My eyes slowly crack open as the sun shines through a small break in the curtains, letting out a groan I turn my back to the window and wrap my arms tighter around Luna as she rests against me. With the blanket being thrown across the floor through the night we relied on one another for warmth throughout the night, thankfully Luna was really comfortable and was a great method of keeping warm in the night.

Closing my eyes once again I nuzzle my head against her mane as I keep her close to me, the sound of her calm breaths act as a great method to sooth me. As I try to fall back to sleep a smile forms on my face as my mind runs back to the previous night. Once Luna and I got showered we immediately needed another one as we resumed our previous activities, for most of the night we stayed up enjoying each others company on a more personal level.

By late night I was absolutely exhausted, it was safe to say that Luna was wearing me out, I haven't had sex this much in one night since I was in college. Through the course of the night I learnt one important thing about Luna, once she's in the mood she can get really frisky. As I start to finally drift off once again Luna starts to stir within my arms causing me to fully wake up from my drowsy state.

Letting out a small yawn she turns her head to me and smiles, "Morning."

Grinning I lean closer and plant a kiss on her lips, "Good morning."

With a slight groan, she stretches out her legs and wings causing the one wing to flick over my face. Once she's stretched she sits up slightly on the bed and looks to me, "What time is it?"

Reluctantly I roll off the bed and slowly waddle over to my discarded trousers as I stretch my own arms. Picking them up I dig through the pocket and get my phone before dropping my trousers once again. "It's quarter to eight."

"Are you going to be alright going about your duties today? We didn't exactly get much sleep." Luna herself looks to be completely refreshed compared to me, I could swear I probably had some bags underneath my eyes.

As if to emphasise her point I let out another yawn as I rest my phone on my trousers before I quickly move back to the bed and lie down alongside her, "I could always take a nap later, or I'll just live off coffee."

"Not your usual tea?" Luna asks as she leans down to rest against me.

"Nah, I'll be needing a coffee. Besides just drinking tea will turn me into a stereotypical Brit, all I need to do now is wear a bowler hat and greet people by saying 'ello old sport."

Luna giggles as I say the last part in a stereotypical accent, "Your nation doesn't really go around speaking like that, do they?"

"Hardly, we probably did a century ago so now everyone thinks we still speak like that. Never in my life have I ever heard anyone say something like that unless they're a Yank trying to be a British."

"Yank?"

"It's just what we call Americans." I wrap my arm around Luna causing her to nuzzle closer to me resting her head against my chest. She starts to idly trace her hoof over my muscles which causes me to chuckle as I watch her. "You really seem to enjoy my muscles. You're not just using me for my body, are you?"

Luna scoffs as her hoof continues, "I'm hardly using you for your body, John, though it is a nice bonus. What kind of mare would I be if I didn't appreciate an athletic and well-toned form?"

Smirking I run my hand over her fur, "Well it isn't exactly easy to keep in shape constantly, so feel free to show some appreciation."

Moving her head closer Luna starts to place soft kisses along my abdomen then starts to move further up my chest. Once she reaches the base of my neck she pauses as she looks up to me, "We're going to need another shower."

I lean forward to place another kiss on her lips. As I pull away I understand what she means as the smell of sweat and last nights activities lingers on our bodies. "How we gonna do this?"

Luna gives a sultry smile as she moves next to my ear and whispers in a seductive tone, "Well... you scratch my back, I'll scratch yours."

Ah, a joint shower. I'm not gonna say no. Wrapping my hands around her waist I hoist her off the bed as I stand earning an amused giggle from my sudden eagerness. With Luna wrapped in my arms, I start to move towards the bathroom as she begins to plant fast kisses along my neck and cheeks.

Stepping through into the bathroom I kick the shower curtain to the side before stepping in, I had to navigate a number of towels scattered across the floor from last nights activities. Once we're both in the shower I quickly pull the curtain shut behind us, to be fair the Griffins certainly provide large showers in their Capitol building, we're both able to easily fit in.

As myself and Luna lock in a passionate kiss, her horn illuminates to turn the shower on. As soon as the water begins to cascade down on us we both pull away from the kiss as we give a loud and simultaneous yelp. Stepping backwards I pull Luna and myself out from underneath the water, "Too cold, Luna."

"Sorry," Her magic adjusts the dials on the shower until steam starts to fill the surrounding area. Turning to the side I stick my leg underneath to test the water, relieved to find that it's now warm I lower Luna onto the floor to stand and we both quickly move underneath. With the relaxing water raining down on us I watch as Luna's mane start to stick to the fur on her neck.

Leaning towards her I wrap my arms around Luna's neck as I press my lips against hers, she is soon releasing soft coo's as we remain in position. My hands run up and down along the side of her torso, massaging her frame as the water washes away some of the dried patches left over from the previous night.

As Luna pulls away from the kiss she positions her body so she's fully underneath the water, I step up to her and hook my arms underneath her forelegs to get her to stand upright as I keep close to support her. Luna is quickly pushing once again on my lips, it doesn't take long until our tongues are once again engaging in an elegant dance, over the night she got much better when it came to kissing.

Her hooves are quickly caressing my neck as her wings stretch outwards to run over my back, In response I pull her closer pressing our bodies together. Luna gives a small chuckle as she feels my hard cock pressed against her, pulling her head back her horn illuminates as she envelopes my cock in her magical energy. Luna keeps her eyes locked on my manhood as she begins to toss me off causing me to release moans of pleasure.

I decide to return the favour by running my hand down her exposed barrel and over her crotch to begin rubbing her wet slit, Luna immediately lets out a short gasp as she feels my hand make contact with her marehood. As her wings remained stretched out I step closer to her pushing her until her back is pressed against the wall, once she's in position I insert my fingers into her wet folds.

Christ, I can tell she wants this. In instinct Luna stats to slowly push her hips closer to me with each push on my fingers, it doesn't take long until she's moaning more frequently. The speed of Luna's magic on my cock increases, my body starts to shiver as the contact feels almost electric.

As I pump my fingers deeper I start to rub her sensitive button with my thumb, this sends her over the edge as her head rocks back along with her magic cutting off. She loses herself in the moment, the sound of her screams of pleasure echo throughout the room. After a minute of this her hind legs tremble violently as her juices coat my hand along with a loud scream of lust, I'm forced to step in closer in order to prevent her from falling down to the floor. The noises she makes when she gets off is ecstasy to my ears, it's almost enough to send me over the edge myself.

Once Luna regains some control she lifts her head to look to me. Smiling I kiss her cheek as my hand massages her back, "Ready?"

Once she nods to me I grasp both of my hands onto her ass and hoist her up, immediately she wraps her hindlegs around by lower back. Luna initially looks to me with interest likely wondering what I'm going to do, once I adjust our positions I slowly lower her onto my shaft. As I fill her tight space she bites her lip whilst releasing a moan.

Once she's ready I start lifting and lowering her at a quick pace, as I do this I lower and straighten my legs to thrust into her from this position. Pretty soon she's resting her head over my shoulder as we both work with one another to pick up the pace, I don't know why but I've always loved this position.

Pretty soon though my legs start to get tired, after taking the lead for most of the night and due to the lack of sleep my body still feels fairly exhausted. I think Luna can tell as the speed of my thrusts slow to a crawl. Tilting her head she nibbles softly on my ear lobe and whisper to me, "Lie down."

That revitalises my energy as I slowly lower myself to sit underneath the shower, once she frees her hindlegs from behind my back I lie flat on my back as she pushes her hooves on my chest. Pretty soon it is Luna who is taking me for a ride, as her forehooves run along my drenched chest she begins to raise and lower herself on my cock. I'm pretty sure most other guys will agree with me on this, but watching a girl on top is by far one of the greatest sights in life.

It doesn't take long until I'm reaching my peak, at this angle and at the pace Luna is moving I find myself hitting the edge. Luna can quite easily see the effect she's having on me, leaning closer she presses her lips against mine in a forceful kiss. Being unable to hold back any longer I cross the edge as I unload myself inside her, Luna simultaneously moans in satisfaction as she hits her own orgasm.

Collapsing against me we both lie on the floor as the warm water continues to wash over us. Once Luna has composed herself she slowly lifts her position causing my cock to be withdrawn and slapping back against my stomach, a trail of cum leaks out from her pussy dripping onto my crotch.

As we both sit up we give each other another quick kiss as we regain our breaths. Smirking I give Luna a kiss on the cheek as I run a hand through her wet mane moving it away from her eyes. "Come on, let's get cleaned up."

Once myself and Luna had cleaned ourselves off and showered, for real this time, we moved back into the main bedroom in order for me to get changed back into my uniform. Although my shirt did smell from having Luna leave a bit of a mess on my collar I can wear them until I get back to my room to change into a fresh set.

Luna is sitting down alongside the fireplace as she watches me zip up the side of my last boot. Now that I'm fully changed I get up from the cushion and move over to the window to get my field pack. Getting up Luna joins me by the window as I open the curtains, "Don't forget that you're supposed to be at a meeting with me in twenty minutes."

Smirking I turn back to her, "Then I'd better get back so I can change."

Luna matches my smile as she leans closer and give me a soft kiss, "Thank you for last night, John."

"Luna, you don't need to thank me. I was looking forward to it as well, and god knows that I needed it."

Luna chuckles as she raises an eyebrow, "You think you needed it? What about me?"

"...Yeah, you probably needed it more then m-"

A sudden knocking at the door snaps our attention away from one another and towards it. Luna looks back to me and holds up a hoof for me to be quiet. I watch her as she steps to the door, with a flash of the horn the invisible field she casted last night appears once again before retracting from the walls and returns to her horn. Opening the door slightly she peaks her head around, "Sister? Why are you here?"

My eyes widen as I realise that Celestia is on the other side. FUCK! OH FUCK! FUCK MY ASS AND CALL ME A BITCH! Quietly I open the window and slowly step onto the window sill. "I didn't see you at breakfast. Is everything okay?"

"Of course, I just... overslept." As Luna continues trying to stall her sister I step out of the window and quickly grab the edge of the wall hanging over her window.

Once I'm hanging on the outside I cautiously push the window closed as I watch Luna step through the door to join Celestia in the hallway before shutting it behind her. Looking down below I find the courtyard in use as a number of guards are practising in combat, including Sure Strike and Slicer who are engaged in a sparring match. Please... for the love of god, don't look up.

Slowly I shimmy along the wall as I try to return my room, thankfully the noise below me means that I don't need to worry about making too much noise, however moving along a light grey wall wearing a black and purple uniform is kinda noticeable. Keeping my eyes locked on the guards bellow I continue further along the wall, that is until the sound of the next window opening makes me freeze.

"Morning, John," Cadence says quietly from my left as I turn my head to find her leaning against the edge of the window with a mischievous grin.

"H-hey... Cadence."

"What ever could you be doing sneaking away from Luna's room?" Cadence runs her hoof under her muzzle as she gives a knowing smile.

"I don't know what you're talking about... this is simply good exercise."

"Uh-huh," Cadence lowers her gaze to look towards the guards below as they seem to be oblivious to us. "Would you care for a hoof before you get seen?"

Reluctantly I nod my head as I consider whether I should be trusting her. With a glow of her horn my eye catches the movement of my bedroom window opening, once it's open I find myself being held in her magic. Carefully she pulls me away from the wall and closer to my window, once I'm right outside she places me inside before her magic disappears and the window closes behind me. That girl is enjoying all of this a bit too much.

As soon as I'm back in my room I hear a loud and heavy knocking at my door. "Come on, John," Georg's voice calls from the other side. "Get your lazy backside up!"

"Y-yeah, give me a minute!" Moving as quick as I can I dump my field pack on my bed before stripping out of my clothes, Grabbing a fresh set of pants, socks and a clean uniform I get dressed as I look around for my armour. Finding the rest of my kit near the fireplace I attach my utility belt, thigh holster, armour plate then finally my webbing. With my full uniform ready I take my beret out of my webbing and place it over my head before reaching for my rifle and hooking it over my back.

With everything sorted I unlock the door and step through where I find Georg and Chaser leaning against the wall, Chaser looks to be fairly tired though nowhere near as tired as me. They both lift their heads and Chaser immediately gains a grin on his muzzle, "Tired?" Nodding my head I close my door as we begin to walk down the hallway. As we walk I start to whistle the tune of 'Always look on the bright side of life' which immediately get the attention of the others. "Well, you're certainly happy. Does that mean that you were lucky last night?"

Smirking I look back to him as we move downstairs, "Maybe I was, maybe I wasn't. A true gentleman never kisses and tells."

Scoffing Chaser jumps over the stairs and glides to the bottom to cut me off, "You are anything but a 'gentleman.' Come on, you can tell me."

Once I reach him I grab hold of his armour and push him to the side, "Just some girl at a bar. Like I said, I'm not gonna tell. Since you look tired I bet you and Sunny banged."

Chuckling a goofy grin spreads over his muzzle, "Oh yeah." Turning back I slap him across the back of his head, "Hey! What was that for?"

"Sunny won't appreciate it if you tell everyone you fucked. Keep it on the down low otherwise she'll be pissed." We continue down the hall until we come across the Princesses and Shining waiting outside the Prime Ministers office. "Morning everyone."

They all instantly look to me with amusement at my apparent peppiness, only Luna and Cadence glance to me with knowing smiles. Twilight smirks as she steps up to me, "Are you alright? You're not normally this happy."

"He got lucky," Chaser announces as he stops alongside me.

Twilight takes a step back as a mild blush forms, "Oh... okay then."

Looking to Chaser I glare as I slap him against the back of the head again, "What did I just tell you?"

Before he can reply the door to the Prime Minister's office opens as Bernhard steps into the doorway. "Morning Princesses, before we begin our meeting I was hoping to have a quick word with Captain Davies. It should only take a few minutes."

Both Luna and Celestia glance to one another. Turning back to Bernhard Celestia nods to him, "Of course. We shall wait out here."

"Thank you. Right this way, Captain." With his talon he beckons towards his office, adjusting the rifle strap on my back I follow him into to the office where he closes the door behind me. Once we're inside he moves over to a small coffee table and fills up two mugs of the caffeinated elixir, "You look like you could use a drink. How do you take it?"

"Milk, two sugars. Please." Once he's made the drink he hands me the mug which I quickly take a sip from.

As he moves around to his desk he takes a seat and rests his own mug on the surface. Clasping his talons together he leans forward and looks to me, "I believe I had some intelligence to share with you. We may have found the locations of Silverwing, along with an individual we believe he's working for."

"Hold on, I thought Silverwing was in charge of the Children?"

"That's what we thought, though new intelligence shows that he is working for somebody else." Opening a draw of his desk he takes out a small file and slides it towards me. Opening it up I glance to the first photo which shows Silverwing conversing with another cloaked figure with his back to the camera.

From the figure I'm only able to make out a set of four grey cloven hooves, the shape of the individual makes me believe that it may be a pony. "Who is this?"

"We don't know. We've picked up a number of potential names, one that seems to crop up a few times is 'Tirek.' Gabrielle provided his name and Balbean was also able to uncover it. I trust Balbean when it comes to this sort of thing, he's very rarely wrong."

Lifting my head I glance to the door, "It can't be. Princess Luna assured me that he is imprisoned in Tartarus, it couldn't be him."

Lifting his mug he takes a sip before keeping it clasped in his talons, "I admit that it is fairly unlikely but you may need to try and dig deeper with your Princesses. Anyways we definitely have the location of Silverwing's base of operations, this individual is also likely to be there so you could apprehend him during the assault."

"Where is he? We'll move immediately to catch him before he becomes aware that we have this information."

Before Bernhard can reply the door suddenly opens as Gabrielle pushes into the office, "Prime Minister! There's been an attack by the Children in the financial district! They've deployed gas bombs in the central bank!"

Gas attacks? Holy shit. Bernhard pauses monetarily before turning to me, "Captain, I need your help. I know that you were able to disarm a previous device before it was deployed, you may be the best bet to contain this before it spreads. Help me and I'll reveal the information for you to take out Silverwing."

Nodding I slam my mug down on his desk as I run out of the office and stop by the others outside. "Chaser, Georg, get everyone here now! We'll need full protective gear, gas masks and hazmat suits! Bring an additional one down for me and get it now!"

As he flies off Twilight turns to me, "John? What's happening?"

"Gas attack, I'll need to move fast."

"Gas?" Luna steps up to me, "You haven't got a mask though."

Sighing I take a magazine from my webbing and load it into my rifle, "I know. Hopefully I can take the respiration unit and mask from one of the hazmat suits and secure it to myself."

"But you're skin will still be exposed."

"I know, I'll have to improvise." reaching into my pocket I take out my gloves and equip them. Turning back to the Prime Minister I shout out to him, "Have you got any duct tape!?" As he throws a roll to me I catch it and begin to wrap it around the opening of my trousers where they meet my boots to seal the gap.

Using her magic Twilight cuts the strips once they're ready and starts to do the same on my arms for me since I can'd do those myself. "This is really dangerous, John."

"I haven't exactly got much choice, I need to try and stop the chemical leak." Once Twilight finishes on my arms I glance to Shining, "You can make yourself useful and come with me."

His eyes widen as he steps closer, "What? Why?"

"Use your shield to try and give me some extra protection from the gas, I'd rather not get chlorine poisoning."

Georg returns with a number of suits and rests them by my feet as a few of the others run down the corridor behind him. Grasping one of the suits I unclip the respiration unit on the back and fit it on the side of my webbing, once that's done I remove the clear visor helmet and place it over my head, thankfully the helmet fits and has a section on the underside which I can tighten to create a seal around my neck. With everything fitted I immediately find it hard to breath, looking to the respiration unit I flick a small switch which begins to pump clean air into my helmet making me sound like Darth Vader whilst I breath.

Picking up a larger suit where the helmet is adapted for a unicorn I throw it to Shining who catches it in his magic, "Stick that on."

"You don't give me o-"

"For fuck sake! Now is not the time to put your shitty pride up front! Get that fucking suit on now and make yourself useful!" Giving a quick glance to his wife he start to finally suit up as the rest of my team arrive in a mixture of gas masks and hazmat suits. Once everyone is kitted up I glance back to the Princesses as I start to move down the hall, "Don't wait up. We'll be back when the jobs done." With that said I rest my hand on my head telling everyone to form up as we start to run towards the exit.

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As we run down the main road we can see the sickly yellow and green gas cloud in the distance as it disperses around various buildings within the financial district, we pass through various crowds of panicking civilians and those who escaped the gas which are in the process of being treated by first responders. The majority of casualties seem to be in a bad way, a number of them look close to death where as others I can see vomiting heavily along with having difficulties breathing.

Once we get closer to the scene we come across the cordon which the first guards on scene established, only a few guards remain though due to the limited number of gas masks the Griffin military have. Stepping up to the small gathering of soldiers I take my rifle off my back and grasp it, "Who's in charge here?"

"That would be me," A Lieutenant steps forward from the group.

"Tell me what has happened, but make it quick."

He steps to the centre of the road and points out a large building down the street, "The main location of the bomb was inside the central bank. A group of seven came in posed as decorators, the bank was having some restoration work due to some damage during the war. Witnesses say they killed the bank security and then equipped their own protective suits before activating the device they brought in. That's all I got, sir."

"Right, I want you to keep your men on the cordon. I'll leave a few of my men with you whilst the rest of us will move in."

As I step to move back to my team the Lieutenant rests his talon on my shoulder, "One last thing. We sent in a small team in full hazmat kit, they haven't been seen since. They went in twenty minutes ago."

"I'll keep a look out." Stepping away from him I wave my team over where they all form up, "I want everyone with gas masks only to remain here on the cordon, those with hazmat suits you're with me. Hostiles may still be operating in the area, you see a threat then I want you to drop them. Understood?"

"Yes, sir!" They all shout in unison. Sunny, Colbalt, and Slicer step up to me since they've got hazmat suits whilst the other move to positions on the cordon and aim down the street.

Turning to Shining I look to him as he wields the new spear, "You ready?"

Shining glances down the street as his horn begins to glow, "Are you sure that you can do this?"

"This is my speciality, although it's already detonated we may be able to stop more gas from being deployed minimising casualties. I'm not going to be able to aim my rifle in this suit so you'd better keep me safe." As the glow of his horn intensifies the magical energy spreads to me, I watch as my uniform and skin soon has an additional layer of magenta energy giving me protection from projectiles and potentially for my skin from the gas.

Passing my rifle off to Shadow as she remains on the line I draw my pistol and pull the slide to the rear loading a round into the chamber, with this I should be able to at least aim. With my weapon at the ready I step between the barriers and begin to move into the gas, as we move deeper visibility is quickly reduced. Although Shining's shield should protect me it also paints me as a massive target for any enemies hiding within the gas.

The deeper we go the more visibility is reduced, although the dark outline of the bank is visible through the heavy layers of gas it reduces the amount of sunlight which would illuminate our surroundings. The only sounds which can be heard are the sounds of our respirators, without wearing a full suit mine is particularly loud. So I'm a glowing bastard who sounds like an asthmatic, well I'm gonna be the first to be shot.

As if on queue a gunshot cracks through the air as a round impacts with my chest, I stumble backwards as the shield manages to protects me from the impact as it flickers. Quickly scanning the area I find silhouettes moving at the banks entrance, "CONTACT RIGHT! TWENTY FIVE METERS! RAPID FIRE!"

The rest of my team take up positions and return fire as fast as they can firing at anything which moves within the gas cloud. Ducking low behind a stationary cart I rest my pistol on the frame and take aim at the one figure which is running along the top of the steps.

PHAT PHAT PHAT PHAT

He drops to the floor and collides with the top step, I watch as the figure rolls down the stairs impacting against nearly every single one until finally stopping on the street with a meaty thud. Another shot rings out impacting my shoulder knocking me down, once again the shield does it's job as it prevents the round from piercing my armour or flesh.

Taking up position alongside me Shining rests his spear on the cart and aims at a figure who is in turn aiming towards us. I watch as Shining compresses the large trigger resulting in a loud bang as a ball of red energy leaves the end of the barrel, moving at a rapid pace it impacts with the target. The Griffin is thrown off his feet as he is hurled backwards, the ball of energy dissipates around his body sending visible sparks to fly from the collision point.

Shining waits for a few seconds before compressing the trigger once again to fire towards a target, however this time he is unsuccessful at hitting the hostile. The weapon must take a few seconds to recharge before it can be fired again. As another round impacts our cover I fire off five rounds in rapid succession to suppress the enemy. As I duck my head I draw my sword and switch it into my right hand as the Glock rests in my left. "How strong is your shield?"

"What? Why?"

"Cause if it's strong I'm gonna go up front and distract them so yourself and the others can pick them off. Can you do it?"

"I held back the Changelings in Canterlot with my shield and protected us from artillery fire at Griffonstone. I can certainly hold it for bullets and sword strikes."

Smirking I rise to my feet, "I have no fucking clue what a Changeling is." Pushing off from the spot I sprint up the stairs where I'm immediately met with two rounds to my chest which cause me to stumble, as I lock eyes with one of my attackers a round from one of my team grazes his hazmat suits visor causing it to shatter. His eyes immediately widen as he quickly collapses as he enters a violent coughing spree. With this much gas he won't be a threat any more, he'll be dead fairly quick though it won't exactly be a pleasant one.

Climbing the last steps the other rifle man brings the butt of his weapon towards me since I interrupted him as he reloaded, bringing up my sword I slash against the side of his weapon immediately knocking him off balance. With him stumbling at the top of the stairs I place a kick against his ribs sending him tumbling down the steps, as he falls I raise my pistol and take aim.

PHAT PHAT

Blood sprays from the confines of his suit and onto the white steps below, once he reaches the bottom he still seems to be alive as he squirms. Before I can finish the job Slicer moves over him and brings a blade across his throat causing blood to spurt from the vital artery. As the rest of my team gather on the bottom of the steps I turn to the main door of the bank as the next three, and hopefully last, Griffins exit with swords drawn. Before I can react a succession of gunshots sound from behind me as the Griffins all drop to the floor.

When I look back to my team Shining finally joins me up the steps, "Set up defensive positions and keep on watch! Myself and Shining will move in and secure the bomb, hopefully I can stop more gas from escaping!" As the rest take up positions I move through the open doors and into the main lobby of the bank. My eyes widen in horror at what lies in front of me, countless civilian bodies are spread out over the floor along with the security who were all executed.

As I step further into the rotunda I have to watch my footing so I don't trip over the bodies. These sick fuckers! If I find any more I swear I'm going to give them a slow and painful death. Attacking civilians with chemical weapons is just diabolical, nobody deserves this fate. The visibility in the room is so poor I can hardly see more then five meters in front of my face, the only reason the bodies stand out is due to their dark silhouettes on the marble floor.

Shining also looks to be horrified by the sight, without so much as a word he remains close to me as to not get lost in the thick gas cloud. Reaching the centre of the room I find my target, resting in front of me is a large collection of cylinders which were transported inside within a large crate. Holstering my weapons I move close to the device and examine it.

To be honest you wouldn't require an ATO to deal with this, it has the most simplistic design. Four large cylinders are held together in an upright position within a metal frame, all of the gas canisters are linked together with a selection of hoses which operate from a simple turn valve. Before tightening the valve I check over the rest of the device to make sure there are no secondary devices, it wasn't uncommon for IED's to have secondaries which rely on the main device to bait you to activate it.

And just like that I locate a small string on the valve which was concealed by the gas cloud. Keeping my eyes on the string I follow it as it loops down the centre of the frame to the underside of the crate. Dropping to the floor I look underneath and find the cord attaching to a small circular device which a pin and striker lever. Well it seems that they've finally advanced from fuse lit grenades to more conventional ones.

Pressing my thumb against the pin to keep it in place I take out my bayonet from my webbing and slice through the cord cutting it, while I'm down here I also cut the small catches holding the grenade in place so that I can retrieve it. With the grenade safely in my webbing I stand up and rest both hands on the valve, grasping onto the metal I have to put some force into it in order to close the valve. As I lock it shut the sound of escaping gas ceases indicating that I've done what was needed.

Stepping back to Shining we both remain there as we look over the devastation it has caused. It will be a while before the gas clears away but eventually it will be safe for unprotected individuals to enter the area. Letting out a sigh I trace my hand along my thigh holster.

Silverwing has gone too far. I need to put a stop to the bastard.