//------------------------------// // Chapter Ten: Danger on the Ponyville Express // Story: Herald of the Night // by Commentaholic //------------------------------// Herald of the Night Chapter Ten: Danger on the Ponyville Express As the train traversed the rails with a rather impressive speed, the two secretive passengers sat on a bench near the back, ignoring the strange looks being cast their way by the other passengers in the car, as well as the whispers about Zebras. It irked Twilight to no end. She could understand Lunar ponies having the aversion to other races, being the only life forms on the inhospitable Moon and much more likely to be suspicious of newcomers, but these Equestrians had spent centuries, maybe even a few thousand years around other nations. Griffins, Minotaurs, Dragons and Zebras... Yet, these ponies were the ones with the grudge against those different from them. "It's a pity that Tolerance isn't an Element of Harmony...*" Twilight grumbled, "It's probably lost somewhere in the crack between Kindness and Loyalty." She was jerked out of her thoughts by the loud whistle of the train, which caused Twilight to gaze out the window to see what was going on. It didn't take her long to spot the shining city of white that clung to the side of the mountain. A city that the train was steadily steaming towards. It was breathtaking. Though Twilight had observed the city of Canterlot many times from the Moon through a telescope, but mere observation from afar was nothing compared to seeing it so close. Towering spires of white marble. Colorful pennants and banners hanging from the castle's battlements. The image wavered and... Twilight blinked, then looked again. No, she hadn't been imagining things. There was a slight shimmer over the whole of Canterlot, indicative of a concealed shield spell, perhaps combined with a detection array. Twilight's heart went into rapid beats as fear began taking hold. Were they expected? Before she could perform any concealing or counter-detection spells of her own, the train passed through an archway and Twilight felt a tingle move along her body, starting at her nose and sparking an electrifying sensation along her whole body until it stopped at her tail. They were inside it now. Twilight cringed and looked around, but nothing happened. No alarms... no shouts... Maybe it wasn't meant for them after all. A terrified shriek came from behind them, prompting Zecora and Twilight to spin around, both crouching into a defensive stance: Zecora's from years of defending herself in the jungle and Twilight out of paranoia. What they beheld with their eyes was most decidedly not what they expected. A black, insectoid equine - possessing holes in its limbs, a jagged horn and transparent, bug-like wings - was crouched, dazed, amid a few other ponies that were attempting to rapidly vacate its immediate vicinity. So that is what the spell was for... Twilight thought to herself, charging up a shielding ward for both herself and Zecora, imparting their coats with a slight glowing shimmer of protective magic before telekinetically scooping the bystanders to a safe distance as the strange creature started to regain its bearings, hissing its anger at being discovered. Twilight, when it turned towards her, flinched and launched a stunner spell** at it, sending it tumbling into the wall. It blinked in confusion a few times before hissing again, rising to its hooves, wings buzzing aggressively as it bore sharp, white fangs. She focused and launched another two stunners, taking a step forward as Zecora flanked left, spear gripped by her right foreleg and pointed at the strange creature while balancing on her other three hooves. The two of them slowly approached the fallen creature, which seemed to have difficulty recovering from the latest stunning spells. The ponies behind them breathed a collective sigh of relief as a trio of guards, clad in golden armour and wielding spears, burst into the train car once the train stopped and, after a brief look around to get a situational assessment, turned and cornered the creature, binding it in shackles and hoisting it onto its hooves. It regained its awareness as two of the guards dragged it away, spitting and hissing in fury. The third guard turned away from the struggling creature and nodded at Twilight and Zecora. "Thank you. You've done quite the service to Equestria. I'm impressed that a couple of civilians acted with such swiftness." If the guard had any sort of prejudice against zebras, he contained it rather well, though his gaze did linger over Zecora for a moment or so longer than it had done so over Twilight. "Sir, if I may ask... What the hay was that?" Twilight blurted, craning her neck to look out the window as the other guards bore the creature out of sight. "And why did it attack us?" "It's not really my place to say, but... I'll have to ask you to come with us for questioning." Twilight recoiled, retreating a few steps, "What? Why? Did we do something wrong?" The guard chuckled, "No, no. Nothing like that. It's just that the Captain will want to know what happened in here before we arrived. He'll want to ask you and your friend a few questions, then you'll be free to go." Twilight calmed down, "Oh... alright then. Let me just get my bags..." She said, turning back towards their seat. Behind her, the guard inhaled sharply. The guard slowly backed out of the car, whispering to another guard who had arrived on the scene. "Alert Captain Armor. We've got a Marked One and I'm bringing her in." *= Personally, Twilight believed that the Element of Magic was a misnomer but still, as stated previously, the catalyst in the Harmony reaction. In several of her studies on the subject, she stated "I mean, seriously. Magic is an Element of Harmony in a group where every other Element is a moral trait to be nurtured and encouraged? Perhaps it's a metaphorical title that goes along with the lesson about Friendship in itself being a subcategory of magic?" **= Twilight was well-versed in self-defense spells. A pony does not travel the length and width of the Lunar Kingdom - sometimes including sojourns into the Dark Side of the Moon - without learning to protect herself from whatever sketchy motives may belong to the ponies in various cities. Not all Lunar Ponies were supportive of the Royal Court and their representatives. Twilight had, indeed, been accosted no less than seven times during her employment in service to the Royal Court. Most times, she could deal with her assailant without requiring assistance from the local guards.