//------------------------------// // Part 1: When the Truth Comes Calling // Story: Subject is Sedated // by DannyJ //------------------------------// EQUESTRIAN INTELLIGENCE SERVICE SITES STATUS: MOTHER BASE, CANTERLOT: Base commander - Agent Exuding Malevolence, Department of Field Operations Alert status - Code Green Lockdown - Lifted Communications - Open Enemy status - Purged Final casualties - 73% BLACK PROJECTS LABORATORY, MANEHATTAN: Base commander - Professor Ragdoll, Department of Science Alert status - Code Red Lockdown - Active Communications - Open Enemy status - Purge in progress DEEP FREEZE, VANHOOVER: Base commander - Agent Life Sentence, Department of Archival Alert status - Code Yellow Lockdown - Active Communications - Open Enemy status - Unknown FORT ANGEL, SAN PALOMINO: Base commander - Special Agent Resolve, Department of Field Operations Alert status - Code Red Lockdown - Active Communications - Open Enemy status - Purge in progress THE BRIDGE, TROTTINGHAM: Base commander - None Alert status - Code Black Lockdown - Failed Communications - Open Enemy status - Site compromised PROMETHEUS, MOBILE COMMAND: Base commander - General Carnage, EUP Guard Alert status - Code Red Lockdown - Active Communications - Open Enemy status - Purge in progress Ship remains airborne. Personal Journal of Dr. Eureka, entry #14: We came under attack! Just as the royal wedding was occurring topside, this army of shape-shifters turned up out of nowhere! The main force attacked the city from outside once the shield came down, but the EIS was hit from within by their sleeper agents. We almost didn't make it. At the last minute, some kind of unidentified magical effect came by and pushed all the invaders out of Canterlot. Might've been the Elements of Harmony, but we're still not sure. Our surveillance network is broken, so reports are sketchy. I was right there when it happened. I saw one of the infiltrators get hit by the wave as it passed through the facility. The thing was crushed against the wall and turned into green and black mulch. It got all over me. I almost threw up. Everypony's going crazy here, and we're still getting reports from other sites and branches of just how far this goes. I hear rumours that two of the princesses and the Captain of the Royal Guard were taken out, but that can't possibly be true. As far as I know, the royal wedding went on as planned after the attack was repelled. As for us, Mother Base is secure now thanks to the magical wave, but the Bridge has fallen, and every other EIS site is in lockdown. The other PPP branches weren't hit as bad, but apparently, they didn't escape unscathed either. Right now, we're still recovering. Mother Base was deeply infiltrated at even the highest levels, and since the entire leadership of the EIS was based here, our whole command structure has been weakened. We lost the Director and most of the department heads, and have no idea if the impostors killed their originals or not. The few remaining senior agents are now trying to work out temporary replacements for the empty positions. The head of the science department was among our losses, so I haven't received any new orders since the attack, but it seems that Professor Chimera has taken command for the moment. It's likely that he'll become the new department head here. And if he does, he says that our first directive is going to be researching the shape-shifters. We have to know our enemy, after all. Looks like I can expect to be performing quite a few autopsies in my future. On Changelings: Our enemy is not as new as we thought. The shape-shifters are known as changelings, and this is not the first time that they have waged war on Equestria. Those who know their history will likely recognise the name from such famous incidents as the siege of Trot and the fall of Timbucktu, both of which were perpetrated by the changelings several centuries ago. According to historical records, it was at Timbucktu that the ruler of the changelings first took the title of queen, after deposing King Orion, which aligns with witness testimonies about the changeling queen who led the attack on Canterlot. Meanwhile, tales of Princess Celestia battling Queen Chrysalis and her changelings after the fall of Trot detail how our princess's magical attacks caused holes to form in the legs of the changelings, which as we observed ourselves, are still there today. The changelings were supposedly banished by Princess Celestia after that battle, sealed away in an unknown prison, but there were records from long after that time of changelings being seen out of disguise. Most were presumed to be lone agents, no longer a part of the swarm, but as we now know, that might not have been the case. There is no doubt that the army which attacked Canterlot and the queen who led them are the very same monsters seen in these ancient history books. To the ends of developing a complete profile of the changeling species, and educating all our staff about their capabilities, motives, and history, we have requisitioned as many copies as possible of every book we could find on the subject. These will be distributed throughout the ranks over the next several weeks as required reading. Our enemy is malicious, deceptive in the extreme, and far more experienced at espionage than we will ever be. Until such a time as we can develop better preventative measures against their tactics, you must maintain constant vigilance. Watch your colleagues, report any suspicious behaviour, and do not trust anypony. A memo to all EIS staff: Due to the casualties sustained in the Changeling Incident, a number of senior positions in the EIS have opened, and as such, we are now seeking to promote internally to fill the vacancies. Director Exuding Malevolence will be holding interviews at Mother Base over the next several weeks to fill some of the more vital positions. Anypony with aspirations of becoming a department head or taking a role in managing one of our various sites would be well-advised to apply. Vacant junior staff positions are also available, with promotions and recruitment to be handled by the department heads once established, and will follow policy to be decided at this week's council meeting. For all departments currently without a department head, command defaults to the assistant department head, and then to the department head's secretary. If you are in one of the four top-level compromised departments who have lost all three critical members, then you now fall under the Director's personal supervision until such a time as you are told otherwise. Please be aware that if you are within a top-level compromised department, all projects are currently suspended, pending full evaluation. Field Report for Operation #26B5QSF: OPERATION: VENGEFUL SWORD TYPE: SEARCH AND DESTROY SUPERVISING AGENT: W ACTIVE AGENTS: A, Q, B, M, R, S, V, H, L, Y, T, D, & O. OPERATION SITES: TROTTINGHAM BANK DISTRICT (SITE A), THE BRIDGE (SITE B), REPORT: Operatives arrived at 0100 to liaise with EUP forces at Site A, led by Captain Authority. CHARON forces posted on the exterior of Site B were already being engaged by the EUP at time of arrival with traditional siege tactics. The operatives were divided into teams. Team 1, composed of agents A, M, Q, & B, entered through the rail tunnels into the south tower, and covertly moved upwards through the facility with intent to reach the control room. Team 2, composed of agents L, S, V, & H, simultaneously breached the north tower through the disposal chute and attacked CHARON directly, fortifying position in the armoury and providing a smokescreen. Team 3, composed of agents R, Y, O, T, & D, entered the north tower through the rooftop access once CHARON forces were lured away, and came up behind to provide support for Team 2 and eliminate the enemy. Team 1 initiated lockdown on command at 0340, and then fortified position in the control room. At Site B, the EUP Guard under Agent W's supervision eliminated CHARON stragglers who were caught outside the lockdown with siege weaponry and sharpshooters. Teams 2 & 3 joined forces to sweep the north tower, and were able to confirm it secure before moving on across the bridge to the south tower, dividing again into two teams. Team 2 took the lower levels while Team 3 took the top. Both teams reunited again afterwards to sweep the south tower, finally joining Team 1 at the control room. Final sweeps confirmed the facility secure and CHARON defeated. Lockdown was lifted at 0600. OBSERVER was noted as having been briefly present, displaying usual documented behaviour. Encounter catalogued in relevant file. From the desk of Professor Bizarre Chimera: As the new head of the science department, I have been instructed to put an end to all the mystery surrounding our new enemies, the changelings. These creatures need studying, and we must understand everything about how they work. We need to know about their physiology, their psychology, their command and social structure, and everything else. Using the frozen remains left over from the attack, I wish to begin by conducting routine autopsies. We will also be requisitioning any intact changeling corpses that the Royal Guard has for more complete samples. You know the drill, gentlecolts. Progress marches forward. Memo to Agent Redwood from the Department of Science: Our latest autopsies confirmed it. We found evidence of not only male and female genitalia, but entire reproductive systems. So yeah. It's not like a real insect hive. The drones can reproduce too. Told you so. You owe me a beer. Dr. Eureka A formal letter to the Director of the Equestrian Intelligence Service: Dear Director, As we have not had correspondence before, I should start by introducing myself. I am Colonel Thunder Strike of the Protective Pony Platoons. You can think of me as your supervisor. Your predecessor was always very candid with me in previous interactions, and was accommodating of the PPP's few requests, a relationship that helped things run smoothly, as I'm sure you'll agree. It is my express hope that you will seek to continue this good working relationship, for the benefit of both our organisations. I shouldn't need to tell you that the situation is dire for all of us. The Platoons have a history of divisions being infiltrated and sabotaged from within, but this changeling fiasco is probably the worst that it's ever been. We haven't suffered an embarrassment on this scale since the fall of Apollo Division. I won't lie. There are talks right now of closing down several of our more compromised specialist branches, and the EIS was mentioned as one of them. I personally have fought to allow your continued existence, as everything I've heard from our mutual friends in the EUP Guard says that you have the changeling situation well in hoof, even if you are rather short-staffed at present. Neither of us want to see the EIS go the way of SMILE after the Bugbear incident. However, even if you could verify that the EIS has weeded out all possible infiltrators, you remain on shaky ground. You'll need something really solid for the generals if you want to guarantee your organisation's safety and stay afloat. This is all to say, I want the EIS to be working in uniformly optimal condition when our next unannounced inspection comes by, and I expect you to either have internal security in top condition, or a breakthrough on the changeling project. Both would be even better. I only want to secure your future, Director. A safe future for you is a safe future for all Equestria. Sincerely yours, Col. Thunder Strike A response to Colonel Thunder Strike of the Protective Pony Platoons: Dear Colonel, This operation will shut down when I am rotting in the cold earth, regardless of what decision your superiors reach. My agents have fought tooth-and-nail to secure EIS facilities all over Equestria, and we have lost too many lives to these damn bugs to give up now. I will not let our sacrifices be in vain just because some doddering geriatrics whose uniforms are probably fused to their chairs by now are frightened of the real enemy. Tell the generals that the EIS doesn't trust them any more than they trust us, and that our facilities are no longer open to your inspectors. If any of you hoity-toity old windbags don't choke on your silver spoons in shock after hearing that, feel free to send your best down here to do something about it. But I warn you, every agent of mine is worth a thousand of your "soldiers," and I have no qualms ordering them to mow you down if I think the EIS itself is under threat. Our work to protect Equestria will continue, but our previous relationship is over. Back off, or else give us your best shot. Regards, Director Exuding Malevolence Report on Royal Guard liaison: Special Agent Wrathful, I talked to the Royal Guard and got the information you wanted. They gave me copies of all their files about the Changeling Incident, and I've enclosed everything relevant in this package. No cadavers, though. They already cremated all their dead changelings. Not sure why everypony kept telling me that they'd be obstinate and unhelpful. The new captain was very cooperative. Also, I apologise for the formatting of this report, but since this wasn't an official operation, and my old supervising officer is gone, the secretary refused to give me the proper paperwork. Without going through the official channels, there's not much I can do about that, but those channels are closed to me right now. Could you please either grant me full special agent status so that I can deal with this, or else reassign another agent to supervise me? This is getting ridiculous. Agent Redwood Changeling autopsy report #12: Still no closer to cracking the secret of changeling shape-shifting. There's not much more to be discerned from corpses and paste. Unless we can find a live specimen, I really have nothing new to report. These autopsies are just having us go around in circles at this point, and I find this a profound waste of time. We need to do something more proactive if we want to actually learn anything. I recommend that we cease autopsies for the moment and get to work on more theoretical exercises until such a time as Field Ops can bring us a living, breathing changeling. Dr. Horrible Experiment Field Report for Operation #26B5QSR: OPERATION: BLACK WIDOW TYPE: MOP-UP SUPERVISING AGENT: C ACTIVE AGENTS: M & D OPERATION SITES: PONYVILLE (SITE A), "CASTLE BLACK" (SITE B) REPORT: Operatives were on the scene at Site B following the passing of the Secreteriat Comet and the apparent defeat of PARASITE and her army. ZEUS and HARMONY were present at Site B at the time. In the following hours, representatives of the Royal Guard would arrive at Site B to take PARASITE and the surviving changelings into custody, and to return HARMONY to Site A. Royal Guard forces intended to construct a prison within Site B to contain PARASITE. Special Agent M intervened and instead organised a convoy to transport all captives back to Mother Base in Canterlot. Upon arrival, captives were transferred to holding cells 120-146, 157-173, and 308. OBSERVER was noted as having been briefly present, displaying usual documented behaviour. Encounter catalogued in relevant file. Clean-up operations at Site B began at 0200 upon the departure of ZEUS, and were carried out with the assistance of Royal Guard members, supervised by First Lieutenant Chain Mail. Samples of changeling biological material were gathered. Remaining material was burned with fiendfyre in accordance with policy. Search of the area was conducted. Original inhabitants were found to be a race of small cat creatures. Bodies were recovered for testing. No survivors. Castle found to be host to heavy magical phenomena of non-changeling origin. Specialists declared Site B to contain no threat to greater Equestria, but recommended site lockdown to be safe. Site B was quarantined as a class-2 hazard zone. Special Agent D managed operations at Site A, beginning at 1500 the previous day. No assistance. Changeling biological material was unavailable to collect, having been destroyed by the townsfolk. Citizens were interviewed and testimonies gathered. Tests conducted revealed no permanent side-effects from captivity in all cases. Fourteen changeling sleeper agents were uncovered and captured during interviews and testing. Special Agent D inspected Site A and found no potential hazards of changeling origin, although noted that Site A contains many other hazards besides, and recommended alerting the town council as to its breach of public safety regulations. Special Agent D left site A with captives at 2330. EUP Guard have been stationed in and around Site A for the time being, in case of further incursions. Personal Journal of Dr. Eureka, entry #21: And I thought the giant cockatrice attack was going to be the most interesting part of my day! It turns out that while we were busy fretting about that here in the capital, a much bigger attack was being made elsewhere. Reports coming back from the field agents tell us that Queen Chrysalis, the changeling leader, led an attack on Ponyville three days prior and tried to lure the Elements of Harmony to some castle beyond the Forest of Leota to steal their magic. She was defeated, fortunately for us, and some of the field ops guys brought them back alive! The Changeling Queen is in our custody! I can't tell you how excited I am that we finally have some live specimens to study. These autopsies were getting us nowhere, and besides, I'm a little squeamish around dead things. Now we can learn about the changelings straight from the bug's mouth! Things are going to be fun around here for the next few days. Transcript of first interview with PARASITE: Interrogator: Could you please tell me your name? PARASITE: [Laughing] I assume you're here to interrogate me, pony? Interrogator: Correct. We wish to obtain information as to the nature of your species. If you are cooperative in providing this information, things will go a lot more smoothly for the both of us. PARASITE: How frightening. Interrogator: Your name, please. PARASITE: Queen Chrysalis. You are in the presence of royalty, pony. Bear that in mind in your further interactions. Interrogator: Noted. Are there any other queens, or are you a unique entity? PARASITE: I like to think that I'm special, but then again, what girl doesn't? Interrogator: Please be direct with your answers. PARASITE: [Sighing] Yes. There is only one changeling queen. It's not a monarchy if there's more than one. Interrogator: What is a queen's purpose in changeling society? PARASITE: What is a princess's in Equestria? Interrogator: Please do not answer a question with a question. PARASITE: Tsk. A queen manages all matters of leadership. In war, I command our soldiers. In all other times, I command the drones as they gather food. I decide when the hive eats, sleeps, or goes hunting. And I manage information and make plans with it. Interrogator: Manage information? Meaning what? PARASITE: Intelligence on prospective food sources, mostly. Disguises need research. Interrogator: So it's fair to say that you're essential to changeling society, yes? Irreplaceable, even? PARASITE: You flatter me, but no. Changelings are malleable, and any drone can adapt to take my place if need be. If you thought you could simply execute me and send the hive into disarray, I'm afraid it won't be that easy. Interrogator: How is this information carried? PARASITE: Ha. I'm not answering that. Interrogator: How many types of changelings are there? You are obviously a distinct variant from the common changeling. You mentioned soldiers and drones. Are there any others, and what is a soldier's or drone's role in a hive? PARASITE: I have no intention of telling you. Interrogator: Do you keep your hive all together, or are you spread out across many locations? PARASITE: You're just not learning, are you? I'm not going to give you anything you can use. Interrogator: How does your disguise ability work? PARASITE: I think I'm just going to tune you out now and start playing songs in my head. Interrogator: In what way does love feed your species? PARASITE: [Humming] Interrogator: [Pause] Subject is refusing to answer further questions. Interview concluded at 6:37 PM. PARASITE: [Humming] Interrogator: You will wish you had cooperated with us, your majesty. Your turn. PARASITE: Hmm? What is this? Interrogator: These gentlecolts are your next interviewers. If you need names, you may call them Mr. Consequences and Mr. Pain. PARASITE: [Pause] What? Interrogator: Goodbye, your majesty. Report on communication between changelings: Following the interview with PARASITE, subsequent one-on-one interactions with changeling drones had less than desirable outcomes. In all cases, questions were met with deliberately unhelpful answers, sarcastic remarks, and feigned ignorance, even for the most innocuous questions. Applying pressure to the drones was futile, even moreso than with PARASITE, as they only became less talkative and even more uncooperative under these conditions. At least three drones died during questioning out of refusal to give a straight answer. Subsequent interrogations would stop before causing the death of the subject, as it became clear that this pattern would continue without variation. Nevertheless, the efforts of the changeling captives to remain silent has, in itself, told us a lot about how they operate. Dr. Eureka is now discussing the possibility of a hivemind, proposing that all changelings possess some kind of telepathic link to each other, with PARASITE as its overseer, and with psionic energy produced by love being a key element of its maintenance. This is likely the method by which PARASITE "manages information," as she puts it, and it is a distinct possibility that she is still commanding the hivemind from her cell even now. If any CHARON agents are still active outside these walls, and this hivemind theory proves true, then our enemy may still be dangerous, even in captivity. PARASITE and the other captives may well be passing information on the EIS and Mother Base to CHARON, and their agents could, in turn, be working against us and providing information to our prisoners. Effective immediately, I wish to propose a vivisection of a changeling subject, so that we can examine their brains and magic for signs of the hivemind at work. With sir's permission, if we can understand how they communicate, then we can disrupt it. Dr. Horrible Experiment From the desk of Professor Bizarre Chimera: Permission granted, Dr. Experiment. I have enclosed the budget for Project: MIND DELVE and the parameters I expect you to work in. Keep me appraised of any developments on the project, including matters of staff. In particular, I want you to watch Dr. Eureka. If you think he can't handle the work, or that you can't trust him, I wish to be informed immediately. His reaction to our treatment of the prisoners so far has not inspired confidence in his loyalty. Personal Journal of Dr. Eureka, entry #23: The autopsies were uncomfortable, but at least then the things weren't screaming at us the whole way through. This is going to haunt my nightmares. At least I'm working on a different project now. Disabling spells aren't exactly riveting work, but I'll take anything at this point. Still, everything we've been doing as of late just makes my skin crawl. I was never expecting Director Malevolence to be a good boss. Not with a name like that. But I didn't expect that we'd immediately start torturing and experimenting on people. At this point, I would leave if I could, but I honestly fear for my life. They've started doing "loyalty inspections" now, and I dread what would happen if they decide I'm not trustworthy enough. The worst part is, I don't even know why our loyalty is under evaluation. We have tests now to see if somepony is a changeling or not, and we've always been able to detect mind control, so what are top brass afraid of? Who exactly would we betray the EIS to, and why? A letter to Colonel Thunder Strike of the Protective Pony Platoons: Dear Colonel, You think you're so clever. Seizing the Prometheus and the Bridge? Child's play. I'd like to see you try the same for our more secure facilities, however. Oh yes. Facilities, plural. There are more. Do you want to hear a confession, Colonel? The EIS has and always has had six bases, not three. Fort Angel was never our headquarters. It's where we train our junior agents, and where the senior agents (that we want you to know about) gather when inspection season comes around. If you think my predecessor was at all candid with you, then you clearly never knew him. I knew Director Risk, and he hated the Platoons and everything about them. We all hated you. Always have. Ever since SMILE went down in flames, and you snivelling cowards decided to bury them and leave all those agents out in the cold, rather than help them when they needed it the most. You aren't a friend to the intelligence community. You're a poison. A greater threat to us than any monster we've ever fought. I'd face Discord alone a thousand times before I let an officer of the Platoons into my agency's headquarters. You can keep the Prometheus. You can keep the Bridge, too. In fact, take Fort Angel, if you think you can. You won't ever stop us. You won't even find us. My agents won't crack, and we don't leave evidence. We will always be there, right under your nose. And one day, when you think you're safe, we will be there in the dark, ready to correct your misconceptions. Regards, Director Exuding Malevolence