“This plan, we can not approve of this,” The Chief Counselor stated. “It is of greater risk than you can understand.”

“So help us understand. That is what these Conclaves are about, clarity.”

“I have to stress again the danger of heading below,” The Chief Counselor said.

“You won’t let us do anything, or see anything we can trust.”

“It is for your own good!” Second Counselor stated. “We can not let harm come to the Pegasus Race. We swore to protect it.”

“I am afraid you are not protecting it, but hurting it. We have no real assurance that what you say is true.”

“You have the dated records,” Seventh Counselor stated. “What more can we do?”

“Sealed and contained in here. The public can not see them. And I am already holding my tongue on so much.”

“We are just as frustrated as you,” Third Counselor said.

“I wish I had faith in that. I feel you are blocking us at every opportunity.”

“We are not,” Fourth Counselor said. “I can see how you feel that way. At every turn, our security is in place. Classified seal after classified seal. It can be hard for us to get our hooves on information at these Conclaves. But together we are moving forward.”

“And yet, this is the Fourth Conclave and they get more and more silent. More and more quiet. You have heavily armed guards equipped for crowd control tactics.”

“This is their official station,” Fourth Counselor said before the others could speak. “This is not an attempt to put pressure on you. But you are looking at troop numbers, movements, strengths. You see stuff about the military that not even I know of. Need to know. And you need to know. But the rest only needs your assurance.”

“I have from a good source that five years ago you did exploration below.”

“Yes,” The Fourth Counselor said, not letting the others answer. “It was a disaster. Hundreds died above and below. Only a few survived, as we kept reinforcing their units with new soldiers.”

“And where are these survivors? Dead?”

“We don’t know,” Chief Counselor stated.

“You don’t know where? So they just disappeared.”

“Two are still in the military,” Fourth Counselor stated.

“You walk a dangerous edge,” Chief Counselor warned.

“Stuff it, the military is my forte. I have the most up to date and complete information.”

“Can we contact them?”

“One won’t talk, nor is she available right now. The other will just tell you not to be stupid. Bring me the phone.”

“Please don’t,” Second Counselor pleaded.

“Lets settle this here and now. I trust him to not say anything stupid.”

The ringing was loud in the Counsel Chambers.

“Go.”

“Colonel Nova?”

“Can this wait? I am attempting to squash a combat medic group. They are proving to be quite annoying.”

“Please tell me that is in training Sir.”

“Of course it is. I need them to excel, but that doesn’t mean they are not annoying me in combat exercises. I am leading their opposition. From my desk of course.”

“Colonel, you are in charge of the scouts, correct?”

“Who is this?”

“This is Fourth Counselor. We are here at the Fourth Conclave.”

“Fuck off. I have real shit to do.”

Colonel Nova hung up. Fourth Counselor laughed as he dialed the number again.

“Go.”

“Hanging up on the Council isn’t wise.”

“Well it was worth the try. Yes, Scout Command is under my hoof. You approved that. You should know. Actually, it was your ass that put pressure on me to come back and take this spot.”

“But our friends are looking for some assurance on that.”

“Fuck. Right. While I have you, no more ACUs are receiving Crowd Control Training. Your dogs are… dogs and are not coming near my troops to give them useless training. They have an actual job to do.”

“Your concerns are heard. Now, you went below?”

“I will give the order to kill if you attempt to have them force that training.”

“Understood,” Fourth Counselor growled. “Again, you did go below. Correct?”

“First in, last out. Only one to survive multiple missions below. And I have the mass in my wing to prove it.”

“What about going below…”

“Are you saying I need to deploy troops below? We are not ready. I am still building...”

“No, I am not. This Conclave is discussing going below, for a civilian team.”

“Who is the idiot who thinks they can survive below? Because they can’t! They can not survive below. Not yet. My troops can’t. I am waiting for some crucial information to be able direct my preparations. The Aerial Combat Units and Scouts will be the first ready to go below.”

“So Sir, you have been below?”

Nova sighed and he got serious. A soft serious. “Yes Civilian, I have. And not just in the putrid sky, but hooves on the ground. Twisted broken nightmare. Stay away. I understand some of what you are doing, but you need to stop. Heart and mind can be in the right place, but that doesn’t mean the path you wish to follow is the correct one to take. For your own safety, stop. You won’t last a month. I will go as far as saying you won’t last a week.”

“What dangers are we facing?”

“Are you deaf civilian? If you are in front of the Counsel, they can’t be that stupid. Half of those warnings come from me and my team and our time below. Now thank you for the extra work. I have to begin plans for search and rescue for you bodies.”

Colonel Nova hung up again.

“He is serious about the search and rescue,” Fourth Counselor stated.

“What about the other one?”

“She is unavailable. Special training. Cut off from the outside world.”

“How convenient.”

“Inconvenient,” Fourth Counselor replied. “We are concerned about their safety for a number of reason because we can’t reach them. But she would only speak less. She told us to fuck off when we asked her to help rebuild our programs involving below the clouds. She took a beating below.”

“Just how many died?”

“I don’t have those numbers readily available for this session,” Fourth Counselor admitted. “I wasn’t the counselor then. If I recall correctly, the Recon Teams lost 100, and the Scouts outright lost 150 by being blown out of the sky. Total count was over 400 because of how we reinforced the scouts.”

“Fine. I will trust those numbers. They are significant losses. But I also have good information that you have a recon team below right now.”

“Where are you getting this information,” Chief Counselor growled. “We are being as open as possible with you. But we can not have leaks.”

“Actually, that is a commonly believed myth,” Fourth Counselor stated. “That recruit who peaked General Red River’s interest.”

The Counselors had no idea what he was talking about.

The Fourth Counselor turned back to the Civilians. “I can’t fix their memory. But yes, one is below.”

“Can we call them?”

“I would, but they don’t have a phone. They opted for the most secure communications deployment possible. They had some concerns about breaches in security from below. They only have a single cloud terminal that talks to a single cloud terminal on our end.”

“Take one of us to it.”

“That I can not allow. We are giving you as much as possible, but clearing you for that much information, there is more than just the Recon Team from that instillation. You have some of the records from there. Most of the time it is a useless base, but this is the time in it’s rotation where it is a major bustle of activity.”

“I do not like hearing that.”

“I do not like telling you that. But I am able to access the reports on their reports. I have been working with them in my spare time. Let’s see...”

The Fourth Counselor turned on the wall terminal to the annoyance of the other Counselors.

“Last mission,” He said as he displayed it. “Yet another death. And half of the team took major injuries. They got absolutely no viable information. They ran into trouble before the were at their desired location.”

“Alright, medal count so far is, at least six Silver Stars and four Bronze Stars. Multiple Purple Hearts and a third of their force has died, receiving Purple Hearts with a Black Stripe.”

“They are earning medals for this?”

“Not a surprise. They are exploring the unknown and sticking their muzzles into dark places. Ah like this. A Zebra war outpost. My, my. A battalion of feral ghouls, forced to kill many of them with their combat knives because of ammunition shortages. Impressive. It must have seemed worthwhile, but I do not see anything in their report outside containing them.”

“Feral Ghouls?”

“Oh, you haven’t heard about them? Some of the ponies below have been and still are being turned into ghouls. They become ugly, dried up things, warped by the land below to mimic it. Living dead created by the Balefire Megaspell. Most of them lose their minds and just become flesh eating monsters.”

“That isn’t the only flesh eaters reported. The team found others mutated ponies who enjoy pony flesh. And then they have these Hellhounds. That is a special report. Let me send you that. Those are ignoring the ponies that killed them during peace talks, or tried to enslave them.”

They combed through the reports for a while.

“I am not sure we trust these.”

“What qualm can you have about these?” The Chief Counselor snapped.

“They might be dated right, but we are unsure.”

“These are accurate, up to date,” The Fourth Counselor stated. “You can see the dates there.”

“And the medals?”

“All the more reason to believe them. Saying somepony died is one thing, but medals are not something I would think to fake for reports.”

“Could this team meet up with us?”

“I hope they will be returning after that last mission. They might be able to, but that depends on timing and how well they are healing.”

“What is Outpost Rosemary?”

“Wherever they set up their secure location to retreat to. You can see the massive supply drops and requests for materials as they have problems below.”

“These coordinates make no sense.”

“I haven’t done navigation in years. I do not know either. Their support team has a map with their location on it.”

The doors opened and a Corporal walked in. She was moving with purpose and military skill. Fear was a good motivator. Being the messenger was not fun.

“Sirs,” She saluted. “Counselors Sirs. Ma’ams.”

“Yes Corporal?” The Chief Counselor asked to stop her babbling.

“I have news from the Third Fleet. They declared a State of Emergency for the Northern Farming District.”

“We should move to recess and discuss this privately,” Second Counselor advised.

“Clarity,” The Third Counselor voted.

“It is already known we have troops there,” Fifth Counselor stated. “Speak Corporal.”

“The fleet reports they were iced out, stuck in a local farming community a ways outside El Nino. The entire district froze over, inches of solid ice. The Buttercup was completely shut down and then encased in ice.”

“They are gathering emergency cold weather supplies, coats and blankets mostly. But plenty of food is being gathered as well. They are reporting record lows, beyond -20 Celsius. The farm ponies don’t have electricity and survive with a small wood fire and blankets. But they need more. Their farms are in bad shape in that regard and they have no way to stay outside long enough to do anything until coats are brought.”

“Why don’t they have coats?” Sixth Counselor scoffed.

“They never get this cold,” Second Counselor stated. “Not for more than two weeks. Otherwise their cloaks provide enough as they work the fields every day they can. Continue.”

“Harvests were decimated. The preliminary reports are losses all across the district and will probably need support to make it till next harvest. They say yields may be low next harvest.”

“What about out east and our science units?”

“No word. They most likely got iced out as well, just as bad. But we can’t contact them. The storm was building but stalled. Most of the Third backed out because of the storm, they probably backed out to Cherry Town. The Buttercup thought the storm was further than it was. It struck fast once let loose.”

“Why was the Buttercup out so far and why did she get caught?”

“I… You should call Captain Ruby Snow directly. It… I can’t explain his logic.”

“Thank you,” Seventh Counselor said. “Please let us know immediately when you get in contact with our teams out there.”

“What has he done this time,” Fifth Counselor groaned taking the phone.

“I know what I am doing, follow your orders,” Ruby Snow said answering the phone.

“Having trouble Captain?” The Fifth Counselor asked.

“Oh, its you. They said they were going to give my report.”

“The Corporal who delivered the report did not know how to explain some things.”

“Shit.”

“This is a full counsel meeting, and the Fourth Conclave. Well?”

“Fourth? You guys need to stop working against each other and start trusting each other. Also, my team refuses to work with the Crowd Control units you have stationed there. Blatant disrespect for me, my ship and my crew. As well as other Enclave soldiers. If Bull enters our bridge again without permission, we will shoot him in the head. Or my Lieutenant will. She can do it from her seat without stopping her duties flying the ship. Probably without looking.”

“Your Lieutenant is flying it?” Second Counselor said appalled.

“She is wonderful and will make an exceptional Captain over any vessel.

“The Third is odd,” The Firth Counselor clarified. “Captain Ruby Snow is doing an amazing job and how he trains his officers is up to him. A Corvette is not easy to pilot.”

“We need more Corvettes. If you make one, the request is to call it the Rising Sun.”

“That is your cover vessel.”

“Exactly!”

“We are getting nowhere,” The Fifth Counselor stated with head in hooves. “Now, for clarification, a Corvette is a Cloudship Class that was experimented with. The class was found to not be optimal. But the Buttercup is an excellent ship and serves us well.”

“Good thing the Lieutenant is back there and isn’t with us. She would run your ear off on things that would probably get her in trouble.”

“Explain!” The Chief Counselor ordered.

“Umm… So the weather teams are lazy and just kind of shove stuff out that far. Nopon. No Pegasus studies it. They were pushing a good front of to the western side and I thought with the rest of the Third in the eastern half, it would not be a bad idea to catch and experience the storm. Do some weather surveying.”

“You were with this storm and it developed into a giant ice storm?” Fifth Counselor asked.

“No,” Ruby Snow chuckled. “I was ahead of that storm. It stalled out into nothing. A very common occurrence when the weather teams don’t do their actual job. But that is besides the point. They prefer the North. It treats them well.”

“You are stalling.”

“We are out there, and we detect that incoming storm and move in to intercept. It was small and a long ways off, never giving any hint of it building as much as it did. But I saw a cherry farm, and halted to buy the crew fresh cherries.”

The Fifth Counselor held their hoof up, silencing the other counselors so Ruby Snow could continue.

“They are savvy business ponies. And I mean ponies. That is what they say collectively and have since before the war.”

“That is known,” The Sixth Counselor stated.

“Good. So, they barter wings for a lot of fresh cherries. With the storm coming, they were going to need the help. The crew was happy to jump ship and help for fresh food. You non counselors, its hard enough for the military to get fresh food, especially on a Cloudship. If it is, the small bit ends up going to the Officers.”

“I do not operate in such an appalling manor. We also are a very tiny ship. My max crew is 84, but I am in the mid 50s. The understaffing is a known issue and we can skip over that.”

“I wanted cherries and my troops wanted to get them as well. So to harvests we went, helping pull them in before the storm came. Thirty pairs of wings did a lot, but not enough. I stayed with the Buttercup, working on the cherry farm.”

“We were trying to knock the leaves off after we got the harvest in. To save the trees. The storm broke loose then, slamming into us faster than anypegasus expected, even the locals. Three days inside, wrapped in blankets. The cherries were flash frozen. Harvests were left half done. My troops were housed and cared for by the locals. They are quite pleasant, even when they are unsure of us.”

“Losses across the district will be reported. The cherry harvest may have been brought in, but it will be turned around and distributed to the community in an attempt to survive until the next harvest. They may need food. Definitely in certain places.”

“It took us a long time to get the Buttercup free of the ice. It was beautiful the shell that was left. We were measuring the wall as thick as 14 inches. They have seen bad, but never this bad. Hence the state of emergency.”

“I am glad we stopped. It was good for our image and is only going to save lives. The farm had a newborn foal. They struggled to keep her warm. They have. But its not easy when the house is only 10 Celsius warmer than outside. 10 if you are lucky. We had maybe, 6. And no wind.”

“But it was tough, all staked out in the living room, sharing blankets around their little fireplace. Bathroom runs were calculated and real runs. Meals were cold. There was not way to cook. We had to let stuff warm up by the fire to defrost them so we could eat them. The bread was frozen.”

“Where is your crew?” Fifth Counselor asked.

“Deployed at the farms. I have the skeleton crew we left in charge of the Buttercup. The crew was told not take chances with the weather. If they did decide to try it, their winter gear was unloaded for them when they came to check in. Field rations were left and their orders were to deploy back with the farms to help however possible, and that we will be paying if it comes to that. A good helping hoof is much better than bits to them.”

“It’s bad, but our unskilled hooves did a lot.”

The Fifth Counselor sighed. “Captain Ruby Snow, you are an idiot.”

“Thank you Ma’am.”

“Thank you?” Chief Counselor said.

“We go back a long ways,” Ruby Snow stated.

“A lucky idiot,” Fifth Counselor stated. “You did the right thing by calling for a State of Emergency. Take care of them well. I’ll shift what I can to you as soon as I get a moment.”

“Doing all I can. And the Second is already backing us up with the Third, Fifth and Eighth Task Forces. That’s to start. The First is stalling on helping us.”

“Did you get the cherries?” A civilian asked.

“Nope! And I do not expect to. This turned into a support mission, not a quick stop for a treat. We did eat some stunningly amazing jam and preserved cherries they make there. But nothing is fresh. Bastards still probably have the better cherries though.”

“Lets avoid the cherry rivalry,” Fifth Counselor softly ordered. “That has absolutely no bearing on anything.”

“You said Fourth Conclave?”

“Yes?” Fifth Counselor said tentatively.

“Did you tell them about the blow back from the supply drop?”

“Blow back?” Seventh Counselor asked.

“The Third was tasked with a massive supply drop below. I officially know nothing because we are told to keep it that way. We have nothing to do with the recon team in any way unless ordered. But we facilitated a large drop of unmarked crates through the clouds.”

“It wasn’t an easy dig. The lower parts had radiation and toxic chemicals soaked in. Not immediately deadly, but you don’t want to stay more than 48 hours. When we breached there was a blast of air up through the clouds filled with lots of deadly shit.”

“Everypony. Damn those farmers. Everypegasus had to scrub down ourselves and the ships present.”

The civilians thanked the Captain and the phone call ended.

“See,” Chief Counselor said. “That is raw, unfiltered, crystal clear evidence supporting us.”

“He doesn’t give a shit about this,” Fifth Counselor stated. “He wants it peacefully resolved. That is all. If you go below, he will call you an idiot. If we pressure you and force it closed, he will call us idiots. He just cares about the Third Fleet and what they must do.”

“And what do they do exactly?”

“That varies. Hence why they are the Third Fleet you never hear about. Difficult patrols are a common one for them. Far away along the outer reaches of our boarders. The larger demonstrations we have brought the Buttercup and another ship in because they are perfect for patrolling the city from the sky. Their small size is a big advantage.”

“Obviously, we will no longer be stationing any of the Crowd Control units on their ships. We will stock them with regular law enforcement officers to be used if needed. He was serious about shooting that soldier. He is not the only ship to report problems.”

“Half the Third has been directly helping with the reclouding in the Northern Farming District. The ships are perfect for that duty and they have been working hard.”

“Cover Ship?”

“The Third Fleet is quiet. We like to keep them quiet. Critical positions can say they are deployed on a fictitious ship to cover them. It makes dealing with friends and family easier. They undertake some weird missions. Perfect example is his choice to gather weather data.”

“The Third Fleet is a real dead end when it comes to anything below. But, I need the bathroom. We can continue this discussion after I force us into a short recess. I have held it long enough. And I have to kick the First Fleet’s ass into gear. Damn fucking rivalry.”

Next Chapter: Chapter 62 - Hollow Shades Estimated time remaining: 1 Hour, 56 Minutes