//------------------------------// // Hunger Reigns and Stabbing Pains // Story: The Champion of Harmony // by Voxum //------------------------------// Pinkie had beaten him to Sugarcube Corner, somehow, and had already started setting up the kitchen for their opening. Emerald could spot her moving around the kitchen, although she paused every now and then to rub the top of her head, wincing slightly every time she did so. ... Had catching those apples bruised her head? It was possible, he supposed. After all, while somewhat insignificant by themselves, having several hundred drop onto your head over the course of an hour, even if it was through a bucket, would likely leave a bump or two. ... Pinkie was nice. Hyper, but nice. And one of his charges too. "Hey Pinkie, get over here," he called, catching her attention as he rummaged through his bag. "What is it Emerald?" she asked, walking through the door, holding a hoof against her head. He motioned her over, walking forward to meet her halfway as he did so. Confused, she did as he asked, "Lower your head," he ordered. Growing even more confused, she lowered her head down, only to yelp slightly as something cool was placed against her head, only for it to degrade into a soft sigh of relief. The cold pack Emerald usually kept for inflammation should do just fine against a minor bruise. It was a nice little thing. Enchanted to always remain ice cold, without actually being a block of ice. "Get some rest. It's probably better if you try not to overexert yourself. It might just be a small bump, but even a little cut can lose someone a leg," he said, firmly pushing her towards the stairs, "What? I'm totally fine! I can-!" "Rest, Pinkie," he stated firmly, he didn't need his charge dropping unconscious, "Or else I'll tell the Cakes you were working while injured," Pinkie went rigid for a moment, before she suddenly bolted up the stairs. "That's what I thought," he said smugly. He turned back to the counter, but froze. ... Had he really just done that? Charge or not, it was a damn bruise. He'd once lost multiple limbs at once and still managed to fight off a couple dozen monsters, so what would a bruise do to one of the 'great' Elements of Harmony? Still... He supposed it was for the best. He would be working with Pinkie for who knows how long. Getting on her good side would only be an advantage in the long run. Not like she could drive him crazier than he already was. He'd fought a dozen different monsters while missing several limbs. If that didn't qualify him as crazy, he wasn't sure what would. Mrs. Cake had been rather annoyed when he told her that Pinkie would be taking the day off, though it had faded when he told her the reason. "Pinkie's a sweetheart," she had said, "I'm just glad she didn't try to work while she was hurt," She didn't know why he found that funny. As it was, he was manning the counter, once more, but with both Cakes working in the kitchen behind him. Several hours had passed, with customers coming and going at a decent pace, each one giving Emerald a familiar face to memorize. It was due to this vague familiarity that the small town of Ponyville gave him, that he immediately recognized a new face a few hours later. The door opened, revealing a dark blue unicorn mare skipping through the door. She had a steel gray mane and tail, and a pair of rose-red eyes. Her mane was done up in tight curls that spilled around her face, framing it in an almost innocent manner. Her cutie mark, a big gray rose, added to the almost child-like image she tried to hold. It was due to this foalish appearance that he was immediately suspicious of this mare. "Hello!~" she sang once she reached the counter, locking eyes with the thestral, "I'm Rosary!" she said, smiling widely. He blinked at her cheery attitude, partially praying she didn't meet Pinkie, "Can I help you?" he asked, studying the mare, she tilted her head and stuck her tongue out as she looked at the sign above his head. He inwardly rolled his eyes. The mare was trying much too hard to act all innocent. He'd seen the way her eyes had scanned the room as she skipped in, taking stock of each window and the exits. The only question remaining was simple. What was she here for? A new face in town could mean anything. For all he knew, this mare could be innocent and just have a few unusual quirks. Her eyes flickered over the sign, as well as himself. He kept his facade up, making sure he looked uninterested in her. She gave him a small smirk, obviously meant to be unseen, before shrugging. "Nope!" she said cheerfully, Emerald raised a brow, keeping up his annoyed disposition, "Really? Then get out. You're holding up the line," he said, glancing behind the mare, just as the door opened once again. Rosary smiled at him, then spun around and happily trotted out the door. He sighed once she was gone, taking the order of the pony who'd taken her place. His thoughts were running wild as he worked. Who was that mare? What was her purpose here? Well, that second one was likely more obvious than anything else. The only thing in this town worth searching for, were the Elements of Harmony. He supposed the most pressing question, in that case, was 'Why?'. Was she a fan? Did she work for someone who wanted them dead? Answers were not something he'd have the luxury of getting. Not yet, at least. "Emerald?" Mrs. Cake spoke from behind him, catching his attention, "Could you check up on Pinkie? She hasn't come down and I'm beginning to worry," she said, frowning. Emerald gave her a shrug, "Fine. Where's her room?" he asked, she laughed a little, "You'll know," she said, grinning. He rolled his eyes at that, but did as was asked. Trading places with Mr. Cake, he made his way up the stairs. The hall contrasted the bakery downstairs, with a darker green floor, and walls and a ceiling of a darker tan. He supposed it was a welcome change, all things considered. He could hear Pinkie shuffling around in her room, whichever one it was. Following the sound, he moved forward, checking each door and filing them away in his memory. He stopped at one particular door, painted pink with a variety of balloon stickers on it. He had a feeling that was her door. Shaking his head, amused, he gave it a quick knock, before heading in. Pinkie's room was surprisingly clean. It was painted completely pink, which was expected, but other than a few stray streamers and binders, it was near spotless. He spotted Pinkie laying on her side, the cold pack still resting atop her mane. There was a far-away look in her eyes, suggesting she was lost in thought. "Hey," he called, startling the party mare out of her thoughts. "Oh, hey Emerald," she said, sitting up, holding the pack to her head. Her response lacked the energy she had earlier. "Everything alright?" he asked, earning a shrug from Pinkie. "Yeah, why?" she asked, tilting her head, "You seem... subdued, is all," she frowned, "Really?" she asked, he nodded, "Huh... I'm just resting like you said," she replied, looking right at him, before smiling, "I know everypony else would be super worried about me, so I'm gonna do everything I can to get better right away! If that means resting and not doing anything, even if it's super boring, then I'll do it! Besides, I promised Dashie I'd watch her do some stunts tomorrow, so I wanna be at my best!" Emerald stared at her for a moment, before scoffing, though a small grin wormed it's way onto his face, "You do that Pinkie. I'm sure you'll be-... is something wrong?" he asked. Pinkie was staring at him strangely, but before he could say anything else, her face broke out into a massive grin, "You smiled!" she said, excitement oozing out of her, the previous statement all but forgotten, "What?" he asked, confused by her reaction, "You should smile more often!" she said, ignoring him still, "It looks nice!" she added. Emerald sighed, shaking his head, "Whatever, Pinkie. Go to sleep, or something," he said, backing out of the room. He paused outside the closed door, listening to her shuffle around as she lay back down. His thoughts drifted to Rosary. She was obviously here for the Elements. To walk directly into the establishment known for it's sweets, look over the menu for several seconds, then walk out without even buying anything? Either she was terrible at her job, or she believed the inhabitants of Ponyville were idiots. ... Well, they are, but ponies generally were. She was likely to target Pinkie Pie. He had to admit, without knowledge of himself, she was the least protected. Fluttershy had all her animals, who'd likely keep her safe. Crash lived in a cloud home, which, unless she had a pegasus accomplice, she couldn't get too. Applejack lived too far from town to be reliably taken away. Plus he was sure he'd seen a little border collie around the farm one or twice during the competition. Twilight lived too deep in town, so any attempt to break in would draw attention from the surrounding houses, same with Rarity. As it was, Pinkie lived in a bakery with nothing but a pair of earth ponies, one of whom was pregnant, and not only that, but Pinkie was known for being strange and unpredictable. If she disappeared in the middle of the night for some unknown reason, many would likely assume she was up to some of her usual tricks. He sighed. He'd have to keep an eye on Sugarcube Corner when night falls. ----- Twilight was both confused and concerned. Though, she supposed she was leaning more towards concerned than confused at the moment. Spike had gone to Rarity's again, leaving her by herself for the day. Normally she was completely fine with this, as Spike's crush was somewhat cute to see. Though she was still a little miffed at Rarity because of that. Though, her argument that Spike had to learn for himself that the age gap was simply too much between them had cooled her temper ever since, if only sightly. Anyways, she'd usually be fine with Spike's behavior, however the activity from the competition left her and the girls feeling sore. In fact, the only ones who didn't seem bothered by it were Rainbow Dash, Pinkie Pie, and Applejack, though she supposed Applejack and Rainbow not being sore made plenty of sense. Pinkie Pie, however didn't make sense, so she ignored it for now. Although she did make a note to herself to research Pinkie's strangeness one day. Once Spike had heard that she was feeling sore, he, correctly, assumed that Rarity, whom had even less regular exercise than Twilight, was feeling even sorer than her, and had run off to help her, leaving Twilight to deal with her own protesting muscles, alone. If this was what one day on the apple farm felt like, then her respect for Applejack had just increased drastically. She'd been out in town, heading over to Davenport's Quill's and Sofa's shop to purchase a new supply -she just seemed to keep running out!- when she spotted Emerald. Emerald was... strange. She remembered the conversation they'd had where he revealed his plans to send some cider to his sister and to a friend, presumably a mare, named Lulu. Of course, while it was a sweet thought to share such wonderful tasting cider with friends and family, in the end it didn't concern her, and thus she shoved it to the back of her mind while thinking of ways to help out Applejack and her family. However, when Princess Celestia herself appeared at the competition, she was a little suspicious. Well, that wasn't true, she mused. She'd barely kept herself from panicking. After all, the Princess herself had just appeared in Ponyville without any warning whatsoever! What if she had been unsatisfied with her friendship lessons and had come to take her away and send her back to magical kindergarten?! What if she had thought Twilight wasn't taking her studies seriously, and had her imprisoned?! Or banished?! Or imprisoned in the place she had been banished too?! But when she mentioned a friend of Luna's had sent her a bottle of cider, she couldn't help but draw connections between that and what Emerald had said. 'Luna' and 'Lulu' were remarkably similar names, though that was likely just a coincidence. Not only that, but as a princess, both Princess Celestia and Princess Luna would probably have a lot of friends from all over the world. And since Cider Season was such a big event, it wasn't hard to believe that somepony from Canterlot would come down here to buy some and send it to the princesses as a gift, or even an attempted bribe. What she found suspicious was the message. During the little celebration after Flim and Flam had been sent away, Applejack had told her and the others about how Emerald had been the one who sent the message to the princess. That brought up the question: 'How did he get the message to the princess?'. Predictably, Rainbow Dash had immediately accused him of being a spy. She was ignored. The six of them had all brainstormed ways he could possibly have gotten the message to Princess Luna, but the only things they could think of were, A: Lulu was Luna, just by a different name. That had been immediately countered by Twilight, her argument being that Celestia or Luna would have told them if one of their friends was coming to town so that they could have a good impression of herself and her friends. Their other possibility was that Lulu just so happened to work at the castle, and he'd sent the letter requesting that she get it to the princess, which was far more likely than Emerald and Princess Luna being friends. But that was still only a theory. It required total confirmation, and seeing Emerald around in town, probably on his lunch break, though he wasn't heading towards any restaurants, was the perfect opportunity to ask! But just as she was walking over to him, he froze. She stopped on reflex as well, wondering what had happened to make him freeze like that. His hoof went to his stomach as his face twitched slightly, before his legs gave out and he collapsed. Her mind raced, unfortunately leaving her body behind. She stared at the downed stallion for a few moments, before shaking her head, and tuning back in to what was happening. As it was, she'd spent so long just staring that he'd picked himself back up, looking both annoyed and uncomfortable, and walked off. "W-wait!" she yelled, causing several ponies to stop and stare, only to go back to what they were doing once they saw her rushing over to the grumpy stallion. Emerald's ears swiveled to her, followed by his head seconds later. "What?" he asked, stopping to completely turn to her. He didn't receive an answer, instead he was subjected to a concerned look over once Twilight was closer. He merely stared at her as she completely looked over him, even going to lift his hooves and wings to get a better look. She stopped momentarily while looking underneath his left wing, before a voice caused her to leap back, "Get a room you two!" came a familiar, scratchy voice from above. Twilight and Emerald looked up, spotting Crash hovering above them with a mischievous grin on her face, "Geez Twilight! With how much you keep yourself stuck in that library, I would've thought you'd keep that kinda thing behind closed doors! BAHAHAHAHA!!" Emerald backed up a step as the laughing mare fell to the ground between him and Twilight. "Rainbow Dash!" the lavender mare scolded, "I just saw Emerald collapse, and you're making fun of this?!" Emerald winced slightly at that. It had been a few weeks since he'd last eaten a proper meal. It was annoying, sure, but he had a job to do. How could he possibly take time away from his work for something as pointless as eating? He could do it when he didn't need his full attention on his work. "-AHAHAHA- Wait, wait, wait!" Crash sputtered, still having difficulty composing herself, "Oh... oh... oh dear Celestia..." she took a few deep breaths, before standing up, "You... don't you know what you were doing?" she asked, grinning. Twilight tilted her head, confused, "I was... checking for injuries?" she asked. Crash stared for more a moment, still grinning, before it fell, "Wait, you actually don't know?" Crash asked, sounding surprised, "What don't I know?" Twilight asked, now sounding curious, "You were touching his wings. That's like, super intimate," Crash said, frowning, "Wings are more than just a part of a pegasus's body. They're like, an extension of ourselves, or whatever," she said, "Havin' somepony, anypony, who isn't family touch 'em... it's kinda like makin' out, but with wings," she added, turning a little red. Twilight's expression had shifted during her explanation, going from innocently curious, to mortified beyond belief, and ended up doing a rather convincing impression of a tomato. Emerald found it rather amusing, in the end. Although, he had to admit, Crash was spot on in her explanation. Not only did pegasi wings have a lot of meaning to most pegasi, but they were also extremely sensitive to touch. It had actually been a point he'd found very fascinating, in truth. When he and the others escaped the Facility, he'd been offered a position in an agency dedicated to hunting and containing monsters that terrorized the populace. Thanks to that job, he'd gotten to work with a lot of different species, including pegasi, some dragons, and griffons. Out of all of them, pegasi were the only ones who had any connotations with touching wings. He found it interesting how their wings reacted to the world around them. It had also confused him. Being told that they were as sensitive as they were to touch, he'd assumed, at the time, that having a broken wing was the worst pain a pegasus could live through. As it turned out, it was about as bad as breaking their leg. The inherent magic that all pegasi have, which tended to manifest itself in their wings, reacted towards the magic of the other creatures of Equestria upon touch, causing them to only feel sensitive when in physical contact with others. It was needlessly confusing to the uneducated thestral at the time, especially since it was almost solely limited to pegasi. From what he knew, earth ponies had sensitive frogs, and unicorns had VERY sensitive horns. He knew a few unicorn couples who just LOVED experimenting with that fact. Even gave him some tips a few times, as well as inviting him to join. He had accepted the tips, but tended to ignore their invitation. Twilight's face was still red, but her eyes were now constantly darting over to Emerald and back to Crash. Finally it seemed the message had gone through, as her horn glowed, before a bright flash took place, and she reappeared in front of Emerald, "OhmygoshI'msosorryaboutyourwingsIdidn'tmean-!!" She was promptly shut up by a green hoof, "It's fine," he said, feeling a quick jolt of pain from his stomach, "... You were just... concerned," he said, the words flowing off his tongue like molasses. Why was she concerned? Yes, he had collapsed, but no one else around them had spared him a glance. Was she hoping that by showing him concern, he'd be more willing to give her something? No... It just didn't make sense to him. She had to have something to gain from interacting with him. But what? As far as he knew that she knew, he had almost nothing. "Of course I was concerned! Why'd you just collapse like that?!" she all but shrieked at him, he grimaced, "It's nothing, jus-" *GURGLE* ... Shit. The sound that erupted from his stomach had been more than audible for once, easily reaching Twilight's, and maybe even Crash's, ears. Glancing at Twilight, Emerald saw the way her eyes were locked onto him, roaming over his form. ----- How had she not noticed? The audible growling that came from the stomach of the stallion before her should have meant almost nothing. But a stomach doesn't just growl that loudly, not often at least. Her intellectual curiosity got the better of her, and she had found herself analyzing him out of reflex. What she found terrified her. When she had first met Emerald, she had just assumed he was unnaturally thin, naturally. That his physique was just something he'd worked for in order to achieve the perfect body for flying and stunting. But getting a much better look at him now, with her mind completely free to take him in, she realized something. He was malnourished. His ribs were just beginning to show themselves, which alone should have tipped off anypony to his state of health. Looking over him, he seemed tired, if the bags under his eyes were any indication. From what she knew of malnutrition, he shouldn't be able to move around as much as he was. He seemed active, if the muscle he still somehow possessed meant anything. His muscle wasn't deteriorating like it should be. Not only that, but there seemed to be slight, almost unnoticeable shivers racing across his form, as if he was cold despite the mostly sunny weather. He was obviously a very mature stallion, given the way he moved and spoke, and he seemed decently intelligent, at least more so than most other ponies she'd met outside of Canterlot. So why was he starving himself? There couldn't be any other answer to what was happening to him. From what she knew, he lived alone. So there wasn't anypony who could be forcing him into starving himself. Then again, he moved around a lot. Maybe there was somepony in his life who'd been abusing him and he'd been moving to get away from them!? That would also explain his oddly guarded behavior. But if that was true, why wasn't he healthier? Surely if he'd been running for awhile now, he'd at least been able to get SOME food, either through a job or some kind ponies giving him some. With how thin he was, she couldn't imagine he'd have a hard time inciting sympathy in the ponies of Equestria. The only other option she could think of was that he was purposely starving himself. But for what reason? "You just gonna keep staring or...?" he finally asked, getting rather annoyed by the unwavering gaze of the studious mare. "Wh-why... why are you so malnourished?" Damn it. "What makes you think I'm malnourished?" he asked, kicking himself for such a flimsy defense. Predictably, the intelligent mare pounced on it, "I don't think! I know you are! Just look at you!" she said, poking him in the chest, "You're way too thin for a stallion your age! You look like you're about to collapse, AGAIN, at any second, and you're shivering!! When was the last time you ate?!" she demanded, stomping her hoof as she glared at him. Whether it was his admittedly hunger-addled mind or not, he found the way she was scrunching up her face in anger rather cute. ... Yeah, it was the hunger. If he was thinking things like that, now of all times, then he definitely needed to start eating again. If he didn't, who knows what other random and absurd thoughts would hit him, or even when they would. Oh that'd be just wonderful. Fighting several packs of timberwolves at once, only for some random thought to distract him long enough to suffer injury and potentially fail at his job. No. He supposed he couldn't let this thing happen anymore. Though, it likely wouldn't be easy. It'd been so long since he ate, he was honestly rather disinterested in the idea of eating, which he knew was a bad sign of undernourishment. ... Was he really doing that to himself? His edge was being dulled by his determination to keep working without pause. But every weapon needed time to sharpen and be repaired. Otherwise they'd just shatter in battle. And how could he possibly be a useful weapon if he was too dull to cut through all in his way? Realizing that the purple unicorn in front of him was still seeking an answer, he decided to tell the truth. "About two months," "WHAT?!?!" "It's been around two months since I last had a proper meal. I've had an snack or two every second week though," he added idly. Twilight just stared at him, her eye twitching slightly. Was this stallion insane?! Two whole months of not eating!? How could anypony possibly have the ability to do that and keep walking around like he had been?! She remembered a few years ago when her BBBFF, Shining Armor, had just joined the Royal Training Camp before being admitted into the guard. They had been required to go on a trip at one point where they'd be subjected to various conditions to help them get used to their possibilities, as well as weed out those who weren't fit enough to join. Shining had described, in detail, how horrible he felt when they'd spent two weeks with only a few ration bars to share between the group he'd been in. She and her parents were horrified when he came back a month later, looking starved half to death. Her mother, Twilight Velvet, had been more than ready to charge into Canterlot Castle and give the captain a piece of her mind, but Shining had stopped her. Barely. But TWO. WHOLE. MONTHS?! "Come on!" she couldn't help but snap, grabbing his hoof and dragging him behind her. Shining had been lethargic and had almost no appetite when he came back, despite having had a completely empty stomach. Her parents had all but shoved food down his throat at the time, which had only made him sick. Thankfully, a little research on her part later, and they knew that they had to start small with him, otherwise it would do far more harm than good. So, it was with that thought in mind, that she brought him to her favourite little restaurant, Horte's Cafe. Pity they didn't have any hayburgers though, those were her favourite! ... Didn't Rainbow once mention a nice hayburger joint somewhere in Ponyville? She'd have to ask later. Emerald didn't protest her dragging him, so he was either okay with it, or was like Fluttershy. The latter was much less likely. The two of them arrived at the cafe a minute later, and Twilight practically threw him into a chair. Sitting down across from him, making sure her eyes never left his form on the off chance he'd bolt at the first opportunity. Emerald was amused by her actions, as well as just the slightest bit touched. Even if her concern was false, it was nice to have someone who cared, even if only for a moment. Obviously, she wanted him to order something now that she had him in a chair at Horte's Cafe. The determined glare she had set on him reminded him of times both happy and sad. He could remember his fellow escapees often expressing concern over him whenever he gave away too much of his rations at the Facility. Even at the agency, he'd often skip meals in his rush to get another mission. It had gotten so bad, in fact, that Drops, Zecora, Aloe, and Lotus had given him several interventions on the subject, with even Celestia appearing at the last one. He hadn't quite understood their concern, though. Still didn't, in fact. "Hello there, may I take your orders?" came a female voice, just as a yellow mare walked up to the two of them, her simple red mane and tail put up into a ponytail. "We'll both have a daisy sandwich," Twilight immediately responded, not allowing Emerald to get a word in. The mare smiled, "Alright! I'll be right back with your order!" she said, giving the two of them a happy smile. Once she left, a silent, but tense, air quickly flooded the area between the pony and thestral pair. The two of them stared at each other, not exchanging words. It seemed that Twilight's earlier determination had faded slightly, given how he wasn't making any moves to rush off. Now she was fidgeting slightly and having difficulty looking him in the eye. ----- Why was this so awkward? She just wanted to help him! Whenever she'd helped her friends out in the past it had never really been awkward. Things just fell into place for her and the others, their connection to each other through the Elements of Harmony were probably why everything worked out okay. She was even thinking of writing it all down in a book! But this? It was never like this. Sure her friends could be a little over-the-top but in the end, it was okay. What could have possibly caused Emerald -no- what could possibly cause anypony to do this to themselves?! Emerald seemed nice enough. He even got along with Pinkie with little issue from the looks of things. He shivered slightly, but he didn't seem to notice, if his dull gaze meant anything. Her concern for the pony in front of her only grew. This obviously wasn't the first time he'd suffered from malnutrition. It only made her wonder how long this had to have been going on for him to not even notice what his body was doing to him? She wanted to help. But she couldn't do it alone. Her experience with Shining told her that. Pinkie would absolutely love to help, she already knew. Fluttershy was also really nice, she was sure she'd be okay with helping, after a little push or two, of course. Speaking of Fluttershy, this stallion actually kind of looked like her. His eyes were similar in shape, and his ears were a bit bigger than normal, but there was a little tuft of fur at the tips. His body shape was also very similar to the shy mare's, almost eerily so. Even his legs were longer than most pegasi, just like Fluttershy! Were they related? She suppressed a sudden wince. It occurred to her that she really didn't know too much about her new friends. She knew, of course, that Applejack and Rarity had been born in Ponyville, like Fluttershy and Rainbow had been born in Cloudsdale. But she had no idea where Pinkie had been born! And she knew that Rarity and Applejack both had siblings, but what about the other girls? With how shy Fluttershy was, she was probably an only child as well. From what she'd read before, ponies with siblings tended to be louder than other ponies without due to all the competition growing up. That would certainly help explain Rainbow Dash and Pinkie's personalities. "Here ya go!" came the kind voice of Butter Rose, the waitress who'd spoken to them earlier. Twilight gave the familiar mare a smile and a 'thank you' as she set the two sandwiches in front of them, "Enjoy, you two lovebirds, you!" Butter added, smiling mischievously as she skipped away. Twilight's face went red, and she ended up sputtering after the waitress. Emerald chuckled at her, which caused her to level a small glare at him, though the redness still present on her cheeks completely ruined the image. Looking down at the plate that had been set in front of him, he gave a quick once over of the sandwich. It looked normal, at least, and he couldn't smell any traces of poison in it, so that was a plus. He gave a minor glance up at the still blushing Twilight, but found her focusing on him more than her own food. Wincing slightly, he picked up the food. His stomach turned slightly at the thought of eating, but even he knew that it was necessary. Finally getting annoyed with himself, he took a chunk out of the food and swallowed after copious amounts of chewing. His stomach lurched in pain once it finally had food in it, but it also awakened his dormant appetite, and Emerald found himself one sandwich short in only a few seconds. Twilight gave him a smug grin when the sandwich disappeared, causing him to cross his hooves in defeat, a light dusting of red appearing on his cheeks. "... Fine. Happy n-?" *GURGLE* Twilight's grin grew, just as she used her magic to lift her plate and sandwich over to him. It too, disappeared. "Yes, yes I am," she replied, her grin not faltering in the slightest. He groaned slightly, leaning his head on a hoof, "Okay, you win... Sparky," he said, grinning at her confused reaction towards the name, "Sparky...?" she muttered, before shaking her head, "Moving on, why were you malnourished in the first place?" she asked, staring straight into his eyes. Letting his displeasure at the question show, he grunted, "Now, is that really any of your business?" he questioned, making her flinch, "Well, no, but-" "But what? Me being malnourished had nothing to do with you. And besides, I would've fixed it on my own... eventually," Twilight frowned, "It might not be my business, but I've known somepony who had some issues with malnutrition a long time ago. You've gone a lot longer without eating and... I'm worried," she admitted. Emerald blinked, "Worried? Why the fuck are you worried about me?" he asked, narrowing his eyes at her. She blinked at him, before giving him a gentle smile. "Because I think we could be friends," He stared at her, stumped. Friends? He inwardly frowned at the thought. What use were friends? They were just other creatures who'd get in the way. Sure they could be useful for some things, but he was able to handle most of it all by himself. Then again... The smile she was giving him seemed so... nice. It struck a small cord in him. It was too nice. He had food in his stomach now, so why was her smile affecting him so? Though... maybe it was because it had been years since someone had smiled at him so kindly. Pinkie was excitable, and everyone was gifted with a mile-wide smile just by being nice. ... Fine. He supposed it was in his best interest to make peace with the Element Bearers anyways. "Alright, Sparky... I guess we can be friends," he said, smirking at the massive grin the bookworm was now wearing. Sparky had been strangely giddy after he agreed to be friends with her. He would've expected that kind of behavior from Pinkie, in all honesty. Regardless, the two of them had split ways after ten minutes, where Emerald had finally headed back to Sugarcube Corner. Pinkie had come back down a few minutes after his return, and Emerald had taken back the cold pack he'd lent her. As it was, he hadn't forgotten about Rosary. He had spotted her around town while he was talking with Sparky, looking almost absurdly suspicious. With the way she was looking around as she moved, staring almost obsessively at Sparky when they passed, as well as in the directions of Sugarcube Corner and the Golden Oaks Library. Yeah, if there were any doubts of her innocence, they had all faded since. Luna's moon had risen gently into the sky, replacing Celestia's sun hours ago. After setting up the barrier and checking up on the boundary of the Everfree,Emerald made his way into town to begin his patrol, keeping an eye out as he did so. His ears twitched atop his head as he moved, seeking even the slightest vibration to pick up on. The eerie silence, however, persisted, leaving him hearing nothing but the sound of his own heartbeat. His hooves crept along the dirt road as he stalked along, keeping close to the leftmost buildings, staying as hidden in the shadows as he could. His spear lay comfortably in it's holster, with the gleaming blade hidden from the light by his wing. This was his element, where he lived and thrived as the strongest. *CRUNCH* And nothing could hide from him here. Rushing towards the noise, moving with the all the sound of a shadow, Emerald blurred between buildings as he honed in on the general location of the disturbance. *RUSTLE* It would appear the intruder was clothed, likely by a cloak to preserve their identity. Whether this potential enemy was Rosary or not meant nothing. Coming to a halt just outside the alleyway right by Sugarcube Corner, Emerald spotted his prey. Three ponies stood in the middle of the road, staring directly at the front door of the bakery. Of the three figures, the largest one, and furthest from him, stood about two heads taller than Emerald himself, with the shortest, and closest, standing just under his eye level. All three wore dark cloaks, with hoods shadowing their faces. Their muzzles, however, were in plain sight, leaving Emerald with no doubt that all three were ponies, as well as confirming their genders, with the two smaller figures being female, and the larger one, male. "So... is this the place Rosary?" the center figure spoke, "Yes Midnight-er- I mean, yes Ma'am!" the shortest replied, stuttering slightly. Well... they're obviously not very smart. Withholding a sigh, Emerald began creeping towards them, keeping himself hidden from sight. "Wrecker, be a dear and open the door," Midnight said, gesturing towards the large figure. "On it," he grunted, his voice strangely high for someone of his size. Emerald tensed, ready to attack, but stopped himself when he spotted something gleaming around their necks. A strange necklace adorned the necks of the three ponies. A dark blue unicorn head resting atop a crescent moon, with a pair of holes for eyes in the shape of a bat's. His blood turned to ice for a moment, before a burning heat ignited in his core. The Nightmare Cult. A rather unoriginal name, he'd admit, bit it certainly got straight to the point. He'd had to deal with the overzealous group several times before. The Nightmare Cult, as was obvious by the name, were a cultist group who'd dedicated themselves to the resurrection of Nightmare Moon, claiming that she was the rightful ruler of all of Equestria, and that Celestia and Luna had stolen her throne away. Those idiots were one of the bigger reasons why Luna hasn't made anymore progress with integrating into modern society since she returned. Though, she had made mention of a plan later this year, something involving Nightmare Night. Well, now he knew who was targeting the Bearers. The Cult seemed to have wizened up, as the Elements of Harmony are one of Equestria's strongest defenses against threats. The other was him and the other thestrals, strangely enough. Knowing that, he couldn't just outright attack them, as much as he wanted too. They were far too close to the surrounding buildings for him to engage, due to the high likelihood of their offensive magic causing heavy damages to the area. He'd have to deal with this threat in a more... subtle manner. Wrecker walked up to the door and, true to his name, wasted no time and completely knocked the door down, no doubt waking the Cakes and Pinkie. Guess being subtle isn't their forte. The three of them rushed inside, with Emerald quickly slinking in afterwards. "Alright, Wrecker, take care of the owners. Rosary, you check the other rooms. I'll take the Element," Midnight ordered. The two of them saluted, before the three of them headed upstairs. Emerald frowned. One by one it is. ----- Rosary couldn't help but feel a little giddy! Finally! They were taking the next step to ensure the Night Mother would finally return and take back the land that belonged to her! Maybe when she returned, she'd gift Rosary with one of her wonderful nightmares! Oooooohhhh! The thought alone sent almost orgasmic shivers down her spine! Midnight Song, their wondrous leader, had finally located the Element Bearers in the backwater town of Ponyville. Of course Midnight would be the only pony capable of capturing one of the Bearers, though, why did SHE have to get the boring job of checking around the place!? UGH!! Why couldn't that lug Wrecker do it?! She sighed. It wasn't like she could just disobey or argue with Midnight, otherwise she'd be put on... Morning duty. Ugh. Regardless, she pushed her way into the empty room. Painted in baby blues, with a bunch of toys littering the floor, she guessed it was kinda cute. The couple must be expecting some foals. She went to take a step back, when the whole world went dark. ----- Wrecker didn't like his job. In fact, he wasn't sure how he ended up in this silly Cult. He had a good education, a nice job, and a wonderful wife and foal. Why was he here again? ... Right, his wife was an idiot sometimes. Honestly, just because she doesn't like working so early, didn't mean she had to drag him and their foal into some creepy cult just so she could sleep in. Ugh... oh well. He loved her anyways. But he felt absolutely terrible about this. A married couple, just like him and Bunsen. They were just stuck in the middle. They didn't HAVE to hurt them, and, hopefully, if he could properly explain the situation, they and their soon-to-be children could get out of this whole thing without any injuries. He really hoped nothing went wrong with this. He wrenched their door open, finding a tall, lanky stallion, and a short, pregnant mare huddling together in the corner, looking terrified beyond belief. It hurt him to see others like that, but he really didn't have a choice. "He-" he tried to say, but a massive blow to the back of his head removed him from the waking world before he could hope to finish. ----- The massive body of Wrecker fell to the floor in a dead slump, an almost noticeable bump on the back of his head. Rolling his eyes, he tossed the limp body of Rosary on top of him, before looking to the Cakes. They were sitting in the corner of their room, completely frozen in place with eyes locked onto him. He didn't have his disguise active, but he supposed he'd explain tomorrow. "Stay here," he ordered, before turning towards Pinkie's room, where his final victim had already snuck into. Rushing towards the open doorway, Emerald spotted Midnight looming above Pinkie, who was snoozing happily on her bed, completely oblivious to the on-going threat. If it could even be called that. He burst forward, not wasting any time, and wrapped his hooves around Midnight's neck, and gave a quick pull, causing her to stumble backward, "Wha-?!" Bringing a hoof back, he sent it crashing into her face, caving in her muzzle, and sending her into the realm of unconsciousness. He glanced at Pinkie, before relaxing a little when she remained happily asleep. He gave her a gentle pat on her sleeping head, causing her to smile, before he dragged Midnight down the hall. Stopping to pick up both Rosary and Wrecker, he glanced at the Cakes, "Follow me. Now," he ordered once more, before dragging the three down into the kitchen. Depositing the three criminals on the floor, Emerald took out a pen and parchment out of his bag and wrote a quick letter to Luna, making sure to emphasize the fact that they were from the Nightmare Cult. Once he burned the letter and watched it fly off, he turned to the two still scared ponies behind him. "Alright. First of all. Quit fucking shaking," he snapped, making the two stiffen suddenly, "And second of all," he flicked on the light, revealing his appearance, "It's me," The bakers stared at him, wide-eyed, before Mrs. Cake's shaky voice breached the silence, "E-emerald?!" she stammered. "You saved us?!" Mr. Cake added, incredulously. Emerald nodded, "Yeah, I did. Listen, I'm going to need you two to keep this-" he gestured to the bodies, "-a secret," They blinked, "What?" Mrs. Cake asked, "But you saved us! You're a hero Emerald!" he gushed, grinning widely. Emerald frowned, "No. You WILL keep quiet about this," he said, already fishing around in his bag. As he was doing so, a bright cobalt ash trail flew in through an open window, catching the Cakes's attention, before a bright flash blinded them. When the light faded, a letter was left floating in the air, before silently dropping to the ground. Emerald glanced at it, before he continued looking for something. He finally found it, and pulled out his lunar and solar badges. Damn things got caught on a treasure chest he had in there. ... Maybe he should reorganize the bag's pocket dimension? That would probably be a good idea to kill some time on his days off. He held up the badges so that the two of them had a clear view of the symbols on the front. "Allow me to repeat myself," he said, his tone taking on a sharp edge, "You will NOT repeat any of what transpired here tonight without my permission. Do you understand?" The two of them rapidly nodded their heads, their stunned gazes not leaving his badges. With that taken care of, he returned his attention to the letter, and picked it up. Flicking it open, he began to read. I shall arrive in five minutes. Well, that was delightfully straight to the point. A quick shuffling from the cultists caught his attention, and, deciding he might as well, he walked over to them. It appeared Midnight had woken up from her unconscious state, predictably, as she'd been hit the lightest, out of worry he'd wake Pinkie. Sighing slightly, he raised his hoof over her head, ready to knock her unconscious again, only for her to suddenly spring up, a silver gleam between her teeth. A spike of pain shot through his chest as a knife was embedded into his skin, just barely missing his rib cage, and he heard Mrs. Cake call his name. While sudden, the pain did little to deter him from his task, and he swiftly brought his hoof down on the offending mare, albeit a little harder than necessary, and once more sent her into unconsciousness. Every breath he took sent shocks of pain through his body, but it was nothing he wasn't used to. Glancing down at the brown hilt jutting from his body, Emerald sighed once more, ignoring the increase in pain. "Well... that sucks," he muttered. Adjusting his posture to minimize the pain, he rummaged through his bag once again, this time taking out a length of rope. Before he could move on to tying up the culprits, a flash of cobalt light lit up the room behind him for an instant, signaling that Luna had arrived. "Huh... couldn't have been a few seconds earlier, eh?" he asked, turning to face her nonchalantly, not even acknowledging the knife. Luna blinked as she took in his injured form, with her gaze settling in on the knife's hilt. "... It would seem W-I can add 'attempted murder' to their charges," she replied evenly, before sighing, rubbing the side of her face with a hoof, "Thou-you, should get to the hospital Emerald," she said. Emerald nodded, "Yeah. It would raise too many questions if I was stabbed and didn't," he agreed. Luna grimaced, turning her head away from him, "That's not why I suggested it..." she mumbled, not caring that Emerald heard her. "Well, regardless. You've got a couple extra prisoners to play with, isn't that nice, Luna?" he asked. "W-I suppose it is," she said, when her ear twitched, and she finally brought her attention to the Cakes, whom were still in the room, "Ah. I did not see you there," she muttered. She blinked, before straightening her posture, "I hope you two are aware that what transpired here is not-" "I already handled that," Emerald cut her off, causing Luna to deflate, "You and Tia never let me explain," she muttered petulantly, then once more straightened, her horn glowing as she enveloped the cultists in her magic, "Farewell Emerald. As well as the two of you," she added to Cakes, "I wish you well dreams this night," and with a flash of light, the three were left alone in the brightly lit kitchen, the light of which Emerald promptly turned off. "Well," Emerald began, "You two should head back to bed. I'll be heading to the hospital," he informed them, turning to walk off. "W-wait!" Mr. Cake called, "W-we can't just let this kinda thing go! Y-you saved us, and you got hurt because of it!" "That's right dearie," his wife spoke up, "It just wouldn't be right to have you do such a heroic thing and not take the credit. Surely there's something we could do, or say, right?" she asked, looking hopeful. Emerald scowled at the thought, but didn't let them see. Take credit? What did they think he was? A model? An actor? He didn't do this for recognition. If anything, he'd be fine dying without anyone even remembering his name. He was Celestia and Luna's weapon. Though, he'd admit, there was a small, insignificant part of him that craved the attention, the recognition. He'd saved Equestria almost three dozen times over in some way! If he wasn't kept such a high-profile secret from the public, no doubt he'd have statues, paintings, stained-glass windows, and who knows what else, done in his honour! He'd done so much for this country, and what did he get in return? Money? It couldn't buy him happiness. Satisfaction? For what, saving a bunch of racist pricks from some mindless monster? Sometimes, he'd wonder what kind of life he'd have if it wasn't this one. Would he have real friends? A simple, safe job? Maybe his name would be different. Maybe he would find love. Happiness. Maybe he'd be a pony, instead of a thestral. But he wasn't a pony. He couldn't just go out and get a real job. He couldn't just play around with his friends. Couldn't find a nice mare and settle down, have some foals, and die knowing that he didn't have a single regret. He couldn't just listen to Celestia and Luna. He couldn't live in peace. Not with how things were. He wouldn't do it for the recognition, but he knew, without a doubt, that they'd just crack under the pressure if they didn't come to a compromise. "Don't go out of your way to talk about it. But if you have to, or are asked, just say that there was an attempted robbery, and I came along and managed to help you two chase them off during my nightly walk, and ended up injured while doing so," Emerald said, "If anything about me not being a pony, or that I work for the princess comes up, I can and will have you arrested for obstructing my work. Understand?" he asked, raising an eyebrow when they gave him a pair of mock salutes. They'd obviously been spending too much time with Pinkie. He turned his disguise back on and headed back out into the moonlit night.