A few hours after the attack on the brothel, Sunset, Rainbow, and Spike watched as the Ghosts helped a whimpering Fluttershy into a field bed in order to receive long-delayed medical treatment. Her injuries, according to the Royal Guard Medics, would heal, but there would be scars she would bear permanently.

Most of these scars were prominently on her back and near her privates. Fury, the only female Ghost assigned to the operation, had scowled when she saw the extent of the abuse the pegasus had taken. Stil, as ever, she got a hold of herself and rejoined the other Ghosts.

"So, Aegis?" Nomad said once the Ghosts had returned to their temporary barracks in the grand hall. "You said that you recovered some intel?"

"Yep, it's right here. Shall we check it out?" Aegis Lead replied. As the Ghosts gathered around, Domino split the leather seal open with his knife, revealing the pages within. While Fixit took photos using his Cross-Com eyepiece, Nomad studied the documents intently.

"Looks like a target list and their last known locations." he said. "Says here that the Elements of Generosity and Laughter are still on the run in Manehattan. Honesty's location is unknown, we've recovered Kindness and Loyalty, and there's no way we can recover Magic at the present time. Canterlot is out of our reach for now."

"Hey, Nomad, check this out." Sparrow replied. pointing to a page emblazoned with the seal of the Eqaharian dynasty. "Looks like the Eqaharian King is sending one of his sons with, and I quote, "A full host of soldiers", to track us down. According to this at the time, they should arrive in Cloudsdale in several hours."

"Does it say where they're heading after that?" Nomad asked.

"Unfortunately, no." Sparrow frowned. "But it's been about three hours since our attack on the brothel, and judging by the date on this...we've got two hours before they reach our last known position."

Nomad was silent for several moments, until he got a spark in his eyes

"Sparrow, you said that it was one of the Eqaharian princes leading this op." he smiled. "I think that's a golden opportunity, if you all get my meaning."

"I think we do." Fixit smiled. "We're gonna capture and interrogate?"

"Right in one." Nomad nodded. "We'll need an isolated location to keep him so he can't reveal our position should he escape."

"And we'll have to identify him out of all those soldiers he'll be with." Cyclone Lead added. "How does that work into the plan?"

"Leave that to me." Nomad said in reply. "Ghosts, get ready for CQC. We're going hunting."

====

Back in Cloudsdale, Prince Ajax, the middle sibling of the three Princes, watched as his soldiers went through the remains of the brothel site. Multiple bodies were being interred for later burial, and some were collecting the small, hollow golden objects scattered about the area.

Ajax took in a breath, thinking back to when he had been given this task by his father. Ajax took after his late mother, one of Diomedas's three wives back in Eqaharia. He had a gray coat like his siblings, but his mane was rust-brown and curled, instead of flaxen gold and straight. He was well-built like Hector, but for his entire life, Ajax had been his brother's shadow.

Hector was the one pursued by so many young mares in Eqaharia, idolized by their father, and thoroughly respected if not feared by his troops. Ajax, on the other hand, always felt like a footnote in his brother's story. He wasn't as handsome or strong, not by much in the strength area, but it was noticeable.

And that was excluding the scholastic prospects of their younger brother Chiron. Chiron was certainly not a warrior as he was lean and rather small, but rather a scholar. At thirteen, he could match wits with some of the best scholars and tutors in their homeland. In fact, his wit was one of the very few things that King Diomedas enjoyed hearing about or interacting with.

"Your highness?"

Ajax turned to see his second approach, and with a bow, spoke.

"Everything of value has been collected. We should pursue our enemy with haste." he reported.

"Good. Let's get going, then." Ajax replied, shifting in his armor. "Rally the troops."

As the soldiers surrounded their Prince in a box formation, they marched down the causeway that led to the city and into the plains near Ponyville. The Equestrian citizens cowered as they passed, a few brave folks sent them hate filled glares and muttered words of vengeance.

Ajax didn't care. As they entered the fields near Ponyville, they didn't notice a Cipher-2 UAV controlled by Kozak watching them, its form hidden in the tall grasses nearby.

====

"Got an ID on Prince Ajax?" Nomad asked as he watched Kozak's drone feed through his cross-com. Kozak nodded, and pointed out a soldier in far more ornate armor with a rust-red mane.

"That's him." Gates added, cross-referencing the dossier. "We're set, Nomad."

"Then let's move." Nomad ordered.

"Good luck!" Sunset called out from her post with Rainbow Dash at the command table. Sunset had taken charge in Ponyville from Mayor Mare, and was currently busy tracking the still-missing Apple Family through local contacts, idle hearsay and rumors gathered from the Ponyville citizens.

Nomad gave her a thumbs-up in response as he moved his Spartan cap forward. As the Guards opened the castle gates, the Ghosts moved as one, and headed out on an intercept course, each of them loading their weapons.

====

As the Eqaharians advanced into the Everfree, two Unicorn mages used a combination of blades and their magic to cut through the thick foliage. All the while, the Cipher UAV in crawler mode moved ahead of them. This particular UAV had been equipped with a sonic disruption device and a smokescreen to cover the escape once the Ghosts acquired their target.

Eventually, they reached a clearing, and Ajax gave the order for his men to rest. As the soldiers brought out canteens of water, along with flasks of high nectar, an Eqaharian beverage that restored the consumer's stamina and helped to keep the drinker ready for battle. They sat down in a circle, with Ajax in the middle.

However, as their weapons were set down at their sides, the Cipher UAV moved into position.

====

As the Ghosts, their cloaking getting a boost from the dark environment, slowly drew their weapons, Nomad directed the others into position using hand signals rather than the radio, which would run the risk of them being overheard.

Vasily and Weaver, the two snipers of the unit, lined up their crosshairs on the heads of the soldiers closest to the Prince. The other Ghosts lined up their own sync shots, and once they all signed "Ready", Nomad took in a breath.

"Engage on my mark." he whispered.

"5...4...3...2...1…"

"Mark."

Update!

Yeah, I hate cliffhangers, but trust me, the next chapter will be well worth it. Also, I totally forgot to include Sunset in the last few chapters, so her being in charge in Ponyville was a change I needed to put in.

Also, I tried my best to shy away from writing imagery related to the brothel and Fluttershy's injuries that would be hard for me to write, yet still descriptive enough to get the point across.

I think I succeeded, though.

Anyway, next time...The Ghosts engage Ajax's unit, Sunset discovers a lead on the Apple Family, and in the Crystal Empire, Shining Armor and Cadance learn of the new arrivals, and prepare a member their own special forces unit of their Guard, known as the Crystal Sabres, to investigate..