelly.

“If I didn’t expect it, I’d be an idiot,” Chuckles remarked and fired a quick shot at the front tire of one of Zartan’s men’s bikes, sending it spinning out and knocking the rider from the bike.

The rider in question – a surprisingly well-kempt man to be riding with this gang – brandished and revved a weapon that could best be described as a chainsaw sword and charged at the girls, but his blade was deflected by a large gem Rarity conjured between them, sending him stumbling suddenly back. “What the hell?” he asked in a surprising English accent before Applejack kicked him away, knocking him away and slamming him into his bike.

“Guess neither of us were expecting that,” Chuckles smirked at Zartan’s surprised expression before he tapped the face of his gold Rolex, making it beep. “Lift-Ticket, this is Chuckles; now would be a good time for a grand entrance.”

Zartan scowled and pointed his pistol at Chuckles before Rainbow suddenly dashed over and punched him in the face, knocking him away. “Okay, do you maybe wanna explain what’s going on here now?” she asked Chuckles in annoyance.

“Sorry sweetheart, that’s classified.” Chuckles shrugged as he spun his pistol on his finger, looking at Zartan sprawled on the ground. “You’ve got a heck of a right, by the way.”

“I’m motivated. And annoyed.” Rainbow pointed out… before a strong downward wind blew into the area.

“Well, that’s gonna disappear in a few seconds,” Chuckles smirked as a huge tandem-rotor camo-colored helicopter flew above the street, the downforce of its rotors blowing dust everywhere.

“What in Sam Hill?” Applejack asked in surprise at the sight of the chopper as she tried to hold her hat down against the wind.

The chopper landed near the girls and the side door quickly opened. “YO JOE!” A blonde man in a leather jacket yelled this as he leaped out of the chopper with a submachine gun, followed swiftly by a truly massive African-American man with a handheld M2 Browning machine gun… and what looked like a ninja with an Uzi, all of whom were laying down covering fire for the Rainbooms, forcing the Dreadnoks to take cover.

“Who are you guys?” Sunset asked the blonde man quickly.

“We’re your ride outta here,” he responded quickly. “Beyond that, you don’t need to know. Now get in the Tomahawk before you’re snake food.”

“‘Snake’?” Fluttershy asked in fear and confusion at the whole situation.

“Less flap-lip, more gunship!” the big guy with the bigger gun ordered.

Sunset wasn’t entirely sure what to make of it but shrugged as she could clearly see they didn’t have any better options. “You heard the man.” she shrugged and ran for the copter, the other girls quickly following her.

Rainbow saw this from her position and was confused but shrugged. “If I get on that chopper, you guys had better start explaining things,” she said firmly to Chuckles.

“No promises,” Chuckles responded as he ran for the helicopter with Rainbow as Zartan got up and started firing at them again. “Snake Eyes, little help here!” Almost immediately, the ninja threw a shuriken at Zartan’s hand and knocked his pistol to the ground, allowing the two to make it to the copter with the others.

“All aboard, Lift-Ticket; take us home.” the blonde ordered.

“Copy that, goin’ up. Roadblock, mind keepin’ the area cool for me?” the pilot asked with a smirk.

“Thought you’d never ask.” the big guy smirked. The Rainbooms were confused about these strange names, but they didn’t really want to ask about them when dealing with someone with a clear affinity for .50-cal machine guns as Roadblock grabbed the mounted turret in the door and started firing, along with the pilot clearly firing a Gatling gun from the cockpit, a massive boundary of bullet-holes in the ground keeping the bikers back as the copter quickly got airborne and flew away from Canterlot City.

As Zartan watched the helicopter retreat, he scowled and reached under his hood, tapping an earpiece as the sound of police sirens drew closer. “This is Zartan. We may have a problem.”

Alpha Dogs

As the pilot flew the copter as far from Canterlot City as possible, the doors were closed and weapons were stowed, letting the girls all glare at their apparent saviors. “So about that explanation…” Rainbow said seriously.

“I said no promises, kid.” Chuckles pointed out. “Also, sorry in advance for this next part.”

“What next part?” Twilight asked… before Snake Eyes and the apparent commander of this team suddenly slapped all the girls in handcuffs. “Wha- Hey!” And it only got worse when Snake Eyes and Roadblock pulled black-out shades over all the windows and closed the door to the cockpit.

Spike immediately leaped from Twilight’s bag and started barking. “What do you think you’re doing?!” he asked angrily.

“Aw, that ain’t right,” Roadblock said in surprised confusion as Spike kept yelling.

“Snake Eyes?” the commander ordered simply. The ninja just nodded and looked down at Spike, making unusual hand gestures that almost looked like sign language, but made no sense… though they were enough to get Spike to calm down for some reason.

“Whoa…” he said quietly. “Okay, got it.” With that, Spike nodded and hopped back up onto the bench.

“Wait, what’d he say?” asked Applejack.

“It’s… too complicated to translate word-for-word, but simply put; he said they’re our friends,” Spike said simply.

“If it’s all the same, I’d prefer to know my friends’ names,” Sunset said simply as she glared at the commander.

“And I’d prefer to know why a bunch of high school students from an almost completely unknown city in Virginia are suddenly at the top of the most-wanted list for a terrorist organization.” the commander said simply, stunning the girls in scared confusion. “So I guess we’re even.”

“Actually Duke, I think I can answer your question,” Chuckles noted and leaned into Duke’s ear to whisper something that made him raise his eyebrow.

“Is that right?” Duke asked.

“I’ve been in deep cover on this op for three months.” Chuckles pointed out. “I think I know what I’m talking about.”

“‘Deep cover’? Have you been spying on us?!” Rarity asked in outrage.

“It’s my job.” Chuckles shrugged, producing a badge with an insignia of an eagle head and a star within a gold shield… along with a more recognizable badge next to it. “Special Agent Sergeant codename Chuckles; U.S. Army Criminal Investigation Division.”

“Well then, why are you kidnapping us? We’re not Army.” Twilight insisted.

“Yeah, that part was kinda obvious,” Roadblock remarked.

“Easy, Roadblock,” Duke ordered, glancing back at the girls. “Let’s get a couple of things straight here, kids. Number 1; until we receive orders otherwise, we ask the questions here – not you. Number 2; we’re not kidnapping anyone – for the moment, you may consider yourselves guests of the United States Military under our protection until such time as your hometown is verified safe from further incursion and secure by a Spec-Ops team and the Virginia National Guard. Number 3; while you’re in our custody, you will answer any and all questions asked of you in regard to any and all unexplained phenomena in and around Canterlot City, Virginia. Clear?”

When they heard that, the girls were more than a bit confused and alarmed; they didn’t believe they’d ever heard anything quite so serious about their magic before… but then again, they’d never been rushed by bikers and abducted by the military before either, so it balanced out. But Sunset just glared at Duke, knowing that wasn’t anywhere close to everything in this conversation but she had an idea to get it as she made it look like she was itching at her neck, subtly activating her Geode before she gave her best fake smile… which she hadn’t used since her days as the Demon Queen of CHS, so it hurt a bit. “Still didn’t catch your name,” she remarked, extending her cuffed hands.

Duke simply narrowed his eyes to her before he extended his own hand. “Legal name’s classified from civilians, same as everyone else in our outfit. Codename’s Duke.” Sunset accepted his hand and almost immediately, her mind was flooded with his memories… of battle against Zartan and an army of dark soldiers under a madman in a silver mask under a blue helmet, of his own life in the military, and of the top-secret military specialist team she and her friends were currently in the care of, designated G.I. Joe.

Sunset smiled as she pulled her hand away and sat back. “Nice to meet you, Duke,” she said. “Wish it were under better circumstances.”

“If these circumstances were any better, you and your friends here would have no idea any of us exist,” Duke assured.

“Can I ask at least one more question?” Rainbow asked, her ire growing.

“Make it quick,” Roadblock instructed.

“Where are we going?” Rainbow asked seriously… right before the copter started descending.

“Our headquarters. One of ‘em, at least,” Duke answered simply. The girls really wished the windows hadn’t been blacked out so they could see where they were going, but the muffled sounds of machinery whirring outside the copter were enough to make them suspicious… especially when the helicopter started descending after they’d heard its wheels touch the ground.

“What is this place? Who are you?” Twilight asked seriously.

“The kinda guys you don’t get to ask about,” Duke answered simply as the helicopter stopped descending.

With that in mind, Roadblock threw the copter’s side doors open and let the girls finally see where they were… which, as it turned out, was a massive underground complex with giant command buildings, military vehicles, and countless soldiers everywhere. “Welcome to the Pit,” he smirked.

“Law and Order, front and center!” Duke ordered as he hopped off the copter, prompting a man in a white Military Police helmet to walk over and stand at attention, along with the German Shepherd at his side.

“Sir!” the officer saluted.

“At ease, Law,” Duke ordered. “You and Roadblock escort our guests to the stockade until questioning.”

“Stockade? You’re throwing us in jail?!” asked Rainbow.

“All respect, Duke; I think we should have Airtight take a look at them before interrogation,” Chuckles suggested. “I don’t know what the deal is with their – this is the best way I can describe it – superpowers, but I think we both want an explanation before we find out the hard way.”

Duke glanced back at the girls and nodded. “Agreed. Snake Eyes, find Airtight and get him to the stockade on the double.” The ninja nodded and walked off to follow his orders. “Chuckles, you and I will debrief with the General. Law, Roadblock, get to it.”

“You got it, Duke.” Law nodded. “Let’s go, ladies.”

“This is outrageous. I demand legal counsel.” Rarity barked as they were led deeper into the base.

“Don’t seem like you understand how this is workin’.” Roadblock pointed out. “You’re on our turf, kid.”

“And as far as military law is concerned, you and your friends are threats to national security until the general says otherwise,” Law added.

“Threats? We’re victims! We were attacked and abducted!” Twilight argued.

“The abduction was for your own protection. The attack was courtesy of some old annoying friends of ours.” Roadblock pointed out.

“That Zartan guy… who is he?” asked Rainbow.

“Maybe you didn’t hear Duke on the chopper. We ask, you answer.” Roadblock said bluntly.

“Hmph. Roadblock’s a perfect name for you.” Rainbow whispered.

“I heard that,” he remarked brusquely.

“Uh Dash, little bit of advice; maybe don’t taunt the feller with a gun the size of a water heater.” Applejack pointed out quickly.

“Good advice.” Law agreed. “Roadblock isn’t the kinda guy you wanna tick off.” He smiled as he looked ahead, seeing Snake Eyes in front of a holding cell in the stockade. “And I know for a fact that no one who’s ever ticked you off is still around, eh Snake?”

Snake Eyes simply stood there, impossible to read with his full black face mask… but the girls were more concerned about the man standing with him, wearing a yellow and green hazmat suit with a large scanning device that resembled a Geiger counter set up next to him.

The girls were a bit intimidated by him – somehow moreso than with Snake Eyes – but they approached him anyway. “I suppose we don’t get any points for guessing why you’re called Airtight.” Rarity remarked.

“Fraid not,” he responded simply, his voice muffled by his respirator. “Law, take the cuffs off.”

“Right.” Law nodded and removed Sunset’s handcuffs first.

“Arms up at your sides, please.” Airtight requested formally as he approached her with the scanner. Sunset hesitated but did as she was instructed, holding her arms out to a T and allowing Airtight to examine her with the scanner, which ticked lightly like a Geiger counter as it passed over her watch and cell phone – which Airtight had Law remove – but it appeared to go somewhat nuts as he scanned her Geode. “Hmm… that’s odd.”

“What is it?” asked Roadblock.

“Picking up some strange energy; scanner doesn’t recognize it,” Airtight noted. “I’ll run it through backup analysis in the lab when we’re done here. Other than that, she’s clean.”

“Alright, in,” Roadblock ordered. Sunset didn’t have much choice so she walked into the holding cell as Airtight scanned all her friends one by one, finding similar readings from all their Geodes as Sunset’s… though the readings he got from Pinkie warranted further investigation… and ended with Pinkie emptying out a truly outrageous assortment of items from her hair, confusing all the present soldiers. “What in the goddamn…?”

“It’s really best if you don’t question it,” Rainbow assured Roadblock. “We’ve all tried and it just gave us headaches. Just chalk that up as ‘she’s Pinkie Pie’ and leave it at that.”

Roadblock glanced at Airtight, who simply shrugged as if accepting that excuse. “All right, that’s fine by me.” Airtight shrugged.

“Great. So can I put all my stuff back?” Pinkie asked jovially.

“I’m sure as hell not cleaning it up.” Law shrugged.

“Fine; go ahead.” Roadblock shrugged.

It took about five minutes for Pinkie to get everything back in her hair – in ways that were clearly already giving Roadblock a headache – but soon enough, the whole group was in the holding cell which Law locked down. “So what now?” asked Rainbow.

“Now you shut up and start answering our questions,” Roadblock said firmly.

“Actually, I have a few questions of my own first.” Sunset insisted.

“How many times do we have to say this?” Roadblock asked in annoyance. “We ask the questions, you answer them. That clear?”

Sunset just smirked almost cruelly – an expression that almost hurt so long after the Fall Formal, but one she felt had to be used here. “RA 213-75-7793,” she said simply.

Everyone looked at her when she said that, but the soldiers’ looks were more out of surprised worry than her friends’ looks of confusion. “How the hell do you know that number?” Roadblock asked.

“Don’t you think Duke would want to hear the answer to that too? Bring him down here, then we’ll talk.” Sunset smirked.

Angrily, Roadblock walked off. “Law, Snake, keep an eye on them,” he said firmly as he and Airtight walked away.

Sunset smirked; she’d almost forgotten how much she enjoyed messing with people like this, and while she hoped she wouldn’t have to continue it for long, this was more than enough to get her and her friends the answers they wanted.

In a large office across the Pit, Chuckles was debriefing Duke as well as a redheaded woman in a blue and yellow combat uniform, a dark-haired man in a beret, and a man in a general’s jacket on what he’d seen.

“General Hawk, I haven’t lied to you once since I was assigned to this post.” Chuckles insisted. “Why would I start now?”

“I don’t doubt your honesty, Chuckles.” the general assured. “But superpowers? This isn’t a comic book, son.”

“General, with all due respect, you seem to be forgetting the advanced weaponry we’ve recovered from Cobra.” the redhead pointed out. “Breaker and Mainframe barely understand how half the stuff works, and they’ve explicitly called it ‘comic book stuff’ on more than one occasion.”

“Be that as it may, Scarlett, laser weapons and jetpacks are on a whole different level from what Chuckles is describing.” Hawk pointed out. “I mean, summoning diamonds out of thin air? Superspeed?”

“General, we all know that there are some things in war that cannot be explained as simply as that.” Chuckles pointed out. “Flint, back me up here; you know some of the stuff we’ve seen out there barely makes any sense.”

“I admit it, we have seen some – quite bluntly – supernatural things.” the man with the beret admitted. “The Crimson Twins leap to mind first, but even so…” That was when someone knocked on the door.

“Come in,” Hawk responded simply.

The door opened and Roadblock walked swiftly in. “General, Duke, we got a problem with the prisoners.”

“Guests, Roadblock; let’s be clear about that.” Duke pointed out.

“And either way, they’re just civilian teenagers,” Scarlett added. “What’s the worst that could happen?”

“Well for starters, the redhead knows Duke’s serial number down to the dashes,” Roadblock said simply, alarming everyone there.

“How the hell does she know that?” Duke asked.

“Said she’d only say if you were there,” Roadblock answered.

“I think this calls for a full response.” Scarlett pointed out, addressing everyone in the room.

“Agreed.” Hawk nodded, swiftly standing up. “You don’t just find out a Joe’s SN without expecting some questions. We’ll finish the debrief later, Chuckles. Let’s move.” With that in mind, the room cleared out as everyone moved to the stockade, where they saw the girls waiting… a cocky smirk on Sunset’s face.

“Well, you wanted an audience, Sunset,” Rainbow remarked.

“Guess I did.” Sunset smiled as he looked at the newcomers.

“Start talking. How do you know my serial number?” Duke asked in annoyance.

“That’s what that was?” Twilight asked, surprised.

“Answer the question,” Duke insisted firmly.

“I read your mind on the chopper,” Sunset said simply.

That was enough to make the soldiers nervous. “Get Psyche-Out down here,” Scarlett ordered quickly, prompting Law to move toward the exit.

Quickly realizing they had the advantage, Rarity subtly touched her Geode and conjured a wall of diamonds in front of the door, stopping Law from leaving. “First I suggest you answer some of our questions.” she insisted.

“Guessing now would be a bad time to say ‘I told you so’, right sir?” Chuckles asked the general cautiously.

“One more word, Chuckles, and you’re on latrine duty,” Flint said firmly.

Hawk meanwhile simply looked into the cell and glared at the girls. “Who are you?” he asked critically.

“You first.” Rainbow rebuked. “And while we’re at it, can we get out of this cell? Smells like someone died in here.”

Hawk narrowed his eyes as he looked into the cell, focusing on Sunset. “Am I right in assuming you’re not going to tell what you know if we don’t cooperate?”

“Good guess.” Sunset nodded.

Hawk stepped back. “Open the cell, Law.” The MP looked a bit surprised at that, but the look he got from the general was more than enough to get it across. “That’s an order.”

“Yes sir.” Law relented as he walked back over and opened the cell, letting the girls out.

“And it’s about time too.” Rarity noted as she and the girls all walked out while she dispelled the diamonds from the door of the stockade. “Now, I believe this is the part where you start talking.”

“S’pose you’ve earned that much.” Hawk shrugged as he and his soldiers led the girls out of the stockade, letting them get a better look at the Pit. “Officially, everything you’re seeing here doesn’t exist.”

“And unofficially?” Twilight asked.

“Unofficially… we’re a highly trained Special Ops task force comprised of the best men and women the six branches of the United States Armed Forces have to offer,” Scarlett answered simply. “We are the first and last line of defense against any forces around the world who would attempt to plunge the world into chaos. Whenever there’s trouble, we’re there. When all else fails… we don’t.”

“National Alpha Dogs, Real American Heroes; whatever you wanna call us works, but we prefer the real name of the crew: G.I. Joe,” Roadblock added.

“So you guys are like, the biggest guns in some crazy war on terror?” Rainbow asked, clearly geeking out.

“Pretty much, yeah.” Flint nodded.

“Please tell me you guys are taking applications!” Rainbow begged quickly.

“Really, Rainbow Dash! Do you want to be in the middle of what just happened in Canterlot all the time?” Rarity asked, clearly ashamed of her friend’s decorum.

“Hey, we’ve got magic superpowers. I think we can handle it.” Rainbow pointed out.

“I appreciate the enthusiasm, kid. But it’s against two of the team’s biggest rules.” Hawk pointed out. “One; if you’re not US Military, any hope you may have of joining up is a pipe dream.”

“And two?” Applejack asked.

“You don’t ask to be part of G.I. Joe. You get asked.” Hawk said firmly.

“Well, I’d call this a pretty good invitation.” Sunset pointed out. “I mean, if Cobra is after us…”

“You already know about Cobra?” Scarlett asked in surprise.

“Exactly how much did you get when you read my mind?” Duke asked.

“Enough,” Sunset said vaguely.

“Who’s Cobra?” asked Pinkie.

“A terrorist cult bent on world domination,” Flint said simply as he adjusted his beret. “They’re the guys who paid Zartan and his Dreadnoks to go after you. Only question now is why.”

“And this is the part where you girls start giving us that answer. As the old saying goes, knowing is half the battle.” Hawk added.

Sunset looked around at her friends, all of whom nodded in agreement as she looked back at the general. “Here’s another old saying;” she said simply. “Do you believe in magic?”

Den of Snakes

Hidden away somewhere, a dark army marched about as a wicked man in a mirrored silver mask watched from above… not even looking at the soldier he was addressing in his command room. “Now Zartan… tell me again exactly,” he asked in an angry raspy voice. “What happened?”

“All respect, Cobra Commander; I don’t know how much clearer I could be.” Zartan pointed out. “I tracked those girls you sent us Dreadnoks after, but we were beaten to the punch in pickin’ ‘em up. By G.I. Joe.”

Cobra Commander scowled under his mask at that as he finally turned to look at Zartan, drawing a very fine-bladed rapier and pointing it at the mercenary’s neck. “Give me one good reason why I shouldn’t ensure your terminal unemployment.”

He got his answer when a large combat knife was suddenly at his own throat, in the hands of a redheaded woman in a cutoff pink shirt. “Because if you even think about it, we’re gonna see if Mindbender can stitch a severed windpipe.” she threatened, her accent a mirror of Zartan’s.

“Ah, Zarana.” Cobra Commander smirked under his mask, almost amused as he sheathed his sword. “Ever one to leap to her brother’s aid.”

“Not that I don’t appreciate the thought, Zarana, but I can take care of myself,” Zartan assured as he stood up.

“Obviously not, since you failed in your simple mission to abduct seven teenage girls from some nowhere town in Virginia.” Cobra Commander pointed out as Zarana lowered her knife. “I should terminate your contract here and now and turn you over to the Joes.”

“I don’t doubt that you would. If you didn’t need our talents and muscle.” Zartan pointed out. “Besides, this fight isn’t over yet. We know who has the girls now.”

“You say that as if it isn’t a problem, Zartan.” That voice came from a man who looked almost perfectly like the archetypical mad scientist as he entered the room; bald, a wicked mustache, a monocle over his right eye, and unusual high-tech clothing with no shirt whatsoever, but a cape held in place by pins in his suspenders. “We have tried to attack G.I. Joe’s headquarters innumerable times. And unless I’m misremembering, nearly all of those attacks have come to absolutely nothing.”

“Indeed they have, Dr. Mindbender.” the Commander agreed. “So tell me, Zartan; how exactly do you intend to secure these children from the Joes’ grasp?”

“Simple. I don’t.” Zartan shrugged.

“Would you care to rephrase?” Cobra Commander scowled in unbridled outrage.

“I’ve been tailing these girls for months, Commander,” Zartan explained. “I know how they think. And I know that as soon as the Joes offer them a shot at us, they’ll throw themselves right into the fray for a chance to get even. Which will, in turn, give us the chance to scoop ‘em back up off the battlefield.” He glanced over at Mindbender, who appeared almost impressed as he adjusted his monocle. “Once we have them, Mindbender, they’re all yours.” Zartan smiled as he looked back at the man in the mask. “In simple words, Cobra Commander; we don’t have to go to them. They’ll come to us.”

Cobra Commander simply stepped right up in front of Zartan, uncomfortably close as he pointed at the mercenary’s collarbone. “If you are wrong about any of these assumptions, Zartan, I’ll instruct Mindbender to see exactly what makes a man like you tick.”

“And I presume you will be rather non-specific as to the method?” Mindbender smiled wickedly.

“Correct.”

“Message received, Commander.” Zartan nodded. “But if I may remind you… you don’t get the sorts of skills I have…” He spoke that phrase in an almost perfect imitation of Flash Sentry’s voice before he resumed his own tone. “Without massively comprehensive character research.”

“I submit that as masters of disguise, you and your family are indeed unequaled Zartan, but don’t presume to be knowledgeable in military tactics above your paygrade.” Cobra Commander warned. “Your targets are teenage civilians. I harbor significant doubts that the Joes would ever allow them to leave.”

“I feel as though I must respectfully disagree, Commander.” An Eastern European voice came on over the communication links as a dark-haired woman appeared on a holographic screen behind the group. “Zartan is correct about one thing; these children are nothing if not tenacious. I have determined little if not that from my own observation of them before the Dreadnoks were ever contracted to acquire them for Cobra; even despite the Joes’ regulations, I doubt they would be able to keep the children from the battlefield.”

Cobra Commander sighed quietly as he looked at the screen. “Your input is… appreciated, Baroness. But I prefer results. What have you to report from the city?”

“As anticipated, after the battle, the American military is sealing off the city pending investigation,” Baroness noted. “While Mindbender’s plans for the children are on hold, I am however pleased to report that Destro’s newest equipment is prepared to launch on your command.”

“Project Hurricane? Hmph. It’s about time.” Mindbender remarked.

“I could not agree more.” the commander nodded. “When will it be ready for deployment?”

“Soon. Destro assures me all that is required before its deployment is the primary ingredient. And lots of it.” Baroness explained. “I would like to request a Viper Team to assist in its… acquisition.”

“Granted.” Cobra Commander nodded, swiftly terminating the communication as he turned to Mindbender. “Find the Crimson Twins. Order them to send the best scouts and infiltration operatives within the Crimson Guard to locate and breach all of the Joes’ main bases of operations. Find the children and bring them here, whatever it takes.”

“Yes, Commander. Hail Cobra.” Mindbender saluted with a raised fist before he walked away.

“Zartan, if you and your Dreadnoks wish to continue to show your worth to Cobra, I suggest you take them and tell them to prepare to move on even the simplest order.” Cobra Commander ordered.

“Yes, Commander.” Zartan nodded, leaving the room with Zarana quickly following him.

Once he was alone, Cobra Commander leered under his mask as he looked out over his forces, knowing that power was well within his grasp.

The Science of Magic 2

Despite the Rainbooms’ rough introduction to G.I. Joe – and the fact that none of them had even considered the military before now – they had been allowed to join up… even if Sunset had basically blackmailed their way in, which General Hawk had made sure to inform the girls that very few Joes would like. “I’d keep my eye out for General Flagg and Gung-Ho in particular. They’re pretty testy when it comes to this sort of thing,” he said as much in his office as he spoke to the girls. “And as you might imagine, your enlistment has some conditions.”

“Such as?” Rarity asked.

“One; you undergo training here in the Pit to gauge your powers and ensure you’re G.I. Joe material with or without them.” Hawk listed. “You’ll be given ranks depending on where your instructors believe you’d be best suited. Two; you consent to have a team led by Airtight, Doc, and Mainframe conduct an in-depth analysis of your magic.”

“Uh… all due respect General, but I’d suggest against that,” Sunset said nervously. “I tried to run my own analysis of our magic once, and… well, it didn’t go… great.” The girls knew full well how much of an understatement that was – they remembered that attempt and how it literally exploded in Sunset’s face—multiple times.

“I appreciate your warning, and I’ll certainly pass it on to Airtight and the team, but I have faith in them,” Hawk noted. “After all – no offense, but – you’re a civilian. We’re the best military strike team America has to offer. We’ve got better toys.”

Sunset sighed; she knew that some people just had to learn the hard way, but she would’ve expected a US Army Major General to know better. “All right. Don’t say I didn’t warn you.” she shrugged.

“If our analysis goes as well as yours did, you all have full clearance to say, ‘I told you so’,” Hawk assured the girls.

“Looking forward to it, sir.” Sunset smiled.

“Glad we’re on the same page.” Hawk nodded and shook Sunset’s hand before turning to the others. “All yours, Duke.”

“Yes sir.” Duke nodded, turning to the girls and gesturing for them to leave the office. “Ladies.” The Rainbooms walked out of the office where Scarlett, Flint, and Airtight were waiting. “Airtight, get your team together. The girls have signed off on the analysis, but Hawk’s given them the go-ahead for ‘I told you so’ if it goes wrong.”

“Understood.” Airtight nodded.

“Flint, go with and observe. Scarlett, you’re with me; let’s get the girls’ boot camp set up.” Duke smiled as he led Scarlett across the Pit.

“C’mon; let’s get on with this,” Flint ordered the girls as he and Airtight led them through the Pit toward a large white lab chamber. Waiting for them were a woman with glasses and a medical kit, and a man with a special large computer module in his hand.

“Mainframe, is everything ready?” Airtight asked the second guy, his respirator hissing with each breath.

“Yep, got everything set. We’ve got biometrics, energy readers, air scrubbers, the whole nine yards you asked for.” Mainframe answered. Sunset looked around and despite how much more advanced Hardware’s tech obviously was, it wasn’t much different from the equipment she used in her own study of the Rainbooms’ magic, which let her know very easily that things would go pretty much the exact same way for the Joes as it did for her.

“And I’ve gotten their medical histories for a baseline comparison,” Doc answered.

“Wait, how’d you get our medical records?” Twilight asked seriously.

“We’re military. We ask for it, we get it.” Flint answered simply.

“That is in no way a satisfactory answer to my question.” Twilight pointed out.

“Well, it’s the one you’re getting.” Doc shrugged. “Believe me; I’ve been G.I. Joe’s go-to medical officer for years now, so I know that when Flint answers questions, they’re typically that blunt.”

“Well, I guess a blunt answer will work for my next question; which one of us goes first?” Sunset asked.

Airtight looked around at the group before pointing at Fluttershy. “Fluttershy.” The shy girl flinched almost instinctively as she tried to hide behind Rainbow.

“W-Why me?” she asked.

“Simply put? With the power you reported having, we won’t have to worry about anything exploding.” Airtight shrugged. “And you just seem naturally like a good person for a baseline in this sort of study.”

“I suppose that counts as a compliment.” Rarity shrugged.

Fluttershy shuddered for a bit, frightened by the prospect of this but she knew it had to be done. “W-W-What do you want me to do?”

“Just stand right here; I’ll talk you through setting up the electrodes,” Doc instructed, pointing to the center of the room. Fluttershy stepped as she was instructed and stepped into the middle of a small circle in the middle of all the machines. Once she was situated, Doc did indeed talk her through setting the wires up on her body… some of which were situated in rather embarrassing places on her body.

“Alright, looks like we’re all set.” Mainframe nodded. “Everything appears to correspond to established baselines. Medical readings look solid and match registered norms. Call it, Airtight.”

“Alright, you said you can activate your magic at will when you… what’d you call it; Pony Up?” Airtight asked.

“It’ll make sense when you see it,” Sunset assured.

“Sure. Alright, go to it.” Flint said simply.

Fluttershy was still nervous, but the reassuring look she got from her friends was certainly a big help as she gripped her Geode tightly. Her gold aura emanated from her body as her ears shifted, her hair lengthened, and her wings sprouted from her back. The looks of shock on the Joes’ faces were enough to let Sunset know they understood the terminology now. “Told ya,” she remarked, earning an annoyed look from Flint.

Quickly snapping out of it, Airtight and Mainframe went to the readings. “Energy readings are off the scale. This magic is some crazy stuff.” Mainframe remarked.

Fluttershy’s eyes suddenly popped as she saw something. “Um… Airtight?” she asked quietly, but they didn’t look up.

“Ear movement is messing with the readings a bit, but I’m not seeing any difference medically.” Doc agreed as she looked at her own readings. “I’m definitely expecting some minor skeletal modifications to account for the wings though.”

“Um, Airtight?” Fluttershy asked, a bit louder but still didn’t get any response.

“My question is why are her clothes affected like this?” asked Airtight.

“Probably some sort of weird side-effect of the magic, making room for the wings.” Mainframe suggested. “Pretty precise though.”

“Airtight?” Fluttershy asked, louder still but the scientists still didn’t look up. Sunset however easily followed her gaze to a screen that showed a wavelength… which was quickly going nuts.

“Uh, just a heads-up, but… you guys might wanna duck.” Sunset suggested quickly as she and the girls all dropped down.

“What, why?” Flint asked… right before there was a glimmering burst from Fluttershy that sent a swarm of pink butterflies shooting out in all directions, knocking Flint down as a few of them fluttered around his head.

“That’s why,” Sunset remarked.

Flint growled in annoyance as he stood up, waving the butterflies away as he brushed off his beret and set it back on his head. “Alright, at least tell me you guys got some solid readings,” he said seriously.

“Yeah, we got something.” Airtight nodded as he looked at the readings. “But I still wanna test the others. The wavelengths of their individual magic powers are all subtly different enough that I think testing them all is for the best.”

“In for a penny and all that, I guess.” Applejack shrugged.

“Looks like. You’re next. Mainframe, let these bugs to the surface, will ya?” asked Flint.

“Yeah, I’m on it.” Mainframe nodded and pressed a few buttons, opening a series of doors to allow the butterflies to fly out of the Pit.

Fluttershy removed the electrodes from her body and set them up on Applejack, apologizing profusely for how she was getting a bit handsy, but Applejack didn’t mind. “All systems go, Flint,” Airtight reported once she was set up.

“Alright, let’s do this,” Flint smirked.

Unfortunately, it was clear that even with the much more advanced technology the Joes had, their results weren’t any better than Sunset’s; Applejack surged with orange energy, and while it initially seemed like there were no adverse effects, the girls knew better and stepped back… right before a pile of magic apples fell on each of the Joes from out of nowhere.

Rarity’s results were very similar as she hovered well off the ground before she dropped down, a bright blue bolt of energy shooting down the electrode wires… and sending a large crystal spike out of one of the screens right in front of Doc, splitting her glasses off the bridge of her nose. Luckily, she had a replacement pair, but it was still funny.

After that, it was Pinkie’s turn, and the Rainbooms all stood well back as Pinkie bounced around against the wires, right before the screens erupted in large waves of magic balloons that knocked the Joes back. Airtight was lucky as he was protected from the static electricity – at least somewhat – by his suit, but the others weren’t as lucky.

Spike’s test was thankfully much calmer as the study simply revealed that his intelligence had been somehow amplified to allow him to talk, but other than that, there were no crazy side effects of the study.

After that, it came around to Twilight’s turn, which left the girls very interested… even from the complete opposite side of the room as the Joes had now mandated considering past results. “Correct me if I’m wrong, but isn’t this the first time Twilight’s magic has been tested?” Rarity asked.

“I think it is, actually.” Fluttershy nodded.

“It definitely is. I considered it after her transfer, but after what happened with you guys… no way.” Sunset shook her head.

“Oh, this oughtta be good.” Rainbow smiled.

“I hope so,” Flint remarked. “Uncharted waters, boys. Let’s see what we got.”

“Here goes nothing. Hit it, Twilight.” Mainframe ordered.

Twilight did as she was instructed and Ponied Up, the purple glow fading not long after as the readings poured in. For a split second, it seemed like everything was fine but then a purple flash shot through the wires and blasted into the computers, sending out a telekinetic surge that sent the Joes flying back into the wall and floating around the room like gravity had been switched off. Once Twilight returned to normal, the telekinetic surge stopped and everyone fell back to the floor, with Flint shooting an annoyed look at Twilight as he adjusted his beret for the fourth time today.

With that set, they set Sunset up for her demo… but for the sake of safety, they called a man in a red and black heavy-duty fire suit called Barbecue into the room, just in case her power had any destructive side effects. “Alright, let’s get it done.” he shrugged.

Sunset took the order and Ponied Up, her power surging to one of the computers and making it burn with heat before it exploded into a small fireball. Barbecue was on it in less than a second, setting a dial on his large backpack before he drew a small hose connected to it, blasting the computer with extinguisher foam to snuff the fire as Sunset gave a nervous chuckle.

(Cut it)

Finally, it was Rainbow Dash’s turn. “Just sayin’ it now; this is a terrible idea,” Applejack said firmly as Rainbow set up the electrodes herself.

“I wholeheartedly agree, Darling.” Rarity insisted.

“Yeah well, I want a full data-set, so we may as well.” Airtight shrugged, though it was clear from his tone that he was just as worried about what might happen here as the girls.

“Don’t worry, chief; I’ll be sure to make this one epic,” Rainbow assured.

“So should we start running now or wait ‘til the last second?” Spike asked.

“Eh, let’s give it a minute.” Sunset shrugged.

“Alright, hit it.” That was a very poor choice of words on Mainframe’s part as Rainbow grabbed her Geode, Ponied Up, and then pressed a button on her phone… playing back a recording of the Rainbooms playing Awesome As I Wanna Be, which she started shredding to on an air-guitar.

Instantly, all the Rainbooms went pale as they saw where this was going, including the rainbow-colored light surging down the electrodes. “Forget what I said earlier; run!” Sunset yelled.

“Scatter!” Flint agreed as everyone ran into the hall like someone had dropped a live grenade, slamming the door behind them… right before there was a loud splattering blast from inside. Once the shaking stopped, the group was somewhat relieved to hear Rainbow falling over cackling inside.

Tentatively, Airtight opened the door to let everyone peek into the test chamber… and see that the remaining monitors had exploded in rainbow-colored goo which was splattered all over the wall. “Ohoho man! That was awesome! Ahahahaha! Oh, I can’t breathe!” Rainbow cackled.

Sunset glanced slowly at Flint with a smirk on her face. “I think this is the part where I get to say I told you so.”

Enlistment

With the study of their magic out of the way – after its fully anticipated abysmal failure – the girls were directed to the women’s barracks where they found Scarlett waiting. “So I’m guessing the study went about how you were expecting?” she asked.

“The high point was watching Rainbow Dash forced to clean up after the mess she made in the lab,” Sunset whispered to Scarlett with a smirk.

“Hey! I heard that!” Rainbow said indignantly. It was accurate though – after Rainbow Dash had finally gotten her laughter under control, Flint had ordered her to clean up the rainbow slime she’d splattered over the lab.

“Alright, knock it off. Basic training starts in ten; get changed and get ready.” Scarlett ordered.

“Yes ma’am!” the girls all saluted as they walked into the barracks.

“So what kinda trainin’ are we lookin’ forward to here?” Applejack asked as the girls found several open bunks with what looked like athletic clothes stacked on them.

“Nothing too intense.” Scarlett shrugged. “Weapons systems, physical and psych evals, tactical response scenarios, how to best use your powers in the field, things like that.”

“Um… that sounds like kind of a lot…” Fluttershy said in concern.

“Please. That’s standard for newbies, Joe or otherwise.” Scarlett assured. “Plenty of Joes have more experience than that. You’re fresh-faced rookies though, so where you go in this outfit after Basic is up to you.”

“And who will be conducting this ‘Basic’?” Rarity asked, clearly disliking the colors of the military clothes.

“Well, that’s up to Duke. Think I got some theories though. Now get changed; fourteen and counting.” Scarlett smirked.

The girls didn’t have to be told twice; soon enough they were all dressed in tank tops, light tactical vests in black, camo cargo pants, and black combat boots, while Spike wore a tan tactical dog harness. Once dressed, the Rainbooms were led downstairs to the main floor of the Pit, where they found Duke talking to a man in tactical gear and a deep green balaclava.

“Fall in along here,” Scarlett ordered the girls, who lined up on a line painted on the floor as Scarlett walked up to Duke. “Little early for throwing these girls into the deep end, don’t you think Duke?”

“The deep end would be givin’ em to Slaughter.” Duke countered, indicating to the other guy. “This is me being the nice guy.”

“Whatever you say, boss.” Scarlett shrugged as the three walked back to the girls. “Alright ladies, welcome to G.I. Joe Basic. This is your new best friend Staff Sergeant Beach Head.”

“Always great to make a new friend, even if he does look kinda scary.” Pinkie smiled jovially, resulting in Beach Head narrowing his eyes under his mask.

“Uh… heh-heh-heh. You’ll have to forgive her, sir; Pinkie Pie doesn’t have much of a filter.” Rarity said nervously.

“Let’s get one thing straight here, ladies.” Beach Head said simply. “You may have blackmailed your way onto this team, but that doesn’t mean I’ve gotta like it. But I’ve got my orders, and that means I’ve gotta get you mission-ready. Joe-style.”

“Don’t expect him to go easy on you with that. Beach Head used to instruct Ranger School at Ft. Moore.” Duke warned playfully.

That gave Twilight some concerned pause – she knew Army Rangers were among the best of the best, and now they were about to be trained by one of their instructors? “Oh boy.”

“Yeah, ‘oh boy’ is right.” Duke nodded. “Good luck; you’re gonna need it.” With that in mind, he and Scarlett stepped away and let Beach Head take the floor.

“Chuckles has briefed me on your powers, but while you’re under my command, I’m gonna see exactly what they’re capable of.” Beach Head said simply. “Let’s observe some protocol while we’re here. Atten-TION!” The girls all stood at attention on the order. “Left FACE!” The Rainbooms turned 90 degrees left on their heels. “Firing range. Double time, march.”

The Rainbooms jogged through the Pit in time, trying hard not to give Beach Head grief as they moved as he clearly wasn’t one to be messed with. As they walked, Applejack looked around curiously before she glanced at Duke as he, Scarlett, and Beach Head marched with them. “Can Ah ask somethin’?”

“You can ask.” Duke shrugged, making it clear that he probably wasn’t going to answer.

Applejack raised an eyebrow at that but asked her question anyway. “Who pays for all this?”

“Department of Defense. And we answer directly to the President. In case you missed it, we are an anti-terrorism task force.” Duke pointed out, earning an annoyed roll of Applejack’s eyes at his sarcasm.

When the group reached the firing range, they found a brown-haired girl just finishing up as she removed the mag from a rifle. “Here again, Lady Jaye? What, tryin’ to prove something?” Scarlett asked with a smirk.

“Who’s tryin’? I could ace this with my eyes closed.” Lady Jaye smirked.

“Well, we’ll be keepin’ ‘em open while we’re here.” Beach Head shrugged as the girls lined up at the range.

“So what power are we testing first?” asked Sunset.

“Her.” Beach Head said simply, pointing to Rarity. “Chuckles tells me you make shields.”

“Well, if you must be so blah about describing them – they are rather fine diamonds, after all.” Rarity pointed out.

“Well, let’s just see if they’re as strong as they are pretty.” Beach Head ordered, pointing downrange toward the targets. “Put one up down there and hold it up as long as you can.” Rarity easily obeyed the order and summoned one of her shields at the end of the range in front of the target Lady Jaye had clearly just shredded. “Scarlett, care to start us off?”

Scarlett nodded as she stepped forward to stare the shield down… before she immediately pulled a ninja star from her belt and tossed it at the shield, letting it ping harmlessly off to the right. But before it could hit the ground, Scarlett pulled her hand crossbow and fired it at the exact same place at the shield, the bolt bouncing off in just the right way to shoot straight through the hole of the ninja star, embedding it into the side wall. Scarlett couldn’t help but smirk at the stunned expressions of the girls after they saw that happen. “I’d say that signs the shields off on blades and bow-type weapons.” she nodded.

“Agreed.” Beach Head nodded.

“That… was… AWESOME!” Rainbow said in awe. “Please tell me you can teach me how to do that.”

“I can.” Scarlett shrugged tellingly, letting Rainbow know full well that she probably wouldn’t.

“Let’s go for something a little heavier. Lady Jaye?” Duke requested.

“With gusto.” Lady Jaye smirked as she walked to a large shoulder bag of javelins nearby, retrieving one of them before she pressed a button on the pole, which made the weapon beep quietly. “Ears,” she advised, prompting the Rainbooms to cover their ears before she hurled the javelin at the shield, where its tip exploded on impact in a small blast. Rarity showed a small amount of strain from the blast, but Lady Jaye smiled. “That’s clear for frontal explosive protection.”

“Not bad. We’ll see about containing explosives later.” Beach Head nodded. “For now, let’s see how it handles gunfire.” With that in mind, he turned to the girls. “Small arms first; kit up.”

“Come again?” Twilight asked, hoping she’d misheard.

“You heard me.” Beach Head said firmly, pointing to a rack of guns on the back wall. “Pick a sidearm and step up.”

Quite understandably, the girls were all incredibly nervous – none of them had ever even seen a real gun before the Dreadnoks attacked, and now they were each being asked to pick one? They all just eyed the guns nervously… until Sunset finally stepped forward and grabbed a small black pistol, keeping her finger as far off the trigger as she could.

“.45. Nice choice.” Scarlett smiled, grabbing a magazine for the weapon and setting it at the range booth. “Step up; let’s see how you shoot.”

The other girls were more than a bit surprised by Sunset’s willingness to arm herself, but they knew she’d played shooter-type video games on her stream before… though Sunset knew full well as she loaded her pistol that this was no game – this was an actual gun with real live ammo; if she wasn’t careful with it, she could kill someone. She tried her hardest to distance herself from what she was doing as she leveled the pistol at the shield, even though her heart was drumming and her hands were shaking. She tensed hard and tensed on the trigger, the recoil of the pistol kicking hard to knock her back a bit. She let out a shaky breath to try and calm her heart down as she looked back at the shield, a very distinct scratch on one of the facets.

“This your first time shootin’?” Duke asked.

“Does it show?” Sunset asked, trying to sound cool… but presumably failing miserably as she could hear her heartbeat in her ears.

“Kinda does. But you’re good at it.” Scarlett noted. “If that were a real target, you’d have got him in the shoulder. Solid incapacitation.”

“How ya holdin’ up, Rarity?” Lady Jaye asked.

“Fine, Darling. I could do this all day.” Rarity smiled, though she was also more than a bit alarmed by her friend having to handle a gun for this training.

“Glad to hear it. ‘Cause Sunset’s still got eleven rounds in that thing.” Beach Head noted, making her gulp nervously. “And the rest of you need some range time too.”

“Easy, Beach Head. We can worry about real combat training after power evaluation.” Duke insisted.

“Whatever you say, boss.” Beach Head shrugged as he stepped forward and extended his hand to Sunset. “Gun?” Sunset didn’t hesitate to hand over her pistol to the sergeant. Once it was in his hand, Beach Head didn’t hesitate to take her place at the range and started firing at the shield, each bullet bouncing off easily.

Rarity appeared to be flinching a bit with every bullet, but it wasn’t heavily noticeable. He quickly set the pistol aside and grabbed up a rifle, firing small bursts of semi-automatic fire into the shield, making Rarity tense a bit – especially as he moved on to full-auto fire – but her shield stood firm. “Alright, your shield’s clear on small arms.” Beach Head noted as he holstered the rifle. “We’ll test heavier stuff later and get you all some range time.”

“For now, let’s see what Fluttershy’s capable of,” Duke instructed, leading the girls out with Scarlett and Beach Head. Fluttershy was a bit nervous about this – especially after what happened in the lab, she wasn’t sure she wanted to go through anything, even if it was based on her powers, but she changed her mind when she saw a strong-looking Native American man working with what looked like a medicine kit near the barracks with a powerful bald eagle perched on his shoulders. “Spirit. Got a minute?”

The man – Spirit by callsign, apparently – looked up from his work and smiled at Fluttershy. “I think I know what you want that minute for.” he smiled as he stood up, walking straight to Fluttershy. “The wild speaks to you, doesn’t it, young one?”

“Um… yes?” Fluttershy asked nervously.

“I’d be more than willing to help you listen closer.” Spirit smiled as he shook Fluttershy’s hand. “Staff Sergeant Spirit. This is my brother eagle Freedom.” Freedom tilted his head to look at Fluttershy, his eyes showing a strange kindness despite his intimidating profile.

Fluttershy reached forward nervously as she lightly ruffled the eagle’s feathers, which the bird leaned into affectionately. “I think we can leave her with them.” Duke smiled at Beach Head.

The sergeant nodded and looked at Spirit. “I’ll expect a performance report,” he said.

“Yes sir.” Spirit saluted as the rest of the group moved to a vehicle lot… where they saw a group of men working on a large green tank.

“Steeler!” Duke called, prompting one soldier to look up and lift the visor of his helmet. “Falcon givin’ your guys any trouble?”

“I think even a Green Beret knows better than to mess with a guy who drives a 55-ton tank,” Steeler smirked as he pointed at the tank.

“One can only hope.” Beach Head remarked, glancing over at Applejack and Twilight. “You two are up this time.”

Twilight and Applejack looked at each other in surprise at that. “You want us to pick up a tank?” Twilight asked.

“High as you can. Wanna see what your limits are.” Beach Head answered simply.

Applejack rolled her eyes as she stepped forward, tossing her hat over to Scarlett as she walked to the tank and activated her Geode. “Alright, let’s do this.” she shrugged as she crawled under the tank, moving to a low squat as she set the tank on her shoulders. With a deep firm breath, Applejack set her hands on the tank’s undercarriage and tensed as she strained to stand up.

The metal of the tank’s body groaned as Applejack gritted her teeth, straining with an angry groan as she forced herself to stand up, lifting the front end of the tank off the ground a few feet before she lightly tossed the tank into the air and tumbled clear, the vehicle crashing to the ground behind her. “Hey, easy. You scratch the paint; you patch it up.” Steeler advised.

“Settle, Lt; she looks fine,” Duke assured as he looked at the tank as Applejack sat down nearby.

“How ya doin’, cowgirl?” Scarlett smirked as she slapped the hat back on Applejack’s head.

“Tuckered out. Ain’t handled nothin’ quite that heavy before.” Applejack noted as Steeler handed her a canteen.

“Walk it off; you’re done for now.” Beach Head nodded as he turned to Twilight. “You’re up.”

Twilight couldn’t help but feel a bit nervous; she’d never lifted anything this heavy either and wasn’t sure she could handle it. “Here goes nothing, I guess,” she said nervously as she grasped her Geode. Her hands glowed with energy as her magical aura enveloped the tank, and she strained as she slowly raised her hands, the tank lifting slowly from the ground. It didn’t get anywhere near as high as when Applejack lifted it, but it was still quite impressive that Twilight was able to lift the entire tank as she set it down.

“Nice goin’,” Steeler smirked as he walked over, examining the tank. “Didn’t even rattle the ammo.”

Twilight just wiped the sweat from her brow. “Don’t think I’d want to do that again,” she said breathlessly.

“Well, that’s fair. We can handle military canine training later.” Beach Head noted.

“Just be careful; Mutt and Junkyard cut rough.” Steeler pointed out.

“They’re not the only ones.” The group looked and saw a slim guy in a bandana with a firm Brooklyn accent and a rather pungent smell to him.

“Oof… what on Earth is that?” Rarity remarked as she waved in front of her face, clearly trying not to offend.

“That… is Tunnel Rat,” Scarlett smirked. “Don’t worry; you get used to the smell. And don’t let it fool you either – he’s one of G.I. Joe’s best explosives guys.”

“Ah think Ah can make a pretty good guess which one of us he’s here for.” Applejack smiled as she looked over at Pinkie Pie.

“Good instincts, kid.” Tunnel Rat nodded, turning to Pinkie. “C’mon; I wanna see how good you can blow stuff up.”

“Rarity, go with him; time to give your shields a real explosives test.” Beach Head ordered.

“Very well then.” Rarity remarked, clearly finding the thought of hanging out with Tunnel Rat distasteful considering his smell but tried not to be too judgmental about it as she followed him, Pinkie Pie bouncing happily along behind them.

“Guess that just leaves me. Hope you’ve got something befitting my awesomeness.” Rainbow smirked.

“Oh, I think we have something good in mind for you,” Duke smirked.

“We definitely do.” Beach Head affirmed as he led the group onward… all while they heard dull explosions from the other side of the Pit, clearly Pinkie’s training going great.

Eventually, they reached a large running track which made Rainbow smirk. “Oh, this is gonna be too easy,” she said as she walked onto the track. “So what do you want me to do; just run a few laps and show how cool my power is?”

“Little more to it than that.” Beach Head noted, quickly letting out a quick whistle… which drew Roadblock and two other burly men out, all with large guns at the ready. “Ladies, Gung-Ho and Leatherneck; two top Marine Corps Joes.”

Sunset was nervous; General Hawk had warned the group about Gung-Ho not taking kindly to them being here, and from the look on his face, that was clearly confirmed as Beach Head walked over and accepted a mag from him. “Here’s what’s gonna happen, Rainbow; you’re gonna run five laps…” Beach Head loaded the mag into his gun. “And we’re gonna shoot at you with training bullets.”

That alarmed Rainbow a bit, especially as Gung-Ho cocked his rifle. “What? Ya think we’re gonna go easy on ya?” he asked.

Immediately, Rainbow – who was at least somewhat grateful that Roadblock was using a somewhat smaller gun than his 50-cal – activated her Geode and started running around the track as the four soldiers started firing, training bullets whizzing past her as she ran – jumping and weaving in the air to avoid them. “Don’t you think this is a little excessive?” Twilight asked as the others watched their friend’s rainbow-colored contrail racing around the track, dotted with holes from the bullets.

“Honestly? This is kinda par for the course when it comes to Beach Head.” Duke shrugged, glancing over at Sunset. “I think what we really have to worry about is Sunset’s evaluation.”

“Wh- Why?” Sunset asked nervously.

“Because I’m gonna be seeing what you can do.” Sunset looked and saw a blonde man with a silver headset and combat vest walk over with a few scanners. “This is the telepath you told me about, right Duke?”

“That’s her.” Duke nodded. “Sunset, this is Psyche-Out; ex-CIA and chief of Psy-Ops. He’ll be judging how good your powers are at gathering information.”

“How do we do that?” Sunset asked though she was already dreading the answer.

“C’mon, I’ll show you,” Psyche-Out ordered, leading Sunset away from the others… her eyes still glued to how Rainbow was still running laps while getting shot at.

It didn’t take long for Psyche-Out to lead Sunset to the stockade – clearly a much higher-security wing than where she and her friends were held – and let her stop near Law and Order where she looked through a one-way mirror of an interrogation room at a man in prison orange cuffed to the table. “Who’s this guy?” she asked.

“A Cobra Trooper. We captured him and a few others on an op we ran a while ago.” Law answered. “Our orders are that whenever we take prisoners, we extract whatever intel from them we can. But this guy isn’t feeling cooperative. That’s where you come in.”

Sunset was starting to understand what they were getting at; Psyche-Out wanted her to read this soldier’s mind. “What am I supposed to be looking for?”

“Breaker decrypted a Cobra transmission recently referring to something called Project Hurricane,” Psyche-Out answered. “We need to know what it is, where it is, and how to trash it.”

“All right. But…” Sunset noted, fairly nervous as she worried about being recognized.

“You don’t have to worry about him getting out. The Pit is secure, but just to be safe, we’re moving him to the Flagg as soon as you’re done with him.” Law assured.

“Still… I don’t think I want this guy to know who I am.” Sunset remarked.

“Well, lucky for you, Beach Head has a lot of spare masks.” Psyche-Out smiled and handed Sunset another green balaclava.

Sunset sniffed it and recoiled a bit. “Ugh.” The mask kinda stank but she knew it was better than nothing, so she bundled her fiery hair into it before pulling it down over her head, making sure to hide her geode under it as well. Only her eyes were visible, which made her look down at her arms. “Well, I doubt my eyes are too obvious. But what about this?” she asked, gesturing to her skin tone.

“If I didn’t know any better, I’d say you just tan really well.” Law shrugged.

“I do, actually, so I’m gonna take that compliment.” Sunset smiled as she walked to the interrogation room’s door. She cleared her throat, clearly trying to lower her voice a bit to disguise it before she stepped into the room.

The prisoner just smirked as he looked at her. “Huh. Didn’t realize Beach Head had a little sister,” he said, clearly mocking her.

“If you’re going to talk, at least make sure you mention Project Hurricane,” Sunset growled, trying her hardest to do a gravelly voice, but ended up leaning into her old bad girl tone from before the Fall Formal.

“Even if I did know what you’re talking about, what makes you think I’d tell you?” the prisoner asked.

“I only asked as a formality.” Sunset shrugged as she walked behind him, just to make sure he didn’t see her subtly touch the geode at her neck. “In all honesty, you don’t have to say a word.” With that in mind, she set a hand on his shoulder and her eyes glowed white as she peered into his mind. It only lasted a second, but she appeared shaken by what she’d seen so she quickly stepped out of the room as the prisoner watched after her, confused about what had just happened.

“Get anything?” Psyche-Out asked as Sunset pulled the balaclava off, letting her hair free and clearing her throat to resume her typical voice.

“Yeah, that his superiors don’t like to share,” Sunset remarked.

“Tell us something we don’t know,” Law smirked.

“Well, all this guy knows about Project Hurricane is that it’s supposed to be deployed a little over 30 kilometers into the atmosphere,” Sunset answered.

“Doesn’t exactly narrow it down; could be anything.’” Psyche-Out shrugged.

“Better than nothing,” Law remarked.

“I guess. Alright, get this bozo prepped for transfer.” Psyche-Out ordered, pointing back in at the prisoner.

“Yes sir.” Law saluted as Psyche-Out led Sunset back down to the Pit, where the rest of her friends had reassembled. Rarity and Rainbow both looked tired out, but Pinkie looked incredibly happy.

“Does she pass?” Duke asked.

“Flying colors.” Psyche-Out nodded.

Sunset just grinned. “What do I win?”

“Same as the rest. Official training.” Beach Head grinned under his mask, clearly already thinking up ways to make this training very memorable.