The Brothers Don't

"Macintosh?"

Big Mac turned around and smiled. "Eeyup."

Shining Armor beamed and thumped Macintosh in the chest. "Big Macintosh Apple! Welcome to the force, Soldier. Good to see you."

"You, too," Macintosh said. He looked around the barracks and swallowed a lump in his throat. "Uh... these ponies seem... experienced."

"That they are," Shining said, nodding proudly. "The best from every regiment."

Macintosh frowned. "Shining... er, Captain Armor... I've only been up here for a month. Why was I called up?"

Shining pursed his lips. He stepped closer to Big Mac and spoke quietly. "I'm assembling an elite team for a dangerous mission. I asked each regiment to send me their best fighters."

Macintosh shook his head. "That ain't me, Captain. I'm afraid I can't rightly call myself a good soldier. The most experience I ever had before this month was kickin' apart some timberwolves."

Shining Armor smirked. "That might be more helpful than you think, Soldier. Go on about your business, we'll get to training this afternoon."

They saluted each other, and Macintosh stumbled off.

The next day, after hours of excruciating trials and hoof-to-hoof combat training, he stood tall among several dozen soldiers facing Shining Armor, waiting for the team to be decided. He hoped, and believed, that his name would not be called. He wanted to get back to the front lines and fight the invaders.

But his attitude completely changed within seconds of Shining's speech.

"While I do have some of you in mind for this team," Shining yelled out to the troops, "there is an important detail I should share with you. Our mission will be dangerous and largely unplanned, but we have received a distress signal from farther north than ponykind has ever trod, farther than we believed could exist." He paused for a moment and had to clear his throat. "The signal was from Princess Twilight Sparkle. Four days ago, the Princess and her small tactical unit consisting of Pinkamena Diane Pie, Rainbow Dash, Rarity Belle, Fluttershy, and Applejack—"

Shining briefly made eye contact with Macintosh in the crowd.

"—vanished without a trace on the field of battle."

A murmur rippled through the soldiers. Macintosh felt the blood drain from his face.

"I will personally escort a small team of specialized fighters into the unknown north and gather all information necessary to retrieve them. Before I make my final decisions, are there any volunteers?"

Macintosh's hoof was the first in the air. Others he recognized were Spitfire, Captain of the Wonderbolts, and Zecora, a fellow Ponyvillean.

Shining nodded. "I thought so. Dismissed!"