Hecate's Orphanage

by BlackRoseRaven

Wildfire Tactics

Chapter Forty Nine: Wildfire Tactics
~BlackRoseRaven

Hecate stood calmly in front of the assembled forces in the large-scale portal room, looking over them all with a critical eye. Thorn had chosen well, she thought: Cadence and her team were at the front, ready to lead the initial charge along with two other Orphan teams: Team C-03, and Team B-15. C-03 was well known for being the best possible team with the worst possible statistics, while B-15 was an excellent support unit.

He had also put together a small command team composed of Silver, Seneschal, Auriculos, and himself: Silver seemed extremely unhappy, but she didn't seem like she was about to make a scene in front of all these ponies.

Seneschal, even in his robotic body, was leaning very pointedly away from Auriculos: the Kirin had his own modified Drone body, powered by two crystalline cores. One contained the soul of the Kirin itself, and had been provided by La Croix, while the other crystal contained the essence of a Primordial, and had apparently been created by Moonflower, vastly boosting the magical and psionic capabilities of the now-mechanical Kirin.

Auriculos didn't seem to mind the fact he had been shoved into a modified Drone body: in fact, he had already adapted it to better suit his needs, reshaping it to better resemble a Kirin frame. He also seemed to take great pleasure in the discomfort he caused others, which Hecate made a mental note of as she watched the snide way the Kirin spoke to Seneschal.

The mechanical empress let her eyes slide away from the teams to the platoons of soldiers assembled behind them: Thorn had outdone himself here, too. He had balanced the Dogmatists and Titans with plenty of standard infantry, and it looked as if he had modified their equipment distribution to account for a variety of hazards... of course he did. He probably checked all the gear personally, as well. He's been working hard.

Hecate smiled briefly as she looked down at Thorn, who was busily sorting through information on a holographic screen in front of him, before the mechanical goddess looked moodily up as someone whistled to her. She was less than pleased to see Freya and Cowlick standing nearby, the Empress of Decretum asking distastefully: “What are you both doing here?”

“I'm here to see my kid off, since you threw Rusty into one of those support teams way back there.” Cowlick said mildly, as she gestured absently to the far back. “The hell do I not get to go, on that note?”

“And I was bored. I thought I'd see what all the ruckus was about.” Freya added conversationally, although her gaze was intense when it moved out over the gathered army. “I have to say, it's not quite what I expected to see. Very messy. A lot of posing men.”

“You don't get to go because I said you don't get to go. And we do not need your assistance, Freya.” Hecate halted, then she frowned before adding coldly: “Any more than we need yours, Hel.”

Even Freya seemed caught slightly off guard as Hel squawked, then whined loudly as she hammered uselessly on Hecate's back: “I didn't even set off your stupid sensors this time, I know I didn't! I matched the wavelengths and everything!”

“They didn't detect you. But by now I've learned to recognize your stink from miles away.” Hecate answered, and Hel huffed loudly before she slowly stalked out from behind the mechanical empress. The frosty puppet pointedly turned her back on Hecate to wave at Cowlick and Freya, before Hel squawked again when Hecate seized her by the back of the neck and hauled her into the air as she growled: “We're busy, trying to eliminate Thokk. Who you yourself have apparently gone to great lengths to-”

“By the All Daddy, if you're that mad at me about Thesis, then why don't you just say so?” complained Hel, and one of Hecate's eyes twitched before she crushed the ice puppet's neck, the construct collapsing to the ground in a pile of broken fragments.

But only a moment later, the puppet immediately reformed from the debris, Hel yawning loudly before she spun around on one heel and then posed cutely, saying brightly: “Oh, were you saying you actually wanted me to spank Thesis for you? Because hey, I can punish him if you want me to! I can punish him, and Thorn, and everyone else you care about right now.”

The two looked at each other, Hecate's serious, cold gaze matching Hel's bright grin and cruel eyes, before the ice puppet suddenly twisted around and pointed at Freya, adding mildly: “You should be on my side, you know. In fact, I'm about ninety-nine percent sure that you will be once you find out all about big metal momma's Ithavoll Project... and that one percent I'm holding back just because I know you love those chaos types.”

Freya frowned, but Hecate only rolled her eyes before she said contemptibly: “Take Thorn if you want, but I would recommend leaving him to do his work.”

“He is being very industrious, I see! Impressive!” Hel said positively, as she clapped her hands together and smiled brightly at Thorn, who was ignoring everything that was going on and continuing to sort data. “But all the same, well, you know. Things happen, things change, have to adjust for it!”

Hel paused, then clicked her tongue before she added, with a strange, knowing smile to Hecate: “And I'll take that Swan off your big strong man-hands too, by the way. That two-layer vanilla cake and I have some catching up to do.”

Hecate narrowed her eyes as Thorn looked up in surprise from his screen, before the stallion started: “No, Cadence is-”

“Fine.” Hecate said evenly, much to the surprise of everyone present, before the mechanical mare's eyes flicked towards Freya. “Do you have any problem taking over Cadence's duties as Team 0-0's leader for this mission?”

“Very well. But only on the condition that you tell me about this Ithavoll Project after all's said and done.” Freya responded, before she gave a slight smile when Hel visibly pouted and crossed her arms. “What can I say, Hel? You always bring out the best in me. Or is it the worst?”

“I'm rather disgusted I get anything at all out of you ponies.” Hel replied as she mock-shuddered, before she leaned back and shouted: “Hey, Swan! Get your butt over here! And close your eyes, while you're at it!”

Cadence stiffened as she looked sharply in the direction of the voice, before she grimaced when she felt the Swan twist violently through her, forcing her to close her eyes tightly. She wrestled uselessly against that part of herself for a moment, but it only made her eyes throb painfully, so she finally gave in and muttered: “Fine. But you're getting us there.”

To her surprise, she felt the Swan, not take over, but instead guiding her, Cadence shivering as her wings opened as if by themselves before she leapt into the air, but she was like a child being led by the hoof, providing her own movement, dragging a little against the invisible hands leading her before she landed awkwardly a few feet away from Hel.

Her eyes were still tightly closed, and the ice puppet smiled pleasantly, even as Freya asked mildly: “Are you afraid of what the Swan might do, or what the Swan might learn?”

“Yes, Freya, go ahead and flex that big brain of yours, show everyone here how smart you are. You're the greatest ass in the land of magical technicolor donkeys.” Hel said grumpily, waving her hands out to either side before she looked towards Thorn and added loudly: “Hey, blueberry, it's time to go! Pack it up, and, you know, we gotta dance on down to the big party-place in the freezer named after me, you hear?”

Thorn glanced towards Hel as he made a few last adjustments over the screen, and then he nodded once before looking towards Hecate, saying calmly: “I've given Seneschal some of my command authority, and passed the rest on to Freya. They should be able to coordinate and-”

“Hey! We're moving, here!” Hel snapped loudly, and Thorn flinched as the ring around his horn suddenly sparked violently, making him flinch, and Hecate visibly clenched her metal claws into fists, which only made Hel grin even as she stepped backwards and rose her hands in supplication. “Hey, just trying to move things along here, that's all.”

Cadence grimaced as she looked blindly back and forth, trying to get a sense of everything that was going on before she felt a gentle hoof touch her shoulder, as Thorn said softly: “Just stay close to me. I'll lead you through this.”

The Swan wanted to rise up and snap at the stallion, but Cadence held it back as she only nodded, embarrassing as this entire situation was. She knew that Freya was here, and she could feel Hecate's eyes glaring into her as the Empress of Decretum said coolly: “Thorn, Cadence. Don't think that this vacation means either of you are relieved of your duties. The moment that you're finished in Helheim, I want you both reporting to the battlefield and active duty.”

“Of course, Queen Hecate.” Thorn replied, as Cadence attempted to salute in the mare's general direction, before the sapphire stallion turned his eyes towards Hel, who was tapping a foot impatiently. “We're ready.”

“Good.” Before Cadence could ready herself or protest, Hel snapped her fingers, and a horrific mix of sensations burst through the ivory mare: vertigo, agony, and a feeling like her skin was being peeled from her body.

She didn't even realize she was falling until she hit the ground, her legs trembling beneath her as she gasped for breath before she shook herself out, shivers running down her spine as her hooves... were they bleeding? No, but they did feel wet. Wet, and cold, and there was a chill spreading rapidly through the rest of her body...

“You can open your eyes. Hel is gone.” Thorn said quietly, and Cadence felt the Swan swirling uneasily inside of her before she hesitantly cracked one lid open. Then both her eyes snapped wide as she looked back and forth in disbelief, mouthing wordlessly as she realized they were standing in a wide, snowy field, nothing but vast and endless plains all around them, where the only landmarks were the massive spikes and spires of ice that riddled the wasteland's surface.

She looked up, and saw only cold ice high, high above them, glimmering like a solid sky of crystal. That, too, was endless in all directions, mirroring the powdery wastes as Cadence shivered a little and hugged herself. Her insulated armor wasn't doing much to keep the cold out... “Where are we? Is this...”

“Yes, this is Helheim.” Thorn attempted to bring up a holographic screen, but then he grimaced as the image flickered violently with static, distorting the readings. “There's too much magnetic energy in the air for me to get any readings, but I would guess we're in the Niflheim wastes.”

“I thought we were going to some fancy meeting.” Cadence said moodily, and Thorn smiled wryly.

“That would be far too simple.” he replied with a shrug, and then he dismissed the sparking screen before he reached back to his equipment bag, pulling out not one, but two gas masks. He offered one to Cadence, and the mare frowned but took it as the stallion explained: “Energy corruption occurs through a variety of ways, but inhalation of the active atmosphere is the most effective means.”

“What?” Cadence looked awkwardly at Thorn, even as she began to strap the mask on, and Thorn smiled a little.

“Breathing the air of Helheim greatly increases the chances of its energies affecting you. So keep this on as much as possible.” Thorn simplified, and Cadence nodded as the sapphire stallion strapped his own mask on over his muzzle, saying quietly: “The filters shouldn't need to be changed more than once a week, and we hopefully won't be here that long.”

Cadence grunted as she looked around uncertainly, before a voice said disapprovingly: “Oh, come on, I totally was under my quota on the last clean air check! Didn't you hear about our new initiative? We don't burn corpses anymore, we recycle them!”

Cadence and Thorn both turned towards a statue of ice that had appeared behind them: it resembled Hel's bovine head, its jaws open in a gaping roar, its eye sockets glowing with unnatural fire as the dark goddess' voice echoed out of it: “Now, listen up. I'm sending someone to come and look after you for a while. You've got a few days before the Inquisitor's Gala, and I have some work for the both of you before then.”

Cadence narrowed her eyes dangerously as the Swan hissed inside of her, but Thorn reached up and squeezed her shoulder, the sapphire stallion saying tactfully: “We will do what we can to the best of our abilities. But we are also in the middle of-”

“Now, now, don't you worry about that. No, no, those other horses, they'll be able to handle that whole mess themselves. It's better that they do, anyway. You don't want to get mixed up in that kind of thing.” Hel said dismissively, but Cadence felt there was something strange about the way the mare said it.

“What are you talking about? Is it an ambush? What do you know?” Cadence asked immediately, and Hel chuckled softly.

There was a crackle of energy as Thorn grimaced, and a moment later Cadence was on the ground, gasping weakly as her body smoldered from the force of the magic energy that had ripped across her frame. She shivered violently, blood slowly dripping out from the cracks in her armor as her flayed and charred skin scraped agonizingly against the insulation of her gear: but that physical pain was nothing compared to the screaming of the Swan inside of her. Oh, it had been so long since it had felt this level of torment, the torment that only the Creators could bring...

Cadence looked weakly up, as Hel said gently: “Don't make demands of me, dear. Especially not in my own realm. I might have to take a newspaper and bop you on the head. And you really don't want me to break out the newspaper, my little vanilla cake. You won't like it at all. You'll like it much less than this gentle love-tap, do you understand?”

“We understand. Queen Hel, with all respect, Cadence doesn't know the protocols of Helheim. The Swan consciousness is buried inside of Cadence's mind, after all. She was just as unaware of the laws of Valhalla.” Thorn stepped in smoothly.

Cadence tried to mumble something to the effect of 'don't fight for me,' but it was drowned out by Hel's clucking, before the Queen of Helheim asked disapprovingly: “Now, Thorn, are you really going to talk back to me? Has it really been so long that you've forgotten how I punish the people who get all nasty-like with me?”

“I'm only asking for fairness. And I'm only asking, Queen Hel, because I have a duty to Empress Hecate as much as to you. As a representative of Decretum, I must ensure that my fellow delegate is taken care of.” Thorn responded tactfully, but Hel only snorted in amusement at this.

“Oh, blueberry! Now come on, you know that here in Helheim... what's up don't matter none to what's down.” Hel informed, but after a moment she gave a loud, theatrical sigh. “Fine, fine! But she's your responsibility to bring up to speed, you hear? And I don't want no whining, either, capiche?”

Thorn nodded quickly, and Hel snorted before energy swirled to violent life inside the jaws of the head of energy, becoming a portal that thrummed inside the jaws of the statue.

A single, solitary figure passed through the whirling vortex as Cadence slowly forced herself to sit up, and Thorn only bowed his head politely to the demon that passed through, as Hel's voice announced: “I'm just going to leave this here for you guys. She's going to take you where you need to go. Don't make me have to check in on you too often, got it?”

Thorn only nodded again politely, and as the portal vanished, Hel muttered ominously: “Good. Because if I have to take matters into my own hands, I will. And we've already been over that you won't like that.”

The Hel head rumbled, and then it simply collapsed as the presence of the dark goddess faded, and Cadence shivered a little before the demon before them asked gently: “How may I be of service, your honor?”

Thorn studied the demon for a moment, as Cadence forced herself to finally raise her head, and she immediately regretted it as she clenched her eyes shut. But try as she might, she couldn't erase the sight of that creature in front of her: a rotted, hideous mare, with a stringy mane that looked like putrefied hay, and eyes like dead glass. Pus leaked from infected wounds and it looked as if golden jewelry had been stapled into her body...

“I apologize. I have strengthened my glammer.” the demon said politely, and Cadence winced as she felt Thorn grasp her shoulder gently, the ivory mare looking nervously up before she did a double-take, even through the pain radiating through her body.

She found herself staring at the most beautiful mare she had ever seen: she had long, flowing red hair, and a gorgeous ivory coat that was almost pristine, without a single blemish or scar across it. Beautiful, golden jewelry was draped elegantly around her body, along with an amulet that thrummed with power, the symbol of Hel's Archives engraved over the radiant metal.

“My name is Prejudice. I have been instructed to act as your guide. If you have no other orders or questions for me, I will be more than happy to bring you to where you will be staying for the duration of your visit.” the demon said politely, and she turned her eyes to Cadence, revealing that they were still hellish, hollow, horrible glass.

Cadence almost flinched away, and the demon studied the ivory mare for a few moments before Thorn said politely: “Cadence was injured and is unused to Hell's customs, so please excuse her. Will you please give us a moment?”

“Of course. The moment is yours.” Prejudice said kindly, bowing her head before she simply turned around, seeming to stare blankly off into space.

Cadence looked nervously at the demon's back, and then she gasped quietly as she felt magic spread through her, the mare flinching before Thorn murmured: “I'm no good at healing magic, but I can lend you a bit of energy and see if that accelerates your regeneration a little further. Try not to stare too much at Prejudice, please. Envy demons find that... encouraging.”

“I don't think I want to know what I'm encouraging.” Cadence mumbled, and then she shook herself out before carefully pushing herself up to her hooves, breathing quietly as that warmth pushed back the chill in her bones, although it made her wounds ache. “You're insulating me.”

“The cold might numb the pain, but it will also numb the rest of you.” Thorn said quietly, and Cadence smiled briefly before the sapphire stallion shook his head and continued: “Anyway. We can't waste too much time here, alright? Let's get ourselves moving.”

Cadence nodded a few times, taking a slow breath before she looked awkwardly towards Prejudice. Thorn glanced over his shoulder at her as well, and then he smiled briefly before saying quietly: “We need her help, yes. Prejudice is actually one of the younger members of the Archives, but she's done excellently in making a name for herself. She is one of the daughters of a Baroness of Hell, Mistress Jaundice.”

“Yes, that is correct.” Prejudice turned around with a smile, bowing her head politely towards the two ponies. “My mother inherited many of the properties and privileges of the devil who had owned her as a slave.”

Cadence frowned a little, and Thorn explained: “Many nobles in Helheim – Greed Devils in particular – refuse to create wills, to avoid being targeted for assassination by those who would profit from their death. In this instance, when they die, all property goes to Hel, who redistributes it as she pleases.”

“That is correct. Hel saw fit to reward my mother with several tracts of land and responsibility over several small villages. These villages have grown and become prosperous.” Prejudice continued with a smile, her awful, dead eyes locking on Cadence. “She gave birth to many sons and daughters as she grew in rank and nobility. Many of us were sold off or given as tribute. I was a tribute paid to Hel's Archives to maintain her position: I am very thankful for it.”

Cadence mouthed wordlessly, but before she could express her horror, Thorn cut in gently: “Perhaps we should focus back on the task at hoof. I'm sure you have a schedule to keep, Prejudice, and we don't want to delay you any further than we already have.”

“You are most generous, Grand Inquisitor Thorn Blackfeather. Thank you.” Prejudice said politely, bowing her head towards the two. “Please, then. Follow me to the train.”

“I really do not like this.” Cadence muttered under her breath, but Thorn only gave a wry smile as he followed when Prejudice began to walk away, and the ivory mare didn't see any other choice but to do the same as she sighed a little, even as she grumbled: “I really, really do not like this.”

“You aren't really supposed to like anything in Helheim.” Thorn pointed out, and Cadence guessed she couldn't really argue with this logic as she limped a little through the snow, doing her best to keep her head up and her eyes forward even she felt the sapphire stallion's eyes trace worriedly over her. “Do you need us to slow down?”

“No, no. I'm okay. I really am okay.” Cadence mumbled, shaking her head hurriedly before she looked back at her armor, grimacing a bit at the sight of the frozen blood on the metal plating. “Well, okay, maybe I'm not entirely... 'okay,' but I can feel myself healing, is what I mean. I don't think it's anything to worry about.”

Thorn nodded briefly, and then he glanced ahead before explaining: “The fact that Hel wants you here is... not entirely a bad thing. I'm sure it doesn't feel that way, of course, but as long as we work together, our mutual safety will be much less of a concern. We should also hopefully be able to get a better understanding as to what Hel wants from the both of us, and why she's become so intent on destroying Thokk.”

“I wonder, really.” Cadence muttered before she could stop herself. Thorn gave her a mild look, and Cadence cleared her throat awkwardly as she looked away before quickly adding: “Also, uh, I thought you were safe down here as a... High Inquisitor or whatever your title is. That no demon would dare to try and hurt you.”

The sapphire stallion shook his head, however, replying: “I'm also mortal, and fragile compared to most demons. Even with the protection given to me by my status, that won't shield me from poisons or a lot of mental effects that other demons take for granted and have a natural resistance to.”

Cadence nodded and frowned a little, but Thorn only smiled and shrugged a little. Before he could speak, however, Prejudice suddenly veered off to one side and down a dip in the snowy wasteland, calling calmly: “This way.”

As the ponies began to descend the slope, their eyes locked on what looked like a rickety traincar in the distance, hidden in the depths of this snowy valley. Cadence couldn't even imagine how it would work, with the snow humped up around it, and how old and rusted it looked, but Thorn seemed to be frowning for a different reason as he asked: “Is this a Gospel Transport?”

“Yes. We are going through a Prayer Center.” Prejudice replied kindly, and Cadence didn't like the way Thorn frowned even deeper at this. “Do not worry. We will only be passing through.”

“I'm sure.” Thorn said quietly, and then he shook his head before glancing over at Cadence and explaining: “Prayer Centers are where new Inquisitors are indoctrinated. They're generally not the most pleasant of places. Everyone wants to be an Inquisitor, after all, but Hel's Archives are very selective in the process, and the Prayer Centers are part of what help cull the...”

“Unnecessary.” supplied Prejudice politely, as they approached the train car. Cadence frowned as she realized it was more of a tram when they drew close, complete with a rusted, damaged metal arm that stretched up into the air above it, grasping uselessly at dead air.

Prejudice grasped one of the doorhandles before dragging it slowly open, the metal screaming and shrieking as it nearly tore loose from the side of the tram. Then the Envy demon stepped politely aside before bowing her head and saying gently: “Go ahead.”

Thorn and Cadence both entered the rusted, broken-down tram, the ivory mare uneasily surveying the broken windows, the rusted walls, the tattered seats before she muttered: “Is this even going to move?”

Prejudice only smiled as she stepped onto the tram, before she reached back and yanked the door shut behind her, leaving it sitting unevenly in the frame as she said softly: “Do not fear. All things will be as Queen Hel has ordered.”

The tram rumbled, vibrating suddenly to life, and Cadence looked up with surprise before she was nearly thrown off her hooves when it started forwards down the rails hidden beneath the snow. It screamed and banged its way forwards, kicking up a flurry of snow as it rumbled its way through the empty wastes.

Cadence awkwardly straightened, nervously looking out one of the broken windows and watching as the empty terrain passed by, the mare chewing on her lip uneasily before she shook her head quickly and mumbled: “It's been a long time since I've been on a train. The last time was...”

She stopped, then glanced over at Thorn as the stallion replied: “You've been on trains often, Cadence. You might just not always realize it.”

“What, do entire sections of Decretum move?” the mare asked mildly, and Thorn gave a slight smile.

“No, but you have an odd habit of 'forgetting' your missions the moment you're completed them, Cadence. How many times in mission were you on a train system?” Thorn asked, and Cadence shrugged again before the sapphire stallion said quietly: “The energies of Helheim have an interesting effect on emotions and emotional memory. The increase in receptiveness and responsiveness in our brains means that associative memory becomes very strong: you're not connecting recent events, but instead you're thinking of something with a strong emotional trigger.”

Cadence looked at him for a few moments, and then Thorn said bluntly: “You remember Shining Armor, don't you?”

“Yeah.” Cadence smiled lamely back at the stallion, but all the same, she couldn't help but study him curiously before she asked: “How do you know my full history?”

“It's all in your file. I've taken special note of yours and I've gone over the available information several times.” Thorn answered, the stallion giving a brief smile and shrug.

“And you are well known to us, as well.” Prejudice added, and Cadence felt an uncomfortable twinge in her stomach as she looked over at the demon. “We have watched you, Cadence Danzsöngr, ever since you awakened, ever since we learned of your heritage. Hel has a keen interest in you; we might go so far to say she loves you as one of her own.”

“That's... nice.” Cadence said uncomfortably, shifting a little before she looked uneasily at Thorn.

But the sapphire stallion only shook his head, saying quietly: “I don't know. When I was a foal, I was only in charge of keeping the files organized and doing basic bookkeeping. It's very possible, though, that there was an eye on you... I know that my Móðer was being watched by Hel very closely, for example, even before... everything happened.”

“If she was watching us, why didn't she ever make her presence known? Especially since it seems like she wants control over us.” Cadence asked, but Thorn only chuckled softly at this.

“Because of Valthrudnir, and... several other issues that dominated the field until relatively recently.” Thorn replied with a brief shrug, smiling a little over at Cadence. “That, and Hel is... she might be more than a little crazy, but she's also extremely cunning and intelligent. Direct influence, in spite of the belief to the contrary, isn't what brings people down to Helheim. It's the small, subtle things that bring us down.”

“It is easier to bear up under the weight of one single, heavy sin, than it is to survive beneath a tide of a million grains.” Prejudice added gently, bowing her head with a kind smile to Cadence.

The ivory mare studied the Envy demon for a moment, before she stumbled a little as the tram suddenly tilted downwards as it descended into a tunnel. They were quickly swallowed up by darkness, the interior of the tram illuminated only by the flashes of electricity that twisted over the metal arm jutting from the top of the machine, and Cadence shivered as she caught glimpses of Prejudice's true, hideous shape beneath the flickering light.

Prejudice only smiled, almost tenderly, as her hollow eyes greedily gazed into Cadence, the demon saying softly: “Beware the deep dark sea of sin, Swan Maiden. Do not forget that every ocean is nothing more than a million drops of rain.”

And beneath the glare of the hideous demon, Cadence shivered.

Freya stood in front of Team 0-0, Sombra to one side of her and Moonflower the other, as La Croix fidgeted nervously in the background. It had only been ten minutes since Cadence and Thorn had left, and Hecate had been quick to take over and reorganize their forces. She was clearly determined to make the attack on what she considered to be Thokk's base as soon as possible, even if Hel had just taken two of her most important officers for unknown reasons.

That made Freya nervous: Hel was a lot of things, but stupid wasn't one of them, and they all knew that Hel had some kind of special interest in those two. Thorn, likely, because he was her grandson, and the Swan Maiden because... why? That doesn't make as much sense to me. If Hel took part in creating the Swans, then she should be able to simply make new ones... why is she coveting this one?

Freya shook her head briefly, and then her eyes flicked over her shoulder as Moonflower started worriedly: “Maybe we should-”

“Maybe you should buck up.” Freya interrupted immediately, and Moonflower flinched before the mare said in a quieter voice: “Yes, there have been some... unexpected problems. But all the same, we have to deal with the changes and move forward. We don't have any other choice in the matter.”

“My daughter and Thorn will take care of each other.” Sombra said softly, and then he turned a smile towards Freya, bowing her head towards her. “And we, of course, will obey your commands as we would Cadenza's.”

“Considering the way I've seen her lessers treat her like they're her equal, I don't know if that's reassuring or not.” Freya retorted, but Sombra only smiled even as La Croix and Moonflower both glared at Freya, clearly insulted, before both hurriedly looked away when Freya's eyes moodily roved towards them. “Yes, I'm talking about you two.”

Neither stallion said anything, both shifting awkwardly as Sombra sighed and shook his head slowly, before their attention – along with that of every other soldier and servant of Decretum present – was brought front and center by a tremendous crack of energy.

All eyes turned towards Hecate, who was standing in front of a massive portal ring with her hands behind her back, her eyes glaring over the groups before her before she ordered: “Sound off!”

“Freya, Team 0-0, present!” shouted the Queen of the Valkyries, suddenly crisp and professional as she saluted sharply.

“Seneschal, Command Team, present and accounted for.” Seneschal saluted awkwardly, as Silver only kicked at the ground and Auriculos didn't bother looking up from the holographic screen floating in front of him.

“Lancer here. Team C-03 ready.” added a large, gruff stallion, who all the same shrank his head almost meekly under Hecate's glare.

“Cataskeuastros, Team B-15. We are prepared.” said another stallion, who bowed his head respectfully to Hecate.

Almost the entire room shook as the infantry stomped into their own salutes, and this was followed by several acknowledgments radioed in from the teams at the back. Hecate nodded moodily as the last of the teams called in, and she looked back and forth over the assembly before saying coldly: “Your mission is simple. Invade and exterminate all resistance. Occupy the enemy's facilities, and either seize or destroy their resources and data. If Thokk's forces leave, I want them to leave crippled, maimed, and bleeding. I want them humiliated, and devastated. I want them to know the power of Decretum, and that they will not get any mercy from us.”

Freya roared her approval, although the rest of the army only saluted sharply, with a few scattered 'ma'am!' and 'sir!' through the ranks. Hecate smiled thinly at this response, but this was precisely what she wanted: she wanted her soldiers to be a well-oiled machine, a thousand different gears that all worked together as one.

And so far, she was pleased to see that they were. Her eyes roved slowly back and forth over the soldiers, and then she nodded once before ordering coldly: “Fall in, and get ready. We move in ten minutes. I expect all of you to provide a satisfactory performance.”

Hecate strode off to the side as the Worker Drones behind her began to plug power cables into the portal, electricity sparking over the massive metal ring as rumbles passed through the machinery as it began to gear up. Hecate glanced back only once to ensure that the Worker Drones were operating at optimum efficiency, before she smiled slightly as she noted that the enormous power crystal on top of the almost-rectangular ring was already thrumming with power. Thorn pre-charged it. Good.

She briskly headed towards the side of the staging area, where Cowlick was loitering, but for once, the demon seemed almost anxious as she said quietly: “I hope you know what you're doing. You know that whenever Hel shows up-”

“Things go wrong. Welcome to life, where things go wrong every moment of every day. We adjust for that, and we evolve because of it.” Hecate replied coldly, as she turned around and surveyed her soldiers. “What makes my empire strong is their ability to adapt, even more than their discipline. All this discipline would be worthless if they were nothing but robots.”

Cowlick looked mildly up at Hecate, and Hecate turned her eyes towards the engineer before the Empress of Decretum said, as she flexed one claw slowly: “My Orphans will adapt where Valthrudnir's machines would fail a million times over. My Orphans will ensure order where Hel's chaos would only fuel the fire.”

“You're all about that control. You know that's the problem, though. Hel's all about things not going to plan. Not even her plans.” Cowlick replied dryly, and Hecate only smiled distastefully before the demon looked ahead and said in a lower voice: “You got a big problem coming, whatever happens. You know that no one expected you to get this far, to do this much. You know that your whole empire... this Ithavoll Project you're workin' real hard to keep secret... all of it is sitting on sand.”

“No. It's far more solid than you think. And this Clockwork Empire will outlive me, Cowlick.” Hecate smiled thinly, glancing over at the demon. “And I have no plans on dying anytime soon.”

“Believe me. Planning on dying was one of the best things that I ever did.” Cowlick grinned over at Hecate, but the mechanical empress only shot the demon a moody look. “And I gotta say, that death's been real interesting ever since.”

“I'm not surprised how well you've adjusted to it.” Hecate said acidly, and then she turned her eyes ahead and added in a quieter voice, as she crossed her arms: “But I have to say, I am surprised that you sound so afraid. I thought you were too stupid to feel fear.”

“After you spend some time down in Helheim, you realize that all the people who brag about how they've never been afraid of anything are either retarded or fakes. I been afraid of plenty, Hecate.” Cowlick halted, then she looked back at the mare and said softly: “Believe me, I ain't afraid to die. But I am afraid of what's going to happen if you take on Hel and Thokk. You've shot at both of 'em, and don't pretend that whole Ithavoll crap you were spouting wasn't an open warning shot at Hel. I know it was.”

Hecate only snorted, then asked dryly: “And when did you become my voice of caution, Cowlick?”

“Oh, don't worry. I'll keep building you the weapons you need and doing what you say, Queen Bitch, but that's not going to stop me from criticizing how stupid and cocky you've been getting.” Cowlick retorted, snorting as she glowered at Hecate. “What, do you really think this giant bucket of bolts and gears can stand up to being attacked from all sides? The moment Thokk is down, you know that Hel will take the chance to-”

“Hel will do nothing.” Hecate said contemptibly, and Cowlick frowned at the confidence in Hecate's voice as the mechanical empress said quietly: “She and I may disagree on a lot of things, and we may be hostile to each other... but we recognize each other's value.”

Cowlick laughed shortly at this, and then she replied wryly: “Never realized you were such an idealist. But hey. I guess this whole Decretum thing is based on a whole load of fantasy, anyway.”

“No. It's based on what I know we can achieve. It's based on what has, in fact, been achieved.” retorted the mare, shaking her head before she gestured out at the soldiers in front of her. “Growth has come to us because we have earned it. I will not allow my soldiers victory unless they deserve it, with every fiber of their being.”

“You've always been a bitch.” Cowlick stated wryly, but the demon gave maybe the slightest of smiles before she looked out over the mass of soldiers, muttering: “I just hope you're a big enough bitch to handle what's going to come next.”

“I'm ready. And every person I need to be ready is, as well. I'm not afraid.” Hecate replied calmly, keeping her eyes forward as energy began to swirl violently to life inside the massive portal ring. It crackled ominously, and Hecate smiled coldly as she said softly: “Thokk has no idea what she is dealing with, or what we are capable of.”

Cowlick snorted, before she cocked an eyebrow curiously as the portal crackled with power again, the demon leaning forwards slightly before she whistled at the especially-violent swirl of energy inside the ring, muttering: “That's a hell of a drill.”

“Every step of an attack should be an attack. The initial breach into Thokk's world will cause mass disruption, and after that the energy drill will form a one-way portal that will dissolve anything in front of it and around it.” Hecate's eyes flicked over the portal, as it crackled with power again, electricity arching over the enormous ring. “The strike forces will invade between initial pulses and immediately push forward. Team B-15 will set Ionized Magnetic Charges that will literally pull the portal forwards to the wall of the enemy facility, where it will drill through before opening again so we can flood their halls with my soldiers.”

“God, you're scary.” Cowlick said mildly, grinning a little despite herself up at Hecate. “You really get off from all this, huh?”

“I 'get off' from knowing that even when everything stops going according to plan, Thokk will still end up crushed beneath the force of my soldiers.” replied Hecate evenly, before her eyes locked on Freya as the Queen of the Valkyries began to stride forwards, leading Team 0-0 as naturally as if they had always served her. “Right on time.”

Freya grinned as she strode towards the portal as the arcs of energy around it settled, her eyes blazing before she roared: “You all know your jobs! Into the breach! Now Thokk will learn the true meaning of wrath!”

Freya flicked her horn sharply, her swords appearing in bursts of golden flame, spinning around her into ready positions as she fearlessly strode towards the massive portal into the unknown, with Moonflower, La Croix, and Sombra following in her wake. The Valkyrie's confidence radiated through them all, and in spite of the fear, they all the same strode into the hole in reality without hesitation, sprinting down the tunnel of whirling energy beyond as they felt it rushing, pushing against them, almost flinging them through one side of reality and out-

The ponies leapt through the other side of the portal, almost knocked sprawling by the force it ejected them with as they landed in black, weedy gravel. Freya and Sombra both skidded quickly to a halt as Moonflower stumbled and La Croix half-fell, but all four felt the chill of wrongness in the air even before they were able to take in the world around them.

The sky was black, but not deep or dark or rich like the night sky: it was dull and pockmarked, like faded charcoal smeared across concrete. It took Freya a moment to realize what those lighter and darker-colored scars in the sky were: not stars, but floating stones and debris.

Freya shook her head to clear it, before focusing herself: the air was cold and crisp, and it stank. The ground beneath their hooves was broken and uneven, and as she looked back and forth, all she could see was more waste: jutting, jagged fangs of rock, piles of gravel and broken stone, deep craters crusted with filth and metallic wreckage.

Freya strode forwards to the edge of a crater some twenty feet away, and her eyes narrowed as they locked on to a squat set of towers at the bottom of the enormous wound in the earth. It was smaller than she had expected, but all the same, it looked like that was where they had to go... although it also looks like it's already suffered heavy damage. And even from here, I sense... “Stay on guard. And...”

Freya paused, then looked over her shoulder, watching as the other teams of four each emerged from the portal. “You two! Merge your teams with mine, we move in as one!”

Cataskeuastros nodded slowly, apparently unfazed by the order, the environment, or being flung through the portal, and he led his team quickly and efficiently to an escort position without argument. The other team leader, however, blinked stupidly as he hammered on the side of his head with one hoof before he asked grouchily: “Now why the hell would I want to do that? Look, lady, we got our orders. Cat, I can't believe that-”

“Hey, monsieur, much as I would love to see y'get your face punched in, you should just listen to Madame Freya. Or she make a fine stew out of you, Lancer.” La Croix interrupted, gesturing pointedly towards the ivory mare as she scowled at the large stallion.

But Lancer only snorted before he retorted: “Oh, shut up and stuff your fancy talk. I'm more afraid of Hecate than-”

“Than what, handsome?” asked Freya pleasantly, as she appeared like a ghost in front of the stallion, who blanched and leaned back in surprise before he paled as he felt one of her floating swords caress his throat. “What do you think will happen after you express your fear of Hecate?”

Lancer grinned weakly up at Freya, gulping,and that was enough to make the blade bite a small nick into his throat as he said in a tinny voice: “I just think that... Hecate probably isn't going to appreciate...someone else... taking over.”

“I'm not taking over. I'm making things more efficient.” Freya replied as she reached up and grasped the side of Lancer's face, making him wince a bit before he visibly relaxed when Freya's swords drew away from him, a moment before she flung him face-first into the ground, leaving him laying in a dazed heap. “Let's stop wasting time. Fall in! Moonflower, cloak! Whoever has the magic to do so, boost him and make sure we have as much stealth as possible until we reach the target! I don't want our enemies sniffing us out until our swords are in their throats!”

“Sanctum, boost Moonflower's shield.” Cataskeuastros ordered calmly, and another unicorn in his group nodded and saluted as he strode up quickly beside Moonflower, who smiled as their horns started to glow in tandem. “Dinoris, keep up a wide area scan.”

“I'll keep up a thermal layering, too.” added a unicorn mare, who awkwardly hurried over to Lancer to pry him out of the ground, as Lancer's team only shifted lamely on their hooves until Freya glared at them, and they hurriedly fell into line.

“Good. The rest of you, keep quiet and march.” Freya ordered, and then she turned to lead the way forwards as the ponies fell into an awkward file behind her. Sombra fell back slightly to help organize the teams out, although Lancer seemed less-than-receptive and his team straggled behind, while Cataskeuastros' soldiers neatly fell into support positions beside Team 0-0.

They made their way quickly down the slope, and Freya felt that energy all the clearer as they drew closer, a power she and the rest of Team 0-0 recognized all too well: chaos energies. Lancer and his team seemed confused by it, while Cataskeuastros and his soldiers seemed uneasy, but the mare named Peridot was the first to speak up about it, asking: “Is that... are we walking towards chaos entities? Or elementals?”

“Very good, girl. I'm quite impressed.” Freya said mildly, glancing over her shoulder as she smiled slightly: they were an interesting group, she had to admit. Three unicorns, and a strange machine that walked around on two long legs, with a solid, rectangular body topped with a long neck and a featureless, beaked head. “Maybe there's more to you than just horns and bolts.”

Peridot smiled a little: she was a pale gold unicorn, her mane as black as night apart from a few stripes of chestnut in it. Her eyes were hazel, nervous, but not about those energies. Furthermore... “Yes, you're very confident about that. You've had experience with them before, have you?”

“Yes. Unfortunately.” Peridot nodded, giving a small smile as she studied Freya with marked interest. “I was a healer that worked with the Equestrian military. But they started testing new 'weapons,' and... well...”

“They tried to harness elementals, did they? That is a foolish error too many mage-ruled kingdoms make.” Freya shook her head, before she glanced over her shoulder and added loudly: “Lancer, pick your pace up or I'll have one of your companions carry you like a backpack, do you hear me, little boy?”

Lancer scowled, but he hurried forwards from where he had been loitering along at the back – likely unaware of how much that was stretching Moonflower and Sanctum's magic – and as he tightened up formation, his soldiers automatically did as well. Freya smiled slightly at this: maybe they weren't completely hopeless after all. But she had plenty of dog teams in the past, and she had learned that a team of dogs that could only work with themselves was almost as useless as a hound that couldn't work with others.

There wasn't enough time to test them or yell at them, though: they were on the final approach now to the facility, so Freya only turned her eyes forwards and said quietly: “Cataskeuastros, if you don't have the same level of experience as Peridot does, then I recommend you let her take lead here. Lancer, stay back until I see what we're dealing with. La Croix, scout ahead.”

The zebra vanished as Lancer groaned loudly and childishly, rolling his eyes in clear disgust, but he was smart enough to stay quiet otherwise. Peridot, meanwhile, smiled embarrassedly even as her team leader stepped politely aside and nodded to her, murmuring: “Alright. Freya, can I ask you-”

“What you can do is keep your team alive. Stay quiet and follow my instructions.” Freya answered, and Peridot nodded quickly and looked attentively to the mare even as Lancer and his team all mumbled like children. “Good girl.”

Freya turned her eyes back ahead as they slowly approached the outer wall of the crumbling facility: as Freya's eyes scanned quickly over it, she noted how the most damage didn't seem to be to the building's face and the rotting brick, but instead the floor of the crater around this strange set of squat towers: it looked as if the ground had collapsed beneath the structure, and it had somehow miraculously survived sinking into the ruptured earth.

They came to a halt at the edge of the network of cracks and crumbled ditches surrounding the facility, before Freya glanced down as La Croix appeared in front of her, the zebra shifting uneasily before he mumbled: “I dunno, Madame. Somethin' ain't right. Silent as the depths of the great dark waters in there.”

“Was the chaos energy stronger or weaker?” Freya asked, and La Croix frowned slightly before he nodded slowly to her. It wasn't an answer, but all the same, she got what she was looking for. “We're expected.”

“Of course you're expected.” scoffed a synthesized voice, and Freya gritted her teeth as it echoed from every Mission Drive on every pony present. “You idiots-”

“Auriculos! Y'all are makin' too damn much noise, taisse-toi!” La Croix hissed through his teeth, but the Kirin neurocenter only laughed shortly.

“First of all, I don't have to listen to you anymore, Loa, now that-”

“Arrogant idiot.” growled Freya, as she felt the ground beneath her hooves shift and the energy in the air suddenly intensify menacingly. “Defensive positions! The enemy is attacking from below!”

Lancer began to open his mouth, and then he was blasted off his hooves by an explosion of rock and shrapnel and concussive force, flung high into the air with a yell as a wolf made of stone, with glaring, gemstone eyes, tore out of the ground with a roar that shook the air.

“Freeze the ground!” Peridot shouted, and Cataskeuastros and Sanctum both snapped their horns downward, ice spreading violently over the earth beneath their hooves. The ground still cracked as other elementals attempted to emerge, but they were unable to smash their way up out through the chilled earth.

Sombra braced his hooves against the earth, the ground around him turning to black marsh before it transformed into solid crystal, while Freya shouted, even as she leapt out of the way of an earthen wolf that tore out of the ground where she had been a moment before: “Moonflower! Blast a hole in that wall!”

Moonflower nodded quickly, the black unicorn almost throwing himself towards the fortress as he snapped his horn out, sending a black fireball streaking through the air. But then his eyes widened in horror as this was deflected into the ground by an invisible force as a voice whispered around them: “Oh, excuse me, my darlings... but the rats are so hungry, I can't stop them from feeding...”

“Show yourself!” shouted Freya, the Valkyrie baring her teeth. But whatever this creature was, it was extremely familiar with chaos energies: she could catch quick glimpses of it, but it was twisting itself back and forth through the air with no discernible pattern, using the chaos and elemental magic in the air to shield itself. The rock wolves ripping out of the ground all around them, attacking the ponies ravenously, were only making it all the more difficult for her to lock on to this larger threat amongst these brutal elementals-

A sharp wind blew past her, making Freya curse as it tore through her braids and unraveled several of them before her eyes widened as she felt claws gently tangle themselves into her long mane, a mouth pressing to her ear to whisper: “Now, don't be rude. You should know better than that; you should be encouraging!”

Freya's eyes flicked to the side, and all she saw were cruel teeth and thick, oily lips twisted into a ghoulish, far too-large grin, as the creature's grip tightened in her mane and another hand grasped her throat, before her eyes widened as a third caressed down her back as a fourth tickled under her chin, the monster saying tenderly: “But don't worry, I won't let the rats eat you!

“I'll just let them eat all your friends, instead.”