//------------------------------// // 10: Earthsdale // Story: Seesaw // by MintLynx //------------------------------// The concrete reinforcement of the tunnels of the underground was like the structure of a snake's skeleton, curved supports on the walls connected by a beam which went along the ceiling. Along the extensive ventilation system meant to prevent the occupants from suffocating the two bats would be carefully traversing, moving carefully so as to not make noise. Their wrist computers guided their way to another large open atrium, smaller with less of the activity of the main one. Crawling through the square tunnels of metal the two eventually looked through an opening to see what was mostly a place of computers and computer parts being sold, lit up by blue and white lights compared to the multicolored lights of the main atrium. Navigating the Vents the two would move toward the bunker marked in waypoint only to be met with an installed laser grid, it seemed whoever owned this bunker was aware of the potential of ponies sneaking in through the ventilation. Lacking any sort of mirror the two were ultimately forced to find a vent exit. Fortunately, the ceiling itself was mostly unlit, a perfect shroud as the two crawled from the ventilation shaft and looked down to the entrance of the bunker, guarded by two Cyberculture looking types armed with compact shotguns personalized with pink and blue digital camouflage design. Looking to Owl, Vision said, "Gonna be hard to get into there, without tripping up anypony outside." Owl looked at the two guards and looked around the area to notice a lesser amount of activity, not as many ponies out and about. "There could be a chance to knock them out without anypony seeing, drag them to the nearest corner. We then go in and search, knocking out any ponies we can then getting a guard to let the griffin know we've done it. You be my eyes, I'll creep close and go in for the knockout on your signal. Click once the coast is clear, that'll be the signal." clicks were commonly used as signals by all field personnel of the RLG, given they were less audible to the suspects but easily picked up by bat ears. Creeping along the ceiling Owl flew silently before reaching the edge and looking down at the two guards, one a mare with bionic limbs the other a walking tattoo canvas of a stallion. His ears perked for the signal, his body ready to spring at them like a stalking panther. After what felt like an hour in Owl's apprehension, being merely thirty-seven seconds, a soft click reached his ears. In a flash, he flew down and grabbed the heads of both before slamming them together. Searching he looked for the key before half the lights in the atrium suddenly went out. The stallion paid no mind as he found the door key, a remote with a button for locking and unlocking the door. Vision found it suspicious how the lights went out, then both of them suddenly got a call which alarmingly was answered automatically. "Well, seems digging into the system took me to some interesting places." Anomaly said in telepathic call "And paid off in unexpected ways." Owl sighed in relief before unlocking the door and asking in the call "What took you so long?" "Wasn't easy entering here undetected, I had to go as quiet as possible so I didn't try to trace your location and instead looked for your Wrist Computers." "Don't try and track us, not yet anyway. We have a plan going on that could get us some suspects." Replied Owl. The two bats would slip in silently through the door before taking cover behind some boxes as Anomaly let the lights back on and hid in the system as well. She would keep an eye on the interior of the bunker through cameras while also searching the online marketplace to find a site selling automated hacking programs. She contemplated trying to snatch or copy the programs secretly, though a part of her disapproved of the idea. The two bats moved their way down the halls, hunting for any cyberculture looking ponies. A couple rooms seemed to serve as work areas for the hackers present, luckily there was but a few. One by one they would sneak in and knock out the ponies behind the computers, searching the desks and finding some compact machine pistols. The final room at the far end of the bunker proved different than the others, larger with multiple large screens installed while a couple comparatively less cyberculture looking mares worked on it. Overseeing it was a rather large stallion with thick muscle like bionic limbs and strangely enough, a lab coat draped over his large form. All three of the present occupants appeared to be more clean cut and less rough compared to the rough cyberculture ponies outside. Both of them looked at the screen to see files and text flashing by while the hooves of the mares typed away. The large cyborg would then say in a voice far less gruff and more professional than one would expect from such a figure. "GAI-7 seems to be working well with the virus that the Freedom Fighters provided, soon it shall be her sword against Tyranny." Suddenly a rotating projector on the wall would begin to turn with an electronic whine and light up to form a holographic form of a mare. She seemed to be completely designed to where her body and face were split to express a different style. One side showed a single natural blue eye with a flowing golden colored mane, a white dress draping that half of her body. The other side of her face had the smooth mane transition seamlessly into a rough spiky mane dyed black and blue with a bionic eye, the dress transitioned on that side as well to a stylized cyberculture outfit. It was a surreal sight for Owl to see, the hologram was literally one mare with two completely different styles on two sides of her body. Her eyes would go red as she said in an almost natural voice "Intrusion detected in systems, investigating." The cyborg would turn to look to the Hologram only to see Owl and Vision sending a double flying kick to the face. Anomaly panicked at how fast this apparent AI caught her snooping on things through a camera. A hack fight would ensue, only this time she did not have the advantage in speed against an artificial intelligence. In speed, they were matched but in software, GAI-7 had the advantage. Her mind reprimanding her for not getting the hacking tools Anomaly was pushed to her limits as sniper rockets, shotguns, hybrid programs of the two even were but the start of its arsenal. The cyborg knocked over the mare looked and only got out a short scream before being both caught in a chokehold by the two. Precisely they counted the seconds to a nonlethal suffocation, till the mares both lost consciousness. To their horror the Cyborg seemed to get up, looking in alarm and saying. "Who are you bats? And how did you get into here?" Asked the cyborg as they aimed the pistols at him, GST PDS mark IIIs, weapons made for purpose of self-defense in the dangerous streets of places in the nation of Gryphonia. GST weapons came from the smallest tech giant, known for making cheaper tech products of decent though inferior quality. Weapons from the corporation often circulated among criminal circles. Ironically they were now being used in law enforcement procedure as both Owl and Vision aimed and ordered... "Stand down now or we will shoot!" "Ah....I&I personnel, stealthy types you are. Must have snuck in here somehow, strange though relieving you don't seem to have your more heavily armed police units coming in. Instead, you try to arrest me yourselves, no matter, not that you're of much threat out of the shadows." he would approach them, smirking some as he ignored their orders before holding a hoof in front of his face as bullets came from the silenced weapons. A few deflected from his head revealing a reinforced skull implant underneath, more shockingly his bionics would start to repair themselves and squeeze the embedded nine-millimeter rounds. "What the buck.......how did you...??" Vision said, before saying to Anomaly in the call "Find the entrance to this place! And get S4 on it now!" Anomaly heard him but was busy trying to fight the AI and learn what she could about it. In the end, she chose flight over fight and fled into the systems to try to find any evidence of where the entry into the underground city was. The cyborg would reply to the two... "Technology created beyond your system's limits and laws, I go by the name Doctor Composite. You will not find that name in any record, for I am one of what the Underground calls 'Official Ghosts'." "What is this 'GAI-7' thing? And what's with the holographic two-faced mare?" Asked Vision. Looking to Vision the Hologram said. "I am an artificial intelligence, the seventh stage of a project developed by my creators. Doctor Composite is programming me for a specific goal, under codename 'Seesaw'" "Letting the bucking hologram talk for you?" Remarked Owl, following with. "What is the purpose of the AI? I don't think it's to try and bring peace between two different fashion senses." "You think I will inform you of all out plans? Not a chance, I almost told you too much anyway. Besides, not like you're exactly capable of apprehending a cyborg like me, I can see your lack of bionics." he then dashed at them knocking Vision into the desk in front of the computer screens. Owl flew behind Dr. Composite to send a kick only for it to be grabbed, he was flung repeatedly side to side and slammed onto the floor. Pain shot into his chest as ribs were broken, and his mind was dazed from the impact and lucky not to sustain a head injury. Vision got up and quickly reloaded the pistol before letting off a flurry of rounds aimed for Dr. Composite's head. Sparks flew as the rounds deflected off the reinforced skull before the cyborg turned and in an instant sent a punch into Vision's gut followed by a jaw-breaking uppercut. Owl got up and quickly flew past Dr. C sending a kick in hopes he could cause a debilitating concussion. It would prove to only knock the cyborg to the side as his skull was also built to absorb impact. The stallion barely evaded the next three strikes that would come his way, a fourth deflecting off the side of his head. Dashing to the side the bat sent a punch to the cyborg's temple only to give a superficial strike, getting punched in the gut and sent flying to the wall in reply. Anomaly was meanwhile playing cat and mouse with GAI-7, the program identifying her as a potential threat having read her unusually high ability in thinking in the hack fight. It's processing soon identified her as the escaped EQUE-TECH subject who was captured by FF only to end up taken in a raid by Royal personnel. It calculated whether to try to eliminate her through causing a fatal crash, drive her away for now, or attempt communication. It chose to do the latter, using the profile it quickly constructed of her to decide how it would react. It wasn't sentient, at least not yet if it ever would be, it was simply acting based on objective and logic. Anomaly took its strange request of communication with caution, seeing the text it typed. "It appears you are assisting personnel of the RLG out of fear for what the Freedom Fighters will do, given there is evidence based on your ability that you were responsible for stopping the Mall operation. I do wish to inform you that the entity you are in service of is not on an objective moral high ground over those they are referring to as 'Cyberterrorists'. Many cases of police personnel both on local and Royal level doing wrongs only for their place as 'protectors of the law' to grant them immunity from its intended penalties. The system is broken and formed on a fragile construct aimed toward control and misinformation. Dr. Freemane told you that the system is eventually going to fall apart, it seems illogical that you would remain on its side." The information that Anomaly discovered in the mainframe came to her mind, she was still somewhat conflicted on what to think of it given the CG's message to her. She wondered if she should try to communicate with the AI or leave communication and keep searching for anything on the entrance to the underground city. Search was still going on as it was merely an hour since Owl and Vision's apparent disappearance, and if the entrance was found backup could come quickly. Jacking into cameras she saw a very bad situation for Owl and Vision, ultimately making her decide to go for the ladder option and abandon any communication. GAI-7 would notice this and have some confusion, trying to calculate her reasoning for assisting these guards. It ultimately chose to treat her as a threat once more as it detected tamperings with the Underground city's security. Owl meanwhile rolled out of the way of a punch to the ground, coughing blood as the fight had caused further injuries. He didn't know what to do, fleeing would mean a failure to apprehend the FF ponies present, but staying would mean fighting a cyborg far stronger than Miss S. Vision climbed under the Desks and called Anomaly once more, demanding she work faster in getting the entrance found. GAI-7 would discover and track this call, spelling poorly for Vision as the hologram appeared once more and said to Dr. Composite... "It appears as though one of the guards is attempting to have the entrance to this city found by their hacker, the one captured and used in Everfree before being taken by the RLG. I will attempt to put a stop to such efforts in any way possible, I recommend putting a stop to such communication however while I do." Vision would have a look of shock as he heard this, for the time hating Owl for going with this whole plan, to begin with. He made a mental note to inform Owl to never make deals with criminals again as he was dragged out and thrown into a wall. Owl looked around frantically for any sort of weapon to use as he barely dodged an incoming punch. An idea then popped up in his head as he reloaded the machine pistol, looking to Dr. C he waited for the incoming attack. As the Cyborg dashed at him, putting a foreleg in front of his face to block any bullets before sending a punch. The hoof glanced painfully off Owl's shoulder as he aimed the gun and unloaded it into the Cyborg's face. "Bingo motherbucker," Owl said as two round entered a bionic eye, making Dr. C recoil back and flinch as his eye was shattered. Though the bullets didn't pierce into the skull they did kill the cyborg's sight in one eye, leaving somewhat of an opening. Owl would reload the pistol one last time, the last magazine he picked up. Flying toward the cyborg's blind spot he kept alert for any incoming attacks, attacks which wouldn't take long to come as the cyborg's blows glanced off Owl in his barely successful dodges. If it hadn't been for his bat pony agility in flight he would have been beaten to a pulp in seconds, especially now as the two exchanged blows. Getting up Vision would join the fight as well, the both of them double teaming and exploiting the blind spot to the best of their abilities. Anomaly meanwhile evaded the AI and watchponies of Earthsdale's net as the search for the entrance continued. Finally, she caught a break as the controls marked 'city entrance' were found along with access to cameras used to monitor the hidden door. She would need to fight to get that access though, less against the watchponies and more against GAI-7. GAI-7 would appear once more to inform Mr. C. "Their hacker appears to be getting close to finding the entrance to this section of Earthsdale, it is advisable that we retreat from here." Mr. C heard this and looked to the two Bats "I thought I could just beat you down, but it seems you're just too slippery." blades extended from his forelegs. "Should have brought these out earlier." the blades were short and wide like machetes, designed for chopping more than slicing. With all his aggression the cyborg charged at them, swinging quickly and ripping their clothing as they narrowly dodged the chopping blows. Nicks and gashes were received by the both of them as they attempted to get a good shot in his other eye. Mr. C would then stop and wait, covering his remaining eye with a forehoof. Poised to strike the two would stand side to side, a second of waiting for him to attack before their apprehension drove them to charge and attack him from two sides. The two flew quickly and crossed to the other side of eachother's path so as to each attack from an unexpected side. Skillfully the cyborg made his move, moving between them he chopped a wing clean off Vision in a single swing. As Vision fell, Owl turned to aim his weapon directly at the cyborg's eye. His hoof would grip the band around the weapon's handle, pulling the trigger of the weapon halfway before his foreleg was chopped off. Falling back he gasped as he saw his limb fall to the ground with the gun before his chest was nearly sliced open by the cyborg's follow up strike. Falling to the ground on his back Owl looked to the Mr. C as he said... "You may have a victory here, bit you will not win the ensuing war." picking up the two unconscious mares the cyborg would then run out quickly. Owl, rapidly losing blood, would start to fade from consciousness as Vision frantically ran up to him. The other bat would then pick up his severed wing and frantically search the place for any healing injections to keep Owl alive. Anomaly meanwhile would be continuing to fight to gain access to the cameras present at the city entrance. The purpose of which being to pinpoint where the door was so it could be found, though in a struggle the mare was clever enough to hold up against the AI for a time. Calculating the situation with her likelihood of stopping the mall operation in mind it decided to try and send another message appealing to her morality... "If a raid comes into here there's a chance that a massive loss of life can happen in the ensuing fight. There are many who in technical terms of morality are of minimal wrong and not deserving of being potentially killed in what will be a massive gunfight." Anomaly chose not to even look at the message, wanting to not waste a second of time. She finally managed to slip past for a second, enough to pinpoint the camera's location. Quickly sending the location to the chief she would simply watch from online and the cameras as the sewer system was soon stormed by a team of S4 personnel and the door blasted open. The armored police units would fly quickly long a downward tunnel until kicking down the door into the main atrium and storming inside. Dozens of the place's guards would have them pinned down, and panic would ensue as shopkeepers scrambled to get out of the area. Doors into bunkers would be shut and locked, and backup would be called by the S4 units. Anomaly watched as the fight dragged on for more than a few minutes, many a pony from both sides would fall to the gunfire exchanged. The place had a well equipped small army as it's guards, deficient only in armor compared to S4. Anomaly knew one thing for certain now, gunfights were hardly like they were depicted in movies and even VRGD games. The atrium continued to be stormed as more teams came in, and the ultimate help in a situation like this came. Sector 4 of the Royal Solar Guard was not called 'heavy enforcement' for nothing, and it's most elite team was sent. Clad in golden painted kevlar and metal armor with the sun insignia was a team led by Metal Heart, the brain of a war veteran contained inside a military grade bionic body replacing the body she lost to a griffin drone's airstrike. Slung on her side was an HWS-56, an EQUE-TECH manufactured light machine chambered for six-millimeter rounds. Being a unicorn she aimed and fired it in her magic with deadly accuracy, a laser assisting her aim only partially. With support from Heavy Enforcement, the Lunar units would be storming every place they could, kicking down doors and ordering any inside to stand down. They took no chances, any who didn't stop and drop were shot as for all they knew anypony could be armed. While things were at a bloody stalemate before, the arrival of Heavy Enforcement turned the tide quickly as any armed pony was quickly run through with 600 round per minute gunfire from Metal Heart's LMG. Many quickly tried to hide in the night club, as the merchant stands proved ineffective as cover. In response, the Heavy Enforcement units pulled out a couple of the infamous Scattered Explosive Room Clearance Devices or SERC Device. Four spherical shaped grenades were tossed into the club, the spheres splitting themselves apart sending many small explosive charges into the air before they detonated. Nearly anypony unfortunate enough to be present were torn apart by the many small but numerous explosions, some trying to run for cover to no avail. Anomaly would flip through the cameras unhindered as anypony who would normally watch over the network was likely running for their lives. Out of curiosity, she decided to look at the message that GAI-7 sent... "If a raid comes into here there's a chance that a massive loss of life can happen in the ensuing fight. There are many who in technical terms of morality are of minimal wrong and not deserving of being potentially killed in what will be a massive gunfight." She would find this a strange thing for what appeared to be some artificial intelligence, one that did not appear to have gained sentience, to say such a thing. Looking through cameras she would suddenly see a sight to make her gasp and scream in horror. There was a number of dead ponies, torn apart by the advanced yet brutal grenades tossed in. It was not only armed ponies which appeared to have been hit, many appeared to be little but party goers who attempted to go prone only to be blasted open from above. Some seemed to have limbs blown not so clean off, others mercifully had their heads blasted to pieces. Reports of brutality and unarmed ponies killed found within the forbidden archive flashed came to her mind. She would simply watch, her expression locked in an expression of shock as through her eyes she viewed the continued carnage which unfolded. The S4 ponies of both royal guards carved through, knocking out anypony who would surrender and killing any even slightly perceived as a threat. Any dressed in Cyberculture style were treated with particular caution and alarm, as they were all suspected cyberterrorists. Some would simply gun down groups of them in such suspicions, remembering what was reported of the mall incident. They were not merciful, assuming the whole place a criminal den and treating it's occupants accordingly. Anomaly would soon look into the web cameras of computers in a room also full of toys, and 3D pen creations. A multitude of young fillies and colts hid under a table, as well as a few adults hiding. Soon enough the lock on the door inside could be seen blasted through by a single shotgun blast, and three Lunar S4s barged in. One was armed with an HSG-10 shotgun, an EQUE-TECH manufactured ten gauge pump action shotgun, while the others had common AWS-56 assault rifles as they hovered into the room. One pony in front of the table sat on their haunches and dropped the machine pistol hey held next to them. A unicorn filly underneath the table, raised in an environment where guns were generally used for protection, naively tried to pull the weapon under the table. "Nonononono please don't no no!" Anomaly said, frantically moving to jack into the communications to let them know there were children under the table. The one with the shotgun would spot this in their alert and immediately move and aim their weapon under the table, pulling the trigger in an eyeblink as they viewed the weapon unleash its power on many small terrified eyes. Looking at the cameras, Anomaly would faint, and cry internally as she locked herself away deep within her brain augmentation's sleeping mode. The Lunar Guard would freeze for a moment, bionic limbs and fingers gripping the weapon and viewing the horror through the weapon's sight. The others aimed underneath only to be lucky enough to hold their fire before contributing to what was seen. One of the ponies that was hiding in the place, a cyber goth mare who ran the children's haven that was this bunker, shook and sobbed as the others backed off in shock. The shotgun fell as the bionic fingers released it and the guard fell back to a wall. His comrades quickly tried to reassure him that it was not his fault, and would soon turn the blame to the adults present as they forced them out. A mental breakdown ensued in the mind of the one with the shotgun as he was helped while another watched the kids who were by now huddled into the back wall. Soon enough the fighting was over, all were either killed or apprehended and the two I&I personnel were found and given proper medical treatment. A commotion would ensue outside the day care, and soon draw Metal's attention. The large unicorn bionic would walk up and ask them... "What's the commotion, you're supposed to be mobilized for transporting suspects?" "I-I-I-I KILLED SOME BUCKING KIDS!!!" said the one as he fell to the ground and broke down. Metal's bionic eyes immediately drew to the guard as she heard this, walking to him with a shocked expression. The others would then say quickly in his defense... "It's not his fault! These buckers here had those kids along in the first place, not to mention apparently taught them to try to grab a bucking gun when police are around! He couldn't see them, they were under the table and one grabbed a gun one of these buckers dropped!" Metal looked to the guard who looked back with terrified eyes, then looked over to the ponies who were apprehended from the bunker. She looked at them with a scowl, saying to them. "Bringing kids into your little criminal city project? Teaching them to grab a gun on first sight of the cops?" The cyber goth mare, tearing up said to her "T-t-they are orphans with no other place to go! They have no part in what goes on here! They grabbed a gun cause they were scared!!" Drawing a pistol from the guard's holster next to her, she angrily unloaded the weapon onto the mare. "Should. Have. Bucking. Given. Them. To THE BUCKING FOAL SERVICES THEN!" looking to the others she aimed her LMG and held the trigger as she gunned them down angrily. Being a grandmother herself the mare, with blame skewed on the adults present, was not merciful in dealing with those 'responsible' for the death of children. Looking to the guard she said to him. "Get up and get back to duty, you're not to blame for them dragging kids into their crime nest. Don't spread any word about this happening. I can tell you the kids will get proper though secret burial, these buckers, however, will be just disposed of like the trash they are." she looked to the bullet hole ridden corpses and sighed "A major find and victory for the law, but at such a major cost...." Owl was alive only due to a lucky find of a healing injection by Vision, and only for enough time for him to receive medical help. Many S4 guards were either killed or in need of medical help as well. Medical autocarriages rolling into the Shadow District to provide the needed assistance. News media was quickly directed on what to report, telling of a successful and decisive raid on a criminal operation and the heroic efforts and sacrifices made by the Lunar and Solar Guards. It proved effective as per usual in keeping the public from any sort of fear and panic, instead helping to maintain the strong positive Public Relations. Anomaly, coming out of her faint, watched as things unfolded. She began to see the system and its functions, everything she was told from both its opponents and supporters coming together. The system was indeed a construct built on skewed facts and even lies, manipulating the popular views. It was all evidently to protect them from the scariest of realities, including the evident reality of both Guard's brutality. Looking some more she would find in the cameras some of the many suspects being interrogated at gunpoint and seemingly unhindered in what was technically unauthorized. She studied the system's workings, the reality and how it would most likely bring immense fear to the public as well as the methodology of keeping such a reality from the public's eye. The veil was a moral double edged sword, one with good intentions but an arguably immoral execution. The horrors that came to her mind scarred her deeply and made her mind wonder if the construct was worth even keeping at all. Then she remembered what Doctor Freemane said to her, foretelling the fall of the system. By now she couldn't believe him more, then remembered her previous voiced intentions of trying to better things herself. She later thought herself crazy, but now she felt like an effort of some kind needed to be made from the outside of the system. The mare pondered on what she might try to do to make such an effort, she had an easy access to the InterNet and such a power was strong in a world so dependent on it. She, however, felt she would need to do something more than the hacktivism like Digital Hoof's. Her mind searched for an answer and pondered on the world and it's current state, then also pondered on how the world was long ago in the days of her famous ancestor. "Long ago Equestria didn't have computers, autocarriages, great monoliths of steel and colossal sprawling cities. Yet with these great things received, one thing was lost.....Harmony."