//------------------------------// // Playing Catchup // Story: Penn and Stone: Dynamic Duo // by Pennington Inkwell //------------------------------// Princess Celestia was soundly asleep when the letter arrived. Its arrival barely woke her, landing on the pillow next to her. Her eyes groggily half-opened and she picked up the letter with her magic, bringing it up to her face. There was messy hoofwriting on the back of the note she couldn't make out in the darkness of Luna's bedroom, but between the terrible penmanship and the lack of proper stationery, she could be absolutely certain that it wasn't her faithful student's work. And with her need to be well-rested to protect Canterlot, she had no need for junk mail. She'd already received at least a dozen letters she could do nothing about from concerned members of her elite forces in the Solar Empire, and they had been promptly corrected for their misuse of the emergency mail lines. She certainly would not stand for those letters to be interrupting what little rest she could get in a time of crisis. With an annoyed mumble, she crushed the letter and tossed it into Luna's trash bin alongside several empty cans of sugary energy drinks and smashed controllers. With that taken care of, she turned over in bed and went back to sleep. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Lily did not like heights. Lily did not like heights. Lily did not like heights. "Uff... Ixia... think you could ease up a little?" the female dragon (whom she'd discovered was named Opal) croaked. "It's getting hard to breathe!" Lily snapped out of her fear-induced stupor, realizing that she was nearly strangling her new friend. She had suggested a competition to see which dragon could fly the highest with her on their back, but she hadn't expected them to be able to fly nearly this high. She could practically reach a hoof up an tough the clouds. On the bright side, she had managed to accomplish what she'd been hoping for: she'd climbed more than high enough to get her bearings. She was just outside the border of Equestria, past the last of the Macintosh Hills. Unfortunately, to keep up the act, she'd had to go up twice more, and this was her highest trip, yet. Her entire body was quivering, and she was praying to whatever divine forces existed that she wouldn't drop. The border between Equestria and Dragon Country was clear, a short trailing off of the snow and forests of the border, then a sudden shift to a barren wasteland of stone and flame. Just as harsh was the way the violent storms stopped at the border, a more precise line than she had seen from any weather team. Still, there was an undeniable majesty to the hills, especially with them half-shrouded in storm clouds and wind-carried snow. It was almost enough to make her forget just how she was getting that scenic view. She took deep breaths and tried to focus on the snow. The pure, calm, white snow on the hills. Except for the blue speck. Lily blinked, straining her eyes. It was undeniable, a blue speck making its way down the hill. Occasionally, it would disappear into the white of the storm, only to reappear, a little further down and closer to its goal. "Well, would you look at that!" Opal chuckled. "Looks like you're not the only crazy pony out today!" "There's only one pony who would be out in this kind of weather..." Lily whispered. "That's him! Opal, that's my friend!" Opal turned around to look at her, then turned back, tilting her head. "You know, I gotta admit, you've got friends as crazy as you are, Ixi!" "You've got to get me down there, he needs my help!" "Seems like he's doing pretty- ooh, falling rock... Nope, now he's on top of it. Huh, not bad... for a pony, I mean. Dude's got some moves." "Alright, well, I need his help! Come on, Opal, lend me a hoof- erm- claw, here!" Opal hummed thoughtfully to herself. "Did I win the game?" "Yes!" Lily tightened her fearful grip on Opal. "You won! You can be the new boss, as soon as you bring me to him!" Opal shrugged, turning their flight onto a gut-wrenching decline. "Alright, ex-boss!" ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Pennington was on a roll, both figuratively and literally. Since they had left Turvian's home, it had seemed as though the mountain had been actively pushing them along, from gigantic avalanches they were forced to ride out in the treetops to rockslides that rained huge boulders on them like hailstones. In the most recent threat to their lives, Pennington had managed to leap onto the top of one of the stones, sprinting in reverse to keep his balance as they rocketed down the mountain. Every time that another obstacle had sprung out in front of them, Pennington had smiled. He wasn't frightened, any more, seeing each one as yet another challenge he could already overcome. With a final kick backwards, he leaped off of the rock, letting it continue down the mountainside. The moment he touched the ground, his legs gave way underneath him, sending him tumbling head-over-hooves through the snow for almost ten meters before finally sliding to a stop, letting his burning muscles chill in the snow as he cooled off from the long sprint. "Having fun?" Moonstone asked, coming to a landing beside him. She had taken to the air, rather than trying to hold on to Pennington while he was dodging and riding boulders. She was giving him a smug grin as she bent over to meet his gaze. "Perhaps a little too much, honestly..." Pennington sat up and pressed a hoof against his spinning temple. "But at least we're moving much faster than I expected!" After a few seconds, his goofy grin turned sour and his eyes turned downwards with shame. "But I guess we can't afford to fool around, huh? Twilight's depending on us..." Moonstone sighed, helping Pennington rise to his hooves. "No, you're totally right. Riding out two avalanches, weaving your way through a rockslide, and fighting off a pack of mountain wolves definitely should have been taken off of the day's itinerary. Then, we'll have more time to go and rescue poor, helpless little Twilight Sparkle!" She grinned and jabbed her elbow into Pennington's side. "Don't get yourself worked up! Twilight can take care of herself, and she can do it much better than you can!" "Well, that's true, but, the Old Lunar Republic isn't like anyone she's dealt with before! They're.... they're..." He slowly trailed off, his gaze turning upwards to the sky. "They're what?" "LOOK OUT!" Pennington seized Moonstone with one hoof and sprung to the side, narrowly avoiding being crushed by something dropping out of the sky. When the cloud of powdery snow had cleared, a dragon rose up to her full height. She was clearly feminine, and older than Moonstone, but what was more interesting was the fact that she appeared to have a set of four hooves wrapped around her body from behind. As her gaze turned towards Pennington, Moonstone reversed their roles, protectively placing herself between Pennington and the stranger. The dragon didn't seem interested in them, however, looking back over her shoulder. "Hey, Ixia! These the ones you were talking about?" She paused for a moment. "Ixia? Boss? We're on the ground, you know..." All of the hooves let go at once, and Pennington's jaw dropped as he saw Calalily Curl leap off of the dragon's back and shove her face into the snow repeatedly, seemingly kissing the mountain. "Oh, ground, ground, sweet, glorious ground! I promise I'll never leave you again!" "LILY?" Moonstone rushed forward, scarcely able to believe her eyes, while Pennington was still too dumbfounded to speak. "What are you- How did you- WHAT?" Lily finally snapped back to her senses, looking up with her face covered in snow. She leaped up and seized Moonstone in her hooves, gripping her in a gigantic bear hug. "MOONSTONE!" "Looks like I got you to the right place!" The dragon folded her arms and smiled to herself. "Now, I'm going to go tell the boys they've got a new boss!" "Wait!" Lily dropped Moonstone again, rushing back over to the strange dragon. "Opal... Thank you so much. I really needed your help. This means the world to me!" "Heh, guess you owe me one, then!" She smirked and flicked Lily on the horn with her claw. "Maybe one day I'll come collect!" Without another word, Opal took to the sky and quickly disappeared in the low cloud cover. Pennington's jaw was still gaping open as Lily turned to face them again, only emitting a few grunts as he tried to collect his thoughts enough to form words. Lily didn't wait for him to speak, stepping forward and using her magic to lift his jaw back into place. "Penn, I know that this is REALLY confusing, but we don't have time to explain! Twilight and I got tricked by Full Sails and then we got separated! Now she's alone with somepony who's trying to get the mask!" Lily grabbed Pennington and pulled him into a bone-crushing hug. "It- It's all my fault! I was the one who thought we should trust him when he knew about Mozun Akai!" Pennington drew in a deep breath, giving Lily a gentle pat on her back. "It's alright, Lily.... you got tricked. It happens to everypony, and the OLR is a lot craftier than most. I already got the ransom letter." Pennington stepped away, breaking out of Lily's embrace to examine her, himself. "We're on our way to rescue Twilight... But what happened to you? You look like you've been through Tartarus and back again!" Lily felt her face flush as Moonstone nodded her head in agreement. "He's right! You look like you got tossed through a rock tumbler, dragged through a swamp, and you reek of sulfur!" Lily chuckled nervously, trying not to envision what her mane looked like after everything she'd been through in the past twenty-four hours. "I... I'll tell you later. For now, we have to save Twilight!" Pennington and Moonstone glanced at one another, each nodding in affirmation. "Let's move and talk at the same time..." Moonstone muttered as she clambered up onto Pennington's back. "The OLR sent us coordinates for a rendezvous to exchange the mask for Twilight." "Just like any story, start at the beginning..." Pennington began heading down the mountain, motioning for Lily to follow. "And when you get to the end, stop." Lily took a deep breath, drinking in the feeling of safety that being with Pennington provided. She had just told him what could possibly have been the worst scenario of all time, and he had taken it all in stride, already having her completely convinced that he had the situation under control. Hang in there, Twilight! We're on our way! --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Twilight had run the numbers, then run them three more times. She was confident in herself, even if she could only be 87.3% certain. She'd only gotten a quick glance at the inhibitor ring in the photograph, but she could tell that it was low-grade, a Class C inhibitor, at best, with a threshold of 2.21 GigaSwirls of magical energy. It was plenty enough for most law enforcement dealing with disruptive troublemakers. Luckily, Twilight had been breaking 3 GigaSwirls of output since she was twelve years old. After breaking free of that, a single teleport would be more than enough to get her out of her current restraints. The real problem came with what she would do afterwards. They still had Spike held hostage, and she couldn't be certain where he was being held. If she escaped, she would have to find Spike before they... enforced their punishment. She did have one plan. But it wouldn't be an easy feat. Now, all she had to do was wait until- "Breakfast!" A slot at the bottom of the metal door slid open and a tray of food unceremoniously slid inside. Twilight hesitated for a second. She knew that the odds were in her favor, but what she was going to do was still a risky maneuver. Both her life and Spike's were in her hooves, and once they were free, she had no idea how they were going to escape the Old Lunar Republic. But it was now or never, and she had known that they were going to be dealing with danger and the unknown when they left Canterlot. "Um, guard? GUARD? Guard! I need help! I believe my shackles were too tight! My legs fell asleep and I can't get up! I can't reach my food!" There was no answer to her pleading. "GUARD! GUUU-AAAAARD! I thought the Old Lunar Republic would be smart enough to keep their prisoners properly taken care of! How am I supposed to eat if you're cutting off my circu-" She was cut off by the slot at the bottom of the door slamming shut and the sound of several more locks engaging in the door. A smug grin spread across Twilight's face. It was the oldest trick in the book to distract the guards with some kind of physical malady... and there was no doubt in her mind that the OLR wouldn't fall for it. In fact, they would do the opposite and tighten the security on her cell. Her door would be locked tight, with no way for her to get out quickly... and no way for guards to rush in and stop her if she tried anything. Twilight rose up to her hooves and took a deep breath. She focused on the shackle around her right hoof, trying to pry it open with her magic. She felt the inhibitor blocking off her magic, causing pressure to build like water in a pipe. She pushed harder, ignoring as the discomfort escalated to a splitting pain down the center of her forehead. The pain only grew, developing a burning, flushed feeling seeping out across her skull as she strained harder and harder. All at once, there was an ear-splitting pop, like a firecracker going off just above her head, and all at once her magic was free to flow freely, like a flood free from a dam. The shackle instantly split wide open, both halves flinging themselves in opposite directions and embedding themselves in the walls of her cell. Twilight knew she didn't have time to celebrate her newfound freedom. Overloading the inhibitor had been louder than she thought, and she could already hear angry voices from the other side of the cell door. She sent out a quick magical pulse, amplifying her normal sensitivity to magic. She could count one hundred and forty seven magical signatures in the area, some living and others static. However, there was only one, familiar magical signature she was interested in. Locking onto it with laser precision, she teleported. Twilight could feel barriers to the spell, forces trying to keep her in her cell and out of the other. Unfortunately for the Old Lunar Republic, she still remembered what Pennington had taught her in the changeling hive: after breaking free from a magical inhibitor, the former prisoner would experience a boost as all their built-up magical power returned to them. The more powerful the inhibitor, the stronger the released energy would be. This, combined with Twilight's natural capacity for magic, allowed her to break through the wards as through they were tissue paper. At first glance, her destination looked identical to her point of origin: an empty cell. Her head swiveled from side to side, confused. Was it possible she had overshot her target? Could the OLR have predicted her prison break and set a false signature to distract her? "Spike? SPIKE?" "TWILIGHT!" Twilight spun around as quickly as she could to face the voice just behind her. There was Spike, chained to the wall just as the photograph had shown her. Snapping his shackles required little more than a thought. As soon as he was free and back on the ground, he sprinted to Twilight and wrapped his arms around her neck. They were on a time crunch, it wouldn't be long before her magical high would be replaced by an equally proportional power crash, leaving her severely weakened. However, she spared a few seconds for this. In her experience, dragon hugs were among the warmest and most comforting in existence. "How did you-" "No time to explain, Spike! For the next five minutes and thirty... one seconds, you need to just hold on to me tightly and do exactly as I say, alright?" Spike nodded, climbing up onto her back and clinging to her neck. "So, what are we going to-" His words were cut off as the two of them vanished once again. ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- "And that's when I saw you and, well, you know the rest..." Lily finished, finally stopping to pant for breath after her frantic recounting of the past forty-eight hours. Pennington had been lying when he'd said they'd be walking and talking, they had been practically sprinting towards the bottom of the mountain. Just as Lily felt as though she couldn't keep the pace for an instant longer, Pennington came to a full stop. He glanced curiously around at their surroundings, then back over his shoulder to Moonstone. They had stopped in a large, snow-covered clearing, surrounded by a ring of trees that protected them from the wind. All of the trees were massive, and Lily's rough estimate was two or three hundred years old, at the youngest. It made sense, the Macintosh Hills had always been considered impossible to settle in due to their steep inclines and unpredictable weather. "I'd say this is the place, mind double-checking my internal compass?" Moonstone rolled her eyes, climbing down off Pennington's back and reaching into his saddlebag. "I've BEEN checking it since we left! Knowing our luck, we could have accidentally gone down the wrong side of the mountain!" Pennington ignored her sarcasm, opting to instead start sorting through his second saddlebag. "First things first, you did the right thing, Lily. It turns out that Delta wasn't lying entirely, the Surprise DID crash." "It WHAT?" "But not because of sabotage! We were caught in an avalanche and fell off a cliff." "YOU WHAT?" "Anyway, to make a long story short..." "Why do I get the feeling we should REALLY make time to NOT shorten this?" "Moonstone and I are back to running solo. Now, I have a rather unfortunate theory about who exactly we're dealing with..." Penn didn't bother looking away from his work whenever Ixia interjected, instead continuing to take inventory of the relics in his bag, tapping his hoof from one to the other as if trying different combinations to a lock. "From the sound of things, combined with some information I know from the NLR... I think you and Twilight were led straight to the front doors of an OLR base." He sighed, shaking his head. "I suppose this answers my question of how much worry about me is TOO much... Whatever quantity you and Twilight combined makes!" "Wait, wait, wait! 'O'LR? What exactly is that short for, and why does it sound bad?" Moonstone asked, walking back into sight with her face buried in a map. "The Old Lunar Republic..." Pennington spat the word "old" as though it had a bad taste. "Consider it the New Lunar Republic's grandfather. Their really old, jaded, prejudiced grandfather that refuses to change with the times..." He tried tapping out another combination of items, seemingly pleased with the result. "The New Lunar Republic is dedicated to helping Princess Luna in any way we can now that she has returned. We and the Solar Empire, as much as we hate to admit it, have the same goals: supporting our preferred princess any way we can!" "The Old Lunar Republic, on the other hoof, don't think their Princess HAS returned. They believe Nightmare Moon is the rightful and sole ruler of Equestria. They consider Celestia a tyrant and Luna an impostor, and they'll stop at nothing to bring Luna into singular power! That way, she can reveal her 'true self' and bring forth endless night!" Lily's jaw was hanging agape, while Moonstone nodded to herself. "Right of conquest, combined with a charismatic leader and a cheated victory by the Elements? It makes sense there'd be a splinter cell thinking she was right..." "Funny enough, it's actually the NLR that should be considered the splinter from the main group!" Pennington chuckled to himself. "The split happened a few hundred years ago, when Celestia realized Nightmare Moon was going to return and decided she needed a predictive force that could act on their own to combat prophesied threats like her!" He was practically beaming with pride. "The Solar Empire protects Equestria from clear and present danger, and the New Lunar Republic works to predict and minimize that danger!" Pennington seemed to be cheering up from all of the history lessons. Lily, on the other hoof, was growing more and more worried. "So, not only did I lead Twilight into a trap, but I led her into a trap from Celestia's worst enemies?" "Oh, I wouldn't fret about that!" Pennington waved aside her concerns, tapping out another pleasing combination of items. "The OLR may think they know what they've gotten themselves into, but those old farts don't know Twilight Sparkle the way I do! There's no way she's going to stay down!" He quietly tapped his chin in thought. "This actually is amazing information, Lily! Now we've known they had a base down here, but we were never able to narrow it down until now! With this data, the NLR might be able to take this southern border base and get those pesky OLR away from dragon territory before they manage to strike some sort of deal!" "Wait... I thought that we were here to exchange the mask for her, like they asked?" Moonstone asked as she folded the map up and placed it back into Penn's bag. "No, my dear Moonstone!" Pennington's hoof lightly tapped item after item on the ground, until nearly every one of them had been added in a seemingly random succession. "We're here to scout out for any overt traps! Then, if all goes well..." He finally looked up, an absolutely giddy grin plastered across his muzzle. "We're going to set a few of our own!"