Chapter 2: A Mission Centuries in the Making

I'd been to the aerodrome before but never to actually board a ship. I had to admit, the prospect of flying was kind of exciting. The hangar was absolutely massive, built to accommodate airships, other vehicles and plenty of supplies. I'm told the aerodrome was a stadium before the war, a place where sporting events were held. Having grown up in a Stable for most of my life, it was hard to imagine anypony playing saddle ball in a place so huge.

Dominating the center of the stadium were five airships. Enormous oval-shaped vessels supported by four tiny metal struts at the bottom, they were constructed recently by Prancem engineers based on Equestrian and Zebra designs. The crew area was a windowed ring that surrounded the vessel like a protruding belt. Two large wings stuck out of the sides, folded down to allow access to the belt area.

Ponies of all kinds, Stable Dwellers in their purple jumpsuits and engineers carrying tools all moved about the hangar checking things on the airships. General Typhoon led us single-file to the center airship. He stopped just short of the massive armored blimp and turned abruptly to face us.

"This is the vessel that will be taking you to Equestria. She's a new Investigator-class assault ship, fully-equipped with the supplies you'll need to carry out your mission." As the stallion spoke, a Spritebot hovered over to his side. "Each of you has been specially selected for this mission. While the Crystal Empire group will be outfitted for combat, the sensitivity of the Equestria mission prevents us from deploying you with any equipment that might encumber you. You'll be relying on each other, using each others' skills to complete your objectives. For the president, for Prancem."

"For Pracem!" we repeated, more out of instinct than anything else. The Spritebot next to him let up, the screen on the front of its frame coming to life as it transmitted a signal. The Pipbucks on our forelegs responded, their own screens lighting up. I looked at mine, twisting it around on my leg. Sometimes, I almost forgot the thing was there even though it was so integrated into my system, my own body even.

The pipbuck, the Prancem versions at least were information display devices that wrapped around the leg like a bracer band. The machines were like miniature computer terminals attached to you; they could display maps, hold tons of data, analyze things and even had a radio and light built into them. They also partially embedded themselves into your nervous and circulatory system, electronically linking with cybernetic implants that had been surgically inserted in us at birth, implants none of us had been told we'd recieved. The pipbucks were invaluable, allowing us to perceive the world and evaluate situations in more in-depth ways. But they also kept track of you at all times which only made it the world's most invaluable chain you were leashed to.

"Your pipbucks have just been updated. You all now have full access to the OATES tactical awareness software," the general stated. Something changed in my vision; numbers, letters, tiny little meters appeared at the corners of my eyes. Blinking didn't even make them go away. Around me, the other members of the squad seemed to be experiencing the same thing. Suddenly, I felt nauseas, very nauseas.

The general kept speaking. "The Optical Advanced Targeting Espionage System, or OATES is the latest in targeting technology developed by Magi-Tec. You now have access to a Head-Up-Display or HUD at all times."

I felt like I was going throw up for real this time. My knees buckled and bent down to the ground. Everything in my vision looked too sharp, like looking through a high-resolution screen. My head started burning and I gritted my teeth from the intense discomfort. The others staggered, going through the same process. I saw my sister fall over; struggling, I tried to walk over to her but my hooves felt too heavy to move.

"Just relax. It will be over soon," Typhoon stood over us, waiting. Carefully, I brought myself up to my hooves, shaking off the effects. The feeling quickly dissipated and I was able to stand again.

"What the hell did you just do to us?!" Squall demanded.

"As I said," Typhoon began again, turning to back to the Spritebot. "I just updated and activated your OATES. Because we can't outfit you with the heavier gear, weapons and armor, we're giving you an advanced targeting system. It's still a bit in the experimental phase but there should be no side-effects."

"So, what?" I asked, hoof to my aching head, "We're going to have this random text floating around our heads at all times?"

"Of course not!" the general shot me an angered glance. "OATES activates manually; you control it with your ears. Press your ears down flat like you're entering an aggressive stance and the system will engage automatically. It's designed to heighten your reflexes, improve response time and coordinate with your team members on the fly. When you activate OATES, you'll enter a state of extreme awareness where you'll be able to coordinate with the members of your squad to act together almost instantaneously."

"Wow," Bandwidth commented, looking around the room. "Can you also play games on these things?"

Typhoon sighed and looked over at the Pegasus. "They're designed for combat... but yes, for some reason, the techs included some basic programs along with the software package. Including games," he said, his tone conveying the fact he predicted the use of the targeting system for entertainment purposes.

"Sweet," Bandwidth replied, pressing his hoof to his ear. "How do you access 'em?"

"I'll let you figure that out on your own," the general said, pressing a nob on the hovering Spritebot. "For now, your mission debriefing. The president will be going over with you the details of this mission himself." Without warning, the screen on the Spritebot activated projecting an image of President Iceblood behind a desk.

"General, Enforcers, good morning again," the president addressed us. "I trust the general has already acquainted each of you with the new OATES system?"

Were we supposed to answer him? "Uh... yes, Mr. President...?" Azrael piped up.

"Very good. It'll no doubt be crucial to your mission. Now," the president leaned back in his chair. "you're all familiar with history, correct? Some two-hundred and fifty years ago, Equestria to the south and the Zebra Empire to the north were at war. Prancem was one of the few nations that remained neutral in the conflict, one of the reasons we're still here today. At the height of the war, both nations launched megaspells at each other, raining fire and destruction that reduced most of their cities to craters, ash and ruin in the blink of an eye. What's left of both of these countries is irradiated wasteland. Nothing can survive there."

That was a lie and we all knew it. Survivors from both Equestria and Zebra territory made their way into Prancem now and again; it was part of the reason Enforcers were necessary. Still, from what we'd heard, Prancem was a beacon of hope and safety in the other parts of the world, a place that wasn't irradiated that had clean food, water and shelter. If Iceblood's micro-military state is what passed for a bright and shiny spot, I almost feared to see what the rest of the world looked like. Almost.

The president continued. "Equestria, Prancem and the Crystal Empire used to be allied with one another. We shared technology and resources, it was a fruitful relationship. But when the war with the zebras broke out, Prancem and the Crystal Empire decided to remain neutral. And Equestria decided to cut off their resources. The flow of goods our nation relied on ceased because we chose not to be involved," Iceblood turned away from the camera. "They claimed it was because the materials were needed for the war... but anypony could tell you the truth: they did it out of spite."

I'd never heard the president speak like this before. Despite the fact I hated him, I couldn't help but listen. It wasn't often you heard about things before the war from somepony who was there.

He turned to face us again. "Enter the Magi-Tec corporation. Because we felt Equestria had betrayed the values our alliance upheld, special teams were dispatched to enforce those ideas and encourage them to be a little more 'generous' with their technology. So we called them the Enforcers. And they were responsible for most of our technological advancements we have today. Isn't that right, General?"

General Typhoon beamed. "Absolutely. This is the legacy you're joining, a proud tradition you're each a part of and something very vital to Prancem. Our nation might be small but as long as we have our Enforcers, we'll be able to make sure that the ideals we cherish persist even across borders."

Great, I thought to myself. So we honor three centuries' worth of stealing from our neighbors. Good to know.

"Now, for what you weren't told in history class," the president leaned forward to the screen. "Before the megaspells dropped, Magi-Tec was working on acquiring one for Prancem. A group of Enforcers infiltrated the highest ranks of Equestria's military trying to secure a megaspell that we could use and transport it back to us. The operation was running according to plan when... the megaspells were used."

If I had been interested before, now my full attention was on the president's words. Every day, he had ponies in the Prancem Stables working to build new weapons for him. If he got his hooves on a megaspell, there was no telling what this egomaniacal tyrant would do with it. I was only thankful that he didn't have one, not yet at least.

"There were a thousand megaspells developed in total, identical in yield. Our intelligence reported that they were divided up; half were given to the zebras and half were given to Equestria. Apparently, somepony believed the concept of "mutual shared destruction" would be deterrence enough to stop the violence."

"We can see how well that worked out," Typhoon commented.

"Up until now, we believed that all one-thousand megaspells had been used. But recently, we recovered information from a salvaged Enclave database indicating that our original figures were inaccurate. Specifically, only four-hundred and ninety-nine megaspells were delivered to each nation. Only nine-hundred and ninety-eight megaspells were used, two weren't."

The general stopped and slowly turned to the screen. Apparently, this was news to him as well. "You mean... there's still two live megaspells missing?"

Iceblood leaned back in his chair again. "Precisely. According to this database we've discovered, the two missing megaspells were to be delivered to two other neutral nations. Anypony care to guess which ones?"

"Prancem and the Crystal Empire..." Squall said, thinking aloud.

"Bingo. The Enclave database included a letter regarding the megaspell delivery. Apparently, the concept of mutually share destruction was to be total. Spells were meant to keep spells in check and so, in the event of a megaspell attack, Prancem was supposed to launch against the Crystal Empire... and the Crystals were to launch against us."

The squad erupted into puzzled murmurs. Even I was shocked. For all we knew, there was still a bomb pointed directly at the capital and had been for nearly three-hundred years.

"The megaspells were designed to be a system of deterrence. Somepony built them so that when one went off, they all went off simultaneously. The devastation was to be complete so that the threat alone would prevent violence. It was meant to stop the war... well, it worked," the president concluded.

Everypony was silent for a moment. Finally, the general spoke up again. "This is where our two squads come in. According to this information, Prancem was scheduled to receive its own megaspell and so was the Crystal Empire. We know for a fact that no megaspell was delivered to us. The Crystal squadron is being sent to the Crystal Empire to find the megaspell that was supposed to be used against us. Meanwhile, your group is going to hit various places in Equestria to find out where the one that was supposed to be delivered to us is and find out what happened to the Enforcers who were trying to acquire us one."

Other groups of ponies began entering the hangar as the general briefed us. The other Enforcers were now all fully armed and armored in their battle suits, helmets, battle saddles and all. They began boarding the other vessels alongside Spritebots and other technicians. Despite the president's advancement and intent on conquest, there were still very few Enforcers. I wondered if we had enough to complete this 'mission'.

"While the Crystal Empire group is expected to see some amount of combat, we don't know what to expect sending you into Equestria so be ready for anything," the president stated. "Find the location of those spells and any other data regarding the megaspell program, why we were targeted and why we were supposed to launch against the Crystals. This operation CANNOT fail, my little Enforcers. May Prancem guide you all."

The general saluted and the Spritebot's monitor flicked off. "Bandwidth, Thunderhorse, you'll both be flying us today. Let's mount up, Enforcers!" he shouted. Together, we walked up the wing of the airship and into the crew cabin. It was a bit smaller than it looked on the outside, like a hallway only large enough for single-file leading around a corner. Flip-down Chairs were mounted on the side of the wall presumably for rapid deployment. Bandwidth and Zap ran past me to the cockpit at the front, enthusiasm getting the better of them. To be honest, I was still excited a bit myself. I followed them to the front of the ship.

The cockpit wasn't that much roomier than the rest of the vessel. Our two pilots took seats in two windowed wells in the front giving them a good view of everything outside the ship. They were apparently already going over a preflight checklist, eager to get in the air. A bank of terminals sat against the large, rectangular porthole looking out with a couple chairs in front of them. I was a bit surprised to see Azrael sit down at one and put on a headset. It seemed everypony but me knew what to do.

The others continued walking around the corner except for Squall. He found a comfortable spot on the bulkhead wall, stood up on his hind legs, folded his hooves and leaned on it. Looking over to me, he shrugged. On the back wall of the cockpit were steel cabinets and lockers. In between them was a ladder leading up through the ceiling and back down through the floor, some kind of maintenance access. Maybe if I hid Rose and myself there, they'd forget about us.

What I was most concerned about was my sister. I waited for her to get on board; they were the last ones in line. She and her friend finally walked into the cockpit, their eyes glued to the floor.

"You okay, Rosey?" I asked.

She nodded. "My head feels fuzzy."

I knelt down and hugged her. "They did something to us... I think they might've done something to us a long time ago, too. They want us to do what they say."

She hugged me back tightly. "Is it always going to be like this?"

I couldn't lie to her. "I hope not." How could I explain it to her? How could I explain it to me? I found myself now fighting for the very illusion of freedom.

As we embraced, the general approached us walking into the cockpit himself. It was enough to shock me into releasing Rose and stand again.

"I'll be accompanying you all myself to ensure the success of both missions. I expect only the best from all of you," he said, walking past us. Perfect. There went my plans to actually enjoy some time off the leash. Being babysat by the president's lapdog threw a wrench in that pretty quickly. "Let's get this show on the road and in the air!"

"Condor Flight, preparing for takeoff," Bandwidth said, flipping switches above his head. Above us, the hangar doors opened letting light pour in. The other airships nearby us came to life as well, their own engines starting. The general took a seat next to Azrael. Feeling nervous, I took a step back and pressed myself against the wall along with Rose and Herbal.

Squall looked over to me and grinned. "First time, Sage?" I didn't say anything back but my expression made him chuckle. "Don't worry; it'll get worse." The remark made my sister and Herbal shiver. I glared at him while holding them both with my hooves, doing my best t comfort them.

"Main engines online, all systems nominal," Zap added. The ship's engines whirred as they powered up.

Typhoon tapped his own headset. "Control, this is Condor One. All moorings are retracted and we're ready for takeoff."

The radio crackled in response. "Roger Condor One, skies are clear and so are you. Good luck out there."

"Copy control, Condor One taking off." The ship lurched backward and just like that, we were airborne rising towards the roof of the aerodrome. The only other feeling I had to compare it to was that of an elevator; it felt like I could feel the entire ship lifting off through my hooves but quickly, it steadied out.

I was scared at first, continuing to press my body down to cover the two fillies and also make myself as small as possible. They closed their eyes tight, I felt my heart hit the back of my throat. But as the ship leveled out, the feeling of standing on solid ground began to return. I lifted my head up and looked through the viewport catching my first view of the cityscape.

Within that brief moment, whatever unnerving dread I felt evaporated being replaced by the sensation of just being that high up. I saw the tops of the office buildings and towers as we continued to ascend, the gray structures rivaling that of the clouds overhead. It was the most breathtaking sight I'd ever seen in my life. I felt like I could see all of Prancem. My mind wondered in that moment how big the world actually was, how much of it I could see.

I shook Rose and Herbal; they had to see this, too. "Rose, look!" The moment she and her friend opened their eyes, it seems they were captured by the view as well.

"Wow..." Herbal said, her voice actually deep for a mare so young.

"Quite a view, isn't it?" Squall asked. Together, the four of us stepped towards the glass. It was amazing looking out at the city for the first time. I imagined my home, Stable 1, somewhere down there in the ground. Part of me wondered if in that moment, our parents could look up and see us.

"Course plotted in and relayed to the other ships, sir," Azrael said, doing something at his terminal. I barely noticed because I was too busy trying to see every part of the city.

"Our first stop's the Crystal Empire and then south to Equestria. Make Prancem proud, Enforcers," the general said. The cockpit became quiet, nothing but the steady hum of the engines as we ascended over the city and into the clouds.