After dinner, Bronze Star and Luna went back to the library and talked until eleven o'clock. When the clock struck eleven, Bronze Star decided to call it a night. He had a meeting with the City Council scheduled for the following morning, and he did not want to show up to it fatigued. Luna planned to remain awake for several more hours, as she preferred the darkness. If not for the meeting, Bronze Star would have stayed up with his aunt for a while longer.
The gold stallion slept peacefully that night. He woke up at six o'clock, just a few minutes before the Sun rose. After getting out of bed, he took a quick shower, ate a light breakfast, and checked the bulletin for anything new. There was in fact an update on some recent activities in Canterlot. He made a note to share its contents at the meeting.
The meeting was scheduled for seven o'clock, but the City Council had been instructed to arrive a half-hour early. That way, the Royal Guard could inspect the board members and their belongings at the gate. To some, this may have seemed rather unusual. Understandably so, as people who came to the embassy normally did not have to be searched. However, the Royal Guard felt the need to impose an additional layer of security around the building because Princess Luna was currently residing in it. Fortunately, none of the board members protested this action; they agreed to be frisked.
Once the department heads were cleared, they were allowed entrance into the embassy. They assembled in the conference room, where Bronze Star was waiting for them. The gold stallion watched and studied them as they took their seats. They were the same twelve mares and stallions from the meeting that took place on the day before the Summer Sun Celebration. The mayor had not been present for that meeting. For this one, she was.
This meeting did not take up as much time as the one from the previous week. That one had lasted five hours, whereas this one only lasted slightly over two. Nevertheless, there was plenty of material for Bronze Star to discuss with the mayor and her council.
The thirteen legislators had already been brought up to speed on the matter surrounding the cultists. A considerable percentage of the meeting focused on what they could and should do in response to the conspiracy.
The stallion seated at "Housing & Buildings" voiced his apprehension about how easily the cultists were able to move into town. He proposed that they issue a diktat that would allow Mr. Lessee to more thoroughly examine everypony who came to live at the apartment complex.
The mare seated at "Environmental Protection" brought up the fact that the energy sphere in the Everfree Forest had not disappeared, and that its presence could pose a threat to its surroundings. She advocated that they consider quarantining that section of the Forest.
The mare seated at "Public Safety" had by far the biggest concerns. She was greatly unsettled by the knowledge that this whole conspiracy made its way into Ponyville without drawing any attention whatsoever. Since there was evidence that suggested the plot was not yet over, she recommended that they give Noble Edict and her staff more jurisdiction to keep the citizens of Ponyville safe.
Bronze Star reciprocated all of their concerns, but he felt that these precautions were a little excessive. He pointed out that these provisions would greatly limit the number of freedoms available to the citizens of Ponyville. With all this scrutiny in place, they would risk generating civil unrest. The department heads understood his reasoning, but they still insisted that they do something about the conspiracy. So Bronze Star offered a few less restrictive measures that would ensure the town's well-being without taking anypony's rights away. After some consideration, the City Council accepted these measures and moved on to the next item of business.
The meeting was concluded at about 9:15. Once it ended, the twelve City Council members swiftly gathered up their materials, filed out of the conference room, and departed the embassy through the main entrance. The mayor chose to linger for a few minutes. When she was alone with Bronze Star, she approached him and requested "Mr. Ambassador, may I have a word?"
"Certainly, Mayor," the gold stallion replied, sorting through some papers. Once they were organized, he looked up at the older equine and said "What can I do for you?"
"I'd just like your input on something," she remarked, "In four days, we'll be giving out the Pony of Ponyville Award."
Bronze Star raised an eyebrow and asked in perplexity "What might that be?"
"It's a title that's given out once a year to a resident of this town," Mayor Mare enlightened him, "We choose the recipient based on a number of factors. Their contributions to the public, their treatment of their fellow citizens, how respectable they are as a whole, and several other criteria. Essentially, you could think of the prize as a… well, a 'best pony' award, so to speak."
Bronze Star scoffed and commented "That's a very interesting label. But it seems fitting. Out of curiosity, why are you bringing this up to me?"
"Right now, we're still debating on a list of candidates for the award," the mayor elucidated, "Currently, we only have four. We need a minimum of five before we can distribute the ballot. So I was wondering if you had any suggestions for the fifth spot."
Bronze Star lightly shrugged and declared "I'm not certain I'd be of much help to you there, Mayor. I've only been in this town for a week. That's hardly enough time to get to know the populace."
"I know, but you seem to have excellent judge of character," the mayor perceived, "Aside from that, you've made several friends since you arrived here. Perhaps one of them may qualify for the award."
"Can't really argue with that," Bronze Star remarked, "Could any of the six mares who recovered the Elements of Harmony apply?"
"Yes, all of them except Twilight Sparkle," Mayor Mare replied. Bronze Star was surprised to hear this statement. The mayor noticed his alarm, so she quickly added in "I have nothing against Miss Sparkle. I actually have a lot of respect for her. It's just that whoever wins the award must be somepony who's already lived in Ponyville for at least a year. Miss Sparkle doesn't meet that prerequisite."
"Well, I don't either, so I suppose that's fair," Bronze Star thought aloud. He paused for a short period and then he stated "Could you give me some time to think about this?"
"Certainly; take as much time as you need," the mayor told him, "But if possible, please try to get back to me by the end of the day."
"Very well," the gold stallion coincided.
The two ponies then made their way to the front door. By the time they arrived there, they both felt a slight tingling in their hooves. Initially, they were uncertain where this sensation came from, but they soon realized that the space beneath their feet was faintly vibrating.
Over the next minute, the trembling in the ground became more pronounced. The tremors were soon accompanied by a sound that strangely resembled a thunderstorm. As the trembling got stronger, the noise became louder.
"What's going on?" the Mayor queried in worry.
"I don't know," Bronze Star retorted, listening to the sounds, "But it's getting closer. We'd better head outside!"
The gold stallion and the tan mare burst through the main entrance of the embassy. As they passed through the front gate, they spotted Rainbow Dash in the air. The cyan Pegasus was gazing towards the south. After about ten seconds, she shouted in alarm "STAMPEDE!"
Bronze Star turned to the south and discovered that Rainbow Dash was correct. A large herd of cattle was charging towards Ponyville with alarming velocity. They bellowed loudly as they got closer to the town.
The townspeople did not react well to Rainbow's revelation. Most of them started panicking and scurrying throughout the streets. Several of them took shelter. They locked their doors and covered their windows. Almost everypony else continued scampering and screaming frantically.
However, one person did not seem too bothered. A few meters away, Pinkie Pie was laughing and bouncing on the ground. She uttered in a shaky voice "Hey...! This makes my voice sound silly!"
Twilight Sparkle was in the same area. She noticed the pink mare and she yelled agitatedly "Pinkie Pie, are you crazy?! Run!"
Bronze Star watched as the disarray unfolded in front of him. He leaned over to the mayor and whispered intently "We should probably do something to calm this crowd down."
She nodded in agreement and trotted to the center of the town square. From there, she called out "Everypony, calm down. There is no need to panic."
Unfortunately, her attempt to reassure the people did not have much success. Rarity was the only one who even seemed to acknowledge the mayor. The white mare approached the tan mare and stated dramatically "But Mayor, whatever shall we do?"
Before the mayor had a chance to respond, Rainbow Dash flew closer to the ground, pointed towards the south, and yelled "Look there!"
At that, everypony turned back towards the stampede. All the cows were large, and their coats were composed of various shades of white, grey, black, brown, and tan. However, Rainbow Dash drew everypony's attention to a smaller orange figure who was galloping amongst them.
It only took everypony a moment to recognize this figure as Applejack. She buoyantly called out "YEEHAW!"
When they saw the farm mare, the citizens of Ponyville quickly stopped panicking. Instead, they started cheering for Applejack. The orange mare quickly brought the cows as close together as possible. Bronze Star noticed that a small dog was running alongside her, as if helping her.
Back in town, Pinkie Pie had pulled out a bag of popcorn. She announced excitedly "This is the best rodeo show I've ever seen."
Most of the other ponies just ignored her as she ate her popcorn, but Twilight and Bronze both rolled their eyes.
Once the cattle were grouped together, Applejack hopped onto a cow near the center of the herd. Then she took out a rope and used it to lasso another cow near the front. Once the lasso was in place, Applejack gripped the end of it in her teeth and jumped back to the ground. Then she ran alongside the cow at front and pulled the rope hard. In response, this cow veered strongly to the right. As a result, all the other cows followed her. In the end, the entire herd steered clear of Ponyville.
The ponies in town continued cheering for Applejack as she guided the cows to a field outside of the settlement. Once they were all gathered there, she got them to halt. Everypony watched as Applejack approached the cow at the front of the herd. Bronze Star was curious as to what was going on now, so he decided to investigate. He trotted to the southern border of the town and saw that Applejack was conversing with the lead cow.
The conversation was short, but it appeared to be pleasant, as neither Applejack nor the cow seemed aggravated. Once they were done talking, the cows turned around and headed back to the meadows.
"Applejack!" everypony shrieked in unison.
Bronze Star smiled, walked over to the orange mare, and commented "That was really amazing."
Applejack turned to the gold stallion, returned the smile, and retorted "Thanks. I've had plenty of practice roundin' up animals. I'm just doin' what I can to help the town."
"Did you figure out what started the stampede?" he queried.
"Snake attack," she apprised him, "Can't really blame 'em. Cows an' snakes get along 'bout as well as elephants an' mice."
"Sounds about right," he concurred, "Still, I have to admire what you just did. And I thought I was the brave one."
"Oh, you are," she proclaimed, "I wouldn't really say I risked my life just now. I've done things like this before. So you're still quite a few points ahead of me."
Bronze Star lightly chuckled at this statement. Applejack soon joined him. As they had their laugh, the dog walked up to Bronze Star. He saw that she was a brown and white Border Collie. Around her neck was a red collar with a golden name tag.
"Who's this?" Bronze Star inquired.
"This is my dog, Winona," Applejack informed him. She playfully scratched the collie behind her ears and told her "Say 'hello' to Prince Bronze Star, Winona."
Winona barked happily at the gold stallion. He smiled down at the collie and petted her back. When he got close enough, she playfully licked his face.
Applejack grinned and observed "She likes you."
"I'm already a little fond of her myself," Bronze Star commented as he continued stroking Winona's back.
As he did this, Applejack stated "I assume you don't mind that I told her your actual name."
"Of course I don't," Bronze Star assured her, "I know Border Collies are the smartest canine breed, but they're still as 'difficult' to communicate with as other types of dogs. It's not as though she's going to tell anypony else who I am."
Applejack smirked and said "That's definitely true."
There was a short interval of silence. Then the Earth Pony proclaimed "Well, I have to be gettin' back to the ranch soon. Today's the first day of Applebuck Season, so I've got a lot of work to do. I'll see you later, okay?"
"You got it," he affirmed.
Applejack smiled, raised her front legs into the air, and yelled "Yee haw!"
Then she and Winona took off jogging towards Sweet Apple Acres.
Once they were gone, Bronze Star wiped his face with his front hoof and headed back into town. When he got there, he heard Mayor Mare say "We must do something to thank Applejack for single-hoofedly saving the town."
"I know!" Pinkie Pie announced giddily, "We'll throw her a party!"
The mayor lightly shrugged and professed "I suppose that's a good start. But she just saved the town from being trampled over. I feel she deserves more thanks than that."
At that, Bronze Star widely grinned, approached the tan mare, and told her "Mayor, I think we just found our fifth nominee."
And so they did. When the mayor got back to Town Hall that day, she submitted Applejack as the fifth candidate for the Pony of Ponyville Award. Once the farm pony's nomination was confirmed, the mayor's aides distributed ballots to the townspeople. Over the next three days, everypony in town cast his or her vote. On the evening of the third day, the ballots were collected and counted. All five contenders had plenty of votes, but more than half of Ponyville had voted for Applejack.
Later that night, the mayor announced Applejack as the winner. It was decided that she would receive her award the following morning. Pinkie Pie was permitted to throw her party during the ceremony.
At eight o'clock the next day, the Ponyvillians assembled in the town square. Clearly, Pinkie Pie had been busy preparing for the party. When everypony went to bed the previous night, the area had been bare. Now it was covered with apple-related decorations.
The ceremony had a very large turnout. Just about everypony in Ponyville had shown up. Everypony except Applejack herself. Oddly enough, the orange mare was nowhere to be seen. In fact, nopony had encountered her since the stampede. With the exception of the mayor. Last night, she had gone to Sweet Apple Acres to inform Applejack personally that she won the ballot. She was confident that she would arrive on time to receive her award.
Twilight Sparkle had written a speech to properly present Applejack. The lavender mare decided to go ahead and begin the ceremony while they waited for the farm pony to turn up. After organizing some papers, Twilight gave her speech.
It started out fine, but she was interrupted in mid-sentence three times. First by Rainbow Dash, then by Pinkie Pie, and finally by Fluttershy. The three of them wanted to share the knowledge that Applejack would be aiding them with their flying tricks, baking, and official bunny census respectively.
Obviously, Twilight did not appreciate these disruptions. She hoped there would be no more after Fluttershy. However, she barely got through the next sentence when the mayor stepped up to the podium with a wide grin. Twilight groaned in annoyance, tossed her speech aside, and grumbled "Never mind."
She proceeded to climb off the stage and join her friends in the crowd. Noticing the lavender mare's frustration, Bronze Star scoffed and stated cheekily "Next time, let me give the speech."
"Fine by me," she said in response drily, "You are the better speaker, after all."
Mayor Mare skipped straight to the presentation of the trophy. After taking her spot on the podium, she cleared her throat and announced to the audience "And so, with no further ado, it is my privilege to give the prize, Pony of Ponyville Award, to our beloved guest of honor, a pony of the utmost trustworthiness, reliability, and integrity. Ponyville's most capable and dependable friend: Applejack!"
Once she finished this sentence, the mayor gestured to a pair of curtains a few meters away. The crowd cheered loudly as the curtains parted. However, the cheering only lasted for a few seconds. It quickly died down when everypony realized that nopony was standing behind the curtains.
Soon, Spike was the only one cheering. He called out "Cool! Way to go Applejack! That was awesome! I mean—"
Then he abruptly stopped. There was an unpleasant period of silence as Spike became the center of unwanted attention.
"Ah-ahem," the mare remarked to regain the crowd's notice.
"Awkward," Spike mumbled.
Bronze Star could tell the baby dragon was deeply embarrassed. However, he knew a way to help his friend out. He brusquely shouted at the top of his voice "OH, YEAH, AJ!"
At that, most of the ponies in the crowd burst out laughing. Even the mayor gave a hearty chuckle. Bronze Star just smirked. His intent had been to divert the unwanted attention away from Spike and turn it towards himself. Evidently, his plan had worked.
"Thank you… Mr. Ambassador," Mayor Mare commented.
"Yeah, thanks, dude," Spike whispered appreciatively to Bronze Star.
"Don't mention it," the gold stallion quietly muttered in response.
Applejack arrived on scene less than a minute later. She was carrying two baskets full of apples. For some reason, she appeared to be exhausted, unkempt, and aloof. This was very different from the energetic, organized, and responsive mare that had saved Ponyville from the stampede.
Applejack was grateful for the award, but she did not convey her enthusiasm very fervently. After nearly drifting in and out of consciousness a few times, she managed to get out "Oh, uh, yeah. Uh, Thanks."
Then she took the trophy and dragged it away.
As the farm pony left, Twilight Sparkle declared "Was it just me, or did Applejack seem a little—"
"Tired?" Rainbow Dash hypothesized.
"Dizzy?" Fluttershy theorized.
"Messy?" Rarity proposed. A few others glared at her, but the white Unicorn insisted "Well, did you see her mane?"
Pinkie Pie interceded and pronounced "She seemed fine to me. Woo! Woo!"
Twilight Sparkle was not as convinced. She rubbed her chin and muttered "Hmmm… I'm not so sure. She looked downright worn out."
The ceremony was over, but the party had not begun. However, the party only lasted for about twenty minutes. This was mostly because the guest of honor was not present.
As the crowd began to disband, Twilight Sparkle declared "I'm going to head over to Sweet Apple Acres and see what Applejack's up to."
Bronze Star would have offered to join the lavender mare, but before he could say a word, he heard a voice call out "Ambassador Streak!"
The gold stallion turned towards the source and saw a tan Earth Pony approaching him. He quickly recognized the stallion as Dr. Sharp Seams. This was the first time he had seen the physician entirely out of uniform.
"Good morning, Doctor," Bronze Star greeted, "What can I do for you?"
"I have some great news," the surgeon informed him gleefully, "SIG Sauer woke up this morning."
Bronze Star was absolutely elated to hear this. He asked hopefully "May I see him?"
"Not just yet," Sharp Seams candidly responded, "As you know, visiting hours are not until noon. I might make an exception for you, but Mr. Sauer also needs some time to regain his bearings. After all, he was in a coma for almost nine days. However, he has requested to speak with you at your earliest convenience."
"Alright, tell him that I'll come by to see him later today," Bronze Star requested, "And that I'll be bringing guests."
"I shall," Dr. Seams avowed, "Are any of them immediate family members?"
"Yes, two of them," Bronze Star illuminated, "Another is a workmate of mine and SIG's. I'll probably be bringing Noble Edict, as well. But nopony else other than those four."
"Very well," Sharp Seams declared, "In any case, I will wait for you to arrive at the hospital."
The young prince acknowledged this, and then he and the doctor parted ways. Sharp Seams made his way back to the hospital, and Bronze Star headed back to the embassy.
The first person he shared the news of SIG Sauer's condition with was not one of his six closest friends in Ponyville, but his Aunt. Princess Luna was actually thrilled to know that SIG Sauer had regained consciousness. She vaguely recalled meeting SIG Sauer as Nightmare Moon, but she had never actually met him as her true self. She asked her nephew to convey her thanks to the pine green stallion for the role he played in rescuing Princess Celestia. Bronze Star was more than willing to do this for her.
At eleven o'clock, Bronze Star grabbed his knapsack, left the embassy, and headed for the barracks. Once he got there, he went to Noble Edict's office. The chief of security was sitting at her desk filing some reports. She gazed up at the door when she heard somepony enter. When she realized it was Bronze Star, she smiled and welcomed him cordially with "Hello, sir."
"Good day, Noble," he rejoined, leaning against the doorframe, "I hope you're not too busy."
"Just reviewing some paperwork," she expounded, "Other than that, I don't really have anything else planned for today."
"Excellent," the gold stallion thought aloud. He stood up straight and enquired "Were you aware that SIG Sauer woke up this morning?"
"No, I wasn't," Noble Edict remarked in pleasant surprise. She smiled and queried in interest "How is he?"
"Dr. Seams says he's doing well," Bronze Star apprised her, "I haven't actually seen him yet, but I'll be swinging by the hospital this afternoon. I was wondering if you wanted to accompany me."
"Certainly," Noble Edict responded, rising from her desk, "Let me just gather up a few things, and then we can go."
Bronze Star nodded in approval and waited by the door. The red mare picked up a saddle bag, placed it on her desk and opened it up. Then she picked up various tools and documents and put them into the saddle bag. Once she was all packed up, she closed up the bag, slung it over her back, and stated "Ready when you are."
The gold stallion and the red mare swiftly departed from the barracks. As they trotted through the streets, he informed her "Before we go to the hospital, we'll be dropping by the train depot."
"How come?" she inquired in perplexity.
"I'm expecting three people to arrive on the next train," he disclosed.
"Who might they be?" she queried.
"Two of them are related to SIG Sauer," Bronze Star revealed, "The third is an agent from Canterlot's Intelligence Bureau. He's the guy I sent the photograph of Dense Miasma's cutie mark and the picture of that mare to. On that subject, I'm certain he's managed to identify her by now."
"Are these three the same individuals you wrote to on the day of the Summer Sun Celebration?" Noble Edict presumed.
"Yes, they are," he confirmed, "Rather convenient for us that SIG woke up on the same day they're supposed to arrive, right?"
"Rather convenient, indeed," she concurred, "However, the next train won't be getting in until 1:30. That's more than two hours from now. Why are we going to the depot right now?"
"Because I really want to be there when it arrives," Bronze Star explicated, "There's always a chance that the train will get in earlier. Even as much as two hours earlier. With that in mind, I say we should head there as soon as possible."
"Understandable," Noble Edict proclaimed, "Nothing wrong with staying one step ahead. And even if the train doesn't get in early, I suppose I could just do more paperwork while we wait."
Bronze Star and Noble Edict walked on in quietness for a few minutes. Then the gold stallion halted in his tracks. When he did this, the red mare stopped next to him and asked "Everything alright?"
He just held up his front hoof to gesture for silence. As he lowered it, he looked around the area and remarked "Do you hear something?"
"No, I don't-" she began. But as she said this, she heard what sounded like a frightened scream. It appeared to originate somewhere above their heads
The two ponies looked upwards and saw Rainbow Dash zooming by in the sky. She was sailed through the air at an alarming pace, but she did not appear to be flapping her wings at all. As she passed over the area, she shrieked "AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA."
Bronze Star and Noble Edict watched the cyan mare until she faded into the distance. Ultimately, she crashed onto the balcony of Golden Oaks Library.
"There's something to be said for grace," Bronze Star commented cockily
"No kidding," Noble Edict concurred, "That was pretty reckless, even for Rainbow Dash."
"I'm guessing what we just saw was one of her so-called 'flying tricks,'" Bronze Star speculated, "Something about it must have gone wrong."
"Too much accumulated velocity, that's my guess," Noble Edict thought aloud, "She's been through worse, though. She should be alright."
"Good, I already have one friend in the hospital," Bronze Star stated, "I'd hate for another one to wind up there so soon."
After this brief dialogue, the gold stallion and the red mare made their way to the train depot without any further breaks. When they got there, they checked the manifest. According to it, the next train was scheduled to arrive on-time.
Bronze Star and Noble Edict chose to just sit down at a bench and wait. The chief of security removed a clipboard from her saddle bag and resumed filling out her paperwork. The young prince had brought a book in his knapsack, so he passed the time by reading.
They spent the first half-hour in silence. Then Bronze Star turned to his associate and stated "I don't recall seeing you at the ceremony this morning."
"Oh, I was there," she assured him without looking up from her clipboard, "I was standing in the back. You just missed me."
"Did you hear me shout?" he asked with a devious smirk.
"Of course I did," she retorted, scoffing a bit, "Everypony in town must have heard you, even the ones who weren't assembled in the town square."
"I was just hoping to save Spike some embarrassment," Bronze Star informed her, "At least that ploy worked."
"Yeah, I suppose it did," Noble Edict perceived, "Too bad you couldn't have done the same for Applejack when she showed up."
"I thought about intervening," Bronze Star disclosed, "But I didn't want to make Applejack look weak at her own ceremony."
"I don't think having somepony step in would have made her appear weak," Noble Edict pronounced, "And even if it did, looking weak would be better than looking like a fool."
"Maybe," he conceded, "What do you suppose was wrong with her anyway?"
"Well, Bronze, I'm guessing she was just worn out," she ventured, "Applejack's always been a hard worker. She's been bucking the trees on Sweet Apple Acres ever since she got her cutie mark. It can be a tiring occupation, but I've never seen Applejack as exhausted as she was this morning. She must have been extraordinarily busy this past week."
"Last time I saw her, she certainly implied she would be busy," Bronze Star recounted, "She said something about 'Applebuck Season.'"
"Ah, that may explain it," Noble Edict remarked, "Applebuck Season is the most laborious period of the year for the Apple Family. From what I've heard, they try to harvest every last tree in their orchards in the span of a single week."
Bronze Star was somewhat alarmed to hear this. He stated in amazement "I've seen Sweet Apple Acres. It has to cover at least fifty acres. Applejack actually plans to collect all the apples from all those trees in one week? That's a rather challenging objective."
"It may seem that way to the rest of us," Noble Edict conjectured, "But the Apple family has been cultivating the fruit in Equestria for centuries. They are perhaps the most experienced farmers in the entire country. Applebuck Season is like a tradition to them. It is not something they take lightly."
"I see," Bronze Star proclaimed. After a few seconds of silence, he professed "Well, isn't that something? Applejack managed to find time to save the town during the busiest week of her year. Because of that, I'm all the more glad she was given the Pony of Ponyville Award."
"I'm glad she won, too," Noble Edict admitted, "She definitely deserved it. I'm certain she was quite appreciative. I know how much an honor it is to receive that award."
"What do you mean?" Bronze Star inquired.
"I won it myself one year," Noble Edict revealed.
"Really?" Bronze Star asked in interest. When the chief of security nodded, the prince commented "I'm not surprised. You're a fine security officer, Noble. I imagine you must have done something rather significant to win that prize."
"You could say I did," Noble Edict remarked, "However, I would appreciate it if we did not talk about that right now. To me, it's a bit of a delicate subject."
"Alright, I won't press you for details," Bronze Star assured her.
The red mare and the gold stallion spent most of the remainder of the wait in relative quiet. Noble Edict just continued writing out her paperwork, and Bronze Star simply continued reading his book.
The train ended up getting in almost a half-hour early. Once it arrived at the depot, Bronze Star and Noble Edict put away their belongings and trotted over to the center of the platform. The train's doors soon opened and dozens of ponies stepped outside.
"We're looking for two Unicorns and a Pegasus," Bronze Star notified Noble Edict as they watched the passengers disembark, "The Pegasus is in his forties, but the Unicorns are younger than I am."
Noble Edict took this into account. The two of them spent a couple minutes gazing around the area for a middle-aged Pegasus and two young adult Unicorns. Then Noble Edict pointed to a certain section of the depot and inquired "Are those them?"
Bronze Star turned in that direction and looked where she was pointing. Further down the platform, a Pegasus was exiting one of the cars with two Unicorns. The male Unicorn had a jasper coat, a lime green and charcoal stripped mane, melon irises, and a javelin for a cutie mark. The female Unicorn had a chartreuse coat, a cerise and jade stripped mane, peach irises, and an otoscope for a cutie mark. The Pegasus had a mahogany coat, a blue-gray mane, brass irises, and a lightning bolt on top of a clipboard for a cutie mark.
Bronze Star grinned, nodded his head, and answered Noble with "Yeah, that's them."
The two of them trotted towards to the end of the platform. As they made their way there, the Pegasus went back into the train car. The two Unicorns remained on the platform and gazed in several directions, as if they were searching for somepony. Truthfully, they were.
When he was just a few meters away from them, Bronze Star raised his right front hoof in the air and called out "Mauser! Alpine!"
Amidst the noise of the surrounding groups of ponies, the Unicorns heard this call and turned towards its source. They both smiled when they saw the gold stallion approaching them, and they trotted over to him. The moment they reached him, Bronze Star raised both of his front hooves and embraced the two Unicorns affectionately. They happily embraced him in return.
When the three of them pulled apart, the male Unicorn smiled and declared "Glad to be here, Bro-"
Before he could finish, the female Unicorn nudged him in the side and muttered quietly "Don't call him that here."
"Who says I was going to?" the male Unicorn countered, "Maybe I was just going to call him 'bro,' as in 'brother.'"
The female Unicorn lightly rolled her eyes and stated "Seeing as how you've never called him that before, I highly doubt that."
"You know something funny?" Bronze Star interceded, "Twilight made that exact same mistake on the day of the Summer Sun Celebration. All she got out was 'Bro' before she corrected herself."
"I remember that," Noble Edict recalled, "I was there when it happened. At the time, I actually did think Twilight was going to call you 'bro,' but she decided that doing so would have been too informal, especially when considering the circumstances."
"That's a reasonable assumption," Bronze Star noted, "But of course, now you know the real reason why she stopped herself, Noble."
"Indeed, I do… sir," Noble Edict smoothly commented.
Bronze Star just smirked in amusement. Then he placed his right front hoof on the red Earth Pony's shoulder, turned to the two Unicorns, and told them "Guys, I'd like you to meet Noble Edict, Ponyville's chief of security."
The jasper stallion and the chartreuse mare nodded in acknowledgment. As she returned the gesture, Bronze Star elucidated "Noble, allow me to introduce my companions, Mauser Sauer and Alpine Sauer."
Noble Edict was mildly stunned to hear this. She raised an eyebrow in fascination and supposed "Are the two of you SIG Sauer's children?"
"That is correct, ma'am," the male Unicorn, Mauser, confirmed, "When we learned about what happened to our father, we tried to arrange to see him as soon as possible."
"I'm just glad the two of you managed to come on the same day," Bronze Star commented.
"Well, I would have come sooner," the female Unicorn, Alpine, disclosed, "But I wanted to wait until Mauser's request for leave was accepted."
"I'm grateful for that, Alpine," Mauser informed his sister, patting her on the back of her neck playfully, "But you didn't have to do it."
Alpine just chuckled, gently pushed her brother's hoof away, and asserted somewhat sternly "I know I didn't. I just figured it was only fair that we get to see Dad together."
As the two siblings spoke together, Noble Edict mentioned to Bronze Star "They seem to get along quite well."
"Oh, they do," Bronze Star affirmed, "Because of them, sometimes I like to wonder what it would be like to have a sibling of my own. Unfortunately, the chances of that ever happening are extremely unlikely."
"Makes sense, considering your mother's… shall we say, marital status," Noble Edict thought aloud.
Bronze Star understood what she meant. So did the two young Unicorns. Mauser presumed "So, she's in on this 'undercover' thing of yours, too?"
"Yeah, and she can be trusted to keep it confidential," Bronze Star informed them.
"So, how many people in this town know your actual identity?" Alpine queried.
"Currently, ten," Bronze Star replied, "Eleven if I count myself. The two of you and Walther bring the total up to fourteen. Speaking of which, where is the old general?"
"He went to get our luggage," Mauser enlightened him, "He knows where the crew stored it, so he should be back soon."
"Ah, there he is now!" Alpine announced.
The four ponies turned to the train and saw the mahogany Pegasus emerge from the same car as before. He was pulling a loaded trolley behind him. The Pegasus wheeled the trolley to the center of the platform and let it rest there. He quickly noticed that although he had left his companions by themselves, they were no longer alone.
He grinned, trotted over to the group, held out his right front hoof to the gold stallion, and stated in a formal tone "It's a pleasure to see you again, sir."
"Thank you, General," Bronze Star remarked genially as he shook hooves with the middle-aged Pegasus, "The feeling is very much mutual."
After the hoofshake, Bronze Star presented the mahogany Pegasus and the red Earth Pony to each other with: "Walther, this is the town's chief of security, Noble Edict. Noble, this is my agent from the Intelligence Bureau, General Walther."
As the Pegasus shook hooves with the Earth Pony, the latter cocked her head in interest and stated "'General,' huh? Which branch of the military?"
"The Wonderbolts, ma'am," Walther enlightened her, "Served in the force for twenty-three years."
"In that case, you'd better mind yourself when we go through Ponyville," Noble Edict stated in a partly serious and partly amused tone, "One of the town's residents is a die-hard worshipper of the Wonderbolts. She'd probably go berserk if she so much as saw you."
Walther lightly scoffed and remarked "Not to worry. I can put up with that kind of attention. Used to get it all the time. Luckily, not so much these days."
There was a brief period of quietness. Then Bronze Star glimpsed at the cart and observed "Seven bags? I didn't think you guys would need that many for a trip."
"Well, Mauser and I packed lightly," Walther revealed, "Can't really say the same about Alpine, though."
"Hey, it's not like I brought useless junk," Alpine debated defensively, "I had no idea how many days of class I'd end up missing. If it's more than two, I'd have to be prepared to study while we're here. I couldn't very well do that without my textbooks and equipment."
"Twilight would certainly agree with you," Bronze Star speculated. He studied the contents of the trolley for a moment, and then he told the others "For now, we should probably place all this luggage in the depot's storage room. We can come back for it later today."
The other four ponies agreed to this proposal. They checked in six of the bags at the storage room. All of them were ordinary suitcases and trunks. However, the seventh one was a steel briefcase with a reinforced chassis and an unbreakable lock. Walther was unwilling to part with this one, and Bronze Star knew why.
Once the bags were secured in the storage room, Bronze Star, Noble Edict, Mauser, Alpine, and Walther navigated their way to the hospital. It took them less than fifteen minutes to get there. When they arrived in the lobby, Nurse Red Heart was there. She appeared to be shifting rapidly between many different files at once.
Bronze Star approached the front desk and began with "Excuse me, I-"
"I'm sorry, sir," Nurse Red Heart cut in without looking up, "But unless this is an emergency, we cannot help you right now."
Bronze Star was surprised to hear this, but he stated patiently "I'm not seeking medical attention. I'm just here to visit one of the patients."
This time, Nurse Red Heart looked up and realized who was talking to her. She slowly rose to her feet and pronounced "Oh, alright, Mr. Ambassador. I apologize if I seem unreceptive. In the past half-hour, over a dozen ponies have been rushed here, all of them suffering from food poisoning."
The gold stallion was alarmed to hear this. He asked anxiously "What happened?"
"We're not certain just yet," Red Heart replied, "However, most of the victims were at Sugarcube Corner right before they were brought here. It's possible they just ingested some bad pastry."
"Will they be alright?" Bronze Star queried.
"We believe so," Red Heart responded, "The worst any of them has is ingestion and upset stomach. However, I'll have to get to Urgent Care soon. Otherwise their symptoms will only get worse."
"I understand, Nurse," Bronze Star professed, "But if it's at all possible, I would still like to see SIG Sauer right now."
"Certainly, Mr. Ambassador," the white Earth Pony assured him, "However, there's a chance that the front desk will be empty soon. So please make sure you sign in now, and that you sign out when you leave."
This was perfectly acceptable for Bronze Star and the others. After all five of them signed in, they headed into the hospital. On the way, they encountered another doctor who was escorting a familiar blonde Pegasus through the hallways. Her coat was all grey, except for her face, which was green.
Bronze Star quickly recognized her. He queried in concern "Derpy, are you okay?"
The cross-eyed Pegasus just looked up at him slowly and muttered softly "Bad muffins."
Then she gave a violent cough and slumped backwards. She continued to moan as the doctor led her to Urgent Care.
At first, nopony made a sound. Then Walther drily proclaimed "Remind me to make my own food while we stay here."
This was probably meant as a joke, but it was equally possible that Walther was being serious.
The five ponies quickly made their way to the I.C.U. SIG Sauer was not there, but Sharp Seams was. He appeared to be the only on-duty physician who was not preoccupied with the situation in Urgent Care. Dr. Seams informed Bronze Star and his companions that SIG Sauer had been moved to the recovery ward earlier that day. He offered to escort the group to SIG's new room, and they happily accepted this offer.
It only took about three minutes to get to SIG Sauer's recovery room. When they got there, Dr. Seams asked the group to wait outside for a moment. Then he opened the door and stepped inside.
Presently, SIG Sauer was sitting up in bed, eating lunch. When the tan Earth Pony entered the room, the pine green Unicorn greeted him with "Hello, Doctor."
"Good day, Mr. Sauer," Dr. Seams rejoined, "How are you feeling?"
"Much better than this morning," SIG Sauer responded, "My headache's gone, I no longer feel disoriented, and my appetite has finally returned. The chest pains are still there, but they're completely tolerable."
"Excellent, you've made outstanding progress," Dr. Seams declared proudly. He was quiet for a moment, and then he inquired "Are you well enough to have some company?"
SIG Sauer lightly shrugged and stated "I suppose so. Is the Ambassador here?"
"Yes, and he brought those 'guests' he asked me to mention," Sharp Seams replied.
"Who are they?" the pine green stallion queried.
"There's four of them, and Noble Edict is one," the surgeon explicated, "I've never seen the other three before today. They are a jasper Unicorn stallion, a chartreuse Unicorn mare, and a mahogany Pegasus stallion."
When SIG Sauer heard this, his pupils dilated and he sat up straight in his bed. He calmly placed his food tray on the nightstand next to his bed, and then he politely but sternly demanded "Let them in straightaway. Please."
Dr. Seams nodded in acknowledgement and went back to the door. Then he held it open and gestured for the five visitors to come in.
Mauser and Alpine entered the recovery room first. As soon as they saw their father, they rushed to the sides of his bed and threw their front legs around his upper body. He raised his own front legs and tenderly hugged them back.
"Thank Celestia you're alright, Dad," Mauser murmured softly.
"We were so worried about you, Daddy," Alpine uttered quietly.
"I'm just glad you're here," SIG Sauer guaranteed them, "It's a delight to see you, too."
This hug lasted for an entire minute, but after that, Mauser and Alpine gradually released their grip on their father. When they finally pulled apart, SIG Sauer returned his focus to his other visitors. By this point, Walther, Noble Edict, and Bronze Star had entered the recovery room.
The mahogany Pegasus smirked and trotted over to the pine green Unicorn. When he was at SIG Sauer's bedside, Walther held out his right front hoof. SIG Sauer smirked in return and bumped Walther's hoof with his own.
"It's a relief to see you in good health, SIG," Walther told his colleague. After some quietness, Walther remarked in a somewhat witty and sardonic tone "But what in hay are you doing, loafing around in bed at this hour? Laziness is rather unbecoming for somepony with your occupation, wouldn't you agree?"
Everypony laughed at this statement, including SIG Sauer. When the laughter subsided, SIG Sauer stated cheekily "Oh, relax, Walt. I have no intention of letting you take my place anytime soon. I plan to be back on my hooves in the near future."
"I can definitely make that happen, as long as it's not the very near future," Sharp Seams interjected.
At that, the five visitors turned to Sharp Seams in perplexity. Bronze Star queried "What do you mean, Doctor?"
"Well, as you know, the surgery was a complete success," the surgeon expounded, "I was able to repair the damage caused by the stab wound, and there's no trace of that toxin anywhere in Mr. Sauer's bloodstream. However, he was unconscious for nine days. You cannot expect a pony to just get up and get back to everyday life after being out for that long. Especially in Mr. Sauer's case, when 'everyday life' tends to involve placing one's life in jeopardy. That being said, he'll need some time to recover his strength."
"How do you plan that?" Bronze Star queried.
"Dr. Seams has already discussed options with me," SIG Sauer apprised him, "I decided on a type of restoration program. Over the next few days, he and I will work on improving my motor skills, my reflexes, and my coordination. We'll do that until they've returned to peak efficiency."
"Sounds like a methodical system," Walther perceived, "I just hope it isn't especially time-consuming."
"That's the catch," SIG Sauer disclosed, "While it's a short program, it's also a little slow-paced. But according to the Doctor, it's still my best hope of getting out of this hospital in total health as soon as possible."
"It is," Sharp Seams confirmed, "With this program, I could have you released from the hospital in three days. Maybe even two."
SIG Sauer and the other ponies were satisfied by this statement. There was a bit more silence, and then Bronze Star approached Sharp Seams and requested "Doctor, would you mind if my companions and I had some time alone with Mr. Sauer?"
"Not at all, Mr. Ambassador," the tan Earth Pony replied. He straightened out the collar on his white coat, and he stated "If you need anything, I'll be in the I.C.U."
After that, he left the recovery room and shut the door behind him. As he headed down the hallway, the others listened closely to the sounds of his hoofsteps. Once they faded away, the six ponies resumed the conversation.
With Dr. Seams out of the room, the others did not have to keep referring to Bronze Star as "Gold Streak" or "Mr. Ambassador." Mauser, Alpine, and Walther were particularly glad for this. The three of them had known the gold Alicorn for a long time, and they felt his new appearance would take some getting used to. At the very least, they could still address him by his actual name.
For a while, their discussion was primarily about the Summer Sun Celebration. Mauser, Alpine, and Walther recounted everything that had happened in Canterlot. Althougth they had not been visited by Nightmare Moon, the capital city had been in just as much of an uproar as Ponyville had been.
Mauser recounted that the Constabulary Contingent had been mobilized when the Sun did not rise on schedule. He described how his unit had been tasked with securing Canterlot Castle and guarding the remaining members of the Canterlot Royalty. However, they could only account for Cadance and Blueblood. At the time, only a few members of the Royal Guard knew of Bronze Star's whereabouts, and all of them were in Ponyville at the time. When Mauer's unit failed to locate the Alicorn prince, the Royal Guard initiated a city-wide search for him. The search was ultimately called off when the Sun returned.
Alpine recalled that she taken the night off from studying to socialize with her friends. When the city was locked down, she had stayed indoors with them as instructed. However, an hour after martial law was declared, a few messengers had gone door-to-door through the streets, requesting any doctors and medical students to accompany them. Nopony had been injured yet; this was just being done as a precaution in the event that mass hysteria erupted. Due to Alpine's proficiency with healing spells, she had gone with the messengers. For the next couple hours, she remained on standby at a clinic, waiting for a patient. However, she never got one; the Sun rose before anypony got hurt.
Walther remembered that he had just checked in at the Intelligence Bureau when the alert level was raised. Once he was apprised of the situation, he had been appointed by the director to conduct a countrywide investigation. Naturally, the objective was to determine why the Sun was not up yet. Walther had a carefully thought-out stratagem in mind. The first step was to accumulate information. He accomplished this by dispatching scouts to all the other cities – primarily Ponyville – and having them observe the activities for anything strange. Since the railroads had been shut down at the time, Walther had to resort to sending out the Bureau's fastest flyers. The second step would have been to devote the Bureau's resources to aiding the population of whichever town turned up with the most promising results. The plan never got that far, as the Sun had come back before all the scouts from Ponyville could return.
All-in-all, it had been a relatively uneventful night in Canterlot. Especially when compared to what had happened in Ponyville. As soon as Mauser, Alpine, and Walther finished their explanation, Bronze Star, Noble Edict, and SIG Sauer had their turn to ruminate on what they had been through that night.
SIG Sauer and Noble Edict began by reflecting on the matter of the energy sphere. They covered everything pertaining to the cultists, as well. When they got to the part about how Dense Miasma had tried to kill SIG Sauer but Noble Edict had stopped Dense Miasma by killing him first, Alpine walked over to the red mare and embraced her warmly. Initially, Noble Edict was confused, but the younger mare quickly explained that she was just thanking her for saving her father's life. Mauser did not express his gratitude as strongly, but Noble Edict could tell he was just as grateful as Alpine.
Once SIG and Noble were finished, Bronze Star spoke. He elucidated on how he, Twilight Sparkle, Applejack, Fluttershy, Rainbow Dash, Pinkie Pie, and Rarity had recovered the Elements of Harmony and the Shroud of Valor. He covered everything, including the trials in the Everfree Forest, the appearance of the Elements during the final encounter with Nightmare Moon, and how Princess Luna had been saved. He tried not to sound arrogant when he got to the parts about how he single-hoofedly disabled the ogre and risked his life to save the six mares. Of course, it was hard to talk casually about such things. Fortunately, none of the others thought him haughty. They were actually quite impressed, especially SIG Sauer.
Out of the six of them, it seemed that Bronze Star had been through the most that night. Once it was over, he was just relieved that the Sun had been recovered and that his mother had been saved. However, he made it clear that their worries were far from over. The threat posed by the cultists was still out there. Bronze Star and Noble Edict were determined to uncover their plot.
Before they could discuss everything they had already learned about the conspiracy, Walther drew everypony's attention to the floor. He pointed out that the ground seemed a little wobbly and unstable. He was not bluffing; the floor was in fact shaking. The pulsations gradually became stronger and stronger. Bronze Star and Noble Edict soon realized what was going on; they had already been through this once in the past week.
Bronze Star and Noble Edict informed the others that a stampede had to be occurring outside. However, these vibrations felt too weak to be caused by rampaging cows. A smaller type of animal had to be making them. The six ponies just calmly waited for the tremors to pass over.
Once the vibrations stopped, they all stood still for a few minutes. Then Bronze Star announced he wanted to find out what just happened. He asked for Noble Edict to accompany him outside and for everypony else to stay in the recovery room.
The gold stallion and the red mare proceeded to the main entrance of the hospital. When they got outside, the streets appeared to be deserted. However, they encountered Twilight Sparkle a few seconds later. She appeared to be cross about something.
Bronze Star intercepted his friend and stated "Hey, Twilight; what happened?"
She pointed over her shoulder and responded irately "THAT happened."
Bronze Star and Noble Edict turned in that direction and saw what she meant. Scores of bunnies were hopping throughout the streets, eating the contents of every flowerpot and garden in sight. Fluttershy was desperately trying to round the critters up, but she had little success.
"How'd that come about?" Noble Edict asked in astonishment.
"It was Applejack," Twilight Sparkle illuminated, "She frightened the bunnies so badly that they ran amok. She was also responsible for Rainbow Dash's accident and all those cases of food poisoning."
"Really?" Bronze Star said in surprise, "Why?"
"She didn't do those things on purpose," Twilight informed him, "She's just been so busy with Applebuck Season that she's been too exhausted to focus on anything else."
"Isn't Big McIntosh helping her?" Noble Edict queried.
"No, she says he got injured," Twilight disclosed.
"So she's farming the orchards by herself?" Noble presumed.
"Yeah, and that's the problem," Twilight answered, "I've offered to help her three times, and all three times, she turned me down. But this is the last straw. It's only a matter of time before she hurts somepony. That somepony could even be herself. So I'm going over to Sweet Apple Acres right now and I'm going to get Applejack to accept my help whether she wants it or not."
"How about I go with you?" Bronze Star offered, "Who knows; maybe she'll listen to me."
"I'd certainly appreciate that," Twilight remarked, "So, yeah; come along if you'd like, Bronze."
The gold stallion solemnly nodded his head. Then he turned to the chief of security and requested "Noble, could you tell the others that I'll be gone for a while?"
"Sure, Bronze," the red mare coincided.
Noble Edict then went back into the hospital, and Bronze Star and Twilight Sparkle headed over to Sweet Apple Acres.
When they got there, they found Applejack at the base of a tree. She was gasping and muttering through strained breaths "Must… keep… buckin'... just… a few… more. Must finish harvestin'."
When she had her attention, the lavender mare stated "All right, Applejack. Your applebucking hasn't just caused you problems, it's over-propelled Pegasus', practically poisoned plenty of ponies, and terrorized bushels of brand new bouncing baby bunnies. I don't care what you say, you. Need. Help."
Applejack just grunted and kicked the tree behind her. The apples neatly landed into the surrounding baskets, and the farm mare declared proudly "Ha! No, I don't. Look, I did it. I harvested the entire Sweet Apple Acres without your help. How d'ya like them apples?"
Just then, a large stallion with a red coat, an orange mane, green eyes, and an apple half for a cutie mark appeared at Applejack's side. He bluntly commented "Um, how do you like them apples?"
He was gesturing towards a few fields that the orange pony had overlooked. The trees in those fields were still loaded with fruit.
When Applejack saw these trees, she looked as though she was going to have a heart attack. She started mumbling intelligibly. Amongst her gibberish, the others made out the words "Where'd all the apple...?"
After ten seconds, she collapsed onto the ground.
Bronze Star quickly went to Applejack's side to see if she was alright.
While he did this, Twilight just rolled her eyes and thought aloud "I knew it. I just knew this would happen."
"Join the club," the red stallion commented frankly, "I warned her 'bout overworkin' herself. But she didn't listen to me."
"Guys…" Bronze Star muttered softly.
"Has she always been this stubborn?" Twilight queried.
"Yes, always," the red stallion stated, "As somepony who's known AJ all her life, I can safely make that claim."
"Guys…" Bronze Star repeated with a little more urgency.
This time he got their attention. The lavender mare and the red stallion turned to face him, and the latter asked "What's up?"
"Applejack didn't just give out to exhaustion," Bronze Star informed them, "I think something else is wrong with her. Something much worse."
Twilight Sparkle became deeply concerned when she heard this. She stepped forward and asked in worry "What do you mean?"
Bronze Star slowly turned around, looked the Unicorn in the eye, and uttered unnervingly "She isn't breathing."