The air was hot and dry when Shining Armor stepped out from the train and onto the stark platform. The setting sun cast an orange glow on everything it touched except the red rocks of the cliffs in the desert, the sprawling expanse of which could be seen for miles. A wind picked up and Shining Armor’s originally pristine white coat was almost immediately covered in a mix of tan and red dust; he pulled the black cloth around his neck up around his face and pulled down his black visor before turning to the armored white pegasus that had stepped out with him.
“Have the others wait in the train, Revenant,” Shining Armor said. “I will be back shortly.”
The pegasus nodded and turned to go back into the train. Shining Armor stepped across the platform and entered the rickety building that served as the station’s waiting and ticket room, pulling away the cloth and visor as he did so. The blinds were all drawn so that the place was dark except for the slits of sunlight coming through and the dim bulbs of two lights on the ceiling, connected to fans that swayed and creaked as they spun weakly around. The paint on the portraits of the sun and moon that adorned the wall were faded to nearly grey and peeled all over.
Shining Armor stepped up to a young mare sitting under a sign that said “Information” and looked like it was about to fall off the metal chains holding it up. The creaking and sound of his trotting alerted the mare, who nearly toppled over with surprise. She quickly righted herself as Shining Armor approached and dusted herself off before speaking very quickly and perkily.
“Well, hello, sir! It’s a pleasure to see someone comin’ around here! Welcome to the town of Appleoosa! You’ll soon find that this is a fabulous little western town populated by some of the hardiest ponies this side of the Everfree Forest! Our main commerce is in mining and the farming of apples, run by a member of the renowned and quite large Apple Family! Now, is there anything that I can do for you?”
Shining Armor smiled at her. Poor thing probably hadn’t seen any excitement for quite some time. Shining Armor took off his helmet and saluted to her. “Good evening, miss. I was wondering where the office of Sheriff Silverstar is.”
“Certainly!” the mare said, bright gold eyes sparkling. “If you head down the main street from the other exit of this building you’ll come to a place where two large roads intersect. The office of the sheriff is right there on the corner with a sign with a gold star out front.”
“Thank you very much… what is your name?”
“Golden Note.”
“Well, thank you, Golden Note.” He shuffled around the bags hanging from his back and gave her a bit. “Take it. For your help.”
Golden Note looked flabbergasted. “Th-thank you!” she stammered.
Shining Armor left the building via the exit the mare had mentioned and walked down the dusty streets. The wind had settled down and ponies were coming out of the ramshackle buildings up and down the walk, apparently thankful for the setting sun and steadily cooling temperatures. By the time Shining Armor had reached the main intersection that Golden Note had spoken of, the sun’s heat had cooled off immensely – though it was still colder than Shining Armor was used to in Canterlot – and ponies had filled the streets with much talking and laughing.
Shining Armor proceeded to the building that Golden Note had mentioned and opened the door to a room similar to the train station though the fan was blowing harder. There were two ponies sitting inside: a dark brown one with a mustache, a blue vest, and a sheriff’s badge, and a grey-blue one with a similar blue vest though no badge. They both looked up from their desks as Shining Armor entered.
“I’m looking for Sheriff Silverstar,” Shining Armor said.
The two ponies looked at each other before the dark brown one spoke. “I’m Sheriff Silverstar.” He looked Shining Armor up and down warily. “You’re from Canterlot, aren’t you?”
Shining Armor nodded and took off his helmet in respect. “Captain Shining Armor of the Equestrian Royal Guard,” he said. “Celestia said you received a note about a strange sighting and believed it to be a changeling.”
At the mention of ‘changeling’, Sheriff Silverstar brought a hoof to his forehead and wiped the sweat off it with a relieved sigh. “Oh, thank goodness!” he exclaimed. “I was beginning to think that you would never come!”
“It is not easy getting here,” Shining Armor said apologetically. He quickly turned stern. “But the issue of changelings is a royal matter and cannot be ignored.”
“I apologize, Captain,” Sheriff Silverstar said. “Have you brought others with you?”
“I have brought with me seven of my most trusted stallions. I will send for more if the need arises.”
“But of course. Deputy! Go get Shining Armor’s men, and take them to the hotel. They shall be needing rooms and a good meal.”
The grey-blue one saluted to Sheriff Silverstar and Shining Armor before swiftly exiting the building. Shining Armor sat down on the opposite side of Sheriff Silverstar at his desk and thanked the sheriff for the offer of a glass of iced tea. Shining Armor took a few thirsty gulps and set his glass gently down on the desk.
“Before we go any further, I need to know the whole situation as it stands. I cannot give an order without information.”
“Ah, yes, of course,” Sheriff Silverstar agreed. He cleared his throat. “Well, we received notification of the royal wedding to take place in Canterlot. And we decided to have a festival on that day to celebrate the union of yourself and Princess Cadence in marriage. We are far off but do manage to stay connected, you see.”
“I am pleased to hear and accept your congratulations,” Shining Armor said. “However, what does this have to do with the incident?”
“Ah, well, shortly after midday most of the ponies were out in the streets attending the festivities. It was then that someone noticed that Canterlot Castle was engulfed in a large sphere. Afterwards was the sight of hundreds of creatures flying across the sky. It mystified the festival attendees and many wondered what had happened in the castle. It was only after received the report of the Changeling’s attack and how it was defeated that we knew things were alright.
“However… I’m afraid the problem has passed on to us.”
Shining Armor raised an eyebrow. “I assure you this was unintentional.”
“Of course,” Sheriff Silverstar said without hesitation. “We do not blame you in the slightest. Many problems were had that day in Canterlot and so blame is out of the question. And most of them were even killed by crashing into the desert or the rocks or drowning in the nearby river.”
“How many of them are left, do you estimate?”
“I sent out a troop of scouts to investigate. The Changelings appear to be scattered across the deserts to the east and south in small pockets here and there and maybe number twelve hundred, not including their leader who has survived but is weak from the crash.”
“So, Queen Chrysalis has survived..." Shining Armor mused. "What, right now, would you assume is of greatest priority?”
“Them converging together is not something that can be prevented quickly. It is a matter of time, Captain. Thus, our priority is in fortifying ourselves. We may have the aid of the buffalo, but they are far away and take time to convince to do anything. Aside from that, we are weak and have little experience fighting Changelings. If they are allowed to recover, we might be facing eight-to-one if everyone fights.”
“And if we take only those who are capable?”
“We face perhaps fifteen-to-one. We need weapons and extra defenses, Captain, otherwise I fear we may be overwhelmed.”
“Yes, the odds do not seem good,” Shining Armor agreed. “Look, I need to speak with someone who might be able to help us out. I need someone who is strong. Someone who is brave. Someone who might know how to fight and can help us with preparing the townsfolk while I communicate back and forth with Canterlot and arrange my own troops to arrive. You and the Deputy can help, too,” Shining Armor said at the indignant look on the sheriff’s face, “but we will need more than that if we want a fighting chance.”
“Very well,” Sheriff Silverstar said. “Our most capable is the farmer, Braeburn. Member of the Apple Clan. He’s spent his life bucking and is generally regarded as the strongest pony around. Only…” Sheriff Silverstar trailed off.
“Only what?” Shining Armor questioned when the sheriff failed to continue.
The sheriff fiddled with his mustache. “He’s more of a peaceful sort, opposed to fighting.”
“Do you think we can convince him?” Shining Armor asked.
“He must be persuaded his land is at risk,” Sheriff Silverstar said. “No underhand methods; he’ll see through it.”
“I wasn’t thinking of trying,” Shining Armor said truthfully.
“Ah… well, you’re better than the last ones that came through here when we had problems with the buffalo before. Anyways, I don’t think you’ll have too much of a problem. The Changelings are ravenous and will eat anything to keep their strength up, and his orchard could be seen as a viable food source. Do not wait for it, though; the horde will be more important than a few stragglers trying to find food.”
“But of course,” Shining Armor said. “I shall arrange for a platoon to come down immediately. That will add over forty members available to fight, as well as some weapons and possibly armor or barracades. We’ll also need supplies to help reconstruct if you need it.”
“If it strengthens our defenses, I would appreciate it greatly,” Sheriff Silverstar said humbly. “We are normally a hardly folk, but we’re not too proud to ask for help when we need it.”
“And we in Canterlot are normally keen to let you live as you please and live our own lives,” Shining Armor said, standing up and shaking Sheriff Silverstar’s hoof over the table, “but we’re not too proud to offer our hoof when it’s called for.”
Sheriff Silverstar smiled at Shining Armor. “I hope this marks the beginning of a long friendship, Captain Armor.” He saluted him. “We are at your command.”