As the Ghosts steadily walked through the drainage cistern, their weapons swept from angle to angle, checking for more Eqaharian soldiers as they went. Judging form the chatter over the Cross-Com, the US Marines on the bridge were making significant progress.

"It's too quiet here." 30K murmured. "Do you think there's something waiting for us up ahead?"

"Maybe, but don't jinx it, 30." Kozak replied. "Remember the 15 flights of stairs in Moscow?"

"Don't remind me." 30K snapped back.

"Quiet." Nomad said, drawing Kozak and 30K's attention back to the objective at hand. "You keep talking the way you are, we'll walk into an ambush either way. Focus up."

"Yes, sir." the other two Ghosts replied. As they approached the end of the cistern, there was a welcome sight to greet them.

"Ladders. Finally, we must be close to street level." Aegis nodded. "Up we go."

"Two at a time." Nomad added. "We don't know what's up there. so have your weapons ready as soon as you hit the top."

As Nomad and Cyclone lead climbed up the ladders and peeked over, they could see a large atrium, which was occupied by several more Eqaharian soldiers placing what appeared to be large spikes of obsidian on support pillars.

"Contact, looks like we've got a demo team. They're rigging the supports for the tunnel." Cyclone called back to the rest of the Ghosts quietly. "Should we find another way up?"

"Nope." Nomad smirked. "I've got an idea. Kozak, get a drone in there, prepare a sonic blast. The rest of you, get ready to climb. We won't have much time once it goes off, so move quickly."

"Copy that." Kozak nodded, deploying the Cipher as ordered. He guided the drone to a central point inside the group of enemy soldiers, who were absorbed by their tasks, and thus didn't notice the cloaked drone whatsoever.

"Three, two, one…smoke 'em." Nomad ordered, and the Cipher's sonic weapon detonated. When the Eqaharians screamed and began to stumble around helplessly as a result of their eyes and ears being effectively short-circuited, Nomad and Cyclone opened fire as they moved to cover. The remaining Ghosts hightailed it up the ladders, and in no time at all, the room was cleared.

"Griffin, the saboteurs have been neutralized." Nomad reported over the Cross-Com. "We're all clear here."

"Good work." Lt. Colonel Mitchell replied. "The Marines have just disabled the remaining charges. You are clear to move on the enemy commander. We've got intel from resistance fighters that he's hiding out at a hotel not far from your current position. Make your way topside and take him out."

"Understood, we're moving!" Nomad affirmed. As the Ghosts proceeded up a flight of stairs, which bore a sign marked with a rough image of three skyscrapers, it didn't take too much navigation to reach street level and resume their hunt once again.

====

"Alright, Griffin, what hotel are we looking for?" Aegis Lead asked as the Ghosts headed down the street. Apart from the roar of guns and artillery in the distance, the area was all clear.

"It should be straight ahead, on Grid 027-149." Lt. Colonel Mitchell replied. "Be advised, your air cover is diverting to assist the Marines on the main causeway. The Eqaharians are dug in deep with what appear to be large ballistas at strategic points. Our tanks and Strykers are holding their positions until they're cleared out."

"Need us to deal with them?" Aegis Lead queried.

"We'll see. Stick to your objective for now. Griffin out."

As they continued through the empty streets, it seemed to Nomad that the fighting along the causeway had drawn practically all of the Eqaharian forces away from the Ghosts. Which was all good and fine to Nomad, but everything seemed way too quiet for a section of the city that was behind enemy lines.

Nomad switched on his magnetic filter, looking for anything unusual. Seeing nothing that stuck out, he re-centered himself as the target building came into view. As Vasily moved off and swung his Scorpio Sniper Rifle into a ready position, he noticed something interesting on the hotel’s top floor.

“Boss, I think I’ve got the General in my sights.” Vasily called, and Nomad pulled out a pair of field binoculars. “He’s got the same gold markings on his armor that Hunter and Cyclone learned about during their last op.”

“You want the shot?” Nomad smirked, and Vasily took aim, steadied his breath, and fired. The figure staggered, and whether it be fate or just the throes of death taking hold, the target fell over the low hanging balcony rail.

“Damn.” Kozak scoffed. “Helluva way to go out.”

“Check it, see if we got our target.” Nomad ordered, and Aegis Team provided cover as Cyclone Lead took several photos of the body’s face, and uploaded them to the Cross-Com Network.

“Griffin, our target’s down. Can you confirm it on your end?” Cyclone Lead asked. After a few minutes, Lt.Colonel Mitchell’s reply made the Ghosts breathe a sigh of relief.

“Affirmative, we got ‘em.” Griffin replied. “Excellent work, we’re sending a QRF to pick you up. The Marines have cleared the causeway and are pushing into the city. Not to mention that resistance fighters are coming out en masse to reinforce and give us intel. Head on home, Ghosts. That’s one for the books.”

====
Three hours later…
====

As the Ghosts relaxed in the ready room aboard the USS Ticonderoga, the mood was certainly jovial. Kozak had managed to scrounge up two cases of beer, and plenty of snacks from the mess hall. When the Eqaharians realized their General was dead, they turned tail and ran like bats out of hell for the northwest towards Canterlot. In the process, they left behind materials, supplies, and most importantly, a motherlode of intelligence.

General Azheran had been corresponding with King Diomedas on a daily basis, which included Azheran’s orders to reinforce the defenses at Canterlot once Manehattan was successfully defended from the humans.

Now that Manehattan was solidly in Equestrian and American hands, things couldn’t be more different. The resistance and the Marines had been busy rounding up enemy stragglers, taking care of many sick or wounded Equestrians in the shelters, and searching for the remaining collaborators.

Many of the traitorous Equestrians had stayed behind, though some ardent ones had fled beforehand or with the bulk of the enemy’s forces. The ones that remained were currently being confined at an apartment block to await trial by the resistance.

The US command staff had insisted these trials be fair and impartial, and the Resistance had agreed, seeing that many of the collaborators were scared out of their wits, and many had said they only collaborated to get essential supplies, like food, water, and medicine.

For now, across the liberated areas, countless celebrations echoed into the night, as the Equestrians rejoiced at one of their largest cities being reclaimed. There had also been a successful uprising in Cloudsdale, much to Fury’s satisfaction.

“Ladies, Gents.” Mitchell said as he entered the ready room, and the Ghosts turned their attention to their commanding officer. “We’ve got a helluva fight still to go. The Eqaharians are consolidating their forces in Canterlot, and intel suggests that we have five days before we lose the Element of Magic to the enemy.”

“I take it King Diomedas is picking up the pace?” Aegis Lead asked.

“Indeed. An Equestrian source in Canterlot informed us that Prince Hector’s personally overseeing the defenses and planning to marry Princess Twilight during that time period. If that happens, we lose the final Element of Harmony and a key point in our fight. There’s also something else that caused a stir.”

“What might that be?” Cyclone Lead raised an eyebrow. “Good news or bad news?”

“We’re not sure.” Mitchell plucked a can of beer from one of the cases before continuing. “We received a message from an unknown source, asking us to meet them at a forest house southeast of Canterlot, near a waterfall and a large oak tree.”

“That’s really specific.” Nomad mused. “Any idea who sent it?”

“We suspect it’s an Eqaharian defector, but we’re not sure. We’re gonna have to split up again. Nomad, Cyclone, you’ll be heading to Canterlot to link up with a group of resistance fighters that have secured passage into the city. Aegis, you and Hunter Lead will head to this forest house and see what’s going on. Hope for the best, but plan for the worst. Understood?”

“Yes, sir!” The Ghosts replied.

"Good. You deploy at dawn, and it's going to be a very busy day…so be ready for it." Mitchell nodded before heading out. As the Ghosts packed up their food and drink, an air of trepidation settled over them. Tomorrow would be a game-changer, whether it was for their cause…or the enemy's.

UPDATE!

Yeah, this was in the works for a while. Ironically, getting away from my laptop made this easier to write on my phone, as I didn't have so many distractions.

Anyway, the next chapter should be a big one. Get psyched.