Your Mission Begins Here!

by comicfan616

The Smoky Mountain Mission

“I say we’ve put this off for long enough.”

“Yeah, yeah, I know.”

“I’m not saying you did something wrong. It’s just that the Smoky Mountains have been left alone for too long, so if we’re going to do something, we’d better do it now.”

“Could you at least say it without sounding so… condescending?”

“I don’t think there’s any way I could say it without you treating it like a personal attack. Like you said, we were on a time limit with Manehattan. I’m not going to argue with you on whether or not we should have gone through with it. What’s past is past, so let’s focus on the present.”

“Fine, fine. So, Smoky Mountains. The site of a generations-long family feud. The once pristine landscape has all but turned into a wasteland. Anything that lives there, either by intention or accident, is caught up in the crossfire.”

“This one’s a no-brainer. We have to send in Fluttershy. The animals are the key to getting this feud under control. They’ll have the unbiased account and the biggest stake in the outcome.”

“Won’t argue there. But then there’s the elephant in the room that this is Fluttershy; she’s way too timid. Even if she gets the story from the animals, talking to ponies is going to be nigh-impossible for her.”

“Well, I certainly wasn’t going to send her alone. What about Rainbow Dash? She knows Fluttershy the best and she’s the most action-oriented; maybe she can get the two families to stop long enough for Fluttershy to do the rest.”

“Nah, bad idea. Rainbow’s too hotheaded and may just get involved with the fighting. We’d be looking at a three-way brawl.”

“Right, right, what was I thinking? Applejack, then? She certainly has the most cultural ties to these ponies. Maybe she can reason with them.”

“Not a terrible idea, but I think we can do better.”

“What do you mean?”

“What we need is a reason for the fighting to stop. Applejack may be the most level headed, but those ‘cultural ties’ you mentioned may work to her detriment. Both sides may consider her part of the enemy, and it’s not like her mannerisms will easily convince them she’s not.”

“So… what then?”

“I was thinking we send in the big guns: Princess Twilight Sparkle herself.”

“…Is this really about doing what’s best for the mission?”

“I see where you’re going with this, and I will admit that sending the princess means that everypony will have been called by the map on these dual missions, not to mention that she’d been so disappointed after not getting called for those last two.”

“Do you honestly think Princess Twilight won’t get overexcited?”

“Actually, if we send her now, we can keep the overexcitement to a minimum, as opposed to doing it later, in which case she’ll just get even more frustrated, and when we finally send her, it’ll only get worse.”

“But what good will she do for this mission?”

“Hellooo! She’s a princess! If there’s anything that can get the two to stop fighting long enough to just talk with them, it’s one of the highest authorities in the land. The only pony they’ll respect more is probably Princess Celestia, but we don’t exactly have a link to her. Face it, she’s the only one who can stop the feud long enough for Fluttershy to get the story from the animals and explain the situation to both sides.”

“…I guess you make a good point.”

“Great. Then let’s get this started.”

“Alright. Calling Twilight Sparkle.”

“Calling Fluttershy.

“Your mission begins here.”