Spike and Pip raced over to the Ranger's Guild, running down the stairs into the Elder's office. "We're here!" they said together, panting for breath.
The Elder looked at them over the desk coldly, her fingers steepling as she glared at them. "The Great and Powerful Trixie is unamused by your antics," she said, speaking in third person. "The Great and Powerful Trixie expects her Ranger's to be efficient and punctual. The Great and Powerful Trixie dislikes tardiness."
Spike pointed at the clock. "But we're on time!" he complained.
"The Great and Powerful Trixie was making a point!" she said bluntly. "The Great and Powerful Trixie also dislikes complaining. The Great and Powerful Trixie has a job for you two today." She pulled out a scroll and placed it on the desk. "You are to find a missing pet."
Spike and Pip stared at her disbelievingly. "Boss, is there something you're not telling us?" Spike asked. "I mean, the jobs you've been giving us are well paying and of good difficulty, but they've never been the kind we can show our real stuff and get advancement." Spike started ticking the jobs off on his claws. "Replenishing the town's food supply through hunting..."
"Aiding the town guard in repelling wandering monsters," added Pipsqueak.
"Guiding in lost travelers," Spike continued.
"Finding a missing kid, who turned out to have fallen asleep under the bed," Pip reminisced, groaning at the trouble of that one.
"Gem Hunting with Lady Rarity from the White Magic academy," Spike said with a smile.
"Wait, what?" Pip demanded. "When?"
Spike grinned. "Three weeks back, two weeks back, and three days ago while you were busy making goo-goo eyes at Princess Sweetie Belle," he teased back.
"You lucky git!" Pip groused, giving Spike a playful punch on the arm.
Spike turned back to Trixie. "And now finding a pet. Easy to difficult jobs, with no possibility of advancement. Are you deliberately trying to hold us back?"
Trixie stared at them both for a time, then sighed. "Trixie is going to be honest with you both. You are two of Trixie's most skilled Rangers. For some of the most dangerous jobs, you are the first ones Trixie thinks of. However, you are also the most uncontrollable people Trixie has ever met, and rub every noble in town the wrong way. Higher ranked Rangers go to noble's parties and socialize. Trixie likes having the noble's favor, as that comes with the noble's backing, which keeps the Ranger's Guild open. So yes, Trixie has been deliberately keeping you both at the lowest rank, where you can be most effective without pissing off the upper crust."
Spike and Pip blinked. "I didn't think we were that bad," Pip said.
"The other day, Blueblood bumped you out of the way when you were staring at Sweetie and you called him a barmy nancy muppet and told him to stuff his manky arsehole with a monster's bloody knob," Spike reminded him.
Pip blinked. "Overreaction a bit?" he asked nervously.
"Not where Blueblood is concerned," Trixie admitted. "Trixie isn't sure whether to be upset she missed seeing his face or glad Trixie wasn't there to laugh at it. Even so, Trixie needs his backing, and that of the other nobles." She sighs. "Trixie much prefers dealing with Fancy Pants, to be perfectly honest."
Pip sighs. "Alright, alright, we get the point. So, who's pet is it we're looking for?"
The door opens. A unicorn filly a little younger than Pip walks into the room, her white coat and pink-and-purple mane making a nice contrast to her pale yellow sundress. Her appearance of a totally ordinary filly was belied by the presence of two Unicornian Royal Guards standing watch at the entrance to the office. "Are these the Ranger's who will find my dear Hamlet?" she asked worriedly.
"No worries, Princess Sweetie!" Pipsqueak said eagerly, saluting. "We'll find your pet if we have to scour the land from here to Caponitan!"
Sweetie giggled. "Thank you, Pipsqueak. I'm sure somepony as skilled as you won't let me down."
Pip's eyes glazed over. "She knows my name..." he mumbled happily.
Spike spoke up. "What manner of creature is Hamlet, exactly? So we know what we're looking for."
Sweetie smiled. "Hamlet's just the cutest little piglet you've ever seen!"
Spike nodded. "Don't worry, Your Highness. We'll bring him home safely."
"Thank you so much!" she replied happily, bowing as she left.
Trixie turned to the two of them. "It seems you two do know how to behave around the nobility...as long as they're pretty girls." She clicked her tongue. Reaching into the drawer of her desk, she handed Spike a bag. "You are right that you both deserve more recognition for your skills, so I will give you what I can. Though unmarked, that is an expert Ranger's bag of holding, with no known limit to capacity. It should aid you somewhat."
Spike nodded, taking his novice Ranger's bag (with only forty spaces for gear) and emptying the contents into the expert bag. "Thank you," he said. "I'll just load this up at my storage locker." He turned and went to load all his stuff into the bag.
Having finished doing so, he turned to Pipsqueak. "Any idea where to look for Hamlet?"
He shrugged his shoulders. "If he's not been found yet, h's probably wandered off somewhere out of town."
Spike nodded. "Then let's head out." Outside town, he drew his sword and tested the edge. The razor sharp steel flickered with blue light as the razor sharp edge seemed to cut the air. The weapon smith had called it an EmpireSwrd.
Pip chuckled. "I still can't believe you found that in a fishing hole on our way here," he said enviously. He carefully drew a throwing knife from the bandolier he wore around his chest. It glimmered with blue light, and the point was almost too small to see. "And I can't believe the town smith letcha make these for me that time we wound up in Gutz when he got on the wrong boat. These are awesome!"
Spike smiled. "I learned a lot from that guy. He said my fire added some magic to those blades, so I'm glad you've kept hold of them." He resheathed his sword.
Pip also sheathed the knife. "Hey, there's a circus over there. Maybe someone inside has seen Hamlet?"
Spike thought for a time, then nodded. "Can't hurt to check." He followed Pip into the circus tent.
Inside, Spike paid the 100 bits to get a ticket. He personally found that price a little high for a sideshow. As a result, he wasn't surprised to find almost no customers, and those who were there completely ignored him and Pip, keeping their eyes on the caged monsters in the exhibits. Spike continued in to the deepest part of the tent.
Inside the largest cage, he could barely make our a pink-haired head hiding behind a large rock. There was a chain attached to the rock, leading around to behind it. A yellow coated unicorn stallion in rather colorful attire stood glaring at the cage. "Come on now, girl!" he complained. "If you don't step out from behind that rock, no one can see you! If no one cans see you, I don't get any money! If I don't get any money, you and your friends out front don't get fed."
The pink hair shivered and remained behind the rock. The stallion groaned. "Maybe I should see about finding something rather vicious to throw in with you," he said. He grinned. "Bet the right people would pay big money to see a pretty thing like you ravaged."
As a squeak of fear echoed from inside the cage, Spike noticed the stone around his neck darken in response to the stallion. He stepped forward. "So all you want is money?" he asked, stepping towards the stranger. "How about selling her?"
The stallion turned. "I don't believe we've met. Name's Flim. And you are?"
Spike shrugged his shoulders. "I don't think that really matters." Reaching into his bag, he pulled out some of the high quality gems that Rarity had let him keep from their hunts, when he'd helped her retrieve more than she'd needed. "This is what matters, I'd say."
Flim stared at the gems. "While that is interesting, what if I don't want to sell her?"
Spike grinned at him. "The way I see it, you have three options. One, you sell her to me. Two, I make the guard aware of this. If you aren't a law enforcement officer, you'll be brought up on charges of unlawful imprisonment. That, and slavery is illegal in the Hometown region." Spike drew his sword. "Option three, I act on my authority as a Ranger to rescue imperiled individuals, and kill you where you stand." Spike thought for a bit. "Actually, I think you only have options two and three to choose from at this point. I'm not paying you a bit."
Flim stared at Spike, his lips curling into a snarl. Then he saw Pip drawing his throwing knives, and scoffed. "You haven't heard the last of me!" he snapped, rushing out of the tent.
Stepping forward, Spike swung his sword. The ancient, powerful steel sheared through the bars of the cage, and he kicked them out of the way. He then brought the sword down on the chain, shattering it. "It's alright now," he said with a smile. "You're free."
The pink hair moved, revealing a voluptuous yellow Pegasus mare with bright blue eyes, her only garb looking like a bikini made of white silk. Her Cutie Mark of three pink butterflies was plainly visible on her flank. "Thank you for saving me," she said happily, pulling Spike into a tight embrace, burying his face into her cleavage.
"Lucky bugger!" Pip grumbled out. "When am I gonna get any?"
The mare then stepped back. "My name is Fluttershy."
Spike smiled back. "I'm Spike. This is my friend Pipsqueak."
Pip saluted. "Pleased to meetcha. I don't suppose you'd know where we'd find a piggy named Hamlet?"
Fluttershy grinned broadly. "He's crossed the mountains to the south. If you follow, I'm sure you'll find him." She bowed to them both. "Thank you for your aid. I'll just go help my friends out there, and I'll see you when you get back!" she then walked into the main part of the tent to free the caged monsters. "It's okay friends, we're free now. We can all live freely now, yes, that's it..."
Pipsqueak blinked. "She talks to monsters?"
Spike shrugged his shoulders. "Apparently. Let's go get Hamlet."
As they walked out of the tent and away, they suddenly heard a call. "WAIT!"
They both turned to see Fluttershy running up to them. She came to a halt in front of them, leaning over to pant somewhat heavily. "My friends said I should help you, and they're right. I'm a little scared of the mountains, but I'm sure I can be of assistance." She stands back up, holding up a whip. "I know how to fight, and I can convince most of the critters we meet to leave us alone. Will you accept my help?"
Pip glanced over at Spike. "She saw you as her hero," he grumbled quietly, "she's barely dressed, she can talk to monsters, has a figure like that, and uses a whip? You bloody, lucky git! How come you have all the luck?"
Spike grinned sheepishly at Pip, then smiled at Fluttershy. "We'd be happy to have your help," he said happily.
Fluttershy smiled radiantly.
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Fluttershy joined the party.