John had a plan. He felt much better with a plan.
It was simple really. Avoid conflict as much as possible. The HLF wasn't evil as such, but they were a threat to the people that he was looking after. Let alone one of the premier Gryphon squads, who John wasn't on a particularly good relationship with. Allowing them to come to harm probably wasn't going to smooth over relationships with Celestia and Luna.
The plan was simple. Scout, map, avoid. Easy enough, although the fact that they had no clue where the HLF actually were was not helping. They had a rough estimate of where the HLF were, but they weren't too sure. They could have already passed the detachment, if not for the fact that the HLF had seen the gryphons flying overhead. The gryphons who had been walking, if it was called that, back the way they came for the past day.
John walked back into the group of humans, finding the piece of debris again, raising himself up over the crowd. What little murmering there was died off into silence. All eyes turned to John.
"Alright... We've decided upon a course of action. We will split into two teams. All of you will stay here, under the first team. The gryphons, the other team and I will scout ahead and search for the HLF. When we find them, we'll find a way around. We'll come back, and lead you guys through there. After that, we should be straight on to the Conversion Bureau, and all this'll be over. Thank you for staying calm."
John hopped down from the temporary dias, moving through the crowd towards his men.
"Alright." He said when he reached them. "You guys," He pointed at the left half of the men. "Stay here and make sure nothing happens. You," He swept his arm to the right, "Will follow me and the Gryphons."
The first group of men that John had indicated simply nodded and moved back into the crowd, though much more wary then before. The others moved with more purpose. They dispersed, moving out towards where all the packs had been left. They grabbed their own, then moved around the building. They grabbed what they had been eating, gobbling it up as they returned to John, who had simply grabbed his own hiking pack. He hadn't unpacked yet, wanting to see to some of the people that were under his protection. He had learnt through experience seeming cold and distant was not a very good way to lead.
The men fell in behind John as he strode out of the building, slinging his pack as he passed back into the daylight. As his eyes readjusted, he looked back over his shoulder. Past the men, at the Gryphons. They were all following behind the soldiers, carrying their own weapons, as well as a pair of what could be called saddlebags. They were modified to clasp underneath as well as over, holding onto the wearer's hips. Sort of like a satchel, but positioned to be much more comfortable to wear as a quadruped .
The building their group was lunching in got smaller and smaller, before John turned around, motioning for the group to form a circle. His men shuffled into position, splitting in half to have an even number of men on each side of him. The circle widened a little, creating a gap for the gryphons as they too moved in.
"Alright," John started. "As said before, we have no idea where they are, or what they're doing. So we need to find them, without them finding us. If we find them, we mark where they are. Maybe watch them a couple of days to see if they're patrolling or not. We'll figure it out should we find them. If they find us, we run like hell. We don't bring them back here. We try to lose them. If not, we'll send runners back while the rest hold them off. At least we'll have a chance of still getting the civvies through that way."
The humans nodded slightly, casting slightly nervous glances around. But they had to do it. The gryphons were more casual. Gilda nodded slightly, and that seemed to be the voice of the entire squad. Lead Wing made no movement that John could see. Oz shifted her rifle, rolling her shoulders. Sparks seemed to be mostly absorbed in his PAD, but John was sure he had picked up on the plan.
_\!/_
They all walked for several hours, the small party trudging along beside the main roads, trying to keep out of sight of anyone who would be watching for them. The gryphons occasionally sending a pair of themselves ahead to silently search for signs of any other humans. Most times they came back with nothing new, occasionally with word of another civilian group, but not once with word of the HLF.
So they kept on walking, the asphalt burning from weeks of disuse, buildings not yet decayed but empty, lifeless nonetheless. Back at the Hotel, there was none of that feeling. Some buildings weren't in use, but overall it had a much cheerier coat. It had been a home for people who had no home to go back to. And being away for the short amount of time he had been, John was getting homesick.
Strange, that he should long for a place that had once just been a rock to cling to, a place to bunker down and hope, dream of a time where things would be better. Where every day wasn't a struggle to keep everything working, to hold on just a little longer against sickness, decay, malfunction and the silence that hung across the world. The world was changing, with the ponies, the gryphons, the other magical races that had turned up with the solution to humanities problems.
The question was, did humanity have a place in this new world?
John's thinking, deep out of sheer boredom, dropped off suddenly as he was tapped on the shoulder.
He turned, looking down at the gryphon who had just put their claw back on the ground. Oz, it was, if John remembered correctly. He looked at her expectantly, obviously she had a message.
"We found 'em."
By this time, the other soldiers had crowded around. John noticed the other three gryphons, behind Oz. He nodded at them, before looking around. Spotting a small shop nearby, he directed everyone towards it.
The shop had been looted long ago, the windows smashed in and the door hung agape. Though it was doubtful the owner would mind very much. The party gathered inside, forming a rough circle before Sparks walked forward slightly. Everyone's eyes turned to him and he gulped, before starting to speak.
'One of these things, nervous?' John thought, before he mentally slapped himself, returning his attention to the small gryphon speaking.
"We've found where the HLF have set up. I-it's not too far from here, just by the road. Th- they're staying quiet, it was only by luck we caught one taking a p-" The Gryphon halted, blushing slightly.
Several chuckles ran through the group, not helping Sparks' embarrassment. "Everyone quiet up." John muttered, spinning around to give everyone a 'shut up and let him speak' look, before turning back to Sparks and nodding for him to continue.
Sparks nodded back, beginning again. "Well, it's a small apartment building. Lots of windows and balconies, plenty of points for them to spot us coming, though they're watching the ground, not the skies. It looks like they've got a lot of fire-power, judging by what we could spot scattered around."
John nodded, taking in what Sparks had said. "Well, what are we doing to get around them?"
"Getting around would be hard." Oz said, speaking up. "Especially with a group as large as yours. They could also have scouts and the like out. Hell, we could've been spotted by a scout while we were casing the place, and for all we know, they're marching here right now."
John rubbed at his mouth with the back of a hand, thinking, dropping his hand and turning his options over and over in his head. "Could you carry everyone over?" He asked, looking to Gilda.
Gilda simply shrugged, her shoulders looking half-comical as she did. "We could, but it'd take forever. Plus, one of 'em sees us..." She lifted a talon up, making a small pistol with it and miming firing it. "Blam, one less Gryphon, one less Human."
"So what, go through them then?" John asked, rubbing his hands together. "We have no idea how many there are, what they have..." He looked around at the group. "Is there no other way around? Now that we know where they are, we can go back and around." He said, grinning slightly.
Gilda simply shook her head. "Everything around's been blocked off or collapsed. We can try sneaking by at night, but that's the best we can do short of popping everyone in there."
John sighed, mulling his choices over. He didn't trust the grypons, at least, not entirely. But he didn't have much of a choice. Going around wasn't an option, they'd have to clear the place.
Sparks cut through the small silence. "We could always blow their base up, and get uh, everyone past when it's um, done." He offered, looking between the two distinct groups.
Silence reigned again, as everyone thought. "We don't have any explosives." One person brought up.
Lead Wing, who John hadn't heard talk once, simply opened on of his bags. It hid the ground with a dull thud, some white material in plastic hitting the tiled floor of the shop. "C4." The Gryphon said, his voice deep and booming. Certainly matched his shining attire.
"Well, how the hell do we get it in there?" Another voice piped up. No-one really questioned why a mystical talking creature was carrying around C4, but everyone had seen weirder things in their time.
"We'll fly it in." Gilda stated, as if it was as obvious as Lead Wing. "We blow it, while you're getting everyone past. You hit anyone outside, and get everyone else up."
More silence prevailed. John was... well, it was a solid plan, and the best they had. Besides shooting the place up. "We'll do it." He said, looking over the men. "Just make sure it's a big enough boom."
_\!/_
Hours passed. The soldiers headed back, while the Gryphon's stayed behind. John caught a glimpse of maps being handed out through the Gryphons, before they left the small shop and trudged home. It was dark when they came back to the store, the moon shining overhead. Fuller then John would have liked, but better then... well, nothing would have been better, but nonetheless. The Gryphons had donned a dark blue-grey, tight full-body suits. Their size was the only thing that stood them apart, besides their PADs. They all looked at John, most of them turning back while Gilda moved up to him.
"We'll keep in touch. Might be best you start walking now, 'cuz we'll be there and back in no time." She said. "Gravel Bay's not too far. Should get there by morning if you can handle the pace."
John wasn't sure. They were well-fed enough, but no-one besides the soldiers were hikers. Still, the further they got from the HLF, the better. John nodded.
"Alright, let's go."
He headed back out to everyone outside, the Gryphons following behind and quickly taking flight. How their rather large bodies managed it, he wouldn't know, but they soared off down the road. The group of humans followed after them. Exhausted from the journey, but hopeful. Their journey had almost come to an end. All the fighting, the wars, it was all over soon. It was something John wanted, but he couldn't. Not while people depended on him.
The large hotel the Gryphons had described came into view, some time later. It didn't stand out particularly, the windows were darkened and dirty with months of neglect. If it hadn't been pointed out, John would have never guessed that anyone resided there currently. Of course, it was a smart place to set up. It gave a good view of the surrounding area, and you could easily hide plenty of men and equipment inside, away from the windows. If it wasn't too badly damaged, maybe they could set up an outpost here later on, much closer to the Conversion Bureau.
John's thoughts came to a crashing halt as a voice crackled through the radio.
"Blowing in Three, Two, One-"
The night lit up, impossibly bright. The air glazed, froze over, and then broke as wave after wave of deafening noise pounded against his ears. The Hotel was ablaze, groaning and shrieking barely registering over the sound of the explosion. Where the hell had they been carrying all that?
Several figures shot out of the building, near the top. They would have been invisible, but the glow from the hotel lit up the background so that they stood against it. The figures dived, heading for John's group. He should be steady, but his hands shook a little, gripping his rifle. By God that was loud.
The Gryphons landed in front of him, Gilda at the head, with Oz and Lead Wing behind. John frowned.
"Where's the last one?" He asked. Another voice crackled through the radios present.
"Uh, g-guys? I'm uh... just a little trapped." Everyone turned to the Hotel. John raised his binoculars. Against the bright glow, another dark speck, behind a window.
"Where's he at?" A voice rung out. Oz, John Guessed.
John quickly made the measurements. He had spotted for snipers before, and he assumed with the giant gun, well...
"Four from the top, five from the le-"
Another sound rang out, the crack of a bullet firing. The glass shattered. The black figure fell out. Another sound, air between feathers. One other figure now. Grabbing the first. Flying back.
John had no idea how much time had passed as the two Gryphons touched back on the ground. Gilda had Sparks, who must've been the one left in the window. Sparks was let onto the ground, hacking and coughing. Some of his chest was shiny. Feathers burnt off, the skin underneath cracking slightly. The people in John's party moved back, as a curse rung out from Gilda. John barely heard, adrenaline pounding through him.
"We're gonna hafta split. Shit like this doesn't heal easy for us." Gilda said, looking up at John. "They're all dead or distracted, so you should have an easy shot to the Conversion Bureau." Lead Wing had pulled out a stretcher of some kind, and he and Oz we sliding it underneath a grunting Sparks. "See you around." She finished off, heading back towards their group as they took flight again. And then they were off, the light fading quickly, bringing the group back into the darkness of night.
There were no more obstacles. It was a clear shot. John felt better then he had in years. He might even trust those Gryphons more, whoever the hell they were, anyway.