The following journal is the unofficial report detailing the military operation MCS3E0102, opened to the public at the discretion of Her Royal Council of Protection and Her Royal Council of Information. Sensitive information has been omitted.

Issued by Senior Librarian Agatha, approved by Princess Mi Amore Cadenza, on fourth day of February in the year of 1204.

Property of the Crystal Empire Library and Crystal Empire Archives. Return immediately if found.

Traditionally, during an op, the highest ranking officer will detail the events in a formally written report, which is then collected and cataloged in the uttermost classified section of the imperial archives, accessible only to the top brass and highest government officials. This writeup deals with sensitive and often restricted information, including official casualty statistics, interrogation methods and results, locations, and usage of experimental ordnance not yet known by the general public.

The second in command is in charge of writing the unofficial report, which is opened to the public after being carefully edited and can be found in the military wing of the Crystal Empire Library. It's purpose has been to display a sense of government and military transparency and much more leeway is given to the writer. Personality is, quite surprisingly, encouraged, possibly to dispute the claims of guards being nothing more than emotionless brutes. If nothing else, the unofficial report serves as excellent advertisement for recruitment and makes a wonderful read if you're into history and tales of adventure.

Because Captain Ironhoof is not affiliated with the Crystal Empire, the responsibility of preparing the unofficial report falls on me, the third in command. Rarely does this task fall upon the shoulders of an officer ranked any lower than a first lieutenant and I can only hope that my abilities will be up to par. It is quite an honor and I will do my best to make this as informative and entertaining as possible.

We were briefed on the mission today. Several settlers of the recently established colonies in the west have mysteriously disappeared without any trace and there have been reported sightings of dark insectoid creatures in the area, similar to the ones that had attacked Canterlot during Her Majesty's wedding. Nothing has been confirmed, but the threat of invasion has placed Her Royal Council of Protection on high alert.

To avoid spreading panic nationwide, the number of military personnel involved in the operation was limited to three squads of four, a total of twelve guards. The mission is primarily reconnaissance, to either verify or debunk changeling presence near our borders. Rescue is, officially, a secondary objective, though knowing the Guard-Captain our priorities will change.

We will first investigate the western settlements with the reported missing ponies, then push into the tundra if more information is necessary before coming to a decision. We will then return to the Crystal Empire and submit our findings to the Council, which will then deem whether full-scale military action is needed.

Prince-Consort and Guard-Captain Shining Armor will be leading the operation. Considering his prior encounter with the changelings, I am surprised the Council approved his participation, but it is a happy surprise, and I am comforted knowing that the Guard-Captain will be with us.

We will be supported by a squad of guards from Canterlot, led by Captain Ironhoof. I do not know much about the stallion as I did not have much access to his record, but no doubt he is an impressive soldier. Accompanying him will be a pair of researchers, who we are told to be some of the leading experts on changeling behavior and can perform identification spells. They should be arriving within the week.

As I sat during the briefing, I could not help but notice that the princess seemed troubled. Her eyes never left Guard-Captain Shining Armor.

I met my squad today. Their names are a sensitive matter and cannot be revealed. I can, however, provide rank, personality, and physical description:

The corporal is of average stature, violet, and sparkles in the light. A native crystal pony, he is quiet stallion until the subject of his homeland is brought up, and then the problem becomes trying to shut him up. I have affectionately dubbed him 'Sparky'.

Below Sparky is PFC 'Tick', another crystal pony though his coat does not shine unless the magical ceremonial armor is worn. He's a little larger than both Sparky and I, a fact he has no problem rubbing in our faces. I call him Tick because his apparent lack of respect toward the chain of command really ticks me off. He claims to be joking, and Sparky vouches for him, as does his record. I will have to wait and see.

Finally we have PFC 'Private'. An unoriginal nickname, yes, but I felt it more appropriate than 'Kiss-ass'. A pegasus, like myself but a little leaner, Private is the textbook example of a teacher's pet; he was first to salute and last to put his hoof down. I entertained the thought of accusing him of insubordination for not being at ease when I gave the rest command, just to see how he would react. He has an impeccable performance record (always punctual, always organized, etc), but nothing too notable and his combat scores are barely above average.

We ran a few laps together before calling it a day. I gave each of them a condensed copy of the official briefing, told them to study it, then prepare for an inventory check tomorrow morning.

Everypony arrived on time and had studied the briefing, even Tick. I was quite pleased and was more than happy to answer what questions I could with what knowledge I had. Many of them, I believe, were less than satisfied with my answers.

Inventory went smoothly and the following is a list of the supplies we were assigned:

Guard Polearm (3) - standardized by the Crystal Empire for basic combat

Guard Basic Armor (4) - breastplate; light; helmet

Light Rations (4) - enough for a couple of days; will be replaced with Heavy Rations at the final checkpoint

Heavy Wool Cloak + Hood (4) - big enough to go over armor; a must when trudging through the Arctic

Snow Goggles (4 pairs) - supposedly, they keep the snow from getting into your eyes, I'm pretty sure they do nothing

Short Sword + Scabbard (1) - issued to yours truly; I'd much rather have a spear

As we would receive most of our supplies from the western settlements, we did not have much to pack. Resupplying at the final settlement will prove much more challenging. Might as well appreciate the ease while I can, I suppose.

Guard-Captain Shining Armor was here as well, along with the squad under his command. We exchanged greeting, salutes, jests and jabs, and went our own ways.

He took a moment to respond when I inquired about his wife, the princess. I had thought nothing of it at the time, my attention more focused on his own inquiries of my single status, but now that I have time to think I am afraid that I may have overstepped my bounds. I hope I have not offended him.

The support from Canterlot has been delayed due to weather conditions. The railway is currently under repairs. Nothing to do but to wait.

I went out earlier for a cool glass of nectar and met this lovely young mare, gleaming in the light of the moon. I approached her and offered to buy her a drink when her coltfriend returned from the restroom. What an embarrassment. I count myself fortunate that the stallion was so understanding.

Having little else to do, I visited the library and borrowed a few examples of past unofficial reports. Some were barely a page long and others had multiple volumes, much of which had little to do with the actual operation. I found shopping lists, vulgar doodles, and poorly prosed poetry. One particular journal I discovered contained the poorly written retelling of a popular piece of literature, in which the author included himself simply in order to have the female lead fall for him.

I'm beginning to wonder whether if someone actually goes through and edits these reports before releasing them to the public. An experiment: the <EXPUNGED> can be found at <EXPUNGED> during <EXPUNGED>. Now all I have to do is wait for this to be published.

Thankfully, I found a few diamonds in the trough, which read kind of like adventure novels and were quite enjoyable. It's a pity the endings of some of them were ruined by dark stains that rendered the final pages completely illegible. I've convinced myself they are coffee stains.

The guards from Canterlot have arrived at last. Guard-Captain Shining Armor, Princess Mi Amore Cadenza, and myself met the good captain at the palace. Captain Ironhoof is, without a doubt, the largest unicorn I've ever seen. He greeted us while in full armor and apologized for the delay. He made a joke of how unpredictable the weather could be, and I didn't have the heart or the courage to remind him about the pegasus weather teams.

I kept an eye on Guard-Captain Shining Armor, knowing that he was originally from Canterlot and had hoped to base my opinions on Ironhoof based on the Guard-Captain's reaction. He appeared indifferent, no, distracted, as if something was bothering him. Her Majesty was also staring at the Prince-Consort, her professional smile wavering from time to time.

I did not have time to contemplate Her Majesty and the Prince-Consort's unusual behavior, as I was soon introduced to the two researchers who would be accompanying us and would require our protection. Again, I cannot provide their real names as the anonymity of civilian personnel must be maintained.

'Professor' was your stereotypical university professor, right down to the tweed jacket and thick rimmed glasses. He was a brown unicorn and spoke with a posh accent and a vast vocabulary. I'm not sure what he said to me as we shook hooves, but based on the smirk he wore, I'm willing to bet it wasn't very nice.

The other unicorn was young mare, perhaps a couple of years younger than I. She was a sleek dark violet and had a short light purple mane, with streaks of red and gold running down it. Her tail was the same color, though unlike her mane she had kept it long. Her cutie mark was a <EXPUNGED>, a symbol of an intellectual, on the body of a model, with well-toned flanks and a coat so smooth it shined. Her hair shimmered in the sunlight, brighter than any crystal. Her eyes were green, like jade and when she finally smiled she flashed teeth as white as milk pearls. Hearing her voice was like listening the song of chimes, musical and bright.

Property of the Crystal Empire

by TheMessenger

Feb 4th to Feb 14th