Second Wind

It had been a few days since you had killed Max.

You knew he would hate you saying that, but it's the truth.

You were the one that shot him.

You sat behind your desk, your feet kicked up on the table. You had his rifle laying on the table in front of you, and his gas mask as well. You saw to it that he was buried back home. Even with the intense record-keeping procedures the IMO has, it was still difficult to locate his hometown. You never knew he was from a farm out in Iowa, or that he had 7 siblings. He didn't have the twangy country accent, nor did he have the habit of telling others how much of a "country boy" he was. Hell, you thought he was from New York City like Aaden was until you read his file.

Aaden was buried just outside of Manhattan, in a pretty little cemetery away from the city. His funeral was the biggest out of all of your deceased friends. This wasn't because he was any more important, however. His death wasn't in battle, but in public, in front of everyone. So, more than just his family and friends were present. Proponents of gun control, several officers that had responded to the murder, and random civilians who were supportive of his martyrdom also decided to show up.

Alan was laid to rest in California, but due to the hush-hush nature of his death, his grave went unmarked. To his family and friends, he was merely classified as "Missing". As far as they know, he went overseas for "business", and just vanished. It makes your skin crawl to think about how accurate that is.

Then there was Adam. You had no idea where Adam was from. You didn't know if he had family. The way his paperwork was done, you weren't even sure if "Adam" was his real name. You had him laid to rest just outside of one of the IMO bases in rural Kansas, and you even threw a little funeral and wake for him, as well. It bothered you that he got as high in ranking as he did without the proper paperwork. He was up to something. You'll never find out now.

The saddest part of all of this, the part that really gets you, is the fact that they were all heroes. They were unsung heroes, but heroes, nonetheless. Each and every single one of your friends had done so much in their lives, so much good, and each of their deaths, even Aaden's, served to benefit humanity. It's almost like the whole "revenge from the grave" cliche, but instead of revenge, it's compassion and loyalty.

Funny how the world works. While you can claim to serve the greater good, the ultimate way of proving it is to die for it, or die because of your serving it. Your friends certainly proved their morality, that's for sure.

As you were looking through the files of your friends, feet still propped up on the desk, an IMO Infantryman walked through the doors.

"Major Justin Cunningham of the Mavericks, sir. We have news." He barked out. You casually let your feet down off of the table, and placed the folders back on top of the desk.

"What is it, soldier?" You asked.

"A large 'shipment' of slaves will be passing through Baltimore today. The Mavericks are standing by to deal with it. May we proceed, Chairman sir?"

"Naturally." You responded. The soldier nodded his head, and went to pace out of the room, when you stopped him. "One more thing." You called. He turned around to face you.

"Yes sir?" He asked.

"Call me Carter. 'Chairman' has a foul history behind it."

"Yes sir."

_________________________________________________________________________________

The arrow hit the manticore right below it's neck. It immediately fell when the arrow had struck it. It wasn't moving. You glanced over at Fluttershy, who was already in tears. You slowly approached the manticore's body, hoping the arrow had did what it was supposed to. You knelt beside it, and put a hand on it's stomach. It's stomach was heaving. It was still alive.

The lion-scorpion was alive.

"Thank God..." You breathe out. "Fluttershy, it's still alive!" You yell back to her.

"Huh?" She yelled back. She ran over beside you, and closely examined the beast. "It's...asleep?" She asked, wiping away her tears with her hooves.

"More like unconscious. It's gonna have a hell of a headache when it wakes up, but the arrow did it's job." You said, watching the manticore's chest slowly heave up and down.

"Wh-what did you do to him?" She asked.

"Hit him with a tranquilizer arrow. I personally didn't think it would work, but I'm not about to watch you get hurt." You explain.

"That's an awful risk to take..." She murmured.

"I know it is, and I apologize. But you've got a bunny at home waiting for you, and I need answers. Neither of us can die right now. We simply don't have the time."

"Well...I guess you're right."

"Come. Let's get you home."

"Okay."

_________________________________________________________________________________

"So. uh. Magic." You stammered awkwardly. You sat on the edge of the hotel bed, and stared at your hands. Trixie came over, and sat next to you.

"I know it must be very strange to you." She said. She rubbed her hoof across your hand in an attempt to comfort you.

"No kidding. Well. At least this explains why my hands would hurt every now and then, I suppose." Trixie stopped rubbing her hoof over your hand, and used her other hoof to make her eyes meet yours.

"Adam. Do you trust me?" She asked.

"I do. Why?" You responded.

"Because I think I know how to get your memories back, being as you are capable of magic. It would appear that your magic is centered at your hands, rather than a horn. So, place your hands on your head." She ordered gently. You took your hands, and placed them over your temples. "Now, close your eyes." You close your eyes, and breathe calmly.

"I'm going to touch my horn to your forehead. Don't jerk or anything." She continued. You felt the point of her horn poke the center of your forehead. Your eye lids began to light up, like a movie screen. Soon, visible and audible scenes zipped through your head, like the movie screen was in fast forward. The scenes started to slow, before pausing on a single one.

"Alright." Trixie said. "Here we go."

_________________________________________________________________________________

All you remember was a loud boom, and heat. The vehicle had 5 others in it. The vehicle went rocketing off of the side of the bridge from the IED, and splashed into the river below. Water immediately filled the entirety of the space around you. Water began to fill your nostrils and your mouth. You were too dazed to stop it. Your eyes were still open, even though they were submerged. The man across from you was bleeding from his neck, eyes, and nostrils, the blood looking like a deep red smoke as it traveled through the water. He had a surprised look on his face, but wasn't moving. His body was trying to float up, but was held in place with a seat belt. There was no trace of life left in him.

That's when the fear set in. When you really began to comprehend what was happening. You fumbled around with your seat belt, but it refused to release you. Your vision was beginning to grow dark. You heard a click under the water, and felt as if you were moving. You lost consciousness.

You gasped for air, and your eyes shot open. You turned over, and vomited up what looked like nothing but water. Your eyes watered from the pain and sensation of the vomiting, but you vomited again, anyways. You coughed and inhaled.

"Adam, I've got to go back, the others are trapped!" Isaac shouted. Isaac apparently had just saved your life. You rolled over onto your stomach, and tried to get up on all fours, still coughing and spitting. Your vision was very bright now, as compared to how dark it once was. You looked up at Isaac, who was shuffling in place, obviously distraught and unsure of  what to do. "I'm going back." He said quietly, sprinting towards the river.

The river was enormous, one of the biggest ones you had ever seen. It was also incredibly deep. You learned that first hand. You looked around you. 2 other men who were in the vehicle with you were also coming to their feet, still dazed. Isaac must have saved them, too. Then another realization went off in your head.

Someone was watching you.

Someone had to pull the trigger on the IED.

One of the dazed men who was coming to his feet jerked back, and fell down. A loud crack came soon after that. You picked yourself up, and threw yourself against the other dazed man who was trying to stand up.

"STAY DOWN!" You yelled in his ear. You both hit the ground hard, enough to knock the air from your lungs, but it was just in time to avoid being shot. Another loud crack came a few seconds after you hit the ground. You literally may have just saved your own life, and his. Your shout seemed to snap him out of his reverie.

This was now a war zone.

You waited for another crack of the weapon.

It came soon after the second. When it did, you grabbed the surviving soldier by his collar, and quickly jumped back up. You both ran underneath of the bridge, which was now in shambles. You looked back towards the river where Isaac had jumped in. No sign of him or anyone else.

You patted the side of your leg, and found your handgun still holstered. "You still got your Glock?" You asked calmly.

"Huh? Uh..." He looked up at you, then down to his leg, and removed the handgun from it's holster. "Y-yeah, right here."

"Good." You responded. You slid your handgun around the wall, and fired a few rounds randomly. You weren't hoping to hit your assailant, but to merely show that you were armed. Maybe it would scare him off.

You ended up hiding behind that bridge for 8 hours.

Isaac didn't come back up from the river. Nor did anyone else. You already knew what happened to them.

It wasn't until 8 hours later that the IMO came looking for you.

8 hours of sitting, waiting. Hoping that whoever was watching didn't have the balls to come down and finish the job.

8 hours of not knowing what to tell Isaac's family. Your family.

He had a wife.

He had children.

_________________________________________________________________________________

"What kind of fucked up logic is that?!" You shout.

"You were NEVER around! What am I supposed to do, wait for you?" Lara shouts back.

"Are you fucking kidding me? You KNOW EXACTLY what I do, WHY I'm not here, and you do this to me?"

"Will you relax? It's not that big of a deal!"

"Oh, I'm sorry, I just found out that my wife is pregnant with someone else's child, excuse me for overreacting. How could you do this to me?"

"Hey, if you don't like it, then there's the door."

You walk over to the door, open it, and leave. You weren't coming back. You heard the door open as you were walking to your car.

"So, what, that's it then?" She shouted. "You aren't even going to help raise this kid?"

You get in the car, and start the engine. As you're looking over your shoulder to begin backing up, you mutter yourself.

"You really know how to pick em', Adam..."

_________________________________________________________________________________

"Ah, Adam!" The Chairman said as you approached his desk. "The man of the hour. I have news for you."

"What is it?" You asked.

"I am very well aware that you were moved from the ground combat operations after what happened to your brother, Isaac. But we're moving you back down from the skies."

"Why?"

"Our men need a leader like you. Someone who can be strong under stress. I'm giving you your own unit. The Pathfinders. You will come back to me tomorrow for a full briefing. We already have several recruits lined up and waiting for you. Until tomorrow, enjoy yourself. Dismissed."

_________________________________________________________________________________

Trixie looked up at you, making sure you were okay. You looked down at her, and smiled, to signal that you were still alive. She probably didn't see any of those memories.

"Are you okay?" She asked as she looked intently at you.

"Yeah. It sucks to re-experience the painful stuff, but, I guess it's the painful stuff that makes us who we are."

Trixie smiled, and kissed your forehead, where her horn had been.

"The caring and affectionate Trixie believes you to be a very brave human." She then kissed your nose. "In fact..." Trixie said while leveling her face with yours. "You're Trixie's FAVORITE human." Her lips then met yours. It was the first real kiss you had shared with her. She pulled her head away, and gauged your reaction to it. You decide to try to break this new ice that had been formed.

"I'm the ONLY human you know." You reply, smiling.

"Must you ruin a romantic moment?" She retorted.

"Romance?" You asked again, still teasing. "You're interested in me, Ms. Lulamoon? I had no idea..." You attempted to look away, as if you were embarrassed or bashful. Of course you knew she was interested in you, but you kind of wanted to hear her say it, hear her explain herself. Her eyes were slightly closed, and she had removed her hoof from your hand, now using it to hold to her mouth. A crimson blush was coming forth in her cheeks. It was absolutely adorable.

"The enthralled and captivated Trixie DOES happen to have feelings for you..." She nearly whispered.

"Me? Why me, though. I'm not even a pony." You replied. You were enjoying her nervousness. She looked in your eyes through her half-lidded eyes, and her voice raised a little in tone. Perhaps she was a bit more confident in herself.

"Pony or not, you gave the lonely and depressed Trixie friendship when nopony else would. Though our journey has been relatively short, it has been incredibly large in meaning for Trixie. She is no longer alone. She has the courage to face things, make them right once more. All because of a kind creature that simply picked her up, and walked her back to his camp. You have charmed Trixie." Trixie's eyes were now open all the way, but her blush was still present. She had a hopeful look in your eyes.

Ah, damn it, not the puppy dog eyes. Too adorable.

"Adam, do tell Trixie. How do you feel about her?" She asked. The puppy dog look was ensuring that there was no negative answer, although you were sure that she wasn't doing this on purpose. You looked in her eyes for a moment. Her hat and her cape were both off of her, laying across the bed. Right now, it was just her. Her mane hung down from the right side of her head. She really did look nice, for a pony.

To be honest, you were almost ashamed of saying that this pony had captured your heart. She's a pony, after all. At the same time, she's completely different. You would say she was an animal, but animals don't talk. Or have complex thought. To consider her an animal, would be to consider yourself an animal. Which, to be fair, you are an animal. So that should it make it okay. Right?

"Well, Trixie, I find myself to be enamored with you, as well. If I could explain it, I would. What I have concluded though, is that I don't care. This is my home now. And I suppose you're going to become a very close friend." You said. You felt very confident in yourself all of the sudden. Right now, in this very moment, you didn't care. You forgot about the dreams, you forgot about the memories, you forgot about the fact that you can fire death out of your hands, you forgot the fact that there were other humans that knew you. All you knew, and all you cared to know, was Trixie.

The moment was tense. Not in a bad way, though. The passion and tension was like being submerged, but rather than being submerged in water, it was more like being submerged in passion. It felt weird to let your passion out like this. It was as if the very blood that pumped through your veins was replaced with liquid love, and the electrical impulses which twitched through your nervous system gave were replaced with an amazing mixture of anxiety and curiosity.

Fuck the world I'm from.. This is home now. Might as well secure a decent future.

Trixie immediately adopted what you would call bedroom eyes. They half shut, her irises still glimmering. A smile crawled across her face, but not a big one. She slowly and very deliberately lifted herself off of the bed, and even more slowly crawled over to you. She let out the most provocative giggle you had ever heard.

"How close will we be?" She asked.

"I, uh..." You couldn't take your eyes off of her. She was still crawling towards you from across the bed. You couldn't think straight enough to form a sentence. All of the sudden, the quiet and reserved Trixie, the one you had seen almost die, the one you had seen cry, the one you had seen be bashful, was now VERY forward. If there was anything that turned you on, it's unexpected actions like this.

"Uh, I mean, we co-, uh..." You continued to stammer. She really had caught you off guard. She was turning you in to Mush Mouth from the old Fat Albert cartoons. You were slightly embarrassed of yourself. You assumed that Trixie looked to you as a kind of silent, didactic sentinel, and here you were, bumbling like a fool. Your intention here was only to see her act shy and nervous. But Hell, you weren't about to complain about this turn of events.

Trixie's forelegs were now on your left leg, as you were sitting on the side of the bed. She lifted her head up to yours,  and smiled a little more, letting her teeth show.

"How about this close?" She asked.

"Y-ye-" Your voice cracked. You clear your throat. "Yeah, that's good."

Holy shit, are you awkward all of the sudden.

Trixie then caught you off guard, AGAIN.

She pushed you down, making your back hit the bed.

She then climbed on top of you, her face now only several centimeters from yours.

"How about this close?" She asked again, nearly whispering this time. Her mouth was getting increasingly close to yours. You wanted to respond, the the lip motions to say 'yes' would result in a kiss, so, you thought you'd just go ahead and go for the kiss. You slowly brought your head forward, but, as you did, she jerked her head back, now smiling mischievously. "tsk-tsk, Adam, you silly human. Trixie will cut you a deal. Take her to dinner, and she will grace you with the ability to be as close to her as you want for as long as you want."

"All mine?" You ask.

"All yours." She responds. She leans in, and kisses you, and you eagerly kiss back. She cuts it off short, and hops off of you. "Adam, you cannot spoil your dinner." You cock your head back, and groan.

"Alright, alright. I get it, romance and stuff."

That night, the both of you went to one of the more fine restaurants Canterlot had to offer. You got what looked and tasted like fettuccine alfredo, but was named something completely different. Trixie got some kind of open sandwich thing with various steamed vegetables on it. You both had a few glasses of white wine, but it was just to compliment the dinner. Neither of you were even buzzed yet. You still had some bits left from all of the irrigation work in Saddle Arabia, so, you decide to take Trixie for a walk through the local Royal Gardens.

The Royal Gardens were like Central Park in New York City. They were both in the center of a major urban area, and, although you could see buildings in the distance of every direction you looked, it was still oddly pleasant and peaceful. While you walked, you both shared heart-warming conversation, the kind that was filled with laughs and smiles.

"So, Adam, Trixie thought that you were rendered completely amnesiac, save for the few memories she was able to give you today." Trixie inquired.

"Huh?" You responded. You knew what she meant, but you weren't exactly sure what she was referring to.

"Well, when Trixie accompanied you to Princess Celestia's throne room, she asked you if your father was a magician. You said yes. Trixie is curios if you remember your father." She explained. You scratched your head. You didn't really think to ponder that fact. You DID remember your father, and bits of your childhood, too. Trixie catches you contemplating. "Trixie does not mean to bother you, she just wants to get to know you better, is all."

"No, it's okay. I understand completely. Yes, I do remember by Dad, and I remember some chunks of my childhood now that I think about it, too."

"Would you like to share that information with Trixie?"

"Anything for you, Trix. Here it goes."

_________________________________________________________________________________

I was born in the capitol of my nation, Washington DC. In that city sat one of the most important men of the world. In that city stood monuments and memorials to men that forever changed the world. In that city, lived hundreds of thousands of people, most of which would be forgotten less than a year after they died. My mother and father were both one of these people. My father was an interesting man. He was an Atticus Finch incarnate, a stereotypical caring and wise father. He also had a very odd job.

My father was a magician. A rather popular one, at that. He often flew around the country for shows. He met my Mom in Florida, when he was going back to his hotel from a show. They hit it off, and about 3 years later, my older brother Isaac was born. 2 years after that, I came bouncing out, too. My mother was a stay at home Mom, which I really enjoyed. I liked being able to come home to her after a long day of school when I was younger, rather than go to some daycare place, or to some babysitter. Even when I hit my late teens, it was still nice to be able to come home and talk to her.

I was very close to my brother. Very close. My very first memory is of he and I playing with some blocks, building towers and knocking them down. He was my best friend. If ever I wanted to someone to hang out with, someone to talk to, someone to be angry at or cry with, he was always there to help me, and then some. Even when we both moved out and went our separate ways in life, we were both still in constant contact. We even shared the same job, which I really don't want to talk about right now. Isaac died in front of me, and was a hero. That's all I want to say about that. Anyways.

I was fascinated with magic at an early age. Dad always had a way to continually fascinate me left and right. Whether it was guessing what card I had randomly drawn from a deck, to "pulling" quarters out of my ears, it was always just completely captivating to me. So, I began to practice it. Making things disappear under cups, using magnets to make  small things appear as if they're floating, making things appear out of thin air, pretty much every cliche trick that existed, I knew. Then I turned 11.

In my world, magic doesn't exist. I learned that all it was, was just a few mind tricks. Make this person look over here, distract a person in this way, notch a card in a deck, none of it was true magic. Just clever tricks. This really let me down, really broke my heart. I confronted my Dad, and he had some of the wisest words I had ever heard regarding the subject.

"True magic is hidden in what surrounds us."

Human kindness. Mercy. Humor and laughter. Love. All of these things, I considered examples of this "true magic" back home, simply because they were things that didn't make sense to me, things that I couldn't explain. Why do we laugh? Because we find something funny. Why do we find certain things funny? Why do we love? My excuse was magic. And it provided all of the answers I was looking for. At least at the time, it did.

Celestia mentioned my father was one of the reasons I am capable of magic. I suppose it would make sense that SOMETHING about me would change. You don't just enter a brand new universe without adapting to it's laws, and I suppose my fascination with magic from my childhood has translated over to the ability to perform ACTUAL magic. It's an obscure theory, but it's the only one we have.

_________________________________________________________________________________

"You're brother is...dead?" Trixie asked. You nodded your head. "Trixie knows that you said you didn't want to talk about it, but, what line of work did you have? Can you tell her that?" You sigh.

"We were mercenaries. Guns for hire. I really don't want to say or talk anymore about that." You said bluntly. Trixie stopped prodding, and changed the subject almost immediately.

Smart pony.

"Trixie doesn't have much of a story, herself. She's led quite the boring and lonely life. Then she met you."

_________________________________________________________________________________

"It's getting late." Vinyl said, sitting on top of you. She kissed you deeply one more time, and stepped off of you. "HA! Oh man, it's like, 8 PM! Oh boy, Octavia's probably gonna be pissed. She doesn't like to be kept waiting, especially for food.

"No? She seems pretty polite." You said, sliding your underwear and pants back on. Vinyl walked over to the mirror, and snagged her goggles, putting them on and resting them on her forehead, rather than actually wearing them.

"Oh, she is. She's just kinda classy, is all. Like Rarity, just kinda rude."

Rarity...

"Huh. Well, it's late enough to get some drinks, that's for sure." You continued. You were now buttoning up your dress shirt over your white shirt. You run a hand over your head. Your hair was too short to be messed up from constant sex, but it was still reassuring.

"Oh yeah, we're doing that. Uhh..." Vinyl trailed off. She dashed over across the room, and started searching for something. While she was searching, you tied your shoes, and walked over to the mirror.

You looked fine. Your face was red, but other than you, you looked fine. You felt fine, too. You felt something hit your back, so you turned around. "Those are yours." Vinyl said. You looked down, and saw a pair of goggles, similar to hers, but, rather than purple lenses, yours were a bright orange. It reminded you of your old gas mask, but, you weren't complaining. The goggles actually looked kind of cool.

You slide them on, and rest the lenses on your forehead, just as she was doing with hers.

"What're these for?" You ask.

"Oh, we're going clubbing after dinner. Gotta let everyone know we're together, right?"

"With some awesome goggles? Sure, I catch your drift."

"Awesome? Try bitchin'. These things look even more 'awesome' under black light, so wait until we get to the club."

Somehow, you couldn't imagine Octavia at a nightclub. It didn't seem like it was her scene.

You both go upstairs, and find a yawning Octavia sitting on the couch, reading some magazine with a large cello on the front of it.

"Ah, it's about time." She said, looking up from her magazine. She placed it down on the table, and stood up, stretching. "Are you quite ready? Or would you like another go at it?" She asked. Vinyl nudged you, and smiled her half smile.

"Actually..."

"I WAS JOKING. I will not wait any longer for food." Octavia cut Vinyl off. "Come now. Food."

_________________________________________________________________________________

You made it back to the Crystal Empire just as the sun was setting. You shifted the satchel over to your other shoulder, and closely examined the town. Every pony you walked past would have the fear of God in their eyes, which annoyed you. You had a bow on your back, one capable of a lot of tricks. If you wanted any of them dead, they'd be dead by now.

"Max, the train station is just ahead. I was thinking, we could head out now, if that's okay. We should reach Canterlot by the morning." Fluttershy said. You looked ahead at the junction before you.

Trains. Ponies and trains. Okay.

"Alrighty. Will customs need to look through our satchel? What about shoes, do I take those off?" You ask. Fluttershy looks up at you.

"Huh?" She responds. You chuckle.

"It's nothing. Back home, I know travelling was a hassle. Safety and what not."

"Oh? You remember stuff about your home?" She seemed interested.

"Well, yeah. I just don't remember anything about myself. Names or faces, I can't recall. For some reason, however, I can remember what life was like."

"I'd love to hear about it, if that's okay."

"Sure, sure! Lets just get on the train first, we'll pass time that way."

"Sounds lovely. Maybe, I could talk about myself, too. If that'd be alright."

_________________________________________________________________________________

"No, no, no." You laugh. "Here, like this." You pick up Lyra's hooves, and help to motion them. "Pat-a-cake, pat-a-cake, bakers man..." You clap her hooves to your hands. She watches with complete fascination.

"H-hands can play games?" Lyra asked. She was enjoying this too much.

"Yep. Now, you try it." You replied. You smile widely, watching her carefully move her hooves to touch your hands. You sat with your legs crossed on her bed, and she mimicked your posture. If there was any pony you had met so far that you would consider human, it's Lyra. Human trapped in a Pony body.

Lyra looks up from her concentration on your "game", to make sure she's doing it right. You smile at her, and she returns your smile with a blush. She goes back to concentrating.

"Pat-a-cake, pat-a-cake, bakers man..." Lyra sings the song with you.

"Bake me a cake as fast as you can..." Lyra looked back to you, listening to you sing.

"Roll it..." You twirl your hands over her hooves.

"Pat it..." You pat your hands on her hooves. She had stopped moving her hooves with your hands, and merely watched intently. You still had her hooves, though.

"Mark it with a B..." You draw the letter B on her hooves with your finger.

"Put it in the oven for Lyra and me!" You clapped your hands together, then threw them apart, opening your arms wide, and tackling Lyra to the bed playfully. She immediately giggled wildly, and you couldn't help but laugh, too.

That's when you both realized what was happening.

You were on top of her, with her forelegs pinned. Her face went crimson in the blink of an eye.

You gently released your grip on her forelegs, and put your hands on her face. Her forelegs slid up and around your back. You could feel her hind legs opening. You leaned in, and you kissed Lyra. You kissed her as deeply as you could. She responded with the exact same intensity.

Then her intensity turned to ferocity.

She really wanted this.

So did you.

It seemed early in the relationship for anything like this to happen, but Hell, you understood zilch about pony culture. Maybe this is normal.

Even if it wasn't normal, you didn't care.

Take what you can get. And when you can get what you really want, really take it.

_________________________________________________________________________________

Adam really WAS up to something in his life. Out of curiosity, you had found his full record, and were examining it. Literally, all it said was "ADAM HOWARD - KIA".

No date of birth, no place of birth, no family members or past addresses.

"Huh..." You said out loud.

"Something wrong, sir?" Your personal guard asked.

"Yes. Adam's record is odd. The Chairman has more on his record than Adam. It's almost as if they're hiding something about him."

"Hiding something?"

"Exactly. This is the IMO. There's nothing that needs to be hidden here. We already know everything."

You close up the folder, and tuck it under your arm.

_________________________________________________________________________________

Your train car was dark on the inside, and Fluttershy was the only other occupant besides yourself. Fluttershy was curled up on the seats across from you, fast asleep.

You couldn't sleep, however. This all still felt really funny to you. You took the bow off of your back, and rested it on the seats next to you.

You were bored.

You look down at the bow, and decide to give it a little test.

You pick it back up, and imagine a bright red firework-like explosive effect. You look back at the sleeping Fluttershy. You now imagined the firework to be completely silent.

You pull back on the bow, and watch as an interesting arrow bursts into existence. This one looked to be made out of a smoking-silver like material, with a bright red tip, also smoking.

You release the arrow, and watch as it silently whips across the sky. It actually traveled a lot father than you thought it would.

Eventually, it popped, releasing a beautiful cascade of red lights and sparkles. The inside of the train car was briefly illuminated with a dulled red light, then faded away.

You smile.

You'd have to show Fluttershy this trick the next opportunity you have.

_________________________________________________________________________________

"Is someone lighting off fireworks?" You ask. Trixie looks up in the sky, noticing the red burst in the distance. "Is it like a holiday or something?"

"Not that Trixie is aware of. Perhaps someone is celebrating something."

_________________________________________________________________________________

"Sir, we found someone that says they have something to say regarding Adam." An IMO Guard said.

"Please, bring them in." You replied, pouring a glass of water for your guest. An IMO Infantryman walked in, and sat across the desk from you. "I understand that you may be aware of the activity Adam was partaking in."

"I'm the reason for it, Chairman sir." He responded.

"Please, call me Carter." You said, handing him the glass of water.

"Yes sir."

"Adam was a good friend of mine. A brave man. I trust what he was doing was a just duty, and I'm sure it's reasons for being hidden are valid, but circumstances are...different..." You look at the Infantryman. He looked a little like Adam. "Are you aware of what his goal was?"

"Yes sir. He wanted to dismantle the IMO from the inside-out. Let me tell you a story."

_________________________________________________________________________________

Adam was loading several shells into his shotgun. When he was finished, he gave it a single, loud pump.

"You know what we're here to do. If any of them survive, we all die. Let none survive."

Adam walked over to the door, and kicked it down, literally ripping it off of it's hinges. He lowered his shotgun, took aim, and fired it. He then pumped it, and fired again. Then another pump, and another boom. You were doing the exact same thing.

Luckily, the guards you just took on weren't expecting you, fellow IMO mercenaries, to attack them. In a matter of moments, 6 were dead. You walked towards the series of monitors and servers, stepping over dead bodies. You wiped the blood off of the screen of the monitor you were going to use with you sleeve, and you begin hacking. You had to delete the camera footage of who did this massacre, and you needed to delete Adam's records.

"Breaching the mainframe..." You said, typing on the keyboard near the server. Adam walked around, poking dead bodies with the barrel of his shotgun, making sure they were dead.

"These bastards will pay for what they've done. To me, and to everyone they've ever hurt. The best part is, they'll never know it's me..." He said quietly. "This one's for Isaac..."

_________________________________________________________________________________

"This is where things get complicated, Carter sir." The soldier said.

"Why is that?" You ask. The soldier didn't break eye contact with you. He took a drink of his glass, and set it down. His nonchalant manner was making you nervous.

"I am Isaac."