Love Bites

chapter 11: take what remains of me

chapter photo creds: @eeriezoundz on tumblr
title from "winner of a losing game" by rascal flats

                     ________________

October 2023

Applejack felt a chill run down her spine as the van approached the familiar building. They barely made it out the first time, but at least now they were prepared. This time they had a plan.

She and Rainbow Dash grab their weapons of choice, as well as a grappling hook and rope for each of them. Applejack attaches the rope to the hook before tying the other end around the loops of her hunter's belt.

"Haven't done somethin' like this in years," Applejack mutters, staring up at the flat roof of the building.

While Applejack and Rainbow were tasked with scaling the building and infiltrating headquarters, they needed someone to stay back and man the technology side of things. There was no way they'd be able to successfully pull off this mission if Sunset wasn't as proficient with tech.

"Remember," Sunset says. "There should be a red barcode with a serial number on the backside of the generator. Get me those numbers and you're in."

"Got it," Rainbow nods. "And that'll get us through the doors?"

"It'll also shut off power for maybe 20 minutes. The backup generators will kick in by then though so you have to move fast."

Applejack hums in agreement. "Bein' under the cover of darkness will help us a ton."

"Applejack."

She turns to see Rarity sitting in the back of the van, and before Applejack can stray too far from the vehicle, the other woman tugs on the front of her shirt, pulling her into a soft kiss.

"Be safe," Rarity says, releasing Applejack's shirt. "And if you need backup, you call us, okay?"

"Always," Applejack grins, giving her another quick peck.

She makes her way towards the wall of the building, standing beside Rainbow Dash who looks strangely close to bursting out laughing.

"Always," she mocks, her voice low enough that only Applejack could hear.

"Fuck off," Applejack shoves her with a roll of her eyes. "Climb the damn wall."

She swings the hooked end of the rope a couple times before throwing it with as much force as she can, smiling when the hook latches onto the edge of the roof. After that, the brick was surprisingly easy to scale, mostly due to the cracks in the material, giving her and Rainbow Dash multiple footholds on the way up.

The roof is largely empty, save for the generators in the corner and the trapdoor that would theoretically open for them once the power was shut off. It was the one thing Applejack actually enjoyed about technology: if they could hack into the system, every door was open to them.

Applejack fiddles with her earpiece so it connects to the right channel. "Sunset, you hear me?"

"Loud and clear," says the voice in her ear. "Do you have eyes on the generator?"

Rainbow Dash gets there before her, inspecting the metal box before rounding its corner and bending down. She turns on her own earpiece. "Got the numbers. You ready for them?"

"Read them to me," Sunset says.

Applejack surveys the area while Rainbow Dash reads off a series of numbers. She doesn't notice anything strange, no extra cars around them, no unusual commotion. She hopes it's a sign that their plan will go off without a hitch.