Chapter 2
“Land ho!”
Shining glanced up from studying a map of Port Talon. One of the ship’s crew popped his head into Shining’s office. “We’ll be there in about an hour, Captain Armor.”
Getting up, Shining stretched. The trip had been longer than he would have liked, but at least it was at an end and they could soon get started on finding Hookbeak.
Leaving the office, he passed by the ship’s gym where Rough Ride and Cyrus were busy pumping iron. Other than their love of fitness, the two were almost nothing alike.
Rough was perhaps the bulkiest unicorn Shining had ever seen. He was a very competent squad manager, but was happy with his current position and had no aspirations to higher leadership. Initially he was reluctant to partake in the expedition, concerned about his ailing mother, but she must have convinced him to go. He was now with the team and committed to the job.
Cyrus had joined the Guard soon after the Crystal Empire reappeared. Obviously, his manner was a bit old fashioned and he wasn’t very good with technology. He was very good at weapons handling, although his manner was more like a big teddy bear and he had no qualms about hugging. Despite his size, he was a bit of a picky eater and protested the sailor chow they had been served during the trip.
Walking further, Shining passed through the quarters where Hound Dog, Pikop Andropov, and Ace were lounging.
Hound Dog, called “Puppy” because of his canine cutie mark, was a brown on brown earth pony with a knack for working with animals. He was generally easygoing and playful like his name. Puppy was shooting the breeze with Pikop about their destination.
“Port Talon isn’t a terrible city,” Pikop was saying, “although not my choice for vacation in the Griffon Kingdom.”
Pikop had done a lot of free-spirited traveling before joining the guard, where his excellent sense of direction had come in handy. His cutie mark featured both kinds of compass - the one for finding heading and the one for drawing a circle. His coat was burgundy and his mane was yellow with a single black streak through it.
Ace appeared disinterested in the conversation, turning away to run a hoof through his black and green mane and preen a few green feathers. Shining had observed that he wasn’t an easy pony to get along with, but not a troublemaker. His cutie mark was a martial arts belt, and he had received top marks for unarmed combat.
In the intelligence office, Shining found the staff setting up their equipment. Magnifier , Dim Sun, and Soft Touch were getting prepared to start their jobs immediately upon arriving.
As Mag quietly hung maps and organized paperwork, Dim was arranging a chemistry set that looked a lot like her test tube cutie mark. Shining had heard she joined the Guard after tracking down her mother’s killer. Her work was certainly good enough to have matched evidence to a perpetrator.
Soft had some papers to review, including those on griffon psychological notes. She was well practiced at emotions and empathy. She sometimes seemed disconnected, but was always able to find something in common with others, hence her Venn diagram cutie mark.
Dim and Soft were both grey unicorn mares, although Soft’s mane was white while Dim’s mane was mauve and she wore glasses.
Shining headed up to the deck. There was a nice breeze and he could see the coast drawing closer.
Overhead, Skydancer was instructing Flash Sentry on a few flight intricacies. Shining could hear her barking Manehattan accent, the volume and tone left over from her days as a drill instructor. She’d also been a Wonderbolt, and sometimes Shining wondered what she was doing in the Royal Guard.
The first time Shining had met Flash, the junior Guard made an embarrassment of the organization’s standards by forgetting his uniformity spell right as Shining’s sister, Princess Twilight Sparkle, was visiting. While everypony else was cloaked in a modest white or grey, Flash had drawn attention like a Las Pegasus neon sign with his bright orange coat. At least his shield cutie mark indicated that perhaps he wasn’t totally incompetent. Skydancer had requested that he be brought along for more training. Shining had decided that it was a good idea so he could keep a closer eye on Flash.
Standing on deck, Airborne watched the aerial exercises with a bit of concern on his face. He was a bit concerned about everything, it seemed, but especially health. Airborne read medical journals cover to cover, usually learning about some new disease to keep him up at night. Because of this, however, he was a very fine medic. He even looked a bit like a bandage, being colored khaki with a white mane and white cross cutie mark.
Shining turned to look towards the city again. He could make out individual buildings now, especially a tall lighthouse. Port Talon was built at the mouth of the Talon River. There was sheltered berthing a short distance up the river, and that was where the ship was headed.
A pair of griffons appeared above the skyline, headed in the direction of the ship. Shining watched as they drew closer. One was female and svelte, colored mostly white. The other was grizzled and sturdy, charcoal grey with white feathers around his head.
The young female made to land on the ship, but the other griffon put out a foreleg to stop her. He called, “Request permission to come aboard.”
Shining waved them in. “Come on.”
Both visitors touched down on the deck and the white griffon offered a shake and a smile. “Hello, I am Báistí, representative of the Port Talon city council. If there’s anything I can do to help while you’re staying with us, don’t hesitate to ask.”
Shining finished shaking with her and engaged the other griffon. Up close, he saw that this one wore a badge. The griffon said, “My name is Stormfeather. I’m the Port Talon Police liaison working this case.”
“If you don’t mind me saying, you look like you’ve seen a lot more than just police work,” Shining observed.
Stormfeather looked mildly surprised. “Yes, actually. I was an Admiral of the Griffon Empire airship service before I retired and became a cop. It keeps me busy, even with the drop in rank.”
“Well sir, I’ll call you Admiral if you like. It’s good to meet you.” Shining turned to Báistí. “I wasn’t expecting someone from the city council.”
“I’m not here in an official capacity,” she explained. “I don’t have any duties to perform. Mostly I’d just like to see things go smoothly.”
“I appreciate it.” Shining nodded. “Why don’t the two of you come with me and meet our team?”
He led them on a tour of the spaces aboard the ship, introducing Guards along the way. Shining made sure to highlight the things he thought would impress Stormfeather, but politely answered any questions Báistí had. To make the job easier, it was important not to ruffle any figurative feathers among their hosts.
“Where did you get this ship?” Stormfeather asked. “It looks military.”
“It’s ex-Navy,” Shining replied.
Stormfeather considered it and then shrugged. “I suppose it won’t draw a lot of attention. Surplus vessels are put into service all the time. However, you may want to add a little decoration just to make sure no one gets suspicious.”
Shining nodded. He heard the sailors calling back and forth as the ship entered the river and headed for a berthing. He turned back to the two griffons. “Now that we’re here, do you have any leads for us to begin with?”
“A very good one, actually,” said Stormfeather as the ship docked and tied up. “A few days ago, we located a small utility boat that we believe belongs to Hookbeak’s outfit. You can have a look aboard. It’s moored just down the line from here.”
“Is that it?” Shining asked, a slight touch of annoyance in his voice.
Stormfeather caught the tone and replied in kind. “If you’ll recall, the Griffon Kingdom has no reason to be investigating Hookbeak. This boat is only in police custody because it was found abandoned, not because it’s a crime scene. I didn’t have to mention it at all.”
Shining held up a hoof. “All right, thank you. We’ll look into it.”
He stuck his head into the intelligence spaces. “We’ve got a boat to investigate. Stormfeather here knows more.”
Mag nodded in reply. “I’ll have Dim get on it.”
Stormfeather waited until Dim had packed her forensic kit and went with her down to the boat. Báistí stayed behind, and while Shining waited for results from searching the boat, he engaged her in conversation.
“So what’s Port Talon like?” Shining asked.
“Well, it’s not perfect, but no city is. When I heard we might have pirates hiding among us, I could hardly believe it.” Báistí seemed emphatic. “I’ve lived here all my life. I know the city by heart, as well as many of the residents. I just want to help everyone. It’s a shame that our government doesn’t want to do anything about the pirates.”
“Well, from what I understand, they aren’t causing trouble here.” Shining shrugged. “Maybe your government could get them for money laundering or tax evasion or something?”
“Hmm, I’ll mention that to Stormfeather,” Báistí decided. “He’s the one with the badge; the only one who can actually do something about that. He also told me that he has arrest authority, but you and your team don’t because you’re foreign.”
Shining knew that. The Equestrian Royal Guard had come to Port Talon as guests and had no jurisdiction there. That’s why they needed a liaison like Stormfeather—to actually make the arrests. It was very inconvenient. For example, if the Guard were to conduct a raid on a suspected pirate, Stormfeather had to be there.
Dim came back from investigating the pirate boat a short while later with all the evidence she had gathered. Apparently, it was a small boat. Shining called the team together and Dim gave a presentation on what she had found.
Consulting a small list she had made, Dim began. “The boat had a neat hole drilled in the bottom as if it were supposed to sink. A concerned citizen discovered it half underwater and brought it back to safe harbor. The description of the boat was a possible match to a vessel used in a pirate hijacking, which is why Admiral Stormfeather brought it to our attention.
“Aboard, I found a waterlogged scrap of paper. I’ve got some spells working on restoring the printing on it. There was a broken radio used for two-way communication. Also, there were some Nougat Yummies candy wrappers scattered around. If there was anything else that could be considered evidence, it was either removed before the attempted sinking or too waterlogged for me to use.”
Shining frowned. That was not a lot of evidence to consider. He looked around the room. “Opinions?”
“Based on the fact that someone reported a boat matching that description engaging in piracy, and the fact that the boat was intentionally scuttled, I’d say it’s very likely that it is indeed a pirate boat,” Stormfeather put forward. “Why they decided to sink it remains a mystery, but perhaps because they knew it had been spotted. If that’s the case, I would say it’s likely that nothing left aboard is of any use because they didn’t want anyone to find evidence that could be traced to them.”
“It’s something to keep in mind,” Shining agreed, “but I’ll wait for the evidence to pan out before deciding its value. They may have taken everything they thought was incriminating, but maybe we’ll get lucky. Criminals often don’t get where they are by thinking.
Stormfeather shrugged. He’d given his opinion and didn’t appear to care if Shining took it to heart.
“What can you tell us about the radio?” asked Pikop.
“It was a pretty new one,” Dim replied, “so I don’t think it was broken a long time before the boat was abandoned. I would say that the pirates probably used it for talking to each other.”
“Can we track something like that?” asked Rough.
Dim frowned. “Well, maybe. We know the frequencies that the radio could operate on, but that’s a pretty wide range. If we knew what specific channels they used, we might be able to listen in.”
“The air team could do collections,” Skydancer put in. “We have gear capable of direction finding. A couple of us working together might be able to triangulate a location.”
“Where did the candy come from?” Cyrus asked.
“The wrappers said ‘Silver’s Sweets,’” Dim told him.
“That’s a candy shop in town run by a griffon named Silver,” Báistí said. “I know where it is.”
There was a small ding from a timer Dim had set. She turned around and gently lifted a wrinkled piece of paper. “It looks like I managed to restore the document.”
She squinted at it and adjusted her glasses. “It’s a shipping manifest. Someone named Mr. Thrift received fifty bushels.”
For a moment, the room fell into silence. Ace broke it. “Fifty bushels of what?”
“It doesn’t say.” Dim turned to Báistí. “Do you know anyone named Mr. Thrift?”
“If he has a business, I can look him up in the town registry,” Báistí replied. She quickly left.
The rest of the group continued to talk over the evidence for the next hour. Mag had been keeping notes and summarized it all. “We have clues that point to Silver and someone named Mr. Thrift. Perhaps through interrogating them we could find out more. We also have an indication that the pirates are using radios to communicate. If we learn their channels, we can overhear and possibly find them.”
Just then, Báistí returned. “I found Mr. Thrift. He runs a farm store located on Princess Avian Avenue, between Tenth and Eleventh Streets.”
Mag added the location to his notes and updated the city map. He also penciled in Silver’s Sweets, which Báistí said was on the other side of the city, at the corner of Beaked Boulevard and C Street. Mag paused to consider the overall picture and then turned to Shining. “How would you like to proceed, Captain?”
Shining mulled over the evidence for a moment. “What's your opinion, Mag?”
“I would think it wise to talk to both Silver and Mr. Thrift,” Mag replied. “Soft is our best interrogator, but she can’t be in two places at once. We can either send her to one place today and the other tomorrow, or send her to one place now and get somepony less qualified to conduct a simultaneous interrogation. Of course, if you decide that one griffon or the other isn’t important we could just skip them.”
Shining nodded. “Does anyone else have something to add?”
“I, and the rest of the police, can’t be everywhere at once,” Stormfeather cautioned. “If you decide to arrest someone, call me first. You can’t legally detain anyone until I arrive. Also, I would recommend that you don’t send any of your ponies out alone. No telling how hostile these pirates might be if they figure out who you are.”
Báistí spoke up. “When I was at the courthouse looking up records, the mayor asked me to invite you, Captain, as well as three of your associates to dinner. I think he intended to meet your Lieutenant and two Sergeants. Showing up would be a sign of good faith and may make the mayor more agreeable to providing support.”
“Don’t forget the air and ground teams,” Skydancer added. “I know we can’t do anything targeted until we have more evidence, but surely we can do something. Going around the city and getting familiar, at the very least.”
Shining nodded, taking it all in. Allocating resources to everything simultaneously would be difficult. While they might want to leave somepony at the ship for just-in-case purposes, the sailors should be fine being left alone by themselves. He remembered what Stormfeather had said about perhaps camouflaging the ship.
The weight of leadership bore down on Shining. “All right everypony, here’s what we’re going to do.”
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Well, in order for us to make a decision, what are our choices?
Well going to dinner with the mayor would be a good start any help that we can get could make this go smoother. We should also send out an air team looking at a map and looking at the physical city can be two different things and it is best to get the lay of the land.
3451596
I agree, as Sky says we still don't know much but getting to know the city will certainly help.
I do think sometime in the future Shining will need to talk with Flash.
3451593 As the description says, ya gotta be creative.
3451703Then the answers would go everywhere and people wouldn't be able to agree on ONE answer
3451707 Not true. If enough people say similar things, then that would be the action taken. If people read the comments and decide to simply vote on someone's comment to show support for a plan of action, then it would work in that regard as well. The only way this wouldn't work is if we make it not work.
3451720 People reading EVERY single comment? Aint nobody got time for that!
3451728 Nobody said helping out had ta be easy:P
I'd advocate sending Soft and the griffons at the very least to talk to Thrift. fifty bales seems like a lot so he might be a good witness to lean on. The pegasi should probably go with another griffon to learn the city too since that'll come in handy later. Maybe under the guise of a tour to help prevent extra suspicions.
I'm also curious about the rest of them. Because you could either send them for supplies to camouflage the ship and have them detour to Silver's for a snack or you could leave half of them there to work on the ship and have the other half check out Silver's. I'm hesitant to say they should interrogate him though as it could easily be a red herring. It could be worth checking it out and see if they can convince him to give a tour and if they can't simply buy some candy and maybe test it to see if they can spot anything familiar in them later.
How am I the first person to suggest what to do on here? C'mon guys
One side comment before I list my ideas for the squad - a grid city, like the map shows, is usually the sign of a city that is 1) flat, or 2) new (relatively speaking). I would expect more winding streets and less perfectly square corners, especially along the coast and the river. Perhaps the map is a not-fully-accurate visitor copy, or hoof-drawn?
If they believe that Thrift is involved, then both interrogations need to be done simultaneously. However, an equal reason for the Griffin crown not to go after the pirates is because they are also legitimate merchants while at home. I'm leaning towards dual interrogations, even if it means some clues might not be picked up on, just to avoid having their second target suddenly go travelling to avoid questions.
The air contingent should be able to scout the city by themselves, so long as they stay together, act politely to the locals, and at least get any "don't fly over this particular building" warnings from the griffins.
Dinner with the Mayor should also be a priority for Shining, with whoever is not busy at the other tasks. Hopefully that means the higher ranking Guards, but the investigation should take priority over public relations, to some extent.
3451788 ya aren't the first to give a suggestion, mate. Yours is only the first long-winded one.
3451924 Long winded is fine. I love me some details.
3451941 Aye, short-hand is good for note taking, not note making.
On that note,cI have a suggestion. Ask the mayor how pressing the dinner/luncheon is, as nicely as possible. If it doesn't have to be right now, then get the ship well camo'd up, and then take an aerial AND ground-level tour around town to get a better.idea of the layout. Put off the interrogations only as.long as possible, of course, but first find clues or evidence. Don't interrogate someone without something concrete you can use to make them say something more. Baseless interogation is exactly that.
After finishing your tours, searches, investigations and/or interrogations, dress up and then accept the mayor's invitation. Since you should by now have a few ideas about the case, as well as a bit of general knowledge of the area, you could then begin asking the mayor some questions about these merchants/pirates (maybe he knows them, professionally if not personally?), his account of current affairs, and maybe a brief history of the town. Like, was it first started as.a pirate's cove, or has it been built so attacking pirates could be easily dealt with?
Asking questions of a head of state or general affairs is always a good idea, and you might consider having at least Soft Touch there, if not the entire group. I'm sure the mayor wouldn't mind getting to know everypony who is in the squad, and Soft Touch could gain some insight on him with her unique ability.
1. Despite being a sort of interactive novel, it's still a story nonetheless. And
this is friggin' hilarious.
2. Um... Give me some time to suggest course of action.
Pikop Andropov. Please tell me that was an intentional reference.
I'm loving the idea of this story. Unlike other CYOA fics, this one feels even more interactive because you're asking for specifics. I have no idea how you'll choose which plan of action to take, but good on ya for trying this format!
Let's see. I propose we split the task force into four teams. One to meet with the mayor, one to scout the city, one to interrogate our suspect, and one to modify and protect our HQ.
Mr. Thrift sounds like a solid lead. I'd make a gamble and start by interrogating him. Send Soft Touch after this lead. She should be backed up my some muscle. I'd advise sending Rough Ride, Ace, and Stormfeather, just in case shit goes down.
The radio seems like a long shot. I think our resources would be put to better use elsewhere. Specifically, to finding out the lay of the land first. While a map of the city is nice, eyes on the ground (and in the air) are nicer. Pikop Andropov knows his way around town, so have him show Cyrus and Flash Sentry around town. I picked these two because Cyrus is way too conspicuous to do any other work right now, and Flash needs some street smarts, yo.
It may seem unimportant, but avoiding suspicion is paramount in these "plainclothes" operations. We need to make our vessel fit in with the rest, while also providing a safe haven for when the shit inevitably hits the fan. Keep Dim Sun and Airborne behind. Let them work on camouflaging the vessel, as well as developing their work areas. Plus, I'd like for the medic and the lab tech to stay in one spot, for ease of access to their unique skills.
Shining Armor should definitely attend the dinner with the mayor. He should bring with him a representative from each team, but not necessarily the leaders. I'd say send Mag, Skydancer, and Hound Dog. I feel like they would provide a nice "face" to meet with a government official like the mayor. Also, send Báistí. As the unofficial liaison, she could put in a good word for the ponies, as well as give them a crash course on the local etiquette, in order to avoid any social faux pas.
What do you guys think?
3452062 That's a good idea. I think that the two who stay behind to disguise the ship should also see if they can work on the radio. It might be a long shot but it wouldn't hurt to at least have it ready in case something pops up that might require it.
Getting to know the layout of the land and securing a good reputation with the mayor and locals would be a good first step. It will help deflect suspicion and make it harder for the pirates to suspect something.
By my count, there are six things to tackle here.
1. Dinner with the mayor
2. Silver
3. Mr. Thrift
4. camouflaging the ship
5. Exploring the town.
6. Examine the evidence more.
I think 4 should definitely come before 5. Pirates will be on the lookout for a base when the team inevitably gets noticed. 3 should be given priority over 2 because Thrift has the potential to be much more involved. Soft, naturally, would go for Thrift.
Cyrus and Flash Sentry, the ones most likely to draw attention to themselves, should stay at the ship and help with 4. Dim can still work on 6 while Mag joins Rough and Shining for 1. I'd wait for Soft to finish 3 and then do 2 to make sure its done right. Once 4 is done, then the rest can go do 5.
>>maskedferret I'll go on the pegasi team
...
Now that's just sad.
This is the first thing I thought of when I saw the title:
static.cargurus.com/images/site/2008/04/02/13/54/2006_ford_expedition-pic-43290.jpeg
3452638 I've done the same thing on other people's stories.
3452661
Yeah...of course now I feel compelled to write a oneshot with Shining learning about the magic of Fords, SUVs, and mudding.
Wait. What other story would make you think of a car? This is the first one I've done that with.
3452062
I agree with what he has said, but part of camo the ship, send some sailors or maybe on of the investigators to buy some sweets? Just buy them and not raise any real suspesions, then have him talked to the following day. Who knows... maybe the pirates just like the candy as much as the regulars... still, if things work out.
Also you should have Shining ask where the Police Station is from Stormfeather... that way they can reach him faster. As well as fill in the map a little more.
Those are the ideas, oh maybe the next day or so have them start hunting for the frequncies, after they get a lay of the land, the Pegesai that is... well just my own add on to what has been said as well.
3452824 I'm not sure what you mean. When under the uniformity spell, it evens out the physical differences.
Hmm, that map is remarkably full of squares and right angles. How old is this Port Talon they are visiting?
My vote: go after the candy maker. Enemies of dental hygiene cannot be trusted.
3452062 I second this motion.
But,wow, you all are making great suggestions. This is going to be great!
I have to say, this is entertaining for me, too.
Under the framework given by 3452149, which is a good idea that should continue to be used, I will write my notes.
1. Dinner with the mayor.
I recommend sending Shining, the two Sergeants, and Soft Touch in lieu of Mag. Soft Touch would make a better impression, and she could exert some social engineering and interrogation on their good souls. The mayor and their compatriots, of course. We should be looking for any possible cronies who are close to the mayor, or suspicious behavior that suggests leads.
Send Shining, Soft, Rough, Skydancer, and Báistí, of course.
2. Silver, a sweet shop owner.
I'm not going to go into detail on Silver because they don't seem important right now. I wouldn't recommend sending Soft Touch either, as she would be more useful for both Mr. Thrift, who actually received "Fifty Bushels" from somegriff affiliated with the suspicious ship, and the Mayor and Co., who she can social engineer some information and influence out of.
Questions: about them, their store, their customers, can they examine the entirety of the store, can they examine a list of customers who bought Nougat Yummies, can they get a free sample of Nougat Yummies.
I recommend sending Puppy on this lead. I don't think he needs backup, but if he does, send Flash to learn from the Senior Guard's wisdom.
3. Mr. Thrift, a farm supply store owner.
He's our strongest lead. Send Soft Touch with some bullying Guards: Rough, Ace, and Cyrus perhaps. Hit him with all we've got, squeeze everything we can out of him, but do it with a "Soft Touch," of course.
I assume that there's enough time to interrogate Mr. Thrift before Soft Touch and Rough have to be available for dinner with the mayor. What time is it, TNaB?
4. Camouflage the ship.
I don't think camouflaging a ship that recently arrived is going to do much good. How would it even be camouflaged, would we string Hearth's Warming lights around it? Paint it? (No, that's not feasible either, it would take too long and bring even more attention.) If Hookbeak is remotely canny, he'll be able to tell what the ship is and who these ponies (running around the city asking the most suspicious questions) are within a few days. Possibly this very day, if Silver, Mr. Thrift, or one of the mayor's associates feeds the information to HB, by hook or by crook or by coercion or torture.
I would like to hear further designs on disguising the ship. How would this work?
5. Explore the town.
Send a pegasus, probably Airborne, to survey the city with Stormfeather and to point out key areas. Not vital, but can provide useful information.
And, oh shit, I forgot Andropov lived in Port Talon. Send Andropov and Mag as a ground surveying unit. Map out the seedy and the rich areas of town.
6. Examine the evidence more.
A. The hole.
How big is the hole? How was the hole made? Why didn't they just blow it up, or make something more effective than a hole? How could the hole be made? How thick is the hull where the hole is?
B. The (broken) radio.
Where was the broken radio obtained? Can we obtain an identical model, and perhaps glean the frequency from where the radio's dial was set? Other than that, there's not enough information to go off of. We need to find a supplier of these radios and then procure one for ourselves. This should be kept covertly, they probably don't know we have a radio, or that we might be able to get their frequency.
C. The candy wrappers.
See [2]. Who on Hookbeak's crew likes Nougat Yummies so much? Can we find out who this somegriff is through Silver? Can we tie any future scenes or griffons to Hookbeak through Nougat Yummies wrappers in the future? (Yes.)
D. The waterlogged scrap of paper. "Mr. Thrift received 50 bushels."
See [3]. We need to find out what these bushels were of, and why Mr. Thrift received them. Was it for free? What was the payment, and why is Mr. Thrift dealing with Hookbeak?
7. Long-range communication.
Ask Stormfeather about this. Ask the mayor about this. We need some way to keep our team connected across the city, with a minimum of bulk and fuss. Not with the same type of radios that Hookbeak's crew is using, that would look suspicious.
8. Legal restrictions.
I think a griffon liaison for arrests is okay as long as the Guards can also detain citizens in public areas while waiting for Stormfeather or another policegriff to arrive. Ask Stormfeather about providing each Guard with a Writ of Investigation, or something, to lend them some authority when questioning and searching citizens. If Stormfeather can't provide it, ask the mayor about it. They need authority for more than just arrest. If some sort of Writ isn't possible, then perhaps more griffons could be assigned, or Stormfeather could deputize the Guards or something. We have to get something.
3452972
Ah, I didn't see the line where they removed their armor. Sorry.
Orders before the dinner:
Shining: Ask Stormfeather about [7] and [8], and keep an eye on the home front, preparing for dinner with the mayor.
Dim Sun: Continue investigating the evidence, specifically with [6] in mind. Otherwise, stay on the ship until needed.
Skydancer: Stay on the ship with Shining. Unless there's something better for her to do.
Báistí: Same as Skydancer, unless she has business to attend to. Prepare the ponies for dinner with the mayor.
Soft: Question Mr. Thrift about "50 Bushels."
Rough: Accompany Soft, for backup and "influence."
Cyrus: Accompany Soft, for backup and "influence."
Ace: Accompany Soft, for backup and "influence."
Puppy: Question Silver.
Flash: Accompany Puppy.
Mag: Join Andropov in surveying the city, and mapping the seedy and rich parts of town.
Andropov: Guide and assist Mag in surveying the city.
Airborne: Survey the city from above, with the aid of Stormfeather.
Stormfeather: Guide Airborne in his aerial survey.
Orders for the dinner:
Shining, Soft, Rough, Skydancer, and Báistí attend the dinner. Soft Touch is there in lieu of Mag ("He couldn't make it.") to chat up the mayor for information and power, and also to observe the mayor's associates. Have a good dang time of it, too.
3451703
3453222
I rather like your style too. It does make sense to give Soft an escort, although I personally would make it just Ace (the martial artist) because they would look more "normal" going around town than a group of four, two of whom are rather large.
(Soft x Ace OTP?)
3453433 I think I love your brain.
3454218
I was shipping Soft and Rough, y'know, because of the names.
The cool thing about this format is that other people will bring up stuff that some of us didn't think about. Like how 3453222 brought up re-examining evidence and looking into long range communication.
Well, I don't have much to say that hasn't already been said.
I say place priority on Mr. Thrift and getting on the mayor's good side.
Second priority: see if you can find out where the civilian found the boat, since it was moved, there might be further evidence back where it was.
Disguising the ship could go either way, but I'll opt against it for convenience of time and resources.
Until more evidence shows up to suggest any connection between Silver and their wares, I say avoid them altogether until further events suggest doing so.
That's pretty much it, but what's that red "1" on the map on the longest berthing? If it's unknown it's probably worth taking a look at.
3454936 The red 1 is the first clue, where the pirate boat was found. You can correlate it with the discovered evidence page.
Keeping Flash close to Shining is probably a good idea.
3456100
Why?
3457151 Flash needs some experience without drawing attention to the royal guards and potentially giving them away. Though Shining Armor may not be the only one who can do that.
3454682>>3454936 Something else we need to consider: why Not let the ship's crew coat it, or something? Only one of our twelve would need to be there then, if any.
3460902 We were advised not to leave any of our crew alone. It's strength in numbers, a solo target no matter how skilled is easier to pick off then a pair or a group.
3462856 Aye, but again: THE SAILORS. While not truly under Shining Armor's command, as they were basically lent to him along with the boat, they still exist and therefore wouldn't be leaving the single squad member alone on the ship. Say what you will, that is completely sound. The only reason any sailors wouldn't be aboard the ship is if they have shore leave, which due to the "only twelve permitted to come to land (if I read that correctly)," then I would have to assume that the sailing crew would almost always be aboard the ship.
3463100 I didn't really mean only twelve on land. I meant twelve as part of the investigative team. Visitors can still get visas and visit the Griffon Kingdom.
Now that I think about it, maybe Celestia should have sent a few dozen "visiting" members of the Guard...
3463109 That explains it better. I wonder if the crew did get visas... if they didn't, the guards would have to be the ones who get supplies for them.