Friendly Fire

by Starscribe

Chapter 14

Elise knew she should be proud. It was rare she had cause to wear her uniform, and even rarer she had the privilege of changing her rank insignia. Special Agent Avery had saved more lives in the last six months than any surviving field agent. Her strategy—hunting down the targeted class and putting them into preemptive custody—had cut kidnappings down from 3/4ths to 1/10th in just a few months.

Now that the champagne was gone, the congratulations were over and her fellow agents had all returned to work, there was only her and her immediate supervisor left in the headquarters ballroom.

"I said not to drink too much," Director Pierce joked, setting down his own empty glass. "How'd you do?"

"Fine, sir," she responded, not even a little bit buzzed. "I guessed you would have something for me when the festivities were over." She lowered her voice a little, though there was nobody around to overhear. "We both know promotions only bring more responsibilities without much better pay. I'm guessing it isn't more of the same, though."

He nodded. "You're too valuable to put into danger on containment missions anymore. We have rookies for that, and they can study all your mission reports on the subject." He rose, and she did too. "As of now, you're moving from containment to sterilization. Time to bring the fight to them."

"Really?" Avery straightened her uniform subconsciously as she followed him from the room. "We finally tracked the incursions?"

"No." Pierce's answer was matter-of-fact. "But you will. We have an idea, but I haven't been given the details. Over my pay grade."

"But..." she began. The halls of Headquarters were deserted this late into the night. Even so, she had to be very careful with what she said. "Don't you answer to the Joint Chiefs?"

"Officially, yes. That isn't who you're meeting with, though." He stopped in front of a nearby door, unmarked except for its number. Avery had no idea what was behind it. "The Joint Chiefs might write our orders, but she writes our checks. You'll recognize her once you step through that door..." He reached into his pocket, handing her a sealed slip of paper.

"Your new orders. The senator has your new mission. Obey her orders as you would mine."

Avery unsealed the sheet and read it quickly. It was a slightly more official-sounding version of exactly what Pierce had just said. She slipped it into one of her uniform-pockets, then saluted. "Yes, sir."

"Very good." He waved, then set off down the hall. "My hands are off this one, Avery. Means you have full requisitions clearance for anything and everything you need. Please don't ask for anything that will make the bean-counters want to lynch me six months from now."

"I won't, sir." She opened the door.

The room beyond was more or less what she had expected: a hastily-reconfigured storage closet. All the shelves had been removed, though there were still marks on the carpet from where they had stood. In their place was a pair of large metal objects, which looked just barely wide enough to make it through the door. Both were approximately square, and slightly larger than the steel containment cubes she used to bring in critically contaminated individuals.

Of course, there was no getting over the one standing beside them. Not just Pierce's supervising senator, though she was that. It was Senator Maria Hunter, presidential hopeful, strong frontrunner, and general revolutionary. She was one of the tallest women Avery had ever seen, her hair long and black with a few streaks of gray. Either by virtue of treatment, surgery, or good genes, she had few wrinkles, and could have easily been mistaken for someone half her age. She dressed as she always did in her TV spots and advertisements, in a stylish black pantsuit with a flag on her breast, and a little symbol of her political party on the other.

Avery had never seen her more than a few feet from a dozen aides, secret service, and other helpers, yet there wasn't a single one waiting in the empty room. That doesn't mean they aren't watching. "Special Agent Avery." She waved to a chair across from her, just beside the covered objects. "I'm so glad you could make it."

"Senator Maria Hunter." She saluted, though the gesture was not necessary. Most civilians didn't seem to know that, and enjoyed the respect. The senator appeared to be one of those. "Forgive me. If I'd known I was keeping you waiting, I would have left the party early." She sat.

"No, no." She spoke with a voice like dark chocolate, smooth and unusually rich. So it was true, they didn't doctor it for her advertisements. She really did sound that way. "I understand your service has been vital over the last three months. You more than earned that celebrating, regardless of what it meant for my schedule."

There was an awkward silence then, as the woman looked her over. Avery sat with back straight and arms folded, respectfully silent. She resisted the urge to look at whatever had been brought in here, instead focusing on the blank wall to Senator Hunter’s left. "Director Pierce said you have new orders for me. Something ‘need to know,’ because he couldn't tell me what it was."

"That's correct." She reached into her vest, removing a plain envelope, unsealed. "The details are all right here. Even so, I would rather explain it. You can have this when we're done, but... I find a conversation face to face eliminates the possibility of misunderstanding."

"Alright, ma'am. I'm listening."

"To the point." She chuckled, setting the envelope down on one of her legs. "Very well. I'll begin by informing you of the basics of the mission. No one could force you to take an assignment like this, chain of command notwithstanding. If you accept your assignment, you may not later refuse. Do you understand?"

She wasn't sure it quite worked that way, but... Avery got the idea. It wasn't that she couldn't refuse a mission—it was that this woman would destroy her career if she did. And possibly get her incarcerated until the information she was told was no longer secret. That could be a lifetime. "I understand."

"You have been assigned to containment." The woman continued. "So you won't know many details of how the sterilization team has been doing. Sparing you the details, we have tried every conceivable method for locating the point of incursion."

"I've heard that much. We think it moves, right? So it isn't ever in one place long enough for us to track the damn thing down."

"Right. The best minds have considered a number of methods. We've tried letting kidnappings succeed, for instance, but planted tracking devices on those who go missing. We've tried having our own pose as victims—either they don't come back, or the enemy can somehow tell them apart. We've tried tracking their aircraft... you get the idea."

She nodded again. "Am I being assigned to the team plotting the next strategy for finding them? With respect, I don't want to be behind a desk, ma'am. Not while this country is under attack."

The senator smiled. "No, no. I'm aware of that, or else you might have been reassigned months ago." She cleared her throat. "Suffice it to say we've conceived a way to plant you with the next group, a way we're sure will succeed. Combined with new tracking methods, you will ride along with the enemy to their stronghold, reveal its location to us, and escape again."

Only the most dangerous mission possible. She might not know all the details, but Avery knew that none of their agents who had managed to hide along with the kids their enemy was stealing had ever come back. Maybe they were still alive, being held to one day exchange for the prisoners they held in containment. Avery didn't know, because they didn't negotiate with terrorists.

That explained why she wasn't being forced into it. A mission guaranteed to put her in danger and with a serious chance of getting her killed wasn't the sort of place you sent an agent who wasn't a volunteer. Forcing someone up against their own mortality was the fastest way to get defectors.

"Do we still think the contamination all originates from a single source?" Avery asked, her voice flat.

"Yes. If you succeed, you won't just save American lives. You'll end the whole war."

"I'll do it."

"Are you absolutely sure? Our proposed method will be quite unpleasant. I have no doubt it will be the most difficult thing you've ever done."

"I know what you plan to do," she responded, still flat and confident. "I've been fighting for nearly eight months now: I'm well aware there's only one way to guarantee they'll take me. I would have to be infected. Severely."

Senator Hunter tensed immediately, clutching at the envelope on her leg. "We still haven't found a cure. Even if you are successful, even if you survive, you might end up in containment with all the others. You would still be a danger."

Avery shrugged. "If it means ending this... then it doesn't matter what might happen." She looked away, her whole body tensing. "I'll do it."

"Very well." Senator Maria Hunter tapped her ear, along an earpiece Avery hadn't noticed until that moment. "Send the technicians in."

The door opened mere seconds later, and a pair of scientists entered. They wore the same uniforms that her own department's staff wore, though they had no identification badges and had hololens masks over their faces. They nodded respectfully to her, though neither spoke. She couldn't see their real eyes, so couldn't guess how sincere their respect really was.

"You've already guessed what they're about to do to you. Before that, I'll give you the rest of the details."

Avery nodded, ignoring the technicians as they removed the cloth covering both containers. One was an unmarked crate, and they started to work on its many latches. The other really was a containment pod, exactly like the sort they normally used to contain the critically infected. Waiting for me.

"We've tracked another serious contamination to Ohio State University, and we suspect the enemy is already on the ground. Instead of deploying a ground team, we're going to drop you in."

"You pull back everyone and it’ll tip them off," Avery offered. "We've been creaming them. If suddenly they scoop everyone up without a fight, they'll be suspicious. More than... I'm guessing they already will be."

"Maybe less than you think." Senator Hunter handed her the envelope.

She opened it quickly, revealing a photograph along with several pages of information about one Allie Langford. It was quite the extensive file.

"We took her into custody about a week ago, and we've put together all of that. Since the infected seem to bear little physical similarities to the people they used to be, they shouldn't know you're too old or that you're not really her. Memorize everything on those sheets while my men get the equipment ready."

She heard them at work. Though she wasn't watching closely, she could see they had already opened the crate, ready to receive her. Every now and then there was a strange sound from behind her, like glass or metal clanking onto something heavy.

She tried to ignore it as they spread gel on her skin and applied contacts as though she were having a brain-scan. Avery knew nothing about research efforts into the infection, though it didn't surprise her the labcoats had an artificial way to induce it. It's always easier to harm than to heal.

Her alias was a good choice—a well-liked but not particularly intelligent member of Ohio State’s Brony community. She was an exchange student from Canada, so didn't have any local family to know uncomfortable specifics about her life that she wouldn't be able to tell. She wasn't actually a student at Ohio State, but at the local cosmetology school. She had a list of friends’ names, a few recent events she should know about, and Miss Langford’s other interests and favorite things. She memorized it all with the ease she always incorporated mission details.

By the time she was done, the technicians had removed her shoes, loosened her collar, and applied a dozen contacts at different points of her body. They were all connected with shimmering wire, wire that led back to something she couldn't see.

The taller of the two technicians removed a well-worn wooden box from the crate, about the size of a jewelry box, trailing cable all the way. They handed it to the senator, then bowed and retreated from the room.

"You're staying?" she asked, her tone a little less polite than it had been. Knowing she might very well be about to die had a way of cutting into her formality. "Aren't you afraid of exposure?"

"No." There was something sinister in that voice. "You've learned by now there are varying susceptibilities. More of our field agents have to be recalled because they're showing early signs of infection than are killed in battle. Like you, I am resistant. It's part of why I was appointed to oversee the war." She rose to her feet, holding the box in both hands. She flipped open the lid, which was on a little hinge like a jewelry box. Light came from within, light Avery shied away from out of reflex. She knew the glow of dangerous radiation when she saw it.

"I'm sorry if this hurts, Agent Avery. Know that even if you fail, you will be making a great sacrifice for your country, and it will be remembered."

"I understand." Avery looked away, closing her eyes. She didn't want to see this happen. Maybe if she wasn't watching, it would bother her less. It was all she could do to resist the urge to tear the contacts off and run for her life.

I can't, she thought. They're going to stop killing kids because of me. What's more important than that?

Senator Hunter had been lying when she said it might hurt. It did hurt, tremendously. Avery started screaming, and she kept screaming until merciful unconsciousness finally came.

Comments

[ChaosDX1]

There was something sinister in that voice.

I may be latching on to an unimportant detail, but... What if the Senator is the one behind the... Everything else? The Timberwolves 'n stuff.

[Iamaprettypony]

7452839
It was mentioned that monsters and other things were accidentally let into Earth. My guess is the senator is Chrysalis or another changeling queen. And then there's this:

They handed it to the senator, then bowed and retreated from the room.

Why would they bow? You dont bow to your boss.

[TieID]

7452868

My guess is the senator is Chrysalis or another changeling queen.

Wouldn't she be contagious then?

[The Commandant]

7452868 Look at the character tags, and you will definitely see a connection to this theory.

[Iamaprettypony]

7453206
Yes, one would have to assume that she is. And she is intentionally infecting people now. I'll wager 10 cupcakes that Agent Avery turns out a little buggy.

[Yami Vizzini]

Yeesh.

No wonder the government's doing so well, they're going Precrime on all the brony clubs.

[Doppler Effect]

I wonder if the transformation won't be as much of a disguise as Avery was told it would be. If they're expecting turning completely into a pony to disguise her rather than just the odd hair and eye colours, the fact that almost everyone in Unity seems to have a spell on them to make them look human might just mess that up. I imagine the spell is based on their own appearance as a human, or else the odd hair and eye colours wouldn't make a lot of sense.

[Lithl]

7453337
Eh, not really. The government sees the bronies as a targeted class of victims. They don't know where the enemy is, but they do know where the victims are. There's really only one logical course of action.

[Yami Vizzini]

7454588 Yeah, putting the "victims" in containment. Not saying it's not pragmatic, but it still gives me the jibblies.

[Yami Vizzini]

7452868
7453230 Eh, not impossible, but there's just a changeling tag and I'm pretty sure we've already met a changeling. Now if there are any other villains listed whom we haven't seen yet...

[Noble Cause]

Yeah, money's on Chryssie, for me.

[bluemoon1996]

7452839
7453206

My money is on bugbutt or something a little more... corrupting like prehaps sombra?

[Gravity012]

She's eather nightmare moon or a female sombra. I refuse to say chrysalis because I like her to much.

[Therizzen]

So humanity is blocking negations because they don't negotiate with terrorists. I get it, but in this regard I think it's led to a catastrophic breakdown and allowed everything to devolve so far. Also, the Chrysalis theory makes sense. Tall, black hair, velvety voice, charismatic. Could be her. Harley's gonna flip. Unless they already know.

[Watercolor the Pegasus]

I'm pretty sure that the senator is Nightmare Moon. "Voice like chocolate" "rich" Yeah.

[SuperSaiyanTeemo]

starscribe, starscribe. if the senator is nightmare Moon or queen Chrysalis, or even the queen possessed by nightmare moon, while interesting, it would be a little predictable for you. granted, the character tags spoil the surprise of who is the villain here. I have a feeling the senator is either just a puppet, or working for one of them

[Fistfire]

Why do I have the feeling the senator Is Chrysalis?

[Helium]

It was Senator Maria Hunter, presidential hopeful, strong frontrunner, and general revolutionary. She was one of the tallest women Avery had ever seen, her hair long and black with a few streaks of gray. Either by virtue of treatment, surgery, or good genes, she had few wrinkles, and could have easily been mistaken for someone half her age.

Well there is our puppet master/3rd party.

[The Spy of the Tiger]

Only the most dangerous mission possible . She might not know all the details, but Avery knew that none of their agents who had managed to hide along with the kids their enemy was stealing had ever come back. Maybe they were still alive, being held to one day exchange for the prisoners they held in containment. Avery didn't know, because they didn't negotiate with terrorists.

That's right, America will not negotiate with terrorists. We only bankroll them.