Almost a month had gone by, far faster than I felt comfortable with. Atlas had assigned me to work patrols, heading up a squad of twenty ponies. He had given me an easy job so I could focus on the most important thing for me right now: Gamblers Anonymous meetings.
My sponsor was a fellow Pegasus named Jack. Odd name, I know. He's Equestrian Army retired, now assisting his fellow service ponies in dealing with addictions. He's an off-white color, blue and red mane and tail. Cutie mark of a toy jack.
I was in a meeting at the moment and I was waiting for my turn to talk. I felt a tap on my shoulder and the pony before me passed on the turn to talk.
I stood and cleared my throat. “Hello. My name is Flame Strider,” I introduced myself like I was supposed to.
“Hi Strider,” everypony said like they did every time.
The point was to share a highlight from the past week, whether it relates to the ‘healing process’ or not. “I was with my daughter earlier today she wanted to go on the Wild Blue Yonder. Walking the casino floor to get to the ride, we had to pass by the blackjack tables. I heard a lot of cheering, the sound of ponies winning. I could feel myself want to join in. They want to win. It wasn't easy. A month ago I wouldn't have felt that way. It's… hard feeling this way. Feeling like I have to fight against myself.”
There were nods and murmurs of agreement around the room.
“I think I'm done sharing for the evening.” I sat back down.
“What Strider feels is normal. I even feel the pull of temptation every now and again. But we are soldiers and guards; more than that, we have families and friends who depend upon us. We need to be strong against that temptation,” Jack said.
“But we already gave in once,” somepony said.
“The fact that you are all here now means that you have the strength to break free. Let's keep it that way, eh?” Jack asked the group. I nodded with everyone else in agreement. He looked up at a clock that was on the wall. “Alright everypony. That's it for tonight. I'll see you all next week.”
I stood and went for some coffee from the table in the corner. As I was making myself a cup, Jack approached me.
“Almost a month that you've been with us. You are making good progress,” Jack grinned.
“Sure doesn't feel like it,” I commented.
“Still haven't found her?” Jack asked.
“No. I keep getting stonewalled by the bureaucratic nonsense of the Equestrian Guard. At the same time though, I'm not sure I want to find her right now,” I admitted. Didn't like hearing myself say it though.
“Can I ask why?” Jack pushed.
I sighed. “I wouldn't even know what to say to her. I know I still need to apologize to her, but after that, it's all a blank.”
“You're smart. I'm sure you'll figure it out by then.” He placed a hoof on my shoulder. “For now though, worry about that filly of yours. Focus on her. It will help.” He started to walk away. “By the way, I put in an order for your one-month sobriety coin. Keep it up.”
One month. One month was nothing to celebrate. I grinned weakly at him as he left. I had to keep this up. I wanted to keep Jett, I wanted to keep my job, and I wanted Snow back, more than anything.
Walking in the door to the apartment I found Atlas, Jett, and Atlas’ marefriend Orchid Love all sitting at the dinner table with a plate set aside for me.
Orchid was a white earth pony, with a purple and white mane and tail, pink eyes. She had a purple orchid as a cutie mark. She works as a groundskeeper for a few of the casinos.
“Hello brother. How was your meeting?” Atlas asked.
I grinned at him. “It was good mostly. We think somepony fell off the wagon again. She didn't show up like she said she would.”
“Maybe she just got caught up?” Orchid offered.
“That's what we are hoping. Jack is gonna check in on her just in case,” I started to eat.
“I gotta say. Since you've been here you are looking and sounding more like yourself,” Atlas observed.
“Less angry,” Jett chirped.
“‘Less angry’ huh? I suppose you'd be the one to notice that.” I flicked a pea at her with a feather and she laughed.
Atlas just grinned. “Anyway, I was just thinking that after a bit more time we can get you on the track for the rank of Captain.”
I nodded. “After a bit more time, I wanna be sure I'm not gonna lose all this progress.”
Orchid nodded. “We understand. Let's just be sure that this isn't gonna be permanent, you staying here.”
She was right to ask about that: Jett and I were guests in their home. We needed our own place.
“I wasn't gonna say anything yet,” Atlas started.
“No, I plan on moving us one more time. I'm thinking back to Canterlot. Maybe put in to be a Royal Guard. Settle down there…” I was about to continue.
“Funny you should say that,” Atlas started. “Buttercup, Orion, Thasus and I have been communicating by letter over this past month. And we've come to a decision.”
“Good or bad?” Jett asked what I was thinking.
“Good. At least we think it's good.” He took his dear sweet time getting it out. “We have decided we want to sign full ownership of mother's house to you.”
I had to stop and think a moment so I didn't inhale and choke on my food. Once I was able to talk, I had trouble getting it out. “Wh-what made you come to that decision?” I asked.
“Thasus is pretty much set to inherit grandma’s and grandpa’s house in Baltimare. Orion is a Wonderbolt, his home is in Cloudsdale with Fleetfoot. My home is here in Las Pegasus,” Atlas explained.
“And Buttercup?” I asked.
“She only wants to stay in the house long enough to finish school. Then she wants to move to Manehattan,” he told me.
I was at a loss for words truly. “That is...magnificent. I don't know what to say.”
“We’re gonna move to Canterlot!” Jett cheered, dancing in her seat. “I’m gonna get to see the Princesses!”
“There is one catch,” Atlas said hurriedly.
I rolled my eyes. “Oh great. What?”
“You get to host all big family events. Just like mom used to.”
Get the family back together in my place a few times a year? That wasn't so bad a catch. “I can do that.”
Atlas smiled. “Thasus has the paperwork right now. Then it goes to Orion for signing, before coming to me and you. Then all you need to do is file it with the city when you go back and it will be yours.”
“Thank you, brother,” I nodded.
He nodded as he smiled. “You can thank me for keeping your act together.”
“I will,” I smiled.
The next day I was at my desk outside Atlas’ office, working on next month’s patrol schedule. I liked getting it done and over with so I didn't have to hear it from my guard ponies that I forgot to give them a requested day off. The other sergeants here did the same with their sections of the city. We all sat in the same area outside the captain’s office.
I glanced up to look at a clock but my attention was caught by a white unicorn walking up to Atlas’ door. He was wearing the distinctive black and gold trimmed field armor of the R.B.I.
The Royal Bureau of Investigation, based out of Canterlot. If 'Agent' was a rank it was only a rank seen in the RBI, the highest being a Director who reports directly to the Princesses. They usually deal with international issues, internal affairs of the Equestrian militaries, or escaped criminals. Or in very rare cases, they take over investigations that they deem have gotten out of hoof for the local guard. If one of them was here, something was about to get intense.
I watched as Atlas opened the door and calmly let the agent in. I was also now aware that the entire office was interested in our visitor. I looked over to the sergeant who was next to me. “Leadhoof,” I think his name was.
“Hey, do you know what’s going on?” I asked him.
“No, but I have a guess.” Leadhoof started. “That's not the first RBI agent to come through here within the year. First one came here about a month or so before Captain Atlas started. He was looking into that underground fighting ring. They found his body a few days ago. My guess is this one is here to finish the job.”
An underground fighting ring. There had been some talk going around the office about that: ponies being involved in some kind of gladiatorial contest between volunteers, betting on the winners. The losers of those fights didn’t fare well: the lucky ones managed to get themselves to an emergency room, but they wouldn’t tell us anything.
I glanced at the clock and saw that it was lunchtime. I went to the canteen to have some grilled egg sandwiches and think for a while. Even mailed out some additional inquiries about where to find Snow. Not that I was really expecting a helpful response.
Once I was done with lunch, I went back to my desk. I was really starting to wish I could go back into the field. It happened every now and again, but not as often as I'd like. Sitting at a desk was not my idea of being a good sergeant. Once I was finished with the schedule, I moved on to incident reports. Got lost in the work too.
“Sergeant Strider!” I heard Atlas’ voice boom. I nearly came unglued, half-tumbling out of my chair. “My office.”
I stood and headed for his door. Walking in I saw the RBI agent standing over a ton of papers on Atlas’ desk. The RBI agent had his gaze set on me. “This is your best Sergeant?” he asked.
“Sergeant Strider, care to tell him what arrests you have under your belt?” Atlas said.
“The Mercenary Halberd, the Crime Boss Amaryllis Lurce, and the Witch Xixhpy,” I rattled off.
He looked at me with a “not bad” expression. “All three of those were high publicity in the papers. Even noticed in Canterlot. My name is Nassor. I’ve been sent to complete the RBI investigation into the fight club going on in this city.”
“And he needs help,” Atlas added.
“I cannot carry out my plan due to the fact I need to be on this end to carry out any legal assistance the infiltrator may need and to organize the strike unit,” Nassor explained.
“‘Infiltrator?’” I asked.
“I need somepony to go undercover, deep cover, and weed these rats out of their holes.” Nassor nodded at me. “That somepony is you, Sergeant.”
I looked over to my brother. “And you approve of this?”
“No, I don't,” Atlas scowled. “I think his plan sucks. But you are the only one I trust to survive it.”
Survive it? I tried not to swallow nervously and looked at Nassor. “Well if he thinks the plan sucks, the plan sucks. Let’s hear it and see if we can make some improvements,” I said, trying to keep my tone casual as if we weren’t discussing something that might get me killed.
“Captain Atlas, could you excuse us a moment? It’s best you don't know all the details,” Nassor told him.
Atlas raised an eyebrow. “Are you accusing me of something?”
“No,” Nassor said delicately. “It’s just that the fewer ponies know about the plan, the less likely that somepony will let something slip.”
Reluctantly, Atlas stepped out, briefly laying a hoof on my shoulder as he walked out.
Nassor started explaining the plan. “Your cover in an ex-soldier who was dishonorably discharged for fighting a superior. Name of Astral Strikes.”
“Sorry sir, but I already found a problem,” I cut him off.
“What? Is there an issue with the cover?”
“Yes. For starters, if I had somepony to work with besides me, I feel the cover could work better. Preferably somepony who can pose as Astral Strikes’ marefriend or fiance to create a more solid cover.” I also wanted somepony for backup should things go sideways.
“Why do you need somepony like that?” Nassor asked confused.
“Public displays of affection make onlookers uncomfortable. Also, it's harder to call a bluff when two are bluffing.” A trick I’d learned from the poker tables. I felt a bit of guilt at having to use something from my old life.
“I guess that makes sense,” Nassor nodded. “You are the one who’s going in, you should be the one who feels confident about the plan.”
I nodded as I thought about the mission for a moment. “Also if this is deep cover, we are gonna need a motel room to use as a stage so nopony can walk in on us when we are meeting for an update. Additionally, I'm gonna need somepony to patch me up in between fights.”
“I can set all that up. Anything else?” Nassor nodded.
“I’d prefer ponies I can trust on this,” I mentioned.
“I’ll see who I can dig up from ponies you’ve worked with before. Now to the rest of the details.” Nassor sat back to explain. “You will be provided bits. Glamor charms to disguise your appearance. Any and all intel you may need on ponies once you have identified them. And now your medic will have medical supplies delivered to their room. Just so you are aware, you will not be allowed to see your daughter or anypony outside the operation. So while I am setting this up, you may want to get everything in order.”
“I’ll be ready. How long is this operation gonna run?” I asked.
I was sitting with Jett at a nearby park. “How long?” she asked.
“A month,” I said. “Atlas will take care of you until I return.”
She frowned up at me. “Why can't somepony else do it?”
“Because I’m the only one who Atlas and the RBI trust to do it,” I said.
“I don't want you to.”
To be perfectly honest I didn't want to do this either. But I was worried that if it were anypony else, they’d get themselves killed. Come to that, I was worried that I’d get killed. But then, I’d been lucky so far, and I’d done everything I could to keep myself alive.
“How about I make you a promise? The moment, and I mean the moment, it gets too risky for me to be there, I will call the operation off. Does that sound good?” I offered.
“No. But I know you will keep your promise.” She snuggled up beside me.
“You know what else I can promise?” I said, draping a wing around her and holding her close.
“What?”
“Once this is over. We are going to Canterlot and staying there.”
She looked up at me. “No more moving?”
“No more moving. I’ll get you into Canterlot Academy, and once you get through that Orion and I can help get you to the naval academy and then into the Wonderbolts eventually.” I said. “That sound like a good long-term plan?”
“Will I get to see the Princesses?” she asked, stars in her eyes.
I chuckled. “I’ll see what I can do.”
She hugged me. “Sounds great Dad.”
“A deep undercover operation, eh?” Jack asked before sipping his coffee. “No wonder you can't say anything more.”
“Yeah. Starting at the end of the week.” I stared at my cup.
“That would mean missing a more than a few meetings,” he said. Jack had a firm grasp of the obvious.
“I'm aware. Is there anything I can do?” I asked, finally taking a sip.
“You can write the group letters. But with you being undercover, I’m unsure how you will accomplish that,” Jack offered as a solution. One I rather liked.
I shrugged. “I'll figure out a way.”
Jack cleared his throat. “In the meantime, I can hold onto your one month chip until you return,” he offered.
I really enjoyed having Jack as my sponsor. He was hard on you, but he was still a friend. “I'd appreciate that, thank you.”
“Just don't disappoint, I expect you to be ready for your late one-month clean party,” he chuckled and sipped from his mug.
I just rolled my eyes at him. “I'll be ready.”
Day one came faster than I thought it would. I said my final see-you-laters early Saturday morning and Nassor transported me to the motel where we would be staging this little operation. Nassor wasn't sporting his usual RBI armor today. Instead, he was wearing a green janitor’s jumpsuit.
“Here put this on.” Nassor hooved me a ring meant to be put on a pegasus feather.
“What's this?” I asked.
“That is Astral Strikes. His wife's name is Glossy Finish.”
“How'd you come up with this?” I asked.
“Our local enchanter figured it would be the best way to hide the glamour charms,” Nassor explained.
“Makes sense, I guess,” I said slowly. Could have just as easily put it into a leather bracelet or something. “What happens if my feather falls out?”
“It won't, there is a secondary enchantment that will prevent that from happening.”
Good to know that Nassor thought of things like that.
“The medic you requested and your partner is already in the motel. You need to have that ring on before we arrive.”
I fumbled with it and slid it onto a feather where it was visible. I watched as my coat turned black with white specks throughout my coat, my mane and tail went white, and my cutie mark was replaced by an arrow over a four-point star. There were a number of scars visible on this coat. It felt weird that this was the closest thing to armor that I was gonna have for the next month.
The wagon squeaked to a stop. Stepping out I found we were in what I'd call the lower side of Las Pegasus. Poverty, crime, drugs, prostitution, you could find it all here. I followed Nassor up to the room.
Nassor turned to me. “If you want in knock like this.” Knock, knock-knock-knock, knock… knock, knock.
“Shave and a manecut, two bits?” I asked.
“Precisely.”
We heard the lock on the door slide, and it opened. A unicorn mare with a powder blue coat, auburn mane, and dark blue eyes stood there. She was kinda skinny, definitely dolled up like somepony fresh off the train from Canterlot. She stood out in a neighborhood like this. “Nassor?” she whispered. I could hear the shower running farther in the room.
He nodded and she stepped aside. I followed him in. Once she closed the door Nassor started to speak freely. “Where is the medic?”
“She will be out in a moment.” The unicorn walked over to the door and knocked a little harder than I thought her capable. “They’re here!” she called and walked to the other side of the room. She started pressing herself up in a mirror.
Nassor cleared his throat. “You can take the charm off now.”
I nodded and did so. It was just as strange as going back to my normal appearance.
“I believe introductions are in order. Flame Strider, meet Vanity. Vanity has already helped the Canterlot guard with a few undercover operations.”
“‘Vanity?’ I think I've heard of you. Your dad or somepony is an officer?”
“So what if he is? I earned my place in the undercover unit,” she said and stuck her nose in the air.
I heard the bathroom door open, and an audible gasp. “What is he doing here?” I heard that distinctive Trottingham and Manehattan accent mix, and my blood froze.
“Flame Strider is the point on this mission, Snow,” Nassor said.
I turned to face the mare I’d been searching for. Snow looked well. She was also glaring daggers at me.
“Something tells me that there was something between you two,” Vanity stated, smirking a bit.
“There was,” Snow and I said in unison, I in a tone of regret and her with acid in her voice.
“He has a gambling problem. He broke a promise that he'd stop,” Snow shot.
“Had,” I corrected after collecting myself. “I'm almost a month free of gambling.”
“Got any proof?” Snow asked like a punch to the face.
I had a hard time talking. “They…they don't give you a sobriety chip before the first month is over. O-only after.”
“So all we have to go on is your word? That's not worth much now is it?” Her words were like venom.
I hung my head low. “I deserve that,” I walked over to the couch and sat.
This was gonna be a very long month.