The Heart Thief

by Helrael

Chapter 3

“I need your help.”

Four simple words. One syllable each. Yet every one of her friends had dropped everything they had been doing when they heard her say them. All it had taken were those four words, and one look at Twilight and Spike.

It would never cease to amaze her, Twilight decided, looking out upon the endless wastes of desert that the train was currently blazing through. The true power of friendship would always leave as profound an impact on her as it had today.

She was seated near the window in the back of the carriage, nearly empty save for herself and her friends. Applejack, Rarity, and Rainbow Dash were seated in the three seats around her, while Pinkie Pie, Fluttershy, and Spike sat across the aisle from them.

Despite everything Zecora had told her about Spike's condition, the dragon, at least for now, wore a dim smile, twitching ever so slightly at Pinkie Pie's jokes and antics. It was as if, somehow, she was making him forget that he lacked all foundation for emotion.

Remembering Zecora's warnings, however, Twilight found it hard to smile herself. She looked out the window again, seeing the first hints of civilization up ahead. It wouldn't be long before they were in Dodge Junction.

“We should go over our plans again,” she said, interrupting a lighthearted argument between Applejack and Rainbow Dash. Rarity, who had been staring wistfully at Spike, turned her attention to Twilight, and the alicorn noticed Fluttershy's ears swivel subtly in her direction, indicating that she too was listening.

“We've gone over it already, sugarcube,” Applejack responded with a smile. “Ah think we can all remember.”

“No harm in reiteration,” Twilight insisted, sensing that the train was already slowing. “We'll be in Dodge Junction any minute now. Spike, Rainbow, and I will get off here while the rest of you keep going to Baltimare. Once you get there, you find a ship to take you to The Changeling Kingdom.”

She pushed a piece of parchment across the table between her and Applejack. “Use my signature if you need it. After Rainbow Dash and I have shopped for supplies, we'll head south through the badlands and travel down Tangled Pass through The Dragon Territories. According to Zecora, changelings are fairly weak flyers, meaning our thief will have trouble going over the mountains. To get back to the hive, Tangled Pass should be the quickest route. If we hurry, we might be able to overcome the changeling's headstart and catch up to it.”

“But you still don't know how to get Spike's heart back, do you?” Rarity pressed of her, to which Twilight had to shake her head.

“I'll have to hope I can figure out how to do the transfer once I subdue the thief. If not, I'll have to take it and Spike back to Zecora and hope any of her ideas work.”

“I wish we hadn't given away our Elements of Harmony,” Rainbow Dash grumbled, fidgeting in her seat as she took a quick look outside. “I bet they could do it.”

“The Tree of Harmony should be plan C,” Twilight agreed. “If I can't do the transfer myself, I'll send Rainbow Dash to meet you girls at the changeling border so you can be back before too long.”

“Hold on,” Applejack broke in. “Then what'll you be doing?”

“Plan B. Taking Spike to Zecora. If that doesn't work, we won't have to spend a week ‒”

“How're ya gonna carry Spike and a changeling like that halfway across Equestria?” Applejack interrupted her again. “Ain't it got Spike's heart? That makes it a whole lot stronger than normal, right?”

“We'll figure something out,” Twilight assured her. “Maybe we can enlist the help of the dragons if we need it.” She threw a worried look at Spike, still caught up in Pinkie Pie’s antics. “In any case, we have to prioritize speed above all else. We don't have a lot of time.” Her gaze lingered on Spike a little while longer before she cleared her throat and returned her attention to the three ponies around her. “Now, while we travel through The Dragon Territories, the group going by sea will land in Gray Bay. You'll travel west through the neutral territory between dragons and changelings until you reach the southern exit of Tangled Pass. If the group going by land fails to catch the thief, the group going by sea will have to intercept it.”

“And we'll have to catch them then, won't we?” Rarity murmured uncertainly, looking at Spike again.

Twilight nodded. “If the thief passes into The Changeling Kingdom... we've failed. According to their laws, the changeling won't be a thief, and if I sanction an attack on it, it'll lead to an international crisis. If the thief gets across the border, I'll have to treat with Queen Chrysalis to get the heart back.”

Rarity nodded her understanding. “So in other words... We really have to catch the thief.”

The others nodded their heads in unison.

A momentary shudder shook the train, and soon the sound of screeching brakes filled the carriage. A family near the front of the carriage were out of their seats already, getting their bags in order while chattering excitedly about their vacation. Outside the carriage, the outer settlements of Dodge Junction were whizzing by, growing within moments from sparse, ramshackle sheds that shivered in the wake of the pounding steam engine to sizeable family homes and shops, elaborate in their woodwork and painted in dusty pastels.

Twilight took a deep breath to steady herself. She would have preferred to go over the plan at least once more. She was sure a lot of details still needed to be worked out, and she kept having that nagging feeling of having forgotten something important.

In just a few moments, she would have to hand off control of half the situation, with no way of contacting her friends. Not until both groups had traveled several hundred miles through lands populated by two of the most inhospitable species in the world. Applejack was one of the most level-headed ponies she knew, though, and Rarity had an even higher sense of organization and detail than she did herself. She’d just have to trust them to play their parts.

“This is it, girls,” she told her friends, levitating her and Rainbow Dash's saddlebags off the luggage rack above them. “It'll be at least two or three days before we see each other again.”

“And at least one of us'll be totin' a hogtied changeling next time we meet,” Applejack responded with an air of confidence.

“I don't know...” Rainbow Dash snickered. “I don't think the two of us brought any rope. How're me and Twilight s'posed to hogtie the thief when we catch her?”

“We should get rope...” Twilight murmured to herself, adding it to her mental checklist.

Meanwhile, a mischievous smile played across the earth pony's features, and she narrowed her eyes at the pegasus beside her. “Sounds like a bet to me.”

“Sounds like a free... hundred bits to me.” Rainbow Dash retorted.

“Oh, ho, ho, someone's feelin' mighty generous!”

Twilight and Rarity, the latter rising from her seat to let the former out onto the aisle, both rolled their eyes as the ponies in front of them spit in their hooves and bumped them. Rainbow Dash picked up her saddlebags with her teeth and lifted off her seat to land beside Twilight, flipping the bags onto her back with a flick of her head before fitting the straps with her hooves.

The train had slowed to a gentle roll by now, and the train station started sliding by at a slow crawl outside as Spike joined Twilight and Rainbow Dash. The alicorn turned back to face her four remaining friends in their seats, and she smiled. “Once again, I really appreciate you all coming with me today. This is likely one of the most dangerous missions we've undertaken without the princesses' support, but you all dropped everything in your hooves to come help me and Spike.”

“Whaddya mean without a princess' support?” Rainbow Dash cackled, elbowing Twilight in the side. “We got one right here!”

“Yep,” Applejack agreed, wearing an equally playful smile. “Horns, wings, sendin' us on a dangerous mission without a day's warnin'... Why, you're the spittin' image of Celestia already!”

Twilight couldn't help but blush at the well-meaning jape, but gave a dry laugh in response. “Very funny.”

The train finally ground to a halt, and a great hiss of steam from outside made the ponies wince.

“Alright, see you in a few days, girls,” Twilight told the four remaining ponies. “Hopefully, we'll meet down by the border with a hale and healthy Spike in tow!” She grabbed the dragon with her magic and planted him firmly on her back.

“And a sorry-looking changeling!” Rainbow Dash declared with a confident smirk.

“If you don't, we will!” Pinkie Pie added jovially.

“Darn tootin'!”

“Good luck to the three of you,” Rarity told them, taking a step forward to give Twilight a hug. “Hopefully, you won't be needing us at all.” She moved another step past Twilight to give the dragon on her back a tight hug.

Twilight gave the unicorn a smile. “We'll fix him, Rarity. I promise.”

“Better get going,” Rainbow Dash urged Twilight, giving her another nudge.

Twilight murmured her agreement, saying a last goodbye to her four friends before she followed the pegasus out of the carriage and onto the platform. Together, they waved the others off as the train slowly set into motion again and carried off into the east.

Despite their own carriage having been so empty, the platform was now full of new arrivals, milling about almost aimlessly in search of wherever they were going or shouting their greetings at family or friends welcoming them to the town. Others, like Twilight and Rainbow Dash, found themselves standing idly about on the platform, deciding their first course of action in this new locale.

Rainbow Dash stretched out her wings after the long train ride, flapping them a few times before looking to Twilight. “So, what do we need before we go?”

“Water, mainly. There'll be several streams along Tangled Pass, but we've got a lot of miles of desert and badlands between there and here. And rope. Other than that, we're already set.”

Rainbow Dash nodded. “Still got a few hours of daylight. If we hurry, we can make it to the badlands before dark.”

“If not further,” Twilight agreed, heading off the platform. “Can you carry the water? You being the strongest flier of the two of us, and with me carrying Spike...”

“No problem,” the pegasus assured her, trotting up alongside her. “Anything heavy you got, you just hoof it on to me.”

“Do you think we can catch it?”

Rainbow Dash's cocky smile faltered only for a moment. “Yeah! I mean, you found out about all this just a few hours ago, but we're already halfway out of Equestria!”

“The thief still has more than half a day on us.”

“Not a lot of trains running in the middle of the night,” Rainbow Dash countered. “She's probably still in the badlands somewhere right now.”

“If it took the route we think it did.” Twilight sighed and shook her head. “There's so much uncertainty to all this. I wish we could contact Celestia.”

“Not much chance of that without dragon fire.”

“Celestia would know how to handle this. She'd be able to send out a much larger search party than just the six of us. Why don't I have any royal guards!?”

Rainbow Dash chuckled. “Maybe they'll be included with your royal palace.”

“Maybe we should've sent Fluttershy up to the Crystal Empire to tell the other princesses what's going on.”

“The interception group wouldn't have a pegasus if we'd done it like that. They'd have a tough time catching a changeling.”

“Fluttershy's not that strong of a flier,” Twilight argued halfheartedly, knowing that it was already much too late to change her plans. “And she's clearly not comfortable with the destination. Barely said a word the entire trip.”

“But she came. Same as all of us. And when it really matters, she's really not that bad of a flier. She'll catch that changeling if she has to.”

Twilight nodded her head. “You're right. Sorry. It's just...” She looked back at Spike sitting on her back, his eyes empty of their usual spark and his expression void of any emotion. “He's fading. Fast.”

“Well... then let's get those supplies and get going,” Rainbow Dash suggested. “I'll find water, you find rope. Shouldn't be hard to find in a town like this.”

---

A gentle bump, probably no more than a pebble on the tracks, sent a light shudder through the carriage. The two-beat thump echoed backwards into the distance as the wagons behind Rarity each in turn rattled past the bump, and she opened her eyes sluggishly, giving a petite yawn.

Her head was slumped against the window, smudged from the fog of her own breath. She blinked, and her gaze rose to meet the coming dusk on the eastern horizon straight ahead of the train. The indigo sky was striated with fluffy clouds far above, painted pink by the sunset behind her, which likewise streaked her more earthbound surroundings in long, stark shadows.

The landscape beyond the train tracks had changed dramatically since they had left Dodge Junction. The desert hadn't gone on for all that long after they had set off, but now the train was bustling through woods as thick as the Everfree Forest. Great pines and oaks and birches passed by in a bewildering blur. Shadows and golden sunlight danced among each other across a shifting canvas of greens, whites, and browns, and Rarity lost herself in the lustrous dance for a few moments.

After a while, her attention returned to the inside of the carriage. Not many passengers had boarded the train back in Dodge, and the few that had were all remarkably quiet: either asleep, reading, or staring out at the trees. Fluttershy lay curled up asleep to her left, tucked into a tight ball of fur that somehow didn't intrude the slightest on Rarity's own seat. Pinkie Pie, who should have been seated across from Fluttershy, was nowhere to be seen, leaving only Applejack, sitting across from Rarity.

The earth pony was awake, and had been so for some time, it seemed.

“What is it?” Rarity murmured quietly, noticing the other pony looking at her.

“Nuthin'.” Applejack's gaze shifted to the sunset behind Rarity. Her stetson was tipped over forwards to shield her eyes from the brightness of it, but even so she had to squint as flickers of sunlight passed through the trees and played across her face.

Rarity lifted her head from the window and straightened in her seat, giving another yawn. “We must be getting close.”

Applejack gave a short nod. “Forest oughtta be thinnin' out any second now.”

As if on cue, the forest on the left side of the train fell away suddenly, revealing a broad river some distance off, running alongside the railroad. This would be the river feeding into Horseshoe Bay, Rarity knew, where the city of Baltimare lay.

“We should think about what we're gonna do once we get there,” Applejack suggested, looking out at the river.

“I will take Fluttershy and find the remaining supplies we need. You take Pinkie ‒ Where is Pinkie?”

Applejack shrugged and leaned back against her seat. “Went off in search of snacks or sumthin' a little while ago.”

“Ah.” Rarity's stomach rumbled at the thought. She had barely gotten out of bed when Twilight had come knocking, and as a result, her afternoon breakfast had been a hurried, meager affair. And although she had packed enough food to last her for days in the borderlands, she had somehow forgotten lunch for the train ride.

“Maybe we should get a bite o' dinner first?”

Rarity nodded. “Indeed. As I was saying, once we've eaten, you take Pinkie Pie to the docks and try to procure a ship. And a crew.”

Applejack couldn't help but smile. “You'd trust me and Pinkie to find you a ship to take you to Gray Bay?”

“More than I'd trust you to remember all the supplies we still need,” Rarity rebuked her. “I am more than willing to forego luxury if it means arriving at the border posthaste.”

“Ain't gonna be a lotta ships leavin' port at sundown,” the earth pony observed. “We'd have more luck in the mornin'.”

“Take a look anyway. We have no idea how far that changeling has gotten with Spike's heart.”

“You can't get through Tangled Pass faster'n you can sail past The Dragon Territories.”

“Well, let's hope the thief doesn't know that.”

“If it knows, it knows askin' for a boat ride to The Changeling Kingdom is a surefire way o' gettin' caught.” Applejack tipped her hat back off her brow, catching the unicorn's eyes. “Rarity, we'll get there before that thief does, sure as sugar. Whether we leave today or tomorrow, it don't matter none.”

“Still...” Rarity sighed and looked out the window, hoping that Baltimare would hover into view soon. “The sooner the better. I refuse to be part of the group that let... Spike...” She found her voice faltering just thinking of it, and she gave another sigh.

The door to the carriage behind Rarity clicked open, and Pinkie Pie came bustling through. She plopped down on her seat next to Applejack and dumped four cupcakes and a bag of tiny pretzels on the table. “Dig in!” she greeted her friends none too quietly, breaking the somber silence that had been filling the wagon since Rarity had woken up. Fluttershy's eyes blinked open, and she slowly uncoiled, stretching her back before sitting up.

“The conductor said we'd be there in just a few minutes, so you'd better hurry!” Pinkie Pie grabbed a pink cupcake off the table, downing it in two gulps before pouring a small pile of pretzels onto her hoof and devouring those as well.

Each with their own words of thanks, the three other ponies took a cupcake, eating theirs at a more measured pace. Rarity's gaze quickly drifted outside again while she nibbled at her treat. She looked south, past the forest, vast and impenetrable, and past the mountains, their snow-capped peaks shimmering in the sunset. Twilight, Rainbow Dash and Spike would be there by now, far beyond her reach within the badlands.

The train passed across another bump in the tracks. The repeated, two-beat thump that ran through each carriage sent a shiver down her spine, making her ribs feel suddenly... tighter. Without removing her gaze from the faraway mountain tops, Rarity touched a hoof to her chest thoughtfully, frowning lightly in confusion.

---

Applying one of her more powerful spells, the dozen small rocks Twilight had collected from the surrounding area transformed into a pile of dry twigs and branches. With the diagrams she had memorized in preparation for the trip clearly in mind, she rearranged the wood into the optimal tipi campfire build. Satisfied with her work, she lit a spark within the center of the mass of dry wood. Within moments, the two ponies and dragon had a lively campfire going.

“Aaand done!” Twilight looked to her left to see Rainbow Dash stepping away from the tent she'd just pitched, a proud smile on her face.

Twilight shook her head. “Uh, not quite. Where's the tarp?”

Rainbow Dash gave the tent, then Twilight, a puzzled look. “Tarp?”

“You know, to keep the tent dry if it rains.”

“Oh yeah. Don't need it.”

“What do you mean!? It's an integral part of the tent!”

Rainbow Dash flapped her wings. “Pegasi don't worry too much about rain, y'know?”

“Well, I grew up with tarps, so I ‒”

“You grew up with tarps?” Rainbow Dash raised an eyebrow. “You don’t strike me as the camping type.”

Twilight pressed her lips together in frustration for a moment before sighing. “Alright, fine. I can count my camping trips on one hoof. But you can't be on the lookout for bad weather all night. If something comes along while we're sleeping ‒”

“We're in the badlands!” Rainbow Dash argued. “It never rains! Besides, it's not exactly easy setting it up without magic.”

Twilight sighed again and rolled her eyes. “Well, where did you put it? I'll set it up.”

Rainbow Dash shook her head stubbornly. “Don't need it.”

“I'm not gonna sleep in an unfinished tent!”

“It's finished, 'cause it's not gonna rain!” Rainbow Dash insisted with exasperation. “Look!” She pointed a hoof back the way they'd come. Beyond the dull, brown wastes and the reddish mountain range separating the badlands from Equestria, Twilight saw numerous fluffy clouds in hues of pink and crimson, catching the last light of the sun below the horizon.

Try as she might, however, every cloud she could see was floating in the skies of Equestria, just beyond the dead landscape. It was as if a great, invisible wall separated the badlands from the rest of the world. A wall to ward off all life and keep only death. She'd felt it the moment they entered the great valley. The verdant greenery of Equestria had died away beneath them so suddenly as they flew, and she had felt a subtle, yet great weight settle upon her wings. The air here was dry. Of water, of life, and of magic.

“Things work differently around here,” Twilight admitted, seating herself near the fire. “Almost like the Everfree Forest.”

Rainbow Dash nodded her agreement. “'Cept instead of dangerously alive, this place is just... dead. And brown. And flat. I wonder if we'd be able to see the changeling from here if it were lighter.”

“I hope not. It'd be able to see us. Maybe a fire was a bad idea.”

“Naw. Gets too cold around here. Besides...” Rainbow Dash dipped her head into the saddlebags lying beside her and retrieved three small plastic bags. “How're we gonna make s'mores without a campfire?”

This time it was Twilight's turn to raise an eyebrow. “You're packing for a trip that's gonna take you through the badlands, The Dragon Territories, and The Graylands, and you decide to bring marshmallows?”

“Have you tasted s'mores?”

“Of course I ‒ Wait...” Twilight put a hoof to her chin in thought. “I may have forgotten the 'eating' part, but I've definitely made them once.”

The pegasus held a hoof against her mouth and snickered, then burst with laughter. “Once? You gotta be kidding me! Do you ever regret wasting your childhood reading books all day?”

Twilight stuck her tongue out at Rainbow Dash. “Every minute I spent reading books has been a minute well spent. It's thanks to all my hard work and reading that I'm a princess now.”

“A princess who's never had s'mores,” the pegasus muttered, fishing a marshmallow out of one of the bags. She looked around the area for a stick, marshmallow held between her hooves. It was only after remembering they were camping in a barren wasteland that Rainbow Dash noticed Twilight's smirk.

“Thanks to reading, I found these sticks in a wasteland without vegetation.” Twilight took one of the smoldering pieces of kindling from the campfire and waved it in front of the pegasus. Rainbow Dash made a grab for it, but Twilight returned it to the fire. “Thanks to reading, I could use it as kindling for our fire.” She grabbed a marshmallow from Rainbow Dash's bag. “And thanks to reading, I don't even need a fire!” She put a hoof to her temple and squinted at the floating marshmallow for added effect. “I can roast it with my mind.”

Rainbow Dash chuckled at Twilight's antics and rolled her eyes. “Just gimme a stick, egghead.”

“You can have a stick when the tent is finished.”

With a groan, Rainbow Dash turned away from Twilight. “Hey, Spike.”

Twilight's gaze followed the pegasus', and she found the dragon standing some distance away, staring at nothing in particular. He stood with his back to them, Twilight noted, facing almost directly south. She couldn't help but wonder what he was looking at, what he was thinking. Could he sense his own heart out there? Drawn to it like the needle of a compass?

Upon being addressed by Rainbow Dash, however, Spike turned to face the two ponies and approached sluggishly, wordlessly.

“Be a pal and grab me a stick,” the pegasus told him, gesturing at the fire. “Grab me two and I'll make you a s'more.”

“No thanks.”

Spike picked out a thin stick near the fringe of the fire, broke off the burnt, smoldering end of it and handed it to Rainbow Dash. While it was still pointed at her, she skewered her marshmallow on its tip before accepting it with a word of thanks.

Spike was about to turn away from the two ponies again when Twilight grabbed him with her magic, leaning back slightly to deposit him in her lap. She wrapped her forehooves around him in a full-body hug and cradled the top of his head against the nook of her chin, giving him an affectionate squeeze.

“You're getting colder.” She took the marshmallow she'd been roasting with her magic and popped it into Spike's mouth.

“Moodier too,” Rainbow Dash noted, staring intently at her marshmallow poised above the flames. “He seemed a lot more cheerful with Pinkie Pie.”

“Zecora said there was a hole in Spike's being, where his heart used to be,” Twilight tried to explain, hoping that she had understood the zebra's rhymes correctly. “The thief didn't use any force to steal the heart, so they didn’t damage anything: The hole left by the heart should have the same shape and size, almost like a mold. For now, Spike's body still believes he has a heart. But it's a vacuum that'll be filled out eventually. With what, I don't know, but unless we find that changeling, it won't be a heart.”

Her forehoof touched against his chest. His physical heart was still there, of course, but its beats were feeble, slow.

“The hole is like an echo of his heart. It will reflect the emotions of those around him for now, but he can't truly feel those emotions. The empty space inside him will lose shape ‒ is losing shape ‒ as it shrinks. I can only hope it'll simply weaken his emotional responses, but it might distort them too.” Twilight blinked, feeling tears welling up in her eyes. “In a few days, he'll be like a stranger. The emotions tying together his memories will have dissolved, his behavior will be erratic and irrational. And when the hole of his heart has shrunk away to nothing, when its last echo has faded away...” Twilight hugged the dragon even tighter, and she felt his own tears dampen the fur on her forelegs. “So will Spike,” she whispered, almost inaudibly.

For a good while, the only sound in the camp was the crackling of the fire. The sky was darkening rapidly now, and night was settling on the badlands even quicker, casting shadows that crept closer and closer to the light of the fire. Rainbow Dash sat staring at her marshmallow, now tanning steadily, while Twilight sat with Spike, her gaze empty and unseeing as she simply felt the frail beating of his heart.

“You didn't tell us it was... this bad,” Rainbow Dash finally ventured.

Twilight's eyes focused again, quickly adjusting to the light of the fire. She saw the marshmallow drooping from Rainbow Dash's stick, its crisp underside darkening. “I gave you the end result.”

The pegasus' lips curled in distaste. “But everything in between,” she muttered. “That's almost worse.” The marshmallow dropped off the tip of the stick and into the embers of the fire, melting away into black sludge within moments. “With all your talk of speed, part of me was wondering why you wanted to drag him along with the two of us.”

“He's always been a pillar,” Twilight responded, still staring listlessly into the fire. “I need to be here for him now. Besides, it beats the alternative.”

“Ah.” Rainbow Dash nodded her head in understanding. “You didn't keep his condition from us, did you? You just kept it from Rarity.”

Twilight nodded.

Rainbow Dash gave a sigh, laced with both melancholy and bitterness. “Y'know... Maybe she should know.”

Comments

[Hillbe]

Very slight bit of sparity well written in the back ground of an adventure.......

img13.deviantart.net/7f88/i/2015/107/6/b/smoozzzz_gala_by_hillbe-d8q1zj7.jpg