//------------------------------// // Invitation // Story: Duty and Consequences // by Snap Shot //------------------------------// I bask in the warm glow of the sun as day broke dawn and the moon retired once more. The brilliant colors of the sunrise embodying the emotion that everypony was feeling; Hope. Months of fighting and hundreds of battles had finally given way to a ceasefire. At first I didn’t believe it; we had been at war for so long that I had heard this rumor several times before and every time we ended up disappointed. It wasn’t until Show Off received a letter from the princess thanking us for our valiant service in obtaining the ceasefire that I realized that it was true. The feeling of relief was almost overwhelming, yet we had to stay on our guard and go out on patrols. It was difficult to maintain discipline, which created the biggest problem. Even though we were on a ceasefire, complacency could still get us killed, especially if the enemy decided that it had been ceased for long enough. To that extent we attempted to keep routine constant, same preflight inspections, same bed checks, and the same horrible food in the mess tent. It was almost painful, like being trapped in school on the first day of spring, but it was necessary, so we endured the pain. “Mail call! We got mail call!” a voice cried out from the gathering tents behind me. I turned and headed back to the base. I couldn’t help but feel a smile creep onto my muzzle. For the first time since basic training I had a reason to look forward to mail call. My date with Misty had gone splendidly; at least once I got over the awkwardness. It had been a while since I had actually gone to dinner with a mare, at least dinner that counted as an official date. She was very understanding about it, and helped keep up the conversation when things got quiet. Everything went much better the second night, after her flight demonstration we went to a play at the Phillydelphia Metropolitan Theater. This was one of the few times that having an actor as a wingman actually paid off. Show had gotten me a pair of great seats by cashing in a favor that the theater manager owed him, and I couldn’t believe how close to the stage we were. I didn’t understand a thing that was going on in the play, but Misty loved it and that’s all that counted. When it was time for me to fly back to the front, she gave me a quick kiss on my cheek and a promise to write. She didn’t disappoint, I was getting a letter at least once a week bearing the Wonderbolt seal which was making most of the other flyers in the unit a little jealous. The twins didn’t seem bothered by it; Flitter just seemed to want to give me suggestions on what to do on my next date, and Cloud Chaser kept bugging me to get a Wonderbolt’s autograph for her. I could see the pair of them amidst the crowd of ponies swarming around the mail mare. “Snap Shot! Letter for Snap Shot! ” cried the mail carrier over the ruckus. “Here!” I shouted desperately trying to get her attention so that I wouldn’t be passed up. I took to the air, staying as low as possible. Technically, I could have been reprimanded for flying without clearance, but with the ceasefire on, no pony really cared. I hovered over the mail mare, and snatched the letter as she held it up to me. “Thanks, Lemonade!” I called to her as I landed outside of the huddled mass. I wasn’t sure if she heard me or not because the poor thing seemed overwhelmed by the small herd that was pressing in on her. Some green feathers floated through the air as she spread her wings out, trying to give herself a little bit of breathing room. It was not a job that I envied. Finally away from the crowd, I looked down at the envelope bearing a blue seal, the winged lightning bolt embossed in the wax. I happily carried the letter back to my quarters, not wanting to read it where others might eavesdrop. The door to our tent was open, letting the mild spring air blow in. I could see my wingman lying in his bunk; he too had a letter he was perusing. “Hey,” he said cheerfully as I entered. “Hey.” My wingman quickly jumped off his bed and pulled his saddlebags from his footlocker. “You might want to read that and get packing.” “Huh?” I asked confused, we were still on active alert. “Just read your letter,” he said happily but with a slight tone of irritation in his voice. I rolled my eyes at him, but cracked the seal and began to read. Misty had arranged for another date, this time in Canterlot. In the upcoming weekend, the Royal Family was hosting a special Gala in celebration of the ceasefire, and to honor the lives lost in battle. I was invited as Misty’s special guest, as the Wonderbolts were to be performing for the Princesses. I suddenly realized that I didn’t have enough time to apply for leave. Reading the letter further, she simply stated that she has spoken with the princesses and my time off had already been “taken care of.” “I can’t get R and R in one day…” I said worriedly. “Oh!” Show exclaimed, now wearing a garrison cap at an angle it wasn’t meant to be worn. He rushed over to his piece of parchment and striking a noble pose as he began to read aloud. “My sister and I have already contacted your brigade’s commanding officer, informing her that you and your companions shall be attending the celebration. General Sparkle has agreed to allow Captain Famosity, Lieutenant Quill Weave, Sergeant Snap Shot and yourself to have a leave of absence.” I looked over at him and smiled. “So the Royal House has granted us a pardon? How kind of them.” “That’s my Princess of the Moon for you. We have an 1100 train to Canterlot.” I looked over at my bedside clock; the magically illuminated numbers read 0812. I now knew why Show was in such a frenzy to get his gear. I nearly knocked my cot over as I scrambled to get my formal uniform out of storage. “You’d think that they would give us a little more warning!” I complained. “I’m willing to bet bits to biscuits they tried; you know how mail service is out here.” He was probably right, punctual delivery in camp was almost as mythical as the ceasefire. It didn’t really matter at this point, the only thing that we could do was pack and get to the train depot as fast as we could. It was a two hour flight to the nearest train station, assuming we didn’t run into any trouble. “Sergeants!” a female voice cried from outside our tent. “Are y’all set to go?” “Almost, Famosity!” Show Off shouted as he synched up his saddlebags. I got my nose under the midsection of mine and deftly flipped them up over my head, so that they landed square on my back. I walked out the door and smiled at the mint green unicorn. She was out of uniform, dressed in a light traveling cloak. The dark forest hue highlighted her own minty coat exquisitely. Fam always had good fashion sense, certainly better than Show Off or myself. My wingman stepped out of the tent behind me and his mouth immediately fell open. Whatever he had been expecting to see, Famosity dressed up obviously wasn’t it. I kind of felt sorry for him, this would be the second time that the two mares closest to him would be in the same room. The first incident resulted in him receiving a hoof to his face, courtesy of an angry Fam. I sincerely hoped that things would go better for him this time around. At the moment though we were in a hurry, so I elbowed him in the ribs to get him moving again. “Come on…” I mumbled. Show Off glared at me, somehow misinterpreting my intension. “We have to get Quill,” was his blunt reply, and he stormed off down the path. Fam watched him go, giving me a brief shrug before carrying on after him. “Well, this road trip has started off on the wrong hoof,” I sighed. We trotted over to Quill’s tent. He was waiting outside with his mare; her pearl white coat reflected the amber morning sun. “I’m sorry you can’t come with us, my little marshmallow,” he told her as we approached. The unicorn turned her nose up at the thought, as though Quill had just offered her some rotten lettuce to eat. “These gala parties are always such a disappointment. I wouldn’t go even if I was able to,” she touted. Her purple curled mane bounced about as she shook her head. Famosity snorted at her attitude, but kept a tight lip. She didn’t want to risk a drawn out argument that might make us miss our train. The lieutenant seemed to pick up on the tension between the two mares as well and gave his love one last kiss on the cheek. He whispered something in her ear that made her cheeks redden brighter than the sunrise and then motioned for us to continue. The four of us moved at a hurried pace toward the tarmac where a chariot awaited to take us to the train station. A full flight crew was waiting for us when we got there; Silver Lining had her troops in order, as well as having our flight gear ready to fit. “Nice to see you aren’t taking the ceasefire seriously,” I teased her, getting in position on the launch pad. She smiled at me and shoved my fight helmet into my chest. “When the commanding general gives me a direct order to get four ponies ready to fly, I get them ready to fly in style.” I reached out and rustled her silver mane with my hoof. “You certainly do us proud, sergeant.” I told her honestly. “Somepony has to take care of you flyboys. Enjoy your trip.” “We will.” I looked over to where my wingman was getting his guns fitted on his back. “Hopefully,” I added skeptically. The ground crew chief simply smiled at me. “You worry too much, everything will be fine.” She double checked my weapons and nodded. “Thank you, corporal,” I returned her nod. “Take care of yourself.” “Won’t need to,” she said with her tail swishing. “I’ve got somepony to take care of me tonight, sir.” I couldn’t help but smile at her; she was almost prancing about with anticipation at the thought. “Am I going to have to sit down and have a long talk with this colt?” “Not a chance, sir.” She dropped her voice down to a low whisper. “Besides, I know how to break an unruly stallion.” The mare pulled hard on my gun mount as if making sure that it was secure, flashing a coy smile as she did. Her physical strength was fairly impressive for a unicorn; she had almost pulled me off balance despite the fact that I was much bigger than she was. “You have fun on your date, and I’ll have fun on mine,” she instructed, satisfied that she had made her point clear. She fired off a salute and trotted over to inspect Show Off’s gear. I had never seen Silver act that way, she had grown up so much since I first met her. War had a tendency to make us all age faster than we should. I shook that thought from my mind and continued with my preflight ritual; I stretched my wings, spreading out my feathers as far as they would go. The silver synthetic feathers reflected the morning rays so that they danced on the ground. After I was confident in the full range of movement of my wings I pulled my dog tags out of my uniform, giving the dragon scale a quick kiss. “You know, she is a lot like you,” I told it, as I gazed over to where the ground crew chief was talking with my wingman. “Confident and hopeful.” The ground crew cleared the tarmac, and we waited for the okay from the flight control officer. “Friesian Flight, you are cleared for takeoff. Enjoy the festivities!” My wingman and I took off and the chariot pegasi followed. Our role as escorts was mostly ceremonial, between the ceasefire and heading away from the battle lines there wasn’t much chance of being attacked. It gave me a chance to let my thoughts wander, which was never a good thing. I began to wonder about what would happen if this ceasefire held and we all headed back to our homes. I would have to head back to my normal job as a news rag photographer. It not the most desirable prospect, but at least no one would be trying to kill me. I looked across the sky at my wingman and then back at Quill and Famosity riding behind us. I wondered if we would still stay friends after the war was over. We were family right now, but families grow apart, especially with great distances between them. I knew I was being selfish, and I knew that they had their own lives to live and families to keep. But I also knew that I would miss them when we all went our separate ways. The only thing that I really could do was enjoy the time I had with them right now. “You looking forward to this party?” I called over to my wingman. “Get stuffed, Shutterbug.” He wasn’t going to make it easy to enjoy the time we had left. “Sorry,” he added as an afterthought. There was something bothering him, he wouldn’t react like that without a reason. “Everything okay, Lunatic?” “I don’t want to talk about it. We need to get a move on or we‘re going to miss our train.” I checked the angle of the sun, he was right. I pushed my wings a little harder trying to get a little more speed. We made it to the station as the train was almost ready to depart. We dumped our gear with the receiving ground crew and grabbed our bags before sprinting to our reserve cars. The train looked like an awkward mismatch of various cars. It was a typical military supply train with the exception of having two exquisite passenger cars wedged in between the drab military box cars. The train began moving almost as the gilded doors closed behind us. The interior of the train was magnificent, intricately carved polished wood decorated the ceiling. Gold laced curtains adorned the windows, bathing the carriage in amber light. A well dressed unicorn stood in the corner, motioning for us to sit in one of the many chairs. Famosity immediately found a seat and sprawled out. “Hmm, silk,” she said lovingly. “I could get used to this.” “Welcome aboard,” the unicorn addressed us in a strong Trottingham accent. “I am Golden Platter, I am a butler in the royal palace. Showers have been made available for your use in the next car over.” He seemed less than happy to have been assigned to escort a group of flyboys and officers to Canterlot. I chose to ignore it, it wasn’t like any of us could do anything about our situation. “Perfect, I definitely need a shower after that flight,” I told everyone and trotted over to the door that the royal representative had indicated. The fashionable unicorn approached me, levitating a pure white fluffy towel. “Here you are sir,” he placed the towel on my back. “A light lunch shall be served at one o’clock. Shall I iron your tuxedo for you?” “Oh,” I was surprised by the offer; the princesses apparently were sparing no expense. “Please.” I dug the white formal uniform out of my saddlebags and passed it to him. He took it with a slight look of disgust, but neatly folded it mid air with his magic. “Very good sir, I shall have it prepared and waiting for you outside the shower car.” “Thank you, sir.” I opened the sliding door that divided the passenger car from the shower car and felt my jaw drop. I had never seen a bathroom in a home that was so exquisite, let alone on a train. It was fairly obvious that Princess Luna had sent her personal train to come and get us. The ceiling of the shower room had been magically enchanted to appear to be the night sky, a bright silver moon shone above me surrounded by a field of stars. “Now I could get used to this…” I set my towel and saddlebags on one of the hooks secured to the wall and stepped into a stall. The water was warm and welcoming, I let it pour over my head and soak my mane. This was certainly different than the little dribble of frigid liquid that came from the tent showers at camp. The door to the car slid open and I heard an audible sigh fill the room. “Hey Show,” I said, recognizing my wingman’s voice. He didn’t return my greeting, but the shower in the stall next to mine kicked on. I turned off the water and grabbed my towel. “Hey…Snap?” My wingman called from over running water. “Yeah, Show?” “Sorry about earlier…” “It’s alright, but at least tell me what’s bothering you?” There was some shuffling behind the closed stall door. “Fine,” he said begrudgingly. “I’m scared alright…” “Scared? Show, we’re going to a party,” I laughed. “I knew you wouldn’t understand!” I was getting a little bit aggravated with his attitude. “Well, I might understand if you’d explain it a little better.” The water stopped running in the shower. “Fine, look…it’s just…Famosity and I are growing apart…and the princess…and…” He fell silent, but he had said enough. “You’re worried about losing one of them, aren’t you?” “Or both.” He sighed. I threw his towel over the stall door at him. “Show, everything will be fine. We’ve been through enough with Famosity that there is very little that you could do that she wouldn’t forgive you. As for the princess, I’m not really sure what to tell you, but she seems to be made of tougher stuff than to be jealous.” I wasn’t really sure if that advice would even help him, it wasn’t like we could do anything to control the mares; especially since one of those mares was royalty. Show finished drying off and opened the door, his brown mane plastered to his head. “You’re right,” He consented. “We had better head back, lunch will be out shortly.” I had to stifle a laugh. Show Off could fly out on a mission and face death as if he were going to the grocers for carrots, but the thing that scared him the most were mares. I didn’t blame him though, there wasn’t a stallion alive that understood the fairer sex, and the unknown should always be feared. We walked back into the luxury car, where Golden Platter had several small salad plates out on a small oak table. He feverishly tossed lettuce and carrots around in bowl; it looked delicious and smelled even better. Three pressed and starched uniforms hung from hooks on the wall, they still looked so foreign to me. Show Off, as an actor, was the one who knew all about the fancy parties and galas; I would much rather have gone in my flight suit. Taking a seat, I looked around the table at Show, Quill and Famosity. We had been through so much together, we may not have been related by blood but we were family through experience. We had eaten together before, but never like this; it felt different. This was a real meal, not some slop served on plastic tables in some crowded mess tent, this was special. Unfortunately, I seemed to be the only one who thought so. Quill busied himself by writing notes, Fam was drawing patterns on the table cloth with her magic and Show was picking at his salad like a foal who didn’t want to eat his sprouts. I decided to liven things up at the table. “So this is my first trip to Canterlot, I can’t wait to see it. What are you guys looking forward to the most?” All three of my friends glanced at each other. It was an extremely vague question, but it was a decent way to get a conversation started. “What?” Quill asked me an eyebrow raised. “At the party…” The dark green pony returned to scribbling words on his pad. He might have been a former author, but sometimes I felt like taking that notebook of his and setting a light to it. Famosity saved Quill from my wrath by taking up the question. “I’m not really planning on going to the party. I’m going to the sculpture garden with a very special somepony.” I was slightly disappointed that she wasn’t going to stay with us at the party, but I knew exactly which statue she was going to see. The mint green unicorn was a member of the Chaotic sect, those few ponies that worshipped the master of chaos. Some ponies feared them, it didn’t bother me. Fam’s military strategies had save my life and the lives of countless others, whatever she believed didn’t change that. As for whom this “somepony” was, all I could do was guess. Show Off’s eyes left his plate and he stared at the captain, obviously as confused as I was. She flashed him a smile from across the table. My wingman let out a sigh of relief and returned her smile. “How droll…” Quill commented. “And why are you being so grumpy?” Show Off asked our lieutenant. I almost choked on my salad, Show wasn’t in any position to ask that question after his tail had been in a knot the entire trip so far. Quill didn’t seem to care; he simply let out a tired sigh. “It’s not going to be much of a party without my love.” I could tell that the lieutenant was going to make himself miserable throughout the rest of the night, and I was pretty sure that there wasn’t anything I could do to cheer him up. Quill had always been stubborn. It was part of what made him a good leader and it got us out of Fort A, but it also aggravated me to no end. This trip wasn’t turning out to be the last hurrah for the four of us that I had hoped it would be. Great, now I’m making myself miserable, I thought. Quill snapped my out of my self-pity. “But why us?” He asked the table. Show returned his question with a question. “What do you mean?” “Well, what did we do to deserve a royal invitation? The highest rank here is a captain, and she’s not exactly the most polished officer on the line…” “Hey!” Famosity exclaimed angrily, her mahogany mane slightly frizzing with magic. “I didn’t mean any offense. I was merely stating that you are not limited to the standard military drab that other ponies are.” As this seemed to sedate Fam, Quill continued. “As far as I can tell, this is a fairly important event, but as far as the military is concerned we decidedly unimportant.” I thought about it for a minute and came up with an answer that I at least thought made sense and would hopefully lighten the mood. “Well, last time we were at a fancy shindig like this Show Off got a little frisky with Princess Luna, maybe she’s hoping this time she’ll get to second base.” Show shifted uncomfortably in his seat. “I’m kidding Show. No, really this seems like just a PR stunt to me; the everyday solider, the small cog in the machine that achieved victory, four uniformed idiots to stand there and look pretty so that the war effort seemed worth it.” Everypony fell silent for a moment, it was as if the joy had been sucked out of the car. That was until Famosity’s horn glowed green and her magical pencil drew a gigantic “X” in front of me. “Wrong!” She shouted cheerfully. “You’re too pessimistic Snap. Show is invited because, for some reason, he’s infatuated with the princess, and, for some reason, that fascinates her. You’re here because Misty likes you enough to at least be in the same room with you for more than five minutes. I’m here because I have friends in high places and Quill just gets to tag along.” The lieutenant scowled but the rest of us cracked into a laughing fit. Famostiy had a way of putting everything in perspective, she might be flighty and had her little quirks, but she was also quite insightful when she wanted to be. Golden Platter seemed very disenchanted with the whole conversation as he absentmindedly cleared the dishes away. “We will be arriving at the station shortly, you may wish to prepare.” Famosity rose from her seat and headed to the shower car. “I’m going to take a shower and get dressed,” she said with a flick of her tail. “No peeking, boys.” I noticed that she was paying particular attention to Show Off as she tossed her mane around. Walking over to where my jacket hung on its peg, I began my struggle to don my formal uniform. Things were actually going okay until I heard the sound of fabric ripping. I looked over my shoulder to see the sharp edge of a silver synthetic feather poking through a freshly made tear in the cloth. “Buck it all!” The jacket was magically pulled from my back. “There is no need to curse sergeant,” Golden Platter scoffed. “One does not work at her majesty’s royal palace without learning a thing or two about clothing repair.” He took my uniform and with his magic he mended the jacket; connecting the threads where they had been torn. He passed the jacket back to me, it looked as if the hole had never been there. “Wow, thanks…” I said. “You must be great at parties,” my wingman remarked. Our royal escort simply rolled his eyes at us. “Do try to be more careful sergeant.” I extended my left wing, staring at the three silver magically crafted feathers attached to my wing bone. “I swear that these things are getting sharper.” Show Off took pity on me and helped slip my wing thorough the specially designed slit in the jacket. The door to the shower car slid open and Famosity stepped out. All four colts in the car fell silent as we stared dumbstruck at the mare. She was wearing an elegant black ball gown; it hugged her tightly around the chest giving her a slim look. The skirt of the dress was trimmed with a small length of gossamer fabric that allowed just a hint of her sensual nature. She completed the ensemble with a ruby pendant and her signature peacock feathers weaved into her main and tail. “Now boys, I know I’m hot in black but you probably should close your mouths; you don’t want to drool on your uniforms before your dates.” Show Off’s teeth clacked together as he followed her order. I couldn’t help but smile at how the two of them egged each other on. They were an odd couple indeed, but I wouldn’t have them any other way. The train began to slow as we approached our destination; I rushed over to the window to see the platform come into view. I began to feel giddy and excited as I looked over to the palace; it was as if I were a young foal again. “Hey!” Show Off shouted at me. “Don’t forget this!” I turned to see what he was talking about and was hit in the face by my garrison cap. The hat hung briefly on my muzzle before falling to the floor. “Nice shot, Show. Now if only your aim had been that good against the CBs, I might have not spent half the war in medical,” I teased. “Hey, I’ve pulled your feathers out of the fire dozens of times.” “Are we keeping score now? I’ve chase a few bandits off your tail too, ya know.” All further conversation ceased as the train lurched to a stop as we arrived at the platform. I turned to grab my saddlebags but Golden Platter stopped me. “I’ll have your bags delivered to the Silver Shoe inn on Bridle Lane, where your rooms have been reserved.” He walked over to the railcar door and slid it open. “Fillies and Gentlecolts, I give you Canterlot.” He stated with the most enthusiasm that he had expressed the entire trip. The city was magnificent, golden trimmed buildings lined the streets accented with a cavalcade of colors. Ponies from all walks of life milled about the avenues and sidewalks. Though most were likely refugees from the outlying Equestrian settlements, few seemed distressed about their situation. Far in the distance, the royal palace stood acting as a beacon of hope for those who had to flee from the fighting. We had finally arrived.