Marked

by Eisen

Chapter 15: The Tipping Point

Twilight appeared in a flash of purple light at the base of the palace. Looking up above, she noticed bolts and flashes, indicating that Cadence was still attacking the bubble, giving Twilight a few precious seconds more to escape. She took advantage of this, and with a burst of speed, disappeared into an alleyway nearby.

Twilight was panicking now, her heart racing almost as fast as her mind, as she thought deeply on the situation at hand. What do I do, what do I do, what do I DO? she wondered, closing her eyes and crouching, her hoof splashing in a puddle as she did so.

Initially she froze at the sound, her eyes snapping open to be met with... her reflection: a panicked, purple alicorn with pinkish hair. This gave her her first sense of direction. Okay, I need to lay low, but I can't go out looking like this. She thought back hard on some of the old books she had read, until she remembered a very special technique from one of them. "Never thought I'd actually need this one..." she muttered softly to herself as her horn began to glow, lighting up the dark alleyway.

A purple aura washed over her whole body, levitating her off of the ground, and with a grunt, light began radiating from her coat and hair, as the follicles were restructured.

When she floated back down, she was panting, given the large exertion of energy. She shakily took a look at the puddle again, the water rippling from the event, but as it calmed an image emerged. Staring back up at Twilight was a mare that looked familiar but... different. Her coat was yellow, with light green hair on top, in Twilight's usual fashion. She had successfully changed her appearance.

She messed up her hair after briefly pondering the image before her, and peered at her back. Wings AND horns are abnormal. I need to keep these hidden.

She couldn't sustain true invisibility for more than a few minutes at a time, even less so spot invisibility, so she did the next best thing: she stealthily stepped into an unlit boutique and grabbed a cloak. It was a simple, dark brown cloak, loose fitting, so it perfectly covered her wings and saddlebag. While inside, she managed to find a brush laying on a table, and used it in conjunction with a back mirror to do up her hair in a new style. I guess all those lessons with Rarity actually DID come in handy, she thought to herself.

She didn't want to risk leaving hair behind, so she took the brush with her, and being a mare of integrity, she left enough money for the cloak and brush on the front counter. Just as she put the bits down, she froze. Did I just hear a door? The echoing hoofsteps from the back indicated that she had, and she very quickly teleported out into the back alley, then briskly walked out into the street.

Looking up at the mighty palace again, the light show had stopped, and to the untrained eye, it looked fairly normal. However, Twilight noticed that the blast marks on the spire indicated a lot of energy had been used. Her stomach knotted somewhat as she trotted about, thinking about what might have happened to Shining Armor, but knowing him, if he were here now, he'd say something like "C'mon Twily, you can't be worried about me. You telling me you wasted those extra seconds I gave ya?"

She had to push on, and she had an idea where to start. Twilight hadn't gotten too much information from Shining, but when she asked about precursors, he mentioned the business summit, which was her biggest, and only, lead at this time. If she could find out who was pressuring Cadence, maybe she'd learn more about what was happening here.

Thus, Twilight made her way to the nearest community center, consciously adjusting her gait to be different from usual, paranoid all the way. The ponies were all milling about, not a single one appearing to notice her. So far so good, she told herself to remain calm.

As she made her way to the big bulletin board, the ultimate test of her disguise came along, as a guard walking away from the board bumped into her, and looked her straight in the eye. There was a tense moment from Twilight's perspective, and she almost thought she had been caught, until he merely said "pardon me ma'am" and kept going. She nodded and almost chucked. That deepish voice belonged to the guard who had been at the front desk at the jail. It's moments like that that reminded her just how small the empire could actually be, when put into perspective. That may or may not work in her favor, given that someone may recognize her as different... or just not care.

Moving ahead, she found what she was looking for: a poster for the business council summit. It had been held at the library, on the evening of the same day she had spoken with Celestia. She thought it was fairly ironic that the very thing she was investigating had been hosted in the location in which she had done most of her research, but at least there was a friendly librarian to answer a curious mare's questions.

She was about to leave when she looked at a large poser that had just been put up: with a big picture of her, the real, purple her, smiling on it. Many ponies were reading it, and she furrowed her brow as she looked it over herself.

Her blood ran cold as she read it's contents: "Find Princess Twilight! The princess is hiding somewhere in the kingdom, and if YOU can spot her, you can win a cash prize! Simply tell your local guards to collect!" She tried desperately to understand exactly why it was written that way. They hunt me like a criminal, yet they don't label me as one. They want me captured, but not made an enemy of the state. Why? What terrified her more though was the fact that these clearly had been pre-printed. She hadn't been a fugitive a few hours ago, but suddenly well made, professional signs were out for her capture. But then she read the fine print, and absolutely solidified her determination to get to the library, for there, written on the bottom of the poster was a small legal message: "prize generously donated by the Business Council of Equestria".

Twilight entered the library, very careful that her posture and gait were different from usual, yet believable. Stamper looked up blankly, then smiled at the new library patron approaching the desk. Clearly this place didn't get much attendance, and today was no exception: empty again.

She sighed briefly before preparing to speak. She had been rehearsing a new accent in her head the whole trip here, and now, she had it down packed. She even consciously adjusted the pattern with which she looked about the room before speaking. Perfect disguise. "Hello there! Just came by to ask about the big business meeting that was held here a while back!" she said simply. Her voice had sounded foreign even to her, perfect.

Stamper looked at her for a moment, then lit up. "Sure thing, princess!" he said cheerfully.

Her security shattered. How had he known? And without even a minute of looking her over? Her eyes widened and panic crept onto her face. Stamper just calmly chuckled.

"Hey, relax, I'm not interested in turning you in. Besides, the guards already came by and asked about you. I see you snuck past the one who's patrolling outside though. He looked to be a heavy sleeper, so can't say I'm surprised."

She was confused, and still slightly panicked. Sure he was a friend, but if he could figure it out, what if someone else could? "How? How did you know it was me?" she asked quietly, still in her fake accent.

He merely waved off her concern with a hoof. "Oh I wouldn't worry too much. Your disguise is very convincing but, I have... other ways of identifying people, ways very few ponies still use." He explained, subtly adjusting his own saddlebag as he said this. She couldn't help but glance at the bag with mild curiosity, but he snapped her back to reality.

"So, the business meeting?" he asked, briskly, but retaining a friendly tone.

Clearing her throat, she spoke, asking again about the meeting. Stamper calmly trotted over to the front of the library and flipped the sign to "closed" and returned. "Alright, Princess, what exactly do you want to know?"

Twilight began with exactly what the meeting was, wanting all the basic details.

He got right to it. "Well, it's the largest business meeting in all of Equestria, where business leaders meet to discuss their profits, products, some plans, and economics. It's held in a different city each year. The topic of this year's meeting was the empire actually. They primarily were discussing new products for the more recent Crystal Imperial market, and thought that the arrival would be great for the economy, which was going stale due to lack of diverse markets," he beamed as he finished explaining, glad he could be helpful.

Twilight looked pensive as she digested the information. "Alright... so, who was in attendance of the meeting? I know that Cadence came by here at some point, but I don't know who exactly attended otherwise."

Stamper handed her a list, And it included multiple names that she recognized, such as Filthy Rich. "Cadence was just here briefly to oversee the meeting towards the end, but she did have a more private meeting with the Business Council Officers afterwards.

She scratched her chin as she saw a name that sounded mildly familiar, but otherwise was unfamiliar to her. "Hey, Reach sounds familiar. Who exactly is he?"

Stamper's expression was the same as someone who had just managed to choke on their tea, but he shook it off quickly and responded.

"Well, Far Reach is the CEO of the Reach Mining Co., and in recent years, the Reach Jewelry and Refinery Companies." He got a very strange expression on his face, some kind of mix she really couldn't read, and he asked her exactly why she asked about him in particular.

"Well, he's listed as a council officer, and I could've sworn I heard that name somewhere earlier this week," she explained, unsure how to take his odd curiosity.

He looked very pensive for a moment, as if considering his next action. Eventually he sighed and coughed, drinking from his flask again.

"Any more questions?" he asked simply, returning to his more neutral, helpful expression.

She couldn't quite think up any other questions that he would be able to answer about this, but she now had a new directive in mind. "May I keep this list?" she asked, to which he nodded.

"It's a copy anyway. And something tells me you need it more than I do!" he said with a grandfatherly wink.

She thought of leaving, and began to turn before she halted and faced him again. "Why are you so helpful, Stamper?" the princess asked very suddenly.

"Hmm?"

"Why are you so helpful? You aren't turning me in, you're kind, you've helped me throughout my research of... history, and you've been answering all of my questions without a second thought! So I ask again: why are you so helpful?" she inquired, her tone firm.

He sat quietly for a moment, then laughed a bit, shaking his hoof once again. "I'm just an old stallion trying to lend a hoof. I don't need that cash prize, and besides, spreading rumors is is none of my business." His voice sounded true, and almost fooled the princess into believing it. Almost.

Twilight shook her head, and looked back at him with somewhat piercing eyes.

"I don't buy it. I may not be nearly as wise or experienced as you, but I wasn't born yesterday either. You've done more than any typical librarian... you probably know what this is all about, don't you?" She paused here to let him speak, but he merely looked at her with a blank expression, his smile gone. "I'll ask again, why are you helping me?" she repeated, slowly, articulating carefully and with emphasis.

He sat very still for a moment, his jaw set. Then, he sighed and looked down at the floor, his thinning hair casting a shadow over his eyes, hiding them from sight.

He spoke in a raspy tone. "Suffice to say... I have seen the consequences of inaction far too many times to continue turning a blind eye." His tone and diction seemed entirely out of character... but it seemed so much more sincere than his usual disposition. She sensed genuine guilt in his voice, but also a very stern and determined tone.

She was just about to respond when there was a knock on the primary door. Stamper looked up and whispered, face still blank. "the alley out back is unguarded. If you can teleport, your highness, I recommend doing so now." Then, turning to the door, in his more cheerful voice he shouted "BE RIGHT THERE!"

"Thank you, Stamper. For everything," she said sincerely.

He put on a genuine smile and nodded at her, and at that, she disappeared in a final flash, leaving the stallion alone in the library once again.

Comments

[Dipti]

"The only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing."
Its arguably one the greater evils in my opinion.

[Eisen]

6818027
Thanks for the help, I'm always looking for constructive criticisms! I'm glad you're enjoying it thus far!

[NymbusFrae]

The plot thickens once again, and, as I so often seem to say, I'm quite interested to see where this goes. I'm pleased with this story, and can't wait to read more!
However, to blend in, Twilight chose a rather flashy colour scheme, Yellow and green. Nonetheless, probably all the more unexpected.
Ponder the rest of Equestria playing a game of, "Where's Twilight" for the next couple of chapters.
Write on, Dear Fellow!