//------------------------------// // Chapter 1 // Story: Expeditionary // by totallynotabrony //------------------------------// Expeditionary Captain Shining Armor walked into Princess Celestia's office. "You sent for me, Princess?" "I did. Take a seat." Celestia smiled. "And stop acting so stiffly, Shining. You're royalty, too." Shining did sit rather more casually than he had been standing, but still was not completely relaxed. Despite marriage to a princess, and his sister’s conversion to the same, his bearing was still as professional as he was. Removing his polished golden helmet, Shining ran a hoof through his mane, straightening the blue stands. He looked every inch the Royal Guard, not needing any spells to keep his coloring uniform with every other pony in the service. He waited while Celestia shuffled some papers and then pushed them across the desk. "There's been a new development in the case of the pirate Hookbeak." "Oh really?" Shining picked up the papers and scanned them with interest. "As you know, we've had problems getting him and his crew pinned down. They seem to have mastered the art of raiding Equestrian merchant ships and then slipping back to port in the Griffon Kingdom. The griffons can't touch them because they have been careful not to commit any crimes in Kingdom jurisdiction." Shining nodded. He'd studied the problem for a while. Celestia leaned forward, smiling. "But we've just made an agreement with the griffons. They don't have the resources to devote to finding and extraditing a criminal who isn't causing them problems, but they've agreed to let us send a team of our own." "We're going after him?" Shining asked hopefully. Celestia nodded. "We are indeed. I think a Royal Guard expeditionary team would do the trick nicely. However, there are some restrictions as is usual with the griffons. They didn't want very many foreigners coming in, but after some bargaining I did manage to get them to allow a larger number." "What's the larger number?" Shining asked. "Twelve," Celestia replied. Seeing the look of consternation on Shining's face she added, "I recommend you pick your team carefully." Shining nodded, his thoughts turning inward, already working on the problem. "What kind of support can we expect from local law enforcement?" "They're sending two griffons to liaise with you, although I am not aware if they are willing professionals or merely babysitters to keep a group of ponies from running amok in their country." Celestia moved another pile of papers across her desk. "What I've given you is all the information I have. I recognize that you'll have to do most of the heavy lifting yourself to get this organized. This came together quickly and without time to study the problem. I'm afraid that we don't even know what we don't know. However, I believe in your ability to go to the Griffon Kingdom and get the job done." Shining nodded and forced a confident smile. "I'll do my best.” He left Celestia’s office carrying the files of information with him. It occurred to Shining that the Princess might have actually understated the challenge. Going to a foreign country with very little information and being expected to build a case on one criminal hiding among the populace was a monumental task. Also, it seemed the Royal Guards had no arrest authority in the Griffon Kingdom and would have to work with the local police to apprehend their target. On top of that, the Royal Guard didn’t have an expeditionary unit ready to deploy and Shining would have to create one from scratch – preferably as quickly as possible. Shining took a calming breath before setting his mind to work in earnest. He decided that his first step was to create a group. Once a capable team was at work, they could begin to unravel the problem. The next day, eleven ponies reported to the conference room at the Royal Guard headquarters in Canterlot. Shining was already there, hiding his lack of sleep the previous night behind a cup of coffee and a trove of paperwork. When all twelve of them were assembled, Shining stood up at the head of the table. “Good morning, everypony. I’ve called you here to go over a task Princess Celestia has given us. You’ve each been picked carefully for this mission.” That got the attention of the assembled crowd. Usually Royal Guard duty was basic police work, enforcing the law around Equestria and doing ceremonial duty at royal events. Shining went on. “We’ve been given permission to enter the Griffon Kingdom and begin a hunt for the pirate Hookbeak. Even the griffons don’t have much intelligence on him, so this is basically going to be us creating a case from scratch. “What we know so far is that he is probably residing in the city of Port Talon.” There was a pause. Shining let it continue for a few seconds. “Yes, that’s all we have. I hope that drives home to you what kind of task we’re facing. However, I believe it’s not impossible. You’re all competent Guards. Working together, we can do this.” A few heads were nodding in agreement now. Shining decided it was time to introduce the ponies he’d picked for the team to each other. “This unit, while rather small, has the same tiered organization of the regular Guard. Lieutenant Magnifier will be my second in command. I selected him from the Guard Intelligence Branch. Mag, would you like to say a few words?” The lanky yellow earth pony nodded and stood. His red mane was a little more relaxed than most of the guards, as his duties very seldom required him to don a uniform. His cutie mark was a magnifying glass. “When Captain Armor asked me to organize a group for a special project, I decided to bring along two of my best Detectives, Dim Sun and Soft Touch.” Mag paused to nod towards a pair of mares next to him. “The three of us have complementary skills to process the information we take in. That could be forensics, interrogations, or other forms of evidence.” Shining nodded. “Thank you. Sergeant Rough Ride?” The called pony got up. He was a unicorn stallion outfitted with guard armor, appearing to be white with a blue mane. The magic uniformity spell made him, and in fact most of the ponies in the room, appear to be almost twins of each other. “Captain Armor put me in charge of the ground team,” said Rough. “I’ve brought along Senior Guard Hound Dog, Guard Pikop Andropov, and Guard Cyrus.” Rough gestured to three earth pony stallions that he had named. “We’re ready for orders involving covert surveillance and raids.” “Good to hear,” said Shining. He pointed to another Guard, a pegasus mare. “Sergeant Skydancer?” Skydancer remained seated because getting up wouldn’t have done much good. Even with the uniformity spell, it was clear that she was shorter than average. She jerked her head at three pegasus stallions beside her. “My group is Senior Guard Airborne, Guard Ace, and Guard Flash Sentry. We’re ready to do recon and support. Also, Senior Guard Airborne is a qualified medic.” Shining’s eyes narrowed slightly at hearing the name Flash Sentry, but he did not comment. “All right, that’s everypony. I’ve organized a ship to take us across the sea to Port Talon. It will also serve as our headquarters while we’re there. We leave the day after tomorrow.” It was short notice, he knew, but every Guard had volunteered for the job and right there in the contracts it said to “expect the unexpected.” “I’ll let you get your affairs in order before departing. We’ll develop the plan of action on the sail over. If there’s a library near where you live, it wouldn’t hurt to do some reading on the Griffon Kingdom. Also, leave your polished armor at home. This is going to be low-key. We’d like to avoid alerting Hookbeak to our presence for as long as possible.” Shining paused, and then added, “To that end, I am also hereby relaxing grooming standards for the duration of the mission. You can stop shaving, if it suits you. This starts now.” At his word, the assembled Guards began to remove their armor. The appearance of each changed back to their natural colors and styles once free of the uniformity spell. While this was going on, Shining shuffled his paperwork and then glanced up. “Are there any questions?” Skydancer, revealed to be a blue mare with a magenta mane and a pair of winged ballet shoes for a cutie mark, put up a hoof. “What does Hookbeak look like?” “We don’t have a physical description as he usually isn’t directly involved in pirating attacks,” Shining replied. “We do have some information on his small fleet, but those ships are likely anchored in a secret place away from Port Talon.” “What about our ship?” asked Mag. “What sort of accommodations are we looking at?” “Princess Celestia has approved the acquisition of a decommissioned Navy frigate and crew to sail it. The ship is a little old and the weapons have been removed, but it’s still perfectly serviceable for our purposes. There should be plenty of space for living and working. You can probably bring as much kit as you need to do your job.” Rough, a sandy-tan stallion with a brown mane and a barbell cutie mark, asked, “What about workout facilities aboard?” Shining gave him a quick knowing smile. “It’s been taken care of.” Cyrus, an emerald stallion with a blue mane, lance cutie mark, and an eye-catching crystal coat, asked, “What are the demographics of Port Talon? You asked us to go incognito, Captain, but will there be enough ponies for us to blend in with?” It was a good question, especially with Cyrus’ unique look. Shining checked his paperwork and found the answer. “Approximately five percent of the population consists of ponies. Some of them are Kingdom citizens, born and raised by immigrant parents, and some are native Equestrians who moved there.” Shining paused, and when no further questions were asked, he picked up a piece of paper with some final notes on it. “We’re lucky that there isn’t a language barrier between us and the griffons, but that doesn’t mean we’re the same as them. Their country is completely different than what all of you are used to here at home. They think differently, and solving this case might not be as straightforward as it seems. We’re basically walking into new territory and having to relearn what we know about doing business. “Where we’re going, there is no set procedure already in place. There are no books to look up the answers and we won’t be able to ask somepony who is more experienced. This is something that hasn’t been done before.” Shining looked around to make sure every set of eyes was focused on him. He smiled. “So let’s do it.”