Can I take the shot? Please (Patreon)

Skyfall took a deep breath, and then sighed. Again. She'd been peering through the iron sights of .55 bolt action anti-armor rifle for what felt like hours now. In reality she'd sitting here for only about 40 minutes, but tell that to her now sore, slowly going numb butt. 

     Fortunately some palace staffer had graciously brought out a thick blanket which helped...but not that much. Through the iron sights the unicorn could see her target. A male unicorn who was pacing back and forth while gesticulating his arms as he made further demands to his already outlandish list. 

    Keeping her cheek firmly welded to the cheek pad of the rifle Skyfall said. "Your Highness. I have the target in my sights. Can I take the shot? Please." 

    Standing behind her Princess Luna lowered the binoculars she was peering through. "No Skyfall. We'll let negotiations continue. We've received no order to neutralize the suspect, and they've taken no other actions to escalate the scenario." 

    Skyfall squirmed in a effort to find some form of comfort for protesting posterior. The mare had conveniently planted the broad, spade-like foot of the monopod into a concrete planter box located about 75yds from the broad bay windows of the Palace Library. It was through these windows Skyfall and Luna could observe the intruder. 

    Either the intruder hadn't observed, or didn't care, that Skyfall, Luna, along with numerous Palace Guards who were either there to secure the perimeter could see him. He hadn't drawn the curtains or stayed away from the windows. 

    Skyfall grumbled mentally. If the guards at the palace entrance had been doing their job right she wouldn't be sitting here now. Instead her and Luna would be heading into Canterlot for an early dinner. Skyfall had been for weeks working up the courage to ask the princess. Finally she'd asked, and much to her relief Luna had said yes. 

    But nooooo. The guards at the gate had decided to pose and have their pictures taken with a visiting all mares volleyball team. The team was at the palace because they'd won some kingdom-wide competition.  

    So while the guards had been doing their impromptu photo shoot this chucklehead had waltzed in. Actually he'd driven. His light plumbing van right into the palace grounds. At another checkpoint he should've been spotted and questioned about his business, but another group of guards had let him into the palace without checking for credentials or pass because he looked  like a plumber.  

    Luna had muttered darkly that this issue would be addressed promptly after this crisis. 

    It was only when the suspect attempted to enter the Throne Room with a large maintenance cart he was pushing was his motives and reasons questioned by the Palace Guards outside the Throne Room. Apparently the suspect became agitated but left the Throne Room area. However the suspect did not leave the palace. Instead they'd rolled the cart right into the Palace Library. Then they'd triggered a large, powerful force field ward on the cart. Enveloping the cart and himself. With that accomplished they began yelling at the top of their lungs the deranged manifesto they'd written. Oh, and they claimed there was large bomb in the cart, and it was armed. 

    It was this force field and events before its activation that had resulted in the Skyfall now sitting with her butt on the cobblestone walkway. The guard had assessed that ward would defeat most small arms fire. So, here she was sitting and aiming a .55 anti-armor rifle. 

    "What's got this fellow all worked up anyways?" Muttered Skyfall as she kept the sights on the suspect. "Does he have a beef with the Crown or something?" 

     Luna took a deep breath. "Apparently he believes that pegasus ponies are not real. That ponies with wings are some odd, alien constructs created by some alien power to spy on real ponies and he was here to protect the myself and my sister from them. 

    Skyfall raised her head from the rifle and slowly turned her head and gazed at the great Prussian Blue wings of the alicorn behind her. "What?! Um. Your Highness. Uh, um, well, you've got wings. Damn fine ones if I may say. So does your sister, Princess Twilight, and Cadence as well. So he thinks ponies with wings aren't real, but you are a real pony and worth protecting....How does that even work?" 

   Luna was peering again through her binoculars. "Have no idea Skyfall."

   The unicorn nodded her head and went back to peering through the sights. This job could get weird sometimes. 

   This is a patron reward for Spypone. The story above is what popped into my head as I was drawing it. The rifle Skyfall is using is a WWII Boys .55 caliber MKI anti-tank rifle. Our friend Ian at Forgotten weapons as done a few video on it. Link, Link