//------------------------------// // Chapter #5 // Story: Operation Imortuus // by Pika53 //------------------------------// Equestria, Forest east of Foal Mountains; Abandoned Barn, 10:05 am, 9th July 20xx, Day, Weather: Clear As he awoke, Jaden felt refreshed. Glancing around, he noted that most of his companions were in similar states as they meandered around the loft. Letting his gaze drift, Jaden smirked as he saw the still sleeping forms of several members of the team; a few of the dolls among them. A short distance away, he could see Cameron sprawled out with Rainbine and Rarifruit laying by her side. Not far from them, were Brutalight and Tess; in a similar state. The sight was so adorkably cute that he had to respond in some manner. Judging from the snickers, most of the others were just as amused by the situation. Although none of them spoke, Jaden got the impression that quite a party took place in the loft the previous night. What appeared to be an open bottle of some sort only added to that assumption. Climbing to his feet and walking over, Jaden examined the bottle and discovered that it was partially filled with an unknown liquid. Sniffing the bottle, Jaden was almost overpowered by the heavy odor of liquor mixed with another scent he couldn't identify. From the sound of the snickers, it was obvious that the others were amused by his reaction to the mystery liquid. “Whew, that's some seriously potent stuff.” he remarked. “It was originally meant for sis.” Fiora snickered. “And Brutalight got a hold of it instead?” Jaden asked, grinning. He saw Edi smile and nod in reply; amusing him even more. “Oh, how I wish I could've seen that.” he chuckled. “What did ya'll do to this stuff?” Jaden continued after a pause. “You don't want to know what they did.” Selena remarked as she materialized. Jaden grinned at the news before replying, “Oh, we're going to have fun with this.” He then turned to Fluttershout. “Would you care to do the honors?” Fluttershout seemed to mull the suggestion over briefly before a wicked smirk crossed her features. She then inhaled deeply and... well the results spoke for themselves as Cameron catapulted several feet into the air with a startled cry before landing upon the ponies laying beside her; said dolls gasping and groaning as they struggled to escape from beneath the dazed pegasus. Tess and Brutalight meanwhile, bolted to sitting positions with the former releasing a startled yelp. Both alicorn then turned glares upon him while Cameron groaned as Rainbine and Rarifruit continued their futile struggle to escape over a chorus of snickers. “Morning honey.” Jaden chuckled. “I hate you!” Tess growled. “Someone remind me not to piss her off!” Jaden continued while chuckling and rubbing his ears in an attempt to clear them out while Fluttershout continued to smirk. “You have to admit, she makes a good alarm clock.” Zander piped up just as dazed. Over a chorus of affirmations, Tess suddenly groaned and rubbed first her temples then her throat. Cameron meanwhile, had managed to clamber to a sitting position; allowing the other dolls to rise to their hooves. Smirking, Jaden handed over the bottle he was holding to Tess who proceeded to down the substance before sputtering and spitting it back up; looking grossed out. “What is this... piss?” she gasped. “I wouldn't know.” Jaden replied while fighting back a snicker. “I really hate you!” Tess snarled. Over a chorus of snickers, Jaden continued to smirk; still unable to get over how easy it was to prank the the stuffy robo-pony. Brutalight meanwhile, continued to glare; first at him then Fluttershout. As the group began to calm down, Jaden once again began to think of how he could present his plan. Minutes later, Brutalight fixed him with another piercing gaze; silently demanding to know what he was thinking about. Sensing the time had come, Jaden began to detail his idea. *************** Equestria, Forest east of Foal Mountains; rendezvous point, 7:35 pm, 9th July 20xx, Night, Weather: Cloudy As the team arrived at the perimeter of a lit area within the forest, Jaden knew they’d finally reached their destination; and not a moment too soon. If the incessant whining he’d been hearing for the last few hours had been anything to go by then it was good that they’d made it. Although Fiora had murmured little about the excessive amount of mud brought about by the previous day’s storm, certain other members of the group mentioned their displeasure at the situation. While traveling, the team had rigged up some mesh harnesses to accommodate their smaller companions through the worst areas. The harnesses had been designed to allow the dolls to enter or exit with ease on their own while making sure they were comfortable and didn’t fall out during the trek; and were attached to points on each of the larger member’s armor near their shoulders. He was carrying Brutalight and Fluttershout while Tess had Edi and Rarifruit. The rest of the dolls were spread out among the other members of the team. Letting his gaze drift, Jaden noted that the staging site was set up like any other small encampment he’d seen since joining the equestrian military; a couple of tents and various items such as folding chairs and tables scattered around what he supposed passed for some food court area, with spotlights lighting the area. From what he could see, there were about sixteen ponies in the area. Most of the ponies present were EMRF soldiers, recognizable by the golden military vests and gold military helmets that they wore displaying sun-butt’s symbol of the sun. The remaining ponies therefore were logically the Zeta squad members as they wore similar armor to what his own team had. Looking on, he could see that the vast majority of the ponies present were bored out of their minds; either lounging around or performing busy work. While the members of Zeta squad were equipped with a verity of weapons, the EMRF ponies were carrying variants of either the M4 carbine or the MP-5. It didn't take long for his team to be noticed as an EMRF soldier, a gray colored pegasus stallion by the looks of it, rapidly made its way toward them with a maroon colored earth pony stallion with a blonde colored main wearing a pair of dark shades and a small microphone headset in tow. “Hey! Who are you and what's your business here?” the pegasus barked. “Sorry we're late. We're Reaper squad; also assigned to this delightful little operation.” Jaden replied. “What kept you?” the other stallion demanded. “It would seem our pilot got lost during yesterday's storm.” Jaden answered. “Fine. Get situated and stand by. First assemblies in fifteen.” the stallion snapped before turning and walking toward a small knoll facing another part of the forest. Jaden noted the incredulous stares from his companions and shook his head with a shrug. Minutes later, most of the dolls climbed out of their harnesses and the group began making their way toward the food court area. Jaden was a little surprised that Brutalight had decided to remain with him but that was nothing considering the fact that a Zeta squad member, a creme colored unicorn mare with a light blue main by the looks of it, was rapidly approaching. “Hiya! I see you've met captain Vickers.” the mare greeted cheerily. “Uh, yeah. He's a real charming guy.” Jaden replied. “You get used to it. Anyway, my names Sully.” the mare said. “Nice to meet'cha, the names Jaden.” “Hey, do you know anything about the mission we're about to go on?” he asked. Sully shook her head. “Nothing more than what was mentioned in our original briefing. Captain Vickers's supposed to have more information on the subject.” Jaden nodded. “Oh, that reminds me, I have something for you.” Sully added before turning and pulling something out of her saddle bag and handing it to him. “What's this?” Jaden asked as he accepted the item; a file folder. “Don't know. A mare showed up late last night and said to give it to you when you arrived.” Sully replied. “I'm not sure why but I can't help but feel something's not right. And right now the only one that I gotta hunch knows what's out there is our captain.” she added. Jaden nodded for her to continue. “I'm sure he has a good reason but he's unwillingly to share with the rest of his own team. Look, I don't mind going on any mission but I do not like going into a mission blind or waiting for something to strike at us when were just sitting around.” “Anyway, watch your back around the captain, I don't trust him.” the unicorn finished before turning and walking away. “Well, this is shaping up to be quite the outing.” Jaden mused; eliciting a contemptuous snort from Brutalight. Turning he saw Tess scowling at him while Edi smirked up at him from beside the aggravated alicorn. “What?” “Just what the hay was that?” Tess snarled. “It would seem one of the Zeta's wanted to speak to me.” Jaden responded with a shrug “Why, ya jealous?” he continued; smirking at Tess's irritated demeanor as he made his way over to a table and took a seat. “No!” Tess snapped defensively. “Oh, go get a room.” Brutalight sneered. “We already have one; it’s quite lovely really.” Jaden retorted; grinning as Tess’s left eye twitched and a series of strangled noises and half formed words spilled out of her mouth while the dolls snickered. After a few minutes, Tess stormed off in a huff and Jaden began to examine the contents of the file folder he'd received. He didn't get very far in his investigation as a sudden commotion grabbed his attention. Looking up, he saw half of the EMRF soldiers and Zeta squad heading toward a pair of chariots similar to the one they'd ridden in the previous day that had been parked in an area he hadn't noticed before. One of the craft quickly took off and things began to settle down in the camp once more. From what he could see, one of the EMRF soldiers, another unicorn, was serving as a radio operator for the other squad. Glancing at his watch, Jaden noted curiously that Zeta squad's departure coincided with the fifteen minute mark set as the time for the briefing they were supposed to be having. The captain meanwhile hadn't moved from his spot and appeared to be uninterested in anything that was happening so Jaden resumed his examination of the contents within the file folder he'd received. From what he could tell, the contents of the folder were a jumbled mess of newspaper articles relating to the strange occurrences happening in the nearby town, copies of autopsy reports on some of the victims, and a series of strange documents like a list of names and descriptions for creatures that just didn't make any sort of sense. One document in particular baffled him as it referenced various common objects and keys he didn't know anything about in the form of riddles. Another contemptuous snort from Brutalight indicated that she was as confused on the matter as he was. His musing was interrupted as the radio operator suddenly became frantic; the rest of the group regarding the unicorn in confusion as captain Vickers approached him. Seconds later, the unicorn fiddled with the device and everyone present could hear the conversation. “... you copy? Malfunction, we're going to have to...” The rest was lost in static as the group huddled around the device. “Zeta squad, report! I repeat, Zeta squad, please respond.” the unicorn bellowed in agitation. As the unicorn continued to call out to the missing team, Jaden felt stunned by the sudden turn of events. It was just under half an hour since the first team had left camp and they were in trouble. Letting his gaze drift, he noted the others were just as stunned by the turn of events as captain Vickers spoke up. “Position?” “They’re in the, uh, sector twenty-two; tail end of C... except I've just lost the signal. The transponder's off-line.” the radio operator replied. Jaden's feeling of unease grew as the conversation continued. Noticing his companions unease with the situation and given his history with the aviation industry back on earth, Jaden was certain the chariot's transponder had been designed to work no matter what. The only way the device could be disabled would be if it had received serious damage. Such as in a crash. “Saddle up, everypony. We're going after them.” Vickers snapped. After silently exchanging glances with his team, the group quickly grabbed their gear and made their way toward the remaining chariot in preparation of rescuing the other squad.