After the kiss, Bronze Star reassumed his Earth Pony disguise. Applejack stayed in his room for a while longer to talk with him, and she left shortly before midnight. Everypony else was already asleep, so while she did have to keep quiet, she did not have to sneak around.
Both Applejack and Bronze Star laid awake in bed for a while that night. The two of them wondered what the future might produce, and it excited them.
At breakfast the following morning, Bronze Star and Applejack sat side-by-side. Their gaze constantly shifted between their food and each other. They limited their friendly actions to that. They wanted to wait awhile before they did anything more affectionate in front of others. Luckily, Granny Smith, Big McIntosh, and Apple Bloom never suspected a thing. Sir Haywood McCrank, on the other hoof, had already figured out what was going on between the farmer and the prince. That was primarily attributed to his deductive reasoning; he was able to determine the nature of their relationship by observing their behavior alone. However, Haywood was never one to gossip, and he was an expert at keeping secrets, so he was going to stay quiet about this matter.
After breakfast, Bronze Star went back up to his room to prepare for the day. After showering and brushing his teeth, he gave Arthur his breakfast. He noticed that his pet hawk seemed to be focused on the window, which was still covered. Remembering the instructions in the letter, Bronze Star pulled open the drapes. A piece of parchment was attached to the exterior of the window pane. Bronze Star opened the window, grabbed the parchment, and pulled it inside. On the front of the parchment were there simple words: "So shall we."
Bronze Star headed over to the doorframe, stuck his head out, and called "Sir Haywood, could you come up here for a moment?"
Without giving a verbal response, the indigo stallion promptly trotted upstairs and met up with the gold stallion. After Haywood entered the room, Bronze Star shut the door and locked it. He then gave the parchment to the Superintendent and asked him "What do you make of this?"
Haywood briefly looked over the paper, and then he bluntly stated "Looks like we've got ourselves a genuine ally, Your Highness."
Bronze Star nodded in agreement. Evidently, the vigilante group had acknowledged that the young prince had accepted their proposal. They would cooperate to thwart the murder plot together. However, given how this group was determined to remain anonymous, Bronze Star had no idea how their alliance would work out. He looked over at the wall and muttered "I wonder where we go from here."
No sooner had he said that that he got a response. Haywood was in the process of studying the parchment. He rubbed his chin and looked over at the window. He then got an idea. He went over to the window and stood in such a way that the early morning sunlight was pouring over the paper. Through the page, there appeared to be more words written on it.
"Sir, you better see this," Haywood advised the younger stallion.
Bronze Star hastily joined the investigator at the other end of the room. Haywood gave him the parchment, and he raised an eyebrow when he saw what the other stallion saw. Bronze Star curiously flipped the parchment over. At first glance, the other side was blank, but Bronze Star was certain he had seen something. However, at this time, he was holding it in the shade. He held it near the window again, and when the sunlight fell across the paper, a number of symbols appeared on it.
"Intriguing," Bronze Star commented. He turned to Haywood and queried "How did you know these markings were here?"
"I didn't," Haywood disclosed, "I was merely struck by a notion that our new 'allies' would somehow provide us with a means of communicating with them. Leaving a message in invisible ink seemed like the most rational method."
"I suppose that makes sense," Bronze Star conceded. Clearly, the words on this side of the paper had been written in a type of invisible ink. The solar radiation from the Sun must have made the ink visible. Bronze Star looked towards the window and muttered in satisfaction "Thank you, Mother."
Bronze Star quickly shut the window and stepped away from it. Then he reassumed his usual Alicorn appearance. He used his horn to cast a spell on the parchment. This particular spell made the paper act as though it was consistently in contact with solar radiation. That way, the invisible ink became visible. He showed the message to Sir Haywood. The indigo stallion smirked, saying "Now we can begin. We should show this to Lady Noble first."
Bronze Star nodded in agreement again. Once he changed back to Earth Pony form, he removed his knapsack from the wall and slung it over his shoulders. The two of them swiftly headed downstairs. They found that the Apples were about to head out to Sweet Apple Acres. It turned out that the shipment of lumber they needed had arrived last night, way ahead out schedule. They planned to start rebuilding their barn right away. Bronze Star told them that he and Sir Haywood had some business of their own to attend to, but if possible, he would swing by the ranch to lend the Apples a hoof.
The six ponies then departed from the embassy. Applejack, Big McIntosh, Apple Bloom, and Granny Smith headed to the west towards Sweet Apple Acres, whereas Bronze Star and Haywood proceeded to the north.
Several minutes later, they arrived at the barracks. They found Noble Edict in her office. The red mare was in the midst of filling out some paperwork. She looked up at the two stallions and smiled at them, saying "Good morning, Sir Haywood, 'Mr. Ambassador.'"
"Hello, Noble," Bronze Star returned.
"Greetings, Lady Noble," Haywood McCrank stated.
Noble Edict scoffed at being addressed that way. She drily remarked "You know, I'm still not used to that yet."
"Apparently the townsfolk already are," Bronze Star perceived, gesturing to the nameplate on the red mare's desk. The last time he had been in here, it had said "Noble Edict." Now it read "Lady Noble Edict."
"Indeed," Noble Edict pronounced, lightly rolling her eyes, "I still can't figure out how they managed to make this thing so quickly. Nopony even knew about my new title before the other night."
"They must've found a way," Haywood McCrank conjectured.
"They just want to show you proper recognition, Noble," Bronze Star noted, "After all, to be made a Lady or a Lord is widely viewed as a great honor, especially at your age. When was the last time somepony that important came to reside in Ponyville?"
"Odd how you of all ponies would make that point," Noble Edict wittily countered.
Bronze Star shrugged and admitted "Okay, you got me there. The difference is that only a few ponies in this town know my actual title, whereas everypony knows your new one."
"True," Noble Edict candidly stated. After a momentary pause, she sighed and declared "Oh, well. Regardless of all the new attention and treatment I've been getting, I'm just glad to be back in my office. I haven't sat in this chair in three weeks."
"I take it you're ready to reassume your duties as Ponyville's chief of security?" Bronze Star presumed.
"I was ready before we even got on that train," Noble Edict proclaimed.
"Excellent," Haywood McCrank said in approval. He then slowly shut the door to Noble Edict's office, making sure it closed all the way. Then he turned back to the red mare and told her "In that case, we should begin our investigation into that 'plot' straightaway."
"Very well, Sir Haywood," Noble Edict avowed. She leaned closer to the two stallions and apprised them "I've already selected who will be on the task force. There will be a total of eight ponies, including the three of us."
"May I see the personnel files of the other five?" Haywood McCrank requested.
"Already prepared them for you," Noble Edict smugly responded. She pulled open a cabinet underneath her desk and removed five yellow folders. She placed them on the surface of her desk and pushed them towards Haywood McCrank. The indigo stallion quickly picked them up and started looking through the folders one at a time.
Ponyville had a population of a few thousand. Its security force numbered slightly over a hundred. In just one night, Noble Edict had managed to go through the list and narrow it down to the five most promising candidates for this job.
The first one was Copper Hollow, her head deputy. He was the only one Noble Edict had immediately chosen to be on the task force. Up until this point, Copper Hollow's physical description has not been disclosed. He was an Earth Pony, and he was a couple years younger than Noble Edict. He had a copper coat, a burgundy mane, orange irises, and a metallic vase for a cutie mark.
The second one was a Unicorn mare named Paisley Branch. She had a cobalt blue coat, a tan mane, azure irises, and a pencil crossed over a pen for a cutie mark.
The third one was an Earth Pony mare named Almond Wheeler. She had a gray coat, a purple mane, brown irises, and a cart of crates for a cutie mark.
The fourth one was a Pegasus mare named Cassia Sprig. She had a periwinkle coat, a teal mane, scarlet irises, and a cinnamon stick for a cutie mark.
The fifth one was an Earth Pony stallion named Rollin Fields. He had a lime green coat, a white mane, puce irises, and a grassy meadow for a cutie mark.
All five of them varied in age and experience, but they were all sufficiently qualified for this task. Like Noble Edict, they were all natives of Ponyville. None of them had a single disreputable mark or blemish on their service records. They were honest, hardworking, model security officers, and Noble Edict was willing to vouch for the reliability and competency of all of them.
Haywood McCrank spent a few minutes going over each personnel file, and he was fairly confident that none of the five officers were either the assassin or a member of the vigilante group. He needed to speak with them face-to-face before he could be one hundred percent certain of that.
When he was finished reading the files, Haywood placed them back down on Noble Edict's desk and inquired "Have you discussed the plot with any of them?"
"No," the chief of security frankly replied, "I wanted to wait until you read their files and approved them yourself."
"A wise decision, my Lady," Haywood observed. He leant against the wall of the room and studied his front hoof. He inhaled deeply, and then he cleared his throat and said "I would like to speak with each of your people separately."
"Certainly, Sir Haywood," Noble Edict asserted, "All five of them have already clocked in. They should be here in the barracks. I assume you'd like to see them right away?"
"Affirmative," Haywood confirmed, "The sooner I see them, the sooner we can commence our investigation."
"Alright," Noble Edict coincided. She rose to her hooves and went over to the door. She opened it up and nodded to the opening, saying "Come with me, please."
Bronze Star and Haywood McCrank followed Noble Edict out into the hallway. She led them through several corridors until they arrived at the lounge of the barracks. More than half of the security staff was assembled there. The active officers were going over reports, discussing the itinerary for the day, and reviewing the protocols. The off-duty officers were playing cards, swapping interesting stories, or chatting.
When Noble Edict entered, everypony stopped what they were doing and stood up out of respect. The red mare chuckled and calmly told her subordinates "As you were."
Most of the ponies sat back down. Copper Hollow and several of the others remained standing. Noble Edict announced to the crowd "Deputy Chief Hollow, Deputies Branch and Sprig, Officials Wheeler and Fields, I need you to accompany me on an errand. Everypony else, carry on."
Copper Hollow and four of the others promptly made their way over to their superior officer. Once they were all together, Haywood asked the officers "Is there a place we can go where we can talk without being overheard or interrupted?"
"The interrogation chamber," Cassia Sprig disclosed, "Unless, of course, you don't think that would be appropriate."
"That'll do just fine," the indigo stallion proclaimed.
Noble Edict led the group through the building until they arrived at the interrogation chamber. Once they got there, Haywood McCrank announced "I would like to spend a few minutes with each of you."
"Forgive me if I sound impertinent, but could you please tell us who you are first?" Almond Wheeler inquired.
"This is Sir Haywood McCrank," Bronze Star introduced the indigo stallion, "Or Superintendent Haywood McCrank, if you prefer. He's an investigator from Canterlot's Intelligence Bureau."
"Fascinating," Paisley Branch commented, "If you don't mind me asking, what business does a federal agent have in Ponyville?"
"I cannot say just yet," Sir Haywood candidly disclosed, "All I can say at present is that my work here is of the utmost importance. I must consult all of you privately before I can elucidate."
"That sounds reasonable," Rollin Fields stated, "I'm willing to sit down and talk for a while. Even though we're not used to being on the other side of the interrogation table."
"Well I can assure you that these are not interrogations," Haywood McCrank expounded, "They are interviews. I will still require your full cooperation."
"And you shall have it, Sir Haywood," Copper Hollow proclaimed, stepping closer to the indigo stallion, "I volunteer to go first."
"Very well, Deputy Chief Hollow," Haywood McCrank acknowledged, glad that at least one of the officers was being equitable.
Noble Edict opened the door to the interrogation and let the copper stallion and the indigo stallion step inside. She closed the door behind them so they could speak in total privacy.
Copper Hollow expected to be asked about his service record and his reasons for joining the security staff. However, Sir Haywood only asked him certain basic questions like what he enjoyed about his work, how he spent his leisure time, and his relationships with his family. It seemed as though Haywood just wanted to know about his personal life. Despite his confusion, he answered all the questions without holding anything back.
Fifteen minutes later, the two stallions reemerged from the interrogation chamber. Sir Haywood looked to Bronze Star and nodded his head once, meaning he had approved of Copper Hollow.
Haywood McCrank followed the same routine with each of the other four officers. Paisley Branch was easily the most cooperative, mostly due to the fact that she was the youngest. She had only been on the security staff for four years, and she wanted to be as helpful as possible. Cassia Sprig was a little more wary of Sir Haywood's approach. She suspected that there was an ulterior motive behind the indigo stallion's method. Almond Wheeler only said everything that she needed to say. She did not have a policy against giving away too much information; she just wanted to keep the interview as brief as possible. Rollin Fields was very careful with how he answered Sir Haywood's questions. He was by far the oldest of the five officers; he had been on the security staff longer than anypony else in town, and he had dealt with all kinds of criminals in his lifetime.
Altogether, the interviews lasted roughly over an hour. Sir Haywood McCrank ended up giving all five of them his stamp of approval.
"What shall we do now?" Copper Hollow queried once they were all gathered in the hallway again.
"Now we can move on to more pressing matters," Haywood McCrank disclosed, "For this, we should go somewhere where all eight of us can talk in secret. That small interrogation chamber will hardly suffice."
"How about the embassy?" Bronze Star suggested, "The meeting chamber is more than sufficiently large. Nopony can enter the building without my approval, either. Essentially, it's sequestered from the rest of the town, meaning we cannot be overheard."
"Works for me," Noble Edict stated. Sir Haywood McCrank and the five security officers concurred.
The eight ponies soon left the barracks and made their way to the embassy. After Bronze Star checked in at the front, the group gathered in the meeting chamber. Once the security officers were all settled, Haywood McCrank stood at the front of the table and waited until he had everypony's attention.
Once he did, he announced "Before I explain the situation, I need assurances that nothing we discuss here will leave this room."
Noble Edict, Copper Hollow, and Paisley Branch willingly agreed to that request. Almond Wheeler, Rollin Fields, and Cassia Sprig agreed as well, even though they were secretly a little skeptical. However, they were true to their word.
Once he had their assurances, Haywood cleared his throat and explicated "The other day, we received a letter from an anonymous source. In this letter was a warning about a crime that will take place in Ponyville sometime in the future."
"What sort of crime?" Cassia Sprig queried.
"A murder," Noble Edict candidly replied.
Paisley Branch, Copper Hollow, and Cassia Sprig were alarmed to hear that. Almond Wheeler and Rollin Fields were not as surprised.
"We get tips about potential murders every other week," Almond Wheeler disclosed, "None of them ever turn out to be valid."
"That's right," Rollin Fields conceded, "There hasn't been a murder in this town since I was a colt."
"That's like a hundred years ago," Paisley Branch slyly remarked.
Copper Hollow, Cassia Sprig, Noble Edict, and Bronze Star snickered at that. Sir Haywood McCrank and Almond Wheeler were indifferent. Rollin Fields just rolled his eyes and corrected his colleague with "Fifty years."
"Regardless of how long ago a murder occurred in this town, I can assure you that the warning about this one was credible," Sir Haywood pronounced.
"What makes you say that?" Paisley Branch inquired.
This time it was the gold stallion who answered. He informed the officers "Prince Bronze Star himself received this warning."
Everypony was surprised to discover this fact, including Almond Wheeler and Rollin Fields. Bronze Star went on with "It was given to him by a person who claimed to belong to a type of vigilante group. This particular person was able to break into the castle, sneak into the prince's bedroom, and plant the letter in his personal filing cabinet. They did all that without getting detected by the Royal Guard. Consider all that effort that would require, if you would. I highly doubt they would have gone to all that trouble unless they were certain the threat was legitimate."
"That certainly is a fair argument, Mr. Ambassador," Almond Wheeler observed.
"I must say; that's a rather melodramatic way to deliver a message," Rollin Fields noted.
"They must have wanted to emphasize the severity of this threat," Copper Hollow perceived.
"That, and the fact that they wish to remain anonymous," Bronze Star pointed out.
"You can hardly blame them for that," Paisley Branch stated, "After all, while vigilantes may have good intentions, they are still lawbreakers."
"That's debatable," Sir Haywood countered, "In most conditions, I would probably agree with you; most vigilantes cannot be trusted. I must make an exception in this case. You see, Prince Bronze Star gave me the letter. I looked it over thoroughly, and based on its contents, I am confident that they were being sincere with us. The murder threat is genuine."
"You came to that conclusion just by reading a single letter?" Almond Wheeler queried.
"I've confirmed national threats with even less information to go on than that," Haywood apprised her, "Believe me; if the vigilantes were trying to mislead or misinform us, I would have known."
"Okay, I guess that's enough to prove the legitimacy of this threat," Cassia Sprig declared, "However, I'm a little confused about one thing. Why did the vigilantes come forward in the first place?"
"They are determined to prevent this murder," Noble Edict disclosed, "In the past, they have been able to avert such disasters by using their own resources. However, they fear that they might be unable to stop this crisis on their own. So they sent out a request for aid. It was included in the letter."
"They asked Prince Bronze Star for aid?" Paisley Branch assumed.
"Yes, for whatever reason, they chose to approach him," Bronze Star answered.
"How did he respond?" Almond Wheeler inquired.
"After due consideration, he decided to grant their request," Haywood McCrank replied, "In response, he has authorized the creation and use of a special task force to investigate this matter. I was appointed by the prince himself to head up the task force."
"Who else is on this task force?" Copper Hollow queried.
"My hope is that there will be seven others," Haywood replied, resting his front hooves on the table, "Ambassador Gold Streak is here to provide correspondence. I have also sought out Lady Noble Edict's assistance in this endeavor, and I asked her to pick no more than five members of the security staff to join the task force."
The five security officers quickly caught on to what the indigo stallion was implying. Each of them turned towards Noble Edict. Cassia Sprig uttered in interest "Noble, he doesn't mean…"
The red mare just nodded her head solemnly and pronounced "That's why we're here."
"Lady Noble believes that the five of you are best suited for this job," Haywood McCrank revealed, "After reviewing your files and speaking casually with each of you, I am inclined to agree."
"You decided that after just one conversation with us?" Paisley Branch asked rhetorically.
"One conversation is all I need," Haywood McCrank professed, "Aside from that, Lady Noble vouched for you. I'd like to believe that her faith in her people is well-founded. All that said, the five of you are just her personal recommendation; neither she nor I nor anypony else can order you to join the task force. The choice of whether or not you will do so is up to each of you. Please make your decision now."
The room was immersed in silence for a while. The five security officers took their time to contemplate their own responses.
Copper Hollow was the first to speak up. He rose from his chair and pronounced "I'll help you, Sir Haywood. If Noble says this threat is real and she believes it's worth investigating, then that's good enough for me."
"I appreciate that, Deputy Chief Hollow," Haywood McCrank commented, smirking.
Noble Edict had been sitting next to Copper Hollow at that time. As the copper stallion sat back down, the red mare reached over and patted him on the back. He turned to her and gave her a polite smile, which she returned.
Haywood McCrank could see why Copper Hollow was the only member of the security staff that Noble Edict had immediately selected for the task force. He was as loyal and honest as he was competent.
The other four needed a little more clarification before they made their decision.
"Exactly how many people know about this threat?" Paisley Branch inquired.
Bronze Star rubbed his chin and thought a moment, and then he answered "Let's see; there's the eight of us, as well as Canterlot Castle's chief of staff, the Captain of the Royal Guard, and two government agents, both of whom are former captains of the Royal Guard, as well. So including the people in this room, there are twelve in total."
"Thirteen," Noble Edict claimed.
"Hmmm?" Bronze Star said in perplexity.
"You left out Prince Bronze Star," Noble clarified.
The gold stallion realized his mistake. His eyes dilated in surprise and he slapped his forehead in mock exasperation. He stated in fake surprise "Oh, yeah; stupid me. How could I forget him?"
The five officers seemed to buy this act. When none of them were looking at him, Bronze Star turned to Noble Edict and gave her an appreciative look, as if to say "Nice save."
"So even Princess Celestia and Princess Luna don't know about this?" Paisley Branch assumed.
"No, the prince wanted to limit the number of people who learned of this plot," Haywood disclosed.
"Why?" Rollin Fields inquired.
"In the letter, the vigilantes expressed their concern that if too many people became aware of the murder plot, the assassin would be incited to move in on the victim early," Noble Edict answered, "That's why we didn't go ahead and tell the town's entire security staff. Only a select few could be entrusted with the knowledge of it."
"So basically, the only people who can do anything about this plot – other than the vigilantes – are the ones in this room?" Almond Wheeler conjectured.
"Precisely," Bronze Star said candidly.
"In that case, you can count me in," Paisley Branch pronounced, "It sounds like you'll need every pony you can get. I'll gladly offer my services."
"Very well, Deputy Branch," Haywood McCrank avowed.
Now they had two acceptances; three more were still pending.
"Hold on a moment," Cassia Sprig disclosed, "You said that the vigilantes are seeking aid. You actually want us to collaborate with a group of vigilantes?"
"That's the general idea," Bronze Star affirmed, "Do you have a problem with that?"
"Not really a problem; just a few concerns," Cassia Sprig thought aloud, "In what way will we be working with them?"
"For starters, we won't be talking with them or meeting with them face-to-face," Haywood McCrank illuminated, "I've come to the conclusion that we won't have any direct contact with the vigilantes throughout the duration of this investigation. The letter emphasized that they wish to remain unknown."
"Then how in Tartarus are we supposed to work with them?" Rollin Fields queried.
"In the letter, they contained instructions on how to establish the alliance," Bronze Star stated, "They asked me to leave a message outside the window of my room at the embassy last night to signal the beginning of it, which I did do. When I woke up this morning, I found another piece of parchment in its place. The vigilantes left it to acknowledge our response. They also left another message in invisible ink, which we were able to enhance to make it visible."
"What exactly did this message say?" Copper Hollow asked in interest.
"Essentially, it was an instruction sheet," Haywood McCrank disclosed, "They intend this alliance to be a type of symbiotic relationship. Once a week, they want us to amass whatever information we have been able to uncover and leave it at a certain location."
"You mean like a drop site?" Paisley Branch supposed.
"Yes, exactly," Haywood asserted, "The location of the drop site will change every week, but it will always be a secure spot. On the morning of each drop, the ambassador will be informed where it will take place. The vigilantes will have already left whatever new intelligence they managed to acquire at the same exact places. They will allow us to take that new information and in exchange, we must leave our own recent findings there so they can pick it up later on."
"So we'll just be sharing and comparing our discoveries?" Almond Wheeler presumed.
"Yes, they don't intend for us to be in the same place at the same time as them ever," Haywood McCrank stated, "However, they expect for us to benefit from this arrangement as much as them; no more or less."
"Seems fair enough," Cassia Sprig perceived, lightly shrugging, "Alright, I'm in. As long as they don't hold anything back, I'm good with this."
"Excellent, Deputy Sprig," said Sir Haywood in approval.
Only two more of the officers needed some more convincing.
"What's so critical about this particular murder?" Rollin Fields inquired, "I know that murder is a serious and reprehensible crime, but why does this one warrant all of this secrecy and exploration?"
"We ourselves cannot venture a guess," Haywood McCrank explained, "We do not have a single lead as to who the assassin or the victim might be. Neither do the vigilantes. For all we know, they might not even be living in this town right now. Even so, the vigilantes put especial emphasis on how important it is that the murder be avoided. According to their warning, if this murder is allowed to happen, it could yield terrible repercussions for the entire country."
"How?" Almond Wheeler asked in bafflement.
"Use your imagination, Official," Noble Edict proposed, "Maybe somepony important will be targeted. They could disappear and be found dead in someplace they had no business being. The circumstances of their death may be more profound and extreme than the death itself."
"That's one such case," Bronze Star thought aloud, "It may not even be somepony who's that well-known. In fact, it could be an ordinary person, but the killer may intend to frame the blame on a highly respected individual. Think how THAT would turn out."
"If such a thing were to happen, the entire nation could fall into despair or disarray," Haywood McCrank hypothesized, "One single death is all it would take."
"Indeed," Rollin Fields coincided, "You make your point quite clear. In any case, you've got yet another additional to the task force. One murder in this town was bad enough; I have no intention of letting another one happen after fifty years of peace."
"Good to know, Official Fields," Haywood acknowledged.
Now only one person needed to respond. All eyes were on Almond Wheeler.
"Well, Official Wheeler, what say you?" Haywood McCrank queried.
Almond Wheeler gazed off to the side for a moment. Then she looked around at the others and disclosed "I will admit that you all have some fine reasons for joining this task force. But there is still one major factor you seem to have overlooked."
"What might that be?" Copper Hollow asked.
"The main idea of this whole thing is that we'll be working with a group of vigilantes," Almond Wheeler expounded, "Yes, they may mean well, but they are still engaged in illegal activities. Knowingly and actively working with them would set an impossible precedent. If word of it ever got out, we could all lose our jobs."
"We're aware of that, Almond," Noble Edict bluntly remarked, "But need I remind you about how much secrecy has been built around this investigation? Nopony ever WILL find out. That's the whole point of this meeting."
"And even if word somehow DID get out, I'm willing to put my job on the line for this," Copper Hollow proclaimed, "It would be worth it if we managed to stop this murder from happening."
"Well, I can assure you that as long as you cooperate and keep the investigation confidential, you won't lose your jobs," Bronze Star assured the officers, "Since this task force was formed by Prince Bronze Star himself, he will see to it that none of you are held accountable for any legal issues that may come up about working with the vigilante group."
"Alright, that does make me feel a little better," said Almond Wheeler, "Still, it just… well, it still feels wrong in a way. I have a particular disdain for people who operate outside the law and believe themselves to be above the law. I can't imagine working with such people."
"I see what you mean, Official," Haywood remarked, "However, in this case, you should probably remain a little more objective. The vigilantes took a great risk just by revealing their existence to us. They must have considered the possibility that their exposure might ultimately lead to their apprehension. With that in mind, I believe they feel that preventing this murder may be more important to them than the continuance of their organization's existence. So we're not the only ones who have been forced into a difficult situation."
Almond Wheeler found herself speechless, as did several of the other ponies in that room. They had not thought to view the scenario from that perspective, and it opened an entirely different outlook for some of them. After a short interval of quietness, Almond Wheeler looked up at the indigo stallion, smirked, and commented "You are very good with words, Sir Haywood. So good, in fact, that they're more than enough to win me over."
"Just what I was hoping for, Official Wheeler," Haywood McCrank said in satisfaction.
Bronze Star smiled in pleasure and observed "Looks like we're all in."
There were mutters of agreement all around the room.
"Right," Noble Edict commented, rubbing her front hooves together, "Then let's get to work."
The meeting lasted for another half-hour. The rest of it was spent outlining a plan for how the investigation would be organized and carried out over the next few months. The members of the task force would observe and make notes of all the activities that took place in Ponyville. Anything that seemed routine or abnormal would be noted and considered as evidence. They would meet at the embassy three or four times a week – preferably every other day – and discuss their findings to sort out the pertinent information. Anything noteworthy would be delivered to the preselected drop site in exchange for the vigilantes' own information. With any luck, this joint association would help them learn the identities of both the assassin and the victim, and in turn, it would hopefully enable them to prevent the murder altogether.
This was just how it went. Every day, the task force kept their eyes open for anything that stood out. Sir Haywood knew how to sort out killers and would-be killers from the rest of the crowd. He was able to use his expertise to advise the others on who and what to look for. Overtime, they also procured a list of potential suspects. Some would say that their information gathering was trivial at best, but it was still progress, and as Sir Haywood always said, any progress was progress.
The vigilante group tended to yield slightly more favorable information, mostly because all their people were able to go deeply undercover, and they did not have the constraint of having to respect the townsfolk's privacy. They also included a short list of potential leads and suspects for the task force to pursue. After all, the security staff was still able to give a more thorough, direct examination than the vigilantes.
Despite all the resources they had at their disposal, it was not enough to give them a feasible idea as to who the assassin or the victim might be. Then again, there was only so much the task force could accomplish. After all, they were unable to spend every waking moment concentrating on the investigation. Only Sir Haywood was capable of that; he had actually done that several times in the past.
Noble Edict and her fellow officers were still required to devote a certain number of hours to carrying out their normal duties in the town's security, and Bronze Star had to continue his role as the ambassador to Ponyville.
In addition to that, Bronze Star had three other matters that needed his attention. Like the murder plot, two of them involved schemes against the government. They were the Nightmare Moon cult and the conspiracy that Sir Raoul Jowl had been involved in. Although he had left those matters up to the country's law enforcement entities and the Firebrand Regiment respectively, he still wanted to be kept up to date on how those investigations were proceeding. So he had SIG Sauer and Bellerophon send him a progress report once a week.
The third matter was what he deemed to be the most delicate, the most meaningful, and the most significant: his relationship with Applejack. He planned to give this matter his all.
After the meeting at the embassy, Bronze Star had gone over to Sweet Apple Acres to aid the Apple family in rebuilding their house barn. The barn was already well underway; several of Ponyville's residents had come to assist in the project. When the gold stallion arrived, Applejack was the first to notice him. She happily trotted over to him and gave him a hug, which he returned. They were glad to see each other, but they decided to hold off doing anything more affectionate than that in public until the barn had been completed.
The foundation had been lain, and the frames had already been constructed and raised into place. Now they just needed to build the walls and roof and paint it. When he was younger, Bronze Star had learnt basic woodwork from Wood Reaper, the royal carpenter. Because of that, he was able to assist in raising the walls of the barn.
It only took a few hours to finish the construction of the house barn. Once the paint had dried, the Apples and their friends moved their furniture from the storage barn back to the house barn. By working diligently and cooperatively, they were able to complete the project by sunset. They were just in time for dinner. Most of their friends had gone back to town by then, but Bronze Star had remained behind until the Apples were settled in. Granny Smith offered for him to stay for dinner again, but he politely declined. He would have liked to have dinner with the Apples, but Sir Haywood McCrank was expecting him back at the embassy, and – as he told the Apples – Sir Haywood was not fond of unplanned last-minute changes in one's schedule.
However, he promised the Apples that he would come over for dinner again soon. In fact, he told them that they would be seeing a lot more of him in the future.
And so they did. Twice a week, Bronze Star was the Apple family's guest at Sweet Apple Acres, or they were his guests at the embassy. Overtime, Bronze Star and Applejack became conspicuously closer to each other.
Before long, they came forward and revealed to Applejack's family that the two of them were seeing each other. The other three Apples had different reactions, but all of them were positive. Big McIntosh was proud of his sister for finally having a stallion in her life. Apple Bloom teased her older sister for having a coltfriend, but she was secretly a little envious of her. Granny Smith just congratulated her granddaughter and the gold stallion; she admired them for choosing to become more than just friends.
Neither Bronze Star nor Applejack had ever been in a romantic relationship before, but they were equally determined to make things work out between each other. As two of the most motivated people in Equestria, there was a lot of hope for them.
Bronze Star effectively found himself juggling three schemes involving sedition and one romantic relationship at the same time. Luckily, it was not too much for him to handle. He typically managed to give all four of them an equal amount of attention. But at times, he tended to give Applejack more time than he gave the cult, the conspiracy, and the murder plot combined. Truth be told, he was perfectly alright with that. The time he spent with her was when he really felt like a normal person.
The next four months passed by in this manner.
SIG Sauer and Bellerophon sent him weekly updates on the hunt for the Nightmare Moon cult and the terrorist conspiracy. Both of these investigations were progressing very well.
More than a hundred of the cultists from the list found at the hideout in Hoofington had been arrested. Of course, Bronze Star could have had all 825 suspects arrested at once, but he did not want to tip off the rest of the cult that the government was hunting them. So he had given the law enforcement entities in the country instructions to only arrest the cultists if they found them committing a crime that was unrelated to the cult. Using loopholes and technicalities, the police had managed to bring in dozens of the cultists. They had also managed to get some of the one hundred plus suspects to talk. A few of them had even broken down and confessed everything they knew. Because of that, the government had been able to locate three more of the cult's hideouts near Baltimare, Las Pegasus, and Trottingham. As a result, almost two thousand more members of the cult had been uncovered. At this rate, the entire organization would theoretically be exposed within a year or two. Once that happened, the government would be able to apprehend all of them at once. However, there was still no sign of Hazy Wisp anywhere. Bronze Star made sure everypony kept an eye out for her. Given the role she played during the Summer Sun Celebration, he was certain Hazy Wisp was very high up in the cult's chain-of-command.
The search for the people involved in the conspiracy against Princess Celestia had yielded even more fruitful results. This was to be expected, as there were thousands of ponies in the Nigthmare Moon cult, but there were only twenty in the assassination conspiracy. Material Study was dead, Raoul Jowl had defected, and Lavender Dazzle was being watched by undercover operatives. By observing the activities of Raging Tempest, Sparker Blare, and Esopus Spitzenburg, the Firebrand Regiment and their colleagues in the field had managed to uncover the identities of six more of the conspirators. Only eight more needed to be identified. Once their identities were discovered, the Firebrand Regiment planned to take out all eighteen of them simultaneously, effectively ending the conspiracy at the same time.
However, as productive as the investigations into the cult and the conspiracy were, the investigation into the murder plot was nowhere near as favorable. In this scenario, Bronze Star and the task force were only searching for two people: the assassin and the victim. But at the start of their investigation, they had no idea as to the identity of either of them. If worse came to worst, it could be possible that every single inhabitant of Equestria could be either.
All the same, every member of the task force was determined to prevent the murder from happening. The security staff was fortunate to have Sir Haywood McCrank leading the investigation. However, in some instances, they were inclined to question his tactics.
Haywood utilized some rather unconventional methods for pursuing leads. For starters, he had determined that the murder would take place in a spring or summer month. His reasoning for that was that in his experience, he had observed that most serious premediated murders tended to take place in warmer climates. Whereas during the fall and winter months, premature deaths were more often the result of accidents or self-inflicted damages than homicide.
Haywood had also asked the task force to go to bed every night with a copy of their cumulative information of the murder plot underneath their pillows. When asked why, he explained that by having their research that close to them in their slumber, they may have a dream that contained another clue. At the start of each of their meetings, he would ask the others what they had dreamed of, and they would describe their dreams to him in as vivid detail as possible. Believe it or not, this ploy actually worked a number of times. Every member of the task force had provided at least one new lead from their dreams. It was never anything especially significant, but it still brought them somewhere.
By studying almanacs and newspapers from out of town, Haywood McCrank had been able to conclude that the killer or the target would not be anypony from the faraway cities like Fillydelphia, Vanhoover, or Manehattan. In fact, he was almost completely certain that the assassin and the victim were already living in Ponyville. Nopony in town demonstrated any particular hostile or violent behavior, but he knew that the best assassins did not have a short temper or volatile demeanor. Instead, they could remain inconspicuous by being calm and friendly. In other words, the most likely candidates were the people who seemed least capable of murder.
Between his obligations as an ambassador and his role in the three investigations, Bronze Star found himself rather preoccupied on an everyday basis. Even so, he managed to make time for Applejack almost every day. That was quite a commitment, especially considering that oftentimes Applejack was just as busy as Bronze Star. She was used to working long hours in the apple orchards at her plantation.
At first glance, the two of them appeared to be two ordinary workaholics; one in manual labor and agriculture, one in politics and exploration. However, as they quickly discovered, workaholics were just as capable of being romantics. For a while, they kept their new relationship a secret; only Granny Smith, Big McIntosh, and Apple Bloom knew about it. As well as Sir Haywood, even though they never told him directly; he just figured it out on his own.
It was not long before Applejack and Bronze Star let more people know about the nature of their relationship. They started with the other Element Bearers. Twilight Sparkle, Fluttershy, Rarity, Pinkie Pie, Rainbow Dash, and Spike were excited for the two of them. Shortly after this, they told their other friends in the town like Noble Edict, Derpy Hooves, Dr. Sharp Seams, Copper Hollow, and several others. Overtime, more people became aware of their romantic bond.
Four months had passed since Bronze Star and Applejack had their first kiss, and by now, it was common knowledge in Ponyville that the two of them were dating. Luckily, neither of them had been a target of gossip. That had been Bronze Star's biggest concern at the start of their relationship. He himself could handle being the target of rumors; if not, he would have not lasted very long as a member of the Canterlot Royalty. However, he did not wish any of that on Applejack.
In the span of those four months, Bronze Star had only visited Canterlot once, and that that was for the Hearth's Warming Eve pageant. He had spent most of the day with his mother and aunt, and he had given a speech to the public to wish the people of the nation Happy Holidays. On Hearth's Warming Day itself, he had gone back to Ponyville to spend time with his friends there. It was his first Hearth's Warming away from home, but the people of Ponyville were like a second family to him. The exchanging of gifts was especially enjoyable. His favorite gift had been a Stetson from Applejack; when he put it on, Pinkie Pie had remarked to him and Applejack "Wow, you two match!"
Naturally, she had meant that as a joke, but Bronze Star and Applejack felt she may have had a good point. They felt as though they DID make a good match, even without the Stetsons. Based on the direction their relationship was going, they had potential to become a great match. Only time would tell if they were truly destined to be.