The Big Picture (Patreon)

 While Celestia confronted a new problem an older one continued to grow in my Equestria dreamscape. 

  Corporal Trotter/Drone 992 stepped out of the bright afternoon sun and into the dimly lit but bustling the coffee house. Scanning the crowd it took him a moment to to spot his handler Purple Marten sitting alone in a booth at the back of coffee house. Weaving his way through the crowd he made his way back to her.  

  Marten had seen him approaching and was staring at him with her signature impish grin. Trotter was hardly an expert in mares fashion but his current handler seemed to have an eye for it. Today Marten was wearing a beret of deep blue that almost look black in low light. The headgear had a grommet-like opening of burnished silver that allowed the mare's horn pass through it, and let her wear it cocked on her head at the jaunty angle. A white, loose, long-sleeved cotton shirt along with snug vest of shimmering deep ultramarine covered the upper part of her torso and front legs. Short black leather, front buckle shoes cover all four hoofs. Keeping the shoes company and protecting the lower part of the shirt sleeve were spats of tan duck cotton not unlike the type Trotter wore for certain occasions. 

  
  The overall effect made Marten seem at home in this crowd of artists, writers, and university students who occupied the coffee house, and yet at the same time she had an elegance and beauty few could match. Trotter was aware of few stallions, and a couple mares, giving him a jealous looks as he sat down in the booth.  

 
  For this meeting Trotter was wearing a casual, civilian, short sleeve cotton shirt of pine green, and soft cap of dark grey wool. Like his handler Trotter he looked like he was part of the coffee house crowd. 

  
  "I know you're not a big one for alcohol, but you enjoy a good cup of coffee or tea. So I thought this might make for a better meeting place." Said his handler as he settled into his seat. Getting the attention of a server they placed their orders. With that accomplished Marten smiled at the stallion. 

  "So how's your story coming?" Trotter had come up with this dodge so they could discuss certain aspects of the upcoming operation in public under the guise of it being an upcoming story or novel.   

 
  The corporal nodded his head. "I think the basic concept of my story is still sound, but, but, as I research and refine the plot I realize that there's potential flaw in the overall world and setting that I worry the reader will not accept. 

  
  "I know it's beyond the immediate scope or focus of the story, but a writer has to know what is going on in the bigger world. As I've started to look at the big picture I feel as if in the real world my operation would be irrelevant because even if the antagonist." Trotter couldn't bring himself to calling his Queen the enemy. "Succeeds in capturing the princess the kingdom is too large with too many redundancies and that other ministries, governors, and local leaders and members of industry would after the initial shock wore off simply overwhelm the antagonist and their forces. I don't believe that this threat is one that is going to make the reader pause and worry about the final outcome. I fear it is lacking any real suspense!" 

  Marten withheld her rebuttal as their server returned with their orders. After she'd walked away the mare took a sip of her espresso, then she stared at the stallion. 

  
  "So you think that this story of yours is not going to be a bestseller?" Marten said this with a deadpan voice. 

  "Not unless I am certain to I make it clear in the story that this one operation is part of a larger campaign to seize, control, and eliminate certain strategic locations, important pieces of infrastructure, and ponies of importance in the government, the military, industry, and the newspapers. Unless these are achieved the antagonist of my story will fail!" Said Trotter with a dejected tone.  

 
  Marten raised an eyebrow. "Do you have a list of other objectives you'd need to have happened for the main part of your  story to succeed?" The mare said this somewhat bored fashion as she took another of her espresso. 

  The stallion nodded his head slowly. "I have. It is only an initial list and I'd like to do more research that these were the correct objectives in the story, but they are." 

  Trotter closed his eyes and over the next few minutes the stallion gave a list of rail yards and stations, bridges, telegraph exchanges, newspapers, factories, armories, banks, canals, and universities across the kingdom. Along with certain key ponies that needed capture. As he listed them Marten grew more and more still and she stared at the corporal with greater and greater intensity.  

 
  Opening his eyes he looked over at his handler and froze. Purple Marten gaze was riveted on him in way that one usually did not want one's superior to look at them. After a second he spoke softly. 

  "Um, maybe all those objectives wouldn't have to happen in the story for the plot to succeed, but, um, at least several of them. Soooooo, I am I overthinking things?"

 
  "No." Said the mare slowly. "However it is an ambitious set of goals, and I definitely think to keep the reader from being distracted I wouldn't go into too much detail about what those other targets were. Yeah the writer needs to know, but focus on your main plot and don't give away too information to the reader. Understood." 

  Trotter had been in operations long enough now that he recognized the unspoken signal being sent. 

  
  Don't talk to anyone else about this. Understood? 

  "Of course!" He took a sip of his tea. "I want to thank you for taking the time to hear out my concerns about the story. You're correct I'm probably overthinking it but it feels good to talk it out with somepony who can give me constructive criticism." 

  He looked at the clock on the wall. "Um, I need to go now my watch begins in an hour. Is there anything else you'd like to discuss?" 

  Marten smiled. "No. But thank you for keeping me abreast of your story. I really want to see it become a bestseller!" 

  
  Trotter rose from the booth and smiled. "So do I." Then he left.  

 
  Marten watched him leave the coffee house then stared back at her drink. The problem with operations like this is that one needed to compartmentalize different elements to avoid a potentially lethal leaks from occurring. At the same time one had to employ only the most intelligent, curious, focused, and resourceful members of one's hive to succeed. And every once an while despite one's attempt withhold information, one of them ends up fitting what pieces of the puzzle they do have together and figures out what the overall picture has to be.  

 
  Trotter had on his own just figured out almost the every important objective for the invasion of Equestria.  

 
  She grinned. Oh yes this is one asset I can definitely use to my advantage, and I will! 

 To be continued