MLP Fic pt 8
You would think that getting a new house...one that now had doors that you could fit through would be a bonus. Sadly for Matt, he was now learning that maybe he should have checked the defence systems wiring before he'd plugged it back on...given that the security turret in the kitchen now kept firing at him whenever he went in.
...
"Dang it, I just wanted some toast, not be toasted." said Matt, gloomily. "Thats terrible. Isn't there anything you've been able to do?" said Rarity, concern in her voice. Matt had given up for the time being and decided to leave Aria running a debug on the turrets...for the third time. "Its not that bad...I got some food." said Matt, sipping some water. It had been a week since the Revenite had been dealt with and so far his security system had tried to kill him three times...the worst being when the guns in the hallway leading to the toilet had declared him hostile.
"Still, one should be able to feel secure in the comfort of one's home," said Rarity. "The only place I can get to is the basement. Lucky, really. I wouldn't want the turrets thinking the jumpgate was hostile." said Matt. "That thing is still working?"said Rarity, surprised. Matt nodded "I can’t turn it off till it finishes whatever portal Pinkamena was making."
"How long will that take?" Rarity asked. "Should be finished tomorrow. To be honest, I might be willing to risk using it. Paradiso V's pretty far away from Exo Gene stations that I could get some supplies that I need." said Matt. "Do you know what that world's like?" asked Rarity. "They're testing some kinda beacon there to draw in people who fall through natural null rifts...but apart from that, I hear its one of the few resort colonies near this sector." said Matt, conversationally.
"A resort, ooh, that sounds fabulous," said Rarity. Matts mind realised that he might have mis-stepped. "Erm...you wanna come? I don’t think that'll be a good idea..." he began. "But it would be such a fun vacation. Of course, I'll have to pack what to wear at the beach. You think opals go well with water?" said Rarity, happily.
Matt said desperately "But...but..." before he reminded himself that Paradiso had improved alot in the recent years before saying "Fine...I'll be leaving first thing tomorrow morning. Meet me at my place...ask the others if they wanna come too." he said, cheerfully. "Oh, delightful," said Rarity, "Oh, I better make sure Opalessence is taken care of while I'm gone. Opalessence?"
Matt was about to reply before there was a 'shing' noise and his eyes went wide. "He's...on my.....leg...." he rasped.
...
Matt, wearing his NSC gear was looking at the now stable portal, the view through it showing what was clearly an alley of some sort. "Oh...where are they?" he muttered, looking at his wrist comps time." Just then, he heard the doorbell ring. He walked back to the cellar door and opening it. "It's about time," he said, "What did you pack? Everything but the kitchen-"
All six ponies were present, plus one baby dragon by the name of 'Spike'. "...sink?" finished Matt before rubbing his eyes. "Erm...Ok." he managed. "So sorry, but I had such trouble deciding what to take," said Rarity before levitating three large suitcases forward.
Matt just stared before turning to the others and saying "Ok...Rarity I can understand coming...may I hear why you guys wanna tag along?" he asked as politely as someone who had been up since dawn could be. "Well, I would like to be able to study this new culture," said Twilight, "There could be much to learn from a society of non-Equestrians."
Matt nodded "Fair enough. Next." he said. Fluttershy said quietly "I'd rather like to see what kind of animals your world has." Matt was about to point out that as a class C and an avianos world, Paradiso V was unlikely to have accessible animals before his mental voice said 'She's a Pegasus...your arguement is invalid.'
"Ah've been hoping on seein' greener pastures," said Applejack, "Maybe find new apples I can bring back to the farm. Course, don't think anything can top Zap Apples." "Zap appl...you know...I don’t think I wanna know." said Matt, tired, turning to Pinkie who said happily "I wanna be the first pony to throw a party on another planet...that'd be so much fun." bouncing in place. Matt just rolled his eyes before turning to spike. "You?" he asked.
"Well, Twilight will probably need me and maybe there's...jewels..." said Spike before starting to drool. Matt looked puzzled "Oooook." he said before turning to Rainbow Dash. "Your virtual car thingies were ok, but I wanna see how much faster I am than them in real life," said Rainbow Dash.
Matt shrugged "Ok...but...well, ok then." he said, before grabbing a duffel bag, something in it glinting. "Ok...one ground rule. Paradiso V may be a resort...but its in Consortium territory. Don’t go off alone." he said before adding more reassured "But I wouldn’t worry...the colonial securitys pretty efficient at its job plus...also...don’t worry too much about looks. If they're walking around...they aren’t gonna eat you." he said, tossing the duffel bag through the gate, the air in it rippling for a second before the bag was seen hitting the far wall.
"So, we can get back through here, right?" asked Twilight. Matt nodded "Safe as crossing a bridge. Aria says it'll stay open for about a week so think of this as an extended weekend." he said before climbing through the portal. His voice from the other end sounded like it was coming through glass. "Come on." he said grinning.
"CANNONBALL!" shouted Pinkie before jumping through the portal. The others all winced as Matt failed to get out the way in time and vanished from view when Pinkie collided with him. "Uh, I don't think ya need to put that much force into it," said Applejack before yelling, "Geronimo!" and jumping through. Matt, whose head was appearing over the bottom of the portal went wide-eyed before being knocked out of view again.
There was a moment of silence before Matt's voice said weakly, "No...more...jumping...just...walk..." Matt, happily for his ribs managed to avoid being used as a landing pad by the others and after some time for him to get his breath back, the group walked out into the street the alley was attached too, after Matt had pushed a few crates in front of the portal.
"We wouldn't want too many things crossing back there," he said. "Like what?" asked Fluttershy. "Uh...vermin, the really bad crop-spoiling kind," said Matt. The street beyond opened out onto a seaview area, a beach stretching out. The group, minus Matt who had seen it before were amazed to see the dozens of different species walking around, chatting amiably, though Fluttershy shrunk back when a young pair of the dragonic splitter species walked by.
"Relax, most of these people are on vacation," said Matt. Rarity nodded "Its ok, fluttershy dear. Its like Matt said. These people are not going to eat you no matter what they look like." she said assuredly. "Uh...ok," said Fluttershy timidly. "So, where's the best place to party around here?" asked Pinkie.
"Not really that kinda district...and you definitely won’t like the others..." said Matt before what sounded like a thunderclap was heard in the distance. Everyone jumped before turning to see a tower in the distance, the tip glowing from the energy discharge. "Space elevator...don't worry about it." said Matt after a minute before leading the way up the street. "If I remember right...there should be a CPS safehouse around here..." he began.
"A safehouse? What for?" asked Twilight. "We're not gonna sleep on the streets. Don't worry...its not far. One of the bonuses of being part of one of the top merc groups." said Matt, turning a corner to a fenced area containing resort buildings. "Isn't there a hotel we can check into?" asked Rarity, "I mean, this safehouse seems like awfully low class."
"Huh? CPS has the security contract on the resorts here. Bonus being: The safehouse is one of the buildings." said Matt, nodding to a human and a splitter in armor like his that were leaning on either side of a gate. "Lynch...we heard you were dead. Running bodyguard?" called out the human cheerfully, looking briefly at the group as if talking ponies were perfectly normal.
"Uh, sorta, it's complicated," said Matt before glancing back at the girls and said, "Uh, not to be one to point out the painfully obvious, but you don't seem that surprised about a small herd of small magical horses." "Nah. Not that unusual. We've been stationed here a year." said the splitter in a rasping voice. "Just be careful, man. Romanov's still fuming over that contract you and your sis ran on him."
"What? Romanov's here?" asked Matt. "Yeah...Colonial securities planning something big. He came in here 4 months ago...took out the local gangs and made camp." said the human, before saying "Don't worry...he's not gonna know you're here. Safehouse is in shack 3."
...
Matt had never volunteered for the resort or corporation contracts before and wondered, looking at the luxury holdings of the paradiso safehouse why he hadn’t before now, given the quality of the inside. For one thing, there were several chairs and couches that looked plush and comfortable to several races. Then there was the humongous TV screen that took up half a wall as well as the game consoles attached to it. And that was only the living room.
Matt opened a door that had a access lock on it to reveal a small security station. Matt noted it for future reference and closed it again before seeing that Pinkie had already gone up the stairs. "Bed bouncing." he muttered to himself. Applejack had looked out a window and said, "Alright, they got a swimmin' pool here." She paused at the door and said, "Now how's a pony supposed to open one of these confounded things?"
Matt walked over to the touch pad next to the door and pressed it, the door sliding open. "Me and my sisters first experience was a splitter manned search and rescue ship...you needed a ladder to get into bed." he said cheerfully. "Uh-huh, that's nice, hold onta this fer me," said Applejack before handing Matt her hat.
Matt took the hat, a little puzzled before seeing Applejack backing up for a run up. "You wouldn't." he muttered before as Applejack jumped into the air over the pool with a 'GERONIMO!' he muttered "She would..." shortly before the splashes collateral drenched him.
Matt spat the chlorinated water out of his mouth and said, "Well, I suppose now would be a good time to check out the bathrooms." Matt walked back into the main room to see that Dash had already found the game console but had discovered one flaw...hooves had never been taken into account when the controllers had been designed.
"C'mon, you stupid things," muttered Rainbow Dash as she fruitlessly tried to work the controllers. Matt grinned a bit at that. "Yeah...not much call for hoof-customized controllers." He teased. Rainbow Dash gave a growl of frustration before throwing the controller. "Then how am I supposed to play those games?" she snapped. "With great difficulty?" said Matt before he could stop himself before saying "Ok...sorry. There's plenty of other things to do. The aquillans can fly and they 'officially' run the colony. They probably have some races set up around town."
"Cool," said Rainbow Dash before pausing and asking, "What's an aquillian?" Matt said simply "Bird people and very competitive. I met one of them a couple of years ago." "Bird people, got it," said Rainbow Dash before heading towards the door. Matt called out "Wait...they're also a warrior...race." he finished, the last word a little quietly. Of course, Rainbow was already out the door by then. "Oh great, now I'm gonna have to catch up with her to explain their customs," muttered Matt.
Matt walked up to the bathroom to get a towel only to find rarity there, presuming that Rainbow Dash would be safe for a little while. The unicorn was apparently trying out the showers and judging from her singing, she was obviously enjoying them. Matt cleared his throat and said, "Uh, excuse me..." Rarity gave a yelp of fright before yelling, "How dare you? Walking into a bathroom while a lady is bathing? Get out, get out right now!"
Matt winced before closing the door again uttering an apology before a fact occurred to him. "Wait a second...you don’t wear clothing anyway." he said, annoyed. "Well...still, I'm not presentable right now," said Rarity. Matt glared at the closed door before rolling his eyes and walking back down. "I'll go catch up with rainbow dash before..." he said before pausing, seeing Pinkie playing one of the game consoles with no difficulty. "...erm...yeah...I'll just go get dash." he said a little confused.
"Hey Matt, there's this really neat thing I've found, wanna see it?" asked Pinkie. Matt said "Found what?" his brain still a little knocked off kilter by Pinkies usual display of logic defiance. "This really cool chair," said Pinkie before pushing Matt into one of the armchairs, "Isn't that the comfiest chair you've ever sat it?" Matt said dully "Yes...its a chair...I have them on the skyraid."
"But wait, there's more," said Pinkie, "It also jiggles and buzzes in a funny fun way." She then pressed one of the previously unnoticed buttons on the side of the chair. Matt went cross-eyed as the chair started to vibrate. "Mmmm....relaxing." he said before his brain reminded him of the original objective: Find Dash before she ended up pissing off a wing of aquillans.
But another voice in his head told him there was no need to rush. How much trouble could she get into in five minutes? On cue the TV's system linked to a resort announcement. "Please be advised: Aquillan race gangs are operating in sectors 2 to 5. Please avoid travel through or to these areas as aquillans are easily offended." it said pleasantly, causing Matt to shoot upright. "Right, no time for vibrating massages, gotta help Rainbow Dash," said Matt, getting out of the chair.
...
Rainbow Dash flew over the resort, looking for these 'aquillans' that Matt had mentioned. Surely talking birds would stand out. Just then, she heard something faint, but it sounded to her like a call for help. Rainbow Dash looked around before she heard the call again coming from behind a large barn-like building. She flew down low to see what looked like humanoid versions of falcons around something. "You thought you could screw up and then hide from us, Jump Star?" said one of them in a strangely accented voice.
"It was an honest mistake," said someone who Rainbow couldn't see behind the falcons, "Anyone could have mixed it up." "You were supposed to bring me a VS-12 grav booster for my ride...not a damn regulator." said the aquillan, stepping side briefly to reveal a grey coloured pegasus cowering in the center, a cutie mark of the jumpgate device Matt had used to bring them to Paradiso visible.
"The packages all look alike," said the pegasus, terrified "How was I supposed to know it had the wrong part in it?" One of the other aquillans said with nasty amusement "Maybe a few days with a wing cast on'll make you think straight?" Rainbow gulped a little at that. It was every pegasus's worst nightmare to lose their wings, even for a little while and while she was surprised to see a equestrian living here, she sure as hell wasn’t gonna leave him to these bullies tender mercies.
She flew back a bit before flying in a circle to build a bit of speed, then she flew straight towards the group, yelling to add a little shock and awe. The aquillans jumped back a bit at that, avoiding being knocked down. "What the hell?" said their leader, looking up before Rainbow Landed in front of Jump Star. "Who the hell are you?" said another accusingly.
"The fastest flier in Equestria," said Rainbow Dash, "And if you don't want a hoof going into your face at Mach 2, I'd leave this guy alone." "Equestria? Never heard of it...now move it before we ground you permanently." said the gangs leader coldly. "Ok, you asked for it," said Rainbow Dash before charging the leader.
The aquillan was set flying back into a dumpster with a clang. The rest of the gang however just stared as Rainbow smirked "Anyone else?" she said cockily...a feeling that drained as the three remaining gang members drew blasters.
The aquillians aimed their blasters at the pegasi when suddenly, a blast of lightning hit them in the back, causing them to spasm before falling over. As they fell to the ground, they revealed Matt standing behind them, a tesla rifle in his hands.
"There you are, Dash." said Matt, cheerfully, stopping briefly to clock the recovering leader on the beak. "Are you sure you're not a reincarnated merc?" he said cheerfully. "How'd you do that?" asked Rainbow Dash. "Riot rifle...perfect for sending idiots to sleepyland." said Matt, cheerfully. "I'll put a police beacon on them and colonial security'll pick them up...who’s your friend?" noticing Jump Star before double taking. "Oh...I knew I shoulda locked the basement before we left."
"I don't think this guy's from Ponyville," said Rainbow Dash, "And I'm pretty sure I haven't seen him in Cloudsdayle before." Jump Star looked confused "Cloudsdayle? Grandma used to talk about that place. I always thought it was a story." he said. "Uh, let's try it again at the start, who are you?" asked Matt. "I'm Jump Star. I work for the spaceport post office as a high speed courier." said Jump Star proudly. Matt nodded "Your family are rifters." he said knowingly.
"Rifters?" asked Rainbow Dash. "People who ended up in Nullspace by falling through a rift...like me." said Matt. Jump Star nodded "Yeah...some people call me that. Granddad used to say he worked researching teleporter spells." "Let me guess, one of those spells went horribly wrong and warped him and your grandma to this place," said Matt. Jump Star nodded "Thats what he said." he said.
"So there are ponies here?" asked Rainbow Dash. "Apart from my family, you're the only other pegasus I've met, miss Dash." said Jump Star. "Well, are there unicorns or earth ponies here too?" asked Rainbow Dash. "The only unicorns I know are my mom and her dad. My dad, other granddad, and both my grandmas are pegasi," said Jump Star before Matt pulled Rainbow Dash aside "Hey...I think his families the only equestrian one around...I mean...you woulda heard if people vanished." he muttered to her.
Rainbow Dash looked over at Jump Star. "His entire families here?" she said. Matt shrugged "His granddad must tried home research. Wierder things have appeared." "So...why exactly were those guys ganging up on you?" asked Rainbow Dash to Jump Gate.
"Jetser there's a racer up at the grav circuit on the other side of the resort. He's gone and got some mean sponsors and I was supposed to pick up a new part for his racer. I was late and I grabbed the wrong one by mistake." said Jump Star. "And they were gonna break your wing over that?" asked Rainbow.
"He's a real jerk but his sponsors been the only one giving out jobs recently." said Jump Star before sighing "I'm gonna get grief for this." Matt, who was looking at Jetser and also at him computer grinned "I don’t think so...Jetser here's got an outstanding warrant on his homeworld. Its my job to collect...and if that means he can’t come after you, thats a happy bonus." he said with glee. "But what about his sponsors?" asked Jump Star. "Eh, what's the worse they could do?" said Matt, "Sue me?"
...
One of the perks of being in the top tier of the Splitter consortium was that the local security forces rarely bothered you or made trouble. Auric Romanov was one such high tier and so was annoyed to find his top racer, Jetser was communicating with him from the local security station, apparently waiting for a transport back to his homeworld where he had a few outstanding assault charges awaiting him.
"You know, I invested plenty of creds in you," said Auric, clearly irked. "Yeah? Tell that to the damn merc who tazered me and my buds and tossed a bounty beacon on me." said Jetser, angrily before he realised who he’d just yelled at and looked sheepish. "And who was this merc?" asked Auric, letting the outburst slip...for now. "I dunno...some human or other. They all look alike." said Jetser dismissively.
"Perhaps a picture might narrow it down," said Auric as he pulled out files on several human mercenaries who have been causing problems with the Romanov clan. Jetser peered at the pictures before saying "The third one." Auric frowned as he looked at the file. "Lynch, yes, he has been quite a troublemaker," he said.
"What about me?" said Jetser desperately. Romanov waved a hand dismissively “Plenty more when you came from...Mr Lynch is one merc...and the CPS is very protective of its employees and very vengeful. I can make up what you brought in easily...good day." he said before cutting it off.
Aquillians don't have sweat glands, but if they did, Jester would have broken out in a cold sweat. He doubted the justice he'll get back home would be as merciful as the security here.
...
Meanwhile, Jump Star was meeting the rest of the gang. "Y'all lived here all your life?" asked Applejack, trying to understand why a pony would live in such a built up place like Paradiso. "Born and raised," said Jump Star. Jump Star noticed the looks before saying quickly "Its not that bad. I got a good job and the security force has been doing well in cleaning up the gangs."
"But everything's so...hoof-inaccessible," said Rarity. "Yeah, and the languages are really complex," said Twilight. Matt shrugged "Its not that bad." before he said "Oh...no translator." "Translator?" asked Twilight. "What? You think everyone here had to take language classes?" asked Matt, "Hang on, I'm sure they've got a spare one here somewhere."
"You sure they will fit?" asked Twilight. "Don't worry, they're universally adjustable," said Matt, checking a box on the wall and pulling out a box containing several pea-sized metallic earpieces, adding "So long as you have actual ears." Jump Star nodded "Its ok...I got one too." He said, showing one of the earpieces in his ear. The ponies looked a little sceptical before putting the earpieces in...except for Pinkie who had grabbed one already. "There, that should clear up any language barriers," said Matt, "Unless someone's speaking in gibberish."
Rarity tapped the earpiece carefully "Are you sure that its working?" she asked. Matt grinned "Well, given I said the last two sentences in splitter, I'd say yes." "Well, now we know what we're hearin' and readin', let's go see the town," said Applejack. Jump Star looked at Rainbow Dash and said in a voice almost reminiscent of Fluttershy "Erm...maybe I could show Dash around?"
Matt may normally be oblivious to more tender feelings, but his more recent experiences had made him a little keener on this sort of thing, but not by much. He wandered over to Rainbow Dash who was just getting her translator comfortable "Don’t look now but I think you have a fan." he muttered.
"Well, I am pretty awesome," said Rainbow Dash, "I'm not surprised if I get some new fans here." Matt simply said "Wrong type of fan...let him take you out. If anyone knows how to get the best view of this place...its probably him." "Ok, hope he can keep up with me," said Rainbow Dash. With that Rainbow waved to Jump Star "Come on...see if you can keep up." before she shot out the open door in a rainbow blur. A second later, Jump star shot out after her. "I hope Jump Star knows what he's getting into." said Matt.
"Um, can we go meet some of the animals here now?" asked Fluttershy. Matt nodded "Sure...transport rail goes to the reserve." he said. "Yay, alien safari!" cheered Pinkie Pie, suddenly in a safari hat.
...
'The reserve guide had probably never had a day like this.' mused Matt as he watched Fluttershy practically go pinkie pie with excitement as the group was led around the paradiso reserve. He was just watching the group being shown an alaxian skeeter, type of dog/reptile cross creature from a backwater dimension, when his wristcomp beeped. "General announcement to all mercenary personnel. You are ordered to report for colonial security duty under black knight protocol. Failure to respond is punishable by suspension of licence." it chimed.
"You think that means me?" asked Matt. His wristcomp beeped again, "Yes, it does mean you, smart guy." "Dammit...I hope this isn’t like last time." muttered Matt before confirming his licence. "Hey...girls? Job came up that I can’t avoid. I might be a few hours...hey, mate...make sure they get back safe." he called, first to the girls then to the warden leading them around.
"Sure thing, mate," said the warden, cheerfully. "Have fun," said Pinkie. "We'll see you back at the safehouse," said Twilight. Matt nodded and waved "I'll see you later. Don’t wait up for me." he said, fake cheerfully before walking off.
...
Meanwhile, Jump Star and Rainbow Dash were both sitting on a cloud high above Paradiso. Fortunately, Jump Star's family hadn't lost their ability to cloudwalk after being here for so many years. "Impressive sight....eh?" said Jump Star, happily, looking out at the city below, lit up like a constellation. "I come up here when I want some peace and quiet." "Yeah, all that hussle and bussle can get to be too much," said Dash.
Jump Star looked out for a second before asking "Whats your home like? Is it as busy as here?" "Well, I don't live in Ponyville proper," said Rainbow Dash, "I mean, I'm still a resident, but my house isn't like the others. It's a cloud house. Ponyville can be busy at times, mostly during the festivals, but it's pretty quiet."
Dash looked over at Jump Star "What about you...where do you live?" Jump Star pointed to a much less lit area. "Down there." he said.
Rainbow looked down and said, "It's pretty dark down there." "Yeah...Most rifters find it hard to get high paying jobs." said Jump Star, a little gloomily. "But you guys have been here for years," said Rainbow Dash, sounding horrified. "Its not that bad." said Jump Star a little too quickly. "Not bad?" asked Rainbow Dash suspiciously, "Then how bad is it?"
Jump Star looked worried before sighing "Mostly splitter gangs...but they're usually not too much trouble...you saved me from the main problem." he said in a defeated tone. "But you're still being bullied, aren't you?" demanded Dash. "Well, Jetser's gone, it'll get better now," said Jump Star in an unconvincing voice.
Dash glared before saying harshly "You can't keep letting people push you around. You gotta be more assertive." Jump Star said a little more confidently "I wouldn’t worry too much. I heard the colonial security were planning a big raid on the guy who's running all the gangs here. They're even calling in mercenary support for it." "Wait, wait, mercenary?" asked Rainbow Dash, "Did you say mercenary?" "Yeah...they're calling in tons of them." said Jump Star, cheerfully.
"From everywhere?" asked Rainbow Dash, starting to sound worried, "Even ones that just got here?" "Whats wrong?" said Jump Star, confused. "Matt's a mercenary," said Rainbow Dash, "If they're calling him in, this could be a lot of trouble." "Why? Its not like he’s upset one of the corporations...and even if he had...Paradiso's days away from any of their ships. They're too busy looking for one of their missing cruisers in the uncharted sectors." said Jump Star, trying to be reassuring.
"Well, I suppose Matt could be just one mercenary among dozens," said Dash, sounding less worried now "He couldn't be in that much trouble." Jump Star nodded "Yeah...its not like he’s; gonna rob the crime boss...right?" he joked.
...
Matt and several other troopers were crouched at a back door. Unlike the other mercs though, he was sweating in his armor. Of all the jobs...it had to be the sort that'll be plastered all over the infonet. And if that weren't bad enough, the leader of their 'squad' was a face that Matt had met before...and didn't like.
Dante, the squad leader had plenty of reasons to hate his CPS rival and was enjoying the fact that for once, Matt had to take orders from him. "Lynch...wake up. I think they're giving the go order...you get to go first...in case of booby traps." he said without even bothering to conceal the glee in his voice.
"Of course..." muttered Matt, "When expecting booby traps, send the boob in first." Matt stopped muttering darkly when he realised that the rest of the team were sniggering and he forgot his helmet mic was voice sensitive. "Exactly...Now go." said Dante, annoyed. Matt growled and stopped forward towards the door.
Almost immediately a teammate pulled him back as several lightning bolts blasted through the door. At the same time gunfire was heard as the security teams burst in at the front. Matt blinked and said, "Ok, why are we needed here? They seem to be able to take care of it." "All auxiliary units...Romanov may be trying to get out a side entrance...stop him." said the security chief over the comm. "Thats why." said a disperse inc merc cockily.
"Auxiliary? I get dragged over here in case of a 'might be'?" asked Matt, clearly very annoyed. However, he put his growing irritation aside when he noticed movement at the side of the building. The group all ducked back down as a splitter, with some clear difficulty squeezed out a window and started to make for where a grav car was parked. "No way are we this lucky." said the disperse merc in shock.
"First merc to grab him gets the big bonus!" said Matt before running towards the grav car. The splitter turned in shock at those words and managed three desperate steps before the promise of credits got to all of the team and he vanished under a dog pile with a surprisingly girly scream. There was a bit of tussle to get a pair of handcuffs on the splitter, and more than a few mercs end up handcuffing someone else.
Matt finally held up the cuffed wrists of the splitter "MINE!" he yelled out before failing to notice that in his enthusiasm, he’d forgotten to engage the grounding field, meaning the splitter got a petty final shot in. Matt twitched from the electrical shock before saying, "I still got 'im. I'll take my bonus and a first aid kit." One of the mercs said in a worried tone "Does anyone smell baco...oh, hell...really...get that medkit."
...
Despite Matt telling them not to wait up, the gang had stayed up, at first waiting for Dash to get back then, when they found out what they thought Matts 'job' had been, waiting for him too. "I hope he's ok," said Fluttershy, sounding worried. "Aw, ain't nothin' to worry about," said Applejack, "Good ol' Matt's as tough as nails."
The TV had been left on as Spike channel hopped out of curiosity before he came across something. "...and repeating our breaking story: N.S.C Colonial security raided the home of consortium member and suspected arms smugger, Auric Romanov earlier tonight. Combined with Mercenary forces, Security teams stormed the mansion and despite heavy resistance, arrested the splitter without losses. Captain McNeil, acting on a tip from a courier, ordered, planned and conduced the raid earlier, quoting the operation as a complete success." said a news reader, showing an image of a large mansion surrounded by a high tech fence...its gate hanging on one hinge and several police hover cruisers parked in front of it.
"See, nothin' to worry about," said Applejack. Suddenly, the reporter said, "This just in, we have just received a message from Auric Romanov. And it would seem to be directed towards the mercenary who had captured him, Matthew Lynch." The seven ponies looked at each other before Jump Star said "At least he's gonna be locked up...right?" in a small voice. "Yeah, and Matt should be home any minute now," said Twilight.
"Talking of home...I should fly back too." said Jump Star with a yawn. "I'll pop in tomorrow...if thats ok, Dash. Maybe race you again." "Sure, I'll meet ya at the race track," said Rainbow Dash. Jump Star smiled and flew out the door. "He's cute," said Fluttershy. "Yeah, have you been doing anything nice together?" asked Pinkie. Dash blushed before saying "No...he just showed me the view from the clouds." "Oh, I'm sure he was a gentleman," said Rarity, "It was only your first date, he shouldn't have done more than that." "No, tomorrow will be their first date," said Twilight.
"Come on...cut it out." said Dash, trying to hide her head under her wings from sheer embarrassment. "Ah, our little Rainbow Dash is finally gettin' ready to leave the nest," said Applejack. "Gaaah." yelled Rainbow in an exasperated voice before heading for the bedroom she had claimed.
Just the front door opened and Matt stumbled in. He didn't look quite right. He seemed dizzy, but not in the normal way. "Oh, hey girls," he said in a slurred voice, "Fun town, ain't it?" He gave a loud hiccup and said, "'Scuse me." Twilight was the first to speak "Erm...Matt...are you alright?" she asked, concerned as Matt tried to sit down and missed the seat, apparently not bothered as he giggled away.
"Oh, I'm fine," said Matt, "Just been partying with the guys." The group just stared as Matt tried to get back into the seat with little success. "I thought I'd celebrate hitting the paydirt...which is weird cause creds are made of gold...not dirt..." he said in a distant voice before hiccuping again.
"Wait a minute," said Applejack, "I think I know what's wrong with him." She bent forward to sniff Matt's breath. Matt grinned aimlessly before going cross-eyed and burping. Applejack coughed at the cloud of alcohol (kr'ta in this case) as it left. "Yep, he's drunk," gagged Applejack. "Drunk?" asked Rarity. "Yeah, we brew some hard cider back on the farm that'll knock your wits out if y’all drink enough. Guess he's had something like that, but stronger."
"Kr'Ta...good for the soul...as long as you don’t serve it in metal." said Matt in a happily slurred voice. "Yeah, I think he's just about had it for the night," said Applejack, "Let's get him to bed." "But I’m not tired yet, mummy.” said Matt slurred managing to get onto the seat for a second before slipping sideways onto the floor and snoring loudly.
"He'll be more sensible in the morning," said Applejack, "If a might bit grouchy." "Why will he be grouchy?" asked Pinkie. "Thing about gettin' drunk, the more buzzy you get, the worse you'll feel when it wears off," said Applejack.
...
Lockjaw however was not having a good day. He was a cyborg and also Romanovs top freelancer mercenary...he was also a bit stupid. "Lockjaw not know how policy people get tip off that you were on colony.” he said to the face of his furious employer who was in the orange jumpsuit of a kryos prisoner.
"You probably let it slip to the wrong person, you tin-plated idiot!" snapped Romanov. "No...Lockjaw never do that..." said the cyborg desperately. Romanov sighed before remembering that Lockjaw was probably too stupid to be disloyal. "Fine...who was a recent hire to our Paradiso operations?" he said with an annoyed sigh. Lockjaw actually nodded at that "Ooooh...dat easy...birdy pony." Romanov just deadpanned "I beg your pardon?" he said. "Little pony with birdy wings," said Lockjaw, "Came for box."
"Lockjaw? When was the last time you changed your oil?" said Romanov in a tired tone of voice. "Uh..." started the cyborg before slowing counting on his fingers, "One...two...three...four days." Romanov just face planted and not bothering to lift his face again muttered "I could have hired a professional but nooooo...lockjaws family." he said to himself before he remembered something "Wait...wait..." he said remembering Jetsers complaint.
"This...birdy pony, did it have a mark on his flank?" asked Romanov. "Yaaa...little portal...vas so cute." said Lockjaw happily, causing Romanov to facepalm again. "Lockjaw...please try to concentrate...that...little pain is the only person who could have ratted us out...I want you to find him. My lawyer says I will be out within the hour. I want you to bring me any winged pony you can find...alive. Think you can do that?" he said darkly.
"Find a winged pony, ok," said Lockjaw before asking, "Which winged pony?" Romanovs eyes actually blazed at that "I DON;T CARE...ALL OF THEM...DO YOU HEAR ME?" he roared before vanishing under a pile of security guards, the comm thankfully going dead at that point. "Ok, Lockjaw get all the ponies," said the cyborg as happily as if Romanov had given him a cake.
...
Meanwhile, some of the ponies were talking among themselves or in the case of Pinkie and Spike, playing on a game. "Ah can see why Matt's so highly strung. This here place is nonstop." said Applejack, looking over at where Matt had been slumped in the vibrator chair to sleep off whatever he'd drunk. "Well, they got good ways to relieve stress," said Pinkie, "Ha, got you now, Spike."
Spike yelped as his onscreen character flopped down to Pinkies worryingly good shooting skills before the entire screen suddenly blacked out. "Hey, I didn't get to set my high score yet," said Pinkie, in an annoyed tone. "Alert...power failure...switching to backup systems." chimed a voice from the TV before a knock was heard at the door followed by frantic whispering that sounded like "Why the hell are you knocking?"
"Who can that be?" asked Spike before walking towards the door. The TV flickered back into life but instead of showing the game, it showed lots of smaller screens including a view of the living room. "Is this a new game?" asked Pinkie, immediately amusing herself by making her doppelganger on one of the screens copy her before another screen enlargened to full, showing the outside of the front door...and the guys with guns.
"Uh, Pinkie Pie, I don't think this is a game," said Applejack. "Alert: Illegal weapons detected. Please alert your nearest CPS employee and evacuate." said the TV voice calmly before the guys on the outside screen aimed at the door. "Uh, I think it's time we mosey on to the back," said Applejack.
Spike was about to open the door, saying "I’m coming...hold on." before the thugs outside fired at where they thought his head would be...presuming it was a human coming to the door. As a result they missed by several feet though that wasn’t really that comforting. "Uh, maybe I should open it later," said Spike.
One of the thugs started trying to reach through the hole for the touch pad to open the door. "Almost...hey...there's one of those winged horses Lockjaw wants." said the guy reaching through before spotting Fluttershy. "Eep," squeaked Fluttershy before hiding behind the couch. "Xorn...kick the door." said a unseen voice before the door was literally ripped off its hinges to reveal a splitter...this one clearly grown up and meaning business.
The girls screamed and scattered around the room. The noise half-woke up Matt, who stared around in confusion shouting, "Huh, who, what, where's the fire?” Unfortunately, Xorn tossed the door at him, knocking him back out of sight. "We'll deal with him later...get that winged pony or Lockjaw'll have our heads." he said in a gravelly voice before adding "In fact...get them all..."
...
The aquillian followed Pinkie into the kitchen. "Now where'd you-" he started before a pie splatted him in the face. "What the he-?" he began before several cakes hit him and wincing as a frying pan impacted on his beak. "Caw...come here, pinky." he snarled, rubbing his beak.
"That's Pinkie Pie to you, crow face!" shouted Pinkie before throwing a saucepan. The aquillan yelped before diving for cover and Pinkie opened fire with more culinary artillery.
...
The human of the team had followed Applejack and Fluttershy into the corridor leading to the pool. "Where are you, you little winged freak?" he muttered, panning his rifle around. A slight rattle got his attention, causing him to spin towards the source of the sound.
He turned to see a cleaner bot heading out before shrugging. "I hate night ops...creepy crap." he said before hearing another clatter. "Gotcha." he said, walking towards the door, never bothering to think that resorts didn’t use cleaner bots as it turned to follow him.
"Now, where did you get to?" he muttered, switching his visor to thermal vision. He looked down to see two rows of hoofprints and grinned walking towards a door before kicking it open. "Aha!" he shouted before pausing. All he could see was the indoor swimming pool.
He looked around to see the trail heading to the edge of the pool. "Clever girls." he muttered before calling out. "Ok...shows over...out or I toss grenades in the pool." picking up a few tennisballs from some sports equipment left near.
A couple of bubbles appeared on the surface. "Fine...FIRE IN THE HOLE!" he called out, before throwing the tennis balls in and starting to count. More bubbles appeared on the surface before Fluttershy surfaced, gasping for breath and looking terrified. The merc grinned, aiming his blaster at her nose. "Hi there, lady." he said evilly, not noticing the cleaner bot finally navigating the step and ambling towards him.
Fluttershy yelped and cried, "Look out behind you!" "Huh...you think I'm gonna fall for that?" he said, adding "Its just a damn cleaner bot." before the bot said “Threat confirmed.” and the eye glowed. "The merc turned confused at that "What the he-ACK!" he began before a plasma burst from the bot sent him flying into the pool.
Fluttershy screamed a bit and scrambled to get out of the pool. Applejack surfaced with a gasp and asked, "What in tarnation was that?" The bot turned to face them "No weapons detected. Threat level: 0. Standing down." before hovering towards a tiny hatch in a wall like the worlds most dangerous mouse. The radio on the now deceased mercs chest said "Everyone...heads up. This damn safehouse is a death-trap. Where the hells Team 2?"
...
Meanwhile, another merc had followed the two unicorns and the lizard creature up the stairs. "You can't get away from me," he said. He ran up the stairs to see several doors. "I hate this damn place...I know there wasn’t that many doors in the floor plan." he said before the safehouse computer announced "Threat level now beyond local ability...contacting nearest CPS barracks for support." Xorns voice on the radio then said "Thats it...we are out of time, gentleman...grab those freaks and lets split...Team 2...get here now."
"Working on it," muttered the merc before opening one of the doors. He jumped back as a flamethrower in the back wall attempted to roast him, slamming it shut again. "GAH...damn CPS and their booby traps. I'm gonna skin those freaks when I catch them." he snarled, before heading to the next door. He started opening it, but this time he was much more cautious. He slowly creaked it open, careful to stay out of the door frame.
After nothing happened he peered in and nearly got a terminal crew cut from a plasma javalin gun. "Fine...door number 3." he said, aiming angrily and blasting the hinges. This time, he struck gold, finding the unicorns and the lizard there. "Ha! No getting away this time!" he said, levelling his gun at them.
"Ok...you little pains are coming with me...dead or alive." he said angrily, aiming between them. Twilight and Rarity screamed before suddenly pointing their horns at the merc and shooting out bursts of light. Spike also let out a gout of dragon fire at him. The merc was hit three ways and hidden by the intense glow. The three of them could only hear the sounds of stretching before something went 'pop'. They stopped, only to see a confused-looking badger there.
Spike looked at the confused and cross-eyed badger before looking at Rarity and Twilight. "Nice one." he said impressed. "Uh, I didn't for my spell to do that," said Twilight, "I just wanted send him out of the house." "I wanted to freeze in place," said Rarity. The three of them looked at the badger again before Spike said, "So, mixing different unicorn spells and dragon fire is a bad thing?" "Looks like it," said Twilight.
"Oh...its worse then you think, ladies." said Xorn, walking into view, several mercs who were clearly this 'Team 2' mentioned. "Our intel had 6 of you here...where's your friend?" he said in a polite voice that seemed out of place on him, especially as he added "I will not ask twice." "Uh, think we could try that unicorn spell and dragon fire thing one more time?" asked Spike. "Don't bother, my species are naturally immune to magi, your spells won't work on me," said Xorn, confidently.
The ponies gulped at that while Xorn said "On the count of 3...shoot them." to his men before he said to the girls "Until 3: 1...2..."
Just then, what looked like a rainbow slammed into him at high speed, throwing him down the hall. Xorn however was hardier then a aquillan and was already up. "Ah...the missing member." he said, with amusement, raising a hand for his men to lower their guns.
"You leave my friends alone are you're really in trouble," said Rainbow Dash. "You really are either dumb or suicidal...you're lucky Mr Romanov wants you alive." said Xorn, unimpressed as electricity began to crackle around his fist. "As if you could take me," said Rainbow Dash, "I can fly circles around you backwards. "You are fast...but are you really as fast as lightning?" said Xorn before sending twin bolts at Dash.
Whether or not Dash was or not (most likely not), she was taken by surprise and zapped into unconsciousness. The others all looked horrified, more as a comm said "Xorn...we found richards in the pool...and the last two runners...its the one we looking for?" Xorn looked at the unconscious form of Rainbow Dash. "Negative...we've got the courier...meet with team 2 and take the others out back for disposal...wait...where's Lynch?" he said before two of the team 2 mercs jerked in time with a laser flash.
Xorn turned to see Matt with a foul expression on his face, "You break into my temporary dwelling, you attack my friends, electrocute one into unconsciousness, and, above all, you hit me over the head with a thrown door while I still have a hangover. Now, I'm mad." Xorn glared and waved the last two team members forward "Kill him." he snarled, before grabbing Dash and spreading his own wings, blowing the window out with another bolt before taking off.
"Smeg it!" snapped Matt before zapping the two mercs with his riot rifle. The mercs juddered before falling down in smoking heaps. Matt ran to the window and aimed down his sights at the already distant Xorn. "Dammit." he swore angrily when he realised Xorn was already too high. "Matt? What do we do?" asked Twilight. Matt sighed "For now...there's not much. Applejack and Fluttershy are fine...their new mates made the mistake of waking me up first." he said, adding the last part darkly.
Just then, the intercom stated, "Alert, additional intruders detected in the foyer." Matt said in a tired voice "And thats our cue to leave. Lets go." Matt ran down the stairs, opened the kitchen door to make sure there wasn’t any hiding places and was immediately brained by a low flying frying pan. Matt staggered a bit before snapping, "Who threw that?!"
Pinkie, wearing a tablecloth like a bandanna peered out with a growling look before immediately smiling when she spotted Matt. "Oopsie. Sorry, Matt. I thought you were another of those meany heads." she said cheerfully. Matt looked down to see an aquillan with corkscrewing eyes gibbering on the floor. "Uh, right, good shot," said Matt, "Let's get out of here."
Matt and Pinkie returned to the others just in time as Xorns backup teams turned up via the back door. "Lets go." yelled Matt, firing a shot at the first thug and forcing the others to duck out of sight. The group scrambled for the front door, keeping low to avoid getting shot.
Matt was last out, firing to keep the thugs down before running out after them. Unfortunately, it turned out Xorn was a clever strategist, having had a team waiting at the front as well. "Ok...hands up...NOW!" yelled one of the thugs as the pursuers ran out of the safehouse. "Oh, you've got to be kidding," said Matt. "Drop that rifle." yelled another thug. Matt reluctantly complied. "Mr Romanov put a big money bonus on your ass, rifter." said another thug with a grin.
"I had a feeling that last job would come back to bite me," said Matt, "Didn't expect it to be this soon." "Les just cap them and get outta here." said the third thug before the group all raised their blasters to aim.
Just as Matt had resigned himself to the great big spaceship in the sky, a blaze of gunfire slammed into the group of thugs as a dozen black armored troopers appeared on the roof of one of the nearby chalets, firing down. "Now who's shooting at us?" asked Applejack.
Matt, however was grinning, yelling up "You took your smegging time!" cheerfully. "You know these people?" asked Twilight. Matt nodded "Yeah...these guys are on our side." he said cheerfully as the surviving thugs ran for it. "Well, that's certainly a relief," said Rarity, "But what about the one who absconded with Rainbow Dash?"
Matt nodded as one of the troopers jumped down "Sorry we're late, Lynch. Board wouldn’t let us respond at first. Hey...thought there were 6 of those guys." he said through a helmet filtered voice. "Yeah, one of them got nabbed," said Matt a little darkly. "Xorn Aladaster...bloody freelancer. We've been after him for years. Stands to reason he'd park his talons under Romanov's table." said the squad leader.
"Still, why would he want to kidnap Rainbow Dash?" asked Twilight, "It doesn't make sense." "Hell if we know. Security channels have been flooded with Romanov's thugs for hire hitting a hamlet in the rifter sector. Grabbed someone called...lets see here..." said the squad leader, looking at his wrist computer before saying "What kinda name is Jump Star?"
"Jump Star?!" said all of the ponies at once. The squad leader took a step back from shock. "Wait...you know him?" he said surprised. "He's one of the pegasi who lives here," said Fluttershy, "He said he worked as a courier." "Shit...he musta been C.S's informer. Stupid kid." said the squad leader gloomily.
"Informer?" asked Fluttershy. "It means he was the one who was digging up dirt for these guys," said Matt. "I didn't know he was a digger," said Pinkie, "He looks awfully clean for one." "Stupid white collar lawyer weaselling," growled Matt. "Thats the other thing. He's put a huge bounty on your head. Every freelancer in consortium space is gonna want to cash in on it." said the squad leader gloomily.
Matt sighed and said, "So much for my mini-vacation. What next?" "I'd say get you and your little buddies outta here." said the squad leader. "I would, but one of my little buddies needs rescuing," said Matt. "We can handle it. You haven't got anything he wants." said the squad merc.
...
Elsewhere, Rainbow Dash was being roughly manhandled, er, ponyhandled by the creep who had nabbed her. And to add insult to injury, he had her wings clamped down. "Stop struggling or I might forget my orders and take a bite out of you." snarled Xorn as he glided through several skyscrapers. "You're going to be so much trouble when I get free," said Rainbow Dash, "And even bigger trouble when my friends catch up."
"My team are the best in the sector. Your friends are already dead." said Xorn with a little too much amusement before he glided down towards the mansion that had been on the news. The police vehicles were already gone and the gates had been repaired already. A guard in a suit waved Xorn down. "That the courier? Thought the courier was a guy." said the guard, looking at Rainbow.
"That's more than likely inaccurate," said Xorn, "It's not hard to think of this creature as not feminine." Rainbow Dash glared at that and delivered a buck that Made the guard wince in male sympathy. "Ow, man...you ok?" he asked. Xorn, to his credit barely reacted apart from tearing up a bit. "I'm...fine...just give me the smegging bounty so I can drop this multi-coloured pain off." he said in a strained voice.
The guard was getting out the credits before pausing and asking, "Er, how am I supposed to get her inside?" Xorn glared and used his free hand to pick the guard up to eye level. ""Ask me if I give a shit." he snarled, the stress finally reaching breaking point for him. "Ok, ok, I think I can manage her," said the guard, though the look Rainbow was giving him promised that she'll be making as much trouble as she can.
He pulled out a hand device and aimed it at the wrist comp. "There we go, 2 mill as agreed." he said before looking at the 'I'm gonna make your life hell' look on Dash's face before pulling out his comm. "Erm...control...can I get some help with the courier please?" Xorn took off immediately and a minute later, a group of human freelancers walked in laughing and dragging a tied and gagged grey pegasus. "Line up the bounty, man. We got your courier." said their leader.
"Wait a minute, I've got the courier, don't I?" said the guard, looking between the two pegasi. "Er, which one of you is the courier?" he asked. "I am," said both of them quickly. "What? She's just a visitor here, I've lived here for years," said the grey one. "No, I'm the pony you want," said the blue one, "He has nothing to do with this." The guard looked at them. "Please tell me...I've had a really shitty week...which topped when I tried to ask for my rights during the raid. Cut a guy a break." said the guard desperately.
The ponies gave each other a smirk before pointing at each other and saying, "Never mind, I'm not the courier, that pony is." The guards eye twitched for a second...
...
Romanov and his guards walked out to find the doorman in floods of hysterical tears and two pegasi tied up. "What the hell happened?" he asked in a confused voice. The guard wailed "THEY WON'T TEEEELLLLL!!!" Romanov just looked at the ponies who both said "I'm the courier you want." Unfortunately for them, Romanov shrugged "Fine...bring them both." "What?" asked the guard. "If I get rid of them both, I can make sure I get the actual courier," said Romanov.
"Wait...Mr romanov. She’s got nothing to do with this...she's just an...erm...cousin from off-planet. Please let her go." said Jump Star desperately. Romanov shrugged "Do I look like I care? Lock them both in the basement...and keep the wing clamps on them till I have a good idea what to do with them." The guards shrugged and picked up the pegasi.
Romanov strolled back inside and practically expected the call on his comm. "Let me guess...Mr Lynch survived?" he said sarcastically. "Yes sir...rapid response hit us. We barely got away. Xorn got one of his buddies though. Blue pegasi." said the thug on the other end. "Ah, well, that answers the question of which one of them is the courier," said Romanov. "Orders, sir?" said the thug. Romanov thought for a second before saying "I'd like you to send him a little message..."
...
Since the safehouse was no longer safe, the group decided to check in at an actual hotel. However, for Matt...this was a problem. Not the price as any merc who lived longer then 3 months in the CPS quickly became well off cash-wise, but more the sign exclaiming that the hotel was a 'proud member of Executive Genetics publcity department.'
Which would explain why Matt was wearing a pair of sunglasses, a cowboy hat, and a jacket which had a collar that went all the way to his nose. "Not a word. You get your hat back when I’ve finished disconnecting the camera in our suite." said Matt to Applejack, whose hat had ended up as part of his desperate disguise which clearly hadn’t worked as the receptionist had happily greeted him by name.
"Ain't this overy-excessive?" asked Applejack. "Executive Genetics want my head on a silver platter...minus the rest of me. I’m not taking chances that I will wake up with half a dozen Exo-Gene mercs pointing guns up my nose." said Matt, shortly before screaming as a aquillan courier said behind him. "Sergeant Lynch?” "YOU CAN'T PROVE THAT!" snapped Matt.
"I have a message here for you, sir. By the way..you're still wearing your ID tags." said the aquillan, pointing helpfully to where Matts dog tag was visible. "That doesn;t prove anything." said Matt pathetically. The courier sighed "Message reads: I have something of yours and you have 15 million things of mine. Come to my mansion with your friends otherwise I will be forced to use your item to recoup my losses.' The guy said you'd know where it was as you were there yesterday." said the courier.
"Can this get any worse?" muttered Matt. The aquilian cleared his throat and said, "That'll be 30 credits, plus tip." Matt turned to fix the courier with a glare that had 'roast chicken time' written all over it. "Erm....never mind." said the courier nervously before running for it.
...
"This is the most obvious trap in the world." Matt muttered, the group looking at the gates of Romanovs home. "There isn't any other choice," said Twilight. Matt nodded "Lets get this over with." Rarity looked at the dirty looks the gate guards gave Matt as they walked in. "What did you do to upset this...Romanov so badly?" she asked. Matt sighed and said "Me and My sister once got hired by NSC security to recover something from him...we cleaned out his vault as well."
"You robbed him?" asked Fluttershy, sounding astonished. "He's a criminal who supplies weapons to marauders, raiders and various monsters. Less money he has, the better. We gave most of it to a frontier colony so they could develop." said Matt a little harshly. "Oh, well, I suppose that's good that you gave the money to people who needed it," said Flutttershy.
"We kept a little...We stole about 900 million...me and chloe kept 15 mill each." said Matt, more to himself before the door opened to reveal Romanov and what looked like a guy who had lost a fight with a tin opener. "Mr Lynch...I haven't seen you for so long...oh, don’t mind Lockjaw." he said politely, gesturing to the cyborg who said "Hallo leetle pony peoples."
"Uh, hello," said Fluttershy nervously. "Hallo." said Lockjaw, grinning and causing the ponies and Spike to step back a little. Matt sighed "Whats this about Romanov? I didn’t think you'd lower yourself to kidnapping. Isn’t that against the consortiums code of honour?" he said. "Well, I take it very personally when someone snitches on me," said Romanov.
"Rainbow didn’t do that and you know it. If you want the 15 million back I still have, I'll give it to you..." said Matt, angrily only for Romanov to say "No...you also have ruined a very important event for me when you got one of my employees arrested." "Er, that would be...Jester, right?" asked Matt.
"Jetser. He was supposed to race for me in the upcoming Gravity Racer event. I believe it is only fair that you replace him as the pilot." said Romanov, simply. Matt glared and said "Not a chance. I’m taking Dash and Jump Star now or...URK!" before Lockjaw, at a nod, grabbed Matt round the throat and lifted him up with no apparent effort. "Again...no...this time I hold the aces. You will race or none of your friends will walk out of here alive..." sad Romanov coldly, at the same time that half a dozen guards walked into view.
Matt glared at Romanov and managed to gasp, "What kind of sick twisted creep threatens innocent ponies and dragons?" "A businessman. You don’t have to help. If you are really intent on being stupid, I can have Lockjaw here squeeze until your head pops off like a cork...or you can race and your debt is wiped clean." said Romanov, casually.
Maybe it was Applejack's position of being the bearer of the Element of Honesty or maybe it was basic earth pony instinct, but she had a feeling that Romanov wasn't telling something important, but she wasn't exactly sure. Romanov noticed that Matt wasn't speaking much and gestured to LockJaw. "Loosen your grip a little. He has to be able to answer." he said, coldly. Lockjaw complied and Matt managed to gasp before saying "How do I know you'll keep your end of the bargain?"
"Oh, I'm hurt," said Romanov mockingly, "Don't you trust me?" "About as far as I could toss Lockjaw over here." said Matt, sarcastically. Romanov made a mock expression of hurt. "What kind of splitter would I be if I went back on a deal? So you will race in Jetsers place?" Matt yelped as Lockjaw dropped him before saying "Do I really have a choice?"
"That's the spirit," said Romanov, "You better clean up if you want to get ready for the race." Matt sighed and said, "Let me guess, I'll be doing some illegal street-racing." "Of course not. You'll be representing me in the Arc Canyon grav racer event." said Romanov, relishing the way the colour drained from Matts face. "Oh, don't tell me you haven't competed in racing before," said Romanov, "I'm sure you've had loads of experience of running, with your non-existent tail between your legs."
Matt glared before muttering "You know perfectly well that there is a good reason that humans don’t take part in grav racing." "Something about your delicate composition, I believe," said Romanov. Matt glowered as Romanov said "There are quarters prepared on the premises...and Lockjaw here will be your bodyguard...in case you get....lost." with a evil smirk. “Ladies, hatchling." he said before walking off, leaving Lockjaw. "Ok...dis vay please, leetie pony peoples." he said.
Matt pouted and said, "I'd like to see you make me move." Lockjaw simply said, "Ok, weird mercenary person" before grabbing Matt by the foot and dragging him along.
...
The group were led to a pretty fancy set of rooms that could almost pass for the safehouse...had it not been for the two guards in each room...and Lockjaw of course. Jump Star and Rainbow Dash were already there when Matt was unceremoniously tossed into the room by Lockjaw. "You stay like good racing person or I vill have to hit you on ze head and zen Romanov vill yell at me." he said.
Matt glanced at Lockjaw's mechanical fist and said, "Right, I don't think I'll be leaving." The rest of the gang however were happy to see Rainbow and Jump Star alive and well, apart from the metal rings around their midsections that stopped them using their wings. "Oh, we were so worried something terrible might have happened," said Fluttershy.
"We're ok. These jerks put these things on us so we can’t fly. Turns out Jump Star here stood up to this guy and told the cops about what Romanov was doing." said Rainbow Dash, sounding a little proud of what Jump Star had tried to do. "I just wanted him to be gone. Nobody in the rifter sector could even sneeze without Romanovs permission and the cops had nothing to allow them to get rid of him." he said, gloomily, adding "I just made it far worse. His thugs threatened to hurt my mom and dad if I didn't come here."
"So why did they take Rainbow?" asked Pinkie. "Apparently, they couldn't keep track which pony is which here," said Rainbow, "I mean, they thought I could have been mistaken for a guy. How insulting is that?" "Tell me about it." said Jump Star before saying “I'm sorry I got you all into this mess." Matt shrugged and said, "I probably would have been dragged into this eventually."
Twilight said curiously "Whats this 'grav racing'? You looked horrified when he mentioned it." Matt sighed “Apparently it was started after the NSC/Combine war. All these surplus combat speeders. The NSC of the time couldn’t afford to have them sitting in storage...so they sold them to the consortium who removed their speed inhibitors and used them for racing. No human has the reflexes to fly one." he said.
"You seemed ok with those virtual ships," said Fluttershy, confused. "The simulations slowed down by safety programs. The real sport has about 2 fatalities per race." said Matt, darkly. One of the guards smirked and said "Yeah...it'll be fun to see you smeared on the track after what you did to the guys who went with Xorn." "But your boss wants his prize money, right?" asked Applejack. "Romanov is NOT my boss. Most mercenary companies won’t give the consortium the time of day, let alone employees." said Matt, angrily.
"Still, he wouldn't want to waste all the money he invested into this race, right?" asked Applejack. "No...but he’d be just as happy to see me dead." said Matt, darkly. "Well, there's a least one thing that hasn't gone bad," said Matt. "What's that?" asked Pinkie. "Exo Gene isn't here," said Matt.
...
<intercepted transmission...>
<Decoding....decoding complete...Message as follows>
<Is this Colonel Zara's office?>
<Who is this? This is a secure Executive Genetics Internal Security number. I;m going to have to ask you to...>
<I have information that you will be interested in. I believe you've been looking for a Matthew Lynch?>
<...Stand by. I'll connect you...>
<...This is Zara>
<This is Talos Dramidis...manager of the Shimmering Comet Hotel on Paradiso V. You will not believe who's staying here...>
<Warning: Connection lost due to anti-intrusion programs>
...
Matt was being escorted to Romanov's private garage. "Every racer should know their own vehicle," said Romanov, "Even if they only to make sure they don't crash it on the first lap." Matt looked at the old Viper speeder in disgust. "You're kidding. That things junk." he said, horrified. "Junk? This is a classic," said Romanov. "Yeah, a classic antique," said Matt.
"Its not all about looks." said a old aquillan in the corner, the pit mechanic. "Jetser added his own mods to this baby." To hammer the point home, the aquillan opened the pilot canopy to reveal brand new control systems and readouts. "Looks aren’t everything." said the mechanic with a smirk.
"Well, okay..." said Matt, "But can it hold together? Some of these panels look ready to fall off." "I treat this thing like its my own chick. It'll last." said the aquillan confidently as Romanov walked off, leaving a guard to watch. "Ok then," said Matt, "Better do a systems diagnosis just to be on the safe side." The aquillan glared "You don’t trust my work? Jetsers flown this in 12 races. The day my work fails is the day I join the astral flock." he said angrily. "Ok, ok, can't blame a guy for being cautious," said Matt, "Er, how about a practice lap?"
...
It was a annoyed attempt at torture that Romanov had expected Matt to take a few practises and had piped the feed to his friends. Rainbow Dash winced inwardly as Matt span the practice speeder off the track again, a guard who was a racing fan helpfully explaining that the practice models only ran at 1/4 speed.
"Uh, I'm sure Matt can get better in time for the race, right?" asked Pinkie. "How is he supposed to steer that thing?" asked Applejack, "It's goin' way too fast." One of the guards, they having forgotten their duties temporarily to enjoy this entertainment laughed as Matt span out again. "He isn’t. He'll be part of the first corners wall on the first lap." laughed one before starting to yelp as Twilight cast a spell that caused his mouth to zip shut temporarily.
"We have to help Matt," said Rainbow Dash, "He doesn't stand a chance on his own." "But how, we're trapped inside this room," said Rarity, "Which isn't really a bad room to be locked inside of, though the furniture could use a bit of rearrangement." One of the other guards glared and readied his rifle. "You're not going..." he began before there was a 'FROOM' and he was knocked into the far wall. Lockjaw lowered his now smoking arm cannon and said "Romanov say no hurty pony peoples." in a angry low voice.
"Uh, thanks for that," said Twilight. "Pleasure is being mine, little purple pony thing. Lockjaw do what Romanov says and Romanov say 'Lockjaw, silly tin person. Make sure dunderhead guards no hurty pony peoples'...vat so funny?" he said, adding the last part in confusion as Pinkie laughed at his romanov impression. "Oh, don't mind her," said Rarity, "She'll laugh at anything. Just watch." She walked over to Pinkie and was quiet for a moment before saying, "Pudding."
Lockjaw watched in polite confusion as Pinkie started laughing harder. "Hmm...Lockjaw see point. Me go get you foody now." he said, wandering off, one of the remaining guards dragging his 'retired' companion out. The other muttered in a low worried voice "Damn, I hate cyborgs." Twilight turned to Jump Star and asked, "Is Lockjaw always this...thick?"
Jump Star said "Not really...Usually he's at the orbital station to intimidate Romanov's staff. I think its the magnetic field here...plays hell with his cerebral implants." he said. "Hmm...maybe we can use this to our advantage somehow," said Applejack quietly. Jump Star blanched "Are you nuts? Lockjaw'll rip us to shreds if it goes wrong. You saw that riot cannon. It nearly blew that guy in half and he was wearing armor." he said horrified.
"It was just a suggestion," said Applejack, "No need to get riled up about it." Jump Star stopped before looking thoughtful. "It might work though if we can get it on his forehead. The problem'll be the other guards. We need to choose a time they'll all be occupied...the race. I bet Romanov'll take us along to watch Matt fail. The race arena wll only let him bring a few guards." he said.
"How'd get to be so knowledgeable about being covert?" asked Rarity. "Well, let's just say that customs isn't the only thing a courier has to learn to sneak around," said Jump Star.
...
<Intercepting comm traffic from colonial monitoring...stand by...>
<This is Iris orbital monitoring vessel to unidentified cruiser. State name and intention, over>
<This is CBC Daedalus of Executive Genetics Internal Security...Colonel Anastasia Zara commanding. We have information that a saboteur is groundside on your colony and we have authorization from the NSC Council to apprehend.>
<The situation can be dealt with by local forces. Your assistance will not be necessary. You may depart now.>
<You're mistaken. This call is simply a courtesy. My men WILL apprehend our suspect with or without flight clearence>
<Alert: Orbital defences activating...>
<This is your last warning. Warp out or you will be considered hostile. Landing clearance is de->
<Additional ships detected: Tags for CBC Zodiac, CBC Taurus, CBC Leo, CBC Vornbane and CBC Chimera detected>
<Orbital defences deactivating...>
<Landing clearance approved. Please proceed to the designated spaceport.>
<Thank you for your cooperation. Inform Colonial security to stay away from my personnel. Daedalus out>
...
Two days later...
There was quite a big turnout at the race track. Many citizens and plenty of tourists had come to watch the grav-race. If one was familiar with Earth culture, it would remind them of NASCAR. Matt looked at the flight suit he was wearing "I look like the candy man. This is stupid." he groaned, looking at the green and blue suit. "I agree," said Rarity, "That suit is a crime against fashion."
"Yeah...a laser blast would go right through this stuff." said Matt, absently. The group had been allowed to come down to the pit to see him off. Matt had managed to improve his skill from, as the mechanic had said 'Suicidally bad' to 'passably bad'.
"I don't think lasers are your top concern," said Applejack. "I just hope you know how to deal with the ramming," said Rainbow Dash. The mechanic walked in at that, squalking angrily. "That reptillain jerk. That smeghead." he was saying to himself before he saw the others "Lynch...Romanov pulled some strings wth the arena...this is gonna be a weapon free race. Dammit...its like he wants you to get atomized."
"Oh, that's not so bad," said Pinkie, "No one will be allowed to shoot at you if it's weapon-free." The mechanic sighed "No...its based off of old military jargon. Means they'll be releasing weapon activators." he said. "Which means..." started Fluttershy. "Pretty much the opposite of what Pinkie said," finished Matt. "Which means your friend here'll be lucky to survive the first lap." said the mechanic before a muffled announcement was heard followed by a PA saying “All racers, report to your vehicles."
"Uh, I'd say break a leg, but I don't think you want that kind of luck," said Applejack. "He'll need all the luck he can get...uh oh. Looks like your chaperones are here." said the mechanic, concern in his voice as Lockjaw and two guards walked on. "Viewing booths this way." said a guard. "Of course," said Rarity before the ponies and Spike followed after them.
...
Matt gulped as a mag-crane lifted his racer onto the track...not only cause he was worried about the others...but also cause the look some of the other racers were sending his way was not friendly. Matt was the only human racer there. The others were either splitter or aquillians. And each one of them was looking at him with contempt.
It also didn’t help that the commentator was referring to him as 'roadkill' already. "This does not fill me with confidence." he muttered sarcastically to himself. Of course, he knew he was going to hear worse taunts from the other racers once the race had begun...that is until he was knocked out...or worse.
“Hey...roadkill...you sure you got the right race. The kiddie rides are on the other side of the resort.” Said one of the splitter pilots with a cruel laugh. "Not in the mood for jokes today," said Matt, "I just want to finish this stupid thing in one piece." "I'm gonna fry your ass, mammal." said the same pilot, with cruel amusement. "So you're going to stick behind me then," retorted Matt. "Why you little..." began the splitter as his fellow pilots laughed.
"All racers, this is Track control. Please stand by. Grav locks will release in T-Minus 30 seconds." said a voice over the comms. The pilots stopped bantering with each other and started focusing on getting ready to go.
...
The commentator's voice greeted the group as they walked into the viewing box Romanov had reserved. "Ladies, gentlemen of all races. Welcome to the final of the Ashur sector grav races here on sunny Paradiso 5. We've had a surprise pilot change from the Consortium team. Loos like they've given up on winning this years, having chosen a human to replace their usual pilot, Jetser." There were plenty jeers and boos coming from the crowd. Clearly, Matt was going to be the dark horse here.
"This isn’t fair one bit. Look at some of these racers." said Spike, pointing to where the others racers stats, including their wins...and their kills were appearing on a screen. "I know, but we don't need Matt to win," said Twilight, "We just want him to finish this." Spike nodded, unable to shake the feeling that everypony was no doubt feeling...that Matt would be lucky to finish at all.
...
The grav racers rocketed across the starting line. It was easy to tell which one was Matt's, namely because his was lagging at the back. Matt watched as the others shot off as he struggled to get the racer to respond...before yelping as the racer immediately sped up. "Hey, roadkill...try not to crash too soon." said one of his opponents jeeringly before the laugh turned into a cut off scream, a billow of flame in the distance marking the first casualty. "Ooooh...looks like scarclaw got the first kill of the race in." said one of the commentators as Matt passed a pile of flaming wreckage.
"Well, I'm guessing some people lost a large bet that I'd be first to crash," said Matt. Matt was almost ended then and there as another racer in front of him nearly rammed him off the track. "HEY...JERKOFF...WATCH IT!" yelled Matt into his comm as he flew by. "It's survival of the fastest here, roadkill," came the reply before the racer rammed him again.
Matt yelped as the crash jolted him. "Warning...damage to rear armor." chimed the speeders computer. "Ya think!?" yelled Matt before the speeder flew over a lit pad resembling a shield. "Defensive software pickup detected...defence mines active." chimed the computer as a few buttons lit up. "Use the damn mines, rookie." yelled the mechanics voice in his earpiece.
The splitter pilot behind him had just enough time to swear as Matts speeder dropped three red globes onto the track before the third one slammed into his speeder and exploded, sending the grav racer flipping end over end. "Two down, seven to go," muttered Matt, "Of course, who cares as long as I live?"
...
Back in the booth, the group watched in horror as a racer attempted to ram Matt out of the race before being despatched. The commentator also seemed impressed "Looks like this roadkills still got a little bite in him." he said, tauntingly. "Well, he's still in the race," said Rainbow Dash, "And since he's last, no one will be able to get the drop on him."
"Lets just hope he's not lapped. Ok...we all ready to deal with the walking tin can?" sad Jump Star quietly, looking over at where Lockjaw was. "Ready and willin'," said Applejack. The ponies (and dragon) all nodded to each other before looking around. Twilight and Rarity immediately walked towards the two guards who were enjoying the race while Jump Star and Applejack walked towards Lockjaw who turned to look at them "Vat ist problem, little orange cowboy pony?" he asked.
"Er, uh, I've been wonderin'...how you got all them fancy metal doo-dads," said Applejack. "Got zem after big fight with combine where I got boomed." said Lockjaw, seeing no reason not to answer as Jump Star slowly hovered up behind him, holding what looked like a metal rectangle in his mouth.
"You don't say," said Applejack, "I bet it was hard to drag yerself out of that mess." "Yah...very hard due to legs havink fallen off." said Lockjaw before one of the guards turned "Hey...HEY...WHAT THE HE-?" he began before being hit with the lip zipping spell. At the same time, Jump Star tossed the magnet he was holding onto Lockjaws forehead.
"Vat-" started Lockjaw before there was a buzzing sound and his face went even more vacant than usual. A quick sleeping spell on the two struggling guards quickly put them out of the equation. "Ok...now lets get outta here before Romanov thinks to check on them." said Jump Star hurriedly. "How are we going to get Matt out?" asked Fluttershy. "I don't know..." said Jump Star, looking at the view screen where another racer had just been taken out.
...
Matt shot his speeder through what was left of Racer 3 before continuing on. The one called Scarclaw, apparently the champ according to chatter had been slowly picking off the others...but soon it would be matts turn and there was still 2 laps left.
He was fortunate that he's been able to manage the turns, but of course, that was the least difficult part of surviving this race. He was reminded of this when machinegun fire peppered the rear armor of his racer, one of the competitors deciding that he was an easy target. "Where are those defence bonuses when you need them?" muttered Matt.
"Offensive bonus detected...missiles online." chimed the computer. Matt looked thoughtful before looking through his front viewport and grinning. "You know what they say, the best defence is a good offense," he said before aiming and firing the missiles.
The missiles slammed into a abandoned tower built near the track, causing it to topple inwards, narrowly missing Matt and crashing down on the racer behind. "Ha, another one bites the dust," said Matt. "You are now in pole position." said the race computer calmly. "Ha, I'm actually winning," said Matt before realizing that means the others were now behind him, including Scarclaws.
On cue a red streaked speeder wept out the dust just behind him, its main cannons blazing away "You're mine, roadkill." sneered Scarclaw over the comms. "If you can catch me," called Matt before putting on the speed. 'Or if I don't splat first,' he mentally added.
Matt immediately stepped on the gas, Scarclaw still on him, blasting away. "Where do you think you're going, roadkill?" he taunted, blasting away at Matt's speeder. "Hopefully not into a wall," said Matt to himself as he was getting close to a turn. Scarclaw however was already proving why he was a good racer, keeping behind Matt all the time while chipping away.
Matt was starting to get a little frantic, trying to figure a way to evade Scarclaw while avoiding becoming one with the pavement. "Just give up and I'll make it quick." sneered Scarclaw. "Obviously you don't know who I am," said Matt, "I never quit." 'Not like I could if do so anyways,' he thought. Matt managed to dodge another shot before a warning light came on. "Danger...fuel line ruptured." said the computer urgently.
"Oh no," muttered Matt. As if the situation wasn't bad enough, his fuel cells could explode at any minute. "Emergency. Ejecting primary fuel cells." said thre computer calmly. Matts head slammed into the console as the speeder decelerated, deprived of its main cells before it was only doing a fraction of Scarclaws speeder. "Oh smeg," said Matt as he saw the red speeder rapidly catching up with him.
The speeder was already firing as it bore down...only to suddenly explode as a plasma blast slammed into it. Matt blinked and asked, "Did I do that?" Several troopers in the white armor of Exo-Genes private merc force clambered onto the track, one sporting a colonel insignia and the biggest plasma cannon Matt had ever seen.
"Well, this is a big twist," said Matt, "And just when I thought this race couldn't get any worse." "Sergeant. Don’t make this harder then it has to be. Come out with your hands where we can see them." said one of the troopers. "Can't stop right now, racing," said Matt as tried speeding up.
One of the troopers pulled out an EMP rifle at that and shocked the car. "Warning...sys...tem...off.......line." said the computer slowly. "Ok...maybe now?" said Matt, getting slowly out.
...
Meanwhile, Spike and the ponies were making their way towards the pit area. The commentator could be heard apologising for what he said was 'Unforseen government intervention.' "Maybe local security got sick of these races?" said Jump Star, uncertain. "I hope so," said Twilight, "As long as they don't arrest Matt."
"Ah don’t think these guys are on our side." said Applejack slowly, pointing to where a gunship almost exactly like the one that Echo had used in their attack circling the track. "Oh, we have to get Matt out of there," said Fluttershy. Three more gunships in jet mode flew overhead in formation, covering a stockier ship that was allowing troopers to rappel down. "I don’t think they're gonna let us." said Jump Star, pointing to where a white version of Matt's combat SUV driving into view before a handcuffed Matt was pushed out of it. At the same time a chorus of clicks were heard behind the group and a familiar, if more intelligent version of a voice said "You know...I really hate....magnets."
"Uh, we're in big trouble, aren't we?" said Spike. The group turned to see several of Romanov's thugs wearing race track staff gear and Lockjaw, who had a more intelligent and definitely angrier look. "I have half a mind to blast you all." he said icily.
"Uh, aren't you supposed to be...less effective on this planet?" asked Twilight. "The magnet depolarized me...so I am definately smart enough now...Romanov gave me very specific orders...if you try to escape..." he began, his mechanical hand rotating to turn into a cannon before he aimed "...I was to make an example of one of you..."
Just then, one of Romanov's men went over to Lockjaw and said, "Er, we've got a problem on the racetrack. Exo-Gene just swooped in and bagged Lynch." "What? Romanov'll have our hides if we lose him. Bring these lot and come with me. We'll head them off at the pit area." said Lockjaw angrily.
The ponies didn't have a chance of escape. Even with this distraction, they'd sure to be gunned down if they made a break for it. Lockjaw turned to glare at them "...and don’t even think about another magnet." he said icily.
...
Matt's day just seemed to keep rolling down hill. Sure, he survived the grav race, but being hauled away by Exo-Gene's forces was not the way he wanted to end it. "Move it." said one trooper, shoving him along only for the colonel in charge to say "Watch it, private. A little respect is in order."
That did lighten Matt's up a little. Even if he was in enemy hands, at least he was getting a little respect. "So what?" said the private coldly only for the colonel to turn, taking her helmet off to reveal. "Sarge?" said Matt dumbly, spotting the face of the person who had taught him and Chloe. "Matt, you're a long way from home, aren't you?" said Zara calmly.
"What are you doing with these losers?" said Matt, forgetting his situation for a minute before losing his grin as Zara said "I'm LEADING these losers. Look...I dunno what you stole but Exo Gene’s board is up in arms." "Oh..." said Matt, "I'm guessing the CPS payroll wasn't good enough."
"I was retired, Lynch. Maybe if Layton was in charge...but no, command wanted new blood." said Zara, her tone getting darker as she slipped into what was apparently a regular rant judging from the other squad members eye rolls." "New blood? You were one of the best," said Matt. "Yeah, yeah...and here I am...hunting down one of two of my best students...by the way...drop the stun disc." said Zara, adding the last part in a matter-of-fact voice.
Matt sighed, dropping the stun grenade he had behind his back and said, "You always could guess what I'm planning next." "I taught you that trick...plus the force keeps records of all their tricks you pulled on Kurata." said Zara as the group walked towards the pit. "Ah, you heard about that," said Matt, "That was some of my finest work." Zara nodded "Yeah...Darius was in charge of security there." she commented.
"Ah, I wondered why he seemed to take my capture so personal," said Matt, "Kinda hard to keep track of faces when you're trying to avoid being shot." "True...you know I gotta hand you in. You stole a damn super computer, Lynch." said Zara, sounding stern as they entered the pit...and saw a line of freelancer mercs aiming at them.
"Oh, I nearly forgot," said Matt, "Did I mention I was in that race to pay off a debt?" Lockjaw walked into view and said "Dat is far enough. Hand Lynch over and you leave alive." Zara glared and said, "I'm sorry, but Mr. Lynch is in the custody of Exo-Gene. We've been looking for him for quite a while."
"Wrong answer." said Lockjaw, coldly before being caught in the spotlight from one of the gunship fighters. "You don’t scare us as easy as security, corporate." he said. "If you don't want to lose what little's left of your organs, I suggest you step aside," said Zara.
"You are in no position to ask anything. You hand over lynch or his little friends end up as glue." said Lockjaw coldly. Matt slowly slipped back and behind a speeder...just in time as the sound of gunfire from further back caused all hell to break loose, Zara’s and Lockjaws men panicking and opening fire. "Ok, I think it's time to get out of Dodge," said Matt, "Just need to pick up the girls and Spike."
Matt peered up from his cover to only almost lose it. There were so many mercs around that nobody would get out without a...Matt stopped to notice the speeders hatch was unlocked. "...a distraction." he said out loud.
...
Zara was calmly blasting away at the thugs with practised ease, Lockjaw having melted away when he recognised a losing battle, before noticing that Matt had vanished "Sergeant...where the hells-?" she began before the speeder in the corner thrummed into life. "Oh shit...STOP THAT SPEEDER...ALL UNITS!” she yelled on her comm, spotting Matt in the cockpit, him giving a cheeky wave as the ship flew out.
...
"Now, let's see," said Matt, "There ought to be some weak structure in the wall that I can make even weaker..." A orange beam from one of the gunships slammed into the ground by the speeder, attempting to track it before accidentally blasting the wall. "Or I can wait for these morons to do it." he said happily.
...
Matt wasn't the only one who's interference allowed for their liberation. Seeing how their guards were so preoccupied right now, Spike and the ponies decided now would be a good time to make a covert escape. The guard was laughably easy to deal with, one sleeping spell knocking him out, though he;d shot the ceiling by accident. From the sounds of things, the shots had been a spark for something bigger.
"I think it's time we headed back to Equestria," said Twilight. "What about your friend?" said Jump Star before the track barrier behind him exploded and a speeder flew out. "I think Matt's found a way out," said Rainbow Dash. "Yeah, he's even harder to keep tied down than Pinkie Pie," said Applejack. Matt opened the hatch for a second and yelled out "I'll run a little interference...you leg it for the portal." before shutting it again and speeding off, two of the gunships flying overhead in pursuit.
"You heard the man," said Rainbow Dash, "Let's head for that portal." Jump Star was hesitant for a minute before following.
...
The two security officers sat in their car, lunches in front of them when they got the call. "All units: Code 12. A grav speeder has been stolen and is being driven through the resort. E.G.I.S units requesting support in apprehension of suspect." "A grav speeder?" said one of the officers, "What kind of addle-brained nutcase would try to drive one through civilian streets?"
"Its probably a prank call. Remember when they said we were gonna get a merc coming that had a slug for a head?" said the second officer with a laugh, reaching for his drink before the 'imagined' grav speeder shot by, causing him to crush his drink and shower himself with it. "Well, that's breaking at least 10 traffic laws," said the other officer, in a faint voice.
The first officer looked in his rear mirror before going wide eyed and diving out the cruiser, dragging his partner. A second later, a E.G.I.S combat SUV ran the cruiser over before following the speeder. "Thats it...I'm taking the week off." said the first officer shakily as three more CSUV's drove by. "I hope that cruiser's not coming out of our paychecks," said the other.
...
Matt checked one of the cameras to see one of exo-genes SUV's open fire, laser fire peppering the speeder. "Wow...they're really pissed." he chuckled to himself. He glanced at the dashboard and said, "Let's see, are there any tricks left to pull now that I'm off the track?" He grinned as he spotted almost all the lights were lit up before he had to swerve to avoid a passenger cab, tourists scattering into buildings and shops to avoid the mayhem. "Damn...I can’t let loose here." he muttered.
He glanced over the options while muttering, "What I wouldn't give for an oil slick or some carpet tacks right now." A blast hit the side of the speeder at that "Danger...coolant rupture." chimed the computer. Matt winced before hearing tires screeching and looked to see the lead SUV spin out on the coolant to smash into a infonet terminal. "Eh, close enough," said Matt, "Now to get to that portal."
He turned the corner and was lucky he took it wide as two NSC security APC's were blocking the road...clearly the cops were trying to stop this now. "Well, now I can add 'driving on the sidewalk' to the dozen or so traffic laws I'm breaking," said Matt.
He turned to see the last two CSUV's slam into the cop vehicles. "Ow...that'll hurt...well, this went well and I;m almost at the portal." he said to himself cheerfully before the following gunship fired a shot that sliced the engine block clean off.
"Oh, you've got to be kidding," said Matt as he tried to bring the speeder to a halt. The speeder skidded to a halt just past the alley they had used to arrive. "Now...thats just luck." Matt commented, getting out unsteadily. Just then, a spout of flame shot out of the hole where the engine block was. Matt yelped and ran into the alley just as the engine exploded, almost falling over Jump Star.
Matt got up to see the rest there. "Ah, the gang's all here," said Matt, "Afraid we don't have time to go get our luggage though." Pinkie surprisingly was the most annoyed "Aw...I brought my best party cannon as well." she said, disappointed. Jump Star however said "You look after yourselves." "You're not coming with us?" asked Rarity. "I can't," said Jump Star, "I have my own family here."
Jump Star turned to Rainbow Dash and said with a grin. "Hey...maybe I will come visit one day. I still have to give that race." "Yeah, and I'm not gonna take it easy on you," said Rainbow Dash. Jump Star said cheerfully "Its a date then." before the sound of approaching vehicle sirens was heard. "Time to go." said Matt, urgently, taking a pot shot at a head peering in, forcing it to duck back.
The group didn't need any more encouragement. They quickly filed through the portal. Matt, the last to go through, turned to Jump Star before saying "You stay safe...and try not to piss off criminal cartels anymore." "Right, I've already irked enough people already," said Jump Star.
Matt nodded "Try out for a merc crew...with your talent for trouble, you'd be a natural." he said jokingly before jumping through the portal. Zara and her team ran into view just as it vanished. "Dammit." she swore. "Ma'am, there's still one of them left," said one of the troopers, pointed to where two troopers were aiming at Jump Star. "What should we do with him?" Zara sighed and said, "Leave him. It's not worth grilling one of the locals." "The board said they want witnesses for questioning..." said another trooper before Zara spun and pointed her gun at him. "Is the board commanding this unit? No, I am," she snapped, "I'm the one who calls the shots here and we are professionals...not marauders."
The trooper took a step back before eventually nodding "Yes, ma'am." Another trooper looked at Jump Star before saying "Get lost, kid." "Uh, sure thing," said Jump Star before taking off. Zara looked to watch Jump Star flying off "Winged horses that talk...just when I thought Nullspace was outta surprises..." she said to herself before muttering "What have you gotten yourself into, Lynch?"
...
The group were once again back in the barn basement. As soon as Matt was through, he ran over and shut down the portal. "Well...thats another colony I can NEVER visit ever again...wasnlt that bad this time." he said to himself.
"Well, it wasn't all bad," said Fluttershy, "I mean, yes, the being held hostage part was scary. But we had some fun there. And I got to bring home a new friend." Just then, a badger popped out of her mane and looked around. "Isn't he the cutest?" asked Fluttershy. Spike looked at the badger, saying curiously "Isn’t that the guy we turned into a ba-?" he began only to be silenced by both Rarity's and Twilights magic. Matt looked over "What was that?" he asked.
"Oh, nothing," said Twilight, innocently "It is a darling little badger," said Rarity, equally innocently. "I'm sure Fluttershy can find it a nice home." "Yes, nicer than that place was," said Twilight. Matt stared "Do I want to know?" he asked flatly. "Not really," said both unicorns at the same time.
...
<Intercepting Transmission...>
<Origin: NSC NewsNet transmission...>
<Playback initiated...>
<And continuing the top story tonight, Riots that broke out on the popular resort of Paradiso V appear to be coming under control as elements of Executive Genetics Internal Security and NSC military continue to force consortium underworld elements into retreat>
<We managed to speak with Col. Zara about their business here, but she could not reveal much as the information is highly classified. When they departed, the Exo-Gene forces appeared to be heading towards the unchartered sectors. The only information that we have been given on this is that they're going to be assisting a ship that has been assumed lost there for the past month, the Icarus...>
<Transmission lost due to wormhole interference...Logging to Skyraid internal memory for review by central AI...>