Chapter 4: Deployment
"*<Commander Tempest.>*" A garbled series of grunts addressed over the direct communication station in Tempest's quarters.
The loud static-traced voice sprung Tempest awake from her sleep. While initially groggy from just waking up, she was quick to get up on her hooves. Judging by the lack of Ponish being spoken, the voice most likely came from the ship's helmsman. Approaching the rather crude magically imbued console, Tempest used her forehoof to press down on the button which would relay her voice back.
"Report." She bluntly requested.
"*<Fireteam Storm is topside, awaiting further instruction.>*" The Storm Beast replied.
Tempest instinctively glanced at the nearby clock and to her surprise, the time was 4:30 am, a whole half hour earlier than when she had expected them to be ready. While Tempest could admire the clear initiative of their actions, it hardly did anything to impress her.
"Understood, instruct them to wait for my arrival. I shall be up shortly." Tempest relayed.
"*<Yes, Commander.>*"
With that exchange concluded, Tempest proceeded to ready herself for the day she had long anticipated, the day that would mark the beginning of regaining what was lost. Heading over to the drab wardrobe on the far side of the room, she began by opening it's doors to reveal her armor set resting on the pony styled-rests within. It only took a few minutes for Tempest to adorn her armor, a process that she had learned by heart without the aid of magic. Concluding the process by slipping into her armored hoof boots, Tempest looked upon herself in the mirror attached to the wardrobe's swinging doors, a pony weathered and made strong by time and hardship staring back at her.
"Today's the day. Nothing is going to stop me."
And with that she set off towards the top deck of the ship, very fiber of her will did everything to deter any doubts or worries, for if this mission was to be a success, she would need confidence, a clear head, and the will to what nopony in Equestria could fathom.
Carter paced back and forth across the deck of the command ship, the thump of his boots on wood keeping his thoughts in sync. He, like his subordinates, was fully garbed in combat equipment with a HK416 dangling from his right hand. His fellow squadmates, gathered around the Little Bird, either watched or engaged in their own habits to kill time as they awaited further directive from their Commanding Officer, who had yet to arrive.
"Yo, hermano, ease up already?" Sanchez said to Carter.
"I'm fine, just a nervous habit." Carter stated. "A lot on my mind."
"Same here, but you don't see me getting all worked up over nothing. We'll do fine, like we always do."
"Unless we don't and things all go to shit." Jackson piped up, flicking the last remnants of his cigarette off the side of the ship.
"You're not helping, asshat." Sanchez muttered.
"Just sayin'." Jackson said.
"I dunno guys, I'm thinking this one seems real dodgy." Green admitted. "Like I can't shake the feeling we'l-"
"Green, shut up! Everything's gonna be fine!" Sanchez reiterated more aggressively. "Cap! Stop pacing like ya gotta piss. Jackson, fuck off with all the negativity. Green, just.......just stop thinking."
"Now look who's nervous?" Carter jested.
" I'm not." Sanchez said defiantly. "But you guys are all nervous over nothing! This mission's practically a fucking cakewalk! Especially with the back up we'll be getting come sunrise! We've done plenty of demo ops in the past, with dodgier security, and bigger margins for error. With Jackson's finesse and my explosives, catching those prissy princesses will be easy. Como un paseo por el parque."
"You so certain about that, amigo?" Jackson asked in an unamused tone. "Ain't exactly like track and capture was a regular op with our targets. Usually just offed the poor fucker when we found em'."
"Normally yes. But! I had some spare time to touch up on this puppy before bed last night."
Sanchez proceeded to sling around one of his many homemade devices to showcase to his peers. The device in question was a heavily modified net gun.
"Ta-dah! *Sparkle* *Sparkle*" Sanchez exclaimed.
"Seriously, the net-gun thing?" Green questioned.
"You have gotta be shittin' me." Jackson mouthed.
"Fuck you guys! Yeah, the net-gun thing." Sanchez affirmed. "Been working on the baby non-stop since the last time I used it. Improved hydraulic launchers, magnetized weights, taser-grid netting, magic-dampening fibers. Combined with a skilled group of individuals such as ourselves, I can guarantee that those princesses won't stand a chance. So stop your bitching, because when Storm rains down on their world, the reaction's bound to be.......shocking."
Carter gave him a rather unamused look, one that conveyed that he really wasn't in the mood for any jokes or really bad puns at the moment. But even Carter had a hard time dismissing Sanchez's claims, their track record was practically spotless, nearly one for one on every op the Storm King had sent them on. Yet so many of his thoughts dwelled heavily on the mission ahead, and the reward that came with it should it go off without a hitch. This scenario wasn't the run of the mill mission, it involved inconspicuous entry into the capital of a nation, the night before a major celebration. Security was bound to be at a high. But then again, Tempest herself stated that her kind weren't ones to be feared, strongly attesting to their weakness almost immediately.
While he could have spent several minutes dwelling on this particular subject, any of those thoughts were immediately stamped out upon seeing Tempest Shadow emerge from the lower hull and onto the main deck. Carter's team was quick to notice as well, and began to gather for any last details.
"Gentlemen, good to see you up an early." Tempest addressed them. "That must mean you're as eager as I am to get started. Or perhaps nervous, not getting cold feet are we?"
Carter's team turned their CO, an amused smirk stricken across their faces that no doubt stemming from the boldness of the Commander's claims. Carter immediately took a readied posture, undoubtedly out of defiance.
"No, ma'am." Carter replied bluntly.
Tempest gave him a neutral nod in acknowledgement and proceeded with one last debrief of their objectives.
"Then your mission is as follows, and given how dawn approaches in just a few hours, I suggest you work fast."
Tempest quickly covered their objectives, which Storm studied to a tee last night, a necessity to keep up the level of professionalism they were renowned for. Simple infiltration, avoid security en route to Points Alpha and Bravo, which served as the main entry and exit points for the festival. Green and Jackson would take Alpha, located atop a rooftop botanical garden that gave them a bird's eye view of the main plaza center. Carter and Sanchez would take Bravo, a bell tower overlooking the main bridge that more or less served as the main way out. From there they would set up demo charges along the two passages that led into the plaza. After that they'd simply have to wait for the main assault to start. Once that commenced, they would detonate charges and block the escape routes, trapping most of the ponies, preferably the princesses, like rats in a maze. Once she concluded, Tempest gave the four one last directive.
"Remember, if I should happen to fail in apprehending any one of the princesses, I'll fire a signal, you'll know it when you see it. If it comes to that, work quickly. And bring her back to me. Alive."
"Understood." Carter replied.
"Good. Then I won't keep you. Good luck gentlemen, if all goes according to plan, this should be the easiest mission of your careers."
They each gave her a slight nod in acknowledgement before proceeding to their strange vehicle. As they walked away, Tempest couldn't shake the feeling that they may be conspiring on some level. None of their behavior seemed to indicate any sort of foul play but the chance they could keep such things hidden was undeniably likely. What exactly this collusion entailed remained a mystery to her, but as far as she was concerned it could very well conflict with her own interests.
Once all four had boarded the strange vehicle, the "Little Bird" as Sanchez had called it, the man in question flipped several switches. The hunk of metal roared to life as the blades atop its chassis began to rotate, gradually increasing in speed with each second passed. The noise was loud, but not deafening as Tempest would have theorized. Within less than a minute, the strange craft lifted from the deck of the Bolt at a remarkable speed, and in no time at all began speeding towards its objective. Tempest once again found herself awestruck by the advanced nature of these creatures, more so by the fact that none of it was magic-based.
"Where did the Storm King find these guys?" Tempest asked herself. "And what could they possibly want from him? They seem set for life with that kind of technology."
Alas, Tempest didn't dwell on the subject for too long, as she needed to tend to more pressing matters leading up to the assault. Today would cement the end of her journey, and failure was not on the table.
The night in Canterlot was relatively quiet for the most part, at least in the region Helm Chaser was assigned to guard for the night. Elsewhere was a little hectic with pre-festival excitement or dealing with the incoming visitor traffic. But that was a solid 20 or so blocks away, far from the serene silence of the botanical gardens. It was a godsend compared to his duties earlier today when he was stationed at the city gates. A whole day of directing countless ponies to nearly a dozen different places in the city, checking everypony's credentials, and settling a few minor disputes from weary and ornery travelers would tax anypony's patience. Top it off with the summer heat and it was downright exhausting.
Then of course was the pitiful excuse of a reprieve he was given. Time was cut down to make guard activity a constant throughout Canterlot. 6 hours to rest wasn't nearly enough to recuperate if Helm was concerned. But he lucked out on this posting, given how he was all alone and the next patrol shift wasn't scheduled till dawn, meaning catch a few Z's without his superiors noticing, and nopony would be the wiser.
Helm leaned against a wall, propping himself up on his spear, a tried and tested technique of the guard to catch some sleep while on duty. His eyes closed, and while not the most comfortable, it was adequate for the circumstances. A minute or two passed, Helm was just on the verge of drifting into slumber when a slight rustle jostled him into conciseness. Fearing it was another patrol, Helm jumped to attention and stepped away from the wall.
"He-hello? Who's there?" he called out.
His query went unanswered, and a quick survey of his surroundings revealed that he was still by himself. He let out a sigh and a slight laugh at how silly that must have looked.
"Just the wind, Helm. Just the wind." He assured himself.
He had more or less said that to calm himself more than anything else. He was ready to turn around back to the wall to resume his rest, when an unexpected and bone-chilling reply nearly made his heart stop.
"Not quite." a gruff voice replied.
It came from behind, but before Helm could turn to meet the gaze of the individual, a pair of long arms overcame him, one pinning his forelegs while the other clenching down on his muzzle, stifling his speech. Helm immediately went into panic mode, as he struggled to escape his attacker's grasp, his muffled cries going unheard as his attacker was clearly stronger than him. Suddenly, he felt some sort of fabric run across his muzzle, followed by a whiff of something rather potent. Helm soon found he could no longer attempt to struggle, and It wasn't long before everything went to black.
When the guardpony had stopped struggling is when Jackson finally released his grip, as he carefully settled the unconscious equine on the ground to prevent the armor from making any loud noise.
"Night-night, asshole." Jackson mouthed rather coldly.
Jackson began to pull out the rappel rope and harness he would need to set up the explosives. Green soon entered the garden from the adjacent rooftop of the neighboring building. They had made it here undetected with little trouble, evading the patrols with ease and sticking to less crowded areas of the city. Apparently an infiltrator loyal to the Storm King had supplied Tempest with detailed patrol routes, and the botanical gardens happened to be one of the least busy.
This one guard being the only take down of the night, and given how his replacements weren't coming till dawn, it gave them plenty of time to prepare. Now came the time to plant the ordinance, a field Jackson would oversee. In the meantime, the sniper would see that his squad mate would do something about the pony.
"Green, stow him somewhere safe and out of sight while I plant the charges." Jackson ordered.
"I'm on it." Green acknowledged. "There's a janitor's closet in the building we just came from."
"No. Somewhere more practical." Jackson clarified.
"More Practical? How is a janitor's closet not practical?" Green asked confused.
"God dammit, Green! We gotta hide him somewhere within his patrol route, make it look like the bastard snuck off to catch a few winks! It's why we didn't straight up kill him, remember?"
"That's gonna be difficult, Jackson. Ain't a lot here to.......oh wait."
As Green effortlessly lifted the guardspony from the floor and headed towards a nearby storage shed. When he went for the small handle he found it was locked.
"Aw man, where's Sanchez when you need him?" Green griped.
Jackson lifted a head over his shoulder after he was done planting the first explosive.
"What the hell's the hold-up?" Jackson seethed.
"I'm working on it." Green chided back.
Green, frustrated by the situation, looked for other avenues. He was ready to straight up bust the door down when the comms in his helmet went off. It was Sanchez.
"*Green, I think I see some lockers through to room to your right. You may be able to fit him in there.*"
Green turned to his right to see the door leading to the building that housed the garden. Unlike the shed, this door wasn't locked when he went to check it, and neither were the lockers inside. Green wasted no time in stuffing the knocked out guard in the locker shuffling the various items inside to make room for him. Once he was secured, Green finished by closing the door quietly to avoid any noise.
"Thanks Sanchez." Green said over the radio.
"*No problem amigo. Jackson, you got the charges set yet?*"
Back in the garden Jackson had just begun planting charges.
"Just started. You?" Jackson replied.
"*Aye-aye-aye, you're getting slow, Jackson.*" Sanchez teased. "*I'm already done, bro.*"
"No shit you're done, your tasked with collapsing a small bridge." Jackson noted. "That's fuckin easy, a two-year old could do it. Bringing down a building is a whole other ball-game, you should know that."
"*Cut the chatter.*" Carter barked. "*It ain't a competition.*"
Carter was currently in the bell tower overlooking the whole plaza. The mission had gone swimmingly up until this point, and while the other members of his fireteam had a severe case of what he could best describe as "assumed success", Carter willing to sacrifice unit integrity for it. He had put up with this little feud between Jackson and Sanchez for long enough. He turned to face Sanchez, who was directly beside him, and looked him straight in the eye.
"I get it, this may be our last mission but we ain't done yet, hell we're just gettin' started." Carter clarified. "So all of you get your shit together! Anything could happen and we need to be ready for it. So stop acting like you're in fucking boot camp and reel it in! Jackson, when you're done, you and Green get into overwatch positions."
"*Understood, sir.*" Jackson replied.
"Sorry, Cap." Sanchez apologized.
"See to it doesn't happen again."
With that problem nipped in the bud, Carter relayed his attention to the area around him. Despite his worries, the end was in sight. This plaza would be the final act for them, the scene of Fireteam Storm's pivotal moment, the deciding factor that determined each of their futures. The charges were set, the team was in position, and the fleet, along with the Commander, was on its way. The pieces of the board were stacked and ready to crash down on their foes. All that remained was to wait for the time to strike, a process that, naturally, felt longer than it really was.
A minute passed and Jackson relayed that he had completed setting up the charges at each of the building's integral structural points. He and Green took their positions, and the "waiting game" ensued. Several minutes passed before a conversation naturally erupted, this time around, Carter welcomed it as it eased his nerves.
"You know that big stage reminds me of the bandshell back home." Sanchez noted.
Carter looked out to what he was referencing. The stage in question was instantly noticeable, it's silhouette outline being the most easily distinguishable among the structures littered across the platform.
"*What the hell's a bandshell?*" Jackson asked over the comms.
"It's a stage in central park. When I was a kid, orchestras and bands used to play there all the time. Well I suppose they still do but uh, well y'know."
"What you some patron of the arts?" Carter asked.
"No, but my mom was. Always used to drag me and my siblings to go watch." Sanchez explained. "This little festival they're planning just kind of reminded me of those times."
"*Heh, I hear you on that one, Sanchez.*" Green said. "*I was kind of thinking the same thing, but it reminded me of the Six Flags that I went to.*"
"*Hmm. No shit, which one did you go to?*" Jackson asked.
"*St.Louis.*" Green revealed.
"*Ah, west of the border. I went to the one in Louisville from time to time.*"
"*Man, just thinking about it makes me crave some funnel cake right now.*"
"*Shit, amen to that brother.*" Jackson chuckled.
"It's so weird to hear something positive out of your mouth, Jackson." Carter noted.
"*Hey, I might be a cold motherfucker, but like any man, I enjoy good fair food.*"
"We wanna talk about good fair food, nothing beats the churro, bro. Especially like them jumbo sized ones they got." Sanchez added. "Man I could down five of those any day of the week."
"I'm quite fond of the elephant ear myself." Carter shared.
"*Oh wow, way to be original, Cap.*" Jackson mocked.
"The fuck's that supposed to mean?" Carter questioned.
"Elephant ear's just a funnel cake but all dough, dude." Sanchez teased.
"Man, fuck you guys." Carter smirked.
The team shared a laugh, partly from the conversation and partly from the fact that a bunch special forces soldiers were talking about fair food on the vital mission of their career. But it was one of the few reprieves offered in their line of work, one that was always welcome when the situation permitted.
"*Guys we should go to a fair or something when this is all over.*" Green suggested.
"Sure, you buying Green?" Carter asked mockingly.
"*You know what, I just might.*"
"Yeah, well, maybe when this is all done, we'll get the chance to do just that. But first we gotta see this op through." Carter announced. "Stay vigilant, Gentlemen. It's gonna be a long night."
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1:00AM. 12:17AM where I'm at which is Southern California so I'm gonna assume...you live in Colorado?
Anyways, it was a pretty good chapter. Me thinks it's either gonna go horribly wrong and the team is captured in which they're forced to fight the Storm King, or the mission is successful but along the way in the story, the Storm King betrays them and they end up helping the Mane Six but I believe it's best to leave that towards the end.
It's alive!
9510233
Bro not even close. Try further East.
9510385
awesome!
9510385
Further east? But aren’t you like 1 hour ahead of me? Of course, I’m basing this out of the time you posted the chapter.
9510860
Central time zone covers a big area dude.
9510860
It was 1:00am ct not mountain time
9510873
Ah I assumed you live in Mountain Time.
Ok um, Wisconsin
9510906
Further South, but you got the right idea, it's on the very edge of the time zone.
9510909
Illinois
9510925
Close. Its one of the states touching it.
9510947
Missouri
9510964
No
9510964
Try again
9510967
Michigan
9511039
Your going north, bring it back down south
9511046
Kentucky
9511049
DING! DING! DING! YOU GUESSED THE MAGIC STATE!!!
9511052
How’s Kentucky?
9511144
Poor and rural, at least in the area I'm in. But people are pretty friendly around here.
9511164
anything really interesting there? it's one of my bucket list's the travel to every single state at least once.
9511261
There's a few notable locations i can think of. the bourbon trail, natural bridge, keenland, cumberland falls, waverly sanitorium, land between the lakes, daniel boone natural forest, mammoth cave, patton museum, slugger museum, perryville battlefield, & kentucky kingdom are among the ones i'd reccommend.
Awesome chapter dude! Looking forward to the next update to both your stories! Xd
Where the heck were you? You havent posted a chapter for almost a year!
9513473
HEY! YOU TRY CRAWLING YOUR WAY OUT OF A SIBERIAN GULAG WITH NOTHING BUT A TOOTHPICK AND SHEER LUCK AND SEE HOW LONG IT TAKES YOU TO UPDATE YOUR OTHER STORY!
In all honesty though, I apologize, it was a little well overdue, between giving my other story a little more priority and work and school I kind of swept this under the rug for a bit.
9513604
I understand, dude, we all have crap that keeps us from writing from time to time.