"If that's the case," Spike said "Diamond, I'm sorry, but we need the Doc here."

"Understandable." Diamond replied "I will tell him then." She turned and walked back to the Celestia. Big Mac gave Spike a concerned look.

"I'm sure she'll understand."

"Eeyup." Big Mac replied. After a few minutes of waiting, the Doctor came out, holding his Sonic Screwdriver.

"'Allo!" He said "Are we ready to go?"

"Yeah," Spike replied "Let's go."

"Hop in." The Wizard replied. Spike got into the passenger seat while Big Mac & the Doctor took the back seats. The shuttle's engines whirred and the Wizard took them to their area.

After a few minutes of flying, listening to some music on the radio that seemed very fitting, they landed in a parkway. Theyt all exited, greeted by a mage in Wizard armor.

"About time they sent me someone that looks like they can actually fight." he commented. "Did they tell you what we're up against?"

"The recruiter was a little vague." Spike replied

"We wouldn't get a lot of people if they knew the truth. Archangel's held up in a building at the end of the boulevard over there. She's got a superior position and the only way to her is a very exposed bridge. It's a killing ground, but she's getting tired and is making mistakes. Now that you're here, we may just get to her."

"I'll get to her; just point me to that bridge."

"I like your attitude, but we got a plan in place: you'll be on the distraction team. Head straight over to the bridge and keep Archangel busy until our infiltration team can sneak up on her and off her."

"This sounds like a suicide mission." The Doctor commented.

"Pretty much, but you look like you can handle it. get up to the boulevard and get to the third barricade. Talk to Sargent Catchka, he'll tell you what to do."  

"Alright," Spike replied "But the bridge is the only way to her hideout?"

"Exactly: Archangel collapsed all the underground passage ways and concealed all the doors to the lower levels. We went to digging, but it's taking too long. If they can get the gunship to fly again, that'll help. But I hope the infiltration team can go in and we can all go home."

"They're using one gunship to take out one woman!?"

"Yeah, and Archangel shot it down. She didn;t destroy it, but she made sure it was disabled. It wasn't even a fair fight, even for us."

"Yeesh, sounds tough. Anyways, where's the infiltration team right now?"

"On the far side of the bridge near her hideout, but they can;t get any closer without being seen."

"How'd they get that close, then?"

"More distractions: we used the gunship to keep her distracted. Now, they're stuck there, and that's where you all fit in."

"Alright, and what do you know about Archangel?"

"I'm the wrong guy to ask, I just do the logistics. You can talk to the other leaders, but they won't be happy to talk to any freelancers like you three."

"Alright, guess we're going to find Sargent Catchka then."

"Good idea, and keep your head down: archangel's killed dozens already." He walked away

"This is not going to be easy." The Doctor commented "When we get to her, then what are we going to do escape?"

"We'll figure that out later," Spike replied "but I know something you can do that'll help."

"And that is?"

"Your little device."

"My Sonic Screwdriver?"

"Yeah, can it hack into anything?"

"It sure can."

"I need you to mess with their equipment: make their robots turn on their owners, have weapons jam if you can, and make their communications play this song." He handed him the Doc a little message on a piece of paper. The Doc read it to himself.

"Hm... This... I can do, Commander."

"Good." He chuckled to himself "Now, do that while I talk to the bosses of these gangs. Big Mac, watch his back, make sure no one notices."

"Eeyup." Big Mac replied.

The three men headed into a room, seeing a bunch of raptors & angels wearing a dark purple tops & pants, black boots & gloves, a lightning yellow endings around their shirts collars, sleeves, & pants openings, and many were wearing either just a set of yellow tinted glasses or goggles, full on mask, or a mix of both. Right in the middle was a Vampire: this was the leader of the faction of this gang, the Shadowbolts.

Species:

Vampires are another subspecies of Angels that are describes to be physically faster, stronger, are mentally smarter, and can live three times the length of anyone else. They're described to be particularly slender, have pale skin, and have wings that are really closely related to that of Earth's bats. Most people believed that angels would've been extinct by the vampires, but Vampires have two weaknesses: one of these problems is that there's a 50% chance that a male can be born sterile and a 50% chance that a female can be infertile. Vampires that can reproduce are protected greatly by other vampires that don't have the misfortune, and are held greatly when the female gives birth to more than three children. Usually, the first two children are kept by their parents, the third born a 50/50 of either being kept or given to a really close friend to the parents, and the rest are given away to adoption, which are usually taken by other vampires that can't have kids of their own. The next problem is one of the many factor they received their name: all vampires are born as albinos, and as a result, they can't operate well under the sunlight. They won't die from the sunlight, but many vampires have died from heatstroke at temperatures in the 90's degree Fahrenheit area when in complete daylight. Because of this, Princess Luna has made Vampires her own personal favorite species across Equestria, and, in return, Vampires worship her as their own goddess that leads them in the night, many becoming the night soldiers of Canterlot's army and many other becoming her personal guards, even spending one on one time with the princess.

Groups:

The Shadowbolts is one of the three major gangs that control Equestria's black market. Originally, they were formed when Princess Luna became her alternate self, Nightmare Moon, and serve as her personal army against Celestia's. Though many of the soldiers were reformed, those that escaped continued the legacy of the Wonderbolts, exclusively hiring vampires to join them, but then reached out to every other species that can fly. Though the militarist side has been lost for a long time, the Shadowbolts soon began to use entertainment as a means of distracting the public while they broke into various homes & buildings, stealing whatever they can before the show ends. Since then, their numbers have grown with those that were kicked out of any Wonderbolt recruitment/training area, military bases, and teenagers that are willing to do anything to get rich quick.

Spike signaled both to ruin whatever they had. He walked up to the lone Vampire.

"Do you need something?" The vampire asked

"You lead the Shadowbolts?" Spike asked

"You figured that out yourself? I'm Jaroth: I run Manehatten's Shadowbolts. What do you need, freelancer?"

"Well, what do you know about Archangel?"

"Her life expectancy is shortening quickly." Silence fell.

"...Is that it? Nobody seems to know anything about her."

"Look around: you'll learn what you need to know! She's smart, resourceful, and dangerous. But we got her covered; she won't be making a fool out of us anymore. Can I assist you further?"

"Where did she come from? Who is she?"

"Her team didn't know. Maybe we;ll know when we have her body... of course, it won't really matter, now would it?"

"I guess you're right. Well, why are the shadowbolts here in Manehatten's slums?"

"Since you care so much: we control at least a third of the slums. Here, we transport goods to other planets & colonies and, if they don't agree to our pay, we take whatever we want from their trucks & sell them at either a higher price or lower price."

"Sounds pretty organized."

"Believe me, it's not: not only are the members here stupid, but by the fact the slums here are in chaos makes everything but organized. Plus, with the Wizards & Wild boys, it's a war for control here. Then Archangel comes here and fuck things up!"

"Why does Archangel give you so much trouble?"

"Ask her; I'm just here to make as much money as possible. We didn't come here to be constrained by laws & regulations. She'll regret ever coming here, I promise you."

"Seems like this is personal."

"She raided one of my transports last month... killed two of my best operatives... and one of them was my brother. So yes, it's FUCKING PERSONAL!!!"

"Whoa! Calm down! Didn't mean to make you angry. Alright, final one: the infiltration is the main focus of the attack?"

"Tarrak's plan, not mine. He doesn't want to lose more men, so you freelancers solve that problem. Archangel's not going anywhere, so I suppose there's no harm in trying. Who knows, you'll probably be lucky."

"So you're just going to hide here while we get killed?"

"Hey, you joined, it's not my fault."

"...You're right. I'll get going."

"Good idea." Spike turned around. Both the Doc and Big Mac came along. They exited the room

"Well?"

"We were able to make their ammunition explode on them!" The Doc explained, almost jumping up & down like a child "And, there were a couple of mechs here. I couldn't get to all, but there's a huge mech that I hacked into, and some other smaller ones, and, if they get summoned out here, they'll be with us! This is so exciting!"

"Easy there! Focus on the job, alright? There's more damage we can do to them, so we can't fail, alright?"

"Oh! Right. My apologies. Carry on." Spike entered another room, seeing a behemoth sitting with other humans & lycans around, all wearing red clothes & armor. The behemoth himself was actually huge; much bigger that the other behemoths Spike & Big Mac handled, as his face & armor were covered in a lot of scars. It didn't take long for Spike to realize this was the leader of the Wild Boys.

Groups

The wild boys is one of the three major gangs that rule the black market. The group was made by some boys that were underprivileged; they never were as smart as their peers and flunked out of school, leading to the only way to gain money: organized crime. While the wild boys have multiple arrested, their sheer numbers can overwhelm anyone and, when applied with the right mind, they can be a force to be reckoned with. They're known for using brute force against anyone or sneak attacks, using cheap tactics to beat their enemies and never show mercy to anyone.

"You're in the wrong place, Freelancer." The behemoth growled at Spike.

"Are you the leader of the Wild Boys?" Spike asked

"Name's Marg. That'll all you need to know. I'm stuck here waiting till you freelancers are done playing war. Ask and go."

"Well, if you say so. When do you guys attack?"

"Damn Tarak wants us to wait. I hate waiting, but he says the Wizards have a plan, and they don't want us getting in the way. Heh, we're suppose to wait while the Shadowbolts send out the mechs they stole. We'll see what happens."

"Then why is your gang down here?"

"We're the muscles in this station. While the Shadowbolts do protection, they mostly jack ships entering their area, and the Wizards are much smarter than us. We offer protection and as a way to help you remove someone. Besides, we're everywhere: everyone loves us and everyone hates us."

"I'm guessing Archangel just hates you?"

"She's just an uptight asshole, I don't care what she thinks. But she's costing me men and is making me work for my money. I'll be the one to take her out today; I'm the only one who's fought her one-to-one."

"Really? What do you know about Archangel?"

"She's a pain in the ass. That's short, really, she's a mage, which make me hate her more than your human comrades. I know she's brave... until she realized you're more than she bargained for."

"This have to do with you one-on-one?"

"She tried to take me down once. Waited until I was alone. Was the longest fight of my life, but I held her off until my men showed up. She wasn't so tough after that, and we chased her throughout the slums. We almost had her, but the slippery bitch snuck away before we could pin her down."

"Interesting. See ya!"

"'Bout time." Spike exited the room, seeing Big Mac & the Doctor.

"Well?"

"I apologize," The doc spoke "but there was nothing that we could with them. Their weapons are already jammed, meaning they've been using them for far too long, and they didn't have anything to work with."

"So they could either be the easiest or hardest?"

"Eeyup." Big Mac replied

"...Well, let's hope they're not too easy. Come on."

The three made it into another room, seeing a bunch of Wizards together, discussing their plans.

"Get this freelancer out of here!!!" The leader, a male mage, yelled. "I don't have time for this shit!" Spike signaled the two to go.

"I just have a few operations about this operation." Spike replied

"Jenny! Get this scum out of my face!" A human female with brown hair, wearing Wizard armor, approached them.

"This way." She said, leading Spike to her area. "Look, Tarak's not into freelancers, and you're not making it easy. Ask me your questions, then get the hell out."

"Alright then, I apologize." Spike replied "I've been thinking, and what's Tarak going to do if the infiltration team fails?"

"For starters, he's going to shoot all you freelancers down, then he'll let the Shadowbolts & Wild Boys take their shots. I suggested we work together, but he doesn't trust any other group but his."

"What if Archangel survives all your attacks? Then you'll be left to try to kill her."

"That's why Tarak wants that gunship fixed so badly, but it won't come to that. Archangel's good, but she can't hold out that long; She's already been in there for over a day."

"Over a day? Well, what are the Wizards doing here?"

"We supply goods to a lot of the groups & factions here."

"Goods?"

"Weapons, mechs, machinery; you name it and we have it. We also do negotiations between factions and businesses. You may not see it, but Tarak is quite the negotiator."

"Weird, but how did Archangel get your group to be so mad?"

"She harasses and hounds us constantly! We worry if any of our jobs are traps now! Tarak's had enough, and I can't blame him."

"What do you know about Archangel?"

"She's a Mage Vigilante who thinks killing mercs is a fun way to pass the time, other than that, a mystery. She shows up at the worst times and screws everything up! She can't die soon enough, if you ask me."

"Why do you hate her so much?"

"She went after Tarak, right in his home, and almost got him. Tarak's been on edge and he's making my life a living hell! Getting all other merc bands together shows how desperate he is! They're as bad as Archangel."

"Thanks for the answers, we're going."

"Good idea. Make sure you check in with Cathka." Spike exited the room with his allies.

"Report."

"Their messaging should be destroyed." The Doctor replied "And your song should make them angry."

"Good. And the gunship?"

"Over there with that other Mage in Wizard armor." Spike nodded and they walked over to the mage in Wizard armor. The group of Freelancers parted ways, allowing Spike and his allies to meet with Cathka

"Cathka?"

"Sergeant Cathka." He replied, getting up and taking his helmet off. "You must be the group Salkie mentioned. Just in time."

"Salkie?"

"The one that dropped you three off. By the way, you three stand out, with, as I can tell, you're a Draco, the one in red has got to be tough, and he's... special. But enough of that; the infiltration team is about to give us the signal, Archangel won't be able to tell what hit her. Got any questions? Now's your last chance." He picked up a cigarette, lit up with only his index finger, and proceeded to smoke.

"Yeah, are you going to give us cover with that gunship?"

"Ha! Tarak's the only one that can fly it. Plus, she's not quite ready; Archangel gave her a beating the last time we flew it. With a few teaks, she'll be good as new."

"Why are you coordinating the attack AND fixing the gunship?"

"I'm with the infiltration group; our team coordinates with the gunship. I'm staying back to organize you freelancers and make sure the ship's ready to go."

"So our plan is to jump the wall and head for Archangel's building?"

"And try not to get killed too fast. You're only a distraction, so you don't have to make it all the way across. Just keep Archangel watching you, the infiltration team will do the rest."

"How will the infiltration team get to Archangel?"

"2 ways: trap her in a corner and finish her face to fact or set up explosives."

"And the bridge is the only way in?"

"Unless you can dig fast, not until the gunship's working again. Look, we got a plan, it's too late for anyone to come up with an idea. Just do you job, get you bits, and go home!"

"Well... are you leading the assault?"

"Really? Tarak doesn't pay me to fight; I plan the attack and fix the damn gunship. You freelancers get the privilege of-" He stopped as some beeping came from his computer. He looked at it. "Check! Bravo Team, go, go, GO!!!" He turned to Spike with a smirk across his face. "Archangel's got a surprise waiting for her, but that means no waiting for me." He turned and went back to fixing the gunship "Gotta get her back to 100% before Tarak decides to use her again." He went back to work. Spike turned to see a device that had electricity running through it. He picked it up and walked behind the mage.

"Yeah, and you're working too hard."

"What the-?" Before he could finish, Spike used the device and shanked the device in the Mage's back, making him scream in pain as he twitched uncontrollably, falling to the floor, barely breathing. The Doc's jaw dropped.

"That takes care of the gunship. Come on, we'll give these guys a surprise of our very own." They jumped over the wall, seeing some of the freelancers fall to the floor, dead. Spike pulled out his assault rifle and Big Mac pulled out his shotgun. They all charged inside, as Spike and Big Mac fired at the other freelancers, but the Doc took cover, avoiding gunfire. They walked up the stairs, taking two freelancers up there, and opened the door. Inside was Archangel herself, wearing what looks like Royal Canterlot armor, but was light amber instead of gold, and the helmet was shaped more like a human's motorcycle helmet that was more of a regular yellow around her helmet's 'face' and crimson on the rest.  

"Archangel?" Spike asked. She rose her arm in the air as a way to say 'Give me a moment'. She aimed and fired at a lone freelancer that poked his head out. Archangel stood right up, took her helmet off, and sat right back down on a crate. Her hair was a vivid crimson with yellow stripes.

"You're certainly different looking from being a dog." She joked.

"Hold on a second... SUNSET SHIMMER!?!?!?" She adjusted her hair out of the way, smiled, and sat right up, showing off her old but never seen Mage Ears & hands. This was Sunset Shimmer!

Bio:

Sunset Shimmer was once the proud student of Princess Celestia, but changed when her greed got the better of her. Sunset Shimmer failed at trying to defeat her own teacher, and as a result, she was banished into a simulation that made her age slowly, removed all her mage abilities, and she had to live in there. This simulation was both an alternate universes and a time traveling device, turning Sunset Shimmer into a High school teenager. Unfortunately, though she didn't became it's ruler, for three years inside the high school, she gained a lot of power at school and was almost untouchable, but soon realized that there was a glitch inside this simulation that gave her a way to go back to Equestria. She was then beaten by Twilight Sparkle (who became a student) and Spike (who was turned into a dog), having Sunset Shimmer see her errors and was helped with her reformation with the help of an alternate for of Twilight's friends in the simulation Sunset was in, who were also students.

Sunset Shimmer's second encounter with both Twilight and Spike was when the three sisters known as the Dazzlings and a different species called 'Sirens' were with her, saw the glitch that was left behind Twilight Sparkle, and used it to gain control of the world they were banished to. Though it was difficult, Sunset Shimmer soon became the hero with Twilight Sparkle, and was fully redeemed by both the princess and her peers. Since then, she's moved on, only looking at her past to learn from her mistakes, though there's only one person she must prove herself to, a certain Immortal.

"Spike." She replied, smiling but having a tear come down her face "I-I thought you were dead.

"Sunset!!!" Spike ran to her and hugged her! Sunset was startled, but smiled and hugged right back, both tightly & not even caring that both Spike's two comrades are with them and the fact other Mercs are going to be after them. Spike looked at Sunset's face, wiping a tear from his own face "What... what are you doing here?"

"Just... keeping my skills sharp." She replied with a giggle, thought it turned sad. "A little target practice."

"You okay?"

"Been better, but it's sure nice to see a friendly face. Killing Mercs is hard work, especially on your own." Spike released himself from Sunset's hug and the two looked at each other with glimmer in their eyes.

"What are you doing down here in Manehatten?"

"Twilight Sparkle released my from the simulation in Canterlot. She trusted that I can do good on my own, but she really needed someone to look into the black market and stop them. Right here, it's not hard to find a criminal; just look at what they're wearing and shoot."

"Sounds easy, but how did you manage to piss off every major merc group in this system!?" She chuckled at his question.

"It wasn't easy; I REALLY had to work at it. I'm just amazed that they teamed up to get me; they must REALLY hate me."

"I get that, but since when did you call yourself 'Archangel'?"

"It's just the name the locals gave me for my good deeds. Though I know I'm not an angel, people have sworn that after I saved them, they saw wings of fire right behind me as if I'm something like from Human's Christianity. But Please, just call me Sunset Shimmer, either of my name works."

"I'm surprised you didn't shot me when I was coming here."

I actually was tempted to shoot you, but you looked different in that helmet with the spray painted cartoon teeth, and your two allies looked really different from the other freelancers. Figured you were trying to help me, so I allowed you three to live."

"I'm not sure if that's reassuring." The Doctor commented.

"Nope." Big Mac added.

"Well then," Spike spoke "We got here, but I don;t think getting out will be as easy."

"It won't," Sunset answered, standing right up "That bridge has saved my life, funneling all those witless idiots into my scope. But, it works both ways; they'll slaughter us if we go that way."

"So there's no way out?" The Doc asked

"Not entirely. This place has held them off so far, and with the three of you, we can hold this location, wait for a crack in their defenses, and take our chances! It's not perfect, but it'll do."

"Seems like it," Spike replied "but how did you end up in this position?"

"My feelings got the better judgement of me. Long story. How about this: you get me out of her alive, and I'll join you & your group and I'll tell you what's going on. No doubt you didn't just came here to say 'Hello' and get out without me, right?"

"Smart girl. But come on, let's do it! If they're coming, we're going to be prepared for them!"

"Heh! No doubt about it. Let's see what they're up to." Sunset walked to the balcony with her sniper rifle and looked through it's scope. "Hm... looks like their infiltration team failed." She handed Spike her sniper. "Take a look: Scouts, Shadowbolts maybe?" Spike looked though her sniper rifle's scope, seeing some Shadowbolts hoping over the wall, beginning to fly at them. Spike aimed at one perfect Shadowbolt and pulled the trigger, killing him with a headshot.

"That's one less to take care of."

"Indeed. We better get ready. I'll stay up here; I can cause a lot of damage from this vantage point. And you... do what do best, Commander."

"This is going to be a beautiful relationship. Doc! Activate the trap!"

"On it!" The Doc replied.

"COVER YOUR EARS!!!" Spike and Big Mac covered their ears. Sunset followed, ducking as the first row of Shadowbolts entered their windows. The Doctor held his device in the air, fell tot he floor and covered his ears, and, in a few moments, a horrible song began to play among the Merc's transmissions. The agonizing screams of Mercs shook the place, as the awful human made song pierced their skins, causing chaos among the mercs. When the song ended, there was at least half of all the mercs were still alive, and the other half of those dead was either suicide, mercy killing, or just because it was that bad. Sunset Shimmer grabbed an assault rifle from a dead Shadowbolt member, quickly reloaded it, and her along with Spike & Big Mac got up and started to fired at the surviving surving Shadowbolts that were flying at their window, falling like birds in hunting season. The leader of the Shadowbolts came out.

"When you want something done right," he grumbled under his breath "Alright, Archangel! Let's see how you handle THIS!!!" A crane came out and it dropped a heavy mech down, right in front of the boss. "GO!!!" Electricity ran through it, and the heavy mech got up.

"Damn it!!!" Sunset yelled "We're gonna need bigger guns!"

"That problem should take care of itself." Spike replied.

"What do you-"

"Watch." The heavy mech turned around, then looked at it's 'master'.

"What are you doing!?" He yelled "Go and-" The heavy mech grabbed him by his head and slammed him into the floor until his body became limp, dead upon impact. It threw his body over the bridge and began to fire at the remaining Shadowbolts! The surviving shadowbolts flapped their wings and flew away in fear, not wanting to die from their own heavy mech!

"Holy shit." Sunset commented "That was fucking awesome! The Shadowbolts are all but gone now, and Jaroth is gone!"

"Yeah," Spike replied "But why were you after him?"

"Well, he's been stealing supplies that were sent to Canterlot as a means to help the troops there for his own game here. I took out a big shipment he was trying to steal from, killing his top lieutenant in the process. I'm not surprised he decided to work with the other mercs after that."

"I heard. But we still got the Wild Boys and Wizards left. Think we can make it?"

"It's looking better, but let's see what they're up to." She looked over with her sniper's scope again. "Hm... they've reinforced the other side heavily, but they're not coming over the bridge yet. What are they waiting for?" The floor shook, and loud blaring was heard in a neighboring room below.

"What was that!?" The Doctor asked. Sunset pulled a hologram map of the area, seeing an area blinking.

"Dammit! They've breached the lower level! They had to use their brains! Spike, I need you to get down there and shut those doors! I'll hold the bridge!"  

I'm doing this alone. You two stay!

Stay, Big Mac.

Stay, Doctor

We're on it!