Often the mark of a true professional is not how well they perform when everything goes right, but how well they perform when everything goes wrong. Coco Pommel illustrated that fact a while ago in my Royal Equestria Security Force, RESF, dreamscape.

Coco Pommel stared silently down at the collection of wreckage that was strewn across a large table. Through the headphones she was wearing came the voice of Rarity her Operations Officer.

“Darling, be honest with me. What happened and how bad is it? Over.” The encrypted satellite link gave the unicorn’s voice a pitch that wasn’t there when she was talking to you face-to-face, but there was another element. Genuine concern for her operative.

The earth pony closed her eyes and took a deep breath, then slowly let it out before speaking. “The chute on the primary cargo pod failed to properly deploy ma’am. To make matters worse it struck the edge of a cliff face; then the pod flipped and fell another 300 meters or more into a very steep and rocky ravine. In the process it violently struck several rocks. Then it tumbled into a creek and became submerged at the bottom of the ravine. It took me and my contacts over 4 hours to retrieve it and bring back to my cabin.”

Coco crossed her arms and cocked hips a bit as she tilted her head slightly the other way as she continued her status update. She was standing in the dining room of a mountain cabin she was renting. With her was her 2 griffin contacts. To any pony or griffin who met her wandering the trails of the Scar Claw Mountains she just looked like another young, slightly affluent, female hiker. Hundreds of similar looking tourists came to the Scar Claws during late spring to early fall to take in the beauty of mountains. It was early October but the weather was still quite mild. As such the mare was wearing a tank top along with cargo shorts, sunglasses, and light hiking boots.

“The outer casing of the cargo pod ruptured in several locations as result of numerous impacts. It’s to testament to ruggedness of the materials used to make the pod that it didn’t utterly fail on impact considering it fell over 1100 meters before striking hard granite. The impact set off all of the shock watches in the container. Praise Celestia the satellite radio we’re using was in the secondary cargo pod.”

The mare picked a rifle scope and slowly started turning it over in her hands. “Unfortunately the contents inside the pod are a total loss. The optics on the rifle and the backup scope are ruined. Either from the shock of the initial impact. The further strikes against rocks as it flipped and tumbled into the ravine. Or from water entering the optics when the pod ended up submerged in the stream for over an hour. The impacts obviously destroyed water seals in the scope bodies.”

Setting the scope back down on the table she picked up the rifle. “At first glance the rifle appeared okay. However upon a more closer and detailed examination of it I’ve determined it’s effectively useless.”

She set recoil pad of the butt stock on the floor and stared at the muzzle. “There’s been serious damage done to the crown of the muzzle.” She shouldered the .338 magnum rifle. “The aluminum chassis now has slight warp to as result to impact. Also the elevation knob on the cheek rest shattered and the rest itself is now cracked.” She worked the bolt action of the rifle. It was much stiffer than it should be. She proceeded to pull the trigger. It moved but the sear didn’t release. “Also it appears the trigger pack has sustained some form of damage. Sometimes it releases the sear; other times it won’t. Worse it’ll sometimes release prematurely.” She squinted at the rifle receiver for a moment. “And I think the receiver is no longer true to the barrel.”

Coco tossed the rifle onto the table. “It’s a write-off ma’am. Also the tripod mount has a crack in the housing where the legs join. Over.”

There was several seconds of silent on the other end. Finally Rarity spoke. “Darling. You’re the officer on the scene. Can you carry out the mission? The soonest I can arrange another drop is 72 hours from now, and that will be too late for the operation. Dear. Can you procure kit from the locals? Over.”

The earth pony scratched the back of her head one hand, tussling the multiple shades of her light turquoise blue green mane. Her face scrunched up a bit as she juggled multiple variable in her head. “I can try ma’am, but I’ll have to be discreet about it.” She glanced at the 2 griffins who’d remained silent and still through all this. “Also not to offend our hosts, but I’m not sure they have access to this level of equipment. I’m probably going to have modify the plans for the final operation. Also I will need to get some practice in with ersatz kit before carrying out the operation. Give me 24 hours to see if I can come up with an adequate substitute ma’am. Over.”

“Understood darling. Please inform me within the next 24 hours about your options. If by that time you’re unable to secure necessary kit I’m going to abort the operation and you will start your transit from the area. Over.”

“Understood ma’am. I’ll keep you informed. Signing off. Over.”

Coco slowly removed the headset and closed her eyes. She took a long, slow, deep breath and then let it out. Opening her eyes she looked at the 2 griffins. “Okay. I still have a job to do, but if it’s going to be successful I’m going to need your help.”

To be continued.
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