//------------------------------// // Chapter 4: Living With the Past // Story: Phantom Syndicate // by BluePhoenyx //------------------------------// The fall sun was low and pale in the afternoon sky. Mirage and her friends had been waiting a long time to speak with Princess Luna, and night was coming on fast. Mirage was quickly losing hope that they would be back home in time for the nightly ghosts to appear. She decided to try and consider it like a vacation and hope that nothing too disastrous happened back home. She turned to Spirit, frowning as she watched him favor his injured shoulder while he stared into nothing. They sat quietly in the Canterlot Gardens, waiting for Quill to finish his talks with Princess Luna. He was, after all, the better speaker of the bunch. Mirage gently raised a hoof and touched Spirit’s side. It made him jump in surprise and look around wildly. When he realized it was her, he relaxed. “Oh, sorry, Mirage. I was just thinking,” Spirit said. His voice had softened and become heavy with his thoughts. ‘We could always leave Quill here, you know,” Mirage said softly. She stood up and moved to his other side so she could inspect his shoulder. “I want you to see a doctor anyway.” Spirit pulled his shoulder away from her. “I’m fine, Mirage,” he huffed. He stood up and walked toward the center of the gardens. He looked up when he heard a whistling noise above him, as a silver and yellow bullet dropped from the sky. Bright Moon landed gracefully in front of him, making the white stallion step back. “Spirit! There you are!” Bright Moon panted. He quickly grabbed Spirit’s wing in his mouth and forced it open. “Come on, I’m taking you with me to my place.” Spirit ripped his wing away, then took a step back. “What are you talking about, Moon? What’s with you?” he demanded. Mirage trotted up beside him to offer her support. “You heard Princess Luna. That ghost is bad news and I’m not letting my brother get hurt,” Moon said firmly. “Since when do you care if I get hurt?” Spirit scoffed. He stomped his left hoof to accentuate the point then instantly regretted it when his wound stung. “I’ve always cared about you, Spirit,” Moon said. “Even when you left, I worried about you. I know how brash and reckless you can be.’ He stepped closer and put his hoof on Spirit’s injury, making him cringe again. “Look at you, You need a doctor.” “I’m fine!” Spirit yelled. He snapped his wings open in anger. They popped open so fast that his feathers sliced across Mirage’s cheek. She cried out, backing away as a thin line of blood bubbled up along the cut, staining her soft periwinkle fur red. Spirit slapped his wings closed as he realized what he had done. He trotted over to Mirage, taking her hoof in his as he inspected the wound. “Mirage, I’m so sorry! Are you okay?” he asked desperately. Mirage wiped her cheek and looked at the blood on her hoof. It wasn’t much, and it stung more than anything. “I’m fi—” “You’re so reckless! No wonder you’re hurt!” Moon snapped angrily, pushing himself between them. “By Celestia, it’s a wonder you haven’t gotten killed, or worse, gotten her killed!” he added, pointing at Mirage. Spirit flattened his ears at his brother’s verbal assault. He backed up, and for the first time Mirage saw true fear enter his expression. The will-o-wisps the night before had been nothing but a minor concern compared to the fear he showed now. “Spirit, I’m fine, really,” Mirage said gently as she stepped toward him. “It just scared me, that’s all.” Spirit’s jaw clenched tight as he steeled himself. Despite the act, Mirage could see the tears welling up in his eyes. “Just leave me alone!” he yelled, his voice cracking. He spread his wings again, after making sure that no one was close to him this time. He ignored Mirage’s plea to stay as he shot up into the sky, catching a gust of wind and using it to speed off into the clouds. Mirage sighed as she watched him fly off. She turned on Moon angrily and snorted. “What was that for? It was just a scratch, it’s not like he tried to killed me!” Her horn glowed, ready for a spell though even Mirage didn’t know Bright Moon swallowed hard. “I just want to make sure he’s safe,” he said, looking somber. Mirage bit her tongue . “Spirit has always been headstrong, and he never stops to think about the consequences of his decisions. If he had just listened to me, then maybe Lily would still be alive.” “Lilly?” It came out of Mirage’s mouth so fast she barely realized until it was too late. Moon sighed, turning away from her as tears pricked at the corners of his eyes. “Our sister, Star Lily. When Spirit and I started our own company, we let our little sister join us. “We took her on what should have been a simple job. Just a level one spirit. He rushed off to look for the Tether, leaving her by herself. We didn’t know there was another ghost there too, but when we heard her scream it was already too late. We got into the room at the same time, but she was already dead. She’d been Ghost Marked by a level four. Spirit lost it, tossing every single bomb he had at the ghost until it went back to its Tether. He nearly burnt down the house.” Mirage covered her mouth to hide her horrified expression. Moon’s tears were flowing freely down his face as he spoke. “She came back as a ghost a week later.. Spirit wouldn’t let anyone touch her Tether. I finally had to knock him out and Bind it myself. We parted ways after that.” Moon finished finally. “Moon, I’m.. I’m so sorry.” Mirage said softly. Moon shook his head. “Just.. watch over Spirit for me. I know he can be a pain but he really is a good guy.” Mirage nodded. “I just hope I can find him before he gets any stupid ideas” Moon turned back to her as he spread his silvery wings, catching the glinting light of the setting sun. “Try Silent Pastures. It’s where he always goes when he comes to Canterlot.” “Right..” Mirage said then turned to leave the gardens as Moon flew off. **** Quill waited patiently in line behind the other representatives of the various companies. He sighed when he looked at how many ponies were still in front of him. It took another hour for him to finally meet with Princess Luna. She waited while he bowed in respect to her. “I am Mystic Quill, I represent Phantom Syndicate, Princess,” He adjusted his glasses as he brought himself back up. “Ah yes, Mystic Quill I’ve read your studies on ghost hunting techniques. I was expecting… somepony else,” Luna replied with a strain as if she were trying to figure out a puzzle in her head. Quill sighed. “I know.. I’m not a unicorn.. Or tall,” he mumbled. “Anyway, Your Highness, my companions and I encountered a ghost just last night that went from a level two to a level three in just one day. On top of that, its Tether moved on its own.” “I see. That is very concerning,” Luna replied after a moment’s thought. “You found the Tether and sent it to the processing facility?” “Yes, Princess.” “Good. I would like to study it myself. I would also like to further discuss your findings on ghost control, if you and your company can stay in Canterlot.” Quill was surprised but nodded quickly. “Yes, of course. I’m sure my friends won’t mind staying. We don’t have any actual assignments at the moment.” Luna nodded. “Very well. I will have rooms prepared for you in the west wing.” She looked beyond Quill and saw that no other ponies were in line. “If you’ll excuse me, I have my usual duties to attend to.” “Of course, Princess.” Quill said and bowed again. Luna left, and Quill turned back to find his friends. **** The sun was almost completely set, causing the air in the graveyard to chill considerably. The scent of fallen leaves permeated the air as they scattered across the grass in the breeze. Statues of ponies in triumphant or forlorn poses that decorated the lawns above headstones and grave markers looked sinister in the evening shadows. Spirit hardly seemed to notice any of them. He simply stared at a headstone under a willow tree. There was a statute above the headstone of a pegasus with her arms folded and wings spread as if she were flying straight up into the air. Spirit let his tears drip down his muzzle and onto the headstone. The dry stone soaked up the tears as if trying to dry them. “I’m so sorry, Lily...” he whispered, his voice cracking. He heard some soft hoof-steps, muffled by the soft damp grass, approach him. He glanced up just to see who it was then turned away from Mirage. “Spirit? Hey, it’s getting dark you know,” Mirage said softly. “I guess Moon told you where I’d be… which means you know what I did,” Spirit mumbled, ignoring her statement. “He did,” Mirage said. “Spirit, I know it was traumatic, but it’s getting dark, and you know it’s illegal to stay in a graveyard at night.” “I just want a little longer,” Spirit whimpered, wiping his face clean again Mirage frowned then sat down beside him. “Alright. A little longer.” They were quiet as the sun finally set. Mirage wished she had remembered her cloak as the night grew darker and the air -- colder. Mirage shivered and turned to Spirit, watching as he simply stared at the headstone. She looked up at the sky, seeing that the moon was already rising. She looked around as will-o-wisps began floating around the graves and trees. Mirage could also see harmless level one spirits drifting as aimlessly as the wisps through the grounds. As long as Spirit and Mirage remained quiet and didn’t bother them, the ghosts wouldn’t be bothered in return. Even so, Mirage didn’t like being so exposed. “Spirit, can we go yet?” Mirage asked. The ghosts around them were becoming more active and begun to approach. “I’m sure Quill is wondering where we are.” Spirit didn’t answer her. He wobbled a little, then fell to the side, crashing onto Mirage’s shoulder. She squeaked from surprise, then looked at him a bit more closely. He was unconscious and despite being ice cold to the touch, he was sweating heavily. Mirage felt her heart freeze solid in her chest as if the chill of the night had iced it over. Spirit’s shoulder was bleeding through the bandages and gauze with yellowish strain swirling in the blood and staining bandages. Mirage looked around. The ghosts in the area had suddenly sensed his weakness and were starting to float toward them. She tried to lift Spirit up but he was too heavy for her. “Come on, Spirit, I can’t lift you!” she grunted. She used her magic to try to lift him but he was still too heavy for her to get anywhere. Mirage set him down then stood over him as the ghosts started to encroach. She used her magic to blast some of them with puffs of salt and lavender, making them shriek and fade away. Spirit let out a soft whimper at the noises of the ghostly screams. Mirage looked down at him. “It’s going to be okay, Spirit,” she whispered, more for herself than him. The ghosts were starting to close in, inching ever closer to them. She couldn’t help herself. Mirage was imagining one of the ghosts getting past her and attacking Spirit. She could see him becoming possessed and attacking her, but even worse than that, she imagined herself killing him. She didn’t want to think about it; she wanted to focus on the ghosts in front of her. They were just level ones, a foal could handle them, she had to focus. But she couldn’t. She was watching herself kill Spirit. She imagined his death; his beautiful white coat stained with his blood, his vibrant eyes dulling as the light of life left them and his body going rigid and cold with death. Mirage couldn’t focus on anything else but the images of his death. She didn’t notice the ghosts approaching even closer, or how one reached out to touch her with a long tendril of ghostly fog. It brushed against her mane, causing the hair to fizzle and burn as if a flame had been taken to them. She cried out in fear when she smelled the stench of death wafting from her burnt hair. Her horn glowed vibrantly, making a blinding light that knocked some of the weaker ghosts into oblivion. The light exploded outward while a barrier cocooned Mirage and Spirit in a lavender colored translucent bubble with petals of lavender floating through it like a snowglobe. The ghosts caught in the explosion of the bubble were instantly disintegrated, the rest were tossed aside. The ghosts attempted to breach the barrier but bounced off of it. With each hit it took, a crack appeared in the barrier. Mirage winced with every hit, as if each crack was a direct blow to her. She wasn’t sure when or how the barrier had appeared, but she was grateful for it. Another sharp hit to the barrier made a flash go off in her head, causing her to see white for a moment. A sharp pain shot through her head and as the blinding whiteness faded, her vision returned blurry and hazy. She saw a large dark figure approaching from behind the swarm of ghosts. There was no doubt in Mirage’s head it was the ghost that Luna and Star Orchid had warned them all of. She clenched her eyes shut, not wanting to see her own end coming. At least we’ll go together, Spirit, she thought as the tears seeped under her closed eyelids. She heard the screeches of the ghosts, then heavy hoof-steps approaching. She opened her eyes to see a light blue aura approaching, then winced again. The energy in her was almost completely drained from sustaining their protective bubble. Mirage wobbled as her head spun and her vision faded in and out. The dark blue figure of a pony stood above her, but she couldn’t make out any details. All Mirage knew was that death was there. Mirage groaned in a futile attempt to scare off the figure, but it was the last thing her energy allowed her to do before she finally succumbed to exhaustion. She collapsed on top of Spirit, her vision going completely dark.