The Cine-magic Series: Godzilla

It was a large leap, not one Fluttershy wasn't familiar with, but also not something she was even considering, much less expecting, to happen on a perilous mission like this. Going from somepony that followed orders from her others friends to coming up with her own directions and taking charge in her own little mission with Rainbow Dash alongside her. Despite the encouraging speech Fluttershy had shared on the helicopter and right now, where she and Rainbow were currently heading to the supposed "Golden Gate Bridge" to help with the evacuation efforts, a reasonable sense of fear gripped her like a thorn bush. However, that speech wasn't for nothing, Fluttershy still had the empowering zeal and courage to not back down from this mission, even if she was still pretty afraid.

"Is that what they were referring to on the news?" Rainbow pointed to a giant, orange suspension bridge in the distance, standing high over the bay area. "They did say most of the people were stuck on a bridge."

"I think so," the paler pegasus replied.

"Weird. Nothing on it strikes me as being made out of gold."

"Me neither. But, I think we have something more to worry about."

The sky, which was once bright with a healthy blue, had now been changed to a smokey grey with a hazing mist to go along with it. It wasn't long after that when Fluttershy and Rainbow could feel tiny water droplets splashing against their fur.

"Seriously?" Rainbow said pejoratively "We have to deal with rain, now?"

Fluttershy wasn't a fan of getting soaked, herself. All the water weighing her down and her wet mane covering her eyes was irritating and those same things could be concurred for Rainbow, but, they were already in this far. Turning back now would be inane, even if Godzilla wasn't the one threatening everycreature's lives intentionally. Fluttershy wasn't ignorant of unintentional side effects of animal behaviors. She knew Godzilla posed a sizable threat with how close he was to a highly populated area.

"We'll...We'll push through it," Fluttershy defiantly puffed out her chest. "For the children."

Rainbow groaned. "Right. For the children."

The two mares pressed on, the rain getting heavier and heavier by the second. The fog was also beginning to hinder their sight. It partially covered the massive bridge, making it more difficult to pinpoint an exact position.

Meanwhile, on the Golden Gate Bridge, things weren't looking so bright. Fighter jets soared overhead the overcrowded bridge, no one on the ground were aware of the oncoming chaos that was to arrive. The bridge was jammed with school buses, police cars, and civilian vehicles, all of which grid-locked not knowing where to go from their current fixed position. The civilians were impatiently yelling to get a move-on. Numerous police officers and soldiers scrambled to direct the civilians to get the traffic going again, but, with the rainfall getting denser, this was proving to be difficult.

"Let's get these buses through," one soldier shouted. "Let's go!"

One cop approached a particular school bus and raised his hand in an attention-grabbing gesture.

"We're not gonna stop the buses here."

His explanation was indiscernible to the bus driver. With all the kids laughing and yelling, it was impossible to hear anything.

"What?" the older man held a hand up to his right ear, conveying to the officer that he couldn't hear him.

The officer remedied this by pointing to the farther lanes, but this explained little to the bus driver.

"I can't hear you," he turned toward the rambunctious children. "Oh, kids, please be quiet."

Of course, with kids being kids, the man's pleas fell on uncaring ears. The children continued talking loudly and laughing. One such kid, however, was quiet and conserved. Sam sat near the back of the bus. He was too lonely to hold conversation with any of the other kids on board the bus. He missed his dad, he wanted his mom back, he wanted to see those cartoon ponies, who bravely set out with his dad to find his grandfather. Being by his lonesome, Sam felt isolated in a place he wasn't accustomed to.

The kids' unrestrained playfulness was halted by the sound of a police siren echoing down the bridge. The children clambered to one side of the bus where a line of combat tanks rolled by on the unoccupied lanes. The children watched in awe as the massive machines treaded by with soldiers atop, wielding machine guns. One of the tanks bulldozed over the steel barrier between the bridge’s road and sidewalk, careful as to not nail any the soldiers positioned at the sidewalk's edge.

"Move into position till you have a clean line of sight!" a soldier barked.

The tanks aimed their cannons out to the bay area. Soldiers raced to the bridge's north side, guns armed. From their vantage point, they could see the waters were sprinkled with battleships, waiting for Godzilla's arrival. By this point, Fluttershy and Rainbow had reached the Golden Gate Bridge.

"Nothing to fear, fine citizens," Rainbow arrogantly assure. "Everything is okay with us here."

Soldiers and police officers alike stared at the two pegasi with surprised and disapproving eyes.

"What the hell are you doing here?" one of the officers asked.

"Uh, saving the evacuees. Seems like you're having a hard time getting these people off the bridge."

"That's not any of your concern," a soldier said. "Return to where you came from!"

"But, we want to help," Fluttershy pleaded.

The flippant Wonderbolt let a huff and turned to her friend. "This is the thanks we get?"

"We didn't do this to recieve praise, Rainbow."

"I know that, but still. You'd think they would be a bit more appreciative."

"Leave the evacuation to us," the officer from earlier said. "We can't risk endangering innocent lives."

Rainbow Dash zipped down and landed right now front of the police officer, clearly offended by what she thought he was bespeaking.

"What, you think we'll mess things up and hurt people? Is that what I'm hearing? You know, I can be reckless sometimes, but I know better than to be a showoff, especially when it comes to other creatures' well-being."

"You're taking what I said the wrong way," the officer rubbed his forehead in annoyance.

The sky blue pegasus cocked an eyebrowed, not entirely believing the cop's statement.

"I meant, your lives. Not just their lives," he pointed to all the backed up traffic. "We don't allowed civilians putting themselves in harm's way for the sake of others."

"Well, we're not just ordinary citizens," Rainbow said matter-of-factly. "Saving people is part of the job, or it's at least a duty."

Fluttershy had by now landed on the rain-slick roads and she was quickly discovering a problem. What were she and Rainbow to do with all these strange carts on the road. How in the world were they going to push all of them off the bridge in time. She first tried pushing one on her own, but, naturally, the thing didn't move an inch. Realizing she would be wasting her energy on this approach, Fluttershy called out to Rainbow, hoping she would have an idea

"Uhm, Rainbow."

The brash mare was still butting heads with the police officer.

"Besides, helping these people will be easy."

"Oh, yeah? How do you figure," the officer exigently asked.

"You got barriers on the road," Rainbow pointed to the wooden police barricade. "What kind of rescue team blocks an escape route."

"That's not..."

Before the cop could get another word in, Rainbow reared up on her front legs. In one swift motion, she bucked the wooden barricade hard, causing it to clattered to the wet pavement.

"There. Problem solved."

The mare gave an accomplished smiled. Rainbow looked to the officer, expecting some kind of applause or thanks, but the man just glared at her.

"Hmph. Critic. Guessed I'll just have to congratulate myself," Rainbow starting patting her own back. "Good job, Rainbow Dash. What would we do without-"

Her self-centered commending was interrupting by a bestial groan in the distance. Everyone froze like statues, and the charged tension in the air dissipated. The kids in the bus went silent and the bus driver turned to face where the groan came from. He rubbed the condensation off the window to get a better look.

"Uhh, was that who I think that was?" Rainbow asked apprehensively,

"We need to get these people out of here," Fluttershy vainly tried pushing a car to get it going.

"Listen, you two, get out of here," the police officer said. "Let us handle this."

"No way!" the more outspoken pegasus exclaimed. "We're going to help evacuate these humans whether you like it or not."

Fluttershy quickly got between Rainbow and the officer.

"What my friend is trying to say is that we didn't come here just to be turned away just because we're considered civilians. We came to help. To help these innocent people who are in oncoming danger."

The police officer was about to speak, but Fluttershy wasn't done.

"We may not be trained professionals like you, but nopony needs to be certified to rescue anypony else when they're in danger."

A contemplating silence settled amongst the three. During which, the children on board the bus stared out into the bay. Sam could see the dozens of boats sitting in the water, but nothing that screamed animalistic. That was until something smacked against the window, startling the children. It was just a seagull, but it wasn't the only one. Hundreds of seagulls and pelicans frantically flew off south, a sign of something coming from the north. Such a phenomenon broke the silence. Fluttershy, Rainbow, and the police officer stared off into the misty distance.

"And exactly how do you plan on protecting yourself when Godzilla arrives?" the officer questioned.

"We got helmets," Rainbow bonked a hoof against hers.

Out in the bay, the battleships were on high alert. Naval officers and soldiers watched the feathery spectacle, until something caught one of the soldier's eye.

"Portside! Two hundred meters!" he pointed northward.

The farthest out ship, and by proxy the people aboard, spotted black spikes protruding from the water. They already knew what it was. What alarmed them was that it was not appearing to be stopping.

"Brace!" one of the naval officers yelled.

The soldiers on deck gripped the guard wires as the monstrous hump got closer. Suddenly, it stopped, the waves it created surged along, rocking the ship. The soldiers watched with bated breaths, wondering what Godzilla was planning on doing next.

"Hold your fire. Hold your fire," the intercom sounded.

No one moved and no one said a word. The only sound that could be hear was the soft pitter-patter of the rain. Then, the hump rose, quickly towering over the ships.

"Holy shit" one soldier yelped.

The higher the hump rose, the thinning it got, until it ended at a tip. That's when it all became apparent. This was Godzilla's tail, and the main body was behind them. The soldiers all quickly turned to see Godzilla, proper, rise up from the ocean, casting aside any battleships that were unfortunate enough to be in his wake.

"Oh, shit!"

Yelling and profanity began storming up as soldiers on the unluckiest ships were pretty much face-to-face with the king of the monsters.

"Hold on!"

"Watch on!"

"Fire! Fire! Fire!"

The cannons and turrets were aimed straight at the kaiju and began firing. Some hit their mark, but seemed to do little as Godzilla showed no sign of flinching. But, because the ships were still sliding off the monster's back, the cannon's trajectory was not consistent, and some of the shells missed their mark and were now heading toward the bridge.

"Incoming!" Rainbow screamed.

The soldiers, cops, and the two ponies dropped to the pavement.

Inside the bus, the children began panicking.

"Look out!" Laura yelled as children screamed and ducked for cover. "Get down! Get down in your seats!"

The shells zoomed past them all, some within inches of striking the bridge. Realizing the mortal danger they were all in, the bus driver threw caution to the wind and punched the gas. He swerved off the jammed lanes. Cops and soldiers ran clear out of the bus’s path, while the driver furiously honked the horn.

"Get out of the way! Get out of the way!"

While that was happening, Rainbow, Fluttershy, and the officer quickly got back up from near brush with death.

"What the heck are those guys doing?" Rainbow incredulously looked off to the battleships.

"Godzilla has arrived, but they shouldn't be shooting!" the officer exclaimed.

"Yeah, that's been made abundantly clear."

"What do we do now?" Fluttershy asked urgently.

"Getting clear for one thing!" the officer ran clear just as the bus zoomed by, barely missing Fluttershy and Rainbow.

"WAAH!" both mares screeched.

the small rig zoomed across the bridge, pushing aside barricades and parked cop cars. The driver was hellbent on getting himself and all these kids safe. All of a sudden, more shells rocketed past. One struck the bridge's suspension cable. The blast from the shell severed the cable and it slammed onto the road, blocking the buses path. The driver slammed on the brakes and the vehicles came to a screeching halt. But, now they were trapped.

"Move out! Move, move, move!" a solider shouted.

dozens of army men and woman hurried to the northside walkway of the Golden Gate.

"Striker! There's civilians on the bridge," another soldier yelled into a radio. "Hold your fire!"

By the time he gave the order, several more rounds were shot from several of the ships. Fluttershy and Rainbow saw the incoming shells heading straight for the bridge.

"We need to get out of here!" Fluttershy, in a moment of panic, tugged on Rainbow's shoulders to get her to follow.

"We can't leave these people behind," Rainbow resisted.

"But, the missiles!"

Rainbow wrapped a hoof behind Fluttershy's neck and pulled her down. The two braced for the inevitable onslaught and so did the soldiers. In the blink of an eye, a gigantic, reptilian body rose just in front of the bridge. It shielded the bridge from the exploding shells. The two mares opened their eyes and were met with Godzilla towering above them.

The children on the buses stared in horror. The bus looked on helplessly. The cable was still blocking their path.

"Open fire!"

The order was given and the soldiers and tanks began bombarding Godzilla with rounds of bullet and shells. Godzilla let out a mighty roar and grabbed the other, intact suspension cable. Once again, the children began screaming and crying in terror. Amongst the chaos, the bus driver noticed one of the tanks backing up. It pushed back the shredded cable wire, creating a clear path. He slammed on the gas and the bus surged forward.

"Move! Move!" the driver yelled.

Soldiers backed out of the path, but kept a sharp eye on the kaiju. Godzilla growled and grunted, not taking to being shot at too kindly. He pulled on the suspension cable angrily. All the while the children screamed and cried like it was some kind of nightmare, and they all wanted to wake up.

"We need to do something," Rainbow said, not wanting to stand by and watching everything unfold. "We have to get him away from this bridge."

"But, that means getting his attention," Fluttershy stated.

The two mare looked to each other. They both knew what they had to do despite the danger they would be putting themselves in. Fluttershy and Rainbow nodded to each other and took off. They flew as quickly as they could to other side of the kaiju's side, staying safe from the bullets. The pair quickly found themselves truly face-to-face with the beast.

As the bus raced down the road, Sam caught sight of Fluttershy and Rainbow staring down Godzilla. His eyes widened in shock and awe.

"Fluttershy? Rainbow Dash?" he said quietly, his voice not even audible amongst the panicking children.

Seeing them brought him a sense of comfort. They were protecting us. They were protecting him, and that brought a smile to his face.

”Go get him, ponies.”

Back with the two pegasi, Rainbow flew right up to Godzilla's face, making sure he could see her.

"Hey, Godzilla, how about you try to chase this down," she rubbed her bright, blue flanks tauntingly.

Godzilla growled at her, almost as if he was taking the challenge.

"That's only going to make him more mad!" Fluttershy flew even closer.

upon seeing the other pegasus Godzilla's beady eyes darted over to her, his movement stopping completely.

Rainbow could only hover back a bit and watch as Fluttershy worked her magic.

"Yeah! Use "The Stare" on him!"

Fluttershy cleared her throat.

"Uhm, h-hello, Mr. Godzilla. I...I was wondering if maybe...y-you could move away... from... the bridge since there's a lot of people still on it," her voice pitched higher the more she spoke, turning into more of a whispering squeak. "If that's all right with you."

The monstours kaiju glared at the caring pegasus. Depsite, his glowering nature, Godzilla seemed to be thinking the suggestion over. Fluttershy could see in his eyes that he was actually listening. But, then something shifted in his demeanor. Godzilla, felt something and it was getting stronger with every second. He knew the feeling well and it brought him back to his hunting focus.

In one swift motion, Godzilla let out a predatory roared and charged into the Golden Gate Bridge. The bridge easily tore apart. much to the horror of Rainbow and Fluttershy. The wires ripped away from the foundation and the road crumbled to pieces, taking several cars with it. To make matters worse, Godzilla was deviating away from them and heading for San Francisco Bay.

"No! Wait, come ba-AAH!"

Fluttershy was about chase after him when she felt something tear into her back left leg. A searing pain coursed up her leg. The pegasus let out a scream of pain, tears already running down her face. She was in so much pain she almost forgot to keep her wings flapping.

"FLUTTERSHY!" Rainbow was quickly by her side. "Fluttershy, what happened?"

"I...I don't know," the teary pegasus sobbed. "Something hit my leg."

Rainbow quickly searched from any form of injury, which didn't take long. She found a small hole bleeding profusely just above her hoof. Fluttershy had accidentally been shot.

"Oh, merciful Celestia," Rainbow gulped.

She felt sick. Rainbow had never seen a bullet wound before. The flesh had been punctured through like a giant needle. Dark, crimson blood poured out in feeble spurts, staining Fluttershy's yellow coat and dripping down her leg into the ocean below.

While Rainbow and Fluttershy and we're still comprehending what just happened.

"We have to get you back to Oakland."

"B-But, what about..." Fluttershy staggered in the air, forcing Rainbow to hold her by wrapping her hooves around her underbelly.

"You're injured, Fluttershy, badly! We'll worry about Godzilla later."

"But..."

"No, buts! Just because you finally have the courage to take on this mission doesn't you can overlook a wound this serious. We're going back."

Fluttershy wanted to protest, she wanted to help Godzilla. But, what's done is done and Rainbow was not going to allow her friends to put herself in danger any further. Fluttershy was still in her thoughts when she felt something dripping down to her face. It couldn't be the rain, it was too warm. They were tears, but not her tears. Then she heard a quiet sniffling from above coming from Rainbow.

"R-Rainbow?"

"It should've been me, not you, Fluttershy," the pegasus wept. "I should've taken that hit."

Fluttershy now felt horrible. Here she was; injured and barely keeping herself flying through the pain. And here Rainbow was practically blaming herself for it.

"Rainbow, it was an accident."

"It still should've been me!"

The anguished yelled silenced both of them.

"I'm sorry," Rainbow apologized through sniffles.

"I'm sorry, too," Fluttershy said guiltily.

Rainbow carried Fluttershy back toward Oakland where, hopefully, she'll get the treatment she needs.

By this time the bus had made it across the other side of the smashed Golden Gate Bridge along with dozens of other civilians. Only thing standing in their way was a wooden barricade, which the bus pushed aside with much effort. Meanwhile, Godzilla was still on his wary prowl. On this side of the bridge, several army transport boats were sailing across the bay. One of which was carrying the last nuclear warhead.

Fighter jets zoomed overhead to keep a clear radar view on the monstrous behemoth, who was now getting dangerously close to the San Francisco coastline. This prompted immediate action from the transport boats.

"All right, get in there!" a soldier aboard the warhead-hauling boat ordered.

"Prepare to arm the device!" another soldier said.

Rain and waves pelted the boat, soaking every soldier head-to-toe. Most stayed back to allow a clear operation in activating the warhead.

"Ready! You got it?"

"I'm all set."

One removed the plate that covered the countdown mechanism. The first-in-commanded opened the seal, completely exposing the mechanism.

"Arming keys!" the first-in-commanded said.

One key was handed to two individual soldiers. Both the first-in-command and another soldier inserted the keys into the mechanism before turning to face each other.

"Three! Two! One!" the soldier shouted and both turned the keys.

A loud click sounded from the mechanism followed by the timeout gears beginning to spin. The displayed time began to count down. Total countdown time: 1 hour, 30 minutes. However, just as the countdown started, a bestial grunt echoed in the distance followed by an electric blast. A shockwave rapidly traveled across the area. Then, there was silence. The boat operator fiddled with the controls to try and get the boat running again.

"What the hell was that?" one of the soldiers asked.

"EMP," another answered.

"Engine's stopped! We lost power!" the boat driver exclaimed.

All throughout San Francisco, the EMP ravaged every city block, technologically speaking. Buildings went dark and vehicles went dead. The entire city went dead silent without any form of electricity.

Elle was in the middle of assisting a paramedic with an injured patient when the ambulance they were working in stopped working. She and the male paramedic glanced at each other with confusion and concern. Luckily, the patient only needed a blood transfusion, which didn't require electricity. However, Elle felt compelled to step out of the ambulance and into the rainy outside.

Everything electric had gone out, leaving the city in complete silence. As Elle looked to the cloud-filled sky, she saw a silhouette forming within the static gray. The closer it got, the more the silhouette formed into a rational shape. A soldier was riding a parachute down to the ground. Elle's silent study of the peculiar sight was then interrupted when she heard something crash behind her. The young nurse turn to see that a fighter jet had just crashed into a building. Flaming debris scattered everyone, sending everyone into a screaming panic. Elle watched, jaw-dropped, as a wall of fire pillared up from the sea of broken steel, glass, and concrete.

Back on the downed boat. The soldiers find themselves in the epicenter of an identical predicament. Fighter jets dropped from the sky and splashed into the water all around them. The could watch and exclaim obscenities as the military aircraft dropped like flies. One jet landed just feet away from their boat, kicking up a huge wave of water. The soldiers hit the deck as they were showered in saltwater.

"You all right?" one soldier asked.

"Yeah," the other replied.

The others checked to make sure their comrades were unharmed. As they got to their feet, some of the soldiers were able to catch a final glance of the jet as it disappeared below the water. With all that they had just witnessed, it was to be expected. After all, they all had been briefed about the EMP's capabilities. However, something that did come to mind was that if the EMP did occur, it also meant that... one of the MUTOs was nearby. That thought would all be confirmed when they heard a screech coming from above them. And, because of that, there was an answer to that: Retaliation.

"Fire!"

"Incoming!"

The group soldiers unloaded every round they could from their rifles and mounted guns. Bullets pelted the diving MUTO, but, like it was already been made apparent, it did next to nothing. The male MUTO dived right on top of the boat, taking it and vanishing beneath the waves. Civilians around the bay got out of their cars upon watching the bat-like monster dive into the water. For a few seconds, they could only talk amongst themselves on what had just happened.

Suddenly, the MUTO resurfaced right up against the bay where the water met with the land. Peoples screamed and ran for their lives as it climbed onto the crowded street, carrying the boat in it's mouth. The MUTO dropped the boat and held it down with a forearm. It then grasp the nuclear warhead in it's mouth and pulled it free from it's secured clamps. All the while, civilians fled from the nightmarish scene. The male MUTO transferred the missile to it's smaller set of legs, keeping it safe and secure. It let out a roaring growl and took to the air, deeper into the city.

It glided across the tops of buildings, but it didn't travel for long or very far. The MUTO landed firmly on a building rooftop in the Chinatown section of San Francisco. In front of it was a massive cloud of dust. It let out a series of squawks, as if to make it’s presence known. A lower series of squawks sounded from within the dust cloud. Taking the answer, the male MUTO flew down closer, just in front of the dust cloud. He moved the nuclear warhead back to it's mouth. The much larger female MUTO stepped up to him from within the dust. The male MUTO let out a passionate wail, it's way of saying "Hello" to his mate. The female nuzzled him affectionately followed by both bumping nostrils together; a more private form of communication. Clicks and grunts resonated from both of them. The female MUTO took the warhead from the her mate's mouth and held it close to her egg pouch.

Satisfied, the male MUTO climbed onto a building and took off into the air to search for more food. Meanwhile, the female MUTO began striking the ground with her spiked forelegs. The entire city shook and paper lantern string lights swung wildly from the violently digging. She was building a nest for her future generation of MUTOs. Things were truly about to get calamitous.

Back at the Tactical Operations Command, Ford, the Mane 6, and Spike were tailing behind a rescue manager. Ford was desperate to know the whereabouts of his wife and son, while the Mane 7 were trying to know where Rainbow and Fluttershy went.

"Sam Brody was checked into the Oakland Coliseum shelter an hour ago," the manager explained as he wrote things down on a clipboard. "He is safe. But, I have no record of Elle Brody. Never made it out of the city."

"What about Rainbow and Fluttershy?" Twilight asked, her voice cracking from fear of her friends' safety.

"Nothing about them either."

"Well, they couldn't have just disappeared!" Rarity exclaimed pejoratively. "Where in this world could they have even gone?"

"From what a few soldiers who saw them, they were heading to San Francisco Bay."

"Why there? Isn't that were Godzilla and MUTOs are going to be intercepting?" Spike asked warily.

"Knowin' Dash, she probably went there it try to fight them MUTOs," Applejack concluded.

"But, why would Fluttershy go?" Twilight questioned. "In fact, why leave us at all without telling us?"

"Check again. Please." Ford pleaded. "I told Elle to wait for me, and I didn't make it."

The rescue manager turned to them.

"I'm sorry. But, they are trying to get everyone downtown into subway shelters," he then walked away, following another rescue worker. "I'm sure your wife and friends are fine."

"I'm sorry, but your assurance isn't helping much!" Rarity mocked angrily.

"Oh, Dashie. Fluttershy," Pinkie said weakly.

"Don't worry, Pinkie. We'll find them. Them and Elle."

"And then we can ask Rainbow and Flutters where they heck they went," Applejack added with a hint of frustration.

It was bad enough they were injured, but now two of their friends had separated from them without a trace. Whilst Applejack was upset at the situation, Twilight was slowly having "Twilight-patented" breakdown.

"It's okay. It's all fine. It's like it's a perilous situation or anything."

She held her front hooves against the side of her head. The pressure was starting to get to the young alicorn.

"Twilight?"

She felt Spike's hand on her side. She look over to him, a worried look on his face. Twilight let out a sigh.

"Why did this have to happen. What were they thinking just leaving like that."

"I get it, Twilight," Pinkie came right to her purple friend's side. "It really stinks not knowing the answers to these kind of things."

"I really wish there was something I can do to help," Ford said.

"It's all right, Sugarcube," Applejack said. "You carin' about their safety as all that matters ta us. And we'll make sure ta find Elle, too."

The lieutenant nodded graciously.

"Oh, if only there was somepony, or someone, that can help us find Rainbow and Fluttershy," Rarity lameneted.

Amidst the indistinct chatter a man's voice cut through the rest of them.

"Lieutenant Brody!"

Ford was the first to hear it, but as the call got louder, the ponies and dragon picked up on it, too.

"Is...Is that your name they're calling out?" Rarity strained her ears to get as clear as a sound as possible.

"I'm looking for Lieutenant Brody and a couple of ponies with him."

"That's definitely us," Spike said.

The gang turned back around. A soldier stood not far from them.

"Are you Brody?" he asked.

"Yes," Ford called back.

"You and your friends need to come with me."

"And why may that be?" Rarity asked skeptically.

"We need you for our mission of retrieving the nuclear warhead."

"The warhead? What happened to it?" Twilight asked.

"That will be explained soon, but for now, Captain Hampton wants you all,"

Pinkie scooched right next to Twilight and hovered her face right in front of her ear. "That's the guy who was captain of the ship we were on."

The violet alicorn turned to her friend in confusion. "How do you know that?"

"I saw his picture on the wall."

"Plus, we have your two rogue friends," the soldier added.

To that, Twilight, Applejack, Rarity, Pinkie, and, Spike all gasped in shock.

"You mean... you have Rainbow and Fluttershy!?" Rarity asked hopefully.

"Yes. They are currently waiting in the briefing room."

The soldier pointing over to the building that Fluttershy and Rainbow were briefly in before their rescue travel to the Golden Gate Bridge.

"Hoh, my Celestia," Twilight nearly collapsed in sheer shock and relief.

Here she was worrying to her wit's end about Fluttershy and Rainbow's safety, and hearing that they were okay brought an insurmountable wave of calming relief that brought here to the point of tears. Her other friends were just as emotional as the princess.

"Dashie! Flutters!" Pinkie took off like a rocket to where the soldier was pointing.

"Wait up, Pinkie!"

The rest of the Mane 6 and Spike chased after the exhilarated earth pony with Ford and soldier following behind. It was a absolute miracle that their two pegasus friends were found safe and sound. Hopefully, now they would get some answers, both from Rainbow and Fluttershy, and about the supposed mission they were needed for. Considering it was a mission concerning the army, the Mane 7 could only concluded it meant something serious and dangerous.

The group were led into the headquarters, the first thing that caught their eyes was the Captain Hampton, Admiral Stenz, and six other soldiers standing around a planning table with Dr. Serizawa and Dr. Graham discussing something together nearby. The other thing that was there outwardly caught their attentions.

"Girls!" the voices of Rainbow and Fluttershy exclaimed.

"Fluttershy! Rainbow Dash!" Pinkie was the first to practically scream their names before tackling them in a hug. "I-I-It's been sooooo long since we've seen you. W-We thought you were dead!"

"We weren't gone that long," Rainbow heaved as she and her pegasus friend were crushed in the teary-eyed party pony's embrace. The rest of the Mane 6 and Spike joined in.

"But, she's right, you two," Twilight said, unable to keep her own tears from falling. "You girls just left us without warning. We thought something bad happened to you."

"W-Well..." Fluttershy was about to explain, but she was interrupted by a sharp gasp from Rarity.

"...Darling... your leg."

The well-spoken fashionista pointed to Fluttershy's back left leg, which was bandaged up.

"Yeah... I was going to explain," she said sorrowfully.

"Well, start explainin', ya two," Applejack demanded somewhat angrily.

The two mares looked turned to each other with rather guilty expressions.

"When we went into this building earlier, we saw on the news that a lot of the civilians were stuck on that big, orange bridge."

"You mean that bridges that's now destroyed?" Spike asked. "Which was also on the news."

"Yeah, that one," Rainbow swiftly answered. "And, we kind of thought to ourselves that we should try and help those people escape before the monsters came."

"But, that plan kinda fell apart," Fluttershy dipped her head low.

"And by that point, Godzilla had arrived and so those giant boats started shooting at him, which all those people in danger."

"We tried persuading him to leave the bridge alone, but he just... charged through it." By this point, Fluttershy was beginning to tear up. "I-I don't know why. W-We tried going after him, but then I got... shot."

She looked down to her bandaged leg.

"And that's when we realized that we should return before we got more hurt." Rainbow concluded.

The ponies and dragon were silent. The soldiers standing nearby remained respectfully silent.

"Wow," Ford said quietly.

"But, why not tell us before you left?" Twilight question, frustration dripping in her tone.

Fluttershy blushed in embarrassment.

"Well, that's probably because..."

"We were in the moment. Okay?" Rainbow suddenly interrupted. "We were just really focused on the bridge and the civilians. Coming to you guys just didn't cross our minds."

Applejack put a hoof to her the bridge of her nose in and let out a embittered sigh.

"I would've expected such crass actions from Rainbow, but you, Fluttershy? Ah thought ya smarter than that."

"Well, it's just that..."

"And furthermore, what were you two thinking? throwing yourselves into such unnecessary danger like that," Rarity added, sharing the farm mare's perturbed anger.

"Oh, come on, have you girls forgotten who we are?" Rainbow asked in defense. "We're the Elements of Harmony."

"That doesn't mean throwing ourselves into the lion's den whenever it presents itself," Twilight countered. "And now look, Fluttershy's been hurt."

"It... wasn't that bad," Rainbow was beginning to lose her confidence.

That was something she really couldn't argue with. Watching Fluttershy get hurt like that was something the brazen pegasus never wanted to see again if she could help it. Even Rainbow knew what she said not even a second ago was in no way a convincing argument.

"A bullet wound is no joke," Admiral Stenz said.

"See what I mean?" Twilight glared at Rainbow. "Seriously, I feel like I need to ask this again. What were you thinking?"

"That was pretty reckless, Dashie. Even for you," Pinkie said, sounding uncharacteristically serious.

"What? This wasn’t my idea!" Rainbow's exclaimed defensively.

“Rainbow, yer as reckless as an be,” Applejack said angrily.

Her friend weren’t listening. They fully believed it was all Rainbow’s decisions that led to this. As much as the cyan-blue pegasus wanted to argue, she found her guilty side get the better of her.

"It's my fault."

Twilight, Pinkie, Rarity, Applejack, and Spike turned to Fluttershy, who wore a very guilty expression.

"I know you're guilty, darling," Rarity said softly. "But, you mustn't take responsibility for..."

"No, it is my fault!" Fluttershy raised her voice. "It was my idea to go to the bridge to help those trapped people. It's not Rainbow's fault, like you think it is."

There was a stunned silence within the group of ponies and dragon.

“Y-Your idea,” Rarity said, mouth agape.

"Never that I'd see the day," Spike said.

"Spike," Twilight growled reprimandedly.

"Ah,.. Fluttershy," Applejack was the first to speak up. "Ah never would've thought you would do something like that on ya on accord. Like ah said, ah would've expected such a choice from Rainbow."

"Yes, I don't think before I act. You don't need to keep hammering it home," Rainbow said in annoyance.

The carefree caretaker let out a regretful sigh.

"I was the one who put my hoof down on the way here, telling you all that we can still make a difference. I was proud of myself for standing up like that. I guess I let that pride and bravery get to me and I made a very stupid decision."

She took off her temporary military helmet and began to cry.

"And all I have to show for it is a wet coat and a wounded leg. I went to far, put myself and Rainbow in danger, and abandoned you guys. I'm so... so sorry. I'm a horrible friend."

Fluttershy slid onto her rump as she cried. Hot globs of tears rolled down her cheeks, staining her, already, we coat. She felt worse than horrible. She let her friends down in so many ways and foolishly put herself in danger, all because she wanted to show she was brave. How could she be so selfish and arrogant. Fluttershy her friends to just start berating her for her actions. What she didn't expect, however, was a pair of hooves to wrap around her in a warm embrace. She opened her bloodshot eyes to see Twilight hugging her.

"You're not a horrible friend, Fluttershy. You just made a poor decision."

"To be honest, we all make bad decisions all the time," Rarity said. "Of course, known of them put us in any danger, but that's besides the point."

"We understand you wanted to be brave, Fluttershy. But, being brave doesn't mean putting yourself in danger at every turn. Sometimes it's about doing the smart thing."

"I know what it's like making bad decisions," Spike said.

"We all do," Pinkie added. "But, I learned it doesn't matter that you made a mistake. What matters is that you learn from it. I mean, imagine if I didn't learn anything when you guys held a surprise party for me. I would've went CRAZY!"

“And we’re sorry for blaming you fer this, Rainbow,” Applejack apologized sorrowfully. “That wasn’t very smart of us, either.”

“Yeah,” Twilight nodded. “We were all upset, but that’s not an excuse.”

"It’s okay girls. To be honest I'm not entirely blameless, anyway," Rainbow said. "I should've known better than what we were doing was exceedingly dangerous. I know I may seem like I thoughtlessly put myself in danger for others' safety, and your right, I do. I should really learn to actually think before acting."

"Now that's smart and brave," Applejack said warmly.

The Mane 6 and Spike formed a tight embrace around the shyest friend. It brought a sense of warmth and closure to the pegasus. She better about herself, knowing her friends didn't hold her past actions against her. Fluttershy felt whole again.

"We all love a good reunion, but we need to focus to more important things right now!" a soldier said loudly. "Time is of the essence!"

"Oh, right! The mission," Twilight's eyes widened and quickly dispersed from the group hug. "What did you need us for, Captain."

The Mane 6 and Spike surrounded themselves the table with the other soliders.

"Okay, listen up," Captain Hampton said. "The male delivered the warhead to the center of downtown."

"Wait, wait, wait," Rainbow interrupted. "Are you saying that..."

"The male MUTO intercepted the boat with the warhead right after it's timer was primed," Admiral Stenz explained. "We need to retrieve it before it detonates."

"That puts 100,000 civilians in the blast radius," Hampton continued. "And we can't stop it remotely.

Everypony and dragon's mouths hung agape.

"Oh, no," Fluttershy squeaked.

"First the MUTOs, now we have to worry about an explosion, too?" Rainbow grumbled. "Wonderful."

"Don't forget Godzilla," Pinkie added.

"Oh, trust me, I didn't."

"So, that's the mission?" Spike asked. "To get to bomb back before it explodes."

"Yes," one of the soldiers replied. "An analog timer has been installed. The MUTOs are frying electronics within a five-mile bubble. Means approaching from ground is not an option."

"So, what is the plan then?" Rarity asked, growing more worried. "Even with me and Twilight combined, I don't think we'd be able to teleport us all to where the bomb is located."

"That's why we'll be conducting a HALO insertion. Jumping altitude well be 30,000 feet."

"We're bein' dropped? From the sky?" Applejack asked in confusion.

"Correct," Hampton said.

"Oh, no. I have had bad experiences with high altitudes!" Rarity stomped her hoof in refusal. "I'm not freefalling to my death!"

"Parachutes will be provided for all of us," The soldier said in growing annoyance. "We just skate to the top and drop. Here. And here."

A tapped a plastic dome over a map.

"If you don't hit a skyscraper on the way, you meet at rally point Charlie."

"Oooh, who's Charlie?" Pinkie asked excitedly. "Is he gonna help us?"

"It's alphabetic co-... why do we need these ponies on this mission?"

"That's what I'm wondering," Twilight muttered under her breath.

"We're stretched thin as is," Admiral Stenz said sharply. "You guys, along with the ponies and lizard..."

"I'm not a lizard!"

"Are the only ones that are available."

The admiral turned to the Mane 6 and Spike. “They've been temporarily certified for this mission.”

"We'll help in any way we can, sir," Applejack tipped her hat.

"Admiral," Stenz corrected. "You were saying, Captain.

The soldier sighed. "Rally point Charlie. Right here. Good?"

He pointed to the glass dome again looked amongst the other soldiers.

"Doctor, any guesses where to look?" another soldier asked.

"Underground," Serizawa replied. "If the MUTOs have spawned... they'll be building a nest."

"Oh, poo," Rarity whined. "This just keeps getting worse and worse."

Stenz turned to the soldier. "Captain, when you find the warhead, how long to disarm it?"

"Sir, without seeing the analog mod, I couldn't even guess," the soldier shook his head.

"Sixty seconds if I can access it," Ford said, inching between a solider and Captain Hampton. "I retrofitted that device myself."

"Lieutenant Brody is our only EOD tech to survive the train attack," Hampton said.

"Well, it sounds like we could use you," the directive soldier said.

"Yeah, he made all the schematics seem elementary," Twilight complimented.

"With all due respect, if that doesn't work, then what's Plan B?" a different soldier asked.

"Ah, come on, Ford's got this easily," Rainbow assured confidently.

"I might not," the tech lieutenant admitted. "It's better to have some kind of backup plan in case the bomb doesn't cooperate."

"The waterfront is located one klick downhill," the first solider elucidated. "Get the bomb to the pier, onto a boat and as far away from the city as possible before it detonates."

"Sounds easy," Pinkie said cheerfully.

"We are, quite literally, traveling into the belly of the beast. This will be anything but easy."

"With the MUTOs and Godzilla roaming around," Rarity said, visibly growing pale. "Do we have a choice in this matter?"

"Come on, Rares," Applejack said prudently. "This may be our most treacherous mission yet, but when has danger ever stopped us?"

"Maybe if we felt we would die!"

"Uhm, Captain?" Twilight spoke up.

Hampton turned to her.

"I think it would be best of Fluttershy and Spike sit this one out."

"Wait, what?"

"W-Wha?"

Both pegasus and baby dragon were taken aback by Twilight's recommendation. Leaving them behind while the rest went.

"Fluttershy, you're hurt, badly. I certainly don't want to risk putting yourself in harm's way when you've already been through enough."

"But, I want to help," Fluttershy feebly argued.

"I know, but it's in your best interest that you rest up and let your leg heal," Twilight then turned to Spike. "And I'm not letting you put yourself in danger, either."

"Come on, Twilight," Spike contended. "I may be young, but I'm as tough as any other dragon."

"No, Spike. I...I'm not going to let you go through any more than you've already have. I've seen you scared too many times. It's bad enough you have to live with that scar."

Spike softly covered the scar under his ear frill. "It’s not that bad , Twilight. I honestly think it's pretty cool."

"Do you have any idea how close you were to getting killed!"

Spike staggered on his feet and stared wide-eyed at Twilight, he hadn't expected to by so emotionally charged at him. Twilight sniffled, grisly remembering the horrid memory. While, it had been some time, the memory was still fresh in her mind. The sword slicing into Spike's tough skin like a hot knife through butter. He was incredibly lucky the wound wasn't anymore severe. Even so, Twilight couldn't forgive herself for being unable to keep her baby safe.

"I'm not arguing with you on this Spike," Twilight said calmly, yet firmly. "You and Fluttershy are staying and that's final."

Spike just stood in disbelief. He wanted to be argue, but seeing his only mother looking at him with such protective worry and compassion, it dissipated any chance of getting upset.

"Ah believe Twilight is right, ya two," Applejack spoke up. "Fluttershy, you've already been seriously injured. And Spike, Twilight's jist lookin' out fer ya."

"I concur, Spikey-Wikey," Rarity said. "Perhaps it's best you two stay safe."

"If you think they're unfit for the mission, then they will be housed here safely," Hampton said.

"Thank you," Twilight said. "Come on, you two. This is for your safety."

Spike let out a impeded sigh. "Fine."

"O-Okay," Fluttershy whispered.

The two wordlessly sauntered away from the group.

"We'll be sure to tell you all about it!" Pinkie called out to them.

Rainbow quickly turned to Twilight. "Fluttershy I understand, but Spike, I would've thought he would be useful with his fire breath and all."

"He's been through enough as it is," Twilight said solemnly. "I care too much for him to be okay with him tagging along on this mission."

With that out of the way, Captain Hampton looked to the rest of the group.

"Any questions?"

"Uh, yes?" Pinkie raised a hoof. "Do you think chocolate frosting is better than vanilla frosting?"

"...Any questions concerning the mission?"

No one and nopony said anything.

"Dismissed."

"That's it. Let's move," the soldier directed the other soldier out of the building.

"My question still stands," Pinkie said, indictive.

"Now is not the time for silly questions, Pinkie," Rainbow asserted.

"It's not silly it's crucial!" Pinkie exclaimed. "I need to know creature's preferences about sweets. How can be a good friend if I can't..."

Pinkie continued to monologue even as followed the other soldiers out. Ford and the rest followed, but he was stopped by Captain Hampton.

"Lieutenant?"

Ford stopped and turned to the captain.

"They've already been briefed. We have no extraction plan. If you don't walk out, you don't come back at all."

"Sir, I'll do whatever it takes," Ford said collectively.

"We'll do whatever it takes," Applejack corrected. "We may not be from here, but we wer' brought here ta protect and help in any way we can."

"You can count on us, Captain," Rainbow confidently assured.

"We'll get that bomb disarmed, and we'll stop those MUTOs, too," Twilight said.

The captain nodded curtly. With that, Ford and the rest of the Mane 6, minus Fluttershy and Spike, exited the building to follow after the other soldiers. Admiral Stenz watched them leave with many thoughts coursing in his head. With the plan worrying more about the public's safety with the bomb, the original plan of using against the monsters was permanently shunted. That meant the, according to Dr. Serizawa, Godzilla was their only hope. The admiral turned to an opening in the building, where the doctor stood outside watching soldiers and military vehicles moving about the complex. Stenz stepped out and stood right beside Serizawa.

"This alpha predator of yours, doctor, do you really think he has a chance?"

Dr. Serizawa remained silent for a few seconds, causing the admiral to turn his head to him. Then, the doctor spoke.

"The arrogance of man is thinking nature is in our control and not the other way around."

Dr. Serizawa weakly and eerily nodded.

"Let them fight."

To be continued