Knocking his hoof on the front door, Night stood patiently outside the second recipient's home, a two-story brown brick townhome, the short hedges between the structure and the sidewalk blanketed white with a fresh layer of snowfall that sparkled in the light of a nearby street lamp.
His one ear perked at the click of a lock on the door opening, followed by it cracking open just, a chain lock still between the frame and the door itself. Within the crack peeked the head of a sapphire unicorn in fancy, expensive-looking, yet comfortable wine-colored lounge robes tied neatly across the chest.
"Yes? What may I help you with, fine sir?" The stallion spoke in a faint Europonean accent, his eyes scanning across Night carefully.
Night cleared his throat, making gentle eye contact with the unicorn. "Hi, yes. I'm here to deliver a very important message to a..." He paused to read the name. "Mister... Harmonic? Harmonic Percussion? Are you him?"
The pony narrowed his eyes slightly. "That is me, yes. Who messages me?"
"Fallen Star, Captain of the Lunar Guard. He's sent me from Canterlot to bring this to you."
He further examined Night cautiously. "What does he want with me?"
"I am only the courier," Night answered, holding the envelope out to the pony.
The sapphire stallion's magical aura grasped the envelope as he ever so gently took it, bringing it within the warm house and knifing into it, pulling out the folded piece of paper inside and beginning to read to himself, Night remaining just outside and waiting further.
Night traced his hoof on the icy steps, ears perking up as the door in front of him shut, then reopened fully as the unicorn stood in place of it, eying the dark pegasus before him.
"Thank you, sir, for bringing this to my attention," Harmonic said stoically, diverging from his previous accent.
The change in his tone and accent met Night with slight surprise. He nodded once to the sapphire-coated pony. "Just doing my job. Well, more like, my current job."
Harmonic nodded in understanding, blinking slowly. "Would you care for some tea? You must be freezing with simply a scarf around your neck!"
Night shook his head, motioning a hoof. "No, but thank you for the offer. I must return to Canterlot."
"Are you sure? Goodness, you must have been running around town all day. Mustn't you take a break, even if it is a little one?"
Night pondered for a moment and a half. He really should be on his way back. He didn't know this pony up until two minutes ago. He was of high value to Fallen, however, but in which form? Either way, tea did sound good right about now. His throat was dry, and being out in the cold for hours on end was starting to make him shiver.
Yet still, his mind was set on getting home. He nodded to the unicorn. "I am sure. Thank you, though. Maybe next time."
Harmonic nodded again. "Very well. Have a safe trip."
"Thank you," Night bowed his head. "You have a nice evening."
With Night retreating back down the tiny set of steps to the snowy sidewalk, and Harmonic closing the door for the final time, their evenings were set. A definite successful mission to report back to the Captain, assuming he would not be out of his office by the time he gets off the train.
***
Below his hooves silently crunched the freezing white powder, the perfectly flat coating on the ground glistening in the lamp light. Night strode solely down the snowy path, in no particular hurry to reach the train station. It might have been a better idea to fly there, however. These streets were far too unfamiliar to him. To get himself lost now would force him to stay the remainder of the night in the city.
Added to the fact that he didn't know these streets one bit, Night had to be cautious. Though he could defend himself from an assailant at any time, that was not a gamble he was willing to take. Despite the beauty of the townhouses around this sector of town, Baltimare was a crime-riddled city. This was truly why no right-minded pony was out and about now that the stars above came into view.
He let out a deep sigh, his breath steaming instantly as it exited his nostrils and met the frigid winter air. Apart from his gentle breathing, the only noises to be heard were his hoofsteps, rounding the nearest corner and proceeding down that street. Surely, the train depot was in this general direction.
At some point down the road, his ear latched on to a new sound: a distant cry. Worse yet, it was a cry for help. Snapping to look behind him, Night began running in the direction he came, toward the source of the shouting.
Rounding a corner and stopping just short of a brownstone with its door open, Night's suspicions were confirmed. A fully-clothed-and-masked stallion raced out through the door, trailing him a small bag in which its contents were unknown.
Running to the door, a mare screamed, tears streaming down her cheeks while she simultaneously sobbed. "He robbed me!" she cried, hoping somepony would hear her wails.
Night's eyes quickly shifted back to the escaping pony, his hooves digging into the snow-covered path and propelling him forward at his fastest gallop. The mare at the door perked with surprise, observing the chase before it disappeared from her sight.
"Stop!" Night shouted to the stallion, his breathing quick as he gradually caught up to the crook.
The masked pony snapped his head back, eyes slightly widening when he realized he was being chased, only prompting him to run faster. In spite of this, Night continued to tardily close distance, albeit slower than before.
Night huffed heavily, breath steaming almost as quickly as if he were a train racing through the cold winter evening. At this rate, there would be no stopping him from catching this criminal, assuming he wouldn't come across a friendly patch of ice. Or, in this case, not-so friendly.
"Stop, damn it!" Night barked again, hooves slipping as he rounded a turn the crook took, causing him to briefly fall to the ground before returning to all fours.
After just over a couple of minutes of chasing, Night was beginning to grow weary. On normal circumstances, the pony in the lead would have given up, or Night would have caught up by now. The fact that ice covered nearly every single square inch of this blasted city did not work in his favor, either.
Becoming ever so slightly frustrated, Night spread his wings and leaped up to a rooftop, galloping across the tops of the perfectly-level rows of brownstone roofs, still tailing the convict while keeping hidden. "Surely, he will notice nopony is behind him soon," Night murmured.
So it seemed, at last, the crook was finally slowing his pace down to a steady walk, granting Night the perfect chance to pounce. Moving up ahead of the stallion, Night positioned himself on the edge of the rooftop, watching him approach.
Bending his knees, Night prepared. When the pony was just inches from being directly below him, Night leaped forward, falling toward the pony silently to keep him from dodging.
But before Night could tackle him to the ground, the pony raised a hoof, grabbing Night by the neck and swinging him over and away, slamming him into the hard cement at an alarmingly large distance from where he was meant to land.
Stunned by the sudden movement, Night rolled upright, shoving the headache away and standing right back up, galloping and lunging at the earth pony, only to be met with a swift kick to the side, sending Night flying into a lamp with enough force to quite nearly topple it over entirely.
Rubbing his forehead, Night moved his gaze up to the approaching pony, whose eyes locked with his own. The pony chuckled, hoof revealing a knife as it was removed from his pocket and held toward Night threateningly.
"Shouldn't have tried anything, stupid pegasus," the masked pony said, grinning from behind his mask.
Night remained silent momentarily, planning out his next move. He pumped a hoof forward, smacking the knife from the assailant's grip, preparing to lunge. But suddenly, a pair of hooves looped around the stallion's torso, his whole body being lifted up in another pony's hooves, before being slammed down on a frozen slab of concrete.
Opening his eyes, Night stared with total shock. Instead of seeing a pony lying on the ground, having being practically bodyslammed, instead there was nothing but a plume of smoke evaporating into the night air with no trace of anything anywhere.
"Sweet Luna, did you see that?!" Night shouted, jumping up to his hooves and backing away from Red Knight, who now also noticed what just happened.
"What the—?!" Red's irises shrunk to pinpricks, looking all around him for the stallion he just had in his hooves moments prior. "Where did he go?"
"He turned to smoke! Didn't you see that?!" Night screeched with surprise, his voice briefly echoing down the streets.
The two looked around, searching for the convict as far as he could have gone. To either of them, if this were some sort of magical spell to teleport or disappear completely, it was surely a good one. There was just one issue—he wasn't a unicorn. To disappear like that was beyond magic. Or was it?
Night began to breathe in and out deeply to calm himself, Red turning to him and walking up. "Hey... easy, Night. He couldn't have gone far. But, wherever he is, we should let the Baltimare Guard handle it."
Calming himself eventually, the two headed back in the direction of the home that was robbed to check on the mare. Night looked down to his hooves with concern while they walked. Both continuously questioned what had unfolded in front of them much of the way back, until Night finally spoke.
"How did you find me, Red?" He asked, eyes moving over to the larger stallion.
"I heard the same cry you did, thought I would check it out when I saw you chasin' the guy," Red replied, his hoofsteps becoming heavier than usual. "What do you think happened?"
"I don't know, but what he took was gone, too. I hope this mare will be okay," Night said, walking up to the front door of the home that was robbed, knocking on it.
Moments of waiting later, the lights in the brownstone lit up, the lock clicking and the door swinging open, a sleepy stallion standing there, blinking slowly with baggy eyelids. "Yes...? Can I help you two?"
"We tried to catch the pony that robbed you and your wife, but he got away somehow—"
The stallion's eyes opened a little bit more. "Wife?" He raised a hoof to push his messy purple mane to the side. "I live alone. What are you talking about?"
Red's maw opened to speak, a hoof raising slightly, but no words came out. He slowly lowered his hoof. Night raised an eyebrow.
"Are you sure? We just—"
"Yes, I am sure," the stallion nodded, cutting in with minor annoyance. "You must have the wrong house number."
Both of their eyes widened at the realization. "Oh, er... yes, yes, we're sorry," Red nodded. "We will leave," he said, bringing Night away from the door as the stallion closed it behind them.
"No, Red, that was the place. I saw the address. That was the place!" Night turned to him with worry, stopping in the middle of the street.
"Then what do you think all of that was? An illusion of some sort?" Red's head tilted. "Why would somepony do that?"
Night's head shook, his hoof raising to his temple as he rubbed it. "I'm not sure... I-it's too late for me to think of anything that makes any sense at all."
Red nodded in understanding, setting a hoof on Night's shoulder. "Let's get you on your train, you can get some rest on the way back. Baltimare isn't for a pony like you, anyways."
During any normal circumstance, Night would test that statement. Ultimately, he played along with it, walking with Red Knight all the way to the city's train station, where not but two or three other ponies stood.
When the train to Canterlot arrived, Night boarded, waving farewell to Red as it departed. Baltimare soon drifted off behind him and out of sight, leaving only the glow of the distant lights in the sky topping the hills.
Sleepiness and overall exhaustion from the chase swept over the fanged pegasus, his eyes blinking more often than usual as he struggled to remain awake for no real reason anymore. Night let out a deep, quiet yawn, shifting to lay almost flat on the seat with his head rested against the window, immediately falling into a slumber the instance his eyelids closed for the final time.
***
Gibberish. Muffled gibberish. That was all Night could hear for the last few minutes. The voice came closer, and closer, clearing up as it did. Soon, it was all around him. On top of him.
Niiiiiiight.
...
Do you remember meeeee?
...
Niiiiight. I know you can hear me.
It only got louder.
On the twenty-seventh day of December, a great city will fall. Pass one month, a higher duty will call. The greatest clash in centuries shall take place, ponies shall gasp to their astonishing grace.
Blood will be shed in the cold of the snow. Light shall discover the mighty beast's gift below. From the Hollowest of Shades, to the Mareami Everglades, darkness will sweep the nation.
Are you ready, Night?
The gibberish began to fade away once more. It became quieter and softer, moving away from him. Everything remained completely blank.
Night jumped lightly to the jolt of the train as it passed over a bump in the rails, blinking slowly as he woke and raising his head from the windowsill where it rested the duration of the ride. His eyelids still hung low, a yawn slipping out of his maw and his lips smacking twice.
His eyes glanced out the window, spotting nothing but darkness, and the starry skies above. They were nearing Canterlot, for the train was entering numerous tunnels along the way.
Resting against the window once more, Night attempted to fall back asleep. This time, no matter how much he shifted and changed position, he now found it utterly impossible to doze off. The riddle in his dream echoed in his mind, remaining on top of it and keeping his brain active enough to keep him wide awake.
Soon, the words faded, but were quickly replaced by two of them: Hollow Shades.
What did it all mean?
***
"You want to send us... where?" Scarlet's eyebrow raised, her head slightly cocked to the side.
Night shook his head. "Not everypony, two will be staying behind to resume their usual duties. The rest of us, including myself and our newest members, will spend the next few days performing exercises in and around the Hollow Shades area."
The group at the table exchanged weird looks with each other. Lodestar sat upright, resting his hooves on the glass table surface. "What is the meaning behind all of this, Cap?"
"Yeah, is there something going on that you're not telling us?" Zipline cut in. The group all eyed Night suspiciously, or with minor concern.
Night, once more, shook his head. "Not at all. I believe this would be a perfect time to test our archery capabilities and other types of combat. The area is not necessarily remote in Equestria, but the town itself is a decent hike from the nearest rail line."
Once more, looks were exchanged in the room. "And who will be staying behind?"
"First Sergeant Stormfire will stay put as he is still training others beyond our squadron, as will Lance Corporal Skye Racer, and Private Eventide. The remainder of us will make the trip. Any questions?"
Zipline raised his hoof, Night nodded to him. "Where will we be sleeping? Tents?"
Night shook his head a third time. "Thankfully, no. A local inn is willing to accommodate all nine of us," he eased himself into his seat. "It also seems much of the area is home to fellow bat ponies, as two of our very own originate from Hollow Shades."
"Hey, Scarlet," Shieldhunter turned to her. "Aren't you from there, too?"
The dark grey thestral mare rolled her eyes, crossed her arms, and sat back in her seat, eyes darting away. "No. I've told you that so many times already!"
"Then, where are you from?" Shieldhunter set his eyes on her suspiciously. "Not once have you told any of us."
"It's not important, it never has been, that's why," Scarlet retorted, glaring at the lighter-shaded pegasus.
Shieldhunter recoiled, facing forward again. "Alright, fine. No need to snap at me."
"Hey! Both of you, stay on topic," Lodestar barked at them, tossing either of them glares.
"Thank you, Sergeant," Night nodded once to him. "Corporal Scarlet Iris prefers to keep her origin to herself, which I am willing to settle with. There will be no more questioning her or her identity from this moment forward. Is that clear?"
"Yes, Captain," the armored ponies answered unitedly.
"Good. Now, any further questions?"
No one spoke.
"Then head to your barracks, or wherever you call home. Start gathering necessary gear. We will meet at the train station at 0500 tomorrow. Bring warm clothes, too. It will be extremely chilly there, emphasis on extremely. I will inform the privates on this afterwards so they may prepare as well."