Lily Glamerspear

---

"I don't know. Should I wear the helmet?"

Specialist Lily Glamerspear had never seen her Very Important Pony so indecisive before.

"Or is it goofy without the rest on as well?"

Thankfully, Honour was managing the confused VIP who wasn’t actually a pony. "I think you can present yourself in your ordinary dress clothes, sir. You've got your full quaternion here to back you up, and none of us are injured, either."

Anon nodded his head repeatedly. "Right, right. I just want to, you know -- I want to project a certain air of intimidation. Put him in his place, yes? Last time, when he came for his helmet, he was holding all the cards with that ridiculous blank-check authorization of his."

That blanket 'bridge on the stirrup river' permission form Major General Hoofstrong had signed for Valiant Kilfeather was, indeed, complete minotaur dung.

Anonymous collapsed into his chair, his black-bronze helmet and massive 'icosapligi' mace sitting on the bureau in front of him, dwarfing all the stationary in a passive show of force. Just behind and to the side of his seat was a tall suit stand which had been repurposed to hold the rest of his 'Erefloga Panoply': linen undergarment, chest plate, bracers, greaves, and gauntlets. In early the afternoon sunlight, the 'Black Flame' dark bronze glowed with an antique luster.

The Royal Engineer shook his head. "I'm tired of having to deal with this colt. What the devil could he want now? I've got enough on my plate working on the foundry and preparing the Whirlwind for real combat. Obviously he's coming about our entry into the Games in place of his wing, but what specifically? Any ideas, anyone? Specialist Glamerspear, you have some history together; maybe you have an inkling?"

Lily cleared her throat. "Sir, I don't really know, but I doubt he's coming just to waste your time. I know he can be a jackass, but he wouldn't be in charge of Equestria's premier air defense wing if he was genuinely lazy or insubordinate."

She glanced at the pieces of armor and the intimidating weapon. "One thing I know he isn't is browbeat-able. There's no point in you suiting up in your armor, sir, because nothing fazes Val." Shrugging, she tossed a forehoof up in the air. "That's a big part of how his team took the Grand Mêlée. He just doesn't back down, even when he's outmatched. He always manages to hold out for the enemy's morale to break first."

Anonymous closed his eyes and rubbed his fingers at the bridge of his nose. "Wonderful. I'm up against a hard place on one side and here's the rock rolling in on the other."

‘He's really worked up about this.’

Well, he was probably hoping for some peace and quiet after yesterday's intensity. So was she, to be honest. Lily still needed some time to digest just what she’d learned on the Moon. But she put those thoughts away for now and focused on her VIP.

"Sir, you know, this year's MXP Games was probably Val's last chance to participate as a real contender.”

The Royal Engineer looked up. "What do you mean by that?"

Even Honour, closer to his desk, narrowed her eyes at the specialist.

‘Geez, it's not like it's a big secret or something.’

"He's been an officer in the Guard for six years now and he's only moved up one rank to full lieutenant. Even for a non-noble, that's a long time -- and there's always a shortage of qualified intermediate-level officers. He's overdue for promotion to captain."

Mixed memories of her time as Val's marefriend -- ‘was that what I really was?’ -- poked at the edges of her mind. It was not the time for them, so she shoved them away.

"I know for a fact he asked to be held back for this year's games; I'm sure Major General Hoofstrong pulled some strings on his behalf considering he'd taken the most prestigious prize last year." She shook her head. "But that's over now. He's been a lieutenant for too long."

Anonymous furrowed his brow. "So? He moves up to captain. Are captains not allowed to participate in the Games?"

‘He doesn't get it.’

Honour turned to face their VIP, having cottoned on. "Sir, the 1st Air Division is one of the few full-strength Divisions in the Royal Guard. Lieutenant Kilfeather is in command of probably the best air superiority wing in the Guard -- unless a spot opens up elsewhere in 1st A.D., as part of his promotion he'll surely be reassigned to command an air battalion in some other division."

Lily nodded. "He always wanted to command one of the wings of the 1st Canterlot Battalion and take them to victory at the Games. He had his heart set on making a new record for the number of times one particular pony stood on the podium. He graduated near the top of his class at the Academy, and lobbied hard to get placed into 1st A.D. Then it was a matter of impressing the upper brass as a Lieutenant Junior Grade in order to stay in the Battalion when he promoted."

Shaking her head, she shrugged. "But Corporal Bound's right, sir. There's no chance he'll be staying in the 1st Canterlot battalion when he promotes, and only a slim chance of even remaining in 1st A.D at all. And the prestige of 1st Air attracts some of the best officers and a great selection of enlisted. The Watchtower has a lot of history, ya know? A team from the 1st A.D. has won the Grand Mêlée almost every one of the last... eight years? Maybe nine?"

Lily looked around, in case somepony had more detailed knowledge of the Games' history. Val liked to gush about this topic a bit when he was in a good mood, though it never really held her interest much.

Sure enough, Sparkshower the walking armored history book piped up. "Eleven years. That's when they first won two in a row, with the Valkyries. The Household and 1st Infantry Divisions each took a win but otherwise 1st Air has dominated since then."

Their VIP nodded. "I see. Was it the Valkyries who mostly carried that streak?"

Sparkshower sat down and counted on her hooves. "Not really, sir. They won three in a row, then a team from the 1st Infantry took one, and then it was back to 1st Air with the Royal Hussars two years in a row, then the Household Division snatched it away, then back to 1st Air with an air superiority team from the Second Air Brigade three years in a row-"

Lily interrupted the encyclopedia with a bit of personal information. "And guess who fought for those second and third wins?"

Anon snorted. "Let me guess: one then-Lieutenant Junior Grade Valiant 'Icepone' Kilfeather."

Lily grinned. "Exactly. His old wing wasn't too happy about it when he got promoted to full lieutenant and his new crew took the pennant from them. I don't know the current qualifier standings but I wouldn't be surprised if they're back for vengeance this year."

Their VIP scribbled down some notes. "Along with Major Growler's 'Valkyries', apparently."

Honour shot the quaternion a glance. "Sir, about that. I was going to bring it up with you this afternoon, but we had a run-in with the Valkyries' senior non-commissioned officer yesterday, after you left for rest. She tried to intimidate us into giving up the Whirlwind's secrets, and also put us on notice that we'll be watched whenever we go out."

Anonymous looked genuinely concerned. "In the garage? Should we set a guard on the Whirlwind?"

"That would be prudent, sir, in spite of her indignant answer when Specialist Sparkshower pressed the Sergeant Major if the Valkyries would attempt sabotage. But she also insinuated that Major General Hoofstrong would probably assign some 1st Air Division troops to protect the Whirlwind; come to think of it, that could also be a reason for the lieutenant's visit."

"Surely Hoofstrong wouldn't send Kilfeather's air wing to protect the equipment of the very group that thrashed them?"

Nopony had an answer for that rhetorical question.

The Royal Engineer leaned back in his chair. "Then again, the Major General struck me as quite crafty. And as you say, Valiant’s in charge of the premier air superiority wing; at the bridge, we only hospitalized three of them. There must have been another forty at the Pas-de-Sabots at least."

Lily knew that was a significant underestimate. "A typical air wing is just over a hundred ponies on paper. I'm sure his is at full strength, even if he didn't bring them all to the bridge operation. He would have had his pick of recruits with the Grand Mêlée win last year."

The Royal Engineer's face turned sombre. "You don't think he's upset about being bumped like this, do you? With his record-setting dreams quashed? I don't want another situation where someone's throwing down a horseshoe in challenge."

Sparkshower didn’t react to the obvious reference to her beau's explosive entrance on Friday.

Lily just shook her head. "Even though he's entitled to do it as an officer, it's not his style. He'll abuse the rules for his benefit but he generally doesn't completely ignore them. For all his faults, Val's pretty practical. Duelling you doesn't do anything for him. It's not like getting his wings shredded has hurt his career. If anything, it proves his Pas-de-Sabots was the real deal, despite the whining of the victimized idle nobility."

That set her VIP at ease. "Well, if it's just about security for the garage and some harassment for our would-be spies, then that's all right. Maybe this meeting will be brief after all and I can get back to the foundry work. I need to put in orders for the equipment we'll need now, as they'll take weeks to procure. With Songwell researching real estate, that speeds up the timeline considerably, even if we have to visit a few of them before we find the right place."

Lily couldn't help but notice the way he used 'we' in those last two last sentences. Little wonder Corporal Bound crushed all over the Royal Engineer and his endeavors, always gushing about how he was doing good work, with how their VIP considered his bodyguards an integral part of the team.

True, they’d be a team all together in the MXP Games, but that was different. And Lily hadn't forgotten his unprepared and exhausted thank-you speech from yesterday.

Didn't he say he'd put together a proper one later?

When was that coming?

‘Maybe it'll involve a nice night out on the town, heh.’

After all, the week before the Gala was notorious for 'anticipatory' pre-parties.

Just as Lily started to warmly smirk at the thought, there was a knock on the door behind her. Sparkshower sat on her haunches at attention at the entrance to the private portion of the Royal Engineer's quarters, while Honour collected herself behind the desk, sitting just beside his armor set. Sergeant Ebonshield, who until now had been silently standing on the opposite side of the double doors from Lily, shot her a glance, and nodded slowly.

‘Here we go!’

With the pompous stomping dance of a formal occasion, Lily rotated in place with military precision before telekinetically seizing one door-handle and cracking it open to inspect the caller.

That was Val, all right, in his dress blues and with his wings still completely bandaged up. And he had somepony with him, surprisingly. This time Lily’s VIP didn't demand he come alone, so she guessed it was okay. Beside Val stood a pegasus mare in Air Service Dress blues as well, with three chevrons on her shoulder.

‘Well, well, well, who's this?’

Olive-green coat and a blonde mane with a few choice conservative curls. She didn’t have the look of somepony from his own stable; not young enough and too stern-faced for his tastes.

Since these were the expected guests, Lily quickly nodded to Sergeant Ebonshield and she turned in place to pull open the other door in sync with Lily’s.

"Lieutenant Kilfeather, sir."

Val and the unnamed sergeant stepped into the room and politely doffed their caps -- an action which he still had to do with his forehooves, while she managed it the traditional pegasus way using a wing-swipe.

Lily’s VIP was seated at his desk, his elbows on the table and his hands clasped together. He unfolded them and indicated the pair of chairs opposite him.

"Lieutenant. Take a seat."

As he stepped forward, Val shot Glamerspear a grin and winked. "You've lost the cone, Lily. Shame, it was a good look on you."

She didn't dignify that remark with a response, staring dumbly forward like a good door-guard should. That was the Royal Engineer's order; keep the meeting formal and free of chatter.

Just business.

Val loved trading barbs, but if they all -- well, mostly her -- refrained from hitting back, then the meeting could be kept brief. Anonymous was also hoping to put the heat on the lieutenant, futile as that probably was.

She’d soon find out.

Looking to his right, Kilfeather quickly gave a nod in passing to Sergeant Ebonshield. "Nice to see you again, Miss 'Danger.' I do hope it's 'Miss.'"

He actually stopped when he noticed the other pegasus in the room.

"Oh, and I see the lovely Specialist Sparkshower is allowed to be on display this time, instead of tucked away like a delicate porcelain doll. My, all this occasion just for me, heh, I'm embarrassed."

‘Sure you are, Val.’

He leered at their armored comrade, but still received no reaction whatsoever from the room, besides the sharp-stepped closing of the doors behind him.

Finally, the Lieutenant swaggered up to the Royal Engineer's desk. "My Lord, thank you for seeing me. May I present to you Sergeant Michelle Greenhound of the 101st Military Intelligence Battalion, call sign 'Mirage.'"

The 101st was the intelligence battalion at 1st Air Division's command HQ.

‘He's brought a spook?’

The Royal Engineer didn’t break his stern gaze. "Sergeant."

The terseness on display seemed to finally break Val's usual chatty mood, and both ponies quickly hopped up into the provided chairs. "I'll get straight to the point, Lord. You're taking my team's place in the MXP Games' Grand Mêlée. I had enough trained backups to fill out the loss of myself, Joker, and Duck and still launch a decent flight, if the stewards and Major General Hoofstrong allowed such a large substitution this late post-registration, but instead the Major General has used her power to call you and your quaternion in as ringers."

Val twisted in his seat and glanced around the room. "I gather their Majesties had something to do with it, too. I can't repel authority of that magnitude, so my team's out and yours is in as a complete swap."

Turning back to face the Royal Engineer, he continued. "But you'll technically be carrying the pennant of the 1st Air Wing, and you're also representing the 1st Air Division, too. As the bearer of that flag, and as commander of the winning team of last year's Grand Mêlée, and since I'm out of work on a no-combat medical chit anyways, Major General Hoofstrong has ordered me to do whatever I can to help you win. That's what I'm here to do, and it's why I've brought Sergeant Mirage. Together, we're going to see if we can't whip you and your motley crew into a shape capable of making a good dive at the podium."

With a grin, he leaned back in his seat. "Crazy world, huh, m'Lord?"

‘No way!’

‘Foal of a bitch, after everything that's happened, personally and professionally, now you're expected to work with this grinning jackass?!’

It was enough to make Lily steam at her collar.

‘And, wait a minute, this is the second such surprise assistant today for the Royal Engineer!’

What's next? Princess Luna orders Ebonshield's mom upstairs out of the Rookery to serve as his personal escort to the Grand Galloping Gala?

That was a thought, Imagining Carmen with her white-powdered face like some Patrician creature out of ancient times. Lily could just picture the scandalized faces of the modern nobility.

Her VIP stayed frosty. "I want to see those orders in writing, Lieutenant."

Val licked his lips and hesitated for a moment, then reached into the front pocket of his blue jacket, pulling out a folded square of paper, which he slid forwards on the desk. "Here you are, my Lord."

As Anonymous calmly picked up and unfolded the scrip, Val leaned back a little in his seat. "It saddens me to see we've reached this level of mistrust. I hope we can repair our relationship or, heh, it'll make working together real difficult. I can let bygones be bygones if you can, m'Lord. I'm real flexible... in more ways than one."

‘Guh.’ Where the Royal Engineer's use of 'we' earlier was so heartening, Lily got the shivers from the way Val slimily used the same word, as if the chill was anything but his fault! And OF COURSE he had to get in a little sexual-prowess proclamation at the end there. He was incorrigible.

Having studied the document, the Royal Engineer lowered the paper back to the desk -- still keeping it back on his side, Lily noticed -- and refolded his hands.

"I don't see anything in here requiring me to work with you, Lieutenant."

Lily saw him squirm a bit in his seat and inhale sharply; Val didn’t like that one bit.

Then he broke out into an awkward grin and chuckled. "Okay. Okay. You didn't want to ever see me again, you told me so yourself last time. You have your bodyguards set to maximum intimidation and formality for this meeting, cold shoulders all around, I get it. Arms and armor polished and on display front and center, sure. I know you don't like me. But you know what I am, I've told you why I'm here, and you've seen the orders. Let's drop the charade, huh?"

The Royal Engineer paused for a moment to stare deadpan at Val, then replied almost casually. "If that's all, then thank you for your time, Lieutenant."

Val started chuckling awkwardly, glancing at Sergeant Mirage with an incredulous grin. "Ha ha ha! Can you believe this kidder? Do I need to repeat myself, m'Lord? I'm the champ, and I'm here to help you win. You can't say no to a proposal like that."

Mirage was trying her best not to look embarrassed, while Anonymous nodded and indicated the exit with an open hand. "I heard you, Lieutenant. Thank you for the offer. The door's over there."

Val's chuckle turned angry. "Are you kidding? You know, Lord Engineer, I told you I thought you were clever, more so than I had first realized, but maybe I was wrong the second time, because here you are frankly just being stupid."

Anonymous didn’t break his stern gaze as he addressed Honour. "Corporal, remove the Lieutenant."

‘That escalated quickly!’

Lily was so surprised at the sudden order she didn't even react for a half second, while Ebonshield stepped past her to close in on the pair of interlopers, and Sparkshower leveled her lance and started to hover.

But even as Honour rounded the table towards him, Val burst into a protest, genuinely upset. "Come on! You want to willingly go into the tournament blind? I've stood on that podium three years in a row! A fourth time this year would have set a new record for the Games! I'm here to offer advice and help train your team, you'd have to be a fool to refuse!"

Lily had a DPICM blunt-tipped practice spear materialized and ready to go as she placed a forehoof on the door handle, ready to let Icepone and Mirage right back out. Honour was already beside him, tapping him on the shoulder like a tired Military Ponice officer dealing with the drunk tank's next resident, with Eb just behind his chair and Sparkshower bearing down on Sergeant Greenhound, but Val furiously thrust a forehoof at the Royal Engineer.

"And by the way, that's a real pretty set of armor you've got there on display, my Lord, but if you're going into the Games, then you had better know how to use it! You sent your quaternion into battle on your behalf, but have you ever even been in a real fight yourself?!"

Lily couldn't help but notice Sergeant Mirage squirming in her seat as all this was going on, but Anonymous waved a hand. "Just a moment, Corporal."

Honour removed her forehoof from the furious Valiant, and a chill fell over the room while the Royal Engineer paused to scrutinize the hot-headed Lieutenant.

---

Suggested background music: Harold Faltermeyer - Top Gun Theme Without Guitar, from 'Top Gun' [1986]
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5OSMqSPmfVA

---

The Corporal sat as still as a stone, waiting for the next command, while Ebonshield had a forehoof raised slightly off the ground, ready to snap one of her daggers out. In the intense silence of the lavish palace room, all Lily could hear was the faint magical humming of her own conjured munition and the regular flaps of Sparkshower in hover-mode.

"Yes, Lieutenant Kilfeather, I have used that equipment in a real battle. As to your other questions..."

He pushed the paper with Kilfeather's orders back across the desk.

"...My team and I are quite capable of doing our own research and preparing for the Grand Mêlée all ourselves. Of course I appreciate the assistance an experienced winner could bring to our prospects, but I won't accept you as an adviser in your present state."

Anonymous leaned forward across the desk. "Maybe we won't win as a result. I'll be disappointed, but it's no real loss; I've already gotten what I needed from the Whirlwind demonstration yesterday. Maybe Major General Hoofstrong will be disappointed if I refuse your services, but I've already gotten what I needed from her, too. Maybe the Princesses will even be disappointed if we don't do well in the Games, but I'm sure they'll appreciate our effort, and I've got something far more impressive in the pipeline coming quickly afterwards. So I don't need you, Lieutenant."

Val grit his teeth. "But you agreed to see me anyways."

For the first time the entire meeting, Anonymous allowed himself an emotional display in the form of a minuscule smile. "Because I am a public servant of the Equestrian government, and you are a member of the Equestrian public."

Another first: Lily didn't think she’d ever seen Val defeated. Angry, sure, and disappointed, absolutely -- she remembered how he looked when she finally ditched him. But at that time, he gave her the impression that she would be easily replaced, so he didn't treat it as a defeat. Now he was really beaten, and she didn’t know if that'd ever really happened before.

"All right. You don't need me. But I want you to win, and maybe I even need you to win, because my name'll be stapled to whatever result you achieve. I can still set a record with my fourth podium using your team. Well, this isn't my first rodeo. You were about to throw me out, yet we're still talking; that tells me you're willing to take me under certain conditions. So, what are those conditions?"

Anonymous waved Honour back to her post. Ebonshield and Sparkshower retired as well.

‘Guess I won't be pumping another round into 'Icepone' today.’

‘Shame.’

Anonymous sat up straight in his chair.

"I want you to lose your attitude, Lieutenant. I want you to stop treating my quaternion as if they're your chums from the chow hall, and I want you to stop treating me as if I'm your old drinking pal whom you've just run into at a bar. I want you to apologize to Specialist Sparkshower in no uncertain terms for what you tried to do, I want you to stop antagonizing Specialist Glamerspear every time you see her, and I want you to stop leering at my guardsmares like they're baubles on display in a shop's front window."

He raised his eyebrows and shook his head. "Despite my ignorance in things Equestrian, I am in charge here, and my quaternion, with whom I have done many things, including fight in a life-or-death battle, are my most trusted associates. If you won't treat me as your commander and all of them with the common decency and respect they deserve, then frankly you can go to Hell -- Or Tartarus, as it's called here."

It took 'Icepone' a few moments to recover from their VIP's tongue-lashing. Lily didn't think he'd ever received a dressing-down quite like that before. When Val eventually composed himself and spoke, the cocksure attitude was all but gone.

"When would your Lordship like me to deliver the apology to Specialist Sparkshower?"

Anonymous tapped the heavy leather writing-pad on his table. "I want it in writing, here, tomorrow, signed and sealed. It'll be rejected if it's not found acceptable. Specialist Sparkshower will decide later herself if she wants to receive your apology verbally as well."

Val swallowed. Having an admission of guilt in writing would definitely be an ace up their VIP's sleeve if the lieutenant ever screwed up. Though Lily did wonder if Sparkshower would allow Anonymous to ruin Kilfeather that way. She was a pretty forgiving pony, after all.

"Very well, my Lord. Is there anything else?"

The Royal Engineer leaned back in his chair and shook his head. "Not for my sake. But since we have an agreement, and since you've come all the way here with the good sergeant, why don't you take a few minutes to give us a brief overview of the Grand Mêlée, the challenge facing us, your proposals for training, and so on."

Lily had really never seen Val so subdued. She was sure he'd had occasions to behave like a proper officer -- in front of the promotion board, for example, and she doubted he got quite so informal with senior brass like the Major General in official settings, but he was never like this when she’d been with him socially.

Lieutenant Kilfeather took a deep breath, relieved to find the tension lifting, even if he was no longer in control of the situation. "Well, sir, the way I see it there are three tasks at hoof. The first is to remedy the deficiencies in your team. The second is to make sure everypony understands the rules and regulations of the Grand Mêlée. And the third is drilling and practice."

Anonymous cocked an eyebrow. "Deficiencies? You think we're deficient in some way, Lieutenant?"

For the briefest moment the beginning of a grin flashed across his face, and then he remembered where he was, and what he'd just signed up for. "With respect, sir, I know for certain that your team has several deficiencies, and these need to be remedied as fast as possible. Firstly, there's the matter of your weapon carriage, this 'Whirlwind' vehicle."

The Royal Engineer interrupted before he could continue. "I'm well aware that improvements need to be made to make the Whirlwind battle-ready, Lieutenant, though if you have some particular suggestions, I will of course hear them."

Val spread his forehooves in a placating gesture. "I'm sure your Lordship well understands what needs to be improved, and I don't have any suggestions about that at this time. Physical deficiencies aren't what I was referring to."

Licking his lips, he continued. "Believe it or not, you're not the first team to bring a vehicle to the Grand Mêlée. War wagons pulled by earth ponies, even though they aren't used in the Royal Guard, have occasionally been popular, and I believe one time there was even a flying pegasus-pulled war carriage, too. But I understand your Lordship basically built the 'Whirlwind' by hoof -- by hand, pardon -- and that your Lordship is also the only one who really knows how to fix it. Is that true?"

The Royal Engineer nodded. "It's based on a common dog-cart, built by Henry Fortstable and Company, and I've had some help assembling it by members of the quaternion, but yes, I suppose I'm the only one who really knows it inside and out."

"And your Lordship intends to fight in the Mêlée, correct?"

"I do."

"Well, the thing to remember, sir, is that the Grand Mêlée is an exhausting, all-day event. Now, I'm sure you've built a robust vehicle, but equipment breakdowns are inevitable, and when a rest is called, you're going to need to spend that time actually resting, not fixing your carriage. You need what we call a 'ground crew': a group of workers who can patch the thing back together between rounds."

Anonymous reached for his quill and began to scribble notes on a pad. "Hmm. I worked closely with Mr. Fortstable in ordering special parts and having a particular configuration. Perhaps I could hire some of his mechanics for the day, training them in its peculiarities."

Val nodded, settling into the comfort. "That sounds reasonable, sir. And it's not just the Whirlwind, either. The best teams -- the winning teams -- always have an armorer on hoof as well to patch up their arms and armor. It helps to bring some spares; every team gets a small area in the paddock to host their ground crew and storage."

The Royal Engineer glanced down at Corporal Bound. "I wouldn't trust anybody to fix my armor except the minotaur who made it. I don't know if Bronzehorn would be willing to come here for the day, but it's worth asking him, at least. And he seemed to be familiar with all the Royal Guard standard equipment as well."

Lily’s ex nodded in her direction. "I'd wager the only exception might be Specialist Glamerspear's helmet, sir. It's a fancy piece of tech from Martingale-Locksteed. There might be spares in the palace armory; perhaps your Lordship could obtain one."

Still scribbling, their VIP nodded. "All right. Do we need a medic, too?"

"No; healing is forbidden. The totems prevent permanent injuries or sustained bleeding, but a competitor unable to fly or stand without assistance isn't allowed to continue."

"Mechanics, armorer, and spares. What next?"

"The second deficiency I see, your Lordship, is in reconnaissance. The Valkyries have set a watch on the Canterlot Palace garage to watch when you go out and practice, and they've also got recon elements watching the qualifiers as well. With this information, they'll be able to figure out how you fight and therefore what they need to do to defeat you. You need to gather the same info on the opposition as well. That's where Sergeant Greenhound comes in."

At Val's prompting, 'Mirage' spoke up for herself. "My Lord, Major General Hoofstrong has authorized me to conduct reconnaissance operations on the competing Grand Mêlée teams, and she has placed a small team at my disposal as well. I've already dispatched them to monitor the practice and qualifying areas. Additionally, a security team has been dispatched to the garage to watch over your 'Whirlwind.'"

Val leaned forward in his chair. "I've got a few pegasi posted on interdiction duty as well. If you head out in your carriage and a group of Valkyries -- or anypony else -- tries to follow, they'll be intercepted and harried by my soldiers every flap of the way."

Anonymous set down his pen, a look of concern on his face. "Scouts, guards, interceptors, and a ground crew. This is becoming a major undertaking in terms of personnel."

That got a chuckle out of Val. "Major General Hoofstrong takes the Games very seriously, sir. She's not the only one, either. This event is a big deal for the Royal Guard, and there's a lot of prestige for the winner."

Corporal Bound stepped forward to speak as the Royal Engineer pondered that statement. "I have a question. Sergeant, you're from Divisional HQ, but won't we be facing other teams from within the First Air?"

Mirage nodded. "That's right, Corporal. The 1st Brigade's Valkyries and the 2nd Brigade's Royal Hussars are each fielding a team and have qualified for the event."

Val spoke up before Honour could talk again. "I know what you're going to ask, Corporal. How come Divisional HQ is helping just one team when it's got three? Well, the answer is simple. Ordinarily the home wing of each team does its own recon. But given our history together, Major General Hoofstrong thought it would be best to bring in 'outside help,' so to speak. My colts’ll patrol the skies and stand silent guard but you only have to deal with me when it comes to direct contact."

He turned to Mirage. "Plus there's the matter of the biggest deficiency in your team, which the Major General figured my 1st Air Wing also wasn't ideally suited to remedy."

The Royal Engineer got his pen ready again. "And what's that, Lieutenant?"

Taking a deep breath, Val puffed his cheeks as he blew it out. "You're short a pony, my Lord. Five soldiers makes for an earth pony or unicorn infantry squad, but the Grand Mêlée runs on pegasus rules, and it's six ponies to a flight."

‘Oh, damn.’

‘Major Growler is going to be coming at us with six Valkyries?’

‘Celestia.’

That was a lot of armor to have to drill through.

Val looked around the room. "Now, your Lordship has an armored pegasus, a batpony -- we've both been briefed, by the way -- a unicorn, an earth pony, and you, a terrestrial biped. Two in the air and three on the ground, and I understand your carriage seats three. Who you pick as your sixth soldier is entirely up to you, my Lord, but my recommendation would be to get somepony with wings."

Once again, he indicated Sergeant Mirage. "And that's also why the sergeant is here. My First Air Wing is a maximum-performance, non-integrated all-colt unit, and Major General Hoofstrong figured that you might prefer to have another mare, since you'll be bringing your VIP quaternion to the fight, and traditionally, a single pony's guards are all eligible members of the opposite sex."

As Mirage sat up straight as a rod, Val showed off her merchandise like he was auctioning off her plot to the highest bidder. "Sergeant Greenhound isn't just a senior intelligence staffer, she's a decorated war hero. The 101st Intel is based out of the Watchtower and was hard hit during the Changeling Invasion. The two floors the battalion occupies were completely ablaze and utterly ruined by the time it was all over, but the soldiers fought back harder than almost anypony else in the whole 'Tower, inflicting massive casualties on the invaders and tying down huge numbers of the bugs while the rest of the Division rallied to defend the rest of the city."

Holding a hoof sincerely to his chest, he continued. "If you'll permit the crude verbiage, sir, the 101st Military Intelligence Battalion kicked some serious plot during the invasion, and they took surprisingly few losses doing so. All of us 'real fighters' used to joke about them being a bunch of pencil-pushing accountants, but they honestly showed us all up during that incident. Nopony in the Watchtower talks about the 101st that way anymore. Sergeant Mirage comes to you with Major General Hoofstrong's personal recommendation -- and mine too, for whatever that might be worth. You couldn't ask for a finer soldier."

Lily instinctively began to scrutinize this newcomer mare. If she was going to join their team then Lily had better be able to work with her.

Mirage was probably no older than Honour, but she looked like someone who'd already decided that the Royal Guard would be her life, even if it killed her. She got the sense that she was a true career, gung-ho enlisted soldier, if maybe one with some more brains than the average grunt, seeing as how she got into intel and apparently managed to do well. Or maybe it was just the ability and endurance to be forever mashing buttons on an adding machine, tallying up reports brought in by field recon ponies like Sparkshower. She had a bit of a square jaw, but otherwise was of average size and build. Lily wasn't a huge fan of the retro mane-do with the soft bob she had going on, but it worked. Like a typical Royal Guard lifer, she kept her tail short-cropped.

Was she another Order of the Ram recipient? She wasn't wearing any insignia. Val did say she was 'decorated,' but didn't specify how. Maybe she just had a Distinguished Service Cross or a similar commendation.

Whatever the case, having one sergeant on the team was tricky enough -- even when it turned out that sergeant wasn't a sergeant at all, but the Headmistress of the Batpony Assassins order. Of course, it had turned out okay in the end, and Lily even felt like she got along well with Ebonshield, but she wouldn't like to be in Honour's sabots if the nominal leader of the quaternion had to deal with having another more senior guardsmare to wrangle.

Anonymous set down his pen once more. "I'll consider it. For now, as you say, we can rely on the sergeant's services for informational purposes at least."

Val nodded. "Of course, my Lord. But please decide quickly; there's not a lot of time to train the team."

"I understand. I'll discuss things and we'll figure out the final team composition this week. Is there anything else?"

Kilfeather shook his head. "That does it for the major holes that I can see, sir. As soon as the team is finalized, I'd like to take everypony out to the grounds to survey the battlefield. Then we can talk rules, strategies, and start training."

"Very well. It's Tuesday afternoon. Let's reconvene on Friday. We'll have made our decision about the sixth member by then, and we can take the Whirlwind out to the battlefield for that introduction."

Val actually gave Lily’s VIP an unironic bow in his seat. "Yes, my Lord."

Anonymous took a moment to behold the two pegasi. "And don't forget about that letter for tomorrow. Dismissed, Lieutenant. Good day, Sergeant."

They both hopped out of their chairs, gave the Royal Engineer a quick salute, and then retired towards the doors. Lily immediately seized the handle in her telekinesis as Ebonshield did the same with her forehoof.

As the unicorn opened the door and the pegasi passed by, she noticed Val shoot her a glance, but there was no aggression or playfulness behind it; just a cordial acknowledgement that they knew each other.

Part of her really wanted to nod back, even in spite of their history. But she let him just walk on by, demonstrating the supremacy of her relationship with the Royal Engineer.

Once the doors were closed and a few moments had passed to make sure they were out of earshot, the Royal Engineer stood up and pulled at his necktie to loosen it.

"Well, that was unpleasant, but at least it's sorted." Yanking the formal wear unceremoniously off, he quickly folded it and placed it on his desk before unbuttoning the top of his shirt.

Addressing the four of them, he sighed. "Now, I really do have to finish these plans and orders for the foundry, but let's not go into Friday blind. I know your time off-duty is your own, but I'd appreciate it if you all would do your own research into the MXP Games and the Grand Mêlée. Let's try to have a good idea of at least the rules and regulations before we hear the tricks of the trade from Lieutenant Kilfeather."

He glanced down at Corporal Bound. "Corporal, you've mentioned before that the Games are not a very public affair, but even so, perhaps there's some coverage of his previous wins that we can study?"

Honour nodded. "Yes, sir, I'll take a look through the Gazette's archives."

He clapped his hands and rubbed them together, then rolled up his sleeves. "Excellent. Anyone have anything else?"

Since he was in such a good mood, maybe Lily ought to bring up the idea of some entertainment?

She cleared her throat. "Sir, it's a bit off-topic, but you mentioned something yesterday about a second, more-planned thank you for us?"

Licking his lips, their VIP chuckled. "I did say that, didn't I? It does feel like our accomplishments and my thanks to you deserves something more than a hasty speech."

With a furrowed brow, he looked around the room. "I know I've got a lot of work, but I also know I'm too tired to finish it today no matter how hard I push myself. I feel like I owe you all something more than just another speech."

He glanced down at Corporal Bound beside him. "I've made some faux pas in the past, so let me clear this ahead of time. Would a night out be against the rules? Dinner at a restaurant, maybe find somewhere with live music or take in a show? Or we could go to that spa again. I could use another massage."

Honour didn’t look thrilled by the proposal, but eventually she gave in. "Ordinarily, it would probably be inappropriate, but given the circumstances, I suppose it's fine, sir. The week of the Gala sees a lot of celebrations and big parties, and including bodyguards isn't unheard of, either."

Smiling, their VIP sat down. "Good! Since I've no more appointments this afternoon, perhaps the four of you could huddle your heads and decide what you'd like best? I really don't know Canterlot's nightlife very well. And I could use a good time out myself, all things considered, so I'm game for anything."

‘Anything, huh?’

Lily started to grin. Honour shot her a stern glance, but Ebonshield on the other side of the doors lifted an eyebrow and gave her a sly smile. The unicorn couldn’t tell what Sparkshower was thinking since she closed the visor on her helmet, but she surely could use some fun to cheer her up after what happened on Friday.

Not to mention what happened to her yesterday.

A shiver went down Lily’s spine when she remembered just what Artemis went through, all so she could learn how to exorcise a shadow. She shook the memory off, swearing she wouldn't ask her to do that again, and turned her thoughts back to tonight's prospects.

Even if the restaurants and clubs were bustling, having a representative of the Blue Chamber ought to open some doors. Yeah, it was a Tuesday, the worst day of the week to go out, but this was Gala week, and with their VIP in tow, the possibilities were limitless.

Honour was noncommittal in answering the Royal Engineer. "Yes, sir."

Lily decided to be more enthusiastic. "It's a date, sir."

Lifting a forehoof, she playfully indicated the room's lighthouse clock. "We'll pick you up around five?"

He nodded. "All right."

‘Aw yeah, pre-Gala party night with my VIP!’

---

Suggested interlude music: Benjamin & Aaron Wheeler - "I'm a VIP", as featured in "Saints Row: The Third" [2011]
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yV88ekgBlTo

Next Chapter: Chapter 126 Estimated time remaining: 7 Hours, 49 Minutes