In Changelingia (West Equestria), Brie gains the support of a Changeling queen for his endeavors. Spark is doing his best to help an ill Wolf spiritual leader.
In Free Equestria (East Equestria), Iron is trying to intimidate a group of criminal griffin interlopers. Fantasy Play is helping to shut down an Anarchist press. Silver is helping his new household. Amber Sunset is walking through the city, and Dark Star has just finished helping the orphans.
2365 replies and 49 files omitted.
>>133503>>133502 →Dark star heads over to the black hooves hq
>>133505*gasps*
>>133506This is simple enough. He finds Fellipe at the door, who waves at him and lets him in
>>133509He nods
"I'm getting paid to be in airconditioned building, and that's good enough for me right now"
>>133510Dark star smiles as he walks into the building.
>>133512Now Dark Star is inside, with the same grey-white receptionist they hired a few days ago at the front desk. Who does he wish to see?
>>133514He says to the receptionist.
"Hows are you today? Have ypu seen Blue Skies?"
>>133515"Is she..." she looks up to him, then down
"I think she's out on duty. Sea Breeze should know."
>>133516"Thank you. Where are they at?"
>>133517"Over in his office" She answers
>>133518He walks over to the office.
>>133519Entering into the office, Dark Star sees Sea Breeze behind his table, doing paperwork
>>133521He turns his head up to Dark Star
"Good Afternoon. Checking in after whatever in the hell went down on the shoreline last night?"
>>133523"Well... I've heard... Mostly that mission is an R&M detail. But I think it's given you enough of a view into Griffonian culture to understand why it's best we let Griffonian culture stay in Griffonia, and why the Equestrian Project must be preserved."
>>133524"Yes sir. The griffions i saw last night were savages. The dont belong here."
>>133525"No. I'm sure the ones they captured will not have a pleasant time on their return to Griffienheim. I just wish we could have captured more of those involved in the process."
>>133526"Thats the thing about crimainals,sir. They always commit more crime. We'll bust em next time."
>>133527"Well, that we shall. It's unfortunate that there must be a next time. But really, all of that is more of a problem for Customs. I think you see why we keep them around, even if half of them really ought to be mobilized in the Army."
>>133528"I dont thonk i had the pleasure of meeting anypony from cistoms yet."
>>133529"Didn't you meet Parade Pass, or some other officer, when they came to the scene?"
>>133530"If i did it has slipped my mind,sir."
>>133531"Well, you should pay them a visit some time. They are an essential part of the organization of the Pony State here in Baltimare, even if they aren't as well organized as we here in the SSA."
>>133532"I will sometimes,sir. I was actually wondering if you know where miss skies is?"
>>133535>>133533He moves back in his seat
"Dark Star" he takes in a breath and sighs
"Before we move on from the aftermath of Hoebuck, there is one crucial part of that operation that
does concern this agency. One that I'm afraid you and Skies overlooked. Slipped right under your snouts."
>>133537"Tell me Dark Star. Have you ever heard of Special Monster Interdiction and Law Enforcement?"
>>133538His expression chamges to puzzlement
"I cant say that i have"
>>133539"Well..." He turns his head to look over down and to the right, his line of sight ending at the wall.
"Every nation has matters that threaten its stability, and the safety of its people. Matters that must be handled with discretion... In Equestria, long ago, the role of handling these dangers was taken by the Inquisition, as it still is in Griffienheim, albeit under more State control. In many more modern countries, like ours, there is a special police force responsible for the security and stability of the nation and its ruling party. But Equestria... it seemed to be lacking any such special police force, didn't it? Once the Inquisition withered away..."
He looks back up directly at Dark Star
"Now, you know, going into Hoebuck, we sort of just assumed that what went on in Hoebuck, the true nature of that operation, was unknown to the Equestrian government. Customs went and searched the files and could only find a little. But then they asked us. And after the mess of last night, we decided to check the archives in Canterlot. And you'd be amazed at what records we found sealed away in the mines under Canterlot."
>>133540Dark star cocks an eyebrow.
"What was found,sir?"
>>133541"Well, what we found is that the Equestrians knew significantly more than they ever let anyone know. The first time they entered that building, they discovered evidence of cult activity. Just like you. They arrested who they could, and tried to shut it down. They may have gotten further, but the leaders of the cult and smuggling operation got away. Must have had a heads up warning. Most of those arrested were either released without charge, or deported without notifying the Griffienheim government of the cult activity. They made their way back... But the Equestrians did raid the church. They did capture more than a few of the senior priests. And they did set the cultists back several years. They kept what they found a secret from the general public and from the Baltimare Police, even." He shakes his head.
"They must have not wanted to turn local opinion against Griffonian Immigrants. Must have thought it would be bad for integration, or something. They also didn't want to shut down smugglers generally, or deport immigrants who were caught. Now of course we know that if you don't deport immigrants who hire smugglers, they just assume that any money spent on smugglers will result in them getting here whether they get caught or not, but that was their 'soft' approach. Anyways... This gets us back to the Equestrian Special Police, the Special Monster Interdiction and Law Enforcement. You see, Equestria
did have their own secret police to hunt down Changeling Infiltrators, to spy, and to hunt bugbears. And they tried to track down the smugglers involved in Hoebuck."
>>133542Dark star looks intruiged at the idea that there are secret police that kill monsters
"This is very interesting,sir. Did they succseed in hunting them down?"
>>133543"No. No they didn't. But you see, it's not because they didn't try. The primary agent assigned to the Baltimare smuggling operation died in the line of duty. They say that as she was riding a ferry in the harbor, she fell into the water and drowned, pulled down by the undertoe and her body dragged out to sea, or more likely caught underneath a pier somewhere. But this agent was a hippogriff. And whoever heard of a hippogriff who drowned? Even the Equestrians didn't believe it, as they tried to investigate, and I am sure they would have launched a more thorough homicide investigation if they didn't need to divert resources into tracking down Changeling infiltrators.
But you see, I have a theory. Well, not really my theory, I got it from an analyst who went through all of this information, But I have a theory, and that theory is that the agent in question was never found because she never died. I believe she was taken captive, found by you, and then pretended to be an indentured servant alien so as to slip by you. How does that sound to you?"
>>133544Dark star blinks rapidly mouth agape
"I uh...what? Why?"
>>133545"Why? It's rather simple. The secret police apparatus doesn't belong to the nation, so much as to the particular state and its controlling ideology. S.M.I.L.E. was Equestria's primary intelligence agency. They very nearly discovered our planned landings, and the only reason they didn't is because of a favor of the Changeling Infiltration branch, and even they only barely outsmarted S.M.I.L.E. She is a special agent of Princess Twilight. Not the last soldier fighting her cause to be sure, but surely alone in the moment. And so she pretended to be an innocent alien, and slipped by. I have to wonder just how many dangerous cultists, smugglers, and criminals, slipped by the Equestrians by pretending to be innocent aliens. It seems she learned something in her time on the case."
>>133546Dark star sighs
"I feel like i've failed our ponies by not detaining her."
>>133547He gives a curt nod, and pulls up a hoof
"That's alright. I can understand the desire to be compassionate. Kindness is, after all, a cherished pony value. But in this case, we have an intelligence operative who could meet up with resistance groups, or even worse, with the government of her birth country where she has dual citizenship."
>>133548"I understand,sir. Do we have any more intel on her? Maybe we can find her before she flees."
>>133549"A few addresses. Where she used to live, where creatures she knew used to live, and the old headquarters in Baltimare. Maybe she will check there. But otherwise, who knows."
>>133550"Hmmm has anypony checked them out?"
>>133552He shakes his head
"To try to intercept her? No. We
could send an agent or two to look for her."
>>133553"That could be a good idea"
Sorry i gotta sleep now fren.
>>133554Goodnight. I hope you play again soon
Tell me when anypony is available
>>133561>>133487 →"Okay," Fantasy says and nods. "I would take some if you have any to spare that is."
>>133562"Oh, yes. There's a few. It explains all of this stuff a lot better than I could, really."
>>133563"Are you sure? You explain it well to me, While it was a bit complicated at times, you seemed to really know what you were talking about?"
>>133564"Well, these things help you to organize your thoughts, you know?. They help to put what you already know and have seen into words more clearly. I've been here and I've seen a lot of it since the uprising back in '90. Well, I have a couple pamphlets about that. About the centralization of power and whatnot. And a few more about the Resistance. But if you don't already know all of this stuff, well, there's a lot of good stuff in there. And you won't hear in on the radio or read it in the newspaper."
>>133565Fantasy nods. Then she hangs her head forward with a glum look on her face.
"Part of me doesn't really wanna see them, you know?"
>>133566She blinks, but cuts the next part of her hair
“Why is that?”
>>133567Fantasy looks down into her lap.
"Becuase if you're right then my Dad might loose his shop in the future. If the goverment is run by ponies who doesn't care about their citizens then I cannot afford to sit on the sidelines. But don't like conflicts..."
>>133569"But you seem like a nice pony so I don't think you're a liar."
>>133561If Amber's next stage is ready, I can play, otherwise I don't mind watching on the sidelines.
>>133569She takes a step back, frees her right hoof, and pats the back of Fantasy’s head.
“There there, little pony. I can understand the worry. You should be worried. But I can also understand the desire to avoid conflict. Remember most of all that it isn’t supposed to be your fight alone. This is a struggle that concerns all of the masses of the creatures, and it’s in our numbers that we show we will not be put down. But you don’t really have to do anything. I just think you should know. Become ‘class conscious.’ When that happens... you’ll know what to do.”
>>133570“Well, either way, you don’t have to take my word for it. We have a little novella. There’s this pony I know who used to be in the unions who drops them off for me, since he knows I see a lot of creatures. You can take a couple.”
>>133571Um... do you know what you want Amber to do?
>>133572Yes, Amber will trot to the west, deeper inland, eager to put that stallion's lurid stories out of her mind.
>>133572Fantasy nods.
"I think I will take some," she says and sends a smile via the mirror toward the mare behind her. "Thank you."
>>133573Amber goes further inland to find, first of all, that the grid pattern gives blocks that are longer north to south and thus there are fewer streets crossing East to West. Going further, she finds that many of these buildings are run down or crowded together. At one point she finds a street with a make shift barricade at the front of it, although it seems to be pushed open at the moment to allow for thru traffic
>>133574Another snip
“But be careful with them. The fascists will be suspicious of you if they know you have them.”
>>133575Without really thinking of
why there would be a barricade on a busy street in a bustling city, the mare passes through it to whatever neighborhood lies beyond.
>>133577“I think one is, and the other two aren’t.”
>>133578"Okay." Fantasy takes a deep breat and clenches her teeth for a moment. "I'll take them but I'll keep the illegal one at home. You would think that no information would be illegal to obtain."
>>133579“I know, right? But those in power are afraid of the truth, and want to keep it from us.”
>>133581And now, she completes the humane styling, fluffing up Fantasy’s hair so that the forward facing layers are more apparent.
“Well, that’s still five bits” she says
>>133582Fantasy looks in the mirror while she turns and tilts her head in it to inspect her new mane.
"Woah, only five bits for this? That's cheap," Fantasy says.
>>133583She smiles back
“A discount for a fellow. So you can look like you want, but not be so drained financially. I can tell you’re new here, and you probably need it.”
The mane flops a bit, but seems kind of precarious, otherwise the layers may come undone.
>>133584"My economy is quite stable at the moment. I don't mind paying full prize," Fantasy brings out her pouch with her magic out of her bag.
>>133585“All the same” she says.
“But” she looks down. There’s something for you in the back...”
>>133586"Heh," Fantasy chuckles. "Well, if you insist." Out of her pouch five bits fly out and form a tower on the counter.
"O-okay," Fantasy stammers and swallows. She looks over her shoulder towards the windows.
>>133587She goes to the back and opens a door and carefully moves something just out of Fantasy's view on what seems to be a wooden shelf to the left. She thinks she sees a small steel box move and open, but she pulls out three printed papers, one blue, and two red
"Uh" She looks down, clearly nervous herself. She looks at the papers, and then tenders them towards Fantasy, as if she doesn't know what to do with them
"Here."
Blue Skies keeps her eyes on Mint, while nopony passes outside in the moment
Fantasy quickly pull them into her magic aura, the flap to her bag lifts aside, and then the papers fly into her saddlebag. Fantasy then takes a deep breath and then looks over at Skies .
"There was nopony ouside, right Cloudy?"
>>133589"Hmmm? Oh. No." She answers, looking back
Mint breathes, and smiles awkwardly, seeming nigh exhilarated from the illicit act.
>>133590Fantasy releases a breath.
"Well, now I kinda wanna get home and put these-" Fantasy taps the bag with her hoof. "-bad boys under lock and key. Not just stand around with them in public."
"T-thanks again for the cut. Its actually wonderful. I love it." Fantasy beams as she peers up at the fringe of her mane.
>>133591"Well, they are meant to be read. But fortunately your mane won't need to be kept hidden." She returns to her warmer smile.
The bangs are definitely cut above the eye line, which means that the forward most layer doesn't look
that much like Songbird Serenade's mane, although the layers above do
>>133592"Hehe. No it doens't. If that ever gets illegal, then I expect every mare in baltimare[?] will riot." Fantasy smiled.
Fantasy seems a bit nervous.
>>133593She chuckles
"I bet they would. Don't ever let anycreature take what makes you, you."
>>133594Mint seems to be a little as well, although less so now that the papers are transferred
>>133595"Agreed." Fantasy nods.
"Well, I'll think I take my leave and as I said take these home." Fantasy starts to turn. "This was great. I may come back here if I decide to style my tail and if you do style tails that is. I haven't decided yet. I always wear this cloak so I never bohrter wth it." Fantasy lifts up a patch of fabric of her cloak.
>>133596"Take care, and come back any time" She says
Blue Skies stands up, not saying a word
>>133597Fantasy smiles back.
"Yeah, you too. Thanks again for, you know, everything."
Then Fantasy lets Mr. Snuggles crawl back on her back and walks out of the shop.
>>133598Mr. Snuggle jumps on Fantasy, and crawls up on her
Fantasy and Blue Skies walk out of the shop, onto the street
Fantasy walks back the way they came in a controlled pace, not too fast and not to slow.
A glum expression startsto appear on her features as further away they get. Shetiltes her head forward so the hair falls over her eyes.
>>133600Blue Skies looks around, and then speaks to Fantasy
"Ugh! Why do they all sound like that? It's like they are made in a factory. I wish they were as well educated about virtue and science as they were about 'class consciousness.' It's hard to suffer through them talking about 'nations dividing the creatures' and 'equality.'"
>>133601Unfortunately, her new haircut makes this impossible
>>133602>Unfortunately, her new haircut makes this impossibleYou are right. I thought that but yeah I thought wrong. That makes more sense.
>>133602There's a hitch up in Fantasy's throat.
"Hee... Heee... Haaa-haa-ha," exits her mouth.
Her eyes go wide for a second and then she shuts them and tear streams runs down her cheeks.
>>133604She stops walking and hangs her head while she sobs.
>>133604>>133605Blue Skies pats her
"I'm sorry Fantasy. Many otherwise normal ponies have been claimed by this ideology. That's why we must stop its spread. It's like a virus, forever trying to spread itself as it slowly destroys its hosts."
>>133606"I feel so dirty..."
What does Mr. Snuggles do when his owner is in distress?
>>133607Call up on the seaponies
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iakTl9SZTTYBlue Skies:
"I don't think it's wrong to pay for a manecut from an Anarchist. You did get a lower price, after all."
It's not clear whether he's responding to Fantasy's emotional state, but he
is snuggling up around the base of her mane, and partly underneath it around her shoulders
>>133608Fantasy for a moment cracks a smile but then she frowns.
"Hilarious *sob*," Fantasy says and wipes away the snot from her nose with the side of her hoof. "Did we really do the right thing?"
>>133609"Well..." She looks down and away. "You got what we assume are some copies of the pamphlets. But you didn't find out where she got them from, although she sort of hinted at it. On the bright side, it looks like she took a liking to you, and will trust you in the future. So can probably get more information out of her."
>>133610Fantasy is silent for a moment.
"She seemed like a nice pony, minus the Anarcho-syndicalism."
"I don't wanna do that again."
>>133611"Minus the Anarcho-Syndicalism? It is the Anarcho-Syndicalism that's caused Baltimare to revolt twice before in the past, to vandalize and burn houses of worship and destroy business, to murder police officers, politicians, and generally disrupt the social harmony. It's containing Anarcho-Syndicalism that we're here for."
>>133612"Why not? You did a pretty good job at it. She seemed to trust and like you and you could certainly go back to her again. And you could probably do this with more mares. I myself often have difficulty with females, but you didn't have any problems."