The Riyadh night was cold, the chilled breeze scraped the sides of the buildings, howling like a wolf on a full moon's sight. The cracked asphalt lining the systematic pathways running across the city emitted their lightly spread fog. Explosions occasionally echoed across the damaged structures that are ghosts of their former selves. Broken windows, dimly lit with whatever lights were still working inside them. The Kingdom Tower (Real place) was dark, surrounded in the purple night mist. It's body solid black like charcoal. Like a dead animal with no sign of life in or around it. As for the populous of the former city, they're hiding. Their fear has totally consumed whatever hope they had for refuge from the invading forces. Hiding in the sewers, basements, shelters, anywhere where they thought they were safe enough to hide. Truth was, there was no safe place. The city is surrounded, carriages blocked off the roads that lead away from the city. Large metal vehicles sporting metal treads, a large cannon sticking out of the top, and a pony hiding behind a turret next to the cannon. Nopony can exit the city without being spotted. They're shot at sight. No burial, no moment of silence. They tried to escape hell.
Above the city, Carson's fleet of airships have taken the skies. Like large creatures hovering in the empty sky mixed with powdered concrete from the buildings or fuems from the explosions beneath. The stars were blocked by their massive silhouette bodies. The red skin of the balloons were mixed with the purple color of the night, making a dark dull red-violet color glaze. The gondala made from cheap metals, making a three room structure, the cockpit of navigation room in the front and the hangar in the back. Between the two rooms was a small room, used as a waiting room for any troops waiting in the ship. Beneath the ship were three self automated 50 cal turrets controlled from the cockpit. The fins on the back of the airship sported the heveran logo, two hooves crossed to form an 'X' and Luna's moon hovering over the hooves. The image was enclosed in a bright green circle. The blimps hummed as they floating in the air like boats on water. Quietly and gracefully throwing ripples around their surroundings. A fleet of 20 airships helped to spread fear through the touch of their shadows casted on the ground beneath. One of the twenty of airships began to descend, dropping a few hundred feet until it was around 500 feet above Riyadh's city hall. The building was built to resemble Canterlot's castle, only the color scheme was mainly compromised of white, red and gold. The body was white and the grooves of the towers and body were red with gold outlining the shapes used to form the structures. Cold and destroyed, the castle was covered in black smudges and soot. Blood splatters were seen covering the lower parts of the hall. The blood had come from the recent massacre of ponies trying to seek shelter inside the city hall. The doors never opened while Heveran troops dropped into the scene and mowed down the desperate ponies. The bodies were then dragged away and burned in town square a few blocks away.
The airship halted and hovered above the town hall. The two hangar doors opened and five figures jumped out and landed on the roof. Two other figues dropped into the scene. By the time the last two landed, the five have created a protective circle around them. Armed with suppressed G36 rifles and tactical knives, the five ponies began to expand their formation. one spoke;
"Clear, sir. No sign of defensive devices or troops on top of the castle." One of the two figures nodded and the five other regrouped. The two figures stepped out into the moonlight, revealing the burnt face of Carson's and Alhadd's gray face. As usual, Carson had his sword at his side. But due to the night time chill, he had a dark leather jacket covering the front portion of his body. His eyepatch was as dark as night as his face was emotionless. Alhadd had his trenchcoat wrapped around himself and his black metal colt python with maroon rubber grip packed in its holster in front of his flank. His hair was messy as usual and he had grown a slight beard on his face. Carson was able to smell Alhadd's wretched tobacco stench from where he stood. One of the five ponies took out a saw blade and began to cut through the roof shillings. The airship made a few loud clicking noises before lifting itself back into the sky. The saw blade formed a small circle and it dropped through as soon as the figure retracted the device. A dim light shined through the newly formed hole, lighting the roof. The five figures faces and bodies were revealed; Carson's best troops, a special ops team of Heverans. They all wore a body suit made of foamed neoprene fabric, lines extruded across its surface criss crossing each other with a perpendicular outcome. Around torso was a leather belt that wrapped around the waist and the shoulder, hooked onto a metal clip hanging out of each of the belts were the G36 rifles and at the opposing side clipped onto the belt was the tactical knife. Around their head was a black cloth, completely covering their face except their eyes. In front of their eyes was a gray metal rectangular sheet with two slits parrallel to the longer side used for vision and to protect the eyes from flying debris.
The five figures resumed their defensive position around the hole as Carson and Alhadd jumped through, landing on the now broken roof piece. They found themselves in an office with a dull yellow rug, a wooden desk to Carson's left and dark brown wood walls. The room was lit by two candles on the wall. Alhadd pulled out his python, spinning the barrel before whipping it back into place. Carson pulled the blade out of it's sheath, the cold silver blade shining with every inch. The five heverans dropped through the hole one by one, landing like a mosquito, without warning and silently treading in the dusty carpet. Alhadd held up a hoof, Carson scanned the room, finding the door a few feet of him and to the left of the desk in the corner of the room. The tyrant of a pony pointed at the door and two heverans brushed past him, aiming at the door. Once they reached the door, one of them placed their hoof on the knob while the other pointed his gun where the door would open. He twisted the knob as the other tightened his grip around the trigger. The door was pulled open and a cold air rushed into the room from a dark hallway. The heveran holding the rile trotted into the hallway, his eyes peeled behind his visor. Looking both directions of the hallway, he spotted a potted plant, and a red rug laid on the ground. The walls were gray under the darkness. On either side were shadows dancing as the light played tricks on the eyes. No sign of life or movement. The heveran trotted back into the room, made eye contact with Carson who was leaning against the desk with a cigarette burning between his lips, his blade on the desk. Alhadd, on the other hand, held the barrel of his revolver above the flame of the candle.
"Clear." The trooper whispered. Carson took the cigarette out of his mouth and let out a cloud of smoke before flicking it across the room. Alhadd pulled his python back, the tip of the barrel glowing slightly brighter. One of the troopers placed a large sheet of paper on the desk, spreading it. A fully detailed and scaled map of the Saudi Arabian Royal Castle.
"We're right here." The trooper placed his hoof on a small square that was grouped with several other squares seperated by a long rectangle which was displayed from a top view of the castle. The castle's top view displayed several shapes, all surrounded by one large circle and four smaller circles surrounding the larger. The four small circles being the guard towers, and the larger circle being the main body of the castle. The rectangle was the hallway and the squares were labeled as the politician's offices, down the hall was a circle which had a slightly larger circle around it, a small gap between their sides. An extension of the hallway, wrapping around the circle's circumference. The trooper guided his hoof down the hallway and stopped at the circle, "there should be a way down here, the media center, that would bring us to the lower levels of the castle. Hopefully an elevator or stairs." Carson nodded, turned around and pointed at the door again. The four other troopers raised their rifles and trotted for the door in pairs. The fifth trooper rolled up the map and galloped to the front of the group. Carson took the last spot behind the final pair. Alhadd joined him before they left the room. Entering the hallway, the lineup was the trooper with the map, the pairs behind each other, then Alhadd and Carson. The hallway slowly turned darker as they travelled deeper, passing doors that showcased colors that would look bright under the light, but now, it's like a graveyard.
Complete darkness soon took over as they treaded away from the room. The pairs activated their flashlights, built into the rifles underneath the barrel. Carson and Alhadd watched as they passed pieces of wood that appeared to be part of a door. Small items, nameplates, office supplies, a doll. The flashlights were soon turned off. As they dimmed, a slight blue tint covered the room.
"Sir, the map keeper says we're near the media center which has some light source due to the fact that it has a panorama window on its roof." Carson nodded.
"Don't think we're safe yet. Keep your eyes forward." The trooper nodded and whipped himself back to his stance. They entered a massive room, filled with wooden pews and a stage in the right side. The room was brighter than expected, shadows still dancing on the ground, but at least you could see what's in front of you now. The ground was covered in rags, dust, and debris. A trooper stepped on a piece of glass before looking up and finding a panoramic framed dome standing above him, made of a tesselated pattern, outlined in metal. Some Windows have fallen off or only partly. Otheriwse, the panorama was shattered and didn't offer the awe of its original design. Twinkling above the panorama were the stars which were dim under the smoke and dust. The pairs disbanded and began to seek the room for the elevator or stairs. Carson and Alhadd made their way for the stage. Trotting up the stairs of the stage, their hooves clicked against the solid, polished acacia wood. The stage was a half circle, mainly built of wood with a metal podium standing smack dab in the middle of the stage. The back of the stage had two entrances into the hallway, where obviously guests would stand before their turn on the stage. Painted at the back was Riyadh's twinkling night time view. Swirling blue colors along with the dazzling lights that spotted the horizon. Carson stood at the podium and looked out to the pews. Filled with trash and dirt. It was like the building was condemned and shut down, left to rot for years. But he knew this was caused by the sudden alert to evacuate the castle.
"Sir, we've found the way down. An elevator and a flight of stairs." A trooper shouted, "Both may lead down underground." Carson nodded and looked to Alhadd who turned around and galloped down the stairs. Carson went over to the side of the podium and continued to the edge of the stage. Not before, whipping his blade back and slicing the podium from the top right edge to the left bottom edge. The podium laid still until Carson jumped off the stage and landed before a pew. The top half of the podium slid off the bottom and landed with a bone cracking thud. Travelling down the middle aisle if the pews, Carson felt the cold night creep up his spine. Finally reaching the end of the aisle he met up with the troopers and Alhadd. Behind them, a pair of rusted elevators were sitting behind the wall while a door stood next to the right one.
"These are the Stairs." Alhadd pointed to the door. Carson examined the door and the elevators. One of the troopers reached for the button lying between the two elevators.
"Wait." Carson chided. The trooper looked back, "They would have the elevators rigged with something if the city was attacked. To prevent any intruders." The trooper looked back at the button and lowered his hoof.
"So what do you suggest?" Alhadd raised his python. Carson took a breath.
The elevator started up. The lights were dim inside and the walls were stained with some brown unknown material, along with a wet newspaper in the corner. Two railings took the left and right sides of the elevator, while a broken mirror took the back, shattered at the left lower corner. The elevator operated through a pulley system. The hum of the elevator was extremely loud and the Arabian music wasn't helping to drown it out. The controls were lit at the button labeled "basement." Before the elevator reached halfway to it's destination. The pulley jolted and the moving box stopped in the middle of the shaft. Above the elevator the wheel of the upper pulley had halted to a stop. The Axel clicked and was pulled into a slot, releasing the wheel and the rest off the pulley, making the elevator plummet down the shaft. Grinding down the sides of the shaft, the sparks began to heat the elevator before slamming into the bottom of the long drop, breaking into pieces. Sparks and electrical wiring began to light up the shaft. Up above. The elevator doors had been pried open. Three troopers stood before the ledge, looking down the long dark drop. They all looked up and each took out a small gunmetal black pistol-like device with a small spear at the barrel. They shot up as the spears stabbed into the metal ceiling, a long metal cable tied around the back of the spear. All three jumped down simultaneously lowering down the drop, holding onto the devices. They disappeared into the darkness, looking only down and watching the blue sparks below. Before long, a tug of the cable signaled the next three to come down. Carson and the other two troopers. Alhadd would come down last. The troopers and Carson took out a metal clip and clicked it onto their gear. The troopers grabbed the three cables in the center. Carson was given one of them as he clicked the clip around the cable. The three of them looked at each other and nodded. The two troopers thrusted themselves off the ledge and began to go down. Carson watched as the two dropped before he himself jumped. Feeling the cable rub against the metal clip. Looking above, he saw Alhadd jumped grabbing the cable. Sending a jolt down Carson's cable. Alhadd felt his hooves begin to burn as he went down. Carson watched as the blue sparks came closer and closer. Landing, he unclipped and made way for Alhadd to land. The troopers had gotten into their defensive positions. Again. Alhadd landed and he began to wince as his hooves burned.
"Why'd I do that?" Alhadd groaned.
"You could've waited." Carson turned to him. Alhadd shrugged as he blew at his hooves. The elevator's top had provided a sturdy structure to land on. Few pieces of debris were scattered amongst the surface, but other than that, the wreckage wasn't too bad. Exactly what Carson was hoping for. The entrance into the basement was underneath the upper half and buried beneath the wreckage.
"Open the hatch, sir?" One of the troopers asked.
"Get the magnets ready, then open the hatch." The trooper nodded and looked back to his fellow heverans. Three of the troopers reached into their backpacks and took out a cable with two chrome balls the size of their hooves at the ends. Three total. Alhadd headed over to the elevator's hatch. Grabbing the handle and twisting, The hatch hissed as it opened. Looking in. The lower half was completely demolished but the basement entrance was still there, almost completely buried except for a small gap between the top of the entrance and the debris.
"There's a way in, Carson." Alhadd smirked. Carson pointed at the hatch and the troopers jumped in, one by one. They landed on the debris, the dust lifting into the air. The troopers looked through their visors and examined the area. No hazardous fumes, nothing that could harm their commanding officers. The area was lit with the constant sparking of the elevator's wreckage, kind of like a rave party. The lead trooper directed two troopers to take the sides of the basement entrance.
"Clear." Alhadd jumped through the hatch first, then Carson. Crawling through the debris the three troopers along with the officers squeezed through whatever was left open of the basement entrance. The entrance to the elevator had opped through the basement entrance, breaking the doors down. The basement was a average sized circular room, maybe 25 yards in diameter. The area was lit by an LED light in the middle of the room, surprisingly making the room brighter than the rest of the castle. Made out of white bricks with a gold railing stretching all around the wall. On the opposite side of the entrance laid a vault made out of steel and iron. Only accessible through passcode key lock. The rest of the troopers came through the entrance with rifles raised. One of them came up to Carson who was staring at the vault.
"Belkin Passcode Vault. It's easy to break, but I need some time." Carson nodded and the trooper trotted towards it. Alhadd ordered two other troopers to accompany him. Carson twirled the blade in his hoof. As the Trooper stretched his hoof out to the vault, the room turned to a red, eerie glaze. Carson grabbed hold of the blade and the rifles raised. Alhadd watched as the room began to fade in and out of darkness.
"Alarm!" One of the troopers shouted. Just then, two spots on either side of the ceiling opened up and two figures dropped down. The three troopers by the vault took a defensive formation. The room stopped fading in and out and the figures came into clear view. United Guard Peacekeepers.
"Halt, you're in restricted area." One of them bellowed.
"We will be forced to use lethal force if you do not comply to our commands." Carson eyed the three troopers on the other end.
"Drop your weapons and cease your actions." They ordered. Alhadd watched as their armor blinked red instead of blue. Carson looked at either side. The peacekeepers standing tall and strong. The tyrant lowered his sword. Alhadd dropped his revolver. The troopers weapons hit the ground. The peacekeepers took their first steps, their large armored hoof pounding the ground with each and every step. Each step, Carson counted. His eyes closed and he took a breath at the fifth step. In a flash, his eyes broke open and he sweeped up his sword and swung at the peacekeeper as his left side. Barely scraping the front of his armor. Alhadd grabbed his gun and fired a silver bullet at the other peacekeeper. Carson jumped into the air, stretched out his right hind leg, spun, and struck the peacekeepr on the jaw. The armored behemoth staggered back and Carson landed. Swinging around, he knocked the Peacekeeper off his hooves and onto the ground. Alhadd shot Ay the peacekeeper's hooves. Making him dance in his own spot. The vice commander then galloped for the guard. Like a raging bull, the armored peacekeeper charged at him. With a loud groan, Alhadd placed his hoof on the peacekeeper's head, throwing himself over the blue speeding stallion. Alhadd fired a bullet into the back of the peacekeeper's armor, sending the behemoth tripping over his own feet and sliding across the room. The troopers picked up their rifles.
"Now, throw the magnets!" Alhadd shouted. The troopers spun the two chrome balls connected by a cable in their hooves. They tossed the magnets at the peacekeeper's legs. The cable wrapped around their limbs and once the cables had run out of room, the two spheres stuck onto the steel on the Guard's armor. The third pair of magets weren't used. Instead they stayed with the third trooper.
(Want it a little dramatic? Put on Apologize Instrumental.) Left weak and useless, the peacekeeper's weakness was magnets. If used properly on them, they'd be useless and just big hunks of metal with a pony inside who would not be able to do anything. The only action they can commit is sit in the skin of what they thought was an almighty, powerful vessel.
Carson stood over what every Heveran feared for the past few weeks. Through their metal husk, they're regular ponies. Their armor is just a blockade. Find a way around it, and they're strength becomes their own weakness. The blue lights began to dim under the armor. A slow weeping erupted underneath. The other armor began to scream from within. The weeping one, had a mare writhing in agony. Knowing she had failed protecting the mission. The other, was a stallion who gave his best to make sure the mission was done right, only to watch the tyrant leader order the troopers to break through the vault. He dragged his head across the floor, watching as the vault's passcode lock began to smoke as one of the troopers broke in. The vault was opened and Carson's troops stormed in, gunshots were heard and the weeping and screaming peacekeepers watched as Carson's troops dragged out several ponies. Some dressed in formal attire, some, regular ponies, families. Carson took out his blade and placed it on the shoulder of a mare with a pearl necklace, a navy blue blazer, and gold earrings. Carson whispered something into her ear and she began to weep before Carson easily whipped the blade. Ending her life. Alhadd aimed and fired at several others. The peacekeepers watched as the ponies dropped without a sound or word. Could you imagine watching the ponies that entrusted you to protect them, get executed before your eyes? The stallion couldn't do anything but watch from behind five inches of steel as a filly began to cry on her mother's shoulder. The troopers raised their rifle and fired. Dull noises flooded the mare's head. The screaming, the final moments of everypony's lives, stuck in her brain now. Finally, they stopped at the last stallion in the line. The president of Saddle Arabia. Carson stepped in front of the head of the country and dropped his sword. The stallion's tears landed on the floor. A slick smile crept across Carson's burnt face.
"You and I will be having a pleasant time, President."