Slavegear - Part 3

Fire takes a seat beside kaylee, "another job well done..." she smirks.

Rain smiles and looks to harle, "its no problem... " she chuckles

Twilight rubs her chin in thought. "Speaking of said grandson... I wonder how he's going to be affected by all of this. His legal guardian and grandmother were taken for "No reason" after a bunch of terrorists and thieves barged in, so what effect will it have on him? And who has to raise him now... And can they fix what we've done..."

(Radiance)
"The easiest option would be to just put Priscilla under house arrest and let her grandson live with her. I doubt someone her age would last long in a high-security prison." Radiance leaned forward folding his hand and supporting his chin on them while resting his elbows on his knees

"And learning that another master 'convinced' her to burn the shed down and by proxy causing Drasko to go on the rampage, there's a possibility Priscilla is just another pawn in Marek's plan. That other master may hold answers, I suggest we try to locate him"

Elisabeth scowled at the floor: "Priscilla Ealhhere is a horrid monster that doesn't deserve house arrest. She should feel lucky that the death penalty is outlawed in the Union court.
And.. I believe putting her next to her grandson would be unhealthy for him. What will a woman like that teach her child?"


She wrapped herself in her arms and slightly shivered from the cold:
"...in the end, what happens to her, is not up to me. She will be judged by the Unions high court and her crimes will be made public, for all to see.

As for her grandson.. I imagine the Union social services will reach out and try to locate any other family members that Priscilla's grandson may have. Then work to unite them together. If he doesn't have any other family, a legal guardian will be assigned to him, or, perhaps there will be a family willing to adopt him.
The social services will make sure he is taken care of. He won't be left on the street.." Elisabeth looked down and sighed:



"As for Marek, I highly doubt he orchestrated any of it. The Union Intelligence has been constructing a thorough psychological profile on him. From what they could tell, Marek is extremely protective of his own people.
He would never do anything to jeopardize their safety, or take action that would lead to their death.


This means that the incident with Priscilla and with the Sprawl, happened without Mareks knowledge or consent. In both cases, batpony lives were endangered.. or taken..
If Marek could foresee these events taking place, he would likely take action to prevent them from happening.

At least, that's what we believe, based on the psychological profile we have constructed"



She looked at her feet and moved them a little, across the choppers cold floor:

"...bad things happen sometimes... its just life... it doesn't mean Marek is behind all of them... There are bad people in the world, who are cruel and uncaring and cold, who would turn a blind eye to the suffering of others, rather than get involved and burden their perfect lives with emotions of empathy to their fellow man.

It would be easier to blame a single man like Marek, for every occurrence of crime, but the unfortunate truth is that, there are just bad people, who live in this world and do ugly things.

But rest assured, everyone who committed a crime, every slave owner from Nyx, will be actively sought and arrested... sooner or later. The Union police doesn't forget"






"...alright" Kaylee released a small sight, visibly affected by the gloom emanating from Elisabeth:
"We are currently en route to Nyx. Estimated arrival within the hour"

Kaylee said and slightly straightened up in her seat:

"I will now give a detailed briefing on the upcoming operation. This may be a lot to take in, so feel free to ask me questions.






At this moment, we have three major factions, causing a friction in Nyx.

The first, is Artemis.
They already have an alarming military presence in Nyx and during the past few hours, a steady stream of reinforcements has been joining them.
We fear they are preparing to enact martial law and officially seize full control of the country of Nyx.
The problem is, technically Artemis isn't doing anything illegal, since its increase in military presence, was in response to attack on its citizens.




The second faction is Marek, and his Vampire Unit.
A few hours ago, one of our informants has spotted Marek, in the capital city of Nyx. It appears Marek was moving an alarmingly large shipment of weapons.
From what we could tell, Marek is gearing up for a major combat operation. Likely in response to Artemis' growing presence in Nyx.





The third faction is unknown.
Our information on them is alarmingly scarce. If you recall, several hours ago, a masked group of men, claiming to be the Vampire Unit, have declared open war against Artemis.
They demanded all Artemis forces to leave Nyx immediately. Failure to comply, would result in heavy attacks against Artemis.

Since that video was publicly shown to the world, three attacks have already taken place against Artemis targets, located inside the country of Nyx. Among the targets was an Artemis embassy.

Each time, this unknown faction deliberately targeted Artemis civilians. Each time, they were never seen and no witnesses could coherently describe the attackers. The Artemis civilian death toll has now climbed over one hundred and fifty.
This is the reason why Artemis has increased its military presence in Nyx.

As of this moment, we cannot confirm that the unknown faction is infact the Vampire Unit. The men on the video were masked, we could not see their wings.
For all we know, they're not even batponies.



The agenda of this faction is unknown. Their ultimate goal is unknown, but its clear that they are targeting Artemis civilians and escalating the situation in Nyx.

So, our current mission is to identify this faction and stop it, before they claim anymore innocent lives and provoke the situation in Nyx to blow out of control.




We will be landing in the city of Drahoslav. It is the capital city of Nyx.
Marek was spotted there a few hours ago and in addition, its where the last attack against Artemis took place.

We will land on the ground and proceed to the area of the last attack, then try to gather information on the unknown faction that carried it out.

New information is expected to arrive on an hourly basis. We have numerous informants on the ground that stand ready to feed us new information as it becomes available.





To summarize, our mission is to identify and stop the unknown faction, before they claim anymore innocent lives. And by extension, it should prevent an all out war from breaking down in the country of Nyx.

Does anyone have any questions? I understand this may be a lot to take in" Kaylee nodded with understanding.

(Radiance)
"Have we learned anything new about the workers who were replaced at the HGST? There may be some connection between them, the group that attacked us when we first woke up in the hospital, and this terrorist group in Nyx."

Kaylee nodded:

"During the mission in the radio station, we found something new.

It appears Marek has hired a PMC. A Private Military Company named Raiden.



It appears Raiden has served as Mareks proxy, and did all his dirty work.

Raiden paid the radio station, to smear us and ruin our public image.
Raiden slowly replaced the staff in the HGTS maintenance station, dismantled the robot and smuggled it out in the medical trucks.


Raiden was involved in almost everything, that required a public appearance.


And now that we've discovered their involvement, they are left holding the bag, and Marek remains in the shadows.
Raiden will be officially charged with the Slavegear incident. And Marek will officially remain innocent.


Raiden knew this would happen, and they still agreed to help Marek.


I don't know what the hell he's paying them, to take a fall for him, but it must be in the millions. Raiden turned itself into an enemy of the world, while Marek remains officially innocent and still hidden in the shadows.

Where the hell did he get that cash to begin with??"

Onboard the helicopter, something that really shouldn't have happened... happened.

A bright flash of light ripped throughout the cramped space as the universe was torn apart. The flash subsided, revealing the prone forms of a changeling and a very familiar grey mare.

Derpy patted herself down, putting out a small fire on her thigh that was blazing happily. She started to speak as the conspicuously naked changeling got to her feet. "Hey. I have got to stop doing this."

V'tara spoke up, grimacing to herself. "Our timelines are phasing in and out of yours. What's happened since..." She took a sidelong glance at Derpy's dress. "The ball?"

Rain had opened up a honeybun and was eating while listening to kaylee, "Well I mean... We know he has a big truckfull of that chrystal stuff..." she frowns, "...he could be using that to pay them..." she falls silent, "...or he has something to bribe them with."

She leans back and puts her arm around the seat behind Harle, "I feel as though this is going to be a shitshow... A squad of current terrorists trying to stop two armys and a germane terrorist group..." she chuckles, "we are so fucked..." she tilts her head back and laughs.

"Right so in short, beat up anyone who poses a danger to civilians" Moon sighed, staring out the window "And try not to do anything stupid"

"Right" Kaylee nodded, then scratched the back of her head:
"..oh man. That's right, a truck full of Tilerium crystals went missing. Its estimated worth was over 70 billion credits. If Marek has that kind of money... its unsettling to think what else he can do with it.."


Harlequin looked at Rain for a moment, then quietly said: "Please stay close to me once we're on the ground. The situation in Nyx is extremely dangerous.
If things get too messy, I will have to ask us to retreat. Please cooperate with me if I ask that..."



At that moment, a bright flash of light illuminated the helicopter, and Derpy and V'tara came into view.

Kaylee emitted a startled shriek and latched onto Elisabeths arm.
In a split second second, Harlequin unsheathed an alarmingly long knife out of her sleeve and jumped out of her seat, shielding Rain with her body.

"No! Stop!" Kaylee screamed out in panic: "They're allies!!!"

Harlequin froze, carefully watching Derpy and V'tara, then slightly lowered her knife. You get the feeling that she's trying to assess their combat capability.

"Easy guys" Kaylee slowly got up, raising her hands in a calming manner: "Its okay, they're our friends"

She looked at Derpy and V'tara and smiled: "You have no idea how glad I am to see you guys. Are you okay? You disappeared into the time vortex so suddenly, I wasn't sure what happened"
She released a shy smile and scratched the back of her head:
"I wish we were meeting at a more peacefull time, we're actually on our way to a mission"

Twilight rubs her temples a bit before turning to the newcomers.

"Right, so... A short rerun on this..."

A scowl forms on her face. "It's classified. Not for everyone to know. There's a lot going on, and every misstep could prove fatal for us and more importantly, our operations."

As Harlequin put down the knife, Derpy found herself catching her breath. Despite her training, she hadn't reacted quick enough to this stranger. "Thanks Kaylee, It's good to see some familiar faces. Apart from being ripped out of time and space, we're both in one piece."

"No idea why by the way-" V'tara piped up as her form shifted in a green glow, a black jumpsuit appearing around her carapace. "But that's not important right now. So help the civilians, take out the bad guys and try not to destroy everything in the process. Sounds straightforward!"

Trying her best not to diffuse her companions enthusiasm, Derpy continued. "So Kaylee, Twilight. Is your group still on the run? Just tell us the basics and we'll do our best to help." And not get killed, she thought to herself while looking at the masked stranger that seemed to be staring intently at her.

"And one final thing. Do you have a change of clothes?"

The second Harlequin had drawn her knife, Moon had grabbed the handle of her sword. Even as everyone calmed down she kept her grip on her weapon, now alert and jumpy.

Rain seems... Underwhelmed... She gently places her arm on Harles belly and nudges her tward the seat, "sit back down Harle..." she looks up at her, "I will be staying close have no worry..." she nods, "they do that a lot dea-" she stops herself and clears her throat, "...h-harle."

Derpy/V'tara wrote:As Harlequin put down the knife, Derpy found herself catching her breath. Despite her training, she hadn't reacted quick enough to this stranger. "Thanks Kaylee, It's good to see some familiar faces. Apart from being ripped out of time and space, we're both in one piece."

"No idea why by the way-" V'tara piped up as her form shifted in a green glow, a black jumpsuit appearing around her carapace. "But that's not important right now. So help the civilians, take out the bad guys and try not to destroy everything in the process. Sounds straightforward!"

Trying her best not to diffuse her companions enthusiasm, Derpy continued. "So Kaylee, Twilight. Is your group still on the run? Just tell us the basics and we'll do our best to help." And not get killed, she thought to herself while looking at the masked stranger that seemed to be staring intently at her.

"And one final thing. Do you have a change of clothes?"

"I think there're a few spare combat fatigues lying around somewhere" Lord Wyvern says.

(Radiance)
"Thankfully not everyone want's to kill us now," Radiance said answering Derpy's question "We've got some allies backing us up and we're actually starting to go on the offensive. So, fate picked a good time to drop you back with us."

(Everyone)


Kaylee nodded, nervously rubbing her fingers and thinking:
"The situations a bit complicated, we'll try to gradually fill you in on everything as we move on.

At the moment, we are on our way to the city of Drahoslav, the capital city of Nyx and the homeland of the batponies. Due to its geographical location, the country of Nyx is obscured by a continuous cycle of night, for most of the month. Sunrise and daylight are very rare.

Nyx was recently liberated from slavery and they are now under the wing and supervision of a country called Artemis. Artemis has a large number of military forces stationed in Nyx, and unfortunately due to recent events, Artemis believes us to be criminals, so we should limit our contact with them as much as possible.



We will be landing close to an Artemis established college. A great number of Artemis scientists and Ph.D. professors have traveled to Nyx, to open this college and offer free academic education to the batponies.

The college worked fairly well for the past weeks and quickly grew in popularity among the batponies. Unfortunately, an unknown faction has carried out an attack on this college, deliberately targeting Artemis civilians and staff.


This attack is unacceptable and our mission is to find out who carried it out, then stop them"

She looked at Derpy and V'tara, releasing as shy smile: "...we could really use your help actually"





Elisabeth slowly got up from her seat and went to dig through the gear lockers, stored at the back of the chopper. After a while, she returned with a set of military clothing, a tactical vest and two ear piece radios:

"Please take this" she passed the earpieces to both V'tara and Derpy, then passed the clothing and vest to Derpy as well: "We can stay in contact like this, no matter where we are located...

Its good to see you again, Derpy..." Elisabeth said, releasing a small fatigued smile. She seemed much more tired and gloomier than you remembered her.

Her eyes had a hint of black circles under them and her stare was a little odd, almost haunted. It seemed as if a hidden fear was lurking behind her eyes, something she was deeply afraid of and tried to suppress in her subconsciousness. The action making her a little twitchy and gloomier than usual.




Harlequin looked at Rain, then stiffly returned to her seat and slowly hid her blade in her sleeve again. You hear a faint metalical click from her clothing. There must be some sort of contraption hidden in her sleeve, that somehow stores the knife she used.

Harlequin briefly looked at Rain and nodded: "..right"

She looked straight ahead and remained sitting slightly stiff throughout the ride. Her eyes are slightly unfocused and staring into space, directly ahead. Something was funny about her body language. Is she blushing?






Kaylee looked at Moon and nodded with a relaxing smile: "Its okay, they're old friends.
A few years ago, they went on a mission with my sister Elisabeth. They... saved her life..
in more ways than one.."

"Kaylee please.." Elisabeth quietly called, awkwardly returning to her seat: "..we agreed not to talk about that day... too many painful memories..." Elisabeth quietly sat down and began staring at her feet. For a brief moment, you thought you caught something in her voice. As if everything that's happening to her recently, had to do with that day.

Elisabeth uncomfortably shivered and wrapped herself in her arms.






The helicopter flight lasted for over 45 minutes. The machine making its way through the dead of night, finally touched down in a large parking lot, inside a massive city. Here and there, you notice a few sky scrapers.

Off to the side, was a massive mountain, that began on the edge of the city. Its peak was so high, it almost faded in the clouds.

The surrounding area seemed relatively busy and the choppers pilot hurried everyone out of the helicopter, before quickly taking off and ascending into the cover of clouds again.




"The city of Drahoslav" Johan quietly said, looking at the city lights with a faint smile: "...I really did miss this place.."

"This way" Kaylee motioned everyone to follow: "We have to reach the college. Please be mindful of your surroundings, as we walk through the streets. Most of the population here are batponies, we have nothing to fear from them.
But if you spot any kind of military personnel or armored vehicles, that is most certainly Artemis and they will try to apprehend. If you see them, just hide in the crowd, or run if the spot you.


The college is this way" she left the parking lot and entered one of the busy streets of Drahoslav. Numerous old cars were driving down the road to your right. A relatively large crowd of batponies was passing you by, sometimes giving alarmed glances at your gear.

After a while, Kaylee slightly frowned at herself: "..perhaps we should conceal ourselves better... we must be attracting some level of attention.."

(Tarmikos)


The door behind you opened and two guards, accompanied by Eva, slowly entered the room.

"Tarmikos, Doctor" one of the guards nodded, then looked at Tarmikos: "Sir, we have orders to transport you to the city of Adelheid, and place you into the Union police custody upon arrival.
Rest assured, your safety will be our top priority during the ride. You have nothing to fear.
Officer Eva volunteered to oversee this mission" the guard looked at Eva.


Eva herself was extremely quiet and avoided eye contact however. She was wearing a police tactical vest, with a large emblem of the Adelheid police department on her shoulder. A large sword rested on her belt.


The guard waited a moment, but Eva didn't say anything. The guard then returned to look at you and nodded: "I apologize to cut your session short, but we have to move out now sir"

// Hey guys, sorry for the long posts recently, I'll try to make them shorter I swear

"Just stay quiet" she whispered and moved forward, her eyes instantly adjusting to the darkened night. "What if Artemis catches one of us?" She asked quietly, looking about to get a sense of her surroundings.

MoonDusts wrote:"Just stay quiet" she whispered and moved forward, her eyes instantly adjusting to the darkened night. "What if Artemis catches one of us?" She asked quietly, looking about to get a sense of her surroundings.

"Then clear your mind of everything but your name, rank, and serial number" Lord Wyvern says "And if you lack any or all of the above, then replace as necessary with dank memes."

"Hmmm..." Twilight began to ponder a bit on the subject. "Let's be quiet for now. And for our looks, I got two ideas. We either hide the strange part of our gear, or a unicorn like me can cast a spell to fit in better. Though we might need a dark alley for that to be convincing."

Rain lets out an awkward laugh tapping her foot a bit and looking away from Harle to clear her throaِt. After they land she hops out of the chopper and waits for the checkered girl to join them. Rain hears what moon sayd and looks over to her, "The Artimis military will try to arrest us, that is standard protocol... Also standard protocol, just fuckin' shoot them and say they were resisting arrest..." she shrugs, "it sounds terrible and I have done it a few times but honestly it just makes things easier and they really sweeten your name on the news." she frowns, "yeah I know... Honorable."

(Radiance)
"Speaking of news and Artemis police. Is there any way for our ear pieces to pick up the frequencies from other radios? Knowing the locations of all military patrols would not only alert us to their presence but any mention of our would-be attackers."


(Tarmikos)
Tarmikos looked at Eva. Worry and concern started to cloud is formerly calm expression. He nodded slowly standing up from his seat. He didn't quite stand up all the way. It almost looked like he was carrying guilt for something unknown on his shoulders.

"Then let's get going," Tarmikos turned back briefly nodding Zarovee before turning his full attention to the escort group.

HAPPY NEW YEAR EVERYONE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! =D