Equestria
The brightness stung.
They had already come from a rather bright place, but traveling through that portal had given them a momentary blackout. To be honest, it felt a bit good to walk on something besides concrete or sand.
Stretching himself, Rocky looked back towards the other ponies that had come through the gateway. They too were shielding their eyes and stretching. After the last pony had come through the portal, Rocky whistled, gathering their attention.
"Okay, you know what they said, you know what they want. And of course, you all know what to do." Rocky solemnly looked at the small group of stallions in front of him, seven others. They were of various species. A few pegasi, earth, and unicorns made the party that had emerged from a gateway that now closed behind them at the edge of the Everfree Forest.
Rocky could tell that once the others had set foot onto Equestria's soil again, a few gained a twinge of uneasiness.
"Look, we have a mission, and when we get this done, we'll have done something extraordinary to further a perfect world that we could live in. Do you really want to be defined by your gender anymore? Well, do you?", Rocky stared at each of the ponies, who quickly returned the solemn look back at him.
"Good. Okay, let's get our delivery down to that castle in Ponyville."
They began to head down with the stallions pushing several crates towards the small and peaceful town that lay in front of them, as well as the castle inside that looked so out of place in a town of wooden and thatched houses. Instead, this one was bearing crystal structure and gave off an aura of regalness and posh. Most of all, it was a symbol of injustice and prejudice.
For as long as Rocky could remember, Equestria was always ruled by the Princesses, controlling day and night as well as overlooking their kingdom. Then, more and more Princesses began to emerge. Princess Cadence, and now, Princess Twilight Sparkle. Even another alicorn was born, going by the name of Flurry Heart. Through all of this, there had always been something that nagged at his mind.
Where were the stallions?
The nation was ruled with an iron hoof by only the females, leaving the stallions to rest at the bottom. Since when had there been a male ruler? The only that would come to mind would be King Sombra, who was disposed of thanks to the aforementioned Princesses, twice. Not to mention the corrupt caste system that had passively stemmed out of the ponies with unicorns ranking at the top with their magical abilities and earth ponies to perform all of the menial tasks and labor. How rare was it that an earth pony would be found in Canterlot, the home of the rich and wealthy compared to the unicorns?
The more he thought about this, the more Rocky was convinced that what he and the others were about to do would be justified in every sense of the word. The "humans", those odd yet strangely ideological creatures would offer them a perfect world in their own image, should the ponies help with their plans. It sounded more and more attractive with each second that passed. Looking back, it sure had the same effect on everypony else. They were itching to pull this off for the betterment of equality.
How many students had Celestia had that were male? None. What happened to male "opponents"? Brainwashed, destroyed, imprisoned. What about the females? Given a second chance and allowed to reintegrate, even if they were to plunge the entire planet into eternal darkness or given a nudge out of the country.
Rocky grunted as he walked onward towards Ponyville, the others wheeling the crates behind him. Entering the town, they decided to make a beeline straight towards their destination: The Castle of "Friendship". Oh how skewed that term had now become. Princess Twilight Sparkle inhabited the huge out of place castle, along with some other baby dragon inside. The main priority was the Princess, as their superiors had instructed them.
Since those humans had found these stallions and invited them back to their world for a brief time, they were such strange creatures. But the way they spoke through those expressionless and blank white masks, their beliefs that shared so much with them, and especially helping them escape from their prison of prejudice, how could they not accept their help? They gave them their aide for their goal, and now, it was time for the ponies to fulfill their promise. They strolled through the town with their crates, heading towards the castle.
Then, a grey mare with a blonde mane fluttered above them with her wings, and landed in front of them.
"Oh, was there a delivery I was supposed to make? Maybe I forgot about some packages again."
Rocky kept his face straight as he responded, meeting her crossed eyes. "No, we're making a special delivery. This isn't any of your business."
"But... it is. I'm Ponyville's mailmare.", the grey pony responded, a tone of confusion in her voice, "It's my job to deliver here."
Then, Rocky motioned for his group to proceed onward.
"Maybe if you got your eyes fixed and let a stallion be in charge, then we could all be a little bit happier with the results that would follow."
The mare's ears flattened, unsure of what the stallion meant by saying all of those mean things, but before she could rebuttal, the ponies were already heading away.
That stung. A lot.
Starlight Glimmer wasn't as busy as she had expected today. She was mainly studying up on "Theories of Friendship: Volume 3" after she had written a letter to Sunburst back in the Crystal Kingdom. She knew that now he was the royal wizard, and as such, he was far busier than he normally made himself out to be. She didn't mind, though. He wrote back every chance he got and she was very content with that, having a pen-pal and all.
"Hey Spike, how's Twilight doing with her research on alternate universes? Are you sure she doesn't need any help?" Starlight asked with a "please say yes" smile on her face.
"Nope! She still wants you to take it easy after the whole incident in the Crystal Kingdom." Spike waddled over to the pony.
"Yeah, I've read so much already to pass the time, I've written to Starburst, and now I'm feeling a little..."
"Bored? I know just the thing! Maybe I can show you the notes Twilight took on dragons when we went to the Dragonlands!"
Starlight instantly perked up.
"Dragons? I hardly know anything about them! Sure, get the notes. I'd like to know a thing or two more about your kind." Starlight smiled. Spike scampered away enthusiastically. To be honest, it was kind of amazing of how Starlight had changed her behavior in these past few months she had lived in Ponyville with Twilight. She never wanted to go back to the corrupt village she had founded in the first place. Maybe she could write a letter to the villagers asking how they were doing and more importantly, apologize for possibly the tenth time for the heartache and torment she had put them through.
Suddenly, a knock came on the door.
Starlight found that Spike was still off somewhere getting the notes. She wouldn't blame him. The library was gigantic. Pushing her seat away with her magic and walking towards the door, she gripped the handle with her aura as the knocking began to get more and more impatient.
"Jeez, alright already...", she muttered to herself as she opened the door. Presented to her were eight stallions with two very large crates in their group.
"Can I help you gentlecolts?", Starlight asked politely towards the stallions.
"Packages for Twilight Sparkle. We need to wheel these in." the lead stallion spoke.
"Uh, I don't recall Twilight ordering any. What are they?"
"Twilight Sparkle isn't here?” The stallion suddenly narrowed his eyes slightly at the mare in front of him. "Where is she?"
Starlight glimmer got a tiny sense of hostility from the stallion, but she pushed it aside.
"She's busy at the moment. If it isn't too much trouble, I'll ask her what she ordered."
The stallions suddenly started to wheel the crates inside.
"We got to get these inside and have Twilight Sparkle sign them off. It's some... frozen goods."
Starlight stepped to the side.
"What kind of frozen goods?"
At this point, she was ready to get Twilight down here right away to deal with these intruders, but they had already made their way inside.
Then, what happened next shocked her. A unicorn stallion slammed the door behind the group with his magic, locking it.
"What the- get out of here or I'll summon the guards! Don't make me all deal with you all myself!" Starlight's horn glowed aggressively.
Then, the stallions opened the first crate. Some sort of device reared itself up with a pair of antennae, and emitted an odd frequency and energy when it was switched on. The magic that gathered on Starlight's horn instantly and forcefully disappeared as the stallions shoved the lid off of the second crate. Inside were rather bulky devices, each able to be handled by another stallion. Taking one for each and handing each other small boxes of metal, they loaded them into the devices they held. The machine they unveiled cut off her mana supply to her horn from its energy that it emitted, making her magic useless. The stallions began to fiddle around with the other smaller machines that they took from the second box.
Suddenly, Starlight Glimmer's face drained of color. She had seen these devices before when she had visited alternate timelines before. They were weapons of terrifying power and unstoppable strength. They called them "guns", and she was the only one who knew of the imminent danger she was in.
The ponies took something else from the second crate. Blank white masks that only had eyeholes for any sort of features or breaks in the expressionless cover. The masks were rigid and sturdy, and all the more terrifying.
"W-What do you want?! Who are you all?!"
The lead pony took out what Starlight recognized as a handgun and pointed it at her head. Starlight backed away slightly as the pony spoke through gritted teeth under his mask.
"Where. Is. Twilight?!" He pressed the gun against her temple.
Then, Princess Twilight Sparkle emerged. Her hair was messy and she seemingly had the energy drained from her after never taking a break from studying. Her vision was a little cloudy as she walked towards the source of the commotion.
"Starlight? Is everything okay? My magic suddenly stopped working and I hear some people out in the front-", then, her vision cleared and she saw Starlight Glimmer, her eyes in a look of pure distress and fright looking back at Twilight. Behind her were roughly eight or nine stallions with blank white masks on and holding objects that closely resembled the "guns" that Starlight had lectured Twilight about after coming back from an alternate timeline.
"You, shut it. You don't make a move unless I say so, or I'll redecorate those walls with your brains." the stallion armed with a handgun ordered the Princess, "Now let's take a walk into this home of yours."
"What the- you can't do this! Do you have any idea how much trouble you will-"
"MOVE IT!", the pony smashed the pistol against her head, sending a shock of throbbing pain into her temple. A yelp came from her as Starlight struggled behind the grip of another stallion. The two ponies began to walk deeper into the castle under the escort of their new visitors.
All the while, Spike had heard some commotion at the front, but was still busy trying to get the notes that Twilight had taken about his kin. Scampering back to meet Starlight Glimmer, he suddenly heard very masculine and gruff voices coming down the hallway.
"Let's just keep walking and don't make a sound so no one else gets hurt. You understand, your majesty?"
Twilight gave a light nod as she and her student walked down the hallway. Peering from a corner, it didn't take a genius to realize what kind of situation and danger Spike’s two friends were in. Silently tiptoeing away, he grabbed a sheet of paper and a quill and hid underneath a table.
Spike frantically began to scribble.
"Help! There are stallions in the castle who are threatening Twilight and Starlight! Please help!"
It was brief, but it clearly held the message. Spike opened his mouth to send the letter with his fire, but the table was suddenly flipped over onto its back. The baby dragon now found himself peering down the barrel of what obviously was a weapon pointing at his head. The stallion's white mask hid the expression underneath, but the voice containing the tone of urgency and command did not.
"What's that you got there?", the stallion wrenched away the letter. He read the note, giving Spike a hollow feeling in his gut as he was now exposed.
"So, thought you could warn your females, did you?", the stallion pushed the barrel to his face, "Burn it now."
Spike looked back at the stallion.
"B-Burn it?"
"Yes! Now do as I say or you'll be in fucking pieces!"
Spike nodded and without hesitation, burned the letter, the ashes floating up towards the ceiling. The armed colt then took the dragon by his arm, and pulled him away to regroup with his other group members.
For the longest of times, Spike had always been bothered by being a dragon and having himself be surrounded by ponies that didn't know much of his own species, let alone himself in that regard. Most ponies always thought that all dragons are warlike brutes that ate ponies every chance they could get. He always hated those accusations of his kind, and was all the more happy when his friend Dragonlord Ember defied those stereotypes.
However, this was the first time that Spike was grateful for a pony having no knowledge of dragons and their mystical fire as the ashes of the letter slowly began to travel out an open window...
Afghanistan
"Standby... standby... BREACH!"
The charges went off on the dusty and sandy door, as well as a window on the left of the room, blowing the door clean off of its frame and blasting the window to pieces. The dust and smoke settled almost immediately as gunfire erupted from inside of the structure. Bullets riddled the ground in between the two soldiers as they both prepped a flashbang grenade to unleash inside. A couple of seconds later, the devices were in and a deafening "crack" and burst of light shot through the room.
"Go!", the voice com of the woman spoke to the man as the two operators fired into the room, their HK416 rifles’ lasers each finding their targets. Suppressed shots rang out in quick succession as one by one, four bodies dropped to the ground. The clattering of their weapons were heard as their targets perished from their rifles.
"Clear!"
"Clear!"
The operators hopped along inside, less unwillingly as they had thoroughly scouted out the "thought-to-be" secure compound with mini drones and assistance from a UAV, or an unmanned aerial vehicle beforehand. Advancing, they pushed deeper into the structure, heading down the only corridor of the building. Their lasers followed each inch of the wall and ahead, ready to spring onto another enemy that dared showed their face to them.
Sure enough, footsteps were heard coming from a door to their left, giving away an enemy attempting to intercept them. One shot from the male operator, and the white mask the other man had peered out into the hallway with found a new coat of red plastered onto it, and on the walls.
Coming deeper and deeper into the structure, the lights suddenly turned off. Perhaps the enemies cut the power generator to make an escape or blind the attackers, but the only escape in this structure was the corridor to the front door, as they had previously jammed all other exits shut before invading.
"Activate IRNV."
"On it."
The darkness gave way to green and orange and restoring vision to the soldiers as they pressed on to the end of the hallway. Before them was a double door hiding whatever was inside. Whoever it was, they had to be ready.
Then, the male operator took a small minidrone from his pack, and wheeled it through the doors. They barely made a sound as they parted ways for a brief second to allow the drone to enter. The infrared night vision became clear on the drone as the operator looked around for his potential targets. Sure enough, he found plenty.
"Four contacts, two in the front, two in the back, same number left and right. Handguns and one rifle in the back. No IED's detected, no tripwires found."
"Mark them."
Tapping on the touchscreen of the drone's control, four red dots visible on their goggles were shown through the walls, each marking where the enemy was hiding. They marked their feet, so aiming up would allow their bullets to find head or center-mass. Putting the device away and getting his rifle ready, the two shot out the glass windows on the tops of the door and hurled in another set of flashbangs. Once again, gunfire riddled the metal door as the rifle bullets created bulges on the other side. Other rounds went through the windows and found themselves splattering against the walls behind them.
Then, the gunfire stopped and a click was heard on the other side.
Following, deafening blasts of disorienting light and sound emanated from the room.
"Breach and clear!"
Kicking the doors open, the operators took two on their respective sides, filling each of their enemies with two shots to the chest cavity. In almost less than a second, four men wearing apparel more suited to a laboratory environment were laying on the ground, pools of blood expanding beneath them. Their masks hid whatever expression they had before their deaths.
"Clear!"
"Clear!"
At that point, the female activated her encrypted communications link.
"This is Valkyrie to Rainbow, building is secure," the woman spoke through her communications device.
"Valkyrie, this is Thatcher. Acknowledged. What's the situation over there?" the British accent filled the earpiece.
"Eight White Masks dead, four look like scientists of some sort. We're restoring power now," Valkyrie responded, "Got it yet, Blackbeard?"
"Almost." the other operator grunted as he pulled the switch down to reactivate the generator, getting the lights back on, "Atta boy."
One by one, the lights flickered on. Nothing seemed out of the ordinary besides the weapons laying around all over the place. L85 rifles lined up against the walls, as well as various pistols and packaged grenades.
However, one thing clearly outshone the rest. In the back of the room was a gigantic circular device that held a sort of arch over it. If any sort of science fiction geek were with them, he'd obviously associate it with something they'd find in that show "Stargate", or something like that.
"Thatcher, we've found another weapons cache. But... there's something else here as well. Something big, and... I have no idea what it is." Valkyrie spoke back.
"Come again? Does it look like a warhead or anything along those regards?"
"Definitely not. We're going to snap some pictures around here and secure the stash. Are any other military units inbound?"
"Negative. As far as the world as concerned, this building and what is inside doesn't exist."
"Roger that. Stay on the channel, new intel might be coming back."
The operators immediately got to work taking pictures of the weapons stashed in the building, but most notably of the large machine in the back of the room that was hooked up to a huge load of cables.
"Jesus, what is this thing?", Blackbeard snapped another picture.
"My guess is as good as yours. Nice shooting, by the way."
"Same to you. Hey... do you see that?", Blackbeard pointed to a small panel on the machine. Apparently, it was imprinted with some sort of text.
"Is that...?"
"That's Russian text."
"What the- how could this be Russian? No way they would be giving them this sort of technology after the White Masks bombed two Catholic cathedrals. Maybe they stole the tech. These bastards can practically get away with anything." Valkyrie spoke as she snapped another image.
"Whatever it is, we've secured it now- wait. What's that noise?"
It was a phone ringing. And if there was a phone ringing out of nowhere when none of your guys brought a phone, every single person involved in the armed forces knew what was going to happen next.
"Bomb! Move!"
The two rushed out of the room, and through the hallway. A massive explosion was heard behind them, rocking them violently and throwing sparks from the lab. Smoke quickly billowed up as the two exited the building. More and more explosions went off inside. Looking back at the building as they were a good distance away, electricity and energy suddenly arced from the building, and with a blinding flash, the two operators were on their backs in the sand, their ears ringing, now clearing their vision to witness the crater that stood before them.
"What... the... fuck." Blackbeard breathed heavily as he got himself up.
"You okay?" Valkyrie asked, earning a nod from Blackbeard. "Jesus Christ, this is some messed up shit."