"Golden feather clips, only fifty bits!"
"Five hundred bit worth, thirty percent off!"
"-has been blessed by the Empress herself!"
"Pilfered from the Temple of-"
"Old as the stars, but appears new-"
"A great bargain!"
"Goldie!" Golden Leaf was shaken out of her light stupor, brought on by the noise of the crowd, by the high-pitched shout from the foal beside her. She looked down and sighed at what she saw.
"Charm, the cloud isn't going to swallow you up. Stop flailing," she chided, before grabbing her brother's tail with her mouth and yanking him out of the condensed water he had been squirming in. His wings buzzed, and she released him so he could flutter back down to the cloud.
"I wanna go back to the ground," the bronze foal whined. Golden Leaf huffed, affixing her brother with a scolding look. Copper Charm was a stubborn foal. His wings had matured quicker than his classmates, and for some reason he had taken that as a sign that he was grown up (even though he was still a blank flank) and his decisions were law. This nature led to a lot of arguments with his big sister, mostly about clouds. He could fly, but hated standing on the solid moisture.
"We won't be here long," Golden Leaf assured him, beginning to walk once more through the crowded streets of the New Cloudsdale market. She was a blooming inventor, having been interested in mechanics long before she'd gotten her cutie mark, which had come in the form of a golden three leaf clover with a gear at the end of the stem. It showcased her seemingly perpetual lucky streak in the field of mechanical innovation. Most of her breakthroughs came from mistakes she made while trying to do something else.
She had come to the market to sell her newest inventions. She'd hit a recent epiphany in harnessing pegasus magic to affect other things, beside the weather. She wasn't going to be selling anything having to do with that today, but it definitely inspired her to offer some older things.
"You always say it won't take long, but then it does!" Copper Charm stomped a front hoof, but followed Golden Leaf.
"Trust me this time," Golden Leaf said, pausing to nuzzle her brother's red mane. He huffed, but said nothing more.
The two made their way to Golden Leaf's rented stand, and she began to unpack the gold, silver, and copper contraptions from her saddle bags. Copper Charm didn't assist, and she didn't press him to. He flopped down behind the stand and began to bat at his sister's cinnamon tail. Her green fur contrasted strangely with the color, but she didn't mind. Her appearance wasn't of utmost importance to her.
A white stallion, who had previously been circling the market in the sky (probably an athlete or something, based off of his wild mane style and lean figure), was her first browser, but he bought nothing. A high-class mare was the second, but just like the first, her bits remained in her bags. The browsers continued to file in, drawn by the sparkling metal and strange shapes of Golden Leaf's inventions. She smiled pleasantly to each one, though over time she grew more weary. She never had many customers, but it was disheartening each time her hard work was turned down.
Each invention functioned. Each gear was painstakingly placed so the portable oven wouldn't catch flame and the clock-like device that calculated how fast one was flying was as accurate as possible. It just seemed that no pony needed the devices. Or at least didn't think they did. Golden Leaf sighed as yet another pegasus passed her by. Copper Charm was growing more restless, flittering in circles behind her. She regretted not bringing along a toy or something to keep him occupied, but it was too late now. At least the sun was starting to set. Soon they could go home and-
Golden Leaf's thoughts were cut off by a stallion suddenly landing in front of her stand. His amber eyes met her ruby ones, and the next second he was gone, a single tawny feather fluttering to the ground being the only thing that remained. Golden Leaf blinked, then looked down at her counter. One of the contraptions was missing. She jerked her head back up and looked around at the surrounding crowd frantically. Copper Charm noticed her distress and poked at her left back leg.
"Goldie? What's wrong?" He followed her gaze for a moment, before piping up again. "Are you looking for something?"
"Th-thief..." she whispered.
"What?"
"Thief!" Golden Leaf's wings flared out and she leapt out of the stand. "Charm, don't move!" She flapped her wings a few times and took flight, scanning the market from above. "No no no!" she panted. She wasn't sure what had been stolen, but something had been stolen, and that was enough. This was her livelihood, she needed to sell the inventions. If she didn't, then neither her or Copper Charm would be comfortable, or eventually even alive.
Finally, she spotted a stallion with tawny fur and a thing made of silver metal held in his mouth. He was edging through the crowd with his wings held strangely, almost as if they'd been broken. Golden Leaf slowed in her flight. If he was hurt, maybe he needed whatever he'd stolen more than she did. She had plenty of bits, maybe he didn't...
The stallion looked up and spotted her. His eyes widened and he began to gallop. Golden Leaf shook her head and dove after him. This was no time to hesitate. She'd ask questions after she caught him.
"Stop!" she yelled, "Thief!" Predictably, he didn't slow. The two were approaching the edge of the New Cloudsdale market now, the cloud suddenly cutting off to reveal a dark forest far below. Unicornia territory started around here, Golden Leaf mentally noted. The thief leapt over the side of the cloud, his wings unfurling as he caught himself. She noticed him struggle a bit in the air, as if flying caused him pain. His wings were slightly bent, making his flight pattern noticeably crooked. Golden Leaf found herself slowing again as her conscience piped up once more. She desperately tried to push it to the back of her mind, replacing her thoughts with Copper Charm and how much she needed the money that selling the invention would bring.
If she sold it, of course.
Golden Leaf was weighing her options when she saw the thief suddenly spasm mid-flight. His wings snapped shut, practically glueing themselves to his sides, and he plummeted down. The silver item he'd stolen slipped from his open mouth, but neither pegasus noticed. Golden Leaf screamed in surprise and horror, all thoughts of his crime vanishing, and she dove down, trying desperately to reach him before he hit the ground. His cries filled her ears and she responded with a yell of her own. Her wings flattened against her side as she dove, hoping against hope that she'd reach him before he hit the rapidly approaching trees below.
Unfortunately, her lucky streak only applied to her innovations, not her ability to rescue.
Ruby and amber met once more before the thief hit the first branch with his back and his screams stopped abruptly. A resounding crack made Golden Leaf's wings flare out once more, catching her before she could face the same fate. The tawny pegasus vanished beneath the thick cover of leaves and wood, leaving Golden Leaf to stare at the cracked branch he'd hit.
Time stood still for a moment, as her eyes stuck to the dark hole in the leaf cover that the thief's body had left behind. It was too dark in the forest to see what lay below, so she could only wonder about his fate. A shiver slid over Golden Leaf's frame as she slowly lowered herself to the top of a tree and perched there, staring down through the trees at the dark below. She was seized with a desire to return to New Cloudsdale, to return to Copper Charm and forget this had ever happened. Her conscience wouldn't let her do that though, she had to check if he was alright. If there was even the slightest chance he had survived, she had to make sure. If he had, he'd no doubt need immediate assistance.
Taking a deep breath, the green mare flew below the leaves and branches, squinting her eyes in the dark that suddenly overtook her surroundings. She focused on going straight down, not wanting to get too far from where the thief had probably landed. As her eyes adjusted, Golden Leaf saw that the forest seemed to be void of life besides the trees and the occasional predatory growl. Her heart beat sickeningly fast as her hooves finally touched the leaf blanketed, fern infested ground. She looked around, and her eyes settled on an unmoving, pony-shaped lump a few feet away. Taking a gulp of air, Golden Leaf walked up to the body. There was no movement of breath, or even a twitch of the ear. An ant crawled over the thief's shoulder, and he didn't move.
"Hello?" Golden Leaf said quietly, reaching out a hoof but stopping just before she touched the pegasus' side. "Are you...?" She stopped, drawing her hoof back. He was dead. She was sure of it. After a moment of just staring at the unmoving form of the passed criminal, she sat down and drew a hoof over her eyes. She wasn't crying, but it hurt to look at the dead pony before her. She didn't feel right just looking or flying away, she felt like she should honor him somehow. She didn't know his name, but the emotion she had seen when he'd fallen had stirred her. He wasn't a cold-hearted criminal, he was a pony like her, and he had died like she would if she had been the one falling.
A low growl and the clinking of metal startled her out of her state of mourning. She leapt into the air in a spur of fright and clung to the first branch she crossed. The sound of heavy footsteps reached her ears, along with increasingly loud growls and metal scraping against metal. Golden Leaf's eyes widened. She'd only heard those sounds once, on the Longest Night Celebration when it was held in New Cloudsdale.
The Empress's royal guard.