01 - Landing
Year 3, Week 10, Monday
Fluttershy scrunched lower in her seat, sliding the window closed with a hoof. She’d never been this high up before, the clouds looked almost like a second layer of land.
“Everything alright Fluttershy?” the woman sitting next to her asked.
“Ye... no, not really. I don’t think I’m suited for flying this high.” She admitted with a smile.
Amy smiled, ruffling Fluttershy’s mane reassuringly. “Relax, I’ve flown on these planes before, they’re perfectly safe.” Her smile turned to a scowl as the sound of laughter made itself heard through the cabin, “Except when two naughty little ones keep misbehaving!”
Tumbling over each other, the two adult sized ponies untangled themselves and sat up, scuffing their hooves on the carpeted floor.
“Sorry Mom. Jimmy kept poking me with his horn.” Suzy said, her ears folded back.
“Did not!” Jimmy protested, tossing his dirty blond mane back from his face.
“Jimmy, you know the rules. Now go sit down mister, you’re in timeout for the next ten minutes.” Amy said sternly.
“But Moooom!” The stallion protested.
“No buts!” Amy pointed to his chair.
Jimmy held his ground for a few minutes, then huffed and stomped angrily off to his seat. “S’not fair... stupid Suzy, tattletale...”
Amy watched to make sure that he really did sit down, then looked back to Suzy. “Now then Suzy, how about you go sit down too? We’ll be landing soon.”
“Okay Mom!” Suzy chirped before she hurried to her seat and awkwardly buckled herself in.
Amy smiled at her ‘daughter’ before turning back to Fluttershy. “Anyway, like I was saying, air travel really is safe. Besides, if you look out the window, we’re starting our descent now.”
Fluttershy hesitated, then pushed the window open a little and peeked out. Sure enough, the plane had started a gradual descent toward the cloud layer. “How long until we land?”
“Probably another hour or so.” Amy replied as she double checked both Fluttershy’s seatbelt and her own.
Further back, the majority of second class was devoted to the Royal Guard contingent that was on this flight. Forty-five guards were present on this deployment, almost all of them veteran officers.
Captain Stardust stood at the front of the row, his stern eyes looking over the guards sitting in their seats. “Alright, listen up! Our orders are to investigate a series of disappearances that have been occurring over the past four months. According to the information we have received, several of the local villages have apparently suffered losses. However, two weeks ago, one of our diplomats was on an excursion on the Kasai river when their vessel disappeared, along with three guardponies who were serving as his escorts. We will land in Kinshasa, and travel by truck to the river, where we will begin search operations. First Lieutenants Skipjack and Dusty will serve as commanding officers of the pegasus and earth pony guards, respectively.”
He took a breath, looking to the five guards sitting separate from the others. “Captains Flare and Aegis, First Lieutenants Nimbus and Dawn Breeze, and Second Lieutenant Lariat; your orders are to accompany Fluttershy and Amy Getton on their expedition into the jungle to survey the local primate populations, and to begin setting up the Field Conversion Bureaus. You will also have several unicorns from the CDC to allow for replication of serum. In addition, sufficient supplies are being shipped to the target site to allow you to be sustainable for approximately six to eight months.”
Taking another breath, he glanced at the clock on the wall. “We will be landing sometime within the next hour and a half. Prepare yourselves.”
The assembled ponies saluted, then fell to talking among themselves. Flare looked over to Nimbus, a look of mild worry on his face.
“And you’re sure that you still want to come? Given your condition, you’ll be due before we return to the United States or Equestria.”
Nimbus smiled a little at his concern and looked down at her belly, where a small swell could be seen. “Relax Flare, we talked this over with General Cloudhammer, it’s why he had Dawn Breeze come along. And besides, I won’t be out of commission until about two weeks before I’m due, according to the Canterlot doctors.”
“And don’t forget, Flare, you’ve got the rest of us here, too,” Aegis grinned from his seat a row back, “and we’re not gonna let a future little grand hi-falutin’ General go a minute without eyes on ‘em, even still inside his momma’s tummy.”
Flare smiled and nuzzled his marefriend’s stomach, his eyes getting a little misty as he felt a slight nudge back against his nose. “I know... still going to worry anyway.”
“And I’m still going to tell you you’re being silly.” Nimbus gently cuffed him with a wing. To be honest, it worried her too, that she’d be delivering their foal away from a modern hospital, but she knew that things would work out if they stayed strong. Everything else had, despite the obstacles they’d faced from the senior staff when they’d started dating. Fortunately, Cloudhammer and the younger staff had steadfastly supported them, not only on the grounds that they obviously cared about each other, but that their relationship served as a way to tighten the bonds between the native guards and the newfoals. “And besides Aegis, it could be a mare, sir.”
“Hm. Suppose so. In that case, she’ll be our little grand hi-falutin’ princess, then, eh, Dawn, Lariat?” Aegis turned to the other two, flashing the same grin. He’d really managed to bond with Dawn, Flare, and Nimbus over the past few years, and was almost as happy as the expecting couple when he had heard the news. He’d just met Lariat, but from what he could tell they’d get along just fine.
The others broke into laughter as the plane continued its descent through the cloud layer.
---
She was tired of waiting, lurking about in the muck and watching the city. But, at least there was ample emotion and not anywhere near enough drones to absorb it all, so her belly was at least full. A dull roar caught her attention and she looked up to see an enormous silver beast making its way toward the long strip of black on the outside edge of town. She’d seen such beasts before, but not one this big in a long time.
She closed her eyes, letting the gentle flow of her power ignite, coaxing her disguise into existence. Her black coat lightened until it was a dark shade of olive green and her carapace seemed to crack, individual hairs splitting off until a flowing mane of vibrant orange spilled across her back. The holes in her wings flowed together until they were a seamless surface, and after another few moments they were covered in soft feathers. Next, her eyes lost most of their blue, the irises of her new pony eyes the only remaining splash of color. Her horn was the last to change, sinking into her head until nothing remained but smooth skin.
Once she was sure that her disguise was complete, the imposter pegasus spread her wings and took off for the city, wondering what new prey was arriving this time.
---
Nimbus looked around the bustling airport terminal, mostly ignoring the stares that were being directed her way as she and the other guards sorted out everypony’s luggage and the supply bags.
“Alright, is this everything First Lieutenant?” Captain Stardust asked as he trotted back from the customs desk.
“Yes sir. We’re ready to deploy with Fluttershy and Dr. Getton. Good luck on your search sir.” Nimbus replied with a sharp salute.
“Good luck to you as well Nimbus.” Stardust said before he started barking orders to the other guards.
Nimbus sighed and then turned to heft her own bag across her shoulders. She sagged a little under the weight, but tensed her knees to keep upright. This foal was taking more out of her than she’d expected, but she wasn’t about to let it show. She’d worked hard to earn her position and the mares and stallions she’d led before respected her. She started to look for where Fluttershy and Amy were when she felt somepony bump against her shoulder. Turning, she saw the wry smile First Lieutenant Skipjack always seemed to have.
“Everything alright Nimbus?” The mare asked.
“Yeah… little one’s just kicking more than usual today.” Nimbus said with a sigh.
“Well, don’t push yourself too hard, alright? You don’t have anything to prove to anypony. Besides, you’re working for two now.” Skipjack said with a trace of envy in her voice.
Nimbus grinned and ribbed Skipjack. “Don’t worry Skip; I’m sure you and Dusty will have one of your own someday.”
Skipjack’s wings snapped up a little before she got control of them, and she shot Nimbus a glare. “I’ll get you back for that one Nimbus, just you watch.”
Nimbus chuckled, the two pegasi bumping shoulders again before going their separate ways. “Oh and Skip, keep an eye on the rest of them for me, I expect to see them all coming back with nothing but bug bites and sunburn.”
“Roger that ma’am.” Skipjack threw a salute as she hurried to join the rest of the guards.
Nimbus shook her head and trotted over to where Flare and the others were talking with someone, apparently the person who would be taking them to the site chosen for Dr. Getton’s project. As she drew closer, she frowned as the tones of their voices indicated that things weren’t going so well.
“No, you do not understand. I will not go to that place. Some of the disappearances have happened nearby, and the word coming from the villages is not good.”
Amy hissed a frustrated sigh. “Look, we paid you in advance to take us! You can’t just go and break that contract without refunding us the advance!”
“Breaking contracts is bad for the reputation, y’know. I’ve never broken a contract in my life,” Aegis slipped into the conversation. That sort of talk hit home for him, since he'd made a living honoring work contracts before being asked to rejoin the guard by Cloudhammer.
“I understand, and will gladly have your advance gathered in two weeks, but I insist that you not go to your chosen site.”
Amy bit her lip in thought. “I’ll double your rate.”
The man rocked back and forth on his heels in thought. “My apologies, but the stories I’ve heard are more dangerous than most...” He trailed off expectantly.
“I’ll triple it then.” Amy snapped irritably.
“Whoa, Triple? Miss Getton, we can out-and-out buy a cart and I’ll happily pull it there for far less than that,” sputtered Aegis.
The man smiled down at Aegis. “Ah, but pulling cart through the jungle is trickier than you know. One good rain and you will drown in mud. On top of that, having good bodyguard is crucial. Many threats roam in the deeps of the jungle.”
Amy pulled her wallet out of her pocket, pulling a number of bills out. Counting out the inflated amount, she pushed them roughly at the man. “Just take it. You’ll get the rest on the completion of our survey.”
“Of course, a pleasure doing business with you.” the man said with a smile, taking the wad of bills. “If you all would bring your supplies this way, we can load the truck and be on our way.
Amy watched the man go, then turned to Aegis. “I know it’s annoying, but that’s just how things work in this part of the world. I do wish we could just handle this ourselves, but the government here wants to stay involved in order to improve their image to the rest of the world.”
“Well, they don’t have to be extortionists to do that...” Aegis trailed off into non-specific grumblings as he pulled at the cart carrying their supplies. Lariat just chuckled as he pulled his own cartful alongside Aegis.
“Y’know, Aeg, seems like we ain’t got enough here to set up a boy scout jamboree, let alone a field Bureau.” Lariat paused, glancing back to Amy. “Ma’am, is this all we’ve got ta haul?
Amy nodded. “We’ll be establishing our initial camp, and taking a survey of the surrounding chimpanzee and gorilla populations. Once we’re established, the rest of our supplies will be air-dropped in, and a second team consisting of zoologists and support staff will come by land to help us get the Bureau up and running.”
Flare nodded thoughtfully. “That does make sense...”
Dawn Breeze narrowed her eyes. “But what did that man mean about the word from the local villages being not good?”
“I don’t know. But that’s why we’re bringing you five along, and hiring some of the locals to act as bodyguards.” Amy said as they exited the airport into the March heat, walking toward the waiting truck.
On the roof of one of the nearby buildings, the imposter pegasus watched the group make their way to the truck. Peering closer, she recognized the yellow one with the pink mane. The Queen had them spend many days memorizing everything about those six ponies, so that any of them could assume their appearance if needed, in addition to all their other disguises.
But for one of the Elements of Harmony to be here... alone, without its friends... the Queen would want to hear of this as soon as possible. Her original mission of emotion gathering could wait. She spread her wings and arrowed into the sky, looking down at the humans milling about much like the changelings did in the hive. Although, with their fractious natures and... individuality, the humans were obviously the inferior species, fit only for the changelings to utilize and then discard. With a dismissive snort, she flapped her wings harder and was soon lost to sight.
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I love where this is headed. And Hah, Beat ya, WG....
Edit: and Cloud gives me too much credit.
865186
Curses.
First, wait a second... FFFUUUUUUUUDGUE! Oh well Ill get to it soons because the site hates my phone. But good job, fix the grammar and Rigomi is best pony I am out home slice.
Weee, its finally up!
As a bonus, this story is my first collaborative effort from the get-go! Aegis_Exemplar has graciously agreed to lend his writing skills to this story as it progresses.
I love it so far.
As if the HLF and PER weren't enough to worry about... yikes. Trouble on top of trouble.
Yay! Sequel time, Hooah! But are they seriously bringing nothing but officers? Nothing will ever get done. Need some good NCO's to make things happen. I'm sorry I keep harping on this. It just bugs me when I read a story about military themes and there's nothing about sergeants. It just breaks the immersion to me. Again, sorry. The Army gets inside your head like that.
Great story!!
894459 while that is true, this is an Element of Harmony... also, I just made up the ranks initially to wing it for In Duty's Name, and now that the Guard is becoming a proper military force (in comparison to the US military), they're having some growing pains. But for this one, sending experienced guards to act as escort to Fluttershy/Amy seemed like a good idea to my brain at 5AM xD... plus they're my favorite characters and need some more love hehe
897387
And I would never ask you to change it, honestly. Why mess with a good thing?
But just FYI, for something like this, an escort mission breaking off from a larger mission, it'd most likely be a squad-sized element, which would include an officer,(most likely a 2LT or 1LT) a Staff Sergeant, a Sergeant, and around eight lower enlisted (privates). I've never run a mission like this before, though, but it would make sense to send an "actionable element" with the VIP, that is, one squad that has two teams of four to five.
But hey, it's the Equestrian military. I'm sure it'd work much different for us if we could fly and use magic.
898784
897387
Well, Jake, As my OC is one of those, I just want to point out that in this case it means more like "Elite Trooper" than traditional Officer roles. Dn't forget, Equestria isn't a modern military force by any stretch of the imagination.
Aegis still sees himself as just a really good Grunt
905905
I kind of figured that. A Special Forces team, either SEALs or Green Berets, would be appropriate, as well.
.
.
.
BUT, on that note, even a team would have just one officer and the rest NCOs. But whatever, they kick flank, so it's all good.
And you have your OC in Cloudhammer's story? How the hell did you manage that? Lucky bastard...
906786 Well, it originally happened when I decided to create an Earth Pony branch of the Guard, I was trying to come up with a good character to use as the initial trainer, and immediately thought of good ol' Aegis here. Sat down and talked with him about it, and he graciously agreed to not only let me use the name, but to help me write his dialogue/actions. So now in this story, it's pretty much a collaborative fic between the two of us, with me bouncing my ideas off him, and him suggesting new directions or generally keeping me from getting too over the top silly
906841
Well, the two of you are doing a damn good job of it. Seriously, TFY was my introduction to the Conversion Bureau world, and it was amazing. This is shaping up to be just as good.
On that kind of same note, I'm writing a story of my own. It's a murder mystery, taking place a few years in the future, where Shining Armor has been promoted to General, and commands the Royal Unicorn Corps. The way I have it set up, in my head cannon, is the military is split into branches, like ours. The Unicorn Corps, commanded by SA, the Earth Pony Corps, for which I made up the name General Stone Wall. For the Pegasus Corps, I was wondering if you don't mind me using General Cloudhammer for a scene or two. He's not going to factor into the plot in any major way, just once, maybe twice he appears and gives advice to the young new General.
Here's the link if you wanna see how it starts out: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1PS9W39Y6e6zbVeXxAHJNrnpLV6hDfa4j39L4-pEpce0/edit
906894 sure thing, I liked what I saw so far
908039
An author I admire likes my story...
*head 'splode* Thanks!
865260
For my phone I just download as .txt and put it in dropbox, then use a e-reader app (Cool Reader is nice, if you got android)