“Intel suggests the known terrorist group, the Great Gryphon Constitution, is plotting an attack within the coming week in any one of these cities, but Baltimare seems the most likely candidate despite such close proximity to two major bases.”
Six pairs of eyes fixated on me throughout the briefing. Much of the group gathered scribbled down notes while Princess Celestia listened in silence, only to be broken by one of her cabinet members in query. “If this information was discovered on behalf of Lieutenant Snow Storm, why is he not here this evening?”
I grunted at that. Of course I had to anticipate such a question. “Due to other pressing matters, he was unable to make the journey and instead asked me the favor of delivering this to the table for him. Under the current circumstances, it is not hard to understand why.”
The suited stallion gave a questionable look at my answer, but went no further to pry.
The princess of the sun, however, spoke for the first time since this gathering began. “And this… Constitution… it is believed they are the culprit of last week’s boarding of the Eclipse?”
I nodded once firmly. “Yes, Princess, that is correct. If any consolation is needed on the matter, just know I was there, first-hoof. These are not your average pirates that raid trading vessels for valuable goods, these are highly trained individuals with coordinated plans to wreak havoc on our country. They are absolutely nothing to joke with.”
“Hmmm…” Celestia thought, her attention shifting between me and the paperwork spread out over the table for all eyes to gawk over. After a few moments, she rose from her chair, her multicolored mane elegantly waving in a nonexistent draft. “On my sister’s return from her trip to Hoofston, we shall discuss this and what our next move should be.”
Her eyes settled on me, a warm smile pursing her lips. “Thank you, Private First Class Star Shooter, for bringing us up to speed on this situation. Do share these thanks to the lieutenant as well, both of your service to country is greatly appreciated.”
My cheeks warmed. Who else can say they have been personally complimented on their efforts by Celestia herself? Not many, that’s for damn sure.
“As for us, we will continue to look into this information until anything new arrives, and if there are any questions… do not hesitate to voice them. Otherwise, I hereby dismiss this meeting.”
Once more, the princess’ focus returned my way. “I will see to it that a guard shows you the way out without a hitch,” she winked. Ha ha, she’s got jokes, too.
***
I followed an earth pony dressed in finely-polished golden armor where he led me to one of the many ways out of the palace. I thanked him and trotted outside, the bitter cold catching me completely off-guard. Why for the love of Celestia did I have to live all the way across town? The walk home was rather lengthy and cautious. I wanted so desperately to run the whole way, but knew the ice glazing the ground would prohibit that.
It wasn't until I was just outside of my apartment when I realized how long I was at the palace. I still had a bit of time before Rose expected me upstairs, leaving me with plenty of space to change into something far more cozy than what I had on at the moment.
Once again having my keys out, I unlocked the door and stepped into the toasty living room, seconds later feeling as if ice that had built up during the walk was melting from my hinds and rear. I let out a comforted sigh and removed my beanie, hair slightly messier from doing so. I picked my bag up off of the couch that I set down there earlier and went back into my bedroom.
There, I unbuttoned my jacket completely and laid it gently on the bed, then reached into my bag to grab out a lighter yet warm and more comfortable hooded zip-up jacket, sliding my hooves through the sleeves and adjusting it so it was on comfortably, then pulled the zipper all of the way up. "Much better..." I said to myself and repacked my other jacket.
I walked steadily into the living room and took a seat on the couch. The room was considerably cooler than my bedroom and was just another reason to wear the jacket inside. Over the years of living in Canterlot, I was never sure that it was an issue with the heating system in the building, or it wasn't decent at all. It was only November and even for a city built on the side of a mountain high above the land below, the temperature was exceptionally frigid. That included Manehattan too. It was really just a glimpse of what was to come in December and eventually January.
Soon enough, the sun had vanished beneath the distant horizon, and what little light was left over slowly faded, and to the east, the twinkling stars came to life, and yet it was only just past six-thirty. I sauntered out through the door of my apartment and locked it behind me, then made my way cautiously up the half-frozen metal staircase that led straight to Rose's apartment, her unit being the only one aside from mine, and the shop that sat on the first floor.
Stopping inches from her door, I raised a hoof and knocked gently twice, followed by a short wait for the mare to open the door. Either she was still getting ready, or Rose wasn't home and was on her way back from somewhere. But yet, there was one window far to the left of the door, the light on and shining a ray of tiled light onto the building opposite of this one. It was unusual for ponies to leave their lights on when going somewhere. At least, for me it was. It could have been because when I leave, I typically don't return for a few weeks.
My ears perked as I left the thought of what was taking so long and snapped back into reality the moment the click of the door unlocking caught my attention. It swung open, and standing there with a completely gleeful smile was Rose in a little cook's apron that had a very small splatter of pasta sauce on it. All I could do was grin, followed by a quick chuckle.
"Whaaaat? Don't like my apron? Too bad! I don't like to get messy," Rose playfully pouted and pulled me inside. "You get in here and get out of the cold."
I chuckled some more, stepping into the noticeably warmer apartment. "I never said I didn't like it, I've just never seen you in one. Or anypony for that matter," I said as I shut the door and looked around. "This is a very nice place you got here," I then smiled to her.
"Ah, thank you! Although I admit, before you came over, it was quite messy. I spent most of the day picking up and running errands," Rose smiled back and gently poked my chest with a hoof before returning to the small kitchen area.
"What, from takeout boxes?" I joked. "Only kidding. Still, very nice. Mine isn't nearly as decorated as yours."
"That's what I've been saying! You really should get some pictures or... or some plants to give your apartment some modern taste! Not that anything is wrong with what you have of course," Rose giggled. "You just need to get some decorations."
"I'll consider it," I then took a seat on the couch. "When I get the bits that is. A lot of it has been going towards traveling back and forth from Manehattan. At this rate I may as well ask to ride in the baggage car to save some money."
Rose giggled some more. "No kidding. Taking the train is so expensive these days! Especially between where you work and home."
"I know," I exhaled deeply as I spoke. "Makes me consider moving to Manehattan, or somewhere in that area where I can take a carriage or something."
The moment I finished speaking, there was a loud crash of glass shattering, making my ears perk up more than before. I sat up and peered at Rose from the couch, seeing her staring with surprise down at a wine glass that shattered at her hooves. She quickly turned and eyed me for a brief second, then grabbed a dust pan and cleaned up the glass shards carefully.
I stood up while she cleaned the glass up and stepped closer. "Need some help?"
"N-no, it's alright. I got it," she said with a noticeably different tone in her voice as she dumped the broken glass into a trash bin. Her tone was quite familiar, seeing as the times I've met her, she had been either happy or worried, and now she sounded like the latter. I stood just behind her, watching her as she finished and turned back towards me, jumping when she didn't expect me to be right there. "W-what?"
"Are you alright...?" I asked in concern, eyeing her softly.
"Of course, of course," Rose faintly smiled with a hint of lie in her tone. "Dinner is almost ready. Have a seat and we'll eat."
I looked at her suspiciously while she returned her focus to the steaming metal pot on the stove, stirring the pasta in the boiling water with a wooden spoon. I took a seat on a stool at the small island that sat at the edge of the kitchen, separating it from the living room. I kept watching her as my suspicion changed to worry. It must have been what I said about moving away.
"Y-you know," I stuttered a bit at the start. "I... was joking about moving to Manehattan," I continued and paused, Rose not responding as she kept stirring the pot. "I couldn't afford a place in Manehattan even if it were the size of a janitor closet. That, and I like Canterlot too much," I weakly chuckled in hopes of lightening the mood. Instead, Rose kept stirring.
"Come on, Rose. I didn't mean it," I frowned, ears drooping. "I'm sorry."
Rose's hoof left the spoon, letting it sit against the edge of the pot as she stopped stirring and turned down the heat setting knob on the stove. With a quick sniff, she turned and smiled at me, this time much more convincing. "But that's up to you to move, Star. If it helps you out financially, then go for it."
"It really doesn't though. Like I said, Manehattan apartments aren't cheap. I was lucky enough to find this place here in Canterlot. I'd have to be a leprecolt from the end of a rainbow to find an affordable place out there."
"But, aren't you sick of sleeping on a cot? Or... you know, what ever beds are used in barracks?" Rose tilted her head.
I shook my head. "The sergeant had us move to dorm-like barracks to make room for new trainees. Much nicer beds, but the place is uncomfortably small, especially when living with somepony else."
"Oh, a roommate? You never did tell me about the ponies you've met," Rose smiled.
I chuckled softly. "There's a lot I haven't told you about, silly mare. Perhaps tonight would be a good night to talk some more."
"Yes, definitely," Rose smiled, the tone of her voice sounding extremely curious, but also slightly sinister. Something was off. Maybe it was just me. "Ready to eat?"
"Definitely," I smiled back, a few moments later, Rose slid a slightly steaming plate of fresh pasta covered in a dark red tomato sauce that only added to the amazing appearance and smell of the dish. "Thank you for having me over, by the way," I picked up a fork that was already left neatly on the counter as Rose walked around with a plate of her own.
"No problem!" Rose smiled big and set her plate down on the counter. "What can I get you to drink? Some wine? Water? Milk?"
"Water is fine," I motioned a hoof gently and twisted my fork through the pasta, roping it around it politely and taking a bite. Not only did the dish look and smell magnificent, but so did it taste. "Mmm..."
Rose giggled softly and brought a glass of water to me, then poured herself a glass of purplish-red wine and took a seat on the stool beside me. "The sauce is a bit of a personal recipe. I was afraid I would screw it up since I've never made it before."
Once I swallowed the bite I took, I turned to her and smiled. "It's amazing. Some of the best sauce I've tasted."
Rose's cheeks heated in a blush. "Oh, hush you! You should taste how my grandmother made it. It beats mine by a mile."
"I'll believe it when I taste it," I winked, then returned to eating. Rose giggled and soon began to eat as well.
***
After dinner, there was a short argument between me and Rose as to who would wash the dishes—with me, eventually, coming out to be the winner. Cleaning up was the least I could do for her in return. As soon as the dishes were washed and put away, I joined her on the couch where we spent much of the evening exchanging stories. We were both intrigued with each others tales, though eventually it just turned into me being the one talking as Rose didn't care much for talking and wanted to listen in more.
"So then, I ask Nightpath... What's wrong with you?" I grinned as I explained. "Want to know what he said?"
"Yes, yes!" Rose's eyes twinkled with a big grin.
I snickered. "He said he dropped a bar of soap!"
Rose's smile faded, her eyes darting briefly as if she didn't understand. My grin disappeared as well. "You know... drop a bar of soap in the shower, get fucked?"
She stared at me for seemingly a full minute before it noticeably clicked in her head, when her ears perked and eyes widened. "Oh!" then burst out into a fit of laughter. "I am so sorry I didn't get that!"
I chuckled softly and waved a hoof. "That's alright. I don't expect everypony else to," I winked.
Wiping a tear from the corner of her eye, Rose finished laughing and simply smiled at me, her chin in her hooves like a foal daydreaming, except she was looking right at me. "You truly are a riot, Star."
"You think so?" I smiled warmly. On a normal basis, I found it to be difficult to be funny. It could have been the lack of proper sleep in recent days finally catching up too of course, hell if I knew. I already realized about a week ago that I'm beginning to go insane just from that. At least somepony seemed to laugh with me.
"Of course!" She grinned, poking my nose with a hoof, then sat up straight in her seat. Rose stared forward, her smile once again fading, this time seemingly for another reason. I furrowed a brow and kept my eyes locked on her for a full minute.
"Hey, is everything alright?" I asked with concern.
"Hmm?" Rose's head snapped towards me out of what ever trance she was in. "Oh, pfft, yeah! Just thinking is all."
"Thinking of...?" I tilted my head. Once again her smile vanished.
Rose sighed gently. "I'm... afraid I can't tell you that."
My head still tilted, I slowly nodded. "Al...right. What would you like to talk about now?"
"The letter," she replied almost instantly.
"The what?"
Her eyes opened wide and she shook her head. "O-oh, I mean. I dunno."
"No, don't correct yourself. What did you say?" My suspicion for the mare grew incrementally.
Rose's eyes slowly narrowed on me. "Follow me," then stood up off of the couch and made her way to the bedroom.
I watched her stand and soon followed suit, walking at a steady pace into her bedroom. The room had inward-slanted walls on two sides due to the design of the roof of the building, and white rays of moonlight spilled through one side, leaving squares of light on her bed and the floor. The room's light flicked on, providing a full glimpse of the room around me. Though her apartment was slightly smaller than mine, she had a much larger bedroom.
The door shut rather quickly just inches behind me. I whipped around, immediately seeing Rose locking the door handle with a key and setting it on the dresser. At that, I could feel my heartbeat slowly increasing. "Rose, what's going on?"
"Sit down. Or lay down. Whichever you prefer," she pointed to the bed with a deadpanned tone.
Looking between her and the bed, I nodded and slowly sat on the edge. I glanced up, just one second before she tackled me onto the bed with a grunt. For a mare slightly smaller than me, she was pretty strong. "Rose?!"
Her hoof covered my mouth. "Ssshhh..." My pupils shrunk to pinpricks while she hushed me up. She leaned her muzzle down, just an inch from my own. "There's a lot you don't know about me, Star. I would prefer if we keep it that way."
I raised a hoof to remove hers from covering my mouth. "No, you're going to explain everything to me right now! What the hell are you doing?"
Sighing, Rose reached over to the nightstand beside her bed and picked up a small cloth. "I apologize in advance, but you leave me no choice."
She pressed the cloth to my muzzle and held me down while I squirmed. I let out a short scream, completely muffled by the cloth. Within seconds I felt myself becoming more and more drowsy until everything went dark.
***
What felt like an eternity later, my eyes cracked open, vision impaired from the chloroform cloth putting me to sleep. I groaned quietly and tried to look around. Everything was black, which then made me briefly panic, believing I was now blind. That was until a cloth tied around the back of my head was pulled up, with Rose sitting right above me, blinking slowly down at me. My vision cleared, and I glared straight up at her.
"Rose, what the hell was that for?" I tried to sit up but found it hard to. I kept attempting to move before realizing my hooves were bound behind my back. I grunted, struggling to break the bindings, only to be stopped by Rose slapping my cheek.
"Quit struggling already, you're not going anywhere. At least, not right now," Rose hissed, and I stopped. She eased herself and sat up. "And I'm not going to hurt you, so rest assured."
"Hard to believe when you knocked me out with chloroform and tied me up," I kept my gaze locked on her. "What's this all about?"
"I was hoping this wouldn't be a problem tonight, but you've caught me," she hopped off of the bed. "I know about the letter, Star."
"Letter? What letter?" At the moment I had no idea what she was talking about.
"The one you brought from Manehattan. The one you gave to the princess," Rose turned and glanced at me.
"So you're telling me you have been stalking me? I knew you were a crazy mare but I didn't know you were this crazy."
"Will you just listen!?" She snapped and I went quiet instantly. "I know you won't like it, but I also know you want the truth. And the truth is, Star," she stopped and walked back over to me, sitting me upright on the back board of her bed, against the wall. "I've been watching you since day one. Well, maybe not day one. Since the day you told me about your father's military career, but you know what I mean. Would you like to know why?"
"Yes, yes I would!" I growled and glared more at her, blood now boiling with anger.
"Because, everypony I know who has told me about their parents being in the military ended up joining themselves. It's no coincidence. Ponies with family members in the military usually try to follow their hoofsteps. You're no different than them."
"I didn't join to follow my father's hoofsteps. That's not what I wanted to do at all," I said, struggling some more.
"It is, Star. Accept it. Your father was never pleased with what you did. Most hardcore fathers like those who have served usually are extremely expectant of their foals. It's a sad reality, honestly. But I've seen this all too much to think it is any different. You want to impress your father, you want him to finally respect you. You want him to love you like he should."
My ears slowly drooped. Maybe she was right. Perhaps the reason I joined was just to make my father happy. He never was when I lived with him and my mother. No, it couldn't have been. I joined because I wanted to do something productive and special, I don't care what my father thinks anymore. He's not a part of my life. Apparently I had said the last bit out loud, I looked up at Rose, my ears flattened out.
"Star, I'm trying to protect you," she said.
"Protect me from what?" I did my best to appear less heartbroken and more angry.
"From life. From the reality of the world. You're a wonderful stallion, but you're living a dangerous life. You already know I know everything about you. What's to stop you from believing I don't keep in touch with those who know about where you've been and what's been going on?" She sat on the bottom of the bed. "Star, I work for a secret organization that deals with international threats, but recently I've been assigned by one of my colleagues to look after you, even if I have to keep you tied to this bed to do so."
"So you're a spy. Is that what you're trying to tell me?"
"In a way, yes. Please just listen—"
"I'll listen, but only if you promise to let me go when you're finished explaining," I spoke in a rather dark tone, flashing my eyes towards her and hopefully giving her the idea.
She slowly nodded. "Even though it's against what I'm supposed to be doing, I will."
"Then continue," I eased myself slightly.
Sighing, Rose did so. "I know about everything that happened. I know about the Constitution. I know about what happened to the Eclipse. The attack, the sailors killed, everything. I know what's going on. And I've said it before and I'll say it again, I would be devastated if something happened to you. Something could have happened to you. That's partially why I'm doing this. I'm doing this for you."
"Then do something else for me and untie me."
"I... but, Star."
"No buts, untie me!"
Rose sighed after a few moments of a pause, she grabbed a small knife off of the nightstand and turned me over, cutting the plastic zip ties holding my hooves together, freeing them. When she turned me back over, she was met with a hard slap that forced the knife out of her hoof. She slowly turned her head back with tears building in her eyes and rubbed her cheek with a hoof. "O-ow... what was that for?"
"That was for lying to me," I growled, raising my hoof again. "And this..."
Eyes widening, Rose turned her head and waited to be slapped again, eyes shutting as a tear crept down her cheek. Even with how furious I was, I didn't have the heart to hit her again. I was raised to never hit a mare. Now just happened to be the time where I believed it was necessary. I sighed and slowly lowered my hoof, then stood up off of the bed.
Rose opened her eyes and turned to me. "W-where are you going?"
"Home," I grabbed the key and jammed it into the doorknob, unlocking it and walking out, leaving the key in the door. I stopped just outside the door and looked at her. "Manehattan."
The word hit her hard. But it was true. Manehattan was steadily becoming my new home. The tan mare got up off of the bed and followed me out, tears still sitting in her eyes as I walked towards the door.
"S-Star, please. I need to tell you why I'm doing this..." Rose whimpered softly.
"No, Rose, I've had it. First, you tie me up and interrogate me for whatever reason, then you tell me you never actually had feelings for me, after all I've done for you? No way! I'm out," I snapped at the startled mare, then stomping out through the door, slamming it behind me, a couple of thuds from things falling due to the force audible moments afterwards.
Letting out deep breaths, I stopped outside the door, hooves shaking as my head slowly bobbed and my mind tried to calm myself down. Truthfully, there was no calming down. I needed to lie down.
I needed sleep.
***
Just before sunrise the next morning, I boarded the train to Manehattan. I wanted out of Canterlot completely. At least, for a while. Even with the stress of possibly going to war with a large group of rogue ponies and griffons, there was now something else fresh on my mind that was slowly eating away at my mentality. To even think that I trusted Rose hurt even more than it probably should have, but what did I know?
Around noon, I stepped off of the train and took a taxi carriage to the naval station and hastily entered after providing the guard with my identification. It was still considered to be a day off for me, much to my relief. From the main gate, I immediately made my way to the barrack.
Trotting inside, Nightpath was just putting his uniform on when he peeked out of the bathroom at me. "Hey, Star. Where have you been?"
"Canterlot," I replied blankly, eyelids baggy. The night before didn't provide me with much sleep.
"Oh. Everything alright? You look awful."
"Just lacking sleep is all," I replied, trotting back to our beds and throwing my bag on the floor. I didn't bother to take my clothes off and dropped down onto my bed as the brown earth pony watched with a brow raised.
"If you say so. I'll uh... I'll leave you alone then."
I didn't bother replying. I just wanted to sleep. That, of course, wasn't going to happen.
There was a knock on the door just before Nightpath was about to walk out for his shift. He opened the door and saluted. "Oh, lieutenant! Fancy seeing you here."
"Is Star back yet?" Lieutenant Snow Storm asked.
"He just walked in. Why?"
"I'd like to talk to him."
"Tell him to wait!" I said aloud from the bedroom.
"He's really tired. I've never seen him this tired before."
"Star, it's urgent," Snow spoke up.
Grumbling, I sat up slowly. "Let him in, Night."
Night stepped to the side, letting Snow inside. "I'll see you later, Star," then walked out.
"Alright, see you," I rubbed my eye and looked at Snow. "What's up?"
Sitting down on Night's bed, Snow looked at me. "I've got some news. About the message we intercepted."
I nodded for him to go on. "Yeah? What is it?"
"The message... it was sent from somewhere in southern Manehattan. They're already here."
My eyes opened completely for the first time that day. "Just like you thought."
The lieutenant nodded. "Who did you speak to in Canterlot?"
"Princess Celestia. By accident, actually," I answered.
"How is that?" Snow tilted his head.
"I got lost in the palace and ended up bumping into her. From there I told her about the message."
Snow nodded. "Well, I was hoping you'd talk to Princess Luna about it, but Celestia is fine. She'll inform her sister and they'll know what to do."