Chapter 4: "Bad Vibes."
"Happiness, true happiness, is inside your heart. Not in circumstance."
- The Goddess
Crime Scene, Lake Ponchipony, (6:35 pm)
We arrived at the crime scene after a short drive. The sun was starting to set, shining off the surface of the lake, and cutting through the fog that was building up over it. We didn't have much light left, so we got started right away. While Chief Karosta and Goldbloom questioned the coroner, I went to examine the body.
Investigation (Lake Ponchipony, 6:36 pm, Near-Dark)
The victim was laid out on the ground, an elderly stallion, clearly from out of town, if the scent of Navy Colt cologne was a clue. The brand could only be bought at various boutiques in Canterlot. He seemed to have been dressed to go to a formal party. Unfortunately he never got the chance. Poor guy.
I knelt down and began my analysis.
Time Of Death: By the pale, discoloration of the stallions normal blue coat, coupled with the obvious stiffness of joints, I placed the time of death over 24 hours ago. The crime had only recently been found by police.
The thought struck a cord with me. Found NOT reported. Had nopony seen this poor guy laying here, and reported it? If the police had never found him, how long would he have stayed here? weeks? Months? I didn't like it. Not at all.
I examined the various wounds on the body. The cuts had been made with a long, narrow knife with a wavy edge. A ritual dagger of some sort. The cuts were clean and precise. Nearly like the work of a surgeon. The thought of a surgeon's skill being used for this, turned my stomach.
I shook the thought from my head, said a few words for the poor stallion, then moved on to the rest of the crime scene.
The ground was covered in hoofprints. There were others here. More suspects? Or maybe there were witnesses after all. "No."I thought. "The hoofprints are all smudged, trodden over and deeper then if they had been a few witnesses." I narrowed my eyes. "They were attending the murder. May have even been part of it."
I scanned the ground closer and saw that there were traces of wax from red and black candles. Red candles are traditionally used in ritualistic voodoo....but black? I wasn't sure what they were used for...but I knew it couldn't be good.
I was about to report my findings to Chief Karosta, when a luxurious carriage suddenly pulled up at the crime scene. The vehicle gave off the essence of culture and sophistication, much like its owner, as I would see. The window rolled down and I saw sitting there was an incredibly intelligent looking bright yellow Earth Pony mare in business attire and a very no nonsense attitude. Her eyes were like daggers that seemed to stab straight through her thin glasses into me. She gave me a look of complete disinterest as Chief Karosta went over to speak to her.
"Good day, Dr. Pensipony." said Karosta, looking like she would rather skip this conversation.
"What seems to be the problem, Chief Karosta?" asked Pensipony, in a tone that made me feel like all of us were in trouble, without knowing why.
But Karosta was not wavering. "We've got a little problem here, but nothing for you to be concerned about." she answered simply.
Pensipony never batted an eye. "I see...thank you, Chief Karosta." I nearly jumped as her gaze swept over to me and Goldbloom. "And good day, ladies."
With that she rolled up the window and drove off down the street, disappearing from view shortly after. I turned to Karosta. "Who was that?" I asked calmly.
"She reminded me of my insanely strict history teacher from school." Goldbloom added.
Karosta chuckled to herself. "Well she is a teacher, so that's normal. That was Dr. Amalia Pensipony. She's one of Nawlan's darlings, so they say. Has her hooves in all manner of successful businesses around town. Practically owns it. Very smart and knows a lot about the city and its voodoo heritage." she said with a slight smile. But it quickly faded."Now if only she didn't have such an attitude problem." she added in an annoyed tone.
"Chief Karosta clearly has no higher opinions of Dr. Pensipony. I wonder why." I thought to myself. I decided to ask her more on the subject. Perhaps there was something more to the good doctor's visit then it seemed.
"Does she come around the lake often?"
Karosta thought for a minute. "Nope. But the lake is a popular place for country clubs. it's possible she is a member at one of them nearby."
"I see. Any idea why she was here today?" I asked politely.
"Can't imagine, except that she heard about the crime scene. But I don't know...I've never really like that mare."
Now we were getting somewhere. "Why's that Chief Karosta?"
Karosta scratched the back of her head in thought."I don't really know. For one its her attitude. She truly thinks shes the smartest mare that ever walked-
"Pffft! No she isn't! Meir is!"
"Goldbloom! Sorry about that. Please continue Chief Karosta." I said, with my cheeks having already reddened slightly.
"She just acts like she knows more than she says. Like when you have a conversation with her, she makes you feel dumber then you did before. I don't know how. But I don't like it." Karosta explained, shuffling her hooves with unease.
A teacher that makes ponies feel...dumber? I clearly saw the contradiction here. I decided it would be best if we looked into Dr. Pensipony at the local country clubs. Maybe if she was member, we would able to find out the real reason why she had just so happened to pull up her carriage next to a crime scene. She was up to something. And I was going to find out what.
The forensics mopped up the place and the body was taken away. It didn't bother me though. I had already seen all I needed to see. As Karosta and Goldbloom talked to the coroner, I went over to speak with them. "I think I'll check out the local country clubs for anything about this Dr. Pensipony. She's hiding something."
Goldbloom nodded."I'll say. Lady gave me the creeps."
"You and me both." Karosta agreed. "Me and Goldbloom are heading back to the station to go over the details we got so far. The fanciest country club around, happens to also be the closest: The Majestic Majesty. It's just down the street, due north of here, overlooking the lake." Karosta explained gesturing north.
"I hear you need to be a multi-billionaire just to use the restrooms there!" Karosta joked. "Best of luck, and Let us know if you find anything, kay?"
"Of course. I'll see you guys soon." I assured them with a smile, then set off towards The Majestic Majesty.
Investigation Complete (7:15 pm) Result: I once read that Nawlans is a place for everypony. Where life breathes in everything from the music to the food, to the ponies and zebras living there. But so far I had only seen death, and a mystery that perplexes me. Is voodoo truly behind these crimes? Or is there something more going on here. I was warned by Miss Fortune of dark forces being at play in this city. And with Nightmare Night around the corner, I had no doubts of that being the case. But the case had only just started. And my next lead, starts with Dr.Pensipony.