The D.S.P.I.

by DungeonMiner

Operation First Hymn

They had a new mission.

With the general plan of “kill Valentine once and for all, especially now that he launched a terrorist attack,” the whole Department was focusing its efforts on finding the vampire in question. The whole research team was dedicated to try to discover some way of tracking him, while the teams were spreading out all across the country to try and find any trace of him.

Alpha Team was gathered for a mission to the Macintosh hills. “Why aren’t we heading for the ship?” Sparky asked.

“Chestnut, he’s finally ready to get back into the action,” Silver told them. “That and we’re meeting our replacement medic, too.”

“So we can leave without a heavy, but we need a medic?” Sparky asked.

“Hey, I’m not going to argue with that,” Neon said with a snort. “I need someone to patch me up.”

Silver led the team down to the briefing room, where their medic was waiting.

According to the dossier that passed by his desk, the medic’s name was Cotton Swab, and he was what Spike called a member of the “reserve” promising recruits that Spike left alone unless he failed to meet minimum recruit numbers.

Most reserve recruits manage to escape service, but every now and then, some poor unlucky sod gets pulled into the Department, and Cotton pulled the short end of the stick this time.

It doesn’t help that Spike typically filled the reserve with medic hopefuls.

They stepped inside the briefing room, to meet a white-coated pony. “Um...hi,” he said as he watched the heavily armed ponies entered the room. “You...are all way more armed than I thought you’d be…”

“You get used to it,” Silver said. “Have you gone on any missions?” he asked.

“Uh...not really…” he said. “I mean...I went through some training but—”

“Oh no...he’s a rookie…” Sparky groaned.

“Hey, at least we’re just fighting ponies this time around,” Silver said.

“What do you mean ‘just ponies?’” Cotton asked.

Lemon groaned.

“Somebody brief him,” Silver ordered before Mandible slid up beside the medic.

“Oh, you are going to have so much fun, kid,” the changeling said with a grin.

“Wait...you’re a black changeling?” Cotton asked, a hint of panic in his voice.

“Hey now, that’s racist.”

Silver lead them on, out and around through the complex until they finally came to the landing pad, where the DASH-1 waited for them.

Well, the DASH-1 and a massive hulk of machinery.

“What’s that?” Silk asked.

The team slowly approached the massive hulk of metal, trying to figure out what exactly it was before Chestnut walked up to them, answering them as he carried one of his metal, detachable legs on his shoulder.

“That is the Auto-hydraulic Jack Exosuit VI.” he answered, walking up to them, and getting their undivided attention. “And it’s what I’m going to use to become a living tank.”

“I’ve got to admit that sounds really cool,” Neon admitted.

Chestnut stepped up to the large machine, before he inserted his arm into a recess on the machine’s side. A piece of it came to life, and it began to move as if it were Chestnut’s own arm. He quickly moved over to the main body of the exosuit, inserting his legs into each arm until his torso was by itself, and then locked into place by his massive arms.

Neon gave a low whistle as Chestnut now towered over them in a massive robot suit. “That’s...pretty cool.”

“Oh, this is just the start,” the heavy replied without a smile, before he raised one of his arms. The massive fist that sat at its end rotated, revealing Chestnut’s new firearm.

While what he first used were called autocannons, this monstrosity lived up to the name. Three literal naval cannons, welded onto a rotating cylinder with a belt filled with cartridges powder and balls feeding the chamber.

“It’s a little slower,” Chestnut said. “But it’s going to do what I need it to.”

Silver frowned, slightly. Chestnut must be taking it hard. This didn’t seem like him at all.

“Are you ready, Alpha team?” Manticore said as she walked down towards the airship.

Silver nodded. “Yes, ma’am. We have our new medic, and our heavy is back and heavier than ever.”

The vampire nodded, before she looked the exosuit-clad pony up and down. “I’ll say he is. Good to know that the suit works after all this time.”

Chestnut nodded. “Just point me in the right direction, boss.”

She smiled. “I believe that was the idea. Now enough wasting time! Get in there so we can do our job!”

“Ma’am! Yes, ma’am!” Alpha team yelled, before they marched toward the DASH-1.

This was almost immediately followed by Cotton Swab yelling at the top of his lungs. “She’s a what?!”

===ᐁ===

The trip was short, as expected of the DASH-1, yet despite that, the trip seemed to drag on. This was mostly because everyone had to spend the whole trip convincing Cotton Swab that Manticore was not going to eat him.

It took far more time to convince him of that than Silver cared for, but there wasn’t much that could be done about it.

Chestnut had stayed silent, though. Crouched and hugging his knees in order to fit in the cargo bay, the heavy weapons pony sat away from the others, simply waiting on the door to open.

Silver wasn’t sure what to do about the poor stallion. Should he take him aside? Should he sit and talk? Would the big guy even listen?

Poor guy was a mess.

“ETA is thirty seconds!” Tinker said over the comms.

“Alright, everyone!” Silver said. “Get off your flanks, and get ready to land. We have a facility to clear!”

The entire team got to their hooves, and Cotton Swab double checked his harness. Manticore, meanwhile, slid on a pair of sunglasses, which is to be expected for a vampire during the afternoon.

The job was simple. Infiltrate the Covenant facility, take out the cultists, keep a couple for interrogation, and locate any and all documentation that may lead to discovering Valentine’s location. While Silver was initially skeptical of the presence of any kinds of records for them to check, Spike was quick to remind him that keeping up appearances took too much paper and effort to easily hide.

So they found their target, a large warehouse out in the middle of nowhere with a number of offices that could easily hide some kind of paperwork.

The massive airship pulled into a hover, floating above the concrete fortress, and the cargo door opened wide. Rappelling ropes began to drop down, and Alpha team began to make their way to the door. The pegasi leapt into the air, and Silk quickly looked for a vantage point to begin her overwatch.

Silver and Chestnut were the last two off.

The assault looked up at the pony now encased in steel, brass, and clockwork, before he spoke. “Are you alright, Chestnut?”

The Earth pony looked over at him with furious, but sad eyes. “I will be soon enough.”

He said no more, and leapt down to the earth.

Chestnut hit the ground with a thud, and his fist twisted over to reveal his cannons. The first cultist that turned the corner to investigate immediately lost his head to a cannonball that ripped through him with the sound of thunder. “Valentine!” Chestnut roared. “If you’re here, we need to talk!”

Silver landed soon after, joining the rest of the team and Manticore in a corner of the complex. “It looks like Heavy’s giving us a distraction, the rest of you with me.”

Chestnut heard them in his ear, but ignored it. His focus was elsewhere.

A musket ball ricocheted off his side, and Chestnut raised his cannon toward the source of the shot before the artillery blast discouraged any further attacks.

The cultists were running.

At first they had come his way, but after the second shot had torn a hole through a wall, they were quickly beginning to reconsider. The line of red-clad ponies broke, and they rushed for cover, heading to ground before the massive machine.

Chestnut simply walked forward, the bipedal machine stomping down the concrete street like a titan of ancient lore. He stomped forward, neither turning nor slowing as he marched, only occasionally firing a shot at whatever idiots were too brave or too stupid to fire on the massive exosuit.

He stomped until he finally came to large, two story building, but didn’t even slow as he raised his left hand. A set of thrusters roared to life, and a series of powerful hydraulics hissed before a massive, teeth-shaking punch tore through the wall.

Ponies scattered like roaches before the brass and steel giant as he walked through the space where a wall once was. “Valentine!” Chestnut roared again, as he reached out for the nearest, and slowest cultist. He grabbed him like a ragdoll, and held him in front of his face. “Where is he?”

The cultist answered with a machete that hit armor uselessly.

Chestnut tossed him aside, throwing him into the wall. “Where is he!”

Another cannon shot caused the cultist to scatter again, leaving only another wall in Chestnut’s path.

He dealt with it the same way he did the first. Another jet-powered punch tore through the wall, and Chestnut kept marching toward the center of the compound.”

Silk watched it all through her enhanced eyes and whistled. “So...uh...the Heavy’s now a one-pony siege weapon…”

“Ix-nay on the Evy-hay,” Silver ordered.

Chestnut roared again, before he stomped on a cultist, popping the pony like a balloon before another cannon shot tore a cultist in two. “Give me Valentine!” he roared to the sky. “Give him to me! We have a score to settle!”

He picked up another cultist and tore him in two. “Give me the vampire!”

And as the Heavy tore through the ponies and building in front of him, the rest of the team was on the move.

===ᐁ===

The cultists were scattered, and this left them vulnerable. Every time Alpha team turned the corner, they met a terrified Covenant pony, and they quickly moved to subdue them. Sometimes, this was successful. Other times it was partially successful, after the liberal application of a crossbow bolt to the back of the head.

They kept moving around the compound, hugging the outer wall as Chestnut raged not far away. Every now and then, an explosion would shake through the concrete, and debris would fly through air and land nearby.

“You know,” Mandible said, as he heard another scream, “I really didn’t pick Chestnut out as the guy who would go on a total rampage.”

“You mean he’s not always like this?” Cotton Swab asked.

“No, he’s normally pretty easy going. Nice guy. Total teddy bear,” Mandible explained. “I mean, he did beat three other Department ponies to death with their own legs but…”

“He did not…” Lemon said with a sigh.

“Are you just out to ruin my fun?” the changeling asked.

“I’m trying to keep the rookie from having a nervous breakdown,” she grunted.

“Uh...can...can I be called something other than ‘Rookie?’ It keeps giving me flashbacks to my time in nursing school…”

Both Lemon and Mandible glanced at him.

“Can I motion to call him Rookie forever?” Mandible asked.

“Seconded,” Lemon replied, before turning back to look ahead of the team.

“Sounds good to me,” Manticore said from the front of the group.

“Wait...no…” Cotton began, before being completely ignored.

Before he could complain further, Silk’s voice came in over the coms. “Manticore, come in Manticore.”

“I read you, Sniper,” she replied.

“I have a noticeable heat signature in the central building,” Silk said.

“The one that Heavy tore a hole through?”

“Yes, ma’am.”

“What kind of signature?” Silver asked.

“Something big, very big,” Silk answered. “Like, big enough that I’m worried.”

The vampire and the Assault shared a look. “Alright, we’ll check it out real quick,” Manticore growled, “keep your eyes open for any cultists dumping documents. They’re the priority.”

“Roger,” she replied.

“Alright, you heard her, into the warpath,” Manticore ordered.

They began to move, rushing towards Chestnut’s path of destruction, before Cotton Swab spoke up. “So...if she’s a vampire, then how is she walking in sunlight?”

Mandible groaned. “How...how are you this hopeless?”

===ᐁ===

They moved into the building, covering each other like Spike had taught them, moving through the rubble and holes that Chestnut had left. The wreckage was everywhere, along with a few corpses and other messes left by the rampaging pony.

Of course, the more “intriguing” sight was the massive, steel ball that sat in the middle of the main room of the building. It stood twice as tall as a pony, and was just as wide, and covered in yellow warning symbols. The second they saw it, both Manticore and Lemon swore.

“What? What is it?” Silver asked.

“A bomb,” Lemon said. “A very big and active one if it’s giving off enough heat for Sniper to pick it up.”

“It’s armed?” Neon asked.

“That's what I just said,” Lemon answered, approaching the massive explosive.

The team shifted nervously.

Sparky backed away.

“Alright, Manticore, how’s your disarming skills?”

“Leave that to me, Darling,” Diamond Dream replied as the vampire’s stance shifted as someone else took the reins. “I can deal with this.”

“Socialite and explosives expert,” Silver muttered. “Who knew?”

Lemon opened a panel, and her eyes went wide. “Oh boy…”

“What is it, dear?” Diamond asked.

“Well, this has enough napalm to burn this whole place to the ground, and enough propellant to get it there.”

“So if that thing goes off, we all burn to death?”

Lemon nodded. “I mean, it’ll look cool, but it's not going to be good.”

“Can you disarm it?” Silver asked.

“Provided I’m not getting shot at,” she said.

Silver nodded. “Alright, everyone, you heard Demo. Secure the area, and give Demo all the space she needs so we don't die in a fire.”

“Yes, sir!” They answered.

Silver then spoke into his com. “Sniper, move up and cover us, we’re a little out in the open here, and we could use some good eyes.”

“Roger, what about Heavy?”

Silver didn't answer right away. “He’s...he’s keeping the others off us, just leave him alone.”

There was a beat. “That's not healthy…” she said.

“Look, we’ll talk about it later, okay, this is him dealing with it.”

“Oh, you better believe we’ll talk about it later, sir. Moving forward.”

Silver sighed. “Roger that.” He took a second to gather himself, before turning back to the team. “Support, ready smoke grenades, those are going to be our only cover in the holes. Medic, set up next to support, keep your eyes and ears open for anypony that needs your attention. Agent, you’re with me on the South side. Scout, your with...Scout?”

And Sparky was nowhere to be seen.

===ᐁ===

The missing pegasus slipped through the buildings, moving as fast as his enchanted horseshoes could carry him. His internal camouflage changed as he moved, blending him into the concrete grey surroundings of the compound, and keeping him out of sight of any cultist that might not know about the deal he struck.

He moved toward the most Southeast point, as he was directed, and kept his eyes open for the marked building he was told he would find.

“Scout! Scout where are you?” Silver yelled over the com.

“I think I’ve found the building with the documents,” Sparky answered. “I’m moving to complete the mission objective.”

“That does not give you permission to leave us to die!” Silver growled.

“Re...t...break...up…” the Scout said, trying to sound as if his coms were cutting in and out.

“Get back here, Scout, that’s an order!”

Sparky didn’t answer, he was “being blocked” now, he had to be in order for this to work.

“Scout! Scout! Scout respond!” Silver barked, before the sound of a musket going off in the background took his attention away from the AWOL soldier.

That would be good enough.

He ran down the street, hooves pounding against the concrete, before he found it. A simple, out of the way building that was indistinguishable from the other with the exception of a strange, cross-like mark over the door.

Rushing inside, Sparky quickly ran up the stairs. The room at the top of the stairs was as the vampire he met with described, with a few computer processors and a desk, along with the terminal he was told would be there. The black screen with green text sat there, next to a set of falsified documents that would lead the Commander right where Valentine wanted him.

It was exactly what Sparky was looking for.

He set his pneumatic crossbow down, and pried the rubber shock absorber off the stock to reveal a slot bored into the resin parts of his weapon. His feathers carefully reached into the slot, and he slowly pulled out a thin, wide disk.

He slid it into the waiting port and quickly began to type in the open chatroom.

Guest: I’m here

WouldYouBe: I see. Do you have the disk?

Guest: Right here with all the information you need to get into the complex.

WouldYouBe: Perfect. If you can simply send that my way, then I will guarantee your safety during the coming events, immortality, and all the women you could care for.

Guest: Right on it.

File sent.

Guest: Don’t you still need to be invited in?

WouldYouBe: Don’t you worry about that, I have plans. Now, one final thing before you go.

WouldYouBe: Destroy this terminal.

Sparky obeyed, smashing the small computer to bits before grabbing the documents.

“Assault! Come in Assault! I’ve located the documents!”

“Scout! Where have you been? We’re under fire and we need all the hooves we can get!”

“There was a signal jammer, I took it out while securing the documents! We have what we need.”

“Just get back here!”

Sparky smiled. “Sir. Yes, sir.”

===ᐁ===

The firefight was in full swing. The cultists were armed with muskets and flintlock pistols, and their firing was quickly filling the area with smoke so thick that either side was having trouble seeing the other.

Alpha team had the superior weaponry. Their pneumatic crossbows allowed them to fire multiple rounds without having to reload, and their silent fire meant that the enemy was not necessarily expecting a silver-tipped bolt to slam into them face-first.

Of course, the cultists had numbers. Their need to reload was mitigated by the fact that there was no way Alpha Team could get rid of them in time.

Luckily, Silk had a perfect view of their backsides. She had to fire, move, and fire again, continuing to hide with her internal camouflage so she couldn’t be seen by the small team of cultists that were trying to hunt her down.

Another thermal shot from the end of her longrifle vaporized a cultist’s brain, and she quickly took off for a new position. “Sniper, any sign of our runaway?” Silver asked over the sounds of the firefight.

“Negative,” she answered. “I’m not seeing him.”

“Great...I’m going to strangle that pony when I get my hooves on him.”

“Speaking of, wouldn’t it be nice if you did your job and got Heavy back here?” she asked as she landed on her next perch and lined up a shot.

“He’s...he’s broken up about it,” Silver said.

“And we’re going to be just plain broken if you don’t grow a pair and order him back here. You’re not in a good place, Assault, and you need your heavy weapons pony now more than ever. I get that he’s hurt, but you need to do your job and get him to do his job before we’re filled full of holes.”

Silver sighed. “Fine...fine,” he grunted, before he switched channels to Chestnut’s. “Heavy. Heavy we need you on our position ASAP.”

“I’ll get there,” came the half-hearted reply.

“No, Heavy, when need you here now. We’re pinned and there’s a bomb that could take out this whole place, and everypony in it. We need you here.”

There was no answer.

“Heavy, pl—”

“Grenade!” Neon yelled, before pouncing on Silver and dragging him to cover.

An explosion rocked the two unicorns, and Silver was very glad his mouth was open when the pressure wave washed over him, filled with shrapnel though it was.

He leapt back up, firing a bolt into the cultist line. “Lemon! When’s that bomb clear?”

“You try to disarm a massive ball of napalm in the middle of a firefight!” she answered.

“Well hurry up, and you won’t have to worry about it!”

“Boss, don’t tempt me, I like fire and I will gladly set this thing off just to watch the flames.”

“Good to know, as you were.”

Silver fired again, trying to keep the cultists at bay. This wasn’t looking good for them. It wasn’t bad yet, but it was not good.

A musket ball tore through Mandible shoulder, and he screamed as he went down screaming, before being immediately covered by the medic who was also screaming as he panicked.

And there went their Northern front.

Which would have been covered by the Scout if he was still here. Wonder who’s fault that would be?

“Support, to the North!”

“What about you?”

“Just go!” Silver yelled.

Yeah, this was just getting better by the second. “How many am I facing, Sniper?”

“Too many,” she answered, before a thermal shot tore through another cultist. “Too many minus one, now.”

“Thanks for that,” he said, raising his pneumatic crossbow again.

And then the massive steel and brass figure of Chestnut landed in front of him, his cannons were firing and spinning so fast the metal was turning red, and his rocket-powered fist slammed into anything that was too close to him.

“Oh, thank Celestia,” he muttered, before turning back to the North. “Our back’s covered, put those cultists down!”

A blur shot past, and more cultists dropped, crossbow bolts stuck in their backs. “Hey, Boss…” Sparky said with a smile. “Missed me?”

“You better hope I do!” Silver answered, before aiming in his general direction, and nailing the cultist that was sneaking up behind him.

Sparky blinked at the sight, but said nothing as the pony beside him died.

This would not be the last time.

Comments

[bluebelle]

Nice to see Manticore again!!!

[djthomp]

Poor Chestnut, but at least now he's a living tank.

Sparky you damn traitor.