Day 358. Mission: Picnic # 15. Time: 11:25

It was a crisp summer morning. The birds were singing in the trees, the sun was shining and thanks to the weather team, there wasn’t a cloud in the sky. It was the perfect day for a picnic. I could see the girls in the distance laying out a red and white checkered picnic blanket on the lush green grass. Rarity and Twilight were setting the plates. Pinkie Pie and Fluttershy were setting up the food and as usual, Rainbow Dash and Applejack were challenging each other to a hoof-wrestling contest. I was set up in an apple tree about 70 yards South West, looking at them through a pair of binoculars. the leaves blocking me from any wandering eyes

“God could this be any more boring?” I thought as I watched them sit down to eat. “I think I would rather be at the house right now, at least then I’ll be able to fully complete my prank for Jane.” The prank I was referring to was one to get back at her for hiding the motor mounts to the car I was working on in a bowl of Jell-O in the fridge. Of course, I did drop a bucket of water and flour on her head a few weeks earlier. This whole prank war started about eight months ago when I started to trust Jane. Now she is starting to become part of the team. She also was the one that got me to loosen up on the girls. Since they can’t pick up radio waves we have been able to call them by name, makes it easier to mark who is in trouble when we need to.

Thanks to her, we have been able to fully trick out the house with the use of magic. We have the solar farm set up and it is actually putting out ten times more power than it would be able to on Earth. Jane said that the power from the sun is higher because Celestia controls it. Also because the air on Equestria is cleaner that on Earth. We even have a water wheel that we geared up to power the water pump and heater next to it. We set it up in the creek behind the house. We also have built a radio tower near the house so we can get a radio signal all the way to Appleloosa. I had also designed a way for Jane to charge her magic up without causing electricity to jump from the socket outlet and her cutie mark to burn into the floor which has happened about two more times, thankfully all of them over lapping the one in the office. It's a ring attached to a cord that plugs into the electrical socket. She didn’t find it very funny but when I added a power level control switch, she gladly used it. We have also found out that she can create items we need by using a piece of the same spell that she was created with. All we have to do is show her what it’s made of and what it looks like and she can create it. She can only do this once a month by building up a large amount of power. Her power levels are also growing making it so she can create larger items. At first, it was just ammo and food. Now its car parts and sometimes-even weapons.

As I watched them start their picnic, I checked the computer I on my left wrist, making sure the signals were still working. Thanks to Jane, we were able to upgraded Twilight and Rarity’s trackers, so now they have an implanted tracker similar to Fluttershy and Rainbow Dash. We had to cover it with a special magic coating that makes it so their magic doesn't mess with the electronics inside. We also installed one into Spike so we can make sure the guy is kept safe. They all still need work, we have difficulty getting a signal from them when they are either in a cave or in a building with thick walls. There are only a few times we had this situation but we were able to keep visual confirmation. At this moment, my radio decided to alert me of an incoming transmission.

“Stones, you there?” Tyrock asked using the home radio.

“What’s going on?”

“Spike is on the move heading for Twilight as fast as he can.” He informed me.

“Message?”

“Unknown. Stand by.” He said as Spike booked it into the clearing. He ran over to Twilight huffing and puffing

“Twi... light! ...I... have... Lemme just... he said bending over, placing his hands on his knees breathing deeply. Then his cheeks bulged signaling the arrival of a letter. Twilight picked it up as I turned on Applejacks tracker microphone so I could record the message.

“Dear Twilight, I am sure you are as excited as I am about the upcoming wedding in Canterlot.” She paused “Wedding?” She shrugged but kept on reading. “I will be presiding over the ceremony, but would very much like you and your friends to help with the preparations for this wonderful occasion. Fluttershy, I would like you and your songbird choir to provide the music.”

“Oh my goodness! What an honor!” Fluttershy said with a smile.

“Pinkie Pie, I can think of no one more qualified than you to host the reception.”

“Hip, hip, hooray!” Pinkie said as she cartwheeled across the picnic, knocking over the kettle and putting a hoof print on the cake.

“Applejack, you will be in charge of the catering for the reception.” Twilight read as she righting the pot and smoothed the cake over.

“Well, color me pleased as punch!” Applejack said holding a hoof to her chest.

“Rainbow Dash.” Twilight started as Rainbow Dash lifted her hoof to yawn. “I would very much appreciate it if you could perform a sonic rainboom as the bride and groom complete their I do’s.” in the process Rainbow stuffed her hoof in her mouth out of surprise.

“Yes!” she said flying into the air, pumping her hooves.

“Rarity, you will be responsible for designing the dresses for the bride and her bridesmaids.”

“Princess Celestia wants me to ah ooy ...wedding dress? For a Canterlot wedding... I, ah, ooh, oooh!” Rarity mumbled out as she fell onto her back with a smile so big I could call it unlady like.

“And as for you, Twilight, you will be playing the most important role of all: Making sure that everything goes as planned. See you all very soon. Yours, Princess Celestia.” she then turned the scroll over looking for something. “But... I don't understand. Who's getting married?”

“Oh, wait!” Spike said turning back towards Twilight. “Uh, I was probably supposed to give you this one first.” He then pulled another scroll out from behind his back. Twilight rolled her eyes and unrolled the scroll.

“Princess Celestia cordially invites you to the wedding of Princess Mi Amore Cadenza and…” she lets out a gasp. “My brother?!”

“Jane, you got any intel?” I asked as I started typing up a list of supplies we need for Canterlot on my wrist computer.

“Twilights brother is a white unicorn with a blue mane that goes by the name Shining Armor.” she said as I added tranquilizer darts rifles to the list. “He is also the captain of the royal guards.” I stopped typing and looked up towards Canterlot. We had to deal with the guards ten times since we scared the hell out of them. It's almost like Celestia is trying to find out what we are. There were a few times we had to deal with the girls and the guards, those times we kept in the shadows and cracked a few branches to scare them off. Then my sight noticed something odd about the mountainside city.

“What the hell?” I thought as I lifted the binoculars. Canterlot was surrounded by a large pink colored bubble. “Jane, what is that?” I said taking a picture with the glassed using the binoculars to zoom in.

“By the looks of it, there seems to be a force field surrounding Canterlot.” She said as I looked through the binoculars guessing the dimensions and thickness. Sending in the numbers to Sarah

“What Intel do you have on force fields, also why would there be one surrounding the capital city?” I asked hoping for an answer I would like.

“Well the power needed to make one that size and hold it is about 75 to 80 units of magic power. I don't know his power levels but if Shining Armor is the one that made that force field then, Canterlot has either been threatened or they are under attack.” Jane stated as I looked at Canterlot in the distance.

I went back to my list and erased tranquilizer darts rifles and replaced it with 2 tac-338 rifles and 2 AS50 rifles. Both with thermal and night vision scopes and suppressors. I then added 2 desert eagles and 2 combat shotguns to the list, also with similar suppressors. Along with our combat armor and helmets. I also added canteens and a week supplies of MREs at the bottom. Once it was done, I sent it to Tyrock who was sitting at the house waiting for the night shift.

“Tyrock I want you to load up Red with every item on the list and pack extra weapons and bring extra suppressors just in case,” I said with a slight joyful tone in my voice

“Stones, why the hell are you so happy about there being a chance the girls might be in danger?”
.

“You know... I think it might be because I'm so… fucking... bored. There hasn’t been anything to do since that last Timberwolf attack that was forever ago.”

“Stones wasn't that attack yesterday afternoon?” He said slightly puzzled.

“Exactly, I haven't been able to shoot anything for almost a whole day.” I said. That Timberwolf attack was the twenty-fifth one since we came here, the nasty buggers never got close to Ponyville, thank goodness for that, but they won't stop trying. I did a quick glance checking on the condition of the picnic. Twilight was frozen stiff, her eyes the size of pin pricks.

“You’ll get over it. Why do we need the AS50s, isn't that a little bit too much of a caliber for this type of mission?” Tyrock asked.

“Ya, but we also don't know what exactly is threatening Canterlot and what type of weaponry or armor it might have. It's better to have it and not need it than to need it and not have it.”

“When do you 'need' this done by?”

“ They’ll probably take the 1400 train to make it there with enough time to get settled in and get started the next day. I’ll give you about two hours to get the truck to the base of Canterlot Mountain. I’ll ride the train to keep an eye on them. I want you to grab the weapons and supplies and bring it up to the Northern end of the force field. I’ll meet you on the North side of Canterlot near the tracks. It's probably the only way in and out. We might have to make a couple of trips to get all the equipment up the mountain. I’ll take some rappelling equipment and get some areas ready.”

“Copy that. I try to get it all up in one trip. See you in a bit.”

“Jane I need any Intel on this Princess Mi Amore Cadenza.”

“There’s a slight problem with that, none of the girls has come into contact with anypony with that name.” She said as I heard her typing on the keyboard I made for her, looking through our records of the girls. They keyboard was slightly larger than one uses for fingers, I just made it so she just had to touch the keys with her magic and it would read it as it would with typing or since the keys are larger she can use her hooves. “I don’t even know there was a third princess.”

“Okay, so we are dealing with unknown factor and it’s going to become sister-in-law to one of our guard. I want you to check any cameras in Canterlot for an Alicorn that we haven’t seen before. Once you found something let me know.” I said as Twilight snapped out of her little blank moment.

“Your brother's getting married? Congratulations, Twilight! That's great news!” Applejack said putting a hoof on her shoulder. Twilight looked irritated.

“Yeah, great news. That I just got from a wedding invitation! Not from my brother, but from a piece of paper! Thanks a lot, Shining Armor. I mean, really, he couldn't tell me personally?” She said as she picked up a sandwich. Then she said in a deep voice trying to imitate her brother making the sandwich open and close. “Hey, Twilight, just thought you should know I'm making a really big decision that changes everything. Oh, never mind, you'll hear about it when you get the invitation.” Then switching back to her normal voice. “Princess Mi Amore Cadenza? Who in the hoof is that?!” She yelled then gave a snort.

“Um, Twilight? Are you okay?” Fluttershy asked quietly.

“Sorry, it's just that Shining Armor and I have always been so close. He's my B.B.B.F.F!” She said everyone just looked at her in confusion. She rolled her eyes “Big Brother Best Friend Forever.”

“Ohhh!” they all nodded in understanding. As Twilight broke out into song, I cut the connection, sparing my brain the torture of the song repeating over and over in my head all day. That’s one of the problems with Equestria, no one can stop from singing every five minutes.

“Jane any luck finding this strange Alicorn?” I asked.

“Yes, I have located her with the cameras. I have actually seen her before, but the name I have for her is Cadance. She was Twilight's foal sitter before Twilight moved to Ponyville. This is her currently location.” She stated as she sent the image to me. The Alicorn was standing next to a dark alley talking to someone out of the camera's view. She was about five foot tall with a light pink coat. She had a mane with dark blue, a pink darker than her coat, and a light cream color in it. She had a cutie mark of a light blue crystal heart with a gold swirl design on both sides.

“What does that mark mean, Jane. Also, can you identify the pony in the alley?” I asked waiting for the song to be over.

“From the memories, she is apparently the princess of love. It will be difficult to find the specific pony with out knowing their species or their cutie mark.” She said waiting on my response.

“Okay so we are dealing with cupids pet, forget about the other pony, it's not worth the time or effort to figure out who she has talked to, just give me her movements since stepping into Canterlots boundaries.”

“Will do.” She said as I switched Applejacks mic back on.

“As one of your P.F.F.’s” again another pause. “Pony Friend Forever…”

“Ohhh!” everyone acknowledged. I just shook my head and waited for the info to download onto my computer.

“I wanna tell you that I think your brothers sounds like a real good guy.” Applejack Finished. Twilight sighed.

“He is pretty special. I mean, they don't let just anypony be captain of the Royal Guard.” Once she said this, I could have sworn I heard a record scratch.

“So let me get this straight. We're helping out with the wedding of not only a princess but a captain of the Royal Guard?” Rarity asked yelling the last part.

“I guess we are.”

“Ooh, ooh, ooh!” Rarity exclaimed as Twilight levitated a pillow over for her to fall on. The rest of the girls started chattered excitedly about the upcoming wedding. After about thirty minutes, they headed off to their respected homes to pack. As for me, I headed to the train station. Along the way I picked up one of the supply packs we have stashed all over the Ponyville region. Inside was twenty repelling clamps and about 500 yards of rope, and a desert eagle pistol in a shoulder strap. There was also a harness design with a small winch on the back. Once I arrived I checked the estimated time for the train to arrive then I camped out in some bushes about twenty feet across from the station checking the pistol and clamps. I strapped the pistol under my left arm placed everything back in the pack. As I waited I set my screen up to show the girls location as well as the location of Celestia and Luna in Canterlot. So far neither of the princesses have moved for the last two hours. I also pulled up the new princess’s location. She was currently sitting in the Canterlot gardens and she has been there for the ten minutes. As I watched her movements play out in reverse seeing where she has been, I started to see a pattern, I pulled up her known location history and started over lapping it. Jane was able to mark it up after marking her as a P.O.I. (Pony Of Interest.) I could now see all of her movements since she stepped foot into Canterlot ten hours ago. That’s when things got interesting, after waiting 4 hours she started walking in a patterned forming the shape of 300, a S, and a 12. Once she was done she would go inside then and hour later she would start again. She only did that four times but then she stopped, only staying in the castle and in a small area on the southeast end of the gardens. Except for the trip to the ally way.

“Jane, what do you make of this?” I asked sending her the pattern.

“Interesting it looks like she is trying to write some kind of message. Maybe it’s unintentional. She could just be trying to find something. It could be just a coincidence that it makes those symbols.” She suggested.

“Where I come from there is no such thing as a coincidence.” I said grabbing the desert eagle from the holster under my left arm. Pulling the slide back loading in a round.

20 minutes later.

I heard the train come rolling into the station, just as the girls stepped onto the platform. When the train pulled to a stop, letting off a burst of steam, I checked the windows for anyone watching. when it was clear I ran for the second to last car. I slid underneath and checked for the support hooks. The hooks were part of the car's design to help them lift it up if it derailed or needed to be set on another track. We designed a harness system that attached to the hook and let us ride underneath the car safely. I grabbed the four hooks from the harness in the pack and locked them on to the carts hooks. I checked each one by giving them a sharp pull making sure they wouldn’t come free. Once I was satisfied I laid down on my stomach and activated the small winch built onto the front of the harness. The winch gave a small whine then I was lifted off the ground held tightly against the bottom of the cart leaving two feet between me and the ground below.

“ALL ABOARD.” I heard the conductor yell. I wiggled around for a bit, getting comfortable for the roughly two-hour ride to Canterlot. I heard the engine give off a burst of steam then the cars gave a little shake as the connectors caught grip and pulled us along. We soon reached full speed and flew across the terrain. The ground and the tracks whizzing under me as the wind blew my inch long hair back. Ever since I came here I started to ‘loosen up’ as they would say. I didn’t loosen up on my duty but I have stopped being so strict on Jane and Tyrock. I have also started to learn about the world we are currently stuck in. Not from Jane, but from books. I would regularly borrow a couple from Twilights library. Mostly magic and how to books from the basement. As I read them I would cross-reference them with similar ones from our world. Like cooking and building, learning the differences between this world and our own.

Time: 1 hour and 20 minutes later. Tyrock 5.45 miles Northwest.

I yanked the wheel to the left then spun it back to the right as I threw the rear end around the sharp turn, using the gas pedal to control the drift. I gave a small laugh as I straightened the truck out, splashing through a small creak. I checked the rear view mirror making sure everything was still strapped down. A few things have shifted a few inches but stayed in position. A few minutes later I arrived at the bottom of Canterlot Mountain.

“Bravo 1 status?” I heard on the truck radio. The name change not going unnoticed. Stones wanted complete info lock during this mission.

“Bravo 2, I am at the bottom getting ready to unload then ascend.” I said picking up the radio's mic.

“Copy that, almost to the lowest tunnel.” He said then I had to spin the volume down as a voice blared through the speakers. “BEST WEDDING EVER!” I don't know how Stones wasn't deaf from how loud the sound was.

“What was that?” I asked cautiously turning the volume back up.

“Pink.” was all he had to say for me to understand it was Pinkies doing.

Personal: Stones. Location: 600 yards from north end of the force field.

I stuck my pinkie finger into my ear trying to get some hearing back in it. I put the earpiece back in and checked the condition of the girls.

“Why the long face, sugarcube?” Applejack said to one of them.

“I'm just thinking about Shining Armor. Ever since I moved to Ponyville, we've been seeing each other less and less. And now that he's starting a new family with this "Princess Mi Amore Ca-whatshername", we'll probably never see each other.” Twilight said answering her. I lowered my head looking towards the front of the train, then I saw the force field about 100 yards ahead of me.

“Come on, now. You're his sister. He'll always make time for you.” Applejack said as we reached the 75-yard mark. I grabbed the harness tightly.

“Couldn't seem to make time to tell me he was getting married.” Twilight grumbled.

“We're here, we're here!” Pinkie exclaimed excitedly. 25 yards. I could feel the train slow down to a crawl when it reached the barrier. I caught a glimpse of two royal guards standing on either side of the tracks then the force field reached the cart. I watched as the barrier flowed around me as we passed through. There was a little resistance pulling at me but I made it through without any problems. I released the breath I did not even know I was holding. I looked behind us to check the position of the guards. They continued to face southward, away from the force field. I then hit the small button on my right shoulder causing the hooks to snap off their lines. I grabbed the frame of the car and tuned myself so my back was facing the ground then I let go, crossing my arms over my chest. When I made contact, the train was just barely started gaining its speed back. As soon as I hit the ground, the rear axle pasted over my head missing by an inch then the last car passed over leaving me looking up at the pink-tinted sky. I rolled over and launched myself towards the mountainside off to the right of me. I could not see any nearby patrols or any civilians either. Once I reached the mountain, I immediately started climbing the near vertical rock face.

Personal: Tyrock. Location: 756 feet from northbound tracks. Twenty minutes have passed.

I drew in a big deep breath as I wiped the sweat from my brow, looking up the mountainside locating the blur of the tracks in the afternoon heat up above me.

“Damn you, Celestia, why did you have to make it so hot to day.” I thought shifting the two packs I was carrying into a more comfortable position. The rifles and assault shotguns on my back made it a little difficult for the packs to sit right. I was grateful that we were able to put a bigger holding place on the vest to accommodate for the weaponry. I also had the two pistols on both of my thigh magnetic platings. I had the shotguns in the center on my back without their drum magazines and the two sets of rifles on the outside allowing me to bend my head back without hitting it on the stocks. The pack had Stones' vest along with all the food and ammo I could carry, mostly the latter. I also have my crossbow strapped to the back of the pack. I took a swig from the canteen I had sitting in the pocket on my right side. Once the canteen was back in place, I started up again. The ground was mostly solid but every now and again, I would find a loose patch that would almost make me have to start this climb all over again. Normally we would go through the crystal caverns beneath Canterlot because it was the easiest way to get into Canterlot without being seen. With the force field, we don't know it the cave system is clear or not. I tapped the activation button on the radio to signal Stones that I was getting close to the ronday viewpoint. I heard a few taps from the radio telling me that he was on his way.

Personal: Stones. Location: 100 yards on the outer edge of the Canterlot force field.

I took a couple steps back and ran for the edge springing off the rock ledge to its mate ten feet away. I landed in a roll stopping after a few feet. I looked over the edge and gauged the distance to be about 200 yards from the gardens below. I could see Twilight and Shining Armor on the other side on a bridge that spanned the area between the main gate and the throne room. Twilight was talking to her brother about something I couldn't hear. All I knew was she was not happy with him. I could see her calm down a bit then I saw the pony that has me worried. Cadence walked out and Twilight walked up to her and started doing a dance that I could only see half of because she kept ducking behind the bridge walls. When she was done, Cadence looked at her in questionably. Twilight looked at her in surprise then Cadence walked past her and embraces Shining Armor. I kept glancing between her and Twilight, gauging their relationship. From what I can see something's up.

“Bravo 3, Bravo 4, I have a few questions about our mysterious friend.” I said looking over at the train station, the work force was loading up the train getting it ready for the trip to Manehattan. I could also see that there were no guards on the north end of the tracks.

“Fire away.” They both said together.

“What was her full relationship with lavender and I want full details.” I said kneeling down to attach the rappel line to the rock ledge.

“She became her foal-sitter shortly after she became Creams, personal student.” Jane said as I drove the line into the ground.

“Did they do anything that was close to some kind of dance?”

“Yes, they would do it whenever they would either meet or say good bye. As far as I know, the last time they did it was a few days before they both moved.” Sarah explained.

“Any reason they would end this form of greeting?”

“The only reason was they both out grew it...” Jane started

“But if one still does it then neither one would fail to copy in the procedure. Why?” Sara asked.

“Lavender started, the new friend didn’t comply.” I started as I rappelling off the edge. “I want you two to find any information you can on her past behaviors and compare it with the present. If something doesn't add up let me know.”

“Copy that./Will do.” They answered cutting the connection. Just then, I heard a few beeps coming from Tyrock's signal. I sent a few beeps back and touched down on the ground below. I landed behind some bushes near the edge and cut a few extra yards on the end of the rope.

I quietly worked my way around the edge of Canterlot, soon reaching the tracks. Again the sides were hidden behind a patch of bushes on both sides of the force field. I did a quick glance for Tyrock. I spotted him inside a cave near the tracks about 50 yards from the force field. I curled my fingers for him to come over, he shook his head then pointed at something behind me.

I spent many years afterward kicking myself in the ass over this mistake. I turned and saw a mint green unicorn standing not ten feet behind me, staring. I recognized her as the one that is obsessed with humans, the one that we have been trying to stay away from since we got here. Lyra Heartstrings. Her eyes were as round as a large dinner plate with her pupils the size of ants. She was sputtering words out like a dying motor. I looked at her then looked up at Celestia sitting in her tower, who was currently looking through her telescope out at the Everfree forest, probably trying to find the “great metal beast of the forest”. She wasn’t looking in our direction. I looked back at Lyra and pulled out the suppressed pistol under my arm pointing it at her head.

“Sorry.” Was all I whispered.

Author's Note

Cliffhanger!!!!!!
Sorry I was thinking about extending the chapter but then I though this would be a great time to start adding suspense in. Thank you if you have read this far. If you see a problem with the story please let me know. I'll try to fix it if I can.

For now, thanks for reading and ill try to get the next chapter out as soon as I can.

This story was edited by Dreagknight. Thanks for the help.