That evening, after Ballista had gathered the Taskforce, Elite and Ballista informed them of their plan to finally rally up ‘Project: Freedom; Armory would gas each of the room with a special kind of gas that would lull them into a deeper sleep than usual. While they slept, the other members would sneak into the quarters, and as stealthily and quietly as possible, carry them to one of the airships, so that they could airdrop them onto some island.
The first portion of the plan went by quickly, as the Taskforce carried each member onto an airship.
"Ugh..." Master Mind grunted, struggling to carry Caboose, who was snoring loudly on his back, "Geez, this pony is as heavy as he is mental."
"You don't hear me complaining." Incognito sneered, Fletcher was on his back, his snout lightly breathing, "Fletcher here's light as a feather."
"You oughta get down to the gym sometimes." Ballista snarked, carrying Sterling in a firepony's carry, "Put some muscles on those skinny limbs."
"I prefer to focus on the most powerful muscle of all: the brain." Master Mind retorted. "Mostly because it doesn't get you all sweaty and disgusting."
At that point, Titan returned, carrying Black and Fury in his arms.
"That's it, big guy." Ballista nodded. "Just set them down over there."
Titan gently set them down on an empty spot.
"Better hurry up, you guys." Elite declared, walking down a gangplank from their designated airship, "That special gas Armory used isn't going to keep them snoozing forever." He glanced around them, "Speaking of which, where is he?"
"Right here, sir." Armory hobbled over, a briefcase on his back, "I got their equipment for them. Wasn't sure what to give Black, so I settled for one of my 'Homers'."
"I think that will do just nicely." Elite nodded... before noticing Armory nervously looking at Black, as Titan took him and Fury aboard the airship, "Is something bothering you, Armory?"
"I'm just not very comfortable with this." Armory admitted, "I mean, we're just dumping Black and the others on some deserted island to fend for themselves. I didn't think it would have to come to this..."
"You have a right to worry, old friend." Elite sighed, "Believe me, I don't want to do this any more than you do..."
"...But we really don't have much of a choice." Ballista added, "This survival training is our one and only chance of getting these blokes to work as a team. Nothing else worked..."
"I know, but still..." Armory frowned.
"And if this doesn't work, then Wall will come in and take over our project, ruining our best chances of protecting Equestria." Elite growled, "For Equestria and for this team's sake, we can't have that."
"So, we're just gonna have to suck it up, alright, mate?" Ballista prompted.
"Yeah, you're right." Armory grimaced.
Onboard the airship, the Project Freedom members were all scattered along the deck. Incognito made sure that they were all still sleeping.
"Like babies." He nodded, "Not even cannon-fire can wake them..."
As he looked upon them, his eyes fell on Sterling. A wicked grin emerged on his face.
"Hmmph, time to give that bucker a little going away present..." He smirked, holding up a marker pen.
"Don't even think about it, Cog." Master Mind glared.
"Come on, he's asking for it. Especially after what he said back at the 'bell training'." Incognito shot back.
"Didn't you already get your revenge when you almost beat his face off?" Master Mind grunted.
"I dunno. Is he still breathing?" Incognito growled.
"Look, it was a low-blow, yes, but you technically baited him when you got in his face about the Black Sheep." Master Mind said matter-of-factly.
"Are you seriously taking his side?" Incognito gasped.
"Not exactly." Master Mind denied. "But speaking from a logical standpoint, it would be in our best interests to at least try to be civil with Sterling. He is a valuable ally, regardless of what we may think of him."
"Maybe not, if this little trip doesn't work out like Elite hopes." Incognito retorted.
"But it might." Master Mind pointed out. "And do you really want Sterling to dwell on this little joke the entire time he's away? That could have serious repercussions..."
"Okay, you win." Incognito reluctantly put away the pen. "I won't do it."
"A very wise decision." Master Mind smiled.
“...Can I at least scribble on Fury?” Incognito pointed to Fury, who had an irritated look while sleeping.
“Oh, go ahead. He’s definitely asked for it.” Master Mind shrugged.
“Something we can agree on.” Incognito chuckled evilly, as he made his way to the griffon.
Just as Incognito was about to start drawing on Fury's face, Ballista walked by.
“So, are our little nippers all ‘comfortable’?” Ballista asked.
"Uh... Yeah, sure." Incognito hid the pen. "We're all ready to go."
"Excellent." Elite declared, as he and the others joined them. "We should have just enough time to reach the target destination by first light."
"You mean the drop-off point." Ballista noted.
"Either way." Elite shrugged. "Let's get to it."
The airship took off, carrying its unwary cargo to their destination. The conscious passengers were all well aware of what a rude awakening the Project: Freedom members were in store for.
The present...
Currently, Black was scoping out the island from a spot on the mountain they'd all rolled down, having made his trek back up after parting from his teammates. For the most part, it appeared to be uncharted wilderness, with a large forest, a big lake and a noticeable patch of open fields being readily visible.
“Where the hell did you leave us, Elite?” Black muttered to himself. “It’s alright for a vacation, I guess, but I would have rather not been left here without so much as a warning…”
Having gotten the lay of the land, Black made his way back down the mountain.
'Now we're supposed to survive out here, working as a team...' He thought. 'How are we supposed to do that? We could barely stand sharing a lounge for five minutes before trying to tear each other apart. How are we going to survive this?'
Meanwhile, a short distance away, Caboose and Fletcher were seeking out firewood.
"Here, firewood, firewood, firewood..." Caboose called. "No use hiding from us. We're gonna get ya eventually, so you'd better come out now..."
Fletcher rolled his eyes light-heartedly.
“You know, Caboose, this reminds me of that camping trip we took the Junior Guards on." He admitted. "You know, not long after I was transferred to the Royal Guard?"
“Oh, yeah. The Napoleons, Chapter 18, ‘Changing of the Guard Part Three’.” Caboose chuckled, “Man, hard to believe it’s been three years…”
“It’s been five years.” Fletcher corrected, perplussed by his words.
“Right.” Caboose winced, “Still, to think we used to hate each other… but after that trip, we became the best of friends.”
"Yes." Fletcher beamed. "Though we did end up having to fight a vicious wild manticore before then."
“Oh, right. When Mr. Ebony got his creatures mixed up when quoting that italian plumber, and I called the scorpion-kitty ‘Snakekitty’, and Gauntlet got hurt because you missed a important shot, and you almost quitted over it. Good times.” Caboose smirked.
“...Yeah.” Fletcher felt a eye twitch, remembering one of his ‘missed shots’ from the encounter, “Not necessarily that part, but it did help us become the partners we are today. And if we’re lucky, history won't repeat itself."
“You know, I never got that saying.” Caboose mused, “How can history repeat itself? History's... well, it's history! It's already happened. It can't happen again! Well, not unless you see that memory picture spell, but that would be a real hassle to do all the time. Then again, if it's so important, you could always make time..."
As Caboose rambled, Fletcher recalled an important matter.
"Caboose... can I talk to you about something?" He asked.
"You just did." Caboose shrugged.
"Something different." Fletcher clarified.
"Oh, right." Caboose nodded. "Go ahead, then."
"Well, it's... about Sterling." Fletcher admitted.
"What about him?" Caboose asked.
"...Just what is it you see in him?" Fletcher frowned.
"Sorry?" Caboose tilted his head quizzically.
“Ignoring the fact that you went against our promise earlier, you and Cross have been quite… ‘friendly’. Moreso than you usually are with other ponies.” Fletcher explained, “And you’ve been spending a lot of time with him… I can’t help but wonder why.”
“Oh, that’s easy to explain.” Caboose smiled.
“It is?” Fletcher blanched.
“Yeah. It’s because he’s ‘cool’.” Caboose said simply.
"...'Cool'?" Fletcher repeated, a scowl growing on his face.
“Oh, yeah.” Caboose smirked, “When we retired to the lounge after the team-training exercises, Sterling’s been telling me about all the awesome stuff he did when he was a Forefather! He was the last one standing in a gang war, fought this big mean mercenary in Brayzil, killed this crazy ‘Male-storm’ in Applewood, got his hoof cut off, then ‘tached back on with ‘super-juice’, and punched a Titanbeast. In the face!”
“Wha-what? What is even a Titanbeast?” Fletcher spluttered, stupefied by how excited Caboose was getting.
“I dunno. A big fish-dog hybrid. I think we ripped it off of Final Fantasy.” Caboose shrugged, “Still, he punched it in the face! You can’t get any cooler than that!”
“...Caboose.” Fletcher began, “You do realize that Sterling’s a former member of the Forefathers, right? You know, the same group who have tried to take over the world countless times, and are fully willing to crush anycreature who get in their way? Even tried to kill your family, and had my pregnant wife at bowpoint? Remember?!”
“Of course I do. But that isn’t who Sterling is anymore.” Caboose pointed out.
"Isn't it?" Fletcher urged. "He was there when the Forefathers attacked Canterlot with that ridiculous giant metal spider!"
"Yeah, but it's not like he was in charge of the whole operation." Caboose pointed out. "It was that wacko Solomon. And Sterling left halfway through it."
"He was still one of the Forefathers' top agents, just like him." Fletcher continued. "One of these ‘Ouroboros’, who called all the shots."
"He was." Caboose nodded. "But not anymore. He's changed. He's with us now."
"So he says." Fletcher said stubbornly.
"Well, it's true." Caboose shrugged. "The Forefathers wanted him gone for deserting. And he deserted because he didn't want to work with them any longer to hurt ponies. Doesn’t that count for something?”
“It would have… if he hadn’t murdered so many ponies before then.” Fletcher grunted, “And I’m still not understanding how you can be friends with him, knowing all the things he did.”
“Well, I did a lot of nasty things too.” Caboose added.
“But that’s different.” Fletcher admitted, “I don’t necessarily approve, but you did those things for the sake of helping ponies.”
“That’s the thing. So does Sterling… sorta.” Caboose shrugged, “We’re both ponies who’ve been on both side of laws, and got into all sorts of illegal shenanigans. Sterling was the first pony I met outside my brothers and our employees that I could talk crimes with without worrying about them wearing wires or being a cop.”
“Firstly, I don’t think being criminals is something you should bond over. Secondly, you could talk to me.” Fletcher glared, “You’re my best friend, Caboose.”
“I know… but the thing is… you’re a straight arrow. A colt scout.” Caboose frowned, “‘Lawfully’ Good one might say. You don’t really like it when I talk about mob stuff.”
“Come on, that’s not true-” Fletcher scoffed.
“Look, it’s not a big deal. It’s just Sterling is comfortable with the things I do as a mobster, like that little discount rattle racket the family ran a while back. Might have worked better if they weren't filled with pukwudgie teeth..."
“You did that?!” Fletcher gaped. Caboose stared at him, as Fletcher struggled to recover face, “I mean… that doesn’t sound too… bad.”
"I’m sorry, pal." Caboose apologized. "Unless you've actually been on the other side of the law, you wouldn't really understand the ‘machinations’ of my and Sterling’s friendship. I don’t even know what ‘machinations’ means, yet me and Sterling know. You know?"
“Look, maybe I’m not as crime-savvy as the next criminal.” Fletcher shook his head, “But I worry about you. Do you even know what you’re getting into consorting with that pony?”
"Come on, ol' buddy, ol' pal." Caboose scoffed, turning to face Fletcher as he walked backwards. "When have I ever not known what I was getting into?"
As he said this, he tripped over a fallen log.
"Whoa!" He yelped, falling over the log and landing flat on his back.
"You don't really want me to answer that, do you?" Fletcher asked light-heartedly.
"Nah, I'm good." Caboose groaned, as he got back on his hooves. "But hey, at least I found us some firewood! A nice big piece of firewood, too!"
"We could just cut it up, you know." Fletcher pointed out. "It would be a better idea to ration the firewood we gather as much as possible."
"Sounds like a crazy idea to me." Caboose declared skeptically. "Just crazy enough to work..." He rubbed his chin with one hoof.
At the same time, Sterling and Fury were seeking out any food they could find. There were some fruits dotted around, but not much.
"I think there are some pears on that tree over there." Sterling mused. "Maybe prickly ones, but we could do something with the juice."
"I hate pears." Fury scowled. "And fruits, and vegetables. I prefer fish, or meat. I'm not some hooved, hay-eating herbivore like you, in case ya haven't noticed."
"Pretty hard not to..." Sterling muttered under his breath.
As they continued the search, Sterling picked up what little food seemed to be good, while Fury only grudgingly joined in the collection. They did their work in silence. As much as Sterling disliked Fury, he hated the quiet, so he reluctantly tried to strike up a conversation.
"So... you ever been out in the wild much yourself?" He asked.
"Eh." Fury shrugged bluntly.
"Well, I sure have." Sterling declared. "In fact, it's how I got into the Forefathers in the first place, as you might have heard. I was taken to this big forest, and left to survive there for three months. Nothing but clothes in a bag and a dog. It was tough at first, but I got the hang of it soon enough. This little nature walk actually reminds me a little of that time."
“I’m sorry.” Fury growled, “You seem to have mistaken me for somegriff that actually gave a flap. Because I don’t give a flap about your life story. Not one bit.”
"Oh, that's nice." Sterling rolled his eyes. "I was just trying to relieve the tedium around here a little. Better than working in total silence."
"Says you." Fury shot back.
“Look, I get that you don’t like me, and trust me, the feeling’s mutual.” Sterling glared, “But it wouldn’t hurt to be a bit more civil with others, especially if they happen to have some survivalist training.”
“Oh, yeah?” Fury narrowed his eyes. "Well, tell me this. If you're so good at surviving in the wild like you say, then why is it that you decided to crash at Big Red’s place in Dodge Junction for a month? Surely being on the run couldn’t had been bad as some dumb woods, right?”
"Well, uh..." Sterling stuttered.
“You’ve already gone and dragged up Professor Alchemy and Sunset’s lives into the Forefathers’ line of fire.” Fury said coldly, “Why the hell did you have to go and paint a big, fat target on that family’s backs?”
“Hey, if I knew my brother would've found me so fast and Lunard of all creatures would come after me, I would have skipped town in a blink.” Sterling admitted tersely, “I would had never endangered them, not like I did Echo and Sunset!”
“But you did. Just like another stallion I know and hate, your disregard for other ponies nearly flap everycreature in the ass.” Fury scoffed.
“It was a mistake, I know.” Sterling insisted, “...But the past is past. Nothing I can do to change it. All I can do is learn from it, and move on.”
"Yeah, sure." Fury scoffed. "You're probably learned a whole bunch by now, like how to butt out of other folks' business... whoops! No, you haven't. Now, shut up, and let's just get this done."
"Of course." Sterling scowled. 'Typical. That loud-mouthed thug couldn't have a civil conversation with another creature if his life depended on it. Why do I even bother?'
Some time later, as the two pairs foraged and collected firewood, Black had since made his way back to their original starting point. As of now, he was currently waiting for the others.
"Come on, guys." He muttered. "We don't have all day. Well, we do, but it'd be better spent by actually doing something more than wandering around..."
Moments later, Caboose and Fletcher returned.
"We got some firewood!" Caboose announced, he and Fletcher carrying several pieces of misshapen wood.
“It’s not much, but I reckon if we use them sparingly, it can last us two to three nights before having to find some more.” Fletcher explained.
“Good thinking, Fletcher.” Black nodded, “We don’t know what is out there. It’s best we limit these supply trips for the brief time we’re here.”
“Well, I already tripped once today. Does that count?” Caboose asked.
“No, Caboose. It does not.” Black rolled his eyes.
“Oh, okay.” Caboose nodded, as he glanced around, “Hey, are Sterling and Fury back yet?”
"Nope." Black shook his head.
"You don't think something's... Happened to them, do you?" Caboose worried.
"And would that be such a bad thing?" Fletcher said coldly.
"Depends on who you ask." Sterling retorted, as he and Fury arrived, carrying the food in a makeshift bag formed out of leaves.
“There you guys are. How much did we get?” Black asked.
“Well, it was slim pickings, but we managed to scrounge up some food.” Sterling declared, setting down the assortment of fruits and berries he collected, “...Or rather, I managed to scrounge up some food.” He cast a side glare at Fury.
“Food that I don’t like.” Fury scoffed, dropping his small load unceremoniously, “No matter, I’ll just go fishin’ or huntin’. Lots of fresh meat running around here.”
“Good for you, I guess.” Fletcher huffed, as he examined the fruit before them. “Hmm, it’s not much. But I believe it will do well in a pinch. If we ration them properly, they can last us for a couple of days before we have to go back out there again.”
“Seriously?” Fury scoffed, “This isn’t like that stupid island Consul went on about in the lie detector test. I say you oughta eat up as much as you can and get more tomorrow. What’s the deal?”
“We don’t know what is out there, Fury. The point of this training is survival, and survival means taking as little risks as possible.”
"Oh, please. You think wild animals bother with 'rationing'?" Fury asked. "No way. They eat what they can, when they can, and as much as they can."
"Well, we're not animals, are we?" Fletcher pointed out. "With one exception, maybe..."
"Har, har." Fury scowled. "It's not just me, though. Cross knows what I'm talking about. After all, he lived out in the wild for months before becoming a terrorist.”
“And barely survived doing it.” Sterling shot back, “All I had to go on back then was a bag of clothes and my dog. And considering this was before I had any skills, I had to rob other campsites and cabins to get by!”
“Why doesn’t that surprise me?” Fletcher scowled.
“Hey, I did what I had to to survive.” Sterling glared, “As for you, feathers, don’t go thinking you can get on my good side now!”
"Your 'good side' is any side where I can't see your face, ya-" Fury growled.
"Alright, that's enough." Black interrupted, exasperation on his face. "Now that we've got some supplies, we can start to make camp. If we all pitch in, we should be done well before sundown, especially if we all keep our mouths shut, alright?"
"Yay..." Fury said sarcastically.
“Black, I suggest that we set up camp right here. It's a nice, open area, with fairly level terrain, and close proximity to a water supply.” Fletcher declared, indicating a lake in the distance.
“Thank you, Fletcher.” Black nodded, “Now let’s get cracking…”
"Well, I guess even a broken clock is right twice a day..." Sterling shrugged.
“You know, I think Fletcher said the same thing about me the last time I went camping.” Caboose mused.
The team reluctantly began to work on setting up the camp site, making a place for the fire, setting aside the food and fire wood, and using some nearby rocks as seats… but unbeknownst to any of the them… they were being watched.
Watching through a feed in the operations room of the headquarters, Elite and the rest of the Taskforce sat around, gazing at the screen intently.
“Okay, it looks like they’re setting up camp now.” Armory declared, “That’s a good start, isn’t it?”
"It took them a little longer than I'd calculated." Master Mind frowned. "Not a very inspiring beginning..."
"Yeah, this is not going to end well." Incognito shook his head.
"It’s still early days." Ballista retorted.
"That's right." Elite nodded. "Who knows? They may yet surprise us."
"I'll believe that when I see it." Incognito snorted.
“Ah. I see you guys got the feed set up.”
The others looked as Consul entered the room, pulling up a seat.
“How is our team faring so far?” Consul asked.
“Well, they’re not dead. I consider that a plus.” Ballista deadpanned.
"That bad, huh?" Consul sighed.
"They've only just begun to set up camp." Master Mind declared. "They're certainly not in any hurry, that's for sure."
"Um... who picked the island again?" Armory asked.
"Oh, I did." Consul answered. "I looked it up in the files. Seemed like the perfect place to send our little team."
"Perfect for them to mess up again..." Incognito said under his breath, earning a jab from Ballista.
“By the way, we are getting good reception.” Consul smirked, “I don’t know how you did it, Armory, but this drone you’re using is working like a charm.”
"Why, thank you." Armory smiled proudly. "I put together the most advanced, state-of-the-art drone I could come up with."
Back on the island…
In the air, flying undetected, was a rather dingy looking kite, enchanted by unicorn magic, hovering above where the five stranded heroes were camped. Attached to it, via lots and lots of duct tape, was a mirror, haphazardly taped on, causing the kite to tilt awkwardly.
The group had since finished up setting the camp, and got a fire going, as they all sat around. Most of them shared a meagre dinner of berries and fruits. Fury lived up to his promise, hunting some nearby rodents and devouring them back at the camp (to the others' disgust).
"Seriously, Fury?" Sterling almost gagged on his berries. "Do you have to eat that right in front of us?"
"Do you have to eat that garbage right in front of me?" Fury shot back petulantly. "I'm a Griffon. An old-school Griffon, who relies on meat and fish to keep fed. You don't like it, then don't look." He threw a whole vole down his beak, devouring it with a series of unpleasant crunches.
"Those poor creatures." Fletcher shook his head. "There are better ways to go than being eaten by that savage."
"Yeah." Caboose agreed. "Like drowning in a giant tub of chocolate pudding. That's the way I wanna go..."
"So... what exactly are we supposed to do now that we've actually got a campsite?" Sterling asked.
"We work out a survival plan." Black declared.
"I hesitate to add that I am rather good at plans." Fletcher smiled.
"Please." Fury said through a mouthful of food.
"We should also try to explore the island a little more each day." Black added. "That way, we won't be surprised by anything that happens to live here."
"Yeah, I guess." Sterling shrugged. "Almost sounded like a leader there, 'boss'. Almost..."
“Well, I guess now is a better time than any to bring this up.” Caboose announced, “I would've brought it up earlier, but the whole 'waking up on a deserted island' thing kinda distracted me."
"What is it you wish to talk about, Caboose?" Fletcher inquired.
"Probably something stupid." Fury said contemptuously.
"Knock it off, Fury." Sterling shot back.
“Shoot away, Caboose.” Black urged, “Not like we’re going anywhere for the next week.”
“Well, the thing is…” Caboose rubbed the back of his neck. "I wanted to talk about what happened in the lounge last night. About that big fight we had.”
The other four let out groans and growls, showing signs of annoyance to outright indifference.
“Look, I know last night, things escalated quickly.” Caboose continued, “Some words were exchanged. Some shots were fired. Everything except the copy of ‘James Buck’s From Russiaddle With Love’, miraculously, got destroyed. But I think now, since we all cooled off, we can take this time to talk.”
“Talk?” Fletcher frowned, “What is there to talk about?”
“Oh, lots of things.” Caboose pointed out, ”But mostly, about what was said that lead to the lounge being thrashed. I know we all haven’t been getting along, but I feel now is a better time than any to get everything out in the open, so we can come out this better ponies!”
“‘Out in the open’?” Sterling scoffed, “No offense, but I feel we’re more ‘out in the open’ enough as it is.”
"I know, but-" Caboose spluttered.
"You wanna play 'agony aunt', then play it by yourself." Fury said coldly. "In case you haven't noticed, I'm not really the 'talk about his feelings' type... Or 'wuss', as I prefer to call it."
"Aw, come on guys!" Caboose pleaded. "I promise, we'll all feel better once we talk about it!"
"No way." Sterling shook his head, casting a glare at Fletcher (who was returning a small one his way), “The last thing I wanna think about is last night.”
“For once, the terrorist is on to something.” Fury huffed.
"Fletcher?" Caboose asked his friend desperately.
"Sorry, Caboose." Fletcher apologized. Though his expression seem rather cold, just as determined to veer away from the topic, “As much as I hate to do it, I must side with Cross and the Griffon. There isn’t anything I said last night that wasn’t true. And it would be a waste of time trying to talk it out, especially with the company present.”
"But-" Caboose started.
“Just drop it, Caboose.” Black ordered, letting out a sigh, “Right now, our focus should be on getting out of this in one piece. We can’t have any distractions, let alone rub salt in fresh wounds.”
"Okay..." Caboose sighed, defeated.
"Let's just try to get some sleep." Fletcher told Caboose. "We have a long day tomorrow, so we'll need the rest."
"Like I said, broken clock..." Sterling muttered.
"I'll stay up and watch the fire." Black declared. "Just in case it burns out too early..."
As the night went on, Caboose, Fletcher, and Sterling rested, Caboose and Fletcher sitting by the firewood, Sterling near the food. Sterling and Fletcher had uncomfortable frowns on their faces… while Caboose dozed off, snoozing happily.
Black continued watching the fire, deep in thought…
'I still can't believe we're in this situation.' He frowned. 'Then again, all the arguing and fighting didn't make us look like a perfect team. Especially with me as leader...'
At that moment, what Elite had told about being a leader ran through his mind.
“In a team like Project: Freedom, or any team in general, needs to have somepony that is able to take charge, to inspire his troops, help them grow into mighty warriors. And that pony is you, Black.”
'I seriously doubt that, pal...' Black shook his head.
“What’s the matter, ‘boss’?” A voice sneered, “Getting cranky? Not used to not getting your sleep?”
Black let out a sigh as he glanced at Fury, who was still awake, albeit leaned up against a tree.
“Hmph, you have no idea what I’m used to.” Black scoffed, “What are you doing up, anyways?”
“Couldn’t sleep.” Fury admitted, “I’m the kind of griffon that likes to be at the ready in case some beast tries and make a snack out of me.”
“Sounds like you’re paranoid.” Black snarked.
“More like ‘prepared’.” Fury grunted, “How can I sleep when we are in the middle of unknown territory, you know?”
“Caboose and the others seem to do it just fine.” Black mused, gesturing to the sleeping trio, “...Besides, it’s not the island that’s keeping me awake.”
“...I know I’m gonna regret asking this, but what’s bugging you?” Fury rolled his eyes.
“It’s this ‘team’, Fury.” Black replied, concern in his voice, “We’re in this mess because we were at such odds with each other. Because we let our anger get the best of us.”
“Hey, I didn’t start swinging till Sterling shoved me.” Fury defended, “And you had no problem getting into it when it started.”
“Because you elbowed me in the face.” Black grunted, “But that’s aside the point. We were the first two members of Project: Freedom. We should had known better and ended that fight right there and then.”
“Big deal.” Fury growled, “If you asked me, these yahoos had it coming. Sterling, for every single thing he did as a Forefathers, Fletcher for just being in the way, and Caboose…” He gave a dark snarl, “Don’t get me started…”
“See, that right there is the problem.” Black glared.
“What is?” Fury crossed his talons.
“Elite dropped us on this island so that we could learn to work together and become the team he and Equestria needs us to be. If we couldn’t hack it for a month, how can he expect things to change in one week?” Black shook his head, “I just don’t think it’s going to be enough. And that scares me.”
“Well, it shouldn’t.” Fury shrugged. Black glanced at him in confusion, “Because if ya ask me, we should just let that fat-ass zebra come in and disband this team and start fresh.”
“What?!” Black gaped, disgusted, “How can you say that? I know you don’t like the rest of us, but I didn’t think you’d be such a ass!”
“You say ‘ass’, I say ‘realist’.” Fury glared, “Look, this ‘project’ was flawed from the moment it began. Not even accounting for the dumb name, Elite, in all of his ‘infinite wisdom’, was insistent on believing that a bunch of jackasses like us could be anything like those guys you see in the movies. Insistent on believing in a fantasy.”
“Oh, so it’s bad to believe a group of creatures could possibly amount to anything?” Black challenged, “To be a part of something greater?”
“It is, when reality kicks in.” Fury huffed, “Elite gave it a fair shot, had good intentions… it just wasn’t enough.”
“So, you’d rather give up, rather than be a part of a team?” Black growled.
“Like I said before, I only joined this ‘team’ because Barbossa asked me to.” Fury recalled, “I personally can care less what happens to this team, because either way, I will lose no sleep over the results. It will be back to business as usual for me.”
“And what of us?” Black seethed, “You don’t care what happens to us if Project: Freedom fails?”
“What should I? Caboose and soldier boy here are already Royal Guards.” Fury shrugged, “They will get to go back to their mundane lives, chasing petty thieves and saying ‘all is well’ every hour. And you get to go back to busting bad guys with the Taskforce. No harm, no foul.”
“Oh? And what about Sterling?” Black shot back,
“What about him?” Fury scoffed.
“Fury. This team is all Sterling have.” Black frowned, “He defected from a very dangerous organization so he could be here. What do you suppose is going to happen to him if the team is disbanded? He’ll have nowhere else to go.”
“What do you care?” Fury frowned, “I didn’t think you even liked Cross. What with him being a part of the Forefathers.”
“What I think of Sterling doesn’t matter.” Black glared, “But I know what it is like to have turned your back on everything you known to do what is right. He doesn’t deserve to be thrown out into the cold.”
"Says you." Fury snorted. "Besides, life doesn't always give us what we 'deserve'. I think we all know what that's like..."
“Look, you may not care about anycreature but yourself, but that doesn’t mean the rest of us are like that.” Black snarled, “I don’t care what you do, but I won’t let this team die because you think it’s a lost cause. Elite is counting on us, and I’m not letting him down.”
"Whatever." Fury scowled. "I'm going back to sleep. Have fun delaying the inevitable..."
Fury planted himself by a tree, and soon went to sleep. Black, however, remained awake, still dwelling on what Fury had said, and the team’s chances for survival and coming out a better group…
'Don't listen to Fury.' Black tried to encourage himself. 'We can do this… because we have to…'
The following morning, the fire had since died out, as the sun rose over the island. The whole group was fast asleep…
Until Caboose woke up.
"Hurrrrh..." He yawned, standing up and stretching out his tired body. "Good morning, world."
As he looked up upon their surroundings, he noticed the others were still asleep.
"Wow, who'd have thought surviving on an island would tucker folks out so much?" He then felt nature calling. "Time to take a leak..."
Caboose wandered over to the nearby lake, one with an unusual-looking rock formation near the shore. Intrigued by the formation, he decided to relieve himself over it, seeking to gain some entertainment over seeing the liquid flowing down the rocky crags.
"Oh, that is so much better..." He sighed.
At that moment, he heard a strange growling sound.
"Hello?" Caboose looked around. "Tummy, is that you?" He glanced at his midsection. "We'll have breakfast soon. You just have to be patient."
The growling noise was heard again. But this time, it was joined by an equally peculiar grinding noise, like stones being scraped together. As Caboose struggled to piece this mystery together, he saw the rock formation suddenly rise up.
"That's... not usual." He frowned.
The rock formation turned to face him, revealing itself to be a formerly-sleeping Cragadile. one that Caboose had just awoken.
"Oh, I get it now." Caboose noted. "You... wouldn't be angry about what just happened, would you?"
The Cragadile roared loudly.
"That's what I thought." Caboose gulped. "Bye!"
Caboose took off at full speed, heading back to the camp, with the Cragadile following closely behind him.
"GUYS!!" He screamed at the top of his lungs. "HELLLLPPP!!"
The combination of Caboose's screaming and the Cragadile's stomping, roaring approach quickly awoke the others.
"Caboose?" Fletcher yawned. "What's going on?"
"What time is it?" Sterling groaned.
"This had better be good." Fury scowled, his back to the scene.
"Cragadile!" Caboose yelped, running right past the others. "Angry Cragadile!"
“...That’s weird.” Black grimaced, rubbing his head, “I could had sworn Caboose just said-”
There was a loud growl, as the four glanced behind them… seeing a giant cragadile storming towards them, deadly intent in its’ golden eyes.
"Oh, buck!" Black gasped. "Action stations, everycreature!"
The group quickly scrambled away, leaving the angry Cragadile to stomp through the camp, demolishing the remnants of last night's fire.
"Geez, you weren't kidding!" Sterling told Caboose. "That thing really is angry!"
"Caboose, what in the world did you do to make it so hostile?" Fletcher asked.
“Oh, I might had…” Caboose winced, “Peed on it… a little.”
"You did what?!" Black gaped.
"Unbelievable." Fury shook his head.
"It's not like I knew at the time!" Caboose protested. "I just thought it was a weird-looking pile of rocks!"
"Well, that 'weird-looking pile of rocks' is tearing up our camp!" Black pointed out. "We've got to stop it!"
"Easier said than done." Sterling frowned.
"Not for me!" Fury charged forward.
"Are you insane?!" Fletcher yelled.
"Or do you just have a death wish?" Sterling added.
"Just watch and learn, losers!" Fury sneered.
Fury, still unable to use his wings, raced over and leapt onto the Cragadile's back. The creature roared in protest, and attempted to shake him off.
"You can't rid of me that easily!" Fury taunted, digging his talons in deep.
"We've got to help him!" Black announced.
"Do we really?" Sterling rolled his eyes.
"As detestable as he is, I doubt the Taskforce, or Consul for that matter, will be pleased if they learn we stood by and let him die." Fletcher pointed out.
"Yeah, so let's get in there!" Caboose nodded.
"Okay, fine." Sterling sighed.
"And on that note, to the rescue we go." Black sighed.
The rest of the group charged in.
"Whattaya think you're doin'?" Fury scowled. "I got 'im right where I want him!"
"That's not how it looks to us!" Black retorted.
"Then maybe you need glasses!" Fury snarled, still hanging on as the Cragadile tried desperately to dislodge him.
Sterling leapt on the Cragadile's head, clamping his hooves around its jaws.
"Sorry, big guy." He declared. "Breakfast is cancelled!"
The Cragadile struggled even further, focusing some of its efforts in trying to dislodge Sterling from its snout. Even with his strong hoof, Sterling was having trouble.
"Novel strategy as always, Cross." Fletcher snorted.
"Let's see you do better!" Sterling yelled back as he hung on for dear life.
"Gladly!" Fletcher rose to the challenge. He drew his bow and arrow, and fired.
The arrow harmlessly bounced off the Cragadile's rocky skin.
"Oh, yeah, you sure showed me how it's done!" Sterling said sarcastically. "Whoaa!" He helped, as his brief lapse in focus allowed the Cragadile to throw him off.
"My turn!" Caboose charged the Cragadile from behind. "Geronimo!"
As Caboose leapt at it, the Cragadile swung its tail, knocking Caboose away.
"Urrk!" Caboose grunted.
"Go for the legs!" Black urged, grabbing a block of firewood and throwing it at one of the Cragadile's feet.
The Cragadile stumbled briefly as it stepped on the wood, but managed to maintain its footing.
"It's surprisingly well-balanced for a walking pile of rocks, wouldn't you say?" Fletcher asked.
"Heh." Fury smirked. "You shouda just stayed on the sidelines, like I said."
"Hey, you need our help!" Caboose shot back. "It's not like you've been having any more luck than us!"
"What are you talking about?" Fury scoffed. "I got this thing against the ropes- whoa!"
The Cragadile threw Fury off its back, sending him slamming into the cliffside, with enough force to make a Griffon-shaped hole in it.
"This... Proves... Nothing." Fury said angrily from inside the hole.
"Are you okay in there?" Caboose asked.
"Yah. I'm fan-flapping-tastic." Fury replied, still inside the hole. "Nothing but gumdrops and ice cream in here!"
"Oh! Really?!" Caboose smiled. "Can I come in too?!"
"...I'm surrounded by idiots." Fury growled.
"I thought you were surrounded by gumdrops and ice cream?" Caboose said, confused.
"RAAAARRRGH!" Fury screamed in rage, as he burst out of the hole.
"I will not stand for this!" He yelled. "I will not be humiliated by a heaping pile of rocks!"
"Aww, sounds like somegriff's got an ice cream headache!" Caboose chuckled lightly.
"Um, Caboose, I don't think you wanna push-" Sterling began.
"That's it!" Fury roared. "Everypony better duck!"
"Duck? Where?" Caboose asked.
"Raaarrgh!" Fury once again charged at the Cragadile, making a flying leap at the beast. His eyes a-wisping, he lashed out with as many spears he could summon at will, striking the creature all over, swinging and throwing left and right, unleashing them all en masse upon the unfortunate creature. Despite its rocky skin, the Cragadile was unable to defend itself against such a vicious assault.
The other four watched on in shock, as Fury beaten the living rock out of the beast.
"Uh... Need some help?" Sterling said awkwardly.
"Get lost!" Fury yelled. "This thing's mine!"
Fury conjured up another one of his spears, and stabbed the Cragadile in the eye with it. The creature roared in agony.
"Ohh!" Caboose cringed. "That's gotta hurt!"
"Been there." Black winced. "Twice..."
"A bit extreme, don't you think?" Fletcher frowned.
"For once, I'm with you." Sterling admitted.
Fury continued attacking the Cragadile, summoning more spears to strike it in its weak points, such as the gaps between its rock-like plates. The creature fought back as best it could, but it was no match for Fury's rage. Before long, the Cragadile was on the ground, barely alive. Fury waved his talons, his spears fading away, breathing heavily.
"And that... is how... it's done." He announced, “Wanna say I can’t do it on my own now? Anypony?”
The rest of the group stared, a mixture of shock and disgust on their faces.
“Come on, don’t be shy!” Fury taunted.
"Whoa, dude..." Caboose gaped.
"Hard to know which is the savage beast, right?" Sterling deadpanned.
"So... What should we do with the Cragadile?" Fletcher asked.
"Well, it wasn't exactly attacking us for nothing." Black declared. "Right, Caboose?"
"Aw, c'mon." Caboose groaned. "I told you, I didn't know what I was peeing on!"
"Well, we can't just leave it here." Sterling pointed out. "It's not exactly a decent camping buddy..."
"But the poor thing's hurt." Caboose pointed out.
"Maybe we should put it out of its misery?" Sterling offered.
"We can't do that!" Caboose yelled.
"We can't exactly carry it back to the lake either." Fletcher countered. "Not without some kind of elaborate stretcher..."
Crunch!
The team turned to see Fury, who had impaled the Cragadile's head with a spear, killing it.
"Fury! That wasn't very paragon!" Caboose chided.
"Renegade for life, dipwad." Fury spat.
"Not cool, Fury." Sterling shook his head. "We were supposed to talk about this."
"Talk is cheap." Fury spat, cleaning his spear, “And I am in no mood.”
"Well, either way, the campsite is completely totalled. Along with all the supplies we gathered yesterday." Black sighed. "So we're going to have to go and find another spot."
"More wandering around the wilderness?" Fletcher groaned. "Wonderful."
"It's not like we have much of a choice, Ulysses." Sterling retorted.
"Yeah, there's a big ol' Cragadile corpse littering up this one." Caboose pointed out. "Thanks a lot, Fury."
"Me?!" Fury growled. "You're the one who led it here in the first place!"
"And you're the one who made sure it could never leave." Sterling stepped in. "Way to go, feathers."
"At least I did something!" Fury spat. "The rest of you did nothing! You might as well not have been here at all!"
"Believe me, we'd all prefer that you be here without any of us." Sterling smirked.
"Oh, that's it, you mouthy little-!" Fury snarled.
"Okay, that's enough!" Black yelled. "It doesn't matter whose fault it is. What matters is that the campsite is wrecked. Meaning we have to go and find a place to build a new one. I might've spotted a good spot while I was scouting up the mountain yesterday...”
"Can't we stop for breakfast first?" Caboose asked. "For some reason, I'm really hungry right now."
"I wonder why?" Fletcher rolled his eyes.
“We’ll find some on the way.” Black declared firmly, “Right now, we should get moving. The sooner we find a new spot, the better.”
"Great." Sterling scowled. "More wandering around, scavenging for food..."
"It ain't exactly a picnic for any of us, Cross." Fury snorted.
"It might be better if there were actually some other ponies around here." Caboose pouted.
"No offense, Caboose, but I highly doubt that." Fletcher declared. "It wouldn't be much of a survival test if there was any hint of civilization in the vicinity."
"That's too bad." Caboose sighed. "I love meeting new ponies..."
As the group made their way through the forest… they were unaware that they were being observed.
But not just by the dingy looking kite that was flying wobbly after the group.
Perched on top of a particularly tall tree, a pair of eyes belonging to a mysterious figure was watching the members of Project: Freedom through binoculars, noting their movements. He must had been sitting there for a long time, as within his lap was a notebook, filled with scribbles of 'wings' of some sort.
A frown grew on the figure’s beak.
“Well… flap.”