//------------------------------//
// The Hunt For Sterling Cross 
// Story: Tainted Silver 
// by Bluecatcinema 
//------------------------------//

Sterling, shaken by what he had seen, stumbled downstairs and clambered back onto the sofa. He wrapped the blanket over him and screwed his eyes shut, intent on blocking out any further hallucinations.

'No more.' He thought. 'Please, no more. I can't take it. I'd even take another round of Father invading my dreams over this...'

Thankfully, Sterling managed to drop off to sleep soon after, but his sleep was fitful. When he awoke the next morning, he was still tired.

"Oh, what a night..." He groaned, as he made his way to kitchen.

The family were already seated, and enjoying their own breakfast. Sterling made to join them, but as he did, he saw six very unwelcome ponies appear bother his eyes.

'No...' Sterling froze. 'Not them. Anypony but them...'

They were six of the "Seven Deadly Sins", a group whom Sterling had fooled into taking pages from King Sombra's cursed spell book, who had been corrupted by that magic, and mostly killed by a vile pony who sought their power (though Sterling had a hoof in the fates of some). They were all standing around the family: The Zebra Uroho Gourmand standing by Globe, Stolz Hubris by Huckleberry, Mǎ Rancour by Eclipse, Venus Eros by Cherry, and Lethargy Laiskiainen and Dr. Zhadnost by Big Red.

"Sterling Cross..." Rancour snarled, a gaping hole in his chest. "Look what you did to us..."

"We're dead because of you..." Gourmand gurgled, his large stomach ripped wide open.

"Well, not me." Zhadnost admitted, his solid gold body speaking without moving his mouth. "But I'm as good as dead..."

"All because you gave us those lousy pages..." Eros gurgled, her body a shattered and crushed mess.

"You ruined our lives." Hubris added, his body in a similarly crushed state.

"Everything was okay before you came along." Lethargy scowled, clutching his chest. "You did this to us."

"You killed us all." Rancour hissed.

"Murderer..." Hubris spat.

"Filth." Eros added.

"Scum." Lethargy growled.

"Monster." Gourmand added.

"How can you live with yourself?" Zhadnost asked.

'I didn't mean for you to suffer like that...' Sterling thought regretfully. 'I didn't. I couldn't have imagined just how bad things would have gotten...'

"Ah, there ya are, Sterling." Big Red smiled. As Sterling focused on him, the visions faded away (to his relief). "It looked like ya were gonna sleep right past breakfast."

"Yeah, sorry." Sterling yawned. "Had a rough night."

"It certainly looks like it." Cherry frowned. "I don't mean to be rude, but you've looked better, Sterling."

"Relax." Sterling yawned again. "I'm too tired to be offended."

"In that case, you look like warmed-up Timberwolf droppings." Eclipse smirked.

"Eclipse..." Big Red frowned.

"Sorry." Eclipse shrugged.

"And I thought I had bad bed head in the mornings." Huckleberry snorted. "I can lend you my mane brush if you want."

"Nah, I'm good." Sterling shrugged. "Once I get some breakfast in me, I should be fine."

"That always works for me." Globe grinned, finishing off his own food. "May I be excused?"

"Of course, dear." Cherry nodded.

"Thanks." Globe got up and left the kitchen.

Eclipse and Huckleberry finished their food soon after, and also departed. Sterling was starting to feel better as his stomach was being filled.

'Maybe there's hope for this day yet...' He mused.

Meanwhile, Big Red opened up his morning paper, The Dodge Junction Tribune, and began to read.

"Oh, mah Faust." Big Red gasped, straightening up.

"What is it, Red?" Cherry asked, glancing over at Big Red.

"Did the value of cherries just drop?" Sterling joked.

“If only that wuz the case.” Big Red frowned, as he showed him the paper. On it were the words ‘Changelings poisoned by revolutionary group' followed by a picture of a crashed airship with the Forefathers' symbol on it.

Sterling’s blood ran cold.

“No…” He mouthed, all hope he had for the day gone in an instant.

“It sez here there’s bin an attack on the Changeling hive.” Big Red declared, “Sum yahoo made sum kinda illness and infected one of the poor critters with it, and it sent the whole place in ta lockdown.”

'Why does that sound familiar?' Sterling thought sourly.

"Those poor things." Cherry gasped with horror. "Who could do such a vile thing to them?"

“Sez here that the ‘Forefathers’ are to blame.” Big Red frowned.

“The Forefathers?” Cherry frowned. “Wait… wasn’t that the name of the group that had that giant metal spider in Canterlot? I overheard Shine talking to the others about it.”

“Aw geez.” Big Red groaned, “Already bad ‘nuff they wrecked Canterlot. These psychos are goin’ after everyone!”

’Gridlock…’ Sterling sat there, stupefied, ’That son of a bitch actually done it. He actually pulled off Project: Infestation...’

“Did they say how many…” Cherry was about to ask, but couldn’t bother to finish her sentence.

"Hundreds, maybe thousands." Big Red said grimly. "But here's a li'l good news: they managed tah put together a cure. Sprayed it all over the hive."

“...Wait, really?” Sterling glanced up, surprised, “They found a cure?”

“Yeah.” Big Red nodded, “There ain’t no detail about it, but the paper sez that the infection’s gone, and that the two Forefathers fellers responsible are both dead.”

“Dead?” Sterling repeated to himself. ’No way… Gridlock, Harlhooves… both of them? How could this happen? To them of all ponies?’

“Did they say who they were?” Cherry asked.

“Naw, they didn’t say.” Big Red frowned. “They must not have wanted to give those yahoos the honour of being in the papers.”

“Well, good.” Cherry shook her head. “I just can never understand how this world could have such monsters in it." Cherry shook her head. "First Canterlot, now this? If I ever meet one of these 'Forefathers', I'll give them a piece of my mind."

"And Ah'd give 'em a piece a' mah hoof..." Big Red growled. "These lousy, scummy varmints. If anypony deserves the wrath a' Faust, it's them. Hell, if I see one in front of me, Ah break their back!"

Sterling suddenly stood up, his face ashen.

"You okay, Sterling?" Big Red asked.

"I... I'm fine." Sterling stuttered. "I just... need some air. Think I'll talk a little stroll. Work off my breakfast..."

"But you haven't finished your breakfast." Cherry pointed out the few remaining morsels.

"I'm good, thanks." Sterling barely glanced back as he rushed out of the kitchen.

"...What was that about?" Cherry frowned.

"Maybe he wuz really affected by that Changeling story." Big Red mused. "Poor fella wuz as white as a sheet."

"I suppose so." Cherry nodded. "No offense to him, but I didn't peg Sterling as the sensible type."

"Neither did ah." Big Red shrugged. "Still, guess ya learn sumthin' new every day..."

Sterling walked away from the homestead, still reeling from what he had just heard.

'So the Forefathers carried out Project: Infestation...' He thought. 'And so soon after Project: Titanfall? Oh Faust, if ponies hadn’t heard of the Forefathers before, they certainly have now.’

Sterling took in the warm dusty air, as his thoughts went to Gridlock and Harlhooves. While he never much cared for either of them, it still evoked a sense of sadness to know they were gone.

’Those damn fools…’ Sterling let out a harrowing sigh. ’I always knew that project was going to get them killed… I just didn’t think they would die just like that.’ His thoughts then went to the Changeling hive, as his frown turn to a deep scowl. ’Just what the hell were they trying to accomplish? It’s already bad enough that everypony was tricked into carrying out Solomon’s revenge fantasy, but for them to go along with Gridlock’s viral outbreak?’

He shook his head, repressing all the outrage he had within, as he then thought of the stallion he once called his leader.

’Father… I don’t know what goes on in your head anymore.’ Sterling glared. ’Everypony kept telling me you had a reason for all this bloodshed and destruction. That it was for the betterment of Equestria… was destroying Saddlevale for the betterment of Equestria? Was Project: Infestation for the betterment of Equestria? Was everything I had done for you for the betterment of the Equestria?’

Sterling took a deep breath, as the anger soon gave way to sadness once more.

’I… I just don’t know anymore.’ Sterling admitted. ’It looks like I jumped ship at the right time… but how long do I have before somepony figures out that I was once a Forefather myself? What then?’ He let out another sigh, ’And here I thought today was looking better…' He sighed deeply. 'Only one thing to do now, and that's to drown my sorrows. Enough drink just might help get my mind off this... And I really don't want to think what might happen before some meddling government stooge tracks me down...'

Meanwhile, over at the top secret headquarters of Taskforce Omega, a special operations group that was created to combat the Forefathers and other threats to Equestria, located within the mountain ranges near Quanticolt, two of the group’s newest recruits, Caboose Napoleon and Fletcher Ulysses, along with their leader and director of the RDL, Elite Everest had just returned from the Changeling Territory.

They had recently aided the Changelings and other ponies in thwarting Project: Infestation, an project that involved infecting Changelings with a strand of virus known as the Last Bacterium, using them as hosts to infect ponies who would otherwise be impervious to the disease.

It was a project that the Taskforce thought to had previously foiled back in Reinadh, ultimately leading to Black Knight Paladin, a soldier at the time, to be branded a traitor to his country, all for the sake of protecting his family and friends from the Forefathers’ wrath.

Needless to say, when the viral attack occurred, Black Knight, along with everypony within the Taskforce was faced with a rather annoying sense of déjà vu.

Fortunately, thanks to the efforts of the smartest ponies gathered, and a shocking twist from Sleight, the pony king of the Changelings, the project was foiled, the disease was no more, and the Forefathers was down two of their most influential members. All in all, it has been a productive week.

Within the secret headquarters, specifically in the conference room, the whole Taskforce had gathered, awaiting the trio’s return.

Black Knight Paladin had his head propped on his hoof as he absent-mindedly tapped his other hoof. Fury Xaldin, the second most recent addition to the team after Caboose and Fletcher, was rapidly jabbing one of his spears into the gaps between his individual talons.

Heinrich Armory, the team’s inventor and technical support, was adjusting the screws on a communicator. At the table not far from Black and Fury, Master Mind, the strategist and brain whiz, was playing chess with Incognito, the team’s infiltrator. Curled up at the end of the table was Titanium Cerberus, the sole Diamond Dog of the team, snoring up a storm.

Standing against the wall behind Black was Cutter Ballista, Elite Everest’s second in command, as he checked his watch.

"What's takin' 'em so long?" Ballista frowned.

"Who cares?" Fury snorted, still playing his game. "It's more peaceful around here without those two rookies."

"It was until you opened your mouth." Black smirked.

"Bite me." Fury growled.

"I'm sure they'll be here soon." Armory shrugged. "Probably just hit some traffic, or something."

"Maybe there was just more to clean up then they expected." Incognito surmised. "It's not every day a full-on plague is shut down..."

“You know, I still don’t get why I couldn’t help out with finding the cure.” Master Mind pouted, as he moved his knight chess piece. “I mean, I got a bachelor’s in biology..”

“Your expertise were better needed here, Master.” Ballista declared. “Besides, they had four brainiacs over there already.”

“Yeah, a Princess, a nerd, a mafioso, and a Nightcrawler.” Fury scoffed, “You would had been redundant.”

"Like your brain." Master Mind snorted. "I would have been a lot of help. My brilliance is-"

Suddenly, Incognito knocked over his king.

“Checkmate.” Incognito smirked.

“Dammit!” Master Mind chucked the chess board aside.

"You were saying?" Fury grinned wickedly.

"That doesn't count." Master Mind said stubbornly. "I was distracted."

"Yeah, distracted bragging about yourself." Armory joked.

"He's got you there, Double M." Black chuckled.

"And me without my camera..." Ballista snorted.

Suddenly, the doors open as Elite Everest, flanked by Caboose and Fletcher, walked in, deep in conversation.

"Wow, that was some crazy stuff that went down." Caboose declared.

"I agree." Fletcher nodded. "Unleashing a viral infection on Changelings so that it can become strong enough to infect ponies... I could only imagine how bad it would have been if the outbreak did make it out of quarantine."

"Ah, yes." Elite agreed. "This outbreak made Reinadh look like the common cold."

"Yeah... and to think, the Secretary of Defense and the Senator were in on it together..." Caboose frowned. "I mean, we did know about Gridlock. But Harlhooves? That was a huge twist! ...Well, not really..." He glanced toward the sky. "King of the Changelings didn't really offer enough possibilities for potential villains. I mean, sure that Collar Cuffs guy was a big jerk and all, but he was more of an one-off character, and the rebel changelings wouldn’t really do something like this-"

“Caboose, you’re doing it again.” Fletcher cringed.

“Sorry.” Caboose apologized.

“Caboose wasn’t wrong, though.” Elite admitted. “In hindsight, Gridlock himself raised a couple red flags, whether it was his brutish ways or his ego. The fact that Harlhooves would associate himself with such a stallion should had been a dead giveaway. Not that would it had mattered...”

“I know. It must have been hard, knowing that somepony of political status was one of the Forefathers, and not being able to touch them without fear of retaliation." Fletcher pointed out.

“A little bit.” Elite nodded, “Especially when they are smug assholes like Gridlock…” But he then gave a wry grin, “But it only makes the take down all the more satisfying. The Taskforce has been compiling all that evidence of Gridlock and Harlhooves' doings for years. When the time was right… BAM!” He slammed his metal hoof, “It was over!"

"Hey, guys." Black smiled.

"Salutations, comrades." Master Mind smiled.

"Welcome back!" Incognito grinned.

"Whatever." Fury shrugged.

"It's about time." Ballista rolled his eyes.

"Rrrf!" Titan barked, immediately roused by their return, he rushed over and licked each of them.

"Ew." Fletcher cringed.

"Like being hugged by my uncle Silvio." Caboose chuckled.

"It's good to see you too, Titan." Elite smiled.

"Glad to have you back." Armory smiled.

"It's good to be back." Elite beamed. "Especially after such a successful mission."

"Yeah, those Forefathers really got it this time!" Caboose cheered.

"Yes, their wicked schemes were well and truly stymied." Fletcher agreed.

"What about Gridlock? Did we get him?" Black inquired.

"Well, yes and no." Fletcher admitted.

"Yeah, you can say that Gridlock just went to pieces. He totally fell apart. He just couldn't keep it togeth-" Caboose declared.

“What Caboose means to say is Gridlock is dead.” Elite said simply. "The King knocked him into a spinning rotor."

“Really?” Black sighed. “Dammit. I was so looking forward to seeing him behind bars."

“We’re sorry, Black.” Fletcher nodded. “We know how much you wanted him to pay for what happened in Reinadh. But Sleight got to him before we did.”

“It’s fine.” Black shook his head. “At least Gridlock’s done for… how about that partner of his?”

"As far as we know, he's dead too." Elite shrugged. "According to Sleight, Harlhooves had a falling out with Gridlock… emphasis on ‘falling’."

“Harlhooves?” Fury glanced up, as he continued jabbing his spear, “As in Aspir Harlhooves? He was the other guy?”

"Yes, indeed." Elite nodded. "You knew him?"

“Not really.” Fury frowned, “All I know is he and Barbossa used to play golf every once in awhile. But he seems like a Faust damn pansy. Not somepony who would drop a virus on a bunch of bugs.”

“Hmph, and here you thought small guys couldn’t do crap.” Incognito scoffed, still incensed at a comment Fury made to him awhile back.

“Hey, at least I don’t have to give ponies the saddle sores to kick their ass.” Fury scowled.

“Easy, Fury…” Elite gave a warning glance, as he turned to everypony else, “Anywho, we were unable to locate Harlhooves’ body following the deployment of the cure. We could only assume that Harlhooves died from the fall or being eaten alive by the infected Changelings.”

"Either way, he will no longer be an issue for us." Fletcher declared.

"Indeed." Elite nodded.

“Poor guy though.” Caboose admitted, “I bet he tasted terrible.”

"I'm just glad they managed to put an end to that virus." Armory declared.

"And at least we didn't have to destroy any villages this time." Black snorted. "That's a plus..."

"I think we can all be grateful that a full-fledged outbreak was once again prevented." Elite nodded. "But now that we are here, we can proceed to other matters of business. There are always more missions to attend to."

"Oh, I'm excited now!" Caboose squealed. "What's next?! Going undercover as dragon scale polishers? Taking on a counterfeit jean smuggling ring? Going undercover in a freak show? Investigating a bunch of ponies painting themselves black and white and passing themselves off as zebras?!"

“Easy, Caboose…” Elite chuckled, “As much as I appreciate your enthusiasm, the only things you and Fletcher will be doing is getting some rest. We've all had a long week."

"Aw, but I wanna know what we're going to be doing next!" Caboose groaned.

"Come on, Caboose." Fletcher urged. "I know you like action, but everypony needs time to decompress. Otherwise, you'll end up burning yourself out. And then you'll be no good to anypony. Understand?"

"Yeah, I guess..." Caboose sighed.

“Trust me, mate, after you had been in this line of work as long as we have, you will come to appreciate these moments of reprieve.” Ballista smirked.

“Yes, but before we let you go, there is something I need to discuss with all of you.” Elite declared, “So, if everypony could take a seat please.”

"This oughta be good." Ballista smirked.

"You have no idea." Armory muttered. "I think I know what Elite has in mind..."

Everypony there took a seat (including Titan). Fury also, albeit still playing his spear game.

"Okay boss, what's the question?" Caboose asked. "I'm all ears... and hooves, and tail, and eyes, and muzzle..."

“Well, there is only one thing I need from you…” Elite declared, “...How good is your information superhighway?”

"My info whatnow?" Caboose frowned.

"Information superhighway." Elite repeated. "Otherwise, your chain of communications. I did a little research on your mafia family, and I learned that you have quite a list of agents that are good at finding ponies who don't want to be found. In fact, recently, one of your agents had found that one fellow… Lunard Cloudskipper, I think his name was-"

A loud slam jolted everypony, as they all glanced at Fury, who seemed to jab his spear right into the table, Fury’s beak turned into a dark scowl.

“Fury, what the buck?” Incognito glared.

“Sorry, my talon slipped.” Fury said tersely.

“Well, could you not stab the table next time, mate?” Ballista frowned. “Do you know how much Bits it cost to replace these tables?”

“It won’t happen again.” Fury huffed.

“...As I was saying, Caboose,” Elite continued, casting a glance at Fury. “Your family’s agents are good at finding ponies. Is this correct?”

"Oh, you mean like Gregory and the others?" Caboose smiled. "Oh yeah, they're the best around. Give them something to go on and they will find the guy in a snap!” He then frowned. “...Why do you ask?"

“Because, Caboose, we are going to need all the help we can get to find a certain somepony." Elite said seriously. “That is actually our next mission.”

"Find somepony?" Fletcher frowned. "You mean like a ponyhunt?"

"Essentially, yes." Elite nodded.

"Who's the guy?" Caboose asked.

"I think you might remember him… Armory, if you would..." Elite nodded to Armory.

“Right away.” Armory left the room to fetch the projector.

"I wonder who we'll be going after?" Black mused.

"It could be anypony." Fletcher mused. "There's an awful lot of malcontents out there..."

"Counterfeit zebras, I know it." Caboose smirked.

"Wanna bet?" Fury sneered.

"I think it might be something a little more... run-of-the-mill." Incognito mused.

"Well, logic dictates the Forefathers won't be in much of a condition to cause trouble at the moment." Master Mind surmised.

"We'll see..." Ballista smiled knowingly.

Armory returned with the projector, getting the light on the way in. He turned it on, faced it towards a wall, and a image came up… that being of Sterling Cross, from when he joined the Crystal Guard.

"Him..." Fletcher glared, instantly recognizing him.

“Is that who I think it is?” Incognito frowned.

“I think it might be.” Master Mind shared the same frown.

“Huh, didn’t think I’d see that face again.” Black scoffed.

Titan's eyes narrowed.

Caboose was the only one in the room who didn’t have a face of recognition...

"...Hmm… he looks familiar... I think I might have went to college with him once." Caboose frowned.

"...Are you serious?" Fury growled, as he turned to Fletcher, “Is he serious?”

“Caboose… it’s him!” Fletcher turned to Caboose, “We met him before-”

"Hey, hey, don't help me, Fletcher, I can get it..." Caboose raised his hoof warningly, as he glanced at Armory. "Hey, can you draw angry eyebrows on him, Armory? That usually helps me!"

“Um, I don’t think projectors work like that, Caboose.” Armory said awkwardly.

“For crying out loud, Caboose, it’s Sterling Cross!” Fletcher groaned.

Caboose blinked at him.

“You know, the traitor from the Crystal Empire?” Fletcher added.

There was no reaction from him.

“The stallion we fought on the spider mere weeks ago?” Fletcher sighed.

Caboose still sat there.

“The stallion who broke my nose when I called him a coward?!” Fletcher growled, getting exasperated, as he pointed to his nose, which still had a healing scar on it.

“...I’m still drawing blanks here." Caboose shrugged. "Wait, lemme check the author's notes..."

From out of nowhere, Caboose pulled out a stack of papers, and quickly perused them.

"What the...?" Fury gaped.

"Don't ask." Fletcher sighed.

“...Oh yeah!” Caboose turned to Sterling’s picture. “Now I remember!” He glanced at the photo, giving a wolf whistle, “Wow! He really look handsome in this picture!”

“You know...I think I'm starting to prefer when it was just me and Black." Fury scowled.

“Funny, I was thinking quite the opposite.” Black scoffed.

“So what exactly does Sterling Cross have to do with any of this?” Master Mind asked, “Last time any of us saw him, he was a part of that hit squad Gridlock threw at Black.”

“Yeah, he was kind of a pushover.” Black mused, “Then again, I hadn’t really fought him much… I was…” Black glanced away, remembering the dark place he was in at the time, “Preoccupied.”

“To answer your question, Master Mind, Sterling Cross is the subject of our next mission.” Elite explained, as he turned to Ballista, “Ballista, if you would.”

“Okay, everypony, here’s all we know about Sterling Cross.” Ballista pulled out a set of files, as he passed it around the table. Everypony opened their files and began reading. “Sterling Cross, age 39, born in Cairode, Haygpt. Son of Green and Silver Cross.”

“Silver Cross, eh?” Armory mused, “She was that minister of the Haygptian defense initiative, wasn’t she?”

"Yes." Elite nodded. "She had a reputation for being stern and uncompromising, but also efficient and capable."

"A real pillar of the community, huh?" Black mused.

“Well, I wish the same could be said about Sterling.” Elite mused, “According to his records, Sterling was considered a problem child, and was sent off to the Steel Hooves Military Academy. But weeks later, he hitchhiked over 500 miles back to Cairode, just to burn down his family home.”

“Hmph, I know military school is not for all ponies, but I would not go to these lengths to exact revenge on my parents.” Fletcher frowned with disdain.

“I dunno. I once flew all the way from Bitaly to Applewood to punch Will Furlong in the face for not being funny in that one movie. That’s like…” Caboose glanced up as he crunched the numbers in his head. “600 miles?”

“6332 actually.” Master Mind corrected, having pulled out a abacus.

“Well, according to the police report, the parents weren’t home, but his brother was.” Ballista explained, “They were going to charge him with attempted murder, when he suddenly ‘disappeared’ from juvenile hall...”

“Hmm, I can only guess how that happened.” Black scowled knowingly.

“Indeed. That is presumably when Sterling was first introduced to the Forefathers.” Elite nodded, “Ever since his ‘disappearance’, there has been sightings of him throughout the years. Including the instance where Gridlock and the Black Sheeps ambushed Black, Sterling has somehow managed to integrate himself with the Crystal Guards, and instigated some sort of plan that involved professor Echo Alchemy and Sunset Shimmer. That plan ultimately landed him in prison, and he has remained there until recently when he broke out with a Silas Necross and Lunard Cloudskipper-”

Another slam was made, as everypony glanced at Fury, as a spear was embedded in the floor next to where he was sitting. Fury having grown the same dark scowl again.

“Sorry, talon slipped again.” Fury grunted.

“...But you weren’t even using your talon.” Incognito muttered.

“At least he didn’t hit the table.” Ballista added.

“...As I was saying before I was interrupted.” Elite huffed, “After he broke out with the others, he was last seen by me, Caboose, and Fletcher, in our skirmish on the iron spider. He hasn’t been seen since.”

“So… you want me to get my guys to find him so we can go and kick his butt and bring him to jail?" Caboose offered, “Because I am down with that, no problem!”

“Actually, Caboose, that isn’t why I want to find him.” Elite said stiffly.

"Beg pardon?" Fletcher frowned.

“Sir, why else would we hunt a scumbag like Sterling if it’s not to bring him to jail?” Incognito asked.

“Because it is not my intention to bring Sterling in.” Elite confessed, “...You see, I am hoping to recruit Sterling into Project: Freedom.”

“WOO?!” Titan perked up in shock.

"What?!" Black gasped.

"Seriously?" Incognito gaped.

"Inconceivable!" Master Mind yelped.

"No way!" Armory cringed.

"You must be joking!" Fletcher spluttered.

“Whatchu talkin' 'bout, Willis?!” Caboose yelped… only for the others to look at him. “Dammit! I always mess up when this happens!”

“Sir, you can’t be serious!” Fletcher scowled, “This is Sterling Cross! An agent from the Forefathers! The pony who was with the others when Titanfall was happening! You're telling me that you want our enemy on our team?"

“Yeah, why not invite the Al Quinoa while we’re at it?!” Incognito snarled.

“Come on, don’t be like that!” Ballista frowned, “You guys don’t mind havin’ Pike around.”

“Pike was one thing, Ballista.” Armory nodded, “But he actually repented before he became our informant.”

"And even then, it took a while for some of us to accept him." Incognito declared, glaring at Ballista, “Remember?”

"That was... different." Ballista scowled. "A special case. Besides, I’m okay with him. It’s Fury you should be glaring at.”

“Oh yeah, blame the Griffon with dark magic. Tale as old as time.” Fury rolled his eyes.

“Funny, I never heard of it.” Caboose frowned in confusion.

Fury glared intensely at Caboose… only to let out a sigh, “...Too easy.”

“Elite, I don’t mean to doubt your ways of persuasion, but what make you think you can recruit a pony like Cross to our team?” Black asked firmly.

"Black is right!" Master Mind scowled. "It beggars logic!"

"Rrrrrf! Rrrrrf!" Titan barked. "Rrrf, rrrf, rrrf!"

“Yeah, what he said.” Master Mind added.

“Everypony, please calm down.” Elite instructed, “I know what you're all thinking, but me and Ballista have our reasons for wanting Sterling in our corner."

“Yeah, like what?” Fletcher crossed his hooves.

“Well, to start off, me and Elite had looked over his documents from when he joined the Crystal Guard.” Ballista explained, “While some of his credentials were faked, his skillsets and abilities certainly weren’t. His body is in excellent physical condition for a stallion his age. He is a master in hoof-to-hoof combat, ranging from Kali, Boxing, Jeet Kune Do, and Krav Maga, and is a whiz in sharpshooting and sniping, and knows how to operate numerous forms of firearms. Even shot over a thousand yards once, though he allegedly insists it was two thousand.”

“Come on, no pony can be that good.” Fletcher growled.

“I beg to differ. I saw how Sterling handled himself against you and Caboose back on the spider. I admit I was occupied with-” Elite paused, glancing at Fury, who still had his scowl, “The other threat, but he was able to fight both of you off.”

“But we still won.” Caboose added.

“Yes, but it took two of you to do so.” Elite explained, “Fletcher, with all his hard training at the Norhayan academy, couldn’t beat him alone, not for a lack of trying, mind you.”

Fletcher stifled a growl.

“Even then, it’s not just brawn that makes him appealing.” Elite explained, “He is also slightly more intelligent than your average stallion. He can speak in six languages: Equestrian, Prench, Bitalian, Russiaddlian, Spurnish, and one language I didn’t know even exist.”

“I think it’s Klingeld.” Caboose glanced at his file.

“And he knows his way around dark magic.” Elite declared, nodding at Fury. “In fact, the incident that led to his imprisonment had something to do with a spellbook belonging to Sombra.”

“...Ugh, Sombra…” Black cringed.

“Also, and you might like this, you two.” Ballista turned to Master Mind and Incognito, “Sterling also knows a thing or two about espionage and tactics. If he wasn’t already an Forefather agent, he would had made one hell of a soldier.”

“Oh yeah, who wouldn’t like to know that a psycho that can do both our jobs.” Master Mind sneered.

“Seriously, Ballista, what made you think we would like that?” Incognito snarled.

“I am still not getting why you think recruiting Sterling would be a good idea.” Black frowned, “I mean, we all more or less possess those qualities you just described… except Caboose, who has qualities that nopony else has.”

“You better believe it!” Caboose bragged.

“Well, there’s a third reason.” Elite explained, “As you all know, Pike has been a boon to us, providing us with information on the Forefathers-”

“And birdhouses!” Caboose added.

“Yes, that too.” Elite nodded, “But even then, Pike’s knowledge on the Forefathers was limited, not to mention somewhat dated.”

"I'll give you that." Black said reluctantly. "But he can still be useful to us."

“That’s debatable.” Fury scoffed, earning a glare from Black.

“Don’t worry, mate, we have no intention of cutting the line on ol’ Pike.” Ballista assured him, “But Sterling, as of now, is our biggest potential lead we have in finding out more about the Forefathers. Heck, he might be able to bring us to their front door!”

“Hold on, how is he our biggest lead?” Fletcher added, “What about Solomon Thunder? The lightning stallion we apprehended back in Canterlot? We already have him behind bars, and by the looks of things, he was the one in charge of Titanfall, if not most of the organization!”

“Yeah, not exactly.” Ballista cringed.

“...What do you mean by that?” Fletcher frowned.

“Well, not long after the attack, there was an incident in the prison cells.” Elite explained, “Solomon had allegedly tried to overpower his magic-cancelling ring, and he ended up blowing up his horn in the process.”

“What?!” Fletcher gasped, as everypony was just as surprised, “How?!”

“Indeed.” Master Mind frowned, “Those rings were designed in inflict great pain when somepony attempts to use magic. Somepony who had to go through unbearable amount of pain to try and overpower it.”

“And given how liberal he was with that lightning magic, I highly doubt the guy would had risked losing his horn to do it!” Incognito scowled.

“That is what we thought.” Elite nodded, “We believe there were suspicious circumstances regarding the incident, but as it stands, Solomon has been inconsolable ever since. Every attempt to interrogate all resulted in Solomon screaming profanities and incoherent cries. I fear even once he has gotten over his trauma, I doubt he will be willing to help us at all.”

"Meaning that Sterling is still our best bet." Ballista declared.

“That may be so.” Black admitted, before frowning, “But he is still one of them. It was one thing to convince any of us to join this team, but Sterling is one of the Forefathers’ agents, and a high-ranking one, I reckon.”

“Maybe not.” Elite revealed.

“What are you getting at?” Fletcher frowned.

“We’ve done some investigating following the attack on Canterlot.” Ballista explained, “There were a few eyewitnesses having seen a pony with Sterling’s description fleeing Canterlot as the attack drew to a close. We have reason to believe that Sterling might have gone rogue.”

“So, instead of being a Forefather, he's a deserter and a coward. That’s much better.” Incognito scoffed.

“I wouldn’t call him a coward. He kinda ruined Fletcher’s beautiful face when he did it.” Caboose cringed, gesturing to Fletcher’s healing scar.

“But Incognito does have a point.” Fletcher declared, rolling his eyes at Caboose’s unintentional jab, “Just because Sterling might not be one of the Forefather, he is still a criminal.”

“Yeah. I don’t think Sterling will be open to joining our entourage.” Master Mind shook his head, “I just don’t see that happening.”

“Why we’re considering the idea is beyond me.” Incognito growled, “I feel like we’re grasping at straws here.”

“Yeah, I think we passed that point when we brought in those two.” Fury glared at Caboose and Fletcher.

“Hey, that’s no fair!” Caboose pouted, “Just because Incognito and Master Mind aren’t as memorable and witty as the rest of us doesn’t make them any less part of this team!”

The room went silent once more, as Master Mind and Incognito gave a disapproving frown at Caboose… and then a spear slammed right past Caboose’s head into the wall.

“Fury...” Ballista scowled at Fury.

“My talon slipped!” Fury snarled.

“You threw it!” Incognito yelled.

“Settle down, everypony…” Elite sighed, as everypony turned to him, “Okay, I’ll admit, there is a fair chance that Sterling may refuse. Given the history between us and the Forefathers, Sterling might be greatly opposed to the idea. However, even if he doesn’t want to join our team, we can still learn everything he knows about the Forefathers. If we let this opportunity to cripple the Forefathers further, we may never get another chance for a long time.”

“Yeah, and despite what Elite just said, Sterling might be willing to come with us, if not just for protection.” Ballista explained.

"Protection?" Caboose frowned.

“If there’s one similarity that the Forefathers has the RDL, they both don’t take kindly to deserters.” Elite pointed out, “Except instead of throwing them into a cell like us, the Forefathers likes to throw them dead into a ditch.”

“Which is why it’s important that we find Sterling before the Forefathers does.” Ballista said firmly, “If we can get a stallion as skilled as Sterling onto our team, the team will be better for it. If not, we can at least get some pay dirt on the Forefathers.”

“Hmm, by that logic, that is a good point.” Black mused.

“Really, man?” Incognito scowled.

“Look, I’m not over the moon with the idea of working with a pony like Cross, but if Elite and Ballista think it will help us in the long run, then who I am to argue?” Black said sternly.

“Yeah, if it were up to me, I would kill the asshole.” Fury scoffed, “But if they want him onboard, ain’t no use whining about it.”

“Dude, what did he do to piss you off?” Incognito frowned.

“That lies under ‘none of your business’, bub.” Fury glared fiercely.

“Take it easy, Fury.” Ballista said firmly, “I know most of you guys ain’t for idea…”

“That’s an understatement.” Incognito growled, more incensed at Fury’s attitude.

"This is not a very logical choice." Master Mind declared.

"With all due respect sir, I think this is a crazy idea!" Fletcher declared.

"Rrrf!" Titan shook his head.

“I’m actually kind of indifferent.” Caboose chimed in.

“But like it or not, we’re doing this!” Ballista stated firmly, “So buck up. Alright, ladies?!”

"It's okay with me." Caboose nodded.

"Yeah, yeah." Black scowled.

"I suppose if it's already decided..." Armory shrugged.

"Orders are orders..." Fletcher sighed.

"I don't have to like it..." Incognito spat.

"Fine, ignore my sage counsel." Master Mind pouted.

"Rrroo." Titan sighed.

“Now that we are all in agreement, Caboose, do you think you could get your guys to find Sterling?”

“Sure thing.” Caboose nodded, “But are you sure you don’t want Gregory and the others to kick his butt? Not even a little?”

“No, Caboose.” Elite said firmly, “The last thing we want to do is scare Sterling with fancy-suited mafia men. He might get the wrong idea or worse, assume that the Forefathers sent them, and with a particular set of skills like Sterling’s, it goes without saying that we don’t want them to engage him in any way.”

“...Hmm, that makes sense.” Caboose shrugged, “I’ll drop them a line, see if they can’t sniff him out… what should I tell them though?”

“...Say ‘top men’ are looking for him.” Elite said with a wry look, “That should stop them from asking any questions.”

“Ah, the ‘top men’ treatment. Gotcha.” Caboose winked.

"Excellent." Elite smiled. "Once you've done that, you can go and take that rest Fletcher was talking about earlier."

"You got it." Caboose nodded as he got up. "I could use a nice, peaceful nap."

"Something tells me the rest of us aren't going to be able to sleep easy soon..." Fletcher scowled, as he joined him.

The two made their way out of the room, intent on returning home to rest, as Master Mind turned to Elite.

“Fascinating, sir.” Master Mind admitted, “You only knew the strange pony for a few weeks, yet you seem to know how to speak his language.”

“Well, when you had been the head of a military organization as long as I have, you learn how to speak the mind of the quirkiest characters.” Elite smirked, “Caboose, for all his eccentricities, is no different. I actually find it amusing.”

“More like infuriating.” Fury muttered to himself.

“So, what’s the plan of attack?” Black frowned.

“Well, while Caboose’s ponies are off doing their thing, we should do some sniffing around of our own.” Elite declared. "Master Mind and Incognito, I need you to look into finding any records on Sterling that may be out there."

"Yeah, sure." Incognito said grudgingly.

"Though I believe it is a waste of my skills, I shall comply." Master Mind sighed.

The two left the room together.

“Titan, I need you to go out and search for Sterling on your-” Elite turned to face Titan, only to see him gone. He only smirked, “Huh, good boy.”

“As for you, Fury…” Ballista turned to Fury.

“Say no more.” Fury gave a snide grin, as he got out of his seat, “‘Go to Cairode and ask around about Sterling’s past, seeing if anything can help us find the scumhoof’. I’m already on it.”

“Actually, that’s not what we had in mind.” Ballista frowned, “We think it’s best if you stick around here.”

“What?!” Fury sputtered, “If this is about my talon slipping, I wasn’t going to actually kill Caboose.”

“No, but that is something we will have to have a discussion about in the future.” Elite said sternly, “But there are some ponies in Cairode who we think might have some information on Sterling, and we are hoping to call upon someone who has diplomatic connections there."

“Then what I am supposed to do?” Fury scowled.

“Well, I was going to have Ballista and Black look through the field reports of missions where Sterling might had been sighted.” Elite suggested, “You could always help them-”

“Pass.” Fury sighed, “I think I'll go sharpen all the blades we have. That'll be more useful if you ask me..."

"Ballista, Black, I need you to check out the field reports." Elite instructed.

"You got it, chief." Ballista nodded.

"On it." Black nodded.

The two left the conference room and made their way to the records room.

"Some meeting." Black admitted. "And judging by the fact that you weren't all that surprised, I'm guess you already knew about Sterling?"

"Yep." Ballista nodded.

"So you really think we can get him on our side?" Black asked.

"Maybe." Ballista frowned. "But we'll have the best chance of doing so once we know all there is to know about him."

The two entered the records room.

“So, where do we start?” Black asked.

“Well, as it just so happens, I had a friend who happened to have made acquaintances with Sterling… let’s say things didn’t go well…” Ballista said grimly.

Many years ago...

Sterling was lost in regretful thoughts all the way back to the Infinity. Once they returned, he sullenly sleepwalked his way through the debriefing, and returned to his quarters. Ward was waiting for him as usual.

"I did a bad thing today, Ward." Sterling sighed, morosely stroking his faithful companion. "A very bad thing. And the worse part is, I didn't even know what I was doing until it happened..."

Ward whined quietly, sensing his master's sorrow.

"I didn't sign up for this so I could kill innocents" Sterling frowned. "I thought I was getting into a life of action, and doing important stuff... never thought that 'important stuff' would include wiping out villages."

Sterling sat down on his bed. Ward joined him, curling up by his side. For a long while, Sterling lay there, visions of the destruction he had been a party to flashing before his eyes.

A knock on the door broke the self-recriminating atmosphere.

"Sterling?" Loveless's voice called. "May I come in?"

"If you must..." Sterling sighed.

Loveless opened the door, and wheeled his way inside.

"I couldn't help but notice you were a little... out of sorts at the debriefing." Loveless declared.

"Yeah, finding out that my mission was really about slaughtering an entire village tends to make me 'out of sorts'." Sterling scowled.

"Ah, of course." Loveless mused. "Sterling, I know what happened must have been disconcerting, but it was necessary to-"

"Don't give me that 'it had to be done' garbage!" Sterling yelled. "Jetstream told me the same thing! He said we had to do whatever Father commands, even if it means killing innocent ponies!"

"Those ponies weren't exactly innocent." Loveless declared. "Father considered them a threat to our mission."

"They didn't look very threatening to me." Sterling snorted.

"Appearances can be deceiving." Loveless declared. "I'll admit, wholesale slaughter was rather extreme, but we must have faith in Father's wisdom."

"So we should blindly follow orders?" Sterling sneered. "Like mindless drones?"

"Father is wiser than any of us." Loveless declared. "It is his vision we are working to achieve, even if it means embarking on endeavors that seems less savory.."

"Wish you'd told me that before I signed up." Sterling pouted.

"I know this doesn't sit well with you." Loveless admitted. "But you must realize that our work is for the greater good. Only by obeying Father's orders to the letter will we succeed in creating a better world; A world where there will be as little pain and misery as possible. That sounds like a fair deal, doesn't it?"

"...Yeah, I guess." Sterling said half-heartedly.

"Good." Loveless smiled. "And rest assured, not every mission will involve a slaughter. Believe me when I say that the good we do will outweigh the bad in the end."

"I hope so." Sterling sighed.

"I know so." Loveless grinned. "Now, rest up, Sterling. You will have more work to attend to soon."

"Yeah, sure." Sterling nodded, as Loveless departed. "I just hope it won't be as bad as what happened today..."

A few days later, Sterling was called in for a new mission. Clay and Granite were also there, as was Baritone.

"Hey, kid." Clay smiled.

"Hey." Sterling smiled back. “How goes it?”

"Not too shabby." Granite grinned. "Took down some nosy thugs who were crawling on our turf in Trottingham.

"How about you, kid?" Clay asked.

"Oh, you know." Sterling shrugged. "Same ol' same ol'..."

Baritone looked at Sterling, but said nothing.

“Okay, guys, today’s mission is a simple one.” Jetstream smirked. “Today, you will be breaking into a RDL outpost!”

“...R-D-L?” Sterling frowned.

“What, you never heard of the Royal Defense Legion?” Clay asked. "They're soldiers, specially chosen to defend Equestria's interests overseas."

“Hold on, you want us to infiltrate a military outpost?” Sterling gaped. “That doesn’t sound simple!”

“Relax, kid, we’re not asking you to fight them.” Jetstream rolled his eyes. “You see, due to some complications on a mission, some of our agents were captured by RDL soldiers. While our agents were taught not to talk, even in duress, we fear that one of them might not be able to hold out before we can rescue them. Which is why we gotta free them posthaste. So, get in, get the agents, get out. Only engage the enemies as the last resort.”

"You can count on us." Granite nodded. "Right, Sterling?"

"Right." Sterling nodded, relieving that this mission wouldn't involve a slaughter.

"Excellent." Jetstream smiled, handing Baritone a map with the outpost's location. "Good luck."

After taking time to arm up, the group made their way to their destination, each decked out in stealth outfits.

"So, Baritone... how are you doing?" Sterling asked.

"Surviving." Baritone sighed. "It hasn't been easy, going solo. But I know my fallen comrades would want me to carry on."

"We've all lost friends on missions." Granite declared. "Heck, we lost our buddy Grit not too long ago."

"Yeah, that was rough." Clay nodded. "But our pals didn't die for nothing. They died for the mission. So we could keep going, and one day, make Father's vision a reality. That'll be their legacy, just you wait and see."

"Yeah..." Sterling mused, still not utterly convinced. "They didn't die in vain..."

They soon reached the outpost, a small bunker out on some plains. They sneaked around the back.

"Okay." Clay produced a lock pick. "Let's do this."

Using the lock pick, Clay opened the door. The group sneaked in, carefully edging their way through the corridors.

"The detention area is this way." Baritone declared, pointing around a corner. "Step lively, now."

As they kept moving, Baritone suddenly pulled Sterling back.

"Hey, what was-" Sterling started.

"Shh!" Baritone hissed.

At Baritone's urging, they edged against a dark corner, their stealth robes helping them blend in. Two soldiers passed by, oblivious to their presence.

"Okay, now we can keep going." Baritone whispered.

Moments later, they reached the door to the detention cells.

"You're up again, Clay." Granite declared. "The rest of us will keep watch."

Clay worked the lock open, and they entered a room where their comrades were tied to chairs, disheveled from their captivity.

“You know, I was worried for a moment.” Sterling smiled, as they walked over to the captives, “This mission is turning out to be a lot easier than I thought!”

"Yeah… there's a reason for that."

“Huh?!” Sterling gasped.

The agents turned to see a group of soldiers standing before them. Their commander was a pale green Unicorn with orange eyes.

“Oh, crapbasket.” Clay cringed.

“What? You think rescuing your pals would be that easy?” The commander scoffed, “We knew you would come for them eventually, so we set a trap.”

"Okay, let's just calm down." Sterling declared. "I'm sure we can talk this out..."

"You should've thought of that before breaking into a military complex." The commander sneered. "That alone is grounds for us to throw your flanks in the brig."

"Whatever happened to negotiation?" Sterling asked. "The rules of engagement-"

"Don't apply to terrorists." The commander spat. "Attack!"

The soldiers charged the agents.

"It won't be that easy!" Granite punched one out.

"Got any requests?" Baritone hit one with his keyboard.

"I love it when trouble comes to me!" Clay headbutted a soldier.

The commander tackled Sterling.

"Little young to be running with these guys, aren't you?" He sneered.

"Not so much." Sterling set off a flashbang, blinding the commander for a moment.

"Agh!" The commander yelped. When his vision cleared, Sterling was pointing his crossbow at him.

"Sorry, pal." Sterling sighed. "Just following orders."

"So are we." The commander scowled. "But our orders involve protecting life, not taking it. That’s all you Forefathers buckers ever care about!”

"You're wrong." Sterling shook his head. "We're working to build a better world. And sometimes, you've got to clear away what doesn't work!"

"That's a cheap way to justify the slaughter of innocents." The commander growled. "You're saying innocent lives are nothing but refuse to be removed? You Forefathers have got a twisted way of thinking, kid. Just how many have to die for you to make your 'better world'?"

Sterling was shaken by those words, so much so that the sounds of battle around him faded away. Unconsciously, he lowered the crossbow. The commander took advantage of his indecision to charge him.

"You wouldn't make a very good soldier, kid." The commander snorted. "No nerve."

"I'll show you nerve..." Sterling growled, as he struggled with his opponent.

"You think you're serving a noble cause, but you're not." The commander chided Sterling. "This 'Father' of yours is nothing but a power-hungry megalomaniac, out to take this world for himself. And he's conned all of you into believing he'll make a better world."

"He will!" Sterling growled.

"Yeah... for him, and him only." The commander spat. "You're on the wrong side, kid. The bad guy's side. You're working for monsters-"

"Shut up!" Sterling roared. Without thinking, he grabbed his crossbow and fired, catching the commander in the shoulder.

"Arrgh!" The commander growled, clutching his shoulder.

"You shut up, you hear me!" Sterling snarled.

"What's the matter, kid?" The commander sneered. "Can't handle the truth?"

"I said shut up!" Sterling struck him with the crossbow. "This is all for the greater good!" He struck the commander again. "You'll see! They'll all see!"

Sterling struck the commander several more times, reducing his face to a swollen, bruised mess. Then, as he made to strike again, Baritone grabbed the crossbow.

"Sterling, it's time to go!" He declared.

Sterling looked around, seeing that the soldiers were all done, and the captives freed.

“Ohhh…” The commander moaned, having not anticipated such ferocity from the young stallion.

"...Right." He nodded… before slugging the commander, knocking him out. "Yeah, let's go."

The group fled the building, and got back on the carriage.

"Thanks for the save, fellas." One of the captives smiled.

"No problem." Clay smiled. "Just doin' our job."

"Just relax." Granite urged. "We'll be back home soon."

Sterling was sitting in a corner of the carriage, staring at his dented and bloodied crossbow.

"Hey, kid." Clay walked over. "You okay? Ya seemed a little... intense back there."

"I'm fine." Sterling looked up. "Just needed to... let off some steam."

"A lot of steam, by the look of it." Baritone mused.

"It's not like the guy didn't have it coming, right?" Sterling smirked.

"For sure." Granite chuckled. "Still, try not to let loose like that too often. It's fun, but it can get exhausting real fast."

"I'll keep that in mind." Sterling nodded.

As the others turned their attention elsewhere, Sterling looked at his crossbow again, remembering the face he had used it on.

'I won't let the likes of that guy question me.' He thought. 'Father is bringing a new world into being. And we're all making that happen. We are... no matter what anypony says or thinks. We are. We've got to be...'