//------------------------------// // Rogues, Laptops, and Scotch // Story: Her Knight in Faded Armor // by Doccular42 //------------------------------// “Okay, we’re clear. Move in, now!” At the sound of Luna’s voice, her party ran down the ruined streets of the city that had once been called Manehattan. The clip of hooves on broken cement echoed off the walls of the long-abandoned skyscrapers. The six soldiers dashed from cover to cover, staying as quiet as possible. “We getting close, Noble?” Silver whispered through the coms. The draconequus alchemist nodded in response. “Yeah. We’ve got a quarter of a kilometer to go. The intel says that the drop spawned five minutes ago.” “Damn,” Silver grunted. “I hope we aren’t too late.” Button chuckled. “Hey, even if we are, we’ll just beat whoever got there first and take the stuff from them.” “Unless they already ‘ported out,” Fawkes muttered. The unicorn flashed to a street corner. He peered around a building and nodded. “We’re clear.” Luna trotted over to the mage. “Fawkes, stay back. I’m running scout. I have the shields to take the fire if we get ambushed, and you’re our main controller. We need you safe.” “Oh! Sorry,” he replied sheepishly. “Sorry.” “It’s no problem,” Luna said with a chuckle. “You’re still new. You’re doing just fine.” The group continued their trek down the ancient street. Luna led the way, her visor scanning for movement, her rifle at the ready. The rest of the group followed. Fawkes stood right beside Jexxc. The tank’s massive minotaur hands held a shotgun and a shield. Jexxc never used voice chat, but Luna knew that he would stop if he saw anything out of the ordinary. Above them flew Noble and Silver. Noble floated lazily through the air, a datapad in her front paw. Her griffon companion held a pair of glowing red short swords while he flapped alongside her. “We’re almost there, right?” Button asked. He’d taken his traditional place as rear guard. “Almost…” Noble muttered. “Take a left at the next intersection, everypony.” “Hey!” “Oh, sorry, Silver. ‘Everyone’ it is, then,” Noble laughed. “Thank you. Much appreciated,” the griffon replied. He grinned lopsidedly. “You ponies, always thinking you run everything.” “To be fair, we kind of do,” Fawkes said as he leapt over some debris. “Bah, whatever.” Silver decreased his altitude as the party moved closer together. “Mem? What’s over there?” “Checking…” Luna peered around the corner and triggered another scan. The city lit up as a brilliant red light washed over it. A few mobs lit off in the far right of her view, a single dragonhawk flew over the top of a nearby building, and— “We’ve got company,” Luna muttered. “Looks like we’re not the first here after all.” “Of course…” Silver sighed. “How bad is it?” Luna eyed the group of soldiers down at the other end of the road. They surrounded a single building as if they were looking for something. Several corpses of other adventurers littered the street, and dust still floated in the air as if many explosives had just gone off. “Looks like there are seven of them,” she replied. Silver grunted. “Pickup group, or guild?” Pressing a few buttons on the control pad she wore on her foreleg, Luna activated her social HUD. The names of the other players appeared on her scope, as did their guild name. She groaned. “It’s a guild.” “Great,” Button said. “I’ll get onto the social panel. What’s their name?” “It’s... it’s... “ Luna groaned. “It’s ‘xXMyLeetlPwniesXx.’” Button paused. “Seriously?” Jexxc froze as he typed an answer. >Jexxc: eeyup “How many are there, again?” Button asked, stifling a laugh. “Seven.” Noble floated to the ground and smiled. “Oh, how cute. They’re a level twelve guild.” “And I have the names of all seven members active in Manehattan…” Button grinned. “I thought this was going to be a rough fight. I might have overestimated them.” Silver landed and flapped his wings. “What’ve we got? How’s their composition?” “Okay. None of them is their guild leader. They’ve got a healer, the silver dragon. His name is ‘Damascus.’ He’s level-capped.” Button scrolled through pages on his wrist controller. “Their controller is a griffon Alchemist. ‘Bio-Mason.’ Looks a lot like your build, Noble.” “Of course,” Noble snorted. “Never should have published that forum post about how awesome Alchemists are.” “Because the popularity of an entire class is all because of you, right?” Silver asked with a chuckle. Noble shoved him. “Oh, shut up.” “Anyways,” Button continued. “They’ve got a few DPS types. Looks like four. Two changeling rogue types, a yak Warrior, and a dragon Cyber. The last one is…” He grunted. “They’ve got a Chaos-buster build minotaur tank. Mem, you may not want to fight that one.” “Ah, one of those?” Luna asked. “I thought that they died off an update or two ago.” “Apparently this guy didn’t get the memo.” Button put his wrist down. “Okay, what’s the plan?” All eyes turned to Luna, as they always did when the party made plans. She looked down the road and thought for a moment. “A brilliant plan with little to no guild deaths would be nice,” Silver said. “We’ve almost gotten enough PvP points to buy another wing on the base. A few deaths would take away some of our progress, and I’d rather not have that happen.” “I know… I know…” Luna said hurriedly. Her mind and eyes raced as she watched their movements. She noted the locations of the corpses and nodded. “Okay. They’re trying to get into the building right now. Do they have a Hacker?” “Nope,” Button said before smirking. “I’m feeling better and better about this fight.” Luna nodded again. “That means that they can’t open the main door. Unless, of course, one of their rogues spent a lot of points to be able to hack high level doors, which they probably didn’t.” >Jexxc: I almost feel sorry for them “Bah, don’t feel sorry for them,” Noble said. “Just hit them really hard. That works better.” Luna raised an eyebrow. “May I continue, please?” Noble laughed and tightened her grip on her tech-bow and took an arrow from her hip quiver. “By all means.” “Thank you.” Luna leaned forward to look around the corner again. “They’re probably going to decide to blow a hole in the building soon. It might destroy the loot drop, but at least they’d get it. We need to hit them fast.” “You want to go grouped, split, or wings?” Silver asked. “Well, grouped wouldn’t be a good idea. Going down as a united front would just let their controller get us.” Luna eyed the griffon. “He looks like he could handle himself. Wings could work, but we’d lose some of the element of surprise…” She smiled. “No, I think we’ll go spilt. Classic and stealth, I think?” Silver grinned viciously. “Yes! Perfect!” “Umm, what does that mean, again?” Fawkes asked uneasily. Luna turned to face him. “We split into two groups. The first looks like a normal, albeit smaller, party. That would be you, Jexxc, and Noble. The three of you would be the distraction. Fade, Silver, and I are all stealth heavy characters, so we would go invisible and wait for you to draw some of them out. Then, we flank them and hit them from both sides.” “Oh, okay! That sounds good!” The mage nodded fiercely. “So, I guess we round the corner, get them to see us, and then run away?” “No,” Luna replied. “We need to get them to follow you. You have to get in close and act as if you are ambushing them without realizing that you are outnumbered. Then you run away.” >Jexxc: i can do that “Yeah, you’re good at running away,” Fawkes said with a guffaw. >Jexxc: no, i’m good at playing dumb “Well, that too.” The unicorn flipped his mane out of his face. Silver sighed. “I hope this works. I want that loot. The devs hinted that there may be spaceship parts in the drops since the big expansion is coming soon. It’d be nice to get a head start.” “Yeah,” Button said. “That it would.” He flipped down his visor and powered up his combat shields. “Everypony ready?” “Ahem…” “Oops. Everyone ready?” Button corrected himself. “I believe so.” Noble nocked her arrow. “Fawkes, Jexxc, on me.” “Lead the way, Mem,” Silver ordered. With that, the party activated their shields, stealth drives, and weapons. Silver, Luna, and Button all took to the air with their wings or jetpacks. Silver, Jexxc, and Noble sprinted down the road toward their enemies. As Luna neared the group, she heard a new voice chime into her ear. “...so you’re telling me that in a seven player party, nopony took any hacking at all?” Luna gasped. “Silver… they’re using the in-game voice chat!” “You’re right!” Silver’s booming laugh filled the coms. “Why would they do that? They know that proximity voice lets nearby players hear voice chat, right? I mean, that’s why we use an external program, for goodness’ sake!” “Noobs,” Button murmured. “Well, don’t look at me!” another new voice said. “You’re the tee-Rogue, oh mighty leader!” “I guess that means that the traditional Rogue character is in charge,” Silver said. “I’ll go for him first.” “Hey, you know that I’m specced for traps, not hacking. Besides, I—” “We’ve got movement!” A third voice roared. Luna slipped behind the furthest enemy. Button took his place at her side, ready to work as her wingpony. Silver hovered up above the leader. His prey was a changeling in his natural form. The entire enemy party turned as one, just in time to see Noble, Jexxc, and Fawkes slip into cover behind a building. “Let them go,” the leader of the enemies said. “Unless they get close, do not engage.” “Heard,” the gruff voice of the yak warrior replied. “How are we going to get in?” “We’ll blow it open,” the minotaur tank growled. “I’ve got rockets to spare.” Silver huffed. “Noble, they’re not buying it! Hit them now!” “You got it, boss.” A single lithe form floated swiftly into the air. The character rose toward the sky until she floated right in the way of the sunlight. Her silhouette blocked the light, and Luna could see the power of the rays moving toward Noble. She raised her bow, and a single arrow streaked downward toward the ground. The enemy leader hadn’t noticed. “Okay. Hit the wall. We’ll just have to hope that—” The ground shook as the arrow impacted right in the middle of the rival guild. Its bolt snapped with a sound akin to cracking thunder, and a bright green liquid spilled and flowed from the splintered projectile as though it had tapped into an infinite river of destructive power. “Corruption!” the griffon Alchemist shouted. “Get back! Get back!” “Shit!” The leader leapt back as the splashing acid nearly touched him. Jexxc and Fawkes ran back into the open farther down the street. Fawkes’ horn flared and a bright purple shield covered both of them. Jexxc pulled a grenade launcher out of his holster and fired a volley of three explosives toward their foes. The grenades passed through the shield and became charged with glowing pink energy. They arced through the air toward their target, nearing th— —and were stopped by another purple shield that appeared up above the other guild. “Should we get them?” the dragon healer asked. His claws glowed with magical energy as his shield deactivated. “Yes!” The leader hissed his reply as he leapt into action. Luna nodded. “Wait for it…” She and her stealthed allies ran after their foes, staying just far enough behind them. Fawkes’ horn glowed with even more magic. He panted in exertion as his shield extended upward and outward, effectively blocking the street. Jexxc put his launcher away and readied his shotgun and shield combo. Arrow after explosive arrow rained down on the enemies from above, but every one of them was countered by a brilliantly placed shield. “They’re not as bad as we thought…” Noble growled as she kept shooting. “Wait a second…” The leader of the enemies stopped running. “Something isn’t right here…” He disappeared from view as he activated stealth. Luna gasped and flipped on her detection visor. The world turned red once more, and she looked down onto the street. Her eyes scanned for the outline of a stealthed form, the glimmer of an invisible enemy, or… the glowing red of another visor looking directly at her. “It’s a trap!” The changeling shouted. “Turtle, now!” His team reacted immediately. They all grouped into a tight circle and their healer activated his shield once more. “Aw, they’re onto us!” Silver veered off to the side and landed on a side street. “We need a new plan!” The entire enemy group glowed with green energy, and Luna had to shield her eyes as the light expanded outward in a violent flash. When she looked back, the foes were gone. “Where’d they go?” Fawkes yelled. “How… What the…” “That was a group teleport combined with an ultimate shield…” Silver slammed a talon onto the ground. “Where did they go?” “I don’t know,” Noble said. “But I—” A single rocket whizzed through the air and impacted against the draconequus’ head. She cried out in shock and fell to the ground. “Noble!” Luna cried. She flew through the air as her friend plummeted to the ground. She felt the power of Celestia course through her veins as solar energy lit up her body. She forced herself to fly as quickly as possible and prepared herself. Luna groaned in exertion as a massive amount of energy left her body. The pure white light flowed from her outstretched hooves and surrounded the limp frame of the falling Alchemist. The air glowed, and whizzing golden orbs surrounded Noble as the healing magic worked its power. A moment later, Noble regained consciousness just in time to slow her descent before she hit the ground. She landed lightly on her paws and shook her head. “Ugh, thanks, Mem. I was lagging and missed that.” “Sure you were,” Silver said and chuckled. “Funny, you’re always lagging when you make a mistake… What a coincidence.” “Oh, hush.” Noble stuck her tongue out at her wing-griffon. “I see them!” Button exclaimed. He ran down the street and turned at an intersection. He pointed a hoof down the other road. “They’re taking cover in one of those buildings!” Luna rushed over to him and took her spot at his side. “Okay. We’re switching plans. Wings, form up!” Silver and Noble lifted into the air. They flew side by side over to Luna and Button. Fawkes and Jexxc sprinted down the road to reach the rest of the party. The six of them looked down the sidestreet. Their foes lined the windows of one of the far ruined skyscrapers. Fawkes cast a preemptive shield to protect from any sneaky snipers. “You know…” Button muttered. “I think that portals might be a rather interesting idea right now…” “Well, that is true,” Silver replied. “But, if they’re over there…” “Then who’s at the drop location?” Luna finished for him. “Exactly.” Silver laughed. “Mem, you want to portal us over to there, take a couple cheap shots, and then hack your way into the building?” “Sounds like a plan.” Luna nodded and grinned. “Let’s do this.” The six soldiers moved back around the corner. Jexxc stayed in eyesight to make sure their enemies stayed put while Luna summoned her chaos magic. Swirling green power surrounded her, and she peeked down the other street to silently cast a portal back behind the enemies. She placed another down the main street. “Go,” she whispered. Jexxc and Fawkes were the first through the portal. They stealthily crept into the building and took cover behind a wall. Noble slithered along the floor, and Silver activated his stealth and followed the draconequus. Luna looked back around the corner and quickly activated another portal… This one was right behind the clueless yak Warrior. Luna turned her sniper rifle toward the nearby portal. She smirked as she pointed the barrel through the portal, pressed it right up against the back of the yak’s head, and ever-so-gently squeezed the trigger. She heard two gunshots. One came from right next to her ear, and the other resounded through the empty streets all the way down in the other building. Luna followed up her shot by summoning chaos blades around her hooves and lunging through the portal at her target. She stabbed both of the glowing swords into her foe’s neck and watched as he crumpled to the floor. Luna backed away swiftly and shut her portals down. She could hear the cries of surprise as her teammates attacked the unaware enemies. “The yak is down. Good job, Mem.” Silver's voice was clipped, as if he was barely concentrating on his words. “Fawkes, flame ‘em!” Luna and Button nodded to each other and cantered down the wide street toward the building that Noble had marked as the drop location. It was built like a bunker. Sitting like a squat dwarf among a field of giants, their target had no windows, no decorations on the outside, and only a single door. Somehow, it had fared very well over the thousand years of abandonment. Its grey walls were riddled with bullet holes and laser burns, but it had stayed completely intact otherwise. Luna rushed over to the only door and opened the control panel. She did a quick reading and groaned. “This is a D99…” “Sweet Luna…” Button muttered. Luna felt herself stiffen at the name, but she forced herself to take a deep breath. “Yes, this may take a while…” She stuck her hoof up against the panel and allowed a few cables to connect to the open jack. She concentrated her energy on the door and lost herself in the Code. “Memory!” Fawkes’ voice broke her concentration. “Three of them just left the group! I think they’re headed your way!” “Aw, horsefeathers.” Button trotted beside Luna and powered up his own heavy shield. A blue bubble covered the two of them. “I’ll keep them off you.” His two new burst-fire submachine guns popped out of his kit, and he loaded some of his specialty magazines. “Which ones are coming?” “Looks like the tank and the leader!” Fawkes said. “Oh, damn! Their caster is good.” “I’ve got you,” Noble nodded. Luna saw Fawkes’ health bar drop dangerously low before it rose back up to full. “You better get through fast, Mem. We might not be able to handle all of this…” “And I thought they were a bunch of noobs…” Button muttered. “Do you think you should just break down the walls?” Silver asked. “I mean, this is pretty dangerous…” “We have no idea what’s in there. If we broke down the walls, we could destroy it!” Luna said while concentrating on her hacking. “Well then, use your chaos magic! Transform it into, I dunno, coconuts or something!” Silver grunted. “Damn dragon! Stay down!” Luna sighed. “Silver, I can’t control the magic that precisely. I don’t know where the walls end and the loot begins. If I did that, we might just have some useless fruit instead of those starship parts. All of this for nothing.” “Well…” the griffon growled in frustration. “Fine, just get in there, get the stuff, and then get out as quickly as you— Dammit!” Silver’s health bar dropped down to zero, and his icon was replaced by a grey skull. “Those assholes!” “Jexxc killed one of them, but I think that…” Fawkes’ voice faded as he fell down to zero health as well. A message indicating his death filled Luna’s HUD. “Oh. That happened.” “They’re getting ripped apart!” Button said. “This is really bad…” “Well. I’m still here,” Noble growled. “Jexxc, how about we do that thing we practiced earlier?” A moment later, a single letter appeared onscreen. >Jexxc: k A massive explosion filled the sky. Luna saw the shockwave arc over the tallest buildings and heard the tell-tale crash of rubble falling to the ground. Noble’s mad laughter filled the coms. “Did you see that?” “What did you do?” Silver said with a groan. “We’re going to have to pay the landmark destruction tax now… Great.” “I transmuted the air in the building into natural gas, and Jexxc used his flamethrower to light it up. Then, I re-transmuted the fire around us back into air… Ahahaha! That was even better than I expected!” Noble cackled even more. >Jexxc: help, i’m frozen now. too much lag “Great, you broke Jexxc’s computer…” Silver sighed. “Did they die, at least?” “I’m not sure... “ Noble muttered. “I just need to—” Jexxc’s health bar flashed once and his name faded to gray. Another death notification appeared on Luna’s screen. >Jexxc: well “Oh, crap! The dragons both made it! They’re on me!” Noble’s health bar flashed and glowed yellow. “That’s it! Celestial Rage on both of you! Screw the component cost! It’s going down now…” Button shifted uncomfortably beside Luna. “We almost in?” Luna didn’t answer for a second. She closed her eyes and muttered to herself. “Just… about… there!” The door slid open to reveal— A grenade rolling through the newly opened doorway. The changeling leader of the enemy group appeared right next to Luna, and she could see the smirk on his face as the explosive rolled right into the now-revealed pile of spaceship parts. “No!” Luna shouted as the detonation happened right before her eyes… ...and was contained by a shield that Button projected at the last moment. The protection surrounding the two ponies dematerialized and reformed around the explosion, protecting the precious loot. But their enemy was waiting. A bolt of extremely powerful energy struck Luna as soon as the shield fell. The scorching heat burnt through her chaos shields and almost bypassed her tech barrier as well. Luna growled and turned to face her foe. “I’ve got the sore loser if you’ve got the big guy!” Button stood back to back with Luna. “Sounds good to me,” Luna growled. “Are you with me, Fade?” “Always.” With that, the partners leapt into action. Luna charged the massive minotaur tank. Her foe’s red armor glinted in the sunlight. His horns were bathed in blood, and his face was marred by countless scars and a massive nose ring. Luna raised her chaos blade and swung at him, reaching forward and— Her blade hit his armor and fizzled out. His player’s laughter filled her ears. “Attacking a chaos buster with a chaos blade? Tut, tut. Bad form.” The enormous warrior lowered his blaster cannon and raised a glowing battle axe. Luna’s eyes widened as she saw her own chaos energy fill the blade. He swung at the pegasus. Luna waited. The tank may have neutralized her melee powers, but he was slow. She concentrated her Code power on herself and rerouted her robe’s power from shields into speed enhancements. As soon as the axe blade passed close to her, she rolled to the tank’s other side and opened fire with her reserve blasters. The minotaur grunted in pain and swung around as quickly as he could manage. Luna smirked and dove behind him once more to repeat the process. Button was not faring so well. The changeling held a saber in one hoof and was fending Button off blow for blow. When Button moved to take a swing at him, the enemy teleported behind him and struck him with another blade that he seemingly conjured out of thin air. “Argh!” Button grunted. “That’s it.” He blinked away from the battle in a flash of blue energy and reappeared several meters away. He spun around and opened fire with his blasters. Each shot used three bullets. The first to impact was a specialized micro-EMP round that temporarily disrupted the changeling’s shields. The second ripped through the next protective layer as the armor-piercing round tore a hole in the changeling’s black armor. The third whizzed through the newly created gap in the defenses. Half a dozen explosions peppered the changeling as the maximum-yield atomic rounds detonated. “Gah!” The Rogue teleported once again to dodge the next several shots. He reappeared in the air above Button and flew downward, saber raised. Button stood on his front legs and bucked upward. The two crashed together, and they rolled to the ground, scraping and stabbing at each other. Luna dodged yet another blow from the axe and laughed. Her enemy growled in frustration. “Stand and face me, you coward!” he cried. Luna narrowed her eyes and dodged away from him. She rushed several meters away and turned around to look at him. With a quick command to her control panel, she activated the in-game chat. “Fine, have it your way. Come at me, noob.” Luna sneered as flipped her hoof over, beckoning him forward. “Gaaaaaah!” The minotaur charged at her, his axe raised. He built speed as he careened toward her. Luna could see the madness of a Rager in his eyes. Bloody foam frothed from his mouth, his armor flapped in tattered pieces, and his hooves crunched the ancient cement as he barreled forward. Luna stood serenely before the oncoming storm. He came closer… and closer.. and… As he came within a few meters of her position, he raised his axe for a mighty blow. He roared his passion through the coms and didn’t even notice as Luna activated one portal right in the path of his axe and another directly behind his head. The axe came down with the force of a thousand years of pent up hatred… and split the minotaur’s own head in two. The chaos surrounding his axe dissipated, but it did not stop the sheer momentum of the dekktanium axe. Luna stepped over his corpse and coughed. She looked over toward her partner just in time to see— The changeling had Button pinned to the ground. Button’s health was nearly gone, and the changeling held a blade to his neck. The Rogue smiled as he turned to Luna. “You see? This is what happens when you buck with My… Leetl… Pwn—” The rush of a discharged round cracked through the air. Luna’s sniper rifle smoked and the changeling fell over. A single bullet hole occupied the space on his head that had once held his eye. The Rogue collapsed into a heap and stayed there. Luna rushed over to Button and leaned over. His health continued to fade as poison leached away his health. “Bu— Fade!” “Umm, help?” Button asked. “I’m… I’m out of spellpower…” Luna said. “All that dodging and then the portal…” “Oh. Drat.” Button tried to lift his head, but he couldn’t quite manage it. “Well, I guess… I guess this is the end.” Luna felt tears well up in her eyes. She reached down and grabbed the earth pony’s head. She lifted it off the ground and gently ran a hoof through his mane. “I… I…” Luna sniffed, but then suddenly stopped. “Wait…” she muttered. “You’ll just respawn.” She stood up and let Button’s head hit the ground. “Oww! Hey!” Button said as his health faded away and he died. “I thought we were having a moment!” “Oh, shut up,” Luna said and giggled. She turned back toward the now ruined skyscraper that her friends had blown up. “Noble? Are you there?” “Yep! Sorry, just finishing off that last dragon. He was a bit of a jerk.” Noble drifted lazily into Luna’s eyesight. “So, what did I miss?” “Fade died. We’ve got the parts. Do you have any inventory space left?” Noble nodded. “Yeah, I’m good!” She looked over and saw the corpse of the changeling. “Urgh,” she groaned. Quickly, the draconequus pulled out an arrow and shot it into the dead body. Luna raised an eyebrow. “Really?” “Hey, just making sure!” Noble shrugged. “So, do you think that—” A notification interrupted Noble. Luna read the words and gasped. The guild xXMyLeetlPwniesXx has been disbanded due to losing too much faction power. Their territory has been marked as unclaimed. “Huh,” Silver said through the voice chat. “I kinda feel bad now…” “Yeah,” Luna replied. “Me too. They were good players.” “Oh well!” Noble said happily. “Let’s get the loot and scram!” “Wait…” Silver said. A few seconds later, he suddenly started laughing. “You won’t believe this…” Luna heard the sound of keys typing, and a message suddenly appeared in the chat. >Silver Feather: (Indigo Quill): so, is your guild recruiting? “He just sent me this!” Silver laughed. “Oh, man…” Luna cracked a smile. “Well, what’re you going to say?” Silver was silent for a moment. “I don’t know. What do you guys think?” “I liked them!” Fawkes said. >Jexxc: your call Noble shrugged. “I don’t care. We did kinda orphan them though…” “They’re pretty good, Silver…” Button said. “Mem? What about you?” Silver asked. Luna smiled. “Well. My sister has been saying that I need to make new friends… Why not give them a chance?” ~~~ Luna lowered her headset and set it next to her laptop. She absentmindedly brushed a lock of her mane back into place as she shut her computer down. She glanced across the table at Button and flashed him a smile. “That was a good run!” Button smirked and shook his head. “I can’t believe you just let me die like that.” “D’aw,” Luna cooed. “I’m sorry.” “Yeah, yeah.” Button waved her off and closed his own laptop. “I guess I can forgive you.” He winked at her. Luna smiled. She stretched in her chair and sighed. The smell of fresh coffee filled her nose as she looked around the quiet coffee shoppe. Uncommon Grounds, as it was called, had a pleasant, relaxing atmosphere. Soft sunlight barely filtered through brown blinds over the windows which allowed the room to be illuminated mainly by dim golden lamps hanging from the ceiling. The hardwood floor featured an intricate triangular design, and the barstools and tables were all made of the same polished dark red wood. A single barista stood behind the counter and talked quietly to another customer. “I really like this place,” Button commented. “Yeah, me too. I haven’t been here in a long time, but the free high-speed WiFi is quite convenient.” Luna took a sip of her hot tea. “Ah, it’s good to have a chance to relax.” Button nodded. “Yep. It’s been a fun couple of days already. And we’ve got a good week and a half left, ya know!” “Oh, yes. Lots of time.” She grinned at him before glancing over at the clock. “Oh, my! Is that the time?” “Hmm?” Button followed her gaze and whistled. “Wow. Time does fly when you’re having fun.” Luna jumped up and looked toward the door. “I need to go… it’s almost sunset…” “I thought you didn’t have to work until late evening?” Button asked. “I… I need to do a few things before my shift. I’m sorry.” She glanced down at the floor. Button shrugged and gave a lopsided smile. “Ah, it’s fine. I’ve hogged you for most of the day. You gotta do what you gotta do!” “Thanks for understanding, Button.” “Hey, there’s nothing to understand!” He stood up and inhaled deeply. “Although, if you really do feel bad about it, we could meet up again tomorrow?” “Uh…” Luna thought for a moment. “I actually have to work all day tomorrow. There’s a big event for the griffon visitors, and we have to make preparations all day.” Button’s smile faltered for a second, but it quickly recovered. “Oh. Okay. I guess you could just let me know what time would work for you then?” Luna nodded vigorously. “Oh, I will! Thanks, Button!” Luna took a step toward the door, then froze. She turned around and quickly ran over to Button. She grabbed him and pulled him into a quick hug. She draped a wing over his back as he made a small jump back in surprise. A moment later he returned the hug. After Luna pulled away from him, Button gave her a huge smile. “Well, what was that?” “Thanks for being such a good friend. I haven’t had this much fun in…” Luna cocked her head to the side. “Well, in a very long time.” “Me neither, Starry. Me neither.” Luna looked into his amber eyes, and he locked his gaze with hers. His smile continued, and Luna felt… “Well, I need to go!” Luna said abruptly. “Okay, Starry! See you later!” Button waved to her. Luna quickly turned and trotted out the door. The sun had moved slowly toward the horizon, and Luna knew it was almost time for her to bring the moon up into the sky. “Okay, okay…” She made her way through the bustling street and approached a nearby alleyway. “Go down there, teleport back to the castle, raise the moon, teleport back out of the castle, re-enter as Starry, transform again and go talk to—” “Starry!” Button’s voice cut through the crowd. Luna felt herself gasp. She looked back straining to hear why he had shouted. A shiver of fear ran down her spine. She ran back, pushing ponies out of the way. “Oh, no…” She kept moving, running past pony after pony after p— “Oh, there you are!” Button stood right in front of her. His wide brimmed fedora sat crookedly upon his head, and his saddlebag was stuffed extra full. “You almost forgot this!” He sat down and pulled Luna’s laptop out of his bag. Her headset’s cord was neatly coiled and put away in the case that rested on top of the computer. Luna sighed in relief. “Oh, good. I thought that…” She trailed off. Button raised an eyebrow. “Thought what?” She shook her head. “Nothing.” “You know, this keeps happening! I ask you a question, and it’s always nothing. It’s almost as if you’re hiding something.” Button chuckled. “Anyway, here you go! I won’t keep you any longer.” Luna sputtered. “I.. uh… um…” Button shook his head with a wry smile. “Yeah, yeah. I get it. See ya later, Starry!” With that, Button turned and walked away. Luna stood still on the sidewalk for a moment. “I.. I… Wait, you get what?” She blinked rapidly. “Stallions are rather confusing…” But her eyes followed Button as he walked away, and she felt her heart thump inside her chest. “Very, very odd…” ~~~ Princess Luna carefully walked down the hallway of one of the deepest levels of Canterlot Castle. The unadorned corridors were empty, save for the one or two ponies who remained to work late into the night. Deep red lights illuminated the grey-carpeted floor as well as the many doorways that led into offices, laboratories, and meeting rooms. As Luna walked up to the largest doorway to her right, her eyes glanced over the enormous insignia that decorated the wall above the frame. A simple red circle surrounded the number eleven with two long, flowing wings flaring out from either side of the circle to complete the design. A sign beside the door bore a simple inscription. Section Eleven Luna narrowed her eyes and pushed open the doors. The room inside had very little in common with the rest of the castle. No decorations occupied space in the cavernous room. Instead, rows of blinking computers lined the walls. A massive console with half a dozen screens took up the center of the room, facing a wall covered from floor to ceiling with even more screens. Although the hallway outside had been nearly empty, this bustled with ponies, and the rumble of activity filled Luna’s ears. “Her Majesty, the Princess Luna!” a guard at the door declared. Instantly, as if controlled by a united thought, all of the ponies in the room ceased talking and snapped to attention. All eyes faced toward the alicorn. Luna gazed upon their faces. She could see determination, exhaustion, zeal, and countless other emotions in their eyes; their posture. These were Equestria’s finest. The best that the Royal Guard, the Night Guard, the Royal Navy, and any other institution could offer. These were the operatives of Section Eleven. Equestria’s spies. “At ease, everypony.” Luna nodded to them all. “Will somepony please direct me to First Secretary Blueblood? I wish to speak with him.” “Right this way, your Highness.” One of the guards, a stallion in a well tailored suit, snapped to attention before leading the way through the crowd of agents and analysts. He whispered something into his coms as Luna followed him. On the other side of the room, the two ponies came to an unassuming doorway. The guard opened the door and nodded to her. She couldn’t see past his sunglasses, but Luna thought that she felt his eyes follow her as she walked into the room. Contrasting the highly technological main room, Blueblood’s office was quite simple. A solid wooden desk sat in front of a roaring fireplace. Warm light from the fire and the several lamps in the room lit up multiple bookshelves filled with classic literature. The room also contained two chairs as well as a small round table. Upon the table sat a bottle of scotch, three glasses, and a chessboard that appeared to be in the middle of a game. “Ah, Princess, it is good to see you,” Blueblood said from the seat behind his desk. The stallion wore a resplendent white and gold uniform that reminded Luna that he still held his rank of Captain in the Royal Navy. Of course, his position in the Equestrian government far outstripped his military ranking, but he still held to his roots as an officer. Blueblood also held one other rank, a position that only a select few within Equestria realized. He was also the head of Section Eleven, and his underlings knew him by his rank of Director. “Thank you for seeing me on such short notice, Blueblood.” Luna nodded curtly to her host. “It is my pleasure, Princess.” Blueblood stood up and gestured to one of the chairs beside his table. “Please, sit.” The two ponies walked to the comfortable armchairs and sat down. Blueblood poured a small amount of his scotch into one of the glasses. He looked at Luna and raised an eyebrow. “Would you like some, Highness?” Luna shook her head. “No, but thank you.” “Very well.” Blueblood sipped lightly and then sighed. “Very nice. However, you probably didn’t come all the way down here and past all the security checkpoints just for a social visit.” His eyes twinkled. “What do you need from me, Princess?” Levitating a picture out of her saddlebag, Luna took a deep breath. “Do you recognize this building, Blueblood?” The stallion studied the image for a moment before nodding. “Yes. That is The Citadel. It is a wonderful hotel.” “Indeed.” Luna narrowed her eyes. “I have received a report from a very trusted source that there are changelings here.” Blueblood slowly set his glass down. His brow furrowed. “Changelings, you say?” “Yes.” “Hmm…” Blueblood stroked his chin with a hoof. “This is very interesting timing. You understand why?” “Of course,” Luna replied. “That is why I came to you immediately.” “Thank you. I have a few questions.” The stallion’s voice was very quiet, but the soundproofed room carried the soft syllables and Luna could hear him perfectly. “I assumed you would. I will try to answer them.” “First, how did this information come to you? I thought that all Night Guard intelligence came through my hub first?” Blueblood said. “Do you have other sources that I don’t know about?” “I… I can’t actually tell you where this came from.” Luna averted her gaze. “Princess…” Blueblood sighed in exasperation. “I really need to know the source. I’m in the middle of one of the greatest intelligence crises of my tenure as head of Section Eleven. My operatives are working around the clock to attempt to sift through Chaput’s lies to find what actually remains as truth. Add that on top of the issues my agents are having in Griffonia and the presence of spies within the castle itself, and I do not have many agents to spare.” He looked directly at her. “To be honest, I cannot send anypony on a wild goose chase. I need to confirm all leads before dedicating resources.” Luna clenched her jaw and took a deep breath. She met his gaze before speaking. “Blueblood. Do you remember the talk we had about, oh, sixteen years ago?” “I… I believe that we had many conversations that year, Princess. You may need to be more specific.” Blueblood leaned foreward. “I refer to the talk that we had the day after you returned from your first day at officer candidate school. The day that you ran away and came back to the castle,” Luna said softly. Blueblood moved backward quickly. “Actually, I do recall that conversation.” “Do you remember what I said to you, when I found you crying in the garden?” “I do,” the stallion replied softly. “Allow me to remind you anyways.” Her voice hardened. “I said that I thought you were a coward. I told you of your lineage. We spoke of the Bluebloods of old, Celestia’s captains of the guard. I told you stories of their heroics and their exploits. I spun a tale of warriors of heroes, wizards and generals. You heard of their strengths and their sacrifices. For over an hour, I told you story after story that the ponies of Equestria had long since forgotten.” Blueblood sat shock still and listened. She smiled. “You sat exactly like that, you know. You said no words. Nothing condescending, nothing arrogant. Instead, for what I think was the first time in your life, you listened to me. And I think something stirred within you. You remembered what your cutie mark meant, even though you had forgotten after such a long time at court.” She raised an eyebrow. “When I asked you what your destiny was, what really put a fire into your heart, what did you tell me?” “I said,” Blueblood began, “that my cutie mark, my destiny, was adventure. A compass to lead the way for an army.” “Exactly. And then I told you that a fat and lazy general would be killed and eaten alive.” Luna shook her head. “I told you that nopony follows a coward. And then I said that your behavior painted you as the greatest coward I had ever met in my rather long life.” “That you did,” Blueblood whispered. “But I did not stop there. No, I told you one last story. I assume you remember the name I told you?” “Bluebelle.” Blueblood adjusted his collar. “Yes. Bluebelle. The ‘Lady of Canterlot,’ as she loved to refer to herself. She was a coward too. She stayed at court her entire life. But then, one day, Equestria went to war.” Luna frowned. “Celestia and I had only ruled the nation for a short time, and peace was a fragile thing. A splinter group of zebras thought that they could take our land from us. They swept over our territory like a pestilence. Our cities fell, and it was all that my sister and I could do to hold the major locations and protect our ponies. The guard tried, but they were still new. And Bluebelle…” “She stayed and hid in the castle,” Blueblood muttered. “She did, until I had a chat with her one day.” The princess grinned. “You see, she had the same cutie mark as you. It is odd, but it happens. I asked her what her destiny was, and she had no idea. So I told her.” Luna chuckled. “I conscripted her into the guard. She was a duelist, an ancient tradition among the nobility. So, I put her to work training unicorns to fight with the blade. She hated me for it.” Blueblood nodded. “But she did it anyways.” “And she rose to the occasion beyond my expectations. In fact, she singlehoofedly won a pivotal battle in the war when zebras attacked our training camp. Alone, she fought off zebra after zebra. For hours, she stood. When I finally arrived and the dust settled, only one pony stood among a pile of corpses. Her blade was stained red, and her wounds were terrible. She nearly died, but Celestia was able to keep her alive through the worst of her recovery.” Luna rose up to her hooves. “After she returned to duty, the war was over, and she was a hero to the ponies of Equestria. Celestia and I were so proud of her that we took her in as our own.” She looked down at Blueblood. “I adopted her as my own child. She became Princess Bluebelle, and her line was forever connected to my own.” Blueblood nodded slowly. “That evening, you asked me why I was telling you this story. I told you that there is nopony beyond redemption. Heroism is not something that one is born with. It is a choice, a decision that determines if your life controls you or if you control your life.” He looked down at his side. “And then, I called you grandson and gave you that sword that you are wearing right now. Her sword.” Blueblood followed her gaze and stared at the ancient gold and red sword at his side. “I told you that I had trusted her, so long ago. Then I said that I was going to trust you. Not because of anything you had done. No, you had just run away from the Navy. I was going to trust you because I was willing to take a risk for you, because I saw good inside of you. I was not wrong.” Luna smiled. “You went back to the school the next day. Sure, you were punished, but when we Princesses had ordered your return, they took you back. And now, look where you are. Blueblood, I have rarely trusted so much to somepony and had it so greatly rewarded. You have become like a child to me, a child not in blood, but in spirit. A spirit of honor and sacrifice. I am proud to call you ‘Prince.’” He raised his head and smiled at her. “Thank you… Luna.” “But now, Blue, I need you to trust me as I trusted you. Can you do that for me?” Blueblood closed his eyes and sighed. His magic surrounded his sword, and he levitated it in front of him. He took a moment to look at the blade, lost in thought. Finally, he grunted and nodded. “I always trust you, Princess. This time, I will take a risk for you, as you did for me.” “Excellent,” Luna said and smiled. “I do have several other questions, however,” Blueblood said as he returned his sword. “What do you know about the changelings?” She returned to her seat. “I know that there are at least two of them. My… contact saw two of them meeting in the hotel. They apparently exchanged a briefcase, traded clothes, and took each other’s identities. He said it was as if they were changing shifts.” Blueblood grunted again. “That is not a good sign. It sounds like an organized mission. We’re probably dealing with an entire hive. Individual Changelings are sometimes present in Equestria, but a team, with shifts at a prominent location in Canterlot during one of the biggest international events of the year? That’s not a small group. It must be a hive…” “My conclusion as well,” Luna muttered. “The police had been informed, but my contact reports that they are not attempting to do anything.” Blueblood nodded. “Good. They aren’t trained for something that could potentially be this delicate. I need my own agents on this… The police would just get in the way.” “Very well,” Luna replied. “Hmmm…” Blueblood stroked his chin once more. “Well, Princess. You’ve caught me at a rather awkward moment. The majority of my operatives are currently working to prepare for tomorrow’s gala for our visitors. And by prepare, I mean that they have already identified at least a dozen potential threats among the invited guests.” He shook his head. “My best field agents are on assignments elsewhere in griffon territory…” “You must have somepony, though,” Luna commented. “Let me see…” Blueblood stood up and strode over to his desk. He tapped on his keyboard and gazed at his screen. He nodded and pressed a button on his intercom. “Ensign Drizzle, are you there?” The voice of a cheerful mare answered him. “Yes, Director?” “Would you please send Captain Flair and Special Agent Breeze in here, please? They are finishing up their report, are they not?” “Yes, they’re in here working, sir. I’ll have them report to you immediately.” “Thank you, Drizzle.” Blueblood smiled. “Princess, I think I have just the agents for this situation.” “Oh?” Luna asked. “Excellent.” A crisp double knock at the door sounded through the room. Blueblood pressed a button on his intercom, and he spoke into his microphone. “Enter.” Two mares briskly walked into the room. The first was a unicorn mare with a light blue coat, a purple mane pulled back into a ponytail, thick rimmed glasses, and a neat suit. She walked over to the desk and snapped to attention. The other mare did the same. This one was a yellow pegasus with an intricately arranged red and pink mane. She wore a simple blue uniform that Luna knew meant that she was a member of the air branch of the Royal Guard. “Sir, Special Agent Breeze and Captain Flair reporting as ordered!” the first mare said. Blueblood nodded. “At ease. Please introduce yourself to our guest. And spare the formalities. We’re all overworked here, and we need to get this done quickly.” The unicorn turned to face Luna and gasped. “Your Highness! I… uh…” The pegasus smirked. “Aww, come on, Ammy. Princess, I’m Captain Ember Flair, Royal Guard Special Tactics Combat Controller. I’m on temporary assignment to Sec Eleven.” She nodded at the other mare. “This is Special Agent Amethyst Breeze. Not the most outgoing type. She worked for the Equestrian Bureau of Investigation for a while, but she’s here for now. She’s my handler.” “We don’t have handlers here, Ember,” Agent Breeze said with a slightly annoyed tone. “I’m your partner. I just happen to be an analyst.” “Yeah, yeah. Same thing.” Captain Flair grinned. Blueblood cleared his throat. “Ladies. I called you in here for a very special operation. Have you two finished your work on the griffon activity in downtown Canterlot?” “Not yet, sir,” Agent Breeze replied. “We’re almost finished with the data. We probably have a few hours of work left.” She cocked her head sideways. “Did you need the report now? It isn’t looking like anything too serious. We think it was just some of t—” “No, no,” Blueblood interrupted. “This is about something different. I have another assignment for you two.” “Oh, good. I’m getting tired of paperwork,” Captain Flair said with a smirk. “What do you need, sir?” “Actually, this one is coming down from Princess Luna herself. Your Highness, would you like to brief them, or should I?” Blueblood asked. Luna shook her head. “That’s fine. I’ll do it.” She cleared her throat and stood up. “Captain Flair, Agent Breeze. We have a situation here in Canterlot. I have been informed by one of my contacts that we have changelings in the city. They are known to be active at the Citadel Hotel in uptown Canterlot. After discussing the situation with Director Blueblood, we have both come to the conclusion that there is the possibility of an active hive. The timing cannot be a coincidence. I need this investigated, as soon as possible. That is where you come in.” “Changelings?” Captain Flair asked. “Horsefeathers. That could mean an invasion, couldn’t it?” “Yes,” Blueblood said. “That is why I need you both for this mission. I need two agents to investigate the validity of these claims and then take appropriate action.” He gave Agent Breeze the photograph. Agent Breeze glanced over the picture and nodded. “I know the place. Where did this information come from? Do we have any indication of its accuracy?” Blueblood sighed. “The princess vouches for the informant’s reliability. However, she has declined to give us any information about the source.” “Well, if the princess says it’s good, I believe her.” Captain Flair nodded. “Do you want us to go now?” “No,” Blueblood replied. “You two have been here all day. I want you to finish your current assignment and get some sleep. We’ll have you go in the morning. I’ll gather all the information that I can and then brief you personally. I’ll assign you an analyst and have you go to the hotel.” “Uh, sir?” Agent Breeze asked quietly. “I must have heard wrong. Don’t you mean that you’ll assign another field agent and I’ll work with them from here?” Blueblood shook his head. “No. I need you out in the field, Agent.” The unicorn mare pushed her glasses further back on her face. “But, sir! I’ve never done a field assignment with Eleven before. I don’t know if—” “Agent, you have an exemplary record from the EBI. You’ve cracked cases that stumped more experienced investigators. I know that you don’t go into the field much, but that has to change.” Blueblood’s eyes narrowed. “Captain Flair here is one of my only field agents who is not on a long term assignment or engaged in critical work here at the palace. I can’t send her in alone. You’ve had the training. Now it’s time to bring it into the real world.” “I…” Agent Breeze’s voice faltered. She blushed and snapped to attention. “Sir, yes sir.” “Ah, Ammy with me out in the sunlight! This is gonna be great!” Captain Flair said with a chuckle. “Don’t worry. If the bugs start shooting, I’ll protect you. You won’t get shot. Well, not too much.” She smirked. “Oh, ha ha.” Agent Breeze deadpanned. “Thanks a lot.” “Thank you both,” Princess Luna said quietly. “I know this isn’t the most glamorous job, and you’re both working rather stressful hours. But you are performing an invaluable service to Equestria. Your actions tomorrow could prevent another war.” “So, no pressure, right?” Captain Flair muttered. “Shh…” Agent Breeze nudged her. “Okay. We won’t take up any more of your time,” Blueblood said. “Finish up your work and get some sleep. I’ll have as much information as I can for you tomorrow morning.” “Yes, sir!” The mares snapped to attention. Blueblood nodded to them. They relaxed and walked toward the door. “It’s an honor, Princess,” Agent Breeze said to Luna. “We won’t let you down.” “I know you won’t, Agent. Captain.” She gave a small nod to both of them. After the mares had left, Luna turned to Blueblood. “Well, they are certainly… interesting.” Blueblood shrugged. “We’re an eclectic bunch. Captain Flair has a mouth on her, and she’s a bit too concerned about appearances, at least when she’s not on duty. However, she’s also one of the best Combat Controllers that the Guard has trained in a few years. Are you familiar with that particular job?” Luna shook her head. “No, I’m not.” “Controllers go into hostile territory with the first recon teams. They get the lay of the area and radio information back to the main force. They coordinate airstrikes, infiltration, report on troop movement… all from right amidst the enemy.” Blueblood pursed his lips. “It’s not a safe job. There is a very high mortality rate. Flair has been deployed in several counter-terrorist campaigns, and she’s made it out unscathed. She’s got a talent for sweet talking her way out of trouble. That’s made her very useful so far.” “Okay, I can understand that. But what about the analyst? Is she really field agent material?” Luna asked. “Breeze is… a unique case. She was in training in the EBI when she solved her first case, which was a string of unsolved murders from fifteen years before she’d even been born. The irony was that the case was used in classes at the academy to prove that some cases couldn’t be solved. And then she figured out exactly what had happened by putting together two pieces of information that had eluded all the ponies who had studied the case before her. We pegged her as a potential analyst right then. She’d barely made it out of being a probationary agent before we had her transferred. Her talent with data is uncanny.” Blueblood smirked. “She doesn’t do as well with ponies though. But that’s why I put her with Flair. They balance out. I can’t think of a better team to work on your assignment.” Luna considered this for a moment. “Very well. I have faith in your judgement.” “Thank you, Princess.” Blueblood smiled to her. “Now then…” He stood up and sat back down at the chair beside the table. “How about that drink now? And you can tell me more about these changelings, or we can talk about more pleasant things.” “Actually, that sounds like a wonderful idea,” Luna replied. “And I think the changelings can wait for a little while…” She grinned. “You pour, and I’ll tell you an entertaining story about Bluebelle that may amuse.” “Ah, excellent!” Blueblood raised the scotch and poured more into both cups. “So, what’s the story?” Luna’s grin widened. “Well, it all started during the fourth Hearth’s Warming Eve after the war…”