The God Particle

Chapter 47: Two Missions Begin

A brief flash, and the ground spun and tumbled beneath Captain Swordstorm as severe vertigo hit him. A few seconds later, he gained his bearings and found himself outside in an open field with what appeared to be debris from destroyed buildings. Above him, the sun shined in the sky, and it took his eyes several moments to adjust, given he had not seen the sun in Equestria for several days.

Noises reached his ears, a dull roar at first as if he were under water. Then, his hearing cleared, and the roar became the sound of construction equipment. Turning his head to the left, he saw men in yellow hats and orange vests gathered around a giant machine that was lifting a large steel beam from the ground. Fortunately, all of the men were focused on the beam rather than looking in his direction.

He lowered himself to the ground, careful to avoid any sudden movements. The piles of debris between him and the men were tall enough that they would not be able to see him if he stayed low. He scanned around him now, but saw no other activity.

Confident he had not been seen, and keeping a wary ear tuned to the sounds of the construction to his left, he reached into his saddle bag, pulling out the clock, a notepad, and a writing instrument. Writing down the current time in Equestria, he compared it to the time he had written down moments before he left. Fourteen minutes in the future? he thought to himself in astonishment. Even though the trip to Earth had seemed instantaneous to him, he had actually traveled fourteen minutes into the past! At least relative to Equestria time he had.

Suddenly, the sounds to his left changed. He perked his ears, pulling his mind away from the marvel of time travel. The sounds were coming closer! The men were walking towards him!

Quickly, he replaced the items he had taken out of his saddle bag and looked behind him at the entrance to a ruined building. It looked unstable, the roof half collapsed and the walls sagging inward. He was worried it might come down on top of him if he went inside.

To his right, was a grove of trees. But it was at least a hundred strides away through open field. There was no way he'd make it there without being spotted. He'd have to take his chances on the ruined building behind him and hope for the best.

He stood up, once again, being careful to move slowly so he wasn't seen. Then, as silently as possible, he moved towards the entrance to the building, disappearing inside.

Once his eyes adjusted to the darkness, they were met with piles of rubble, collapsed walls, and wires and light fixtures hanging down from areas where the ceiling had collapsed. In front of him, he saw a desk that was, remarkably, still intact. Behind the desk, a dark hallway led deeper into the building. Quickly, he darted towards the desk, hiding himself behind it and dropping low to the ground again, prepared to move into the hallway should the men enter the building and appear interested in the desk. Then, he waited, the sounds of the men coming closer. Shadows appeared on the wall behind him as the men passed in front of the entrance, stopping in front of it, where he heard them talk.

"This one's scheduled for demolition tomorrow."

"Good thing too," another voice replied. "Several teens and college students have been caught exploring the site. They're using this building to get down inside the tunnel. Dangerous, it is. Those tunnels could collapse at any moment."

"Just make sure you do an inspection of the building and the tunnel before you start in the morning. We don't want to bury anyone down there."

"It's taken care of. The cops and the fire department are already scheduled to come out first thing in the morning and do a through walk through before we start. We won't knock down any walls until we get the all clear from them."

"Good. Lets get out of here then. Happy hour's well underway, and the Bears are playing Green Bay tonight."

"Wouldn't want to miss that rivalry."

Then, he heard the sound of footsteps walking away, the back and forth conversation, along with the occasional sound of laughter growing fainter. Quiet descended on him shortly after as the machine that had been lifting the beam also turned off.

For now, he stayed were he was, continuing to watch the shaft of dusty light streaming through the entrance, the only sound now, the sound of his own breathing. A few seconds later, he heard noises that sounded like some kind of machines starting up. The sounds got briefly louder, increasing in pitch, and then faded into the distance. After that, all was quiet once again.

Once he was sure all the activity was gone, he allowed himself a small sigh of relief, feeling his adrenaline levels return to normal as he realized how close he had come to disaster before his mission had barely even started. Had he arrived just a minute later, he likely would have appeared right in front of the two workers who had gathered in front of the building. Had Twilight decided to simply send the package through by itself without him as a caretaker, the two men outside surely would have found it before Eric did. And even if they hadn't found it? Tomorrow, it would have been buried underneath the demolition, and no one would have ever found it.

That one was way too close, he thought to himself as he stood up, coming out from behind the desk. He walked to the entrance, carefully looking outside to make sure no one else was around before stepping out. Now, all he could do was wait until nightfall. He'd be less likely to be seen waiting inside the building, he realized. But he didn't relish the thought of spending however long it would take for the sun to go down inside of a building that could collapse at any moment. Furthermore, the men outside had mentioned that people sometimes went exploring down inside the tunnels. He definitely didn't want to be inside of the building should one of those people happen to emerge from the hallway.

His best chance for remaining hidden until dark would be the grove of trees he had spotted earlier. From there, he could keep a close watch on the Fermi Lab ruins for any activity, and the trees would shield him from being spotted by anyone in the flying machines James had told him existed in the area.

Looking around once again to make sure there was no activity, he quickly galloped towards the grove, not slowing down until he was safely hidden among the trees. Once there, he turned around and lie down on the ground, making sure he had a clear view of the ruins he had come from.

His ears perked again as he heard a distant roaring sound approaching from above, similar to a large flight of Pegasus Guards approaching at high speed. Turning his head in the direction of the sound, he looked up. As the sound became louder, he saw a large metallic bird-like object fly over him. One of the large aircraft, James had told him about, he thought as he watched it pass over, then returned his attention to the ruined buildings he had come from. No one from the aircraft would be able to see him. Not with the trees covering him and his matte black Lunar Guard armor. All he had to do now, was wait for nightfall.

For the next hour he continued to observe the ruins in front of him, but saw no further activity. The air around him was warm and inviting, in sharp contrast to the nearly frozen environment that Equestria had become. The sounds of the aircraft flying over his head had become such a constant background drone that he didn't even bother to look up at them anymore. To his west, the blue sky began to turn a firey orange and pink as the sun dropped towards the horizon.

Suddenly, he heard a noise from his front left, like one of the machines he had heard before. Turning his head slightly, he watched as one of the self-powered chariots James had mentioned pulled up into the lot near the ruined building he had come out near. The sound stopped, and the door opened, a human stepping out of it and beginning to walk towards the ruined building. The human stopped in front of it, then scanned the ground, as if it had lost something and were looking for it.

He continued to observe the human from his hidden location in the bushes. One thing was certain: It definitely wasn't Eric. It had long, yellow-blond hair, tied into a ponytail at the back of its head and hanging down nearly to the top of its pants. It, he now decided, must be a she, given what James had told him about the difference in appearances between male and female humans. She wore bluejeans, and a rust colored t-shirt. On top of the t-shirt, she sported a brown, sleeveless vest.

After about a minute of searching outside, she went inside the building, disappearing from his view. He watched the entrance intently, praying to Celestia that the building wouldn't collapse on her. He thought it should be obvious to anyone that the building was structurally unsound, but then again, the only human he had any experience with was James. Perhaps the rest of humanity was not nearly so intelligent? For a moment, he even considered going back to the ruined building to warn her and get her out, even though it meant he would have to reveal himself to her. But then, she emerged from the doorway again.

He continued to watch as she shook her head slightly, apparently not finding whatever it was she was looking for. Then, he followed her movements as she walked back to the self-propelled chariot she had arrived in. Once she was inside, he heard the strange noise these chariots made again as it started to leave the area it was parked in. He continued to follow its movement as it left the area. Then, it turned a corner, and was lost from his sight.

That was curious, he thought to himself, wondering who she was. She wasn't one the construction workers. That much was obvious. She had been dressed nothing like they were.

The minutes passed, the sun continued to dip below the horizon, and it became harder to see the buildings in front of him. Looking at the sky again, he could just begin to see the first stars becoming visible. He waited for what he guessed was another thirty minutes before standing and stretching his wings. It was dark enough now that he doubted anyone would be able to see him unless they were to shine a light directly on him. It was time to try and find Eric's apartment.

He checked to make sure no one was around, then stepped out of the grove of trees. Spreading his wings, he took flight, rising above the level of the trees slowly, mindful of James' instructions that even with the stealth armor he was wearing that was supposed to scatter radar waves, it was still best for him to stay as low as he could to avoid possible detection.

Scanning the sky quickly, he looked for any of the large aircraft that might be near him. He could hear some in the distance, but the only thing he could see were red and green flashing lights. They were moving, but appeared to be some distance off.

Satisfied there were no aircraft close to him, he began to look for landmarks. To the front and right of him, he could see a brightly lit area that the aircraft seemed to be flying towards. The shape of the light patterns on the ground matched the place called O'Hare International Airport that James had told him about. To his left, he spotted a very wide, lighted ribbon. Dark silhouettes of the self-powered chariots moved along it, getting off of it various branches which curved, looped, and sometimes looked like the shape of a cloverleaf. That must be the main north-south highway James had told him about.

He turned and flew towards it, banking to the north once he was near it and following it, still maintaining his vigilant watch for any of the aircraft that might get too close to him. Once he was abreast of O'Hare airport, he turned south, and then began counting the highway exits as he passed them, following the eighth ramp as James had instructed.

He looked to the left, spotting the condo building James had indicated and circling to approach it from the south, making sure to stay above the roof line so no one would see him through the windows. There, he observed it for awhile, waiting until all of the windows either went dark, or he was certain no one was near them that could spot his arrival.

He approached quickly, covering the distance between himself and the side of the building as fast as possible to reduce the chance of being spotted. Once outside the window of Eric's condo, he stayed as close as he could to the side of the building, lowering the chance that anyone who did look out the windows on either side would be able to see him. There were no lights on inside, and no activity he could see. Celestia and Eric must have already gone to bed, he assumed.

Turning his head and reaching into his saddle bag, he took out the small pry bar he had brought from Equestria, inserting the tip between the window and its frame. He didn't have to apply very much force before he heard a slight wooden cracking sound, followed by the sound of something metal falling to the floor inside. Pushing up on the pry bar now, the window slid open with ease. Then, he used the pry bar to remove the screen before flying inside, landing gently on the floor and folding his wings.

His eyes had already adjusted to the darkness, and it was apparent that the main room of the condo was empty. To his front left, he could see a kitchen, but his sensitive nose told him no food had been cooked in it for at least a few days.

To his front right, he saw a hallway, which he walked towards, placing his hooves carefully and stepping lightly on the carpet to avoid any noise. Quietly, he pushed open the first door on his left, which turned out to be an unoccupied bathroom.

Continuing down the hall, still being careful not to make any noise, he carefully pushed open the door on his right, finding a bedroom. The bed itself, was unoccupied. It was clear now, the condo was empty. He walked over to the bed, pushing the covers back with a hoof and smelling the sheets. Immediately, his heart sank. Yes, Celestia had definitely slept in this bed. But it was several days ago, and she had not been back since …

o.O.o

James reached the bottom of the spiral staircase and proceeded down the long, torchlit corridor towards the Royal Canterlot Archives, which lay in a protected vault deep beneath the castle. He had never been down here before, and the significance of the hall through which he now walked was not lost on him. Very few ponies were allowed where he was now standing. For at the end of this hall, were the most closely guarded secrets in all of Equestria, including all of the intelligence Equestria had ever gathered on every conceivable subject.

But that wasn't the only thing lurking down here. The Archives also contained knowledge of what Twilight had told him was known as Deep Magic. Of all the secrets guarded down here, Deep Magic was the most closely guarded secret of all, indeed, the most closely guarded secret in all of Equestria. And for good reason. Deep Magic was so unfathomably powerful, that it could, in theory, alter the fundamental nature of quark particles themselves, potentially causing dangerous and uncontrolled chain reactions. Thus, it was also capable of causing unfathomable destruction; destruction not only of the local realm, but potentially of the entire universe itself. Of course, that was all theory. For obvious reasons, no unicorn had ever attempted to experiment with Deep Magic. Not even the Princesses themselves dared touch it, and Star Swirl's fear of going anywhere near it was the stuff of legends. Research into Deep Magic was highly regulated, and there was only one lab in all of Equestria that was even authorized to perform it. That lab, was a secret Royal Guard installation located in a basement of the Royal Equestrian Academy's physics building. Outside of the Royal Council, very few ponies even knew of the lab's existence. James hadn't even been aware of its existence when he was working in the same building, not learning of it until after he had joined the Council. Those ponies who worked in the lab were forbidden from talking about it.

There were multiple doomsday scenarios bounced around among unicorn scholars about what might happen if a spell were to alter a quark. They ranged from the creation of antimatter, resulting in a localized but extremely devastating explosion capable of destroying an entire city; to the creation of a stable strange quark that would cause a chain reaction converting all matter in the universe to strange matter; to a chain reaction that would travel outward from its source, annihilating all matter in a release of pure energy; to causing the universe to move to a different energy state, which would fundamentally change the nature of all chemical reactions, thus making it impossible for life to continue anywhere in the universe.

Fortunately, even the theory on how Deep Magic might be accessed was so esoteric and complex, it was unlikely any unicorn would be able to figure it out without access to the knowledge contained in the Archives. James shuddered to think of the potential for disaster if the knowledge were to fall into the hooves of rogue unicorns such as those who were trying to topple The Crown.

As he reached the end of the hall, he was greeted by the imposing sight of a large, reinforced double door, and four armored unicorn guards, all of whom were carrying razor sharp spears to supplement their deadly combat spells.

To someone casually approaching the Archive entrance, four unicorns would seem a small force to be guarding the most dangerous knowledge in the world; perhaps, the most dangerous knowledge in the entire universe. But James knew better. In addition to the guards, the Archives were warded with trap spells. If anyone tried to enter who was not one of the Princesses, a Royal Council member, or one of the few librarians who were trusted enough to work in the Archives, they would find themselves immediately restrained with magical spells so powerful that only Princess Celestia or Princess Luna themselves could free them. Anyone else who wanted to enter needed a protection spell cast on them so that they wouldn't trigger the trap spells. And the protection spell had been designed so that only all four guards could cast it, ensuring that no single, rogue guard could allow an unauthorized individual into the Archives.

"Counselor Peterson," one of the guards acknowledged before two of them turned and placed their horns into the magic keyholes on the large doors. The other two guards remained facing him, keeping their eyes focused behind him in case anyone else were to come down the hall.

A loud boom echoed off the corridor walls as the massive locks on the archive doors disengaged. A silver light surrounded the doors as they began to open, revealing the true nature of their construction. He estimated the doors must be at least ten feet thick and weigh a hundred tons or more. Once the gap was large enough for him to walk through, they ground to a halt.

"Thank you," he said to the guards, nodding respectfully before entering the archive room. The doors immediately began closing behind him, their grinding echoing off the corridor walls again.

As he entered the Royal Archives themselves, he felt the magic from the trap spells probing him, sending a chill through his body. It wasn't painful, but it wasn't a particularly pleasant sensation either, like being inside a field of static electricity. Every once in awhile, a small spark would arc on his skin, a shock hitting him like that of touching a metal doorknob after walking across a shag carpet on a dry day. But the psychological impact was far worse than the physical impact. He shuddered, feeling like he was walking on a mine field. If the trap spells were to trigger, he would be stuck here, unable to move a muscle until one of the Princesses could free him. And, of course, neither Princess was around to do that right now. A musty smell reached his nose, impressing upon him that some of the documents he was standing among were thousands of years old, and some were probably badly in need of restoration.

The trap spells did not trigger, but they seemed to be watching his every step, probing his every movement, as if they were a living thing having some type of intelligence. Eventually, he no longer noticed their probing. Whether it was because he'd simply gotten used to it, or because they had decided he belonged here and had stopped probing him, he wasn't sure. He hoped it was the former. The idea that the trap spells had some kind of intelligence was something he didn't want to ponder for too long.

Pushing the trap spells out of his mind, he tried to focus on the research he needed to do. There were no signs indicating what the different parts of the Archives contained, so he walked along the shelves, glancing down each aisle until he saw a librarian pony taking notes about their contents. She had gray fur, a white mane and tail, and looked to be rather elderly. He surmised it took decades of experience as a librarian before a pony would be trusted enough to work in the Royal Archives. She looked up from her notes, turning her head and regarding him through a pair of thick rimmed glasses.

"Counselor Peterson," she acknowledged with a nod. "How may I assist you?"

"Ma'am," he acknowledged back with a return nod. "I'm looking for the foreign intelligence section. Specifically, the section on changelings."

"The changelings? There's not going to be a changeling invasion to add to our existing problems is there?" she said with a note of concern in her voice, her eyes widening slightly.

"No, ma'am. No invasion," he responded with a slight shake of his head. He didn't volunteer any other information to her though, remembering Princess Celestia's admonishment that nothing discussed in Royal Council meetings was allowed to leave the meeting chamber without permission from one of the Princesses, or in this case, the Regent.

"That's good to know," she said with a sigh of relief. "The changeling intelligence is in aisle twenty-eight. I'll lead you over there."

She turned around, walking to the end of the aisle before turning left. He followed her closely, looking around and marveling at the size of the Archives. There must be hundreds of shelves in just this wing alone. And at the end of the room, he could see more reinforced doors leading to other sections of the Archives. The doors were unlabeled, but each one was guarded by two spear wielding Royal Guards, apparently as a last line of defense should some intruder manage to get through the outer doors and find a way to disarm the trap spells.

She stopped in front of one of the aisles, pointing down it with her hoof. "Everything we know about changelings can be found here," she said.

"Thank you, ma'am."

"You're very welcome, Counselor. Just call me if you need any help," she answered before turning and going back to her duties.

James walked down the aisle, scanning the shelves on both sides. Each shelf was labeled with a category indicating the type of information filed there. Changeling society, changeling military capabilities and tactics, changeling history, changeling culture, and Queen Chrysalis were among the labels he saw. Chrysalis herself, had an entire shelf dedicated just to her. He wondered what it must be like to be the leader of a nation, knowing that other countries had entire teams of intelligence agents dedicated solely to uncovering every single piece of information they could about you.

He decided to start with some folders on Chrysalis herself. After all, she was the one he had to strike some kind of agreement with if he was going to get the changeling army to ally with Equestria in this war. And given the history between Chrysalis and Equestria, he knew he had his work cut out for him. It would behoove him to know everything he possibly could about her that he might be able to use to his advantage when negotiating with her. He loaded his left arm up with as many folders as he could carry, then took them to a nearby table, sitting down and opening the first one.

The first thing he found were pictures of Chrysalis, both current, and from various dates in the past, going all the way back to when she was a young filly. She actually looked cute when she was younger, but then again, so did all fillies and colts. He moved the photos out of the way and continued reading about her history, and everything else that Royal Intelligence Command knew about her.

"James?", he heard the voice of Twilight as he looked up from his reading. She had an annoyed and uncomfortable expression on her muzzle.

"Twilight … Is something wrong?"

"I had to let the Royal Guards outside cast a spell on me so I wouldn't trigger the trap spells. I'm not used to having spells cast on me. Usually, I'm the one casting them," she said with a frown.

He nodded once. "Feels rather strange, doesn't it? The probing?"

"Very strange."

"Captain Skydart is concerned … He's worried that the changelings will try to feed on his soldiers. They've got enough to worry about without having to constantly look over their shoulders to see if some changeling is trying to prey on them."

"I appreciate his concern," Twilight nodded, "but I have some reason to believe that changelings can feed on love that is voluntarily given, rather than having to forcefully take it." James raised an eyebrow at that.

"Do you really think any ponies will voluntarily give love to a changeling?"

"I hope they will … once they realize that the changelings are fighting with them and for them, and helping to protect Equestria."

She looked down for a moment, frowning before looking back up at him and continuing.

"That said, I'm starting to wonder if this is a bad idea. What do I actually expect you to do when you get there? Appeal to Chrysalis's good nature or something?" She said the words good nature with a strong note of sarcasm.

"That actually might not be as crazy as it sounds. I've been reading about her in the intelligence reports. According to these, when Chrysalis was a filly, Equestria was very optimistic that she would be a good ruler. She wasn't always like this. But expectations, pressure, and harsh treatment from her mother and changeling military commanders corrupted her and turned her the way she is now. Reading about her life is like reading a Shakespearean tragedy or something."

"Shakespeare?"

"He was a classical poet and playwright from my world. Lived several hundred years ago."

She nodded once. "So you think you might be able to convince Chrysalis this is a chance for redemption? A chance to become the queen she really wanted to be instead of the one she was forced to be?"

He hesitated for a moment before responding. "It's worth a try I think. And if I combine that with the fact that she really doesn't have any other choice … basically, she can either be the queen that helped saved the changelings and the entire world, or she can be the queen whose stubbornness caused the extinction of her entire species."

"Doesn't sound like much of a choice when you put it to her that way. So what else did you learn?"

"Well, I learned that changeling queens emit a pheromone that has a controlling effect on the drones and prevents defections from the hive." He looked at her with a mischievous expression on his face now. "I certainly hope it doesn't work on humans and I find myself irresistibly drawn back to the changeling hive so I can be near Chrysalis." He chuckled slightly, but then got a light jab in the ribs from Twilight's forehoof for his joke.

"And you say my jokes aren't funny? I think we both better leave the humor to Pinkie Pie."

"Yeah, you're probably right."

"Your flight leaves in an hour. In addition to your chariot, we're sending twenty Pegasus Guards with you in case you should come under attack en route. They'll land well before you get near the hive. Use your best judgment as to whether they should accompany you any further than that, or whether you should go in alone."

"Alright. I guess we better get busy reading then."

He spent the next fifty minutes or so poring over the intelligence documents. For the most part, he focused on Chrysalis herself, and on changeling society and culture so he would know what to expect when he got to the hive. Finally, he closed the folder and looked up at Twilight apprehensively.

"Well … I guess I better get going," he said.

"I'll walk to you to your flight," she responded, the two of them standing up, leaving the folders for the librarian to reshelve.

They left the Archives, walking back down the long corridor and up the spiral staircase to the basement of the castle again. Then they walked down another hallway, proceeding up two more staircases until they were back at the main level of the castle. From there, they went to the door leading to the back courtyard. Two earth pony Royal Guards saluted before opening the door. Immediately, the arctic air blasted its way inside, and the two of them hurried out into the cold.

Despite the darkness, the courtyard itself was still relatively well lit. The snow had stopped, but the icy wind still bit into him. He was glad he had the warm clothes Rarity had made for him on underneath his Council robe.

In front of him, looming at the bottom of the stairs, was the armored Royal Guard chariot with four Pegasus Guards attached to it. The rest of his Guard escort stood in front of and behind the chariot. All of them saluted when Twilight and he approached.

As he looked at the chariot, the armored guards from Air Transport Command pulling it, and the escort from Air Combat Command, he felt his anxiety begin to increase. He felt as if the chariot and ponies before him were a military transport convoy, waiting to carry a frightened soldier behind enemy lines and into battle for the first time … Waiting to carry him behind enemy lines. He attempted to swallow his rising fear as they reached the chariot and stopped in front of the door. Then, he turned to Twilight, breaking protocol and reaching out to her, wrapping his arms around her withers in a hug.

"Please be careful interrogating Ambassador Firewing … I'm still not comfortable with you alone down there interrogating a fully grown dragon who might be hostile."

"I'll be careful. And I won't be alone. I'll have a lot of Unicorn Guards with me ready to magically subdue him the moment he tries anything," she said, embracing him tightly. "Be … Be careful, James," she added with a note of fear in her voice, and he knew she was afraid for him; afraid she may be sending him to his doom.

"I'll be back before you know it, with an army of changelings to help us win this war," he said forcing a smile. But the smile couldn't last long. Not given the situation they were both in, and the situation Equestria as a whole was in. Quietly, very quietly so only she could hear, he spoke again. "I love you," he said emotionally.

"And I love you," she responded, and he could hear her voice straining as she tried to control her emotions.

He broke the embrace now, knowing he wouldn't be able to keep it together if he held her any longer. Then he opened the door to the chariot, climbing in and looking at her.

"I'll be back in less than a day." He looked into her eyes, and could see the moisture glistening in them as the lights of the courtyard reflected off of them.

"May Their Majesties guide you and keep you safe on your journey," she responded.

He looked at her for another moment, feeling his own eyes moistening now. Then, he pulled the door shut, knowing if he looked at her for another second, he would surely break down. A jolt and the noise of wheels turning, a steep pitch up, and the chariot took to the sky. He looked out the window, seeing her watch the chariot climb into the night. Then, they banked, turning south towards the changeling lands, and she was lost to his sight.

He leaned back in the seat now, anxiety and depression threatening to overwhelm him as he suddenly felt more alone than had ever felt in his life. A feeling of utter despair came over him as he settled in for the long flight to the changeling lands. And both he and Twilight were completely unaware of the massive griffin invasion rapidly approaching the southeast shore of Equestria.