A Payload of Papers

2050, 5th year of the conversion war,

Every nation was preparing, a storm was brewing, the planned invasion of Equestria was brewing, everyone knew that as fact, it was an undeniable fact that everyone knew and would probably have (and probably will) need to live through, the boiling point will reach its climax when the time is right. But for now, preparations are made, military strength and plans are brewing up all over the world, from enemies and allies, every nation had a plan, they usually do, even in the most mundane or exotic of things, there was a course of action to be taken, but a special event was to be held on this fateful day, one that seeks to bring a reminder of what life was before the conversion war. A mission, more than just scouting of mainland Equestria, the delivery of a message, a show that was meant to remind that although it is in the battlefields that the tides of warfare are waged, there is a different battlefield that is being waged, a battle of politics and control, a small portion of the struggle that has plagued most of humanity since the dawn of time and has caused them countless of times to push further than ever before in all the fields they could ever conceive, the voice of the devil as some might say, true satisfaction.

Tokyo, Japan, 22:25

Tokyo International Airport was bustling tonight, for their special occasion that was to be underway. The UN council had announced the previous day a plan, a political move for those who knew more than the average Joe, instead of dropping bombs on the beaches and coastal cities of Equestria before the invasion, the UN has decided to set a little bit of a callback present for Equestria, or anybody really, who knew the references in history, despite literally being nothing more than a political move to spite the Equestrian government, the UN council had decided that since BB/Battleship were being used for the invasion, with plenty of air support from the surrounding regions and aircraft carriers that were being deployed. In place of the usually plentiful Moab bombs (like it’s a lot of bombs) that this plane would carry, the cargo of the newly revived, redesigned, and built R-34 strategic bomber turned high altitude reconnaissance aircraft (with improved engines and radar equipment for longer operations) for today was boxed upon boxes of papers, all written with messages from all over the world from that point in time.

These letters ranged from the usual harmless thank you or words of encouragement letters (from pacifist maybe) to outright racist and outlandish slurs of (questionable) viewpoints and sources, and then their the middle of the pile, letters of taunts and everything in between, made for the sole purpose to spite those ponies fanatic enough to fight an already lost war, yep, they are going to quite literally drop loads of paperwork’s worth weeks of compilations for Equestria to probably use as toilet paper or to quite literally pick shit up.

“HEY Captain!” shouted a pony within the Airport, it was already late but this outlandish outburst paid well for the unlucky bastard that decided to take this mission up, at least compared to what people have planned for the coming months.

“CAPTAIN! A message from High command, they requested that I join you on your flight! I’LL BE YOUR CO-PILOT! YEY! Also, they sent a message that some fighter jets to escort for the journey, from mainland Vietnam and Philippines they said.” said an eager young mare with a big smile on her face, seemingly bursting at the idea that she might actually be able to see the ground below from a bird’s eye view, although.

Looking to his back, the pilot for the R-34 was Captain Ryusuke of the 11^th Company of the JASDF, chosen by the UN as the pilot for this long journey across several Seas,

“Really?” he asked, “then I ask you to stay put on the seat while we're up there, I don’t want to deal with a noisy bullshit you probably have,”

“But-”

“NO, I just… don’t, not today Diamond Back, please, maybe later, but please just stay put while we're still in the danger zone, ok?”

“Fine…”

“Good, now come, will still have a long journey ahead of us.”

And with that short conversation, they headed to the plane they were going to pilot. The midnight hour was near, the R-34 is on the runway and is about to lift off. The night will pass, and in the due time in the morning, Equestria will wake up to a sight like no other, for those that remember will know, the papers are more than just a callback for a desperate attempt to avoid another world war, it was a foreshadow of the propaganda and politics that was about to ensue as a result of this bloody war, it was the truth that Equestria is being given to choice to respond properly to.

Outside the airspace of Indonesia, nearing the Equestrian mainland, 6:40

The R-34 was flying at a decently high altitude, at around 5,000 meters (which is high). It was being tailed by two fighter jets at different attitudes of their own, the first one flying around 500 meters higher to the forward right to the bomber while the second one was flying around 300 meters below and behind the far back left of the bomber. These jet fighters were a heavily modified Mig-31 Foxhound and F-15 Eagle respectively, both jets having been revived from the initial motion of them being pulled out of service, but because of the war, like most things in the war, humanity had to cancel and reconsider some decision for economics and securities sake, one of which was continuing the use of already aging half-century-old designs for the military.

So because of this, planes and equipment such as the previously mention Mig-31 and F-15 were instead extensively redesigned and upgraded with the newest tech possible while also trying to increase the development of the current developmental stage armaments, unfortunately, it wasn’t enough to keep an exceptional security level (the security was decent at best, yes, but that won’t cut it when your enemy could just telefrag you), so they decided to also bring back some pretty old but still usable stuff, like the remaining Iowa class BB’s, coming back as seaworthy and operational.

Flying over well over an altitude of 5,000 meters, the three aircraft start their descent as they approach the Equestrian coastline, starting from Manehatten and going parallel to the coast down and ending Baltimare. But there was something wrong, something had been changed, Diamond Back could feel it, in all her time of observing and serving with Ryusuke, which had been around two years by now, she had never experienced a moment in her life when he was this silent, even in those short moment when they would just be passengers of an airliner, he always found a way to make it interesting, now… now he’s just silent, seemingly being fixated on something.

“Hey, captain…” Diamond began, “you’ve been awfully quiet since we left the Indonesian airspace, is there something wrong?”

“….”

“Captain? Hey captain…” she looked around the cockpit, everything that she understood as far as she knew was operational, but ever since they started to approach the Equestrian coastline, it slowly but surely became silent.

“Huh- Wha- Oh, oh sorry Diamond, I was just thinking of something.” He replied, although from what Diamond had learned and gathered, his silent behavior would seem to tell otherwise.

“Oh, well ok,” She observed for a short while, his hands remaining calm, his expression mostly blank.

The rest of the flight to the coastline was mostly silent, like, completely silent, no radio chatter, no interactions, nothing, not even a word from the supposed escorts that they had. The sky was mostly clear, Diamond knew that, she knew what was about to happen, at least she thinks so. From what she was able to gather from her sources, this bombing run was completely harmless, the worst they had carried and could drop were papers, which could actually help Equestria in their time of need.

Approaching the coastline, they had descended into an altitude of around 1,000 meters. The city of Manehatten was approaching view, it gave Diamond Back a smirk on her face, she remembered a time before the war, a time before all this chaos had ensued, a time when she was just the average posh amongst the ponies of Manehatten, and such were the times.

Then, out of the middle of nowhere, after who knows how much time had passed since last radio contact was made, the radio began chirping to life.

“This is Eagle 15, I repeat, this is Eagle 15, Request a roll call to pilots within the vicinity, over.”

Moments later, Ryusuke still hadn’t decided on whether or not to respond to the request, but he was beaten to it by the pilot of the Mig-31,

“This is Foxhound 31, I repeat, this is Foxhound 31, I hear you loud and clear Eagle 15, over.”

With the third pilot now acknowledging the request, it was Ryusuke’s turn to respond to the call,

“This is castle top, I repeat, this is castle top, I can hear you both loud and clear, over.”

There was a small moment of silence before it was interrupted by the pilot of the F-15,

“Good, good, castle top, request to drop the formalities, over.”

Ryusuke responded with a simple “Go ahead,” basically breaking the formalities for the three pilots.

“Thank you sir, so, could both you see target Alpha, Beta, Charlie, and Lockheed, from your cockpits and maps? Over.”

The response of both remaining pilots to question was an “affirmative”

“Good, good, well boy’s, let’s do the traditional ‘Line Abreast’ formation, then, after target Lockheed is in sight, break off immediately, head away from the coast as fast and soon as possible, over.”

“Affirmative.”

“Roger that.”

“Very well, good luck gentlemen, and may you return safely.”

And with that, the two fighter jets made their way and flew parallel to the huge bomber, the sight of which made Diamond Back ever a bit more nervous.

“So, could I ask…?” She began, “What is the objective you plan on accomplishing?”

“Oh it’s just the dropping of literal papers onto of the cities of Equestria, that’s all, and also the bombing of the frontline railway network for said cities.”

“Wait, what? REALLY?” She responded, although she already knew this from her countless sources, it was still best that she keep up her appearance, after all, she had an image to maintain in a field that was dangerous, to begin with.

Continuing on, as if seemingly nothing was wrong, Diamond took note of the fact that the captain, much like earlier, was still reserved when it came to his response, so she decided to ask the question that would break the icy silence of the cockpit,

“What are you thinking about?” She asked, “you aren’t as open as usual, your much more reserve, and… well, it concerns me to no end.”

Looking at his, then to the window sides of the cockpit as if he was searching for something, he once again looked at his companion directly into her eyes, into her soul, and with a knowing smile he responded,

“It’s nothing of concern, I just miss my family.” He finally responded,

Once again gaining the false sense of security, Diamond looked around the cockpit, trying to remember if she left or was missing something important in the picture. She knew she was safe, she told the ESS about this specific operation, and as a sign of trust, she promised them that she would be the co-pilot should something go astray. Yet everything went well, too well for her liking, but she didn’t have time to think, they were nearing the Manehatten skyline, and the delivery drop was about to proceed.

Looking down below at the payload that is being dropped, Diamond Back couldn’t help but give a smirk of satisfaction. She expected the humans to be smarter than this, but it was also nice that they were sympathetic enough to actually try and prolong the war by giving Equestria much-needed resources and time for a potential victory, at least that’s what she believed in. But deep down, like all the citizens of Equestria, the war from a logistical standpoint was lost, Equestria was consuming, using, and losing too many resources at a rate where it could not be replaced/produced even at a 1:1 ratio.

While looking down, she looked at the skies beside her, clouds everywhere, and where there are clouds, usually pegasus scouts would be there. A sense of security once again washed into her soul, she was safe, she knew and kept repeating it to herself, but sooner or later, the ugly truth would relive itself.

Passing over Manehatten and Fillydelphia was a breeze, the pegasus guards that Diamond had managed to put on guard during this operation was great, pulling some string here and there with the use of some special help from Equestrian officials, and she even managed to convince the officials of Canterlot to let them pass without trouble, as to avoid arousing suspicion that the mission might have been leaked. They all hid on the clouded days, plane as sight, she could even see a cloud moving at the same speed as the aircraft, which she immediately knew was one of the pegasus groups sent to guard her safety should anything go astray. But once she looked at any other direction that had a cloud, she decided to look down and have some sightseeing, then she looked up once again, then in a slow creeping manner, the feeling of dread crept and made its way onto the back of her head, filling her with doubt at the thought that this might all be for naught, after all, who’s to say Equestria wouldn’t just down a plane just because they could.

Looking around the cockpit once again, her face showed a frantic look of a lost filly, as if she was trying to find something, anything out of place. Seeing her franticness, Ryusuke decided now was the right time to strike one last conversation,

“If you think you're safe just because fighter jets flank us, I suggest you try to reevaluate what you saw,” Looking to his side, telling the mare who he considered his companion for the trip, he placed a knowing smile up to his face once more, “It’s best if you ask now before it’s too late, what’s wrong?”

Looking out the cockpit windows once again, Diamond took note that the railway networks that Equestria had been still mostly intact, no craters, no explosions, just silence and the humming of engines.

“W-what are we doing?” She finally asked, “I mean, there has to be an awfully quiet, there’s probably a reason as to why it’s been that way, is there? I mean, I think you know that there’s probably something hidden or something from us to figure out, right? So please, tell me what I am missing.”

Looking towards his worried companion, Ryusuke told her one simple thing,

“After the final drop, then I’ll tell you.” He said.

Looking at what this person just said, Diamond couldn’t help but feel something unexpected was about to happen, but that could wait for a bit later she decided once again, the final airdrop of the letter was coming, Baltimare was in sight.

While dropping the countless numbers of letters and papers above the Baltimare skyline, the ponies on the ground could only stare at the metal bird that flew over their city, seemingly dropping papers of hope and conviction. The disappointment was what greeted most of the ponies of Balitmare, Fillydelphia, and Manehatten, papers upon papers of propaganda, at least that’s what they’ve been told or believed in. But to the select few that knew how to look outwards, that knew when to accept an opinion or truth, to accept a dire situation that they had, this only served to exemplify fear. Humanities invasion of mainland Equestria was final, with it brought consequences, but the simple act of dropping letters upon letters of warnings, no matter the message of the letters, be it giving worlds of advice or encouragements to whoever read it, the message was clear as day, it was a warning and nothing else for what is to come.

Passing over Baltimare and baking hard for the open sea, the pilot of the R-34 managed to look back at what was about to happen,

“So, I believe I owe you an answer to your questions, correct?” he asked.

“Oh-Uhm, yes actually, but first, why has it been silent, like, you’ve been silent, the radio is mostly silent, the entire trip is silent, why is that?” She asked.

“Do you want the long or short version?”

“Short, maybe explain how or why, please.”

“Well, it’s for security reasons for this flight,” looking around, he points her to face to the side of the window cockpit.

“The UN council wanted it so that when we took off, very few would know the true nature of this flight and the actual objectives.”

“And what are the true objectives of this mission?” She looked back, “I mean, I’m sure, there is more than just a simple reason of concealment if radio silence is that important, still, the point stands, there has to be a better reason as to why the way it is.”

She looked once more at her companion, yet he still motioned her to look outside the window,

“If you want my honest opinion, the flight was rigged from the start,” he said, “Haven’t you noticed the silence?”

“Yes I’ve noticed the silence, but what does it have to do with… thing.” She suddenly tried to remember what day it was, trying to remember as hard as she could, why was it silent, what has the reason?

Silence once again befell her ears, she was one of Equestria's best agents for crying out loud, she should know and be able to solve this riddle. She looked up to the person to her side, a smug smirk was the only thing she could see, she was being taunted, her ability to notice and deduce things being tested.

“Do you want to know?” Ryusuke asked.

She looked, and the sudden realization of what was missing, but at that very moment, a metal bird faster than she could keep track of passed her gaze. Baffled by the sudden intrusion of that mysterious being, it was directly followed by a sudden ‘boom’ and a ripple effect that trailed it.

Recovering from the initial shock, she looked to the only person that she could look to, yet what she saw was the reserved face of a human being.

“Wh-what was-”

“Sayonara.” was the only response he gave in his final moments.

And with a sudden alarm within the cockpit, the sudden jerk of movement the plane in a rapid and swift motion, and the captain hit his head on the controls, knocking him unconscious. The same happened to Diamond, but unfortunately for her, she managed to avoid a concussion of her own. Recovering from the jerk, she looked out the cockpit, blood still bleeding from the hit she took, what she saw was a sea of flames, dozens of Equestrian ships, probably filled to the brim with goods and materials, all burning, all sinking to the bottom of the ocean, before she herself succumbed to another jerk, hitting her head, never to recover from this second and final hit, slowly sinking to the bottom of the sea, with this plane and the unfortunate shipments that she saw in her final moments.

“This is Eagle 15, I repeat, this is Eagle 15, Operation Sea Mad is a success, I repeat, Operation Sea Mad is a success, Castle top has already been shot down, over.”

“This is Foxhound 31, I repeat, this is foxhound 31, Operation Rainfall is a success, I repeat, Operation Rainfall is a success, over.”

“Roger that, this is ATC of USS Gerald R. Ford, Both of you, Eagle 15 and Foxhound 31 are clear for landing, over.”

“Copy that.”

The news of this event spread like wildfire across Equestria, from words and letters written, this event only further either fuelled the flames of hate that Equestria had for humanity, taunting them before one of Equestria’s most important battles in their entire history, or it had the desired effect by the UN council, poured water upon the flames, creating doubt and fear amongst the populace. This also served as a turning point for the ESS, with this event being the pinnacle moment and manifestation of their inability to not only compete but also put a challenge with some of humanity’s top agencies and with them losing more and more of their most important foreign agents by the day, sometimes by the hour, it forced them to think defensively for the coming months and keeping order in Equestria. As for the rest of Equestria, the effects of this small ‘coastal raid’ was negligible at best for the Equestrian economy from that point, but it significantly contributed to the fear, doubt, and overall dire situation that surrounded the Equestrian populace up until the days leading up the landings and after.

Unfortunately for the ESS and Equestrian populace, this day would mark the undeniable truth of the chaos that is about to ensue. It essentially meant that any Equestrian shipments passing through the sea would have a high likelihood of being intercepted by human intervention, land shipments through the railway network and roads was still an option, but the fact that both modes of transportation (combined) could not hold up to the same capabilities as a single shipment filled to the brim showed the importance of this form of transportation, this further strained the Equestrian supply line, it also meant that they had just lost an undefined portion of goods and one of their most reliable modes of transportation.

This was further exemplified by the fact that because of what Operation Rainfall had done to Equestria, it had caused mass suspicion amongst the populace, plenty more problems became much more apparent on the coastal and major cities, with the ESS and Canterlot officials being further enraged at the already dire situation that they were in, unfortunately, half of the entire payload that was dropped was articles upon articles of crimes and statistics made to look like letters, while the other half was a letter directly from the UN council, “Surrender now or face the consequences.”

Equestria’s response to all of this, denial, denial and the refusal to admit something till the bitter end, until the final mountain top stood alone. The bitterness, desperation, and true extent of the war were about to come to full swing once the war entered its final stages.

The Invasion of Equestria was about to begin.

Author's Notes:

I was planning for this to be a sort of airlift thing, but I realized that I diverted too much from that original plan, so I decided it was going to be a story about the operation that happened before the invasion of Equestria, Operation Rainfall, and Operation Sea Mad, the former being the main focus of this story, the dropping of letters and papers either mocking the Equestrian High command and war as a whole or giving Equestria one last “proper” chance of surrender through these papers.

The latter Operation, Sea Mad, was focused on the destruction of Equestrian transport ships around the coast, the main objective of these two operations was the destabilization of the Equestrian morale, which it was hoped would influence the number of ships Equestria was willing to put into open waters, which would also influence how the invasion of Equestria was going to play out. Operation Rainfall also served as the assassination of one of the ESS most prized foreign agents, Agent Diamond Back.

Hey it's me

Listen, this is all non-canon, I’ll just keep repeating that ok, remember, it's not canon unless proven otherwise, treat this as an AU of mediocrity, It's probably decent enough for most of you reading, maybe. Some references here and there, I forgot what I added, but you guys would probably figure that out.

constructive criticism would be nice, also I would probably read your suggestions for the story (I need some names. )

A Spy's Unlikely End (part 1)

View Online

2049, 4th year of the Conversion War,

“Ah, Shiv, thanks for attending the meeting back there, really appreciated you going in for me.”

“Huh, oh it’s no big biggie, I’d really just want to help bring this already long war to a close,” looking to his coworker, Shiv gave a smile at their way, “too many had died as a result of it, and I think its best we end it as soon as possible.”

“Well, we can’t really do anything about that can we,” walking side by side with his buddy in the office, the two co-workers walked towards to doors to go outside, it was the end of their shift by that point,

“Besides, we can’t just leave our post as is, now can we?”

“Yeah, I know, but it really does get to you when you’re not working on your specialty, you know?”

“Tell me about it,”

“Anyways, I got to some meetings to follow through, hope to meet you again some other time Joe.”

“You too, old buddy.”

The two coworkers went their separate ways, two workers with different lives, working for different reasons, it was a scene that Shiv would remember later, and although he won’t tell it to the average Joe, Sneaky Shiv was a nerve wreck behind the mask of years’ worth of training in the art of deception, it was his specialty, and it was proud of it. And yet, despite his proficiency with the art itself, he like many others before and after him, who was sent by the ESS to protect and serve their nation by gathering Intel about their enemies, could not help but always feel pressured, the new environment, it was not hard to be a target, yet it all seemed to go so smooth despite the challenges he might face. Going on a trotting pace, he went up to a human dinner in the middle of New Vegas, a city, despite what the locals might say, is one of the most impressive cities Sneaky Shiv has ever seen.

Like most other cities, after the Berlin attack, nearly all major cities of every human nation had up and doubled their security and tech, states and other nations that previously held limitations on what guns civilians could get a hold of had all but been lifted, meaning that the average Joe could be holding a P90 inside his suitcase or even a child with grenade filled pockets and jackets (that’s not to say it was not regulated, but it helps visualize the stage of what could be lying beneath the mask that each civilian had the sensible mind to carry some protection with them). And yet despite this increase in security and firearms, New Vegas, like many wealthy cities, had managed to improve itself little by little and avoided mass shootouts, which is a great feat in it itself, which deeply concerned Sneaky Shiv and the ponies with the same profession as himself.

Arriving at the dinner we has headed to, he quickly found the pony he was looking for amongst the crowds of people inside. A longtime associate of his in the field and an overall great friend, Diamond Back. Sitting down on a chair by her table, he quickly got himself comfy and prepared for a long talk for the night, after all, Vegas was one of the few cities in the entire world that openly dared and challenged everything it could face in this time, with light that pierces the quiet night, it was one of the few places on Earth where it screams ‘come at me bro,’ with lights that lit up the sky all night long.

“So, it’s been a while,” Diamond started, giving a smile at the direction of a dependable and trustworthy college, “what have you been up to? After all, you and I both know how much more you preferred to work alone in this field to maximize your safety.”

“Yeah, about that,” Looking within the folders that Shiv brought with him, he placed it on the table and placed a hoof on top of it, “this right here is probably the most damming thing we, or even I, could have ever found in the entirety of life and history as a whole.”

“And how would that be, after all, I have seen you torture your own nations civilians and the other creatures of the like when they existed, so what just did you get yourself into that would render you confused at this time,” She asked, concern becoming her most dominant emotion at the thought of Equestria’s best ESS agent’s trembling at what they had uncovered, “oh let me guess, you found something so outlandish that you had to consult your own peers to prove to your own sanity that you are still a fundamentally well-working pony.”

“As much as I’d like that to be the case, I don’t think that would be it,” Looking around, Shiv could feel the burning sensation of being watched, a sensation he had always felt since he had found his destiny in life, his cutie mark, and he had learned to live with the sensation, but never to the same extent as when he first came to the human lands.

“Where did you find it?” Diamond asked, “I mean, you must be damned convinced that it actually exists if you even considered asking help from me.”

“Please, do I need to remind you that I have a place in one of the UN’s head-facilities?” looking around, we knew he had to be careful with what he said next, after all, from the stories that other ESS agents would tell, humans aren’t scared of pulling the trigger if the excuse is reason enough to avoid repercussion’s, “Listen, Diamond, please, you and I both know that if these humans manage to create a superweapon, they would steamroll and pin the entire Equestrian armed forces, and I honestly think I have evidence to suggest they are building one right in this very moment.”

“And need I remind you Shiv, these humans are barbarians as they are, they quite literally with the side of chaos, it is only by the string of luck that they have managed to keep the war going for this long. WE are on the side of light, the good, of Harmony, we will win this war, even if humanity manages to create something to help them in the war, it will only stall their inevitable fate, their materials are limited, always being taken by the Equestrian armed forces, so it's only a matter of time until their own resources become strained,” Diamond said, but as she said this, a small realization dawning on her, “You aren’t planning on going AWOL, now are you, you know what happens to such ponies.”

“W-what? By Celestia’s mane, what would implore such a thought into your mind? Might I remind you that I, ME, am asking help from you, to get me out of this place, I went to you asking for help to get me out of this and help me go back to Canterlot, I need to talk to her highness on what I have found personally.”

“And what would this message be that it concerns you so much that you would want to speak it with her directly?”

“I fear that if I share it with anyone, it would be intercepted by those pesky humans, remember, I may be one of the ESS’s best agents, but that doesn’t mean others don’t pose a threat to me or challenge my skills.”

“And how could that be, these humans around us could barely hold themselves from getting wasted, what’s stopping you from just telling me?”

“I have long learned, even before coming here, that rumor’s play a crucial part in decisions, and I fear that the mere rumor of the human project being supposedly leaked would inadvertently cause a much more uncertain human threat, but also cause them to change up how they run things, from managing the war or even how they keep certain things safe, and as you and I know, the past three, maybe four, years of constant bloodshed from this war is proof of that fact.”

Thinking for a moment, Diamond took some time to analyze the situation, she had been a spy for the ESS, much like Sneaky Shiv, since the war had started. But as the war dragged on, it had inflicted a noticeable toll on Equestria as a whole, and the longer the war goes on, the worst the situation would become for all combatants, a quick victory was what was initially planned, but it was clear the war would last at least another three years with the resistance being given (excluding the rooting out of rouge groups).

“Let me think for a moment,” she said, “since if what you said is true, then that would imply several things that I need to account for, especially since it’s no easy workaround these parts.”

“Take your time, but do spend it wisely, you and I know time is a valuable thing to have, no matter the situation.”

“I know, I know,” She said.

“While you’re at it, might as well enjoy the night, what do you say?”

“Sure, order something for me will you, I really need to think.”

“No problem…” Looking around for a waiter, he waved one to come to their table for an order, hiding the folder that he brought beside him out of the eyes view.

Ordering a simple salad for the both of them, he also asked for a bottle of coke for himself and any beverage that Diamond herself fancied, he also asked if he could pay the bill after the meal, which the waiter agreed with. Whilst waiting for their order to arrive, Shiv noticed that two groups of men had entered the dinner, all men with black suits, looking all professional and such, and worrying about his and her partner's safety, he gave a request for the waiter,

“Umm, Sir, sorry to interrupt, but may I ask if I with my partner here could switch table?”

The waiter, looking at them with a hint of disbelief on his face, asked them, “And why would you need to switch tables? I assume that this table is already fine for the both of you unless you’re expecting more to join you.”

“No, no, sir, it’s just that, I would like to have a much more secluded place for my partner and me, a sort of romantic setting if you know what I mean.”

Looking at the two ponies and the table they were in, the waiter let out a sigh of annoyance in their direction,
“Please follow me, I believe the dinner has a table for two by the window side on the second floor if that’s fine by the both of you?”

“Yes, that would be most wonderful,” Shiv said with a smile, patting a hoof at Diamond and giving the motion to follow him, which she promptly did.

“I do hope you and your partner have a pleasant night, and that whatever she’s thinking won’t distract both of you.” The waiter said.

“Huh, oh, uh, thanks for the advice, I guess? But what does it have to your concern?”

“Oh its nothing for me, I have just been a waiter in this establishment for around five months now, not a long time, but in that span, I have seen ponies and people like you two who had come and went, either for their last meal or a different reason and really, I just wish a good luck.”

“Oh, that’s… well thank you anyway.”

“No problem, just keep yourself comfortable and enjoy the night.”

They arrived at the new table without a hitch, easing Shiv’s fear since he had a much better view of not only the outside but also those that went near his vicinity, which meant that he could keep track of who comes in and out in a much more efficient manner. Once they settled into their new table, Diamond was still in her little head, but Shiv didn’t mind, the food was about to be served, and he knew by then, she had an answer for him, so he waited patiently.

Once the food arrived and was served to them, they started eating their respective meals, it was a pleasant night in Vegas, like any other.

“So, have you decided yet?” Shiv asked once more, “It’s been a while now, and honestly, the more you think, the more I become worried.”

“I know, I know, it’s just hard to think if I should, since you know, you haven’t told me yet what it is.” She replied.

Thinking about it for a moment, Shiv reviewed the contents of the folder that he had brought along with him, it was a very general overview of what he was able to gather, nowhere near meticulous details, but enough in his opinion to form out a basic overview of what might come.

“Listen,” Shiv began, “I have very limited details on what I have found in that UN facility, and I feel as though it would be enough evidence to convince that the humans are up to something.”

“They are, up to something, and they always have been since the start of the war.” Diamond replied.

“I know, but I think this time, it’s something bigger, something game-changing for the war, although I don’t think it would be able to turn the tides of war into their favor, what they are planning from what I have gathered would be a great inconvenience in the long run of this war, most likely costing us more than what is necessary should this project be completed.”

“And what is the name of this project?” Diamond asked, “And the details as far as you are concerned, I need details, maybe it’s not even worth our time to worry about, who knows, so details first, reasons later.”

Pondering about what his colleague had just said, Shiv thought about it, although it was a simpler decision should he want to receive the means to get away from this place.

“Don’t think I forgot about earlier Shiv, I know what you did and you owe me a favor next time.”

“Alright, fine, you got yourself a deal, I’ll share with you the details that I was able to gather, but make sure I get a flight or any way to get me back on Equestrian soil.”

“You got yourself a deal old buddy,” Diamond said.

And so, their evening was spent on discussing the plentiful things that Shiv was able to gather and the arrangements for his departure. Although he never liked working with coworkers in this field, since he viewed them as potential holes in what he schemes, he would never deny the fact when help was needed. This was no exception, and what he shared with Diamond was essentially his thoughts on what the humans were possibly doing with project: J.G.W. but according to him and his investigation, it was most likely be a biological weapon similar to the nuclear bombs in terms of its potential damage, or a cure or at least a (temporary) solution for the conversion potion, with test facilities most likely being held at the West Coast of America or its Southern border, although it is unclear, those were the likeliest locations for them. Either way, his reasoning was that since it was clear that humanity was planning something unexpected, even to the point that some of these scientists were either unknown to the majority of the world or are top dogs in their field, it was either of the two, since it would help them and was within their grasp of knowledge. but was unlikely to be finished by two years, by that time, the two agents had estimated that more than half the world major resource pools would be encapsulated by the barrier by then, meaning it was, at best for Equestria, a driving factor in the demise of humanity by the end, they also arranged a flight for Shiv to leave for Equestria, going through Alaska to Mongolia, then by train to the Vietnam coast and from there a ferry to Equestrian shore, after which he could present his case into much more detail to the Equestrian high command.

Once they finished their meal, paid for it, and went their separate ways, their plan and preparations went underway, one of Equestria’s most important agents, about to make a groundbreaking revelation that could help change the course of the war, bring absolute victory or just to spite humanity like the many other times the had already.

Unfortunately for them, the game was rigged from the very start.

Author's Notes:

This was supposed to be a whole one part, but then I realized I could two-part it, so I did.

This chapter (and the second part) would focus on the moment when project: J.G.W. (the project responsible for the invention of the Thalmann Anti-Magic Generators) was nearly leaked to Equestrian authorities, unfortunately, Shiv would be intercepted on his way back to Equestria, ending any real hope of getting that knowledge out.

As for Diamond, she was supposed to follow with Shiv, but she was one of the agents that were sent to scout out New York for the upcoming battle for New York City, unfortunately,
that ended in a humiliating disaster, becoming Equestria's first major loss of the war.
(This might be a story I might make next time.)

Let me know if there are any discrepancies and I hope you enjoyed it,
please do tell me your thoughts in the comments and it's actually a lot of fun just doing this.

A Spy's Unlikely End (Part 2)

View Online

As Shiv woke up from his bed, he began to look from side to side, today was an important day for him, he possessed information that could change the course of the war, and all he needed to do was relay it to Celestia herself. He didn’t trust his companions or coworkers in the field, he viewed them as potential holes in his plan, and he never had it in him to work with others, so here he was, waking up alone and about to leave for Equestria. Or at least, that’s what he even bothered to think through last night, but like any good agent, he had plans, plans he had yet to make, but he would push through, and he simply needed a good morning start to shrug off the morning ache he had grown used to waking up to.

Trotting towards the counter around the corner of his room, the apartment that he had used as both his home and safe haven (after he had personally inspected it) had become more than a home in his mind, although small compared to what he could buy with the money he earned through lies in his time in America, he hated the thoughts that crept at the back of his mind, but for the past 4, 5-ish years, he saw what humanity had and could have done, both the good and bad, and although he hated the thought that Equestria was in the wrong, he saw humanity’s side in the conflict and he had never seen a world of grey as the first day in his undercover job, years of academic training did not prepare him for what he saw during the first few weeks. He started his days as an intelligence agent on American soil immediately after the declaration of war, but as he took his job as an agent much more seriously, he found himself trotting in unknown territories.

Only his special ability in the field had prevented such disasters to happen to him, he had heard of other agents being captured during the job, and he didn’t need to be told because he knew first hoof what happened to some of them, he saw the files and he had heard rumors spread by Equestrian propaganda, yet for all of that, he saw through all the chaos of war and paperwork’s, the war was a solid fog of grey to the eyes of humanity while Equestria believed it to be a wall and hall of black and white, and the conflict only further supported this, the actions of countless human politicians and leaders have been criticized, no matter how convoluted or practical the idea was, humans never had a one way thinking to the war and their pessimistic demeanor and varied opinions on, during, and what the war was about and the actions that had to be done with reason had only proved itself to Shiv’s bare eyes.

Washing his face and making his way to the fridge in his apartment, he grabbed some bread and fillings while he brewed himself some tea. In all his time in America, he always wanted to spite humans, so he would always ask or order tea over coffee, which definitely gave him some memories to remember. As he placed and prepared all of these on the small table that came with his apartment, he eyed the intelligence report from an agent, wherever they may be on this time no one knows, but from his experience, they are either 6ft underground or in the process of going so, but the moment he eyed it, tread trembled into the back of his neck, recently, there had been rumors circulating about how the UN had recently created more than twenty groups or foundations around the globe.

‘Interesting.’ He said to himself as he began to re-read it, the rumors would have recurring names and abbreviations, explanations on the supposed creation, and merging of groups into a larger independent entity, all fascinating subjects for Shiv to dissect. Some recurring abbreviations or names on the report would be a containment foundation funnily given the complete abbreviation, “S.C.P.F”, a trading company abbreviated as the “E.I.T.C.” was also formed to accompany said containment foundation which was based around the tip of the African continent and spans the South-East Asian and Australian waters, other groups where labeled under “Under investigation/Re-organization”, some of the files had missing information but what was shown would do, for the most part, organizations such as the “The Continental” or “The Tribunal”. Now, the names, important for him to memorize in case any slip-ups occur, there was a portion labeled as “M.I.A.”, amongst them were (presumably) important agents such as “Johann Schmidt” and even “Victor Reznov”. Some of these names he was familiar with, others not so much, but he had always heard the persistent saying about these files, and some of them he denied to believe.

“Welp...” He said aloud, “Got to pack my things, now, where was it that I place my Balisong at...” As he said this, he set to work to prepare for the long journey ahead of him, one which would bring consequences with it. A patriot he started, he would now leave for Equestria with something more than what he would ever expect, one such is a knife gifted by a talented person that he had met, an ironic gift considering what Equestria had portrayed humanity as.

As Shiv exited the taxi, he was greeted by a fairly crowded airport, bringing his luggage with him into the main entrance, he stumbled a bit as he tried to get to the place where he needed to be. Fortunately, some people came by to help him with his little predicament, after he thanked them, he went straight to get a ticket to Alaska, from there, a flight to Mongolia and a train ride for the Indian coast, and finally a fairy to mainland Equestria, at least that was his plan.

Approaching the counter, an earth pony mare was operating it, and as he approached, he merely gave a note and a one-hundred-dollar bill on the counter. The mare, in response, read the note then proceeded to give a nod as she took the bill and motioned for Shiv to give her his luggage, he won’t be needing them anytime soon, and so, he was given a ticket bound for Alaska then to… Russia? He didn’t question it at the time, since he knew it would make little difference and there were plenty of workarounds should the need come, plus he needed to leave as soon as possible, and so, he went and boarded his plane, bound for Alaska to Russia, unluckily for him, this would be his last trip and one that he would be engraved for him to remember.

The plane journey as a whole was pretty tame, very few boarded the flight that he was on, and Shiv thankfully kept his cool from overreacting to the overwhelming silence of the flight. The flight itself to Alaska was uneventful, barely any passengers boarded the plane and he just sat on his seat until they took off once again, this time, bound from Alaska to Russia, and while the flight to Alaska was uneventful, the flight to Russia certainly was the direct opposite. Jam-packed was the plane they were on, ponies and people filled nearly all the seats from the perspective of Shiv, although thankfully for him, he had someone who both shared not only a seat but also time for the journey ahead.

“Oh,” said the man as he approached beside Shiv, as he himself carried his own briefcase and placed them on the overhead compartments just above his sit, where Shiv’s in his window seat and the man sat next to the walkway (a two-seated arrangement or something). “I believe ha haven’t met before, have we?” He asked.

Looking at the man, he wore a bowler hat, glasses, and a beige colored trench coat the covered most of his torso and limbs, and being in the economy, he found it weird for someone as well dressed as him to be there, “I believe not,” he answers, “but I think it’s best to get ourselves acquainted to each other, don’t you think?”

The man, thinking about Shiv’s offer, extended a hand for the stallion, “Jacques, Jacques Archambeau, but please, call me Jean.”

Shiv, upon the act of recognition, extended his hoof towards jean’s hand, “Sharp Witts,” he replied as they shook a hoof/hand, not wanting to arouse suspicion to his name, all part of the job, “And where is a fine man like you going with an economy passport?” he asked, again intrigued by this man’s appearance.

“Back home, the war hasn’t been too kind,” Jean replied, “Back to France I must go, attend a business venture for a friend of mine,” he grabbed some sort of pocket watch from the inner pockets of his coat, a weird antique if you asked Shiv, especially since he would prefer a wrist, or in this case, a hoof watch, to keep track of time. “But I could ask the same to you, Mr. Sharp.” He said.

“Oh, hardly anything important, I was sent to drop a package and return to my office, the boss wanted me to meet a colleague of his.” A clear lie, just like he has done before, he would do it again if it meant keeping his identity safe.

Jean just looked at Shiv and raised a brow, “A business pony?” he asked again.

“A what?” he asked.

“Your occupation, you are? Like a business pony or something?” Jean clarified, but by this time, the plane had already taken off with everyone seated and was at its cruising altitude.

“Oh it’s nothing that complicated,” Shiv said in a dismissive tone while also waving his hoof for a much more dramatic effect, “I just work as a sort of… advisor, per se, to some higher-ups.”

“With the way you’re speaking and acting, it’s not hard to see why,” Jean commented.

A simple nod from Shiv and they began to talk for the rest of the flight, mostly just their views on the war, and what was the “good and bad” about humanity, at least in Shiv’s opinion, which was just that, an opinion, never had he been able to speak freely as ever before on his time before or even during the war. The E.S.S. had always been a great pain to deal with (the treats and potential screw-ups that came with having an opinion, and even if he loved his country, one can’t help but realize just how much had changed from a different perspective), and although his allegiance was to Equestria as a whole, he worked and gave an oath specifically for the Princess of Friendship, not because she was the next (and likeliest) candidate to ascend to the throne after Celestia and Luna would abdicate, but alas, such plans never usually go as one might foresee.

After several hours of probably talking and a short nap that the two shared, the captain of the plane spoke through the intercom, “Attention to all passengers, due to a shortage of fuel, for reasons that are explainable on a later date, we will be making a quick pit stop to Hakodate Airport in the Hokkaido prefecture of Japan, I have turned on the…” the captain then went on about safety protocols and all the different things that he should have done on situations like these.

As for Shiv, he really didn’t mind, although he wasn’t used to the sense of flying, and one of the burdens would be the pressure difference in altitude, his ear was, to say the least, agitated, the pain was manageable, but he wanted to sleep through this, and so, that’s exactly what he did. He would, fortunately (or maybe, unfortunately) wake up arriving at his destination of Russia, although it really would have helped him had he asked for specifics.

“Ugh…” Shiv groaned as the plane that he was one had recently landed, he felt the touchdown, and by Celestia’s name, he never imagined he’d see the twilight sky in a mountainous area, and judging by the window seat that he was at, he would probably have to stay the night. Noticing Jean was already doing away with his suitcase, he decided he’d go ahead and grab his own in the airport that they were in, although he felt a tap at the base of his neck, it was Jean who seemed to notice he was leaving.

“Leaving so soon?” He asked a weird line of questions for sure.

“I mean…” Shiv observed what Jean was doing, he notice the calm man had no problem just walking up straight to him, he knew he was in for a treat in Russia considering the, unfortunate, whether that he would have to deal with, “I need somewhere to stay, does no good to stay outside in the winter snow, now does it.”

“Point taken, although I have the feeling that you’d need some help, mind me coming with you until we find you a place to crash in?”

“Not a problem, and for a person of French origin, I must say, I am deeply impressed with your English, I have seen some Americans do worse.” he received a chuckle from Jean, and so, they pressed on, going together, a comforting feeling for Shiv since he has a reason not to just suddenly go to some dark alleyway, or worse since he would have company.

Suddenly, an announcement through the intercom was made, “Announcement, for the passengers of AA Flight 169, there has been an unfortunate change of plans for your flight, unforeseen circumstances had recently arisen that our crew is trying to fix as of the moment and we would like to extend our sincerest apologies. Having said that, a replacement flight will be booked for those that still wish to continue their journey to Moscow and Paris by the next morning, again, we sincerely apologies for the inconvenience, please approach any of our staff for further information on your stay…”

The announcer then went on about something, but by then, Shiv had already tuned it out as he had already made his decision, he would still continue in his journey, he already had planned contacts waiting for him anyway, but he had to find someplace to stay the night. Thankfully, Jean was there to extend a hand to him.

So, as they both were waiting for Shiv’s luggage, after which they would spend the night, well, sleeping (clearly not gay goddammit). Still waiting on a bench, they had talked earlier to past the time, but for the time being, Jean had excused himself to go grab himself a drink while Shiv waited patiently, his instincts telling him to just make a dash for the exit and to the woods, but he held adamant in trying to find and retrieve his luggage, after all, it had some important personal belongings that he’d rather burn with his own hooves than letting the ESS take any sort of credit for his hard work, amongst other things. And so, Shiv waited, and he waited and waited… until he finally found his bag, after a good 30 or so minutes of waiting, now, he only waited for Jean to arrive back.

Waiting again, he suddenly noticed a note left behind by Jean on the bench that he sat on, it simply gave him a map to an available hotel just across the road, said that two private rooms had already been paid by Jean, all the Shiv had to do was walk across the street and simply ask them to give him the room number that Jean had paid for, which was also written in the note. And so, that’s exactly what he did, he went to the hotel to have somewhere to stay, although he was hesitant at first, he could better anticipate potential attacks rather than roaming in a city that he barely knew the layout of, it was always nice, one of the things that Shiv really did both love and hate about humans was their mind, something he never fully understood the thought processes of.

Approaching his room, a gave a yawn as he entered it, it was a neatly sorted room, a bed, tables and chairs, and all the other things expected of a hotel room, making his way to the window, he saw another spectacle he could never see in Equestria, the moonlit night, shining, towering over buildings upon buildings of skyscrapers that also illuminated the night with their own lights, thousands, if not millions of similar spectacles like this, it was, breathtaking, he thought, certainly different to Manehatten, but it did go to show really how different Equestria was to this world just from the size of these cities.

Approaching the drawer, he saw a note, probably left by the staff, and he approached, planning on taking a quick shower and a night’s rest, after which he could worry about his flight tomorrow. Checking the note, it merely stated the time when house cleaning would be done, and the next one would be around an hour or so from now. He looked at the local clock that went with the room's design, it was past 6 pm already, he began to check his own luggage, he planned on thanking Jean in the morning, but for now, that had to wait.

Shortly thereafter, Shiv decided that he would talk a nap, and if possible, sleep through the night until morning to regain as much energy as possible from the constant pressure of doubt that kept lurking behind his back. Then, just as he was about to fall into the dream realm, a soft knock on the entrance door to his room was heard, and begrudgingly, Shiv began to wake up from his near-sleep to open what he expected to be a maid or something that would check/clean his room.

“Alright, alright… I’m coming, just wait for a moment please.” He said as he made his way to the door, although he didn’t receive a response from whoever it was on the other side. Once he arrived at the door, he opened it to let anyone through, but instead of being greeted by somebody, anyone really, he instead got an empty hallway, his room was beside an intersection of hallways and he decides to investigate this little mystery, won’t take up much time and effort since he just had to look at the hallways, and that’s what he did, unfortunately, before he even got the chance to even turn to return to his room, something poked the back of his neck, but before he could even make out the figure that did so, he became drowsy real fast until he fell into unconsciousness state, a dreamless sleep followed, one that he would wake up eventually.

A Spy's Choice (part 3)

View Online

“W-where am I?” Shiv spoke as he groaned in pain, it helps like every piece of flesh in his body was burning, a sensation similar to alcohol, he still felt very dizzy. Noticing that he was alone in a room, the only light source being a singular light bulb in the middle of the ceiling, ‘typical,’ he thought, but before he could speak up again, a muffled voice was faintly heard.

“-ERE’Z REZNOV!” The voice shouted, impatience clearly evident with each passing second. But before another word could be heard, what appeared to be slid doors opened into the room, revealing two humans walking in.

“Hey, hey now, calm down lad, he’ll show up eventually.” One of the humans said, but then, Shiv was unsure if he recognized the voice.

“Jean?” Shiv asked, doubt and fear creeping up his voice, hoping that he was wrong in all sense of the manner.

The two humans now looked at the now awake Shiv, “Now look what you’ve done, Johann, you woke up the lad, now we won’t get our ‘Grand Entrance’ for the record.”

“Zat von’t matter, za vork e laid out is yet to be ripened aftzer all, ve don’t want Viktor getting blood on za vall.” The one referred to Johann said with a heavy German accent, as he pointed a finger towards Shiv.

Like any sane being, this greatly tipped Shiv, although he didn’t necessarily fear death, he’d still rather get a quick one, but it appears as though that’s likely not going to happen. Realizing that he’s strapped on some sort of bed, with his hooves chained in place, Shiv began to run down the procedure’s and scenarios that would likely occur, none, if any, of them going better after broken bones, worse case, they just keep him half dead, death likely won’t be an option, at least he thought. Real unfortunately for him, he forgot to place a cyanide pill before he took his first flight, only now did he regret not planning earlier during his stay.

“Now,” Johann began as he drew what appeared to be a Luger p08, a pistol of a bygone era, and pointed it directly at Shiv’s forehead, “Vat to do?”

Tensions of the air started to build up, but then in an anticlimactic manner, a new voice suddenly came in, “What is going in in herrre?” the voice asked in a Russian accent.

“Ah, Viktor, didn’t expect you to show up early, I assume the Frenchy will join us shortly?” Thomas said as he turned to greet the Russian that had entered the room.

“Nyet,” the Russian said, “had paperwork waiting, won’t kome back for some time.” He said as he too approached to join the first two in what was about to happen.

Johann, who was still pointing the pistol onto Shiv’s forehead, slowly turned around to face the new person who had just entered the room, “Didn’t exbect to zee zee Ruzian vizout zee Frenchy, put I azume he voud have bapervork, ja?” Receiving a nod from the Russian, he withdrew his pistol and stared at him for a few moments.

“What do you want from me!?” Shiv busted out, speaking so suddenly it surprised everyone in the room, even himself, but given a few moments and as the silence dragged on, he received his response soon after.

“Don’t worry now, lad,” Thomas said as he approached Shiv, reaching for something in his pocket, appearing to be a pen and a small sheet of paper, “We only need to ask you one question, everything that will follow after that will be related in more than one-way.”

“And what if I don’t want to comply?” Shiv asked, raising his voice to make himself look a bit more intimidating, “After all, all you probably want to know is about Equestria, and I’ll tell you to know, I got nothin’ worth your time.”

Just then a soft ringing was heard, promptly answered by Johann with an earpiece, “Shiza,” He instinctively said as he started to make his way and leave the room.

“Shoots fired?” Thomas asked.

“Ja.” Johann replied as he exited the room and made a dash to who knows where. Recognizing what that meant, the other two didn’t stop him from leaving, instead, they resumed the matter at hand.

Now left with only two people to guard Shiv, the Russian began to speak, “So, I believe little comrade here has heard of proposition?” He asked.

‘Comrade? Preposition? What the fuck!?’ Shiv thought as the Brit responded to the question.

“No, not yet,” He said, a hint of hesitation, “But with a potential breach like this one, I think it is best we speak with him now instead of the planned transfer back to Russia, agreed?” To which he received a nod from the Russian.

“Alright, now, let us begin,” He said, as he made his way back in front of Shiv, followed by the other and soon, “as I said earlier, I will only ask you one question, and that is ‘how much do you know?’”

Taking a moment to observe Thomas, Shiv weighed his decisions, he didn’t spot any machines to accompany them. The room was mostly empty, with him being chained up being the near only difference, sure it’s more than likely there are cameras and microphones, but for the most part, the room was simple, too simple for this simple question, he decided to play it cheeky.

“I know something’s, yes, but as I said, I got nothing of relevance to you or your goals.” He stated blandly, making a stand, he knew he’d probably die this way, but he had tricks up his metaphorical sleeves.

“Well, you see-” Thomas began but was immediately interrupted by Viktor.

“We have proposition for pony,” He boomed, looking much more intimidating than what Shiv had expected, “One that we expect pony to accept.”

“And that preposition would to simply relate to ‘Project: J.G.W.’ and, some other matter, which could wait.” Thomas followed suit.

Thinking for a moment, Shiv thought if they were actually serious, he could bluff and say there are more who know, which would only double the efforts, he could tell them that Equestria already knew which would just get him killed or something, and if he told them that he was the only one that knew, that would mean that he would become something bigger and of worth, one that they could possibly not afford to return to Equestria. All in all, if he bluffed, he would likely just end up as another scapegoat or his actions would be overruled by some common soldier, whereas if he would betray Equestria, he could guarantee some form of protection from them.

“Hmm…” Shiv thought for a moment, “What’s in it for me?” He asked, he knew humans are capable of many things, but just how far the question he was asking is.

“I think comrade is asking wrong question,” Viktor said as he drew closer to Shiv, “I think you should be asking, ‘what is it for Equestria?’”

“What do you mean?” Shiv asked, “Equestria is clearly not what you asked for, and I hold the chips for the information you want.” He said with pure unadulterated confidence, he thought he had them.

“I think you misinterpret us,” Thomas said, as he opened a folded paper from his pocket and showed it to Shiv, “What are you to Equestria?” He said as he whispered it to one of his ears, “And what is to become of Equestria?”

“W-what do you mean?” Shiv asked, visibly becoming uncomfortable with where the questions are leading, he was a quick learner and he knew what they were trying to say.

“Don’t play coy with us,” Thomas said, his patience being tested once more, “You know exactly what we’re talking about, the war is in its closing phase, all the information you have gathered will lead to that one point, in one way or another.” He said with a serious tone.

Slowly, the realization started too slowly to sink into Shiv, an act of mercy obscured and layered under the coat of a professional, at least he hoped it was, “N-no…” he said softly, “T-the war isn’t lost,” he said as he looked up, dread finally making itself apparent in his face, “Equestria could still win…”

Receiving silence, once he looked at the two other people in the room, they only wore the mask that showed only seriousness, a hint of sympathy in their eyes as they watched him swallow in the realization.

“The war is lost for Equestria, there is no changing that fact,” Thomas said, a somber tone as if he was comforting a child who had just lost his favorite toy, “and Project J.G.W. will cement that fate.” He finished as he stood up.

“We will give pony time, we will return,” Viktor said as he stood up and made his way to leave the room.

“Agreed,” He said as he turned to follow the same motion, “and if it isn’t clear enough, our offer is a show of mercy, should you accept it, you will be absolved of your crimes relating to the ESS, with other benefits to discussed, until later lad.” He finished as he exited the room, closing the door behind him, leaving the stallion alone with himself to think.

As for Sneaky Shiv, although it may seem like solitary confinement had he been left earlier, now, the silence allowed him to take in the information, only now did he rethink the full scope of project JGW, the project that would end the war, a secret weapon that Equestria had expected to never expect. Looking back, Shiv scanned through his memories, memories of lessons he took from human history, and he saw something, he saw the pattern of power, the path of hate, the cost of war, but like what Equestrian lessons had thought him before the war, he look beyond the actions of one and into their soul, he saw Humanity always had reasons, and even more terrifyingly, he saw Equestria, not in the lenses of a pony, but from the perspective of an outsider, it was… unrealistic, mythical even, how a nation like Equestria was near perfect and could exist because they had a god on their side, only now did he see how fortunate Equestria is to have a physical pony for their religion, someone who could put their belief in and see the fruits of their beliefs.

Only now did he see, the war was coming to an end, it will only be a matter of time, and if he returned to Equestria, only for his nation to fall in the end, well, the only moral direction will prevent someone from making the wrong or right choice, and for Shiv, risking his life for a lost cause, one that might even bring more harm than what might be intended, he had a final thought, he was risking his life for a nation born out of supposed perfection and undying goodwill that was now fighting a world that had to fight against everything that was imperfect, a world of near perfection facing a world that had to fight its imperfections.

More than four hours later, and Shiv was near adamant in his decision, he contemplated mostly if he could be guaranteed safety by humanity rather than the consequences of being a traitor to Equestria, the war was nearing its end, and he’d rather surrender now to an enemy how has a chance on sending to somewhere better than a labor camp, after all, recognizing the truth that the information he has would likely only drag the war further, still producing the same result, it was clear to him that some precautions on this new path must be taken, and right now, he was being taken to another room, one that he hopped has a bit more pleasant for discussion.

Being escorted to another room, flanked by two other humans with full gear, most likely prototype phase gear from what Shiv could tell, it was simply amazing, how they were able to create something likely as complex as that in probably less than a year of planning, heck, he would even bet that this was one of those ‘top secret’ projects that were being worked on. Approaching a door, the two guards simply swung it open as they stood guard outside, Shiv promptly entered the room. In the room, he saw three people waiting for him, expecting him to have a final decision, he had one, no doubt, although he had some arrangements he would like to set first.

Stepping up in front of the three figures, as he did so, one of them spoke up, “Zo, ve azume zat vu haffe conzitered our offer, ja?”

Giving a nod to who he assumed to be the German it was, Shiv could see a chair that was large enough for him to lay or sit upon, which he promptly took.

“I believe we haven’t introduced ourselves properly yet, so, I was thinking that it wouldn’t be too much to inquire you three about it…” Shiv was sure his request was going to be denied by all three, now way in Celestia’s name would they even consider sharing that kind of info, but better try than never.

The three figures, who really are just the agents he met last time, looked towards each other, but to Shiv’s unexpected turn, they seemed to agree to the request.

“I guess we have been too uptight for the past three days, so I guess we could refrain from speaking professionally, and a small introduction is overdue, I myself am, Thomas Hartford, second son of Toby Hartford, and a current spokesperson for the United Kingdom.” He said as he performed a simple bow, but after he finished, he pointed to his left and was followed by Johann.

“Johann, Johann Schmidt, former Hadffizor for zee Chancellor of Germany, currently head for zee Pank of Eurobe, or at least vat’s left of it…” He finished and was immediately followed by Viktor.

“Viktor Reznov, former advisor to the President of Russia, currently overseeing a rehabilitation operation in Japan, amongst other things…”

Taking a moment to take in their names, Shiv responded in kind, “Shiv, Sneaky Shiv, ESS agent for the Equestrian crown stationed in North America, I was supposed to return to Equestria to deliver an important message I did not wish to be compromised, believing I had the skill and capabilities to do so, certain things took to turn for a different direction.” He said so with a hint of pride in his voice.

“Make that former ESS agent, Shiv.” Viktor said with a smile, he had believed that the moment Shiv entered the room, there was no doubt in his mind the Shiv had made a decision, one that all three of them had expected this to various degrees.

“We knew,” Thomas said calmly, a smirk forming thanks to Viktor’s prediction being right, which was a surprise considering ESS agents were some of the most delusional beings he had encountered, even to the point that he would rather have a member of the Gestapo from 1944 be his guest, no ill will, but that’s what you get from assumptions after all, “and we believe you have questions that you’d like to ask, yes?”

“Indeed,” Shiv said, his thought process already making and taking a new route of possibilities for the situation, “but first, just to make sure I have the records right, Johann and Viktor are labeled… MIA, or was it KIA?” Assuming that the information was just twisted a tad bit for protection purposes, he figured they were actually dead to most of the word, considering their previous position, a cover-up story that won’t seem too far-fetched is possible, “actually, I’d like to ask only one thing, if I were to comply with you people, I would be guaranteed safety, correct?”

“Indeed,” Thomas responded.

“And how will you do that?” Shiv asked, if his guess was correct, they would take him to an isolated or secure place far as possible from Equestria or better yet, fake his death.

“Fake death, I’m sure comrade pony will understand.” Viktor clarified, reaching for what appears to be files that Shiv would need to answer or sign.

Reaching in turn for the file, Shiv began to read it, he read it from the title page to the final page, every single bit of it, word for word. And surprisingly, he found it unexpected how these three had managed to give him plenty of room to make changes while also underlining what couldn’t be changed, the important bits he assumed for the most part.

“Is… this all I have to do?” Shiv asked, what was asked for him was pretty simple, and in return, he would essentially have a new life after the war with the winning side, “W-well, this is unexpectedly simple, I think I could follow through with the request, and just to make sure, I will get a new life if I comply, right?”

“Ja,” Johann said, “Und all zat ve need are names, zoze bart of zee ESS und zee Hinformazion zat zey currently haffe, at least for zee most bart...”

“Well…” Shiv trailed off, although the ESS would give him a mouthful on why he should remain ‘honorable,’ but would he really give in to being honorable at the cost of winning? Of course, he wouldn’t, this was war, not a duel, and the moment he began to write on that very paper, he had sold everything he had in Equestria for a life beyond the war, which wasn’t much, to think about tomorrow while he still could.

All the while, the three agents could really only watch as Shiv wrote on the paper, they all remained silent because, at that very moment, they knew they stole Equestria’s only chance to plan and prepare for one of the most important moments in history, a history that was to be repeated, the moment when the tides of war changed. All that was needed to be done was to make sure it remained in obscurity, a fact remaining as an opinion for as long as possible to protect more. Each agent was in their own thought process as Shiv wrote, but they all thought about history, from the fall of Rome to the first and last time a nuclear warhead was used in war, it had been nearly a century-long since the first two World Wars up to that point, and the leap that humanity had made in less than ten years was a testament to its innovation compared to the last century that was. They only wished Jean was here to see what his part had to lead up to, but, there is still work to be done, and war, like many other things, would have many reasons to persist in an imperfect world.

And fortunately for their cause, it would be too late for Equestria once this knowledge would be known, for it would only be when Equestria finally realizes the shifting tides, with one of their most beloved and important figure's being washed away with it.

“As it had been said before, ‘if a god could bleed, those who believed will cease in their belief in him… and there will be blood to be spilled in the waters, and where there's blood, the sharks will come.’”

Operation Winter Phoenix

View Online

2050, 5^th Year of the Conversion war,

Salvaged Translated Transcript

“Mr. President,” an agent approached.

“Ah, Viktor Reznov, I believe we have some overdue talk, come, please, sit down, and please, don’t call me ‘Mr. President’, too much akin to America, never been a fan, but changes have been made.”

“Then what should I call you by, sir?” Viktor asked, clearly uncomfortable addressing his superior by name instead of title.

“Vladimir, just Vladimir, and I believe we are due to discuss your retirement, correct?” He asked.

“More than that sir, I wish to um… inform you, of the current situation on the war.”

Looking out the window of his jet, the president of Russia continued to mumble something under his breath, “I see, I believe I have yet to be informed of the payload we are bringing?” He asked, a stern voice comparable to a teacher speaking to the students.

“We apologize, sir, it was for your own safety and the countries well-being that we kept it hidden for this long, we hope that you understand.” Viktor responded, still being wary of what might happen next.

“None taken,” The president responded, “but know that those files are better burned than stored, even in the most secured of places, no ill will against you, Viktor, I understand you are merely complying with the other agents of the U.N. even if I myself might digress in some instances, but there is much to do, the war brought some considerable changes, one of which I will not argue was beneficial to the sustainability of Russia in the long run.”

“What do you mean sir?”

Grabbing a bottle of vodka and what appeared to be a blueprint from his personal desk, the president continued, “A drink, for this war as brought great opportunities of the brilliant minds of the Russian people, able to compete with Western designs, we are able to work hand-in-hand to create something even better with our allies of World War 2, bringing new friends and turning our once most fierce foe’s into great allies, to help compete against a common foe!” He said as he opened the blueprint, a sketch of what appeared to be a joint project between Russia and Japan in creating a winter Mecha, he also poured the vodka into shot glass for them both.

“I believe Dr. Thalmann already showed his disapproval for such designs, at least until they are able to finish the J.G.W. project.” Viktor said as he inspected the blueprints, it had always fascinated him as an agent, but then he noticed a note integrated into it, “Um, Sir Vlad, if I may, but I would like to ask, in what way are ‘The Chosen Thee’ be involved with this certain blueprint of yours?”

Looking at the agent, then to the blueprint, the president merely gave a shrug, unamused, perhaps from the failure of some past project just from the mention of the designation, “I believe you knew of the artifacts known as the ‘Elements of Harmony’ correct?”

“Of course, who wouldn’t? It was the main attraction of the friendship tour back a decade or so ago, amongst other alternative perspectives.” He said, a somber tone creeping into his voice as he finished.

“And if such an artifact could be created, more than trice might I add with how there are six of these individual artifacts, I would have wanted the Germans, with the cooperation of the Americans and our other allies, to create something of similar value, one that has become an endeavor that lead to its own dead end, but greatly helped with the research for the power that this future generator would and might have to overcome…” The Russian president concluded, looking down at the bottle of Vodka he has still yet to drink, “Hmph, Friendship, rainbow power… what bullshit.” He murmured, one that the agent within his vicinity heard.

“What’s the matter sir?” he asked, completely bewildered by the man’s reaction.

“Too long has this war been waged, and in all honesty, Viktor, it is hard to keep a nation in check, let alone micromanage it,” He said, taking another shot of vodka in the process, “I believe Johann will be meeting you in Berlin, da?”

Nodding at the man, Viktor started to take his leave, he still, after all, had to oversee the operation, making sure everything went along smoothly, but before he could fully leave the compartment, Vladimir made one last remark,

“I believe we went a bit off-topic, I believe we should return later, I will make myself available for that time, I look forward to it.” He said.

“Da.” Viktor simply said, leaving the president's side, the Journey to Berlin was a long one, but one he believed to be going smoothly, all things considered.

As Jet flew through the winter night, violent winds pushed it, icing and other matters were being closely monitored, it continued to on its way to its destination, its engines being muffled by the winds that it pierced through. Viktor, admittedly, had an unsteady feeling ever since they left from Moscow, an unsteady feeling that he had missed something, he shook his head repeatedly, trying to loosen up his thoughts, but he then decided it was best to ease his worry once and for all, after all, nearly anything could happen.

“You there,” he said as he pointed at one of the radio operators of the room, “Check our signal to London, Berlin, and Paris.”

“What about Washington, sir?” One of the operators asked.

“Nyet,” Viktor simply replied, “Agent for Washington been moved back to Paris, we will figure out who's new for Washington later.”

Agreeing and giving simple nods, the operators immediately went back to work

“Blyat, where is Jean when you need him,” Viktor said, contemplating the actions that had led to this flight, although he accepted the plan, that didn’t mean he enjoyed it one bit. For the most part, he knew something was about to go wrong, but it’s not that he knew knew something was wrong, it was the fact that through sheer luck, he had managed to survive literal hell holes and death incarnate, and deep down, he knew everyone beside him usually aren’t as lucky, but he hoped for the best, like most people.

Waiting for a moment for the operators in the room for anything new, Viktor decided to look out the window, it was around 4 am or so, and the morning sun was about to rise up soon, a few more hours maybe, until they reach Berlin.

“SIR!” One of the operators responded, “We got a message from Warsaw, Poland, there’s been a recent transmission, would you like to listen to it?”

“Da.” He responded.

Quickly, said operator simply waved at another operator, and once finished, began playing the new transcript that they had received.

“Sent from London, United Kingdom, time: exactly one hour before midnight, subject: Possibilities with recent sightings, Begin Log: Good evening to whoever may find this message of use, first matter of context, this message was sent through the English channel into France and is to be broadcast to and through an and all nations and agencies for the matter at hand. That said, this is an urgent message that is to be kept in utmost secrecy, recently, around the 13th hour today, sightings of two out of the four Alicorns, code names: ‘Selena’ and ‘Astraeus’ headed away from the Indian Ocean and was seen presumably headed West of Iran, unfortunately, one of them, ‘Selena’ was seen parting ways and headed North, reasons as to why are currently unclear, although it is believed an attack will soon happen and is nearly guaranteed under the assumption that the two were on a scouting mission for a future attack somewhere in the Mediterranean Sea or former Warsaw Pact nations, Until further notice, we hope this message will reach far and would remain anonymous, Cheerio lads…”

And with that, it presumably ended the transmission. The silence was prominent, everyone waited silently, and they knew this message was supposed to arrive earlier, than what could have been done to warrant such a long delay.

Viktor, eyeing the operator with a death glare, was promptly responded with genuine confusion, before he promptly took action, not allowing this setback to affect his objective.

“Get da the Migs on standby, I want Polish and German air-traffic control to know of our potential course of action while where still up, and have any and all aircraft available to be sent on our side, I want to keep the Eureka effect at a minimum, right. I need to speak with the president for now.” And with that set of order, he left it to the operators in the room to do what they did best, while he himself went to see the Russian president to break the news, one he would probably find most disappointing considering the amount of time it took for it to even reach them.

Making his way into the president’s cabin, he wondered about the other agents and the plans that they would follow soon after, unpleasant hours of talking just discussing the basic precautions and whatnot, or maybe something else of the like. Making a quick checking on his sidearm, a custom engraved M1911 gift to him by a friend during his time in America, he found it ironic considering its origin and how it came about to be in his possession.

Entering the cabin itself, he came face to face with his president once again, “Sir, I believe we have a message that you should know.”

“Save it for yourself, Viktor, I already know about the transmission,” Vladimir said as he began to write something in his notebook.

“Then you should know this presents a problem for us, and by extension, the international community…”

“Then in honesty, Viktor,” Vladimir said as he set aside what he wrote, seemingly finishing whatever he had written down, “I am perhaps guilty of the sin of omission, just like you, and just like the rest of them.” He said in a tone that Viktor only ever heard once in his life, the first time when Equestria had decided to wage this war.

And on that exact moment, a navy blue like light started to emit in the doorway of the cabin, one that shocked Viktor as he turned to look at it, who was in front of the president while they had that short exchange of words, with the president himself seemingly managed to keep his cool behind Viktor’s back.

But before another word could be spoken, the bright navy blue flashed in an instant, the end of a teleportation spell being cast. And from the navy blue flash out came the Darkness of Shadows herself, one of the many names that Princess Luna has gained with her infamy. And despite the shock on his face, his instincts kicked in and Viktor drew his gun out and fired a total of 6 shots, 2 missing the intruder and flew past the doorway while the other 4 hit their marks, but were promptly blocked by the mare with her magic.

Immediately after that, Luna began hysterically laughing as she herself began to speak and give a speech about how humanity was wrong in her royal Canterlot voice, most likely feeling like a god at that point. Through it all, Viktor promptly turned around to the president, who merely gave him a nod of agreement at what he was about to do, and so, Viktor raised his gun and shot 1 last bullet through the right eye socket of the president, making the slide of his gun lock back, not allowing the man he had served under to be killed by a creature from another world. All the while, Luna did not notice what the last bullet was for, but she assumed it was to set something on fire, as that point, she had smelled the faint trace of fire aboard the aircraft.

Not another second wasted, her horn began to softly glow at first but picked up on intensity in a short time. Knowing his fate was sealed, Viktor removed the magazine of his pistol and lobed another in as he released the slide, chambering another round ready to fire away. And fire away he did, as he shot 6 rounds directly in the direction of the princess, promptly being blocked with magic again, the final round was a special one that he placed in the magazine, and he chose to shoot a bit higher, directly at the tip of Luna’s horn. Expecting herself to be able to block this next bullet, to her complete surprise, this one gave a mini-explosion near her horn, causing a sudden and painful headache, one that she was able to partly manage, as she suddenly loosed a bit of focus which affected her ability to cast that spell on that very moment. After a second or so, she regained her senses, with rage evident in her eyes as she started to cast another spell, floating a bit as the energy of this spell was being built up within her.

The shock of the situation had never left Viktor’s face, having his blood running hot and adrenalin at its height, it left little room for him to change expression, his shocked face still evident. But on a short moment, his face shifted that from shock to acceptance, knowing he could never run forever, knowing that perhaps, his job was finally done.

And with that, the aircraft was split into two as a defining explosion accompanied it as it broke through the winter air, undoubtedly because of Luna’s actions and the spell she had cast. The explosion itself triggered a second one as the fuel tanks of the aircraft started to burn and explode one by one, a light show that lit up the night sky.

Hundreds, if not thousands of papers started to be caught in the wind, all lit aflame like the aircraft itself, the aircraft as a whole was a fiery inferno in the night as its contents burned while it dropped from the sky as they scattered through thousands of miles in any and all directions. The lunar princess herself vacated the area, who knows where she went.

It was a mess, and only when the smoke started to grow and the fire grew brighter did a few jets arrive at the scene, much later than expected, but it was already too late as they reported it. And in the break of dawn, a massive cover-up was issued by the UN for this incident, it won’t encapsulate the entire truth, but a lie of omission is always better than a truth that could be used against you, one that would also influence what Equestria would know and one that will ensure that some secrets be buried, because amongst the burning papers and metals are parts of the project: J.G.W. plans and the identities of some Equestrian defectors and their locations, ones that they made sure was either burned or buried by the fire or was recovered for safekeeping.

But at the end of all of this, it only further provided support and reason that paved the way for what could single-handedly be considered the most important battle of the war, The Battle for Jerusalem, or as it's known by another name, The Battle of Religions.

Author's Notes:

OK...

This chapter was a lot of fun to make, I wanted to make this chapter as fast-paced as possible since I imagined that the encounter with Princess Luna would warrant a fast counteraction and a short time in which there would actually be interactions between the two sides, which is why I wanted to try and set the scene in the begging of the story.

To explain some decisions made in the story, I always thought of Russians, largely in due part with their ferocity in wanting revenge during world war 2, as people who are willing to go the extra distance to achieve their goals, at least in an unintuitive way that could compete with the west, indirectly or directly, I imagined and believed that Princess Luna would directly come face to face with the Russian president, but not without some resistance as expected and a twist mixed in, mostly due to the fact that the bodyguards of the president would likely try fighting to save the life of the person they are trying to protect.

Not only that, but I also wanted a reason as to why the Russian president would be flying on that aircraft and the mission as a whole, I would still hold the belief that Luna eliminated them in order to instill a sense of fear and extent of her power, and how she missed a great opportunity had she know the full purpose of the flight beyond just transporting the president. So in the end, I imagined that Princess Luna mistook the

Also, the reference to Viktor Reznov is one that, although cheap in some aspects, was done for the memes, and the other name for "The Battle of Jerusalem" (which is as said in the story, "The Battle of Religions") is a direct nod to a real-life battle going by "The Battle of Leipzig", which is known as "The Battle of Nations" that happened in 1813

Until furthermore or smth, and till next time!

Warfare: Cogs of the War Machine

by Im a B O X

A Payload of Papers

A Spy's Unlikely End (part 1)

A Spy's Unlikely End (Part 2)

A Spy's Choice (part 3)

Operation Winter Phoenix