//------------------------------// // Chapter 8: An Armored Past // Story: The Inventor and the Red Lady // by MadNimrod //------------------------------// Hey there! Welcome to Chapter Eight! Sorry it took so long to get this out. MMD merged with a Writer's Block to form a rather nasty critter that had to be put down. Anyway, it's up now! This chapter will give us some insights into our armored Paladin, including WHY he wears the armor. I do not own MLP: FiM. Seriously, I don't. Now, enjoy! Watson stepped off the train behind Thom, Redstamp and Ditzy. The first thing he noticed was the smell. Ponyville had a nice, sweet smell in its air. Manehattan was devoid of that. In its place were the smells of smoke, moist stone and one or two things the former Paladin didn't want to dwell on. Wrinkling his nose, Watson wondered how anypony could live in this stench. "We should move fast," Thom said, taking the lead. "I don't want to be in this town any longer than I have to." "Where are we going, anyway?" the white Pegasus asked. "There should be a newsstand close to the station," Thom replied. "If it's still got the same guy as last time, we can be out of this wretched city before dusk." "You really do not like this place, do you?" Ditzy asked. "My memories of this place are…less than pleasant." Thom led the three country ponies through the crowd, occasionally pushing some attempted-pickpocket out of their way. As they left the train station, Watson and the two pegasi got their first view of Manehattan. Watson had thought Canterlot was big, but Manehattan was enormous. There were towers that went up so high Watson couldn't turn his head back far enough to see the tops. The streets were made of-what did his instructor call it-asphalt and lined with the cobblestone walkways Watson was used to. The asphalt streets had carriages zooming to and fro, and the walkways were almost covered with ponies of various stations walking by, visiting food stalls, and some were just sitting on the ground. Those that were sitting on the ground were clearly in poverty, but the well-off ponies seemed to just ignore their existence. All three country ponies immediately agreed they did not like this city. "If I remember correctly…"Thom scanned the stalls that lined the streets, "There!" He pointed at a small newsstand that was almost overflowing with newspapers. Around it were a few Earth Ponies, but inside the stall itself, to the surprise of everypony but Thom, was a small green dragon with four wings who was handing out the papers. Thom shoved his way past the ponies around the stall and stood right in front of the dragon. "Would you like today's edition of The Daily Hoof-in-Mouth, good sir?" the dragon asked with a voice way too deep for something smaller than Watson. "Actually," Thom said, "I'm looking for something a little outdated." The dragon stopped. "How outdated?" he asked. "So old," Thom replied, "one can't see it." The dragon just stared at Thom in disbelief. Thom's companions were confused. What did any of that mean? The dragon, without looking away from Thom, reached under a bundle or papers and pulled out what Watson recognized as a Calling Glass. It was a flat piece of opaque crystal that was enchanted to be used as a communicator between several places. Normally, they were found in Noble houses, and Watson knew of at least thirty in Canterlot Castle that were strictly for use communicating to different parts of the castle. Their ingenuity lay in that any race could use them. The dragon breathed a small bit of fire onto the crystal, and it shone bright pink. Watson could hear some mumbling from the crystal, but it was too quiet for him to hear. "Boss," the dragon said, "there are four ponies here who want some outdated stuff that can't be seen." A brief moment of murmuring from the crystal, and the dragon continued, "One of them said the key, word for word…I can't tell, he's covered in armor. Looks like a robot or something…Hold on." Turning to Thom, the dragon asked, "Boss wants your name." "Tell him," Thom replied with a sigh, "it's Young Valerius." Everypony, including the dragon, were surprised at this. Young Valerius? The dragon nearly dropped the crystal before coming back to his senses. "Boss, it's Young Valerius…Yes, he said that…Okay…" Turning back to Thom, the dragon asked, "What color are they?" "Green," Thom replied. "He says green," the dragon spoke back into the crystal. The dragon's eyes widened after hearing what the voice in the crystal had to say. After a few more moments, the crystal stopped glowing. "The boss," the dragon told Thom and his companions, "he wishes to speak with you all face-to-face. He is sending a carriage to pick you up." Thom nodded and turned to his dumbfounded friends. "I realize," Thom admitted, "I must have some explaining to do." "Not unless you want to," Watson replied. "Trust me, I think we all have things we want forgotten. You don't have to talk unless you-" "I have to," Thom sighed. "You've all been so open with me, it's time I was open with you." He gave a few breaths before saying, "My full name is Thom Helios Stranglemane. I am the eighth foal, and the only son, of Charles Dumont Stranglemane, the Third-in-Command of the Manehattan Stampede." Watson and the two pegasi gasped at this. While none of the three had ever been in Manehattan before, all three knew about the Stampede, the families that ran the criminal underground of the city. True, it had been mostly quiet these past few decades, but nopony could ignore the illegal drinks and gambling houses that dotted the city. It was well known that no less than ten families ran these places, but everypony also knew the names of the top three: the Clopone family and its two closest allies, the Burrhoofs and the Stranglemanes. "Wait," Redstamp stated, "the Stranglemanes are all unicorns. How could you-" I'm a throwback," Thom replied. "The first Earth Pony Stranglemane born in over two centuries." "I've heard the Stranglemanes are stiff on 'perfection.'" Ditzy said. "I doubt that made anything easy for you." "If anything," Thom sighed, "being born an Earth Pony was the best, and absolute worst, thing to happen." Thom hobbled along the street, tears running down his face and bumping into almost every pony in front of him. Eight years he was the son of the Stranglemanes. He had seven older sisters (although one had moved away a few years back) who loved him dearly, he was best friends with the Burrhoof's youngest colt, and even the great Alphonse Clopone VII had taken a liking to him. But not his own parents. His parents were stuck on his obvious lack of a unicorn horn. Everypony else in the family had a horn, so why not Thom? They only tolerated him this long because they heard it sometimes took a few years for a horn to grow in. Eight years went by, and not a stub. Enough was enough. Earlier this night, after his sisters had gone to sleep, they grabbed him, drove their carriage somewhere in town, and threw him out like he was trash. All because he wasn't a unicorn. The black Earth Pony stumbled along, not knowing where he was going. As he turned a corner, he saw the train station. He remembered Uncle Clopone took him here for his seventh birthday. He told Thom how these trains went everywhere in Equestria. He even pointed out a few that went into the Outer Lands, and how a particularly large one went all the way to Dragonmount. If his parents didn't want him, he would go somewhere else, then. The small colt walked along the trains until he found an open door on a cargo car. With all the strength he could muster in his small body, Thom jumped up and pulled himself into the car. It was completely empty except for a small pile of hay in one corner. He crawled over to the pile, lay down on top of it, and cried himself to sleep. "Hey," a voice asked, "what's this?" Thom lifted his head in surprise. Did one of the conductors find him? As he opened his eyes, he saw three ponies looking at him from across the car. One was a lime green Pegasus with maroon eyes and a red mane. Another was a pale blue Earth Pony with brown eyes and mane. Between them was the biggest Earth Pony Thom had ever seen. His coat was dirt brown and his eyes were bright blue. His mane was scraggly and black. All three ponies wore patchy clothes. "A colt," the Pegasus stated as he pulled some hay off of Thom. The sunlight coming through the open door blinded Thom for a moment. "It's a colt." "What's he doing here?" the blue Earth Pony asked. He scooted closer to the frightened Thom and asked, "Hey, kid, how'd you get here? Where're your parents?" "They…"Thom finally said, "They didn't want me." "You sure?" the Pegasus asked. "Why do you say that?" "They put me on a street and left me." Thom was about to cry as he said, "They said t-t-they di-didn't w-w-want a son who…who…" The colt fell to the floor crying. "They just abandoned you?" the blue Earth Pony asked. "What kind of parents would do that?" "My guess, snooty snot-jobs," the Pegasus explained as he looked at Thom's pajamas. "Look at those slacks. Silk, embroidered, gotta be worth more than we make in a month! Bet his folks thought they could just make another one when they threw him out." "But what do we do?" the blue Earth Pony asked. "I don't think the Boss'll like this. Should we turn him in to an orphanage?" "They'd probably ask where we got him," the Pegasus replied, "and with the clear discrepancy in our status, they may think we kidnapped him." "We'll raise him," the giant brown Earth Pony finally spoke up. "WHAT!?" Both smaller ponies exclaimed. The giant walked over to Thom and smiled down at him. "We'll raise him. Colt that small needs loving folks, and we could always use the extra hoof when unloading stuff." "But what about schooling?" "And basic necessities? It's not like our illustrious job grants us a kitchen to use, or anything like that." "We'll work things out," the giant smiled. "When he gets old enough, we'll see about education. Now," he said to Thom, "my name's Granger. What's your name?" "T…Thom…with an H…" The carriage pulled up as Thom neared the end of his narrative. He finished his tale as he and the others stepped into the large carriage. "It was tough for a few years, but I was able to stay with Granger, Clips and Staples. I helped them with their jobs of loading and unloading the trains. When I got old enough, I took the guard exam, and eventually became a Paladin. Being with those guys taught me about the world beyond Stampede politics." "Has your family ever tried contacting you?" Redstamp asked. "A few months after what happened," Thom replied, "Uncle Clopone got really pissed when he heard what they did. They apparently sent ponies out to try and find me. I contacted my sisters every now and again, and that one who moved away helped me out while I was in Canterlot." Thom gave a chuckle. "Fleur was the one who suggested I join the guard." "That's unforgivable," Ditzy glowered. "You can't just abandon a child, especially for such a stupid reason. If we meet your parents, I'm going to beat them into the floor." No one doubted the widowed mother-of-two. The carriage rolled on in silence. Redstamp was contemplating what he heard, Ditzy was doing everything in her power to keep from tearing the carriage apart in her motherly rage (a feat Watson had witnessed when some Changelings attacked Ponyville) and Watson just looked at Thom, who stared out the window. Watson lifted a hoof to touch his own horn. His horn was bent, and difficult to use, but was there. The former Paladin felt a bit better about his horn, but now felt bad for his friend. Thom, the funny, practical Earth Pony, was the sole son of one of the most influential families in this whole city, and he was thrown out just because he didn't have a horn. "That's why you wear your armor," Redstamp broke the silence. "You don't want anypony recognizing you while on the job." From the way Thom pulled his head back, he was surprised by Red's statement. "That is part of it," Thom nodded, "but there's something else. Something I'd rather not talk about right now." "That's fine," the white Pegasus smiled. "It's clear you've told us more than you're comfortable with. We won't demand anything else." The carriage pulled to a stop and the door opened. "We're here," one of the ponies pulling the carriage announced. The Paladins stepped out and saw they were in front of a small, but well-kept pasta restaurant. In fact, it had been the cleanest place they had seen since coming to the city. "The boss is already inside. Behave." The four ponies walked into the restaurant and saw the inside was nice and simple. Further in, and they saw a startling sight. Standing on either side of a table were two creatures in loose business suits. They were large, their vaguely-pointed heads almost touching the ceiling. They stood on all fours, but their front legs were longer than their back, and all four legs ended in hands. They had black fur, but their faces and hands were bare. Their skin was just as black as their fur, and their faces were flat. Their brown eyes scrutinized the new arrivals carefully. 'Gorillas,' Watson thought in disbelief. He had never spoken with one, but Watson had seen a few delegates from the Green Mountain Basin during his time as a Paladin. He knew they were a peaceful race, but had strength that could rival a Minotaur's. Judging from the long scar on the side of one of their faces, these gorillas were anything but peaceful. The opening of the door behind the gorillas brought Watson out of his thoughts. Entering the room, levitating a large platter with five plates of spaghetti, was a unicorn who had to be "the Boss." He was also wearing a nice business suit, but closer inspection saw several places where it had been sewn up or had a stain removed. The unicorn wearing the suit was a magnificent one. His fur was dark grey, but had started turning silver with age. He even had a short beard to confirm he was no youngster. His mane was a shade of blue that shimmered when the light hit it. He was skinny as far as unicorns went, but this was due to his lean musculature, rather than just being bony. His eyes were a plain brown, but had the spark of an incredible intelligence. "Thom?" the unicorn asked as he set the plates down on the table. "It is you! Come here!" The unicorn gave Thom a hug, and Thom hugged him back. "Ha! Cinders was right. You do look like a robot. Why don't you take that thing off, and let Uncle Clopone take a good look at you?" Thom's friends recoiled at this. When that dragon said "Boss," they thought he was referring to his direct supervisor, not Alphonse Clopone, the leader of the Manehattan Stampede. "I'd rather not, Uncle," Thom touched his helmet self-consciously. "They're acting up bad this time." Alphonse pulled his head back. "How bad?" "Lighthouse." The elder unicorn thought for a moment, then sat down in his chair. "Does that helmet prevent you from eating?" "No," Thom chuckled as he and the others sat down. "Good," Alphonse laughed. "I'd hate to have prepared all this food only to not have my favorite nephew not be able to enjoy it. So, who are your companions? Are they Paladins, too?" Redstamp choked. "How do you know about us? Nopony outside of nobility knows about the Paladins." "I have my sources," Alphonse chuckled as he swallowed a mouthful of spaghetti. "Eat up, it's not poisoned." As everypony ate, Alphonse asked again, "So, who are they?" "The male Pegasus is Redstamp," Thom introduced. "The other Pegasus is Ditzy Doo. The unicorn is Watson MacMaren. Before you ask, he's as old as I am." "Dang, he's small," the elder unicorn chuckled. The gorillas gave a slight smirk as well. "Well, what do you need to access the archives for?" "We've come to this city looking for somepony," Thom replied. "He has something that is of multinational importance. Uncle, something big is going on. I can't say exactly what, but let's just say it's an 'end-of-the-world' problem." Alphonse stopped smiling. "End-of-the-world? Seriously?" "I can't say any more than this, but two Princesses (Neither of which are Luna) have charged us with solving this problem, which has caused the deaths of at least a dozen ponies between here and Glascow. And the four of us have personal experience that those who died were the lucky ones." There was silence in the small restaurant. No one ate, no one spoke, no one moved. After a few moments, Alphonse leaned forward. "Describe who you're looking for." Thom dug out a note (graciously written by Discord on a sheet of tough, blue cotton candy) and read off, "Pegasus. White coat, brown mane and tail. Cutie mark is a keyring. His name is Brokenkeys, and is known to be somewhat antisocial." "Brokenkeys?" Alphonse asked. "You don't need access to the archives to find him. He's over on Hilltop, close to the old Burrhoof estate. I know this because some of Mareno's boys tried to hold him up for 'protection money,' but they learned the hard way we don't do that sort of thing anymore. I'll get some of the boys to take you there." The carriage ride out was a long one. Apparently, Brokenkeys lived at the outskirts of even the outskirts. His house was a big lone house atop a hill. It was no mansion, but it was really spacious. The outside was a plain white with a brown tiled roof. There were several round windows covering the walls, and all were closed with curtains drawn. If it weren't for the fact that the lawn was nice and neat, Watson would've thought the house was abandoned. "Well," Thom said as they neared the door, "Let's get this over with." He raised a hoof to knock on the door, but the door burst apart before he could touch it. A blur struck the armored pony, sending him rolling backward. The blur was a white Pegasus with a brown mane and tail. His cutie mark was a keyring with two keys. "Are you Brok-" Redstamp started to ask before he saw what sent the hapless Pegasus through the door. Inside the house were Pony-Monsters. "Monsters!" Ditzy shrieked as everypony scattered (with Brokenkeys being lifted away by Watson). Thom sped at the nearest monster as the six monstrosities emerged from the house. It clawed at the Earth Pony, but only succeeded in getting Thom's helmet stuck to its barbed claw. The Monster and Earth Pony struggled for a bit before Thom removed his helmet and jumped away before another monster could claw at him. This was the first time anypony there had seen his face. Thom had glossy black fur that reflected the sunlight. His eyes were a deep blue color, almost gem-like in appearance. His mane was cut short, but was still spiky. None of this surprised the Paladins, however. What surprised them were the intricate green markings that shone on his face. Thom glowered at the monster and the markings shone brighter than earlier. To everypony's surprise, Thom's eyes shone green as a green aura surrounded one of the Monsters. This monster squealed as it was hurled to the side, and the one behind it also got surrounded in a green aura before it was torn apart. The other Paladins joined the fight, but they all had one thought on their mind: "Thom can use MAGIC?" Holy-moley, Thom can use MAGIC? Really? Who saw that one coming? Really, How many of you saw that coming? So, I don't know when the next chapter'll be up. I'll try to get it up before the 16th (which is my birthday), so I'll be seein' you soon!