Ignis

by Blue Blaze {COMET}

Entry

"It's almost time. Are you ready?"

I growled as I tied my leather bracers into place on my wrists. The palms of my hands tingled with pain against the light pressure my thin leather gloves pressed on my skin. The calluses underneath my fingers itched with a burning sensation that I just couldn't shake off. Burning my hands practicing fire spells without a wand was not a good idea before doing a mission. In fact, I was starting to believe it was not a good idea period. Manipulating objects was becoming a pain in the rear, and I didn't have telekinetic skills to help me out like most other magic casters do.

I lifted my head and turned to face the pony addressing me. He was four feet tall and the tips of his green ears only came up to the bottom of my chest. He build was stalky and lean, the strength of his Earth Pony roots showing clearly through the moonlight through the window. A sky blue glowing gem hung from his neck, sparkling softly with arcane power. His Topaz eyes glowered at me, the light in the night sky reflecting off of his irises. He wore a frown on his face, but I knew he wasn't mad in any meaning of the word. Sawdust may have been a tough pony, but under that grass green exterior he knew who his allies were.

I took a step forward, and my heavy biking boot rang out against the metal plating that kept the walkway we were on stable. The grating below me shook, making it clear that humans may not have been on the mind of the construction workers when they made the silo. I had been hanging out around the area waiting for the signal from the other squadron. All of us were. To be honest, I was nervous out of my wit, and the only way I thought I could ignore it was by staring needlessly at the expanse below me. I wasn’t worried about any of the staff of the building catching me though, as we had locked the entrances to the nearby rooms so that no one would come wandering in curiously. We also checked to make sure that nobody was lingering in the halls in this section of the complex. Locking the doors may have drawn suspicion to us, as these rooms are not important at all, but it didn’t matter too much anyways. The attention of the staff would soon be grabbed Alpha squad, the other battalion that was here with us in this mission.

We were well above 500 feet off the ground in a secluded passageway within Arcane Energy Silo #4 right in the GENEROSITY district. We could have targeted any Silo we wished and the end result would be more or less the same, but we chose this one because of the poor economy they have here. I couldn't imagine the New-Age Government sharing funds with the different districts, and our squad was told that they only had guns here, which is vastly outclassed by the laser rifles that the Blueblood soldiers carry around with them. I was glad however, because blocking bullets with magic is a hell of a lot easier than blocking directed rays of searing light.

The walkway I was on had a forty foot drop to a level with a concrete floor and branching doorways that had doors stained from age. The walls to my right were highlighted from the glow of the green tinted windows to my right. I could see little bits and pieces of litter on the ground from all the way up here. It was a grand statement to the lack of janitors and upkeep care they had to this place. The Government wanted as few ponies – and people – as possible to know of this place, so it made sense that their staff was a bit lacking in the cleaning department.

Steel pipes above us had steam slip between the aged gaps in some of their older, less secure brethren. I could see the condensation thickly lathered onto the surface of the metal all along the pipeline, some of it dripping down as a clear, glassy liquid. The entire place smelled musty, like light mildew that would form on a damp towel forgotten in a backpack. The Silo had an outdated venting system I knew for sure, and I briefly wondered what kind of mosses and fungi were possibly growing in the darkest, deepest corners of this place.

The light from the night sky outside through the windows helped calm my nerves a little. Through the glass was a startling view of New Canterlot itself. Tall buildings covered in glass stretched to the top of the heavens, donning their titles as 'skyscraper' well. Many of the skyscrapers kept reign as lords of the atmosphere, so much so that there were only tiny gaps to see in-between them to get a glance at the night sky behind them. This planet is constantly in a night-like state, with the stars always out and the sun always missing. Most of the time you can't see the stars if you're in district with heavy light pollution. Some of the buildings are so tall that if you look up you can only see them blocking the view of the sky. But once you can see the night sky, oh man, it is one of the most beautiful things you will ever see. Tiny specks of white, blue and red are scattered across a painting of swirling dark blues and purples, sparkling galaxies dragged across the space like an artist would a canvas. Each and every single star you will see in the sky, I guarantee, will twinkle back at you as you stare at it. Shooting comets fly by every so often, whether it is in a blaze of crimson glory or a flash of calm aquamarine.

But the only reason that I could see many of the stars of outer space in the place was because the Arcane Silos are highly elevated buildings, stretching all the way from ground level to a mile straight in the sky. These gigantic factories fuel most of the electronic workings that function within the city. Because of all machines, computer systems and databases that needed to be upkeep and managed, the Silos were key locations to keep them up and running. Without the energy from them, many of the workings in the city would simply shut off. Tons and tons of data, stored in massive servers and P.E.G.A. Cloud Systems would be lost forever, and the industrial factories that kept product lines going would halt abruptly, causing million and millions of damage in bits. But this also means that most of the Silos have top-of-the-line security, with fully functioning SOL-TEC laser turrets, guards of all three races dressed in bullet-proof, laser-proof and mostly magic-proof armour and a force field surrounding the building by all sides five kilometres away from the actual entrances. The only way we got in was by carefully placed teleport mechanics that was planted inside the building by some of our spies. It practically took years of research, development and planning to find a way to infiltrate the building and set it ablaze, but it was well worth it. We were in, and ready to strike.

Beneath the skyscrapers of downtown were several other buildings coloured black and white, letting the various neon lights in the city decide their flavour for them. Rays of light also came from street level, and I could imagine all of the ponies walking, talking and traveling down there, not aware of the band of rebels in one of their Silos. There were tiny little specks floating between the behemoth buildings, I were certain they were JET-rides, blocky metal vehicles that could achieve the power of flight from a complex combination of chemicals, electricity and magic energies.

Before the buildings matched the horizon in the distance I could barely make out the HONESTY district and the bright orange flashes that came from them. I knew that the Valoran were trying their best to create the best distraction they could, I just hoped that they didn't hurt anyone innocent in the process. I didn't agree with their method of bombing the District Affairs Centre building, but the higher ups didn't care of my opinion. They thought it would be a great target that would cause enough chaos to send the elite of the Blueblood military running their way. I agreed. I also pointed out that any civilians that were caught in the crossfire would be caught in the blasts. Asshole extreme and Second Commander Fireflight shot me down, hard. He dismissed me from the meeting room and had no other say in the situation. I tried to explain to the superior of my division, Second Commander Sparks, why it was such a bad idea, and she said she understood, but there was a majority vote on the plan and unless we could get the First Commander to revoke the vote (which was not a good idea at all) that's how the dice was going to roll.

Within the walls of the GENEROSITY district beneath us, I could see the fading colours of the buildings that made up most of the favela. Bland browns, beiges and greys covered most of the surfaces, and the grim and mud that was splattered on most of the buildings help set the tone of the neighbourhoods. The houses of the district were tiny, one-floored huts made of stone and wooden planks. If you ever visit there, you might be tempted to travel by rooftop, because it is allowed and supported by the New-Age Government, but you also really wouldn't want to give the robbers and thieves there a clear shot. From up here, I couldn't make out anything smaller than a house from this height, but the faces of the poor families that lived there (if you could call staying in a dump like this 'living') stuck out in my mind. Our squad had to sneak through the dark streets like rats in a maze, but it didn't mean that we didn't see anyone along the way. I could see the image of a hungry brown colt run through a street with a limb and a brown paper bag of something clutched between his rotting teeth, his right eye black and watering. It made me sick thinking about it.

But that's where I'm here. That's why I'm fighting for the Valoran, fighting for a better, pure future for New Canterlot. The corruption and power of the New-Age Government set here is terrifying in its own right. They constantly punish the poor and unfortunate by blocking bills of rights that would improve the situation, introducing laws that make the situation worse and keeping the so-called 'Royal Senate' within a tight circle of individuals, so that no one would even be considered to enter if they didn't have a close relationship with one of the current members. They needed to be put down as fast as possible, because not only are they sapping the resources on the planet that holds one of the only remaining pony colonies left, but their slowly eliminating the population that they deem 'unworthy' for evolution. The lower class are left behind, and the higher class are allowed to move forward.

It absolutely disgusts me. Those rotten, pig-headed individuals trot all along the place as if it was their own, as if their marry little band of villains own the place by themselves, and that the public didn't exist there at all. They valued so little of citizens that they didn't even want them to exist at all. But that's why rebellion groups like the Party Patriot, the Lunar Rebellion and the Valoran fight, that's why we fight against the New-Age Government with strength and bravado, and that's especially why we stand as one in order to bring the city into decades of prosperity, peace and equal rights.

… Or, at least, that's the plan so far. I mean, we've barely planned out anything major so far. Actually taking out the New-Age Government will happen much, much later.

"I'm ready as I'll ever be." I reply to Sawdust. I finish tightening the straps on my bracers and feel on the outside of my brown leather coat to make sure my wand is in its place. The lump I felt against my chest proved my theory. The bottoms of my coat fell down to the top of my ankles and wrapped wide around my legs, its long sleeves making my arms feel protected against the outside elements. My maroon long-sleeved shirt kept most of my body head from escaping just nicely. I grabbed a belt that was wrapped over the bottom of my shirt around my waist, just to see if it was still secure. Then, I glanced over my baggy brown slacks, which also had two small belts strapped to the bottom of my pant legs. I've had my fair share of problems with dangerous critters slipping into the bottoms of my clothing, so I implemented an efficient way of keeping things I do not want to be in my underpants out of my underpants.

I felt a drop of water fall onto the rim of my black Stetson hat. I reached up and creased the rim, feeling the dampness of how much water had touched it. I found the old thing in a market a few years back and really, really liked it. There was something satisfying about the shape and size of it, how the edge was sharp and the darkness of the fabric blended in to the background yet highlighted itself behind the harsh lights of the city. It's such a simple hat, but it has so many gestures to it. You tilt it down, it hides your eyes, your intensions. You tilt it up, and suddenly you're open and friendly to anyone who approaches you. You tilt your head down with it in a neutral position and your enemies know that you mean business, that you're going in and not holding anything back. Wearing it makes me feel like a badass.

I flexed my fingers and held them away from me, checking the energy ring on my left hand for any damage and lost potential energy. The aged piece of jewellery glowed with a soft yellow light from its circular jewel in the centre, sending the message that it was alright and ready to go. I reached to my chest and peeked down my shirt. Sure enough, the ice crystal that hung around my neck was still there, dormant until I needed to call up its energy. It's not a sharp crystal or anything, so it's not gonna stab me under my clothes. I need it for anti-heat spells, because I have immense trouble casting those ones without it. The principles for an anti-heat spell is to remove energy from the affected area, draining its head and cooling it down immensely in the process, but I can't seem to do it. I'm all about applying energy to an area, not taking it away. It's hard for me to visualize it and translate the picture into real life, that's why I need the crystal. It helps me take away heat from anywhere I want it to, even if I can't see the area losing heat in my head. The lack of ice spell skill is probably due to my affinity for fire magic. Like I said, good at applying energy, not draining it.

Absent-mindedly I scratched my sharp chin, the stubble on my skin brushing lightly against my fingertips. I knew it might have looked a bit gangly to the average pony, but I swear to the Stars, you try shaving with just a dagger and half a cup of water! It's very difficult to pull off! I didn't have the money to buy a proper shaver, nor would I know where to get one in the first place! There are too few Human specialized stores out there that aren't selling things that Humans don't need at all and don't have a pony owner. Granted, I could have probably whipped up a spell or a potion or something to help the hair fall off of my face, but there are way too many ways that it could go horribly wrong halfway through the process. Bald did not look good on me at all.

Sawdust nodded. "Ok. Alpha squad is reaching their destination very soon. We need to get into position."

He turned away and started walking down the catwalk. I followed him to a door that led into a wide hallway with some solid stone ground on it. The ceiling was low here and I could barely stand up straight without having the top of my Stetson skimming the concrete above me. The walls were close enough to prevent group of more than three ponies passing through without getting squished from personal space. There were small pipes running along the corners of the ceiling, pumping and directing the currents that lie beneath them. Lights tainted with a light green gave light to the passageway, highlighting everything in a nasty radiated hue. Entering, I saw Whirlwind smoking a cigarette while leaning on the left wall, waiting for his next orders. The smell of nicotine softly floated down the hall and I tried not to make a face. He was a light-blue Pegasus with a short-cut yellow mane and a tornado for a cutie mark that was sent with us in our squad, and was our only flyer here. His job was to engage airborne enemies and take them out, because even with our guns, lasers and spells to combat them with, they would still have unmatched agility and could attack at angles we couldn't. He had a calm, collective demeanour to him his eyes closed as he held the cigarette between his lips. I didn’t know much about him, and hadn’t met him until I was assigned the role of specialist in our squad.

Sawdust motioned to Whirlwind. Whirlwind nodded and spit the cigarette onto the floor, stomping it before starting to follow the both of us through the passage. I let the flyer pass me and trailed at the back of the pack, making the conscious choice to stay there from a nervous habit of obeying the pecking order this world has. I'll be honest with you. The Humans in this city have little to no influence behind them because we're so few. You would only be able to count about 100 humans in each district. Compare that to the two billion ponies residing in the districts and, well, you can do the math. This also means that we get shunned quite a bit, racism be dammed. We get shit in terms of available jobs, landlords don't like two-legged tenants and the little amount of health care here does not cover non-equine individuals. Some stores don't even take any Human business. They don't want anything to do with it. It ticks me off, but in the end there are more important things to worry about then the species hierarchy.

The hall split into two. We took a right and kept heading right through. At the end of the passage was a large room with dim, old lights hanging above us from a ceiling about 15 feet high. The room was an average size, considering there was nothing in it except a custodian closet to the side and a large metal door sealed shut at the other side of the space. I glanced to my left. Gizmo and Ironheart were deep in some kind of conversion about the state of the Valoran and how it's progressing through its campaign. Gizmo is a cute little mare with an orange coat, a blond mane that hung long over her sides, a pair of goggles strapped below her horn and a cutie mark of a wrench over a computer. Ironheart was the other Earth Pony in the group, a strong, willed mare that I learned is as tough as nails and as strong as an enraged bull. She had her signature red pendant around her neck, and her mane was done in a short little ponytail. I've angered this red-eyed, red-coated and red-haired horse so many times that I've gained a reflexive motion to block my groin. But I simply can't help myself. It's too fun to tease her.

And to my right, writing in a journal with her telekinesis was Libra, a fancy librarian with a brown coat that owned a local library all the way in the LAUGHTER district. Her hazel eyes kept focused on her page through her old glasses while her left ear twitched once. She was sitting beside all of the saddlebags that contained the supplies we needed for this mission. There was no point in wearing them if we were resting. Libra was also a part of the Valoran of course, but ponies around the area didn’t know that. All they saw was a pleasant little mare re-shelving books and giving them out to the public as one of the last means of learning in the city. Only the wealthy really get to send their children to decent schools, so one of the only ways left of teaching yourself is by reading a good book. Since Libra owns a library, she is a very important pony, so much so that the Blueblood military have noticed her and on several occasions have tried to take down her establishment. For some reason or another, she has avoided every single incident that they’ve tried to pin on her and she has managed to keep her business for five years running.

She noticed me staring and stopped her writing, looking up to meet my eyes. “Is there something I can help you with?” she asked.

“We’re leaving in a minute or two.” I notified her. She nodded and put her journal in a set of saddlebags that were beside her.

I looked behind my shoulder. Saw dust had talked to Gizmo and Ironheart and they were walking towards the pile of saddlebags. Whirlwind had already grabbed his and was starting to attach it to his sides with the help of his wings. I approached the supplies and leaned over to grab my own leather messenger bag that sat at the very back in the corner of the room. It was smaller than a backpack, but fit nicely over my shoulder and was big enough to carry the essentials but small enough that I kept my mobility and wouldn’t be weighed down by it. To tell you the truth, the saddlebags were smaller than usual too (except for Gizmo’s; that filly felt the need to carry as many mechanical tools as possible) because of the speed we would need to progress through the Silo. There was no sense in carrying huge hunkering bags if we were against the clock, which we would be once we got on the road.

Gizmo’s pack floated past me in a sparkle of lemon yellow. I backed up to a wall close to where the hall connected to the room and lifted my bag over my head and onto my shoulder. Then, I opened the bag, took a belt out that was inside and looped it though the messenger bag and some custom made belt hoops I put into my coat. I did this so that the bag wouldn’t flop around everywhere when I needed to run, as well as keep my leather coat attached to my back whenever a blast of wind would blast in my direction. I looked up as saw that everyone had pretty much gotten their bags set up too.

Sawdust grabbed a strange looking stone that glowed softly in aquamarine and placed it in front of the ground in front of him. It was a flat, circular object that had a spiral etched into the face of the rock. Magical energies seeped out of the artifact’s carvings, displaying the precision and care that went into enchanting such an object. It was a Radiostone, a stone that allowed us to communicate with whoever had the twin stone that was made at the same time as this one. Every Radiostone is unique, so you can’t intercept the sound signature, nor could you copy the magical imprint it has to try and tap in. The only catch is that you can’t make more than two, so if you have more than two groups needing to talk to each other, you’re out of luck.

Sawdust took the gem pendant into his hoof and closed his eyes. I could see an aura of green magic swirl from the gem and into the Radiostone. Then, the Radiostone began to glow brighter and a flow of clear background sound flew from the device.

“Alpha team, this is Sigma team, come in Alpha team.” Sawdust called through the stone.

“This is Alpha team, we hear you loud and clear.” Holly’s voice responded from the other side. Holly was the few other humans in the Valoran, and was also the head of Alpha team’s operations. She was a damn clever girl that could easily keep a level head under the toughest situation, making her the perfect person to do the job as squad leader. Still, a pang of worry creeped from the back of my mind because of what Alpha team’s objectives were.

“We’re in position. Just waiting for you guys to get things started” Sawdust said. Gizmo positioned herself beside the large metal door, fiddling around with her PDA that was connected to the door’s controls.

“Roger that. We’re just about to get going,” Holly replied. “ETA thirty seconds.”

“Affirmative. Over and out.” Sawdust finished, stopping the stream of magic from his gem and putting the Radiostone back into his saddlebags.

“Alright team, this is it,” he told us, addressing everyone. We crowded around him and gave our undivided attention. “This is where we make things happen. Remember, our objective is to plant a bomb into the primary power line inside the Main Reactor Chamber. Valour, you have the bomb, right?”

I patted my messenger bag, feeling for the C4 behind it. It was square-like and made up most of the space in the satchel. I nodded and gave a thumbs up with a smirk.

"Good. Now then," He took a large parchment and rolled it open onto the floor, holding the sides straight so the paper wouldn't roll up on him. "Just as a reminder, I'm going to go over the map one more time. We're going to try to move through the westernmost passages until we get here," He pointed to a corner on the out edge of the map. "Where we'll turn inward and start heading for the Chamber." He pointed to a large, round chamber in the middle.

He looked at everyone to see if they had any comments. We didn't. Then, a huge explosion rang out in the distance, shaking the ground beneath us a bit. We all craned out head up and watched bits and pieces of concrete and dust fall from the ceiling. That was Alpha team's doing. Their job was to distract the main security force and hold out on a few floors on top of us until we got the job done. Hopefully, with enough luck we wouldn't meet any guards on the way to the centre chamber and that we won't engage in any scuffles. Our orders were to wait five minutes after Alpha team started to give the guards some time to navigate their way to where the other squad was located. This is where we decided to wait.

"Halfway through this hall, we're going to have to enter this lab. In a picture perfect situation, all the scientists will have been evacuated by that point and the room will be empty, but be prepared to engage in combat. They won't pose a threat, but we can't let them warn the guards of our presence. Once we get to the target, Valour will plant the bomb and we'll escape through the maintenance tunnels here. Then, we'll blow up this wall to the Western Cooling Room here. From there it's just as simple as sliding down the vents to ground level then entering the sewer systems outside and getting picked up by our convoy below."

I did not like the prospect of having to fit myself into tiny tunnels filled with pony poop, but I had already agreed to it when I was assigned to the operation. I was also skeptical about the whole falling-down-the-vents-in-a-vertical-drop thing, but Captain Valiance, who had been assigned to brief us on our mission, had re-assured me that according to the schismatic that they had managed to obtain it would be a safe journey down because of how the vents angle themselves slowly to a horizontal position. All I would have to do is make sure that I didn't go down head first and I was guaranteed to survive.

Still wasn't buying that one.

"Of course, I'll be leading in the front of the pack. Libra, you're to follow next behind me, then Gizmo, then Whirlwind, then Ironheart, then Valour. Speaking of which, Valour," he asked, addressing me. "I know that you'll have trouble of keeping up, but you need to really sprint. I'll try and slow down for everyone so that your lungs don't burn out. I just hope that your cardio is up to stuff."

Everyone else in the group gave some form of giggle or smirk, and I was left kneeling down giving Sawdust a 'not amused' look. The satisfaction on his face was disgusting, but morally fulfilling. At least I could trust him to keep his head up whilst in the mess of all of this.

"Any questions?" Sawdust asked. We had none of course; this was all explained to us in our mission briefing. "Ok. We leave in three minutes. Get in to position and wait for my go."

All of us agreed and set off behind the door. Gizmo once again stood behind the access controls, but was not putting anything into her PDA with Whirlwind behind her. Ironheart stood on the other side and had Libra leaning against the wall, biding her time. Sawdust stood with me at the centre of the room, facing the doorway. He was beside me, ready to channel both his Earth Pony and amulet magic to protect me while I kneeled down in a stable position. Taking a breath, I reached into my coat pocket and grabbed my wand.

If there's one object that I own that I value more than anything else, it's my wand. This thing has saved me more times than I can count. I found it during a very desperate moment on my 21th birthday. When I saw it, it called out to me, asking me to unlock its power, and when I grabbed it I felt like I could tackle anything that life could throw at me. I loved my wand. A few years after the battle, I learned that my wand was actually a Harmonis: An artifact that chooses a specific person to wield it and bonds its powers to the user's soul, unlocking much potential. Finding a Harmonis is very rare, especially for a human. Most ponies have never heard of a human with a Harmonis before, and yet here I was, living proof that it was possible. The 12-inch piece of wood was perfectly straight and smoothed out after some elbow grease from yours truly. It trailed off to a round point at the end and was almost unbreakable after the wards and enchantments I had one of my friends do for me. I made a specific pocked for it in my coat and made sure to wear it with me always wherever I go, because my wand would come with it. The wand helped my focus my energies to a point, because I gotta be frank, humans are not good at magic at all. All of our arcane juices come out of their hands, and because Human hands are so wide the magic spreads out in a vast area, making most spells inaccurate and draining. But with my wand, I'm able to make my spells much more effective my focusing my willpower to the tip of and then release it as I wish. It functions exactly like a Unicorn's horn would, which is normally why Unicorns completely destroy humans in a Morus Arcuno - a magical duel. With my wand, I could actually defend myself against another Unicorn's attack, and do much, much more.

Taking out my wand, I lifted my right arm up and pointed at the door, mixing around the arcane energies in me to get ready for a quick spell just in case someone is waiting on the other side of the door.

We stayed in position for three minutes, but it felt like a lifetime. There was no clock to keep track of time, no watch to check how many seconds were left. It was just us and Sawdust, who I assumed kept time in his head. My heart was ready to burst from my chest, my head getting a bit woozy from the excitement leaping from my stomach. I have seen death, and have dealt it with my own two hands, but going back into the open flames never gets easier for me.

After a decade or two, Sawdust shouted "Open!" and Gizmo tapped something on her PDA, which caused the metal monster to slide open with a hiss of air. I tensed my finger muscles, getting ready to cast while I quietly put my left hand on top of my Stetson. The door opened to reveal nothing on the other side except a dimly lit hallway.

"Go, go, go!" Sawdust ordered and began sprinting towards the hall first. Libra shot out from behind Ironheart and followed right after her, then Gizmo hastily shoved her PDA back into her saddlebags as she followed suit. Whirlwind fluttered his wings and ran right after her, then Ironheart went and I leaped out of my low stance and began my pace.

Following them was not the best experience. For one, despite what Sawdust actually said, they still ran pretty fast and I found myself having to do a little less than a straight run to keep up with them. I had a fear in my throat that they would ditch me as easily as an Earth Pony bakes bread, but I didn't want to say anything. We needed to complete this mission as fast as possible and I decided that no matter what pace they set for me I could keep up with it.

As the halls passed around me, I could barely keep up with the details. There were pipes constantly on top of us, following the pathways the engineers of the Silo had set way back when. Our foot/hoofsteps were loud and echoed throughout the place, but I kept that doubt to the back of my head, because as long as a guard didn't spot us, I thought we were good. Sawdust turned periodically in no specific manner or pattern. Left. Right. Right. Left. Right. I just kept following Ironheart and made certain that I was at least in range to grab her tail if I didn't have enough breath to shout for her attention.

A minute or two passed and we reached another huge, looming steel door. Gizmo trotted up to the front and started hacking the controls while I kept an eye at our backs. If someone had caught us now we would really be screwed. After a few seconds electrical sounds came from the speakers of Gizmo's PDA and the door slid open. Inside the room was dark, save for the tiny illuminated lights from the computer buttons. Sawdust made a hoof gesture which I can only describe that it told us he was taking point. Without any hesitation, he walked in first. Then, Libra followed, her horn lighting up a light spell to follow around her. After, Gizmo entered, then Ironheart, then I.

The lights in the room were shut off. It was hard to see objects and details in the room. Then, the door slammed shut behind me. My heart leaped into my chest and I turned around slowly, trying to keep in self-control. I couldn't see the door in front of my face, only darkness.

"Hang on, I've got it…"

I heard Gizmo tap on her device a few times and then the room filled with light. I had to shield my eyes for a few seconds as they got used to the sudden change to the darker, less powerful hallway light bulbs.

The room was a standard computer laboratory, if not a bit outdated. Large supercomputers sat against the wall, humming softly that created a comforting white noise. The ceiling above was much higher and was at least ten feet tall. Fans turned in circles at the top of the room, creating a soft draft that failed to combat against the unaltered heat emitted by the machines around us. There were glass walls sitting in a formal fashion in the centre of the room. Leaning against every one was a desk that held a personal computer. On several of the desks were masses of paper that were seemingly scattered messily on the metal surface. Some of the coffee cups they had read things such as 'Computer Wizard', 'S.M.R.T' and 'Steamin' Hawt Coffee'. Clever.

The floor turned from stone to blue carpet and I found my step less flat and more buoyant. We all started approaching the exit at the other side of the room slowly and with caution. Just because we got into the room doesn't mean that there weren't any traps waiting for us in there, nor was there a clear sign that we were the only ones in the room. I crept towards the corner of one of the glass cubicles, keeping my eyes on the vents on the walls of the room and the spaces beneath the desks. After a few moments, we all jogged to the door. Gizmo was already there, fiddling with her PDA, a frown on her face.

The squad took our same positions as before, my wand hand trained at the door. Gizmo tapped her screen a couple of times before muttering something under her breath. One of my eyebrows rose. She has never taken this long before.

"What's wrong?" Sawdust inquired, not leaving his position.

"Gah, nothing's wrong," she simply responded, still tapping on her PDA. "It's just that this door has an outdated security system. It's different from the rest of the doors. Give me a minute and I'll open it."

Sawdust nodded. My mouth twitched.

A minute went by. And then two. And then three. Time was ticking, and we didn't have much left. I don't know what she was doing, I'm not very technologically capable, but this was her job. She was literally here to hack us into the core of the building, and if she couldn't do it we were in deep trouble. None of us here possess the talent to do what she can. Computers are literally her special talent. But I found my patience wavering.

"Gizmo, are you certain you can open it?" Sawdust asked again, leaning over slightly to see what exactly was going on her PDA.

"I–" she started before frowning and looking at her PDA. "I'm not certain, sir."

I stood up, having made up my mind. "Request to execute 'Plan B', sir."

Gizmo peered up at me. Sawdust turned around, gave me a steady look and nodded. "Go do it."

I wanted to grin. This would be fun. Reaching into my pants pocket, I grabbed out a small card. It was a business card for the artifact store I run in the LOYALTY district. The tiny thing had my logo on it, followed by my address and the words 'Ancients Arts: The Artifact Shop'. I held it out in front of me and flipped it around, showing everyone what it was, just for effect. Then, I approached the door and placed the narrower side of the card in the crack that split the door in two. Putting the tip of my wand on top of the card, I muttered "Ignis." under my breath and channeled energy through my arm. The crack began to glow a dark orange and I put pressure into the card, sliding it in slowly but surely. A few sparks flew out from my spell and landed onto my hat. I knew it wouldn't set it on fire, I enchanted it myself. After a few seconds, the card slid halfway in and I ended my spell, pulling the thin piece of hard paper back out.

To my right, I could feel Libra's eyes staring at me with a bit of curiosity and wariness. "What are you doing?" she inquired. I was a bit confused. I thought everyone in the squad knew what plan B was. Apparently she didn't get briefed on it. I saw Ironheart lean into her ear and whisper into it. Somehow, beneath her brown coat, I saw Libra pale.

"Are you crazy?" she demanded to know. Ironheart started pulling her back as everybody backed off a safe distance away.

"Just watch." I answered. Putting the half-burnt card back into my pocket and my wand back into my coat, I reached around my torso to grab my messenger bag. On the side of it hung a purple miniature silk bag. I untied it off of my bag's belt and opened up the top. Then I tilted the bag and allowed the white powder inside to pour into the open palm of my right hand. From there, I stood on the tips of my toes, leaned my elbow against the door and used my hand to funnel the powder into the hole that I just created in the door.

In the corner of my sight I saw Libra blink, eyes wide. "Is… Is that Parasprite Dust?"

"Yep." I simply responded, pouring more Dust into my hand and tilting it so it fed into the door. After three scoops, I figured that it was enough and shoved the bag into my coat pocket and took a few steps back.

"Ironheart, could you cover me as I open the door?" I asked.

She nodded. "Sure."

She took a position beside my legs, getting ready with her own amulet just in case something came shooting out from the other side. I took my wand back out, aimed it at the crack and with a bit of willpower announced "Alacritas!" A bolt of lightning shot from my wand, striking directly in the centre of the hole. A bright flash came from it and the inside exploded with a large boom, shaking the hallway a bit. My comrades had their hooves over their ears. After I was done shielding my eyes with my arm, I looked to see if it had worked. The door was still standing there, as if nothing had happened at all. My jaw dropped. I could feel the stares bore down on my back, the pressure of my team weighing down on me. That was not supposed to happen! It was supposed to work! What the hell?

Then, the controls beside the door flashed green with a ping and the passage to the hall was opened. Once again, there was nothing on the other side. I felt a grin growing on my face.

"A good magician always has a bag of tricks up his sleeve. Am I good or am I good?"

I heard Ironheart groan at my magician crack.

"Yeah, that was totally what you expected," Libra dryly noted. "I still think you're crazy."

"Enough banter. Sigma Team, move out!" Sawdust ordered. He started into a sprint once again, and we all got into order. Before Gizmo left, I could see the thoughts and emotion churning beyond her expression. Her poker face was too good, and I couldn't tell what she was thinking, whether it was contempt for herself for failing to do her job or for me for completing it for her before she had the chance to open it. I heard that ponies don't react too well when they fail their cutie mark, and that they practically live to play out their talents. It's one of their major joys in life, doing something that they're good at, filling them with purpose and meaning. I couldn't sympathize with Gizmo, but I tried.

We started racing down the passageways once again, this time at a pace that I could actually manage. I felt better that we were on the move again to the objective. More grungy, aging walls and pipes passed me as we took more turns the passageway. After a certain amount of time, my stomach began to feel a bit queasy. Then, a chilling draft flew over my shoulder, causing a shiver down my spine. Something around us made me uneasy all of the sudden, and I didn't know what. It doesn't happen too often, but I swear I can foresee future. It's like a sixth sense of some sorts. Of course, it comes in small amounts and I don't get visions or anything, but sometimes randomly for no reason at all I get rushes of emotions, whether it be happy, sad or scared. Then, later, an event occurs to me that creates the exact same emotion. I kid you not, it's not a coincidence, it's instinct, and sometimes I have to force myself to slow down and listen to my instinct, because most of the time it's right. I had a premonition of something to come, a warning that something bad's going to happen.

Sawdust turned to the right ahead of me. We all followed one my one, me keeping a best of a pace as I could. Immediately to our left was another corridor, and as we passed by I saw three guards looking down the hall, all with enchanted, dark green coats wearing metal armour and helmets with visors tinted black. I could see the magical gems installed into the chest pieces of their suits and assault rifles floating in front of them. I was a bit glad that they had bullet-firing guns instead of laser-firing ones. Intel was right about their aged equipment. Time seemed to slow down as I met the eyes with one. I couldn’t tell the colour of her eyes then and there, but realization seemed to pass by her after seeing a lanky human run by one of her hallways. Still in slow motion, her mouth started moving to call out to her teammates to tell them of the danger in front of us. My eyes widened and the pace of time went back to normal.

“Move! Move! We’ve been spotted!” I shouted, speeding up my running.

Gizmo looked over her shoulder for a second at me. “What?”

I heard heavy hoofsteps behind me. “Stop right there!” someone called out.

I turned my head to see the guards trailing us. They had just turned the corner and raised their rifles to take aim down their sights’.

“Repello!” I shouted, holding out my wand behind me and releasing a bolt of energy through my arm. The air around between us and them because distorted for a split second, and then returned back to normal. They started firing, the gunshots ringing out and breaking my eardrums in the very narrow passage of the hallway. Tiny copper bullets got caught in a heavy magnetic net that I sent out, protecting us from any kind of harm they could send. The look of shock on their faces was admittedly satisfying to watch as they realized their guns weren’t working. After a moment or two, the bullets suspended in mid-air fell down to the ground in a clatter. Then, one charged forward, putting her speed on once again. The others followed. I realized with a sinking feeling that they figured out that the net wasn’t mobile, and that once they passed it their bullets wouldn’t be caught.

I looked back again and had enough time to react to another turn. I weaved right, almost slamming into the wall from my forward momentum. There was another door in front of us. Gizmo shouted something and the door opened with a hiss of steam. On the other side was a huge chamber filled with glass cylinders that contained a translucent blue liquid in them. They were huge, pillars that reached to the top of the ceiling dozens of feet above us. Wires and pipes ran from the bottom of them, connecting them to one another and leading to blinking computers set up at the walls of the room. The lights of the room caused everything to be a sudden shade of ocean colours and made things a little bit harder to examine with detail. I noticed that there were catwalks above us. That couldn’t be good.

We kept running. I could hear more guards chasing us from behind, more than the three I saw previously. We were really in for it now. Dodging around the cylinders, I tried to keep up with my squad as they slowly started to outpace me. They had too much mobility for this kind of thing. As I reached farther and farther into the room, railings appeared to my right that led to a lower floor with more supercomputers scattered around the place. I also saw Ironheart a few meters in front of me and I began to call out to Ironheart for her to slow down when I felt something slam into my left shoulder hard. I let out a yelp as I fell over the ledge back first and I got a good look at my attacker. It was a Pegasus guard, whom which I guessed flew from the catwalks.

“Valour!” I heard her shout as she turned around. I lost sight of her immediately, falling down to the floor six feet below me. I landed with a huff, my back spreading the pain to the rest of my body as I tried my best to keep the back of my head hit the floor. I lost my Stetson when I got hit and saw it sail off somewhere in the corner of my eye. The Pegasus guard was on top of me, his teeth gritted and his weight bearing down on my chest. He reeled back with both hooves ready to strike at my face. I punched him with my left before he could then shove him off my chest. Quickly rolling sideways to my feet, I barely had time to react to the guard charging into my stomach. I dodged to the left, but he managed to smack my right hand. My wand flew to the ground while my wrist tingled in light pain. I lightly waved my fingers in the air, sipping the air to try and dispel the unpleasant stinging. The guard turned around and tried another charge. This time, I met him head on with a right hook and pain shot through my knuckles as he fell on top of me. Punching him while he had a helmet on was probably not a good idea, but I was aiming for the one spot that was not protected: His muzzle. I think I hit it, because he was dazed when we both fell to the floor again.

Taking the one opportunity I might have, I flipped the two of us so that I was on top of him this time. Then, I trapped his forehooves underneath my two knees, held out the palms of my hands close together towards him and started focusing on my willpower. With some effort, I yelled “Ignis!” and fire shot from the bottom of my palms. He screamed at the top of his lungs as fire rushed over his face, splashing harmlessly against me. I know I said that I burned my hands from practicing the magic, but your own magic shouldn’t harm you unless you make mistakes, which I did. I closed my eyes as the last of the heat was expelled from my being, partially because the light was too bright and partially because I couldn’t watch me slowly burn a pony’s face off.

I inhaled deeply, which was a very bad idea. The nauseating stench of burnt fur went straight into my nostrils. I gag, holding in my stomach as I got off of the unmoving form as quickly as I could. Then, I turned, found my wand on the floor and picked it up, looking towards the upper level to see if any other guards followed me. They didn’t which I thought to be odd until I realized that they didn’t see me get tackled to the lower level and probably were too focused on the others to realize that I was missing. Looking around, I saw my Stetson sitting onto of a terminal, followed by a set of stairs back op a few feet behind it. Just then, I heard a loud shout followed by and explosion in the distance that shook my balance and sent sparks flying from some of the nearby computers. My heart in my throat, I sprinted around the maze of technology, grabbed my hat with ease and raced up the stairs.

At the top was a cleared area void of any glass cylinders except for a few that had been broken from the blast of the explosion. I took a quick look down to see the blue liquid at my feet, sparkling with a certain magical aura to them. I briefly wondered what it was before my head returned upright and I spotted my squad mates engaged in battle.

Ironheart was fighting off two guards equipped in her magical steel armour. That’s what was special about Ironheart; she could summon a custom set of armour she made herself from her pendant when she was in a tight situation. The thing was about her armour was that it like guard armour, only better. It reflected bullets, lasers and most of the effects of magic, so she was basically invincible. One thing that I did hear her say was that it was not immune to extreme instances of force being applied over a large area, but she was in no threat of getting squished anytime soon, so I didn’t have to worry about her. Above me I could see Whirlwind fighting in an air battle with three other Pegasi and winning against them. Then, another explosion rang out to my right. I flinched and looked to see that Libra had used her amazing magical prowess to send five guards into a supercomputer, causing it to explode upon contact. Gizmo was hiding behind her, her eyes wide behind her goggles as she witness the sheer amount of power exerted by the bookworm.

Libra may have been a librarian, but I’d be damned to say that she wasn’t better at magic than I was. Her ability to manipulated pure, unaltered arcane energies is second to none. Her shields were much better than mine, her telekinesis could lift up several tons of weight and she could freaking teleport, and not just teleport with herself, but could actually take others with her. That takes a butt load of skill! Teleportation is one of the toughest spells to pull off, so much so that it could actually kill the individuals involved in the spell. I wouldn’t even dare try and cast it myself.

A mare guard suddenly landed beside me in a heap of broken bones sticking out of her body and bruises. My eyes widened. Calling it gruesome would be an understatement. I gazed in the direction she was through and found Sawdust looking at me channeling his Earth Pony aura into his hooves, turning them brown.

“Valour! We gotta go!” he shouted at me as another guard rushed him from his side. Without missing a beat he grabbed the hoof of his opponent, threw him over his shoulder and dropped his elbow on the mare’s muzzle, breaking it instantly and knocking her out.

I heard a multitude of heavy hoofsteps to my left. Sure enough there were one, two squads of guards coming at us from between the cylinders, all with focus and intent in their expressions. Thinking quickly, I grabbed the ice crystal that hung on my neck with my left arm, took a good solid stand and held out my wand arm towards one of the cylinders.

“Blizardis!” I commanded, as a chilling breeze swept through the room. The gem I held grew brighter as frost began forming on the rim of my Stetson and my breath formed in front of me. A blast of white particles shot from the tip of my wand, connecting to the cylinder and forming ice on it. I directed the blast to spread in-between two cylinders, then the next two. I heard a shout of annoyance from the other side as my twelve-foot wall of ice was complete. I turned my head to see Whirlwind throw his last remaining guard onto one of the guards Ironheart was pummelling. They looked at each other and nodded.

“Group up, Sigma!” Sawdust shouted from his position. We all rushed towards him, then headed towards an exit at one side of the room. Scrambling into the hallway, we all turned around to check where the squads of guards of were. They cleared around the ice and were heading straight for us.

“Gizmo! Get ready to close the door! Valour, I need you to shoot fire at the liquid on the floor!” Sawdust ordered.

I didn’t know what he was thinking, but I trusted Sawdust to make the right decisions as the leader of this squad. Lifting up my wand once again, I put some willpower into my thoughts and felt my arcane energy rush to the base of the wood.

“Orbum Ignis!” I shouted, releasing the power inside of me. A bright burning fireball erupted from the tip and shot right passed the guards. They stared back at it in confusion, then several of them screamed at the top of their lungs once they saw where it was headed.

“Close it now!” Sawdust shouted. Gizmo fiddled with her PDA that was held in her hoof and the doors closed. I could hear a sucking sound from the other side, as if the air was escaping, and then I was sent to a ground by a rumble that rattle me inside out. I heard something ignite and we all fell down. Ironheart squealed as the hallway literally shook with a vicious intensity. A large amount of heat was emitted from the door and the crack that kept it closed glowed a fiery orange. After a few seconds, the shaking stopped. I slowly got to my feet, getting my bearings again and taking deep, deliberate breaths.

“Sawdust, how did you know that that stuff would set on fire?” I asked him, leaning against the wall while holding my Stetson atop my head.

He gave me a small smirk, a rare occurrence. “Seraphi went over the maps of the core heavily with me. She told me how some of the rooms contain liquid magic, and that we should steer clear of those places. Heh, we really didn’t have much choice.”

I gave out a huff of breath. He met with Soul Dew? Damn, I knew that this was an important mission, but I never expected one of the Second Commanders to actually guide through Sawdust on what to do face to face, much less talk to him. Most of my interaction with the upper ring were through a collection of written message guided through a clique of clerks and attendants, The higher-ups in the Valoran have a lot of responsibilities, and most of the time the last thing they need to do is talk to small squads that haven't gone through a mission yet. I was even more surprised that Sawdust referenced her in that manner. Not too many ponies know her by that name. Heck, I wasn't even supposed to know. I learned it by accident.

My eyes went back to the door. That crazy bastard. He led us the wrong way we planned and instead we went straight into a potential death trap! Most professional practitioners of alchemy know that liquid magic is not only unstable, but also highly flammable, and that room was full of it! I guess that’s why the guards weren’t firing their guns; they didn’t want to go completely suicidal.

“I’m actually surprised that the room didn’t blow up after we created two explosions and destroyed some of the pods they were placed in,” he muddled over while absentmindedly checking the map. “I’m also surprised that the metal door held. Guess I didn’t give this place enough credit.”

I couldn’t help but smile. That was one dangerous gamble. I had no idea that was liquid magic. I have never seen liquid magic before! I mean, I’ve dabbed my hands in the art of potion making before, but never have I actually have had to use liquid magic before, and now that I know what it exactly can to, I’m glad I didn’t. I’m not the cleanest practitioner in alchemy, and I probably would have dropped a vial or two of the stuff while handling all the ingredients. That would have been a disaster.

The rest of my group got up, dusted themselves off and otherwise got a hold of their surroundings. Ironheart unequipped her armour, Whirlwind preened a few stray feathers and Gizmo wiped grim and dust off her goggles. I checked my surroundings, and realized with a little bit of fright that I had no idea where we were now. Sure, I saw the maps and memorized the route we planned to go, but I think that Sawdust actually got lost halfway through navigating the maze of tunnels. I was certain that we shouldn't have gone through an alchemy chamber, unless the layout of the map has changed since the Valoran got a copy and they added it sometime after.

“Valour,” Libra began behind me. I turned to face her. Her coat appeared to be a bit scrupled as she straightened her glasses. “Why do you shout when you cast spells? You do know that magical words don't exist, don’t you?”

I gave a wide, playful grin. “Yeah, I know.”

Author's Note:

This story spawned from an urge to write about magic in a distopian, technologically advanced future in the MLP universe. Of course, I made the main character human because I always liked the angle of where the main character lives in a world not of his own. I also wanted to write a story where I could make the main character scream magic words whenever he casts a spell. Magic words are cool.

Two chapters remaining.

Comments

[Civviq Writer]

I still owe you a comment, don't I?
Well, here goes.
Score:

Content: 7.5/10
Pacing: 7.5/10
Grammar/Formatting: 9/10 (I can't really judge this, because my English isn't perfect either)
What I liked: Well, I really liked the setting. Building a new world isn't easy, and you've done a great job.

What needs to be improved:
Well, I also don't know what to say here. Your grammar is great, the pacing's good and the only thing that puzzled me was how the humans came here. I'ts not that I hate your story because I dislike HiE stories - that's personal taste. But it actually adds something to your story.

Final thoughts:
A great fic. Keep it up!

~

Yes, I know it was late. It is b*cking late.
Just - I hope you found this useful.

(I like your story. It's perfect, it just needs more attention.)

[Carpinus Caroliniana]

I'm definitely a fan of the dark cyberpunk setting that's quote clearly got influences from Shadowrun.

I don't see any glaring errors. To be honest, the Human being a mage threw me for a loop. I expected him to be the tech master or maybe a cybernetic warrior.