The Freelancers

by OverHeart

Chapter 28 - The Plan

The crew sifted through the piles of smashed furniture and electronics as Matterhorn stood rooted in his spot in the center of the room. He watched them work, eerily quiet and indifferent to their very apparent distress.

“I really wish he wouldn’t stare at us like that.” Sheet Rock said as she picked through what was left of Scarlet’s desk.

“Better than shooting at us.”

“Agents aren’t permitted to be armed.” Matterhorn informed. “Being a Mage though, I don’t need it.”

“Still couldn’t stop a bullet though.” Access mocked. “What good is a barrier that can’t stop a rifle round.”

“I stopped yours, didn’t I? Your Synthetic friend over there deserves all the credit for actually challenging me.” Matterhorn chuckled mischievously. “Banter aside, you need to hurry up.”

There wasn’t much left in the wreckage, but they managed to salvage at least some of the equipment that wasn’t destroyed in the raid or in their subsequent scuffle. Matterhorn remained strangely silent as he watched the crew heave a few packed boxes through the tunnels and out of the hatch and into the streets above.

The van wasn’t far and was still in the alleyway they had left it in, out of sight and hidden in the narrow opening. Matterhorn looked at it, a little unimpressed.

“Is that what passes for a base for you ponies?”

“Wait until you see the inside.” Access said, grinning a little. “It’s a lot more impressive on the inside.”

Sheet Rock jumped into the driver’s side seat and pulled the Van out of the alleyway so they could load it up with their salvaged equipment. When Access opened the side door, Matterhorn inspected the interior, noting the lack of seating for himself but nodded in approval when he noticed the selection of equipment on the racks.

“I must say, I’m a little surprised.” he admitted. “I can see why the reports regarded you four as potential assets.”

“I mean, if your superiors consider the amount of firepower you have to be a measure of your worth, you could easily say the same for any of the crews around here.” Sheet Rock said as she stuck her head out the side window.

“Those crews didn’t screw with two very powerful corps, steal classified secrets, and live for longer than a day after the fact.” Matterhorn stated with a small chuckle.

Soon after, the crew had finished loading the salvaged gear and themselves into the van, though there were no free seats, so Matterhorn was left to haphazardly wedge himself against the shelving and hope he wasn’t buried in the process.

“I should probably go into more details about where specifically we are going.” Matterhorn remarked. “We’re to show up at a small unoccupied firearms warehouse on the far end of the district, otherwise known as the Lower Wards.”

“Got a specific address?” Sheet Rock remarked. “The wards are a big place to just be driving around in when everything looks exactly the same.”

“Of course.” Matterhorn nodded and produced a datachip from a slot on his helmet, which he quickly passed to her. “I trust you have the requisite reader?”

“How convenient.” Sheet Rock remarked.

---

A chocolate brown maned mare walked onto a landing pad, hidden deep within the mountain Canterlot had long since covered in buildings, expansions, and urban sprawl. Many of the pads were empty apart from one. An old cargo VTOL devoid of identifying markings sat upon the only occupied pad, inside of which was a lone stallion in the aircraft’s cargo area.

“Handler Lucky?” the stallion said sharply, turning to face her.

“Yes?” she responded, slightly startled. “You my pilot?”

“We’re ready to go, please take your seat aboard the aircraft.” he advised. “Matterhorn has indicated that there may be trouble on the ground.”

“Of course there will be, the hotheaded idiot insists on making my job difficult.” Lucky groaned.

“As an aside miss, my name is Pilot Wings. The director insisted on assigning me to be your personal pilot until further notice. If you ever need or want to go somewhere, you just come and tell me and I’ll get you there.”

“Good to meet you, Pilot. Let’s get going before Matterhorn decides to level another city block like last time.” Lucky grumbled. “Let’s hope we don’t have to drag you all over the wards looking for our guests.”

Lucky boarded the bulky VTOL and sat down in one of the seats behind the pilot. Whoever they were to extract must have a lot of assets to remove, but this assignment however seemed much different to their previous endeavors.

The director was much firmer than she usually was, panicked almost. Lucky figured her new platform was giving her trouble but upon pressing for more information, she was told to carry out her orders and all would be made clear in time.

Typical corporate speak for “Mind your own business.” delivered in the most polite way possible from a very calm boss, a rare combination.

The ceiling slid open to reveal the smog blanketed sky, and little by little the heavy VTOL left the ground, kicking up a large amount of dust on the landing pad as it rose higher and higher into the skies.

“Apologies for any turbulence, this tub isn’t designed for comfort!” Pilot Wings called over the intercom. “ETA ten minutes.”

---

There wouldn’t be any gates or physical barriers between themselves and the wards beyond, but the place would be swarming with automated security which, if Matterhorn was to be believed, would simply ignore them if they remained in his presence.

In front of them was a single two-lane road cut into the hills beyond the sprawl, and in the distance were a large amount of warehouses, vehicle hubs, and automated cargo carriers. Nobody actually worked in the area as it was entirely staffed by a legion of stripped back industrial synthetics, who moved goods around the storage areas where they would be loaded onto vehicles to be shipped to their destinations.

Sheet Rock slowed the van to a gentle stop as they came to a black and yellow striped warning painted across the asphalt road’s surface.

Warning, No unauthorized personnel beyond this point. Security drones operate past this point and have instructions to fire upon any and all that do not bare the correct credentials.

Please keep any credentials on your person AT ALL TIMES, drones will periodically check any and all visitors for said valid credentials and will give only ONE warning should these not be found.

Crystal Dynamics and its subsidiaries can (and will) deny any involvement in or responsibility for, maiming, dismemberment, destruction of personal property, or loss of life that will occur as a result of this warning being ignored.

“Matterhorn? Are you sure you know what you’re doing?”

“Yes, I have been furnished with a set of credentials. As long as you stick close by the drones will assume you’re fellow agents, even if you don’t look like me.”

Access nodded. “Drones are pretty brainless for the most part anyway, it’s the synthetics I’m worried about.”

“They’re not like your friend over there, and they’re no smarter than the machines that put this van together, or the ones that built your implants. As long as we stay out of their way, they’ll treat us like we aren’t there.”

Sheet Rock seemed apprehensive, but slowly crossed that metaphorical barrier between themselves and certain danger despite Matterhorn’s promise that they’d be safe.

Everyone had heard the stories of desperation that came out of the incidents that occurred on a seemingly regular basis, of how those with near to nothing crossed the threshold into the one area of the city they thought they could have stolen from without penalty.

Nobody needed to see the bodies left behind by Crystal Dynamics drones to believe what they were told. They were designed to swarm their target with overwhelming numbers. Ponies, vehicles, other drones, it didn’t matter, and they would quickly dispatch even the most confident and well armed opponents with their mounted auto-cannons.

“Our ride is on its way.” Matterhorn stated. “Ten minutes away, maximum.”