//------------------------------// // Loop 34 // Story: The Time Thief // by Reading4HalfMyLife //------------------------------// Sighing dramatically, Astral slammed another book down onto the table. She had spent the last few days pouring over the books in her moms library in an attempt to find out just what a ''keeper'' and a ''host'' was. The closest thing she had gotten to was the definitions of both in the dictionary; Keeper noun a person who manages or looks after something or someone. 1 Host Noun a person who receives or entertains other people as guests. 2 Biology An animal or plant on or in which a parasite or commensal organism lives. Neither of which was particularly inspiring. She had even gone so far as to go to Canterlot to request any books from there. Whatever the Keeper or the Host seemed to mean, it looked like it was tied to the Gods somehow, but even that was starting to look like a false lead. She sighed again, heavier and louder this time, and instead found her gaze being pulled to a different book. Hmm . . Astral trotted through the streets, looking for Highkick's Self Defense Studios. It was a small place, located down a dark alley, which was kind of ironic when you thought of it. Highkick was getting on in years; with silver peeking through her dark mane and frown lines becoming etched onto her face. But when Astral told her she wanted to learn Krav Maga, she noticeably brightened, and looked a bit like a schoolfilly. "Do you have any experience in fighting?" She had asked, once they entered a room the size of a warehouse full of ponies around her age. The building was three stories high; the ground for beginners, the middle for intermediate and the top for experienced members. "I've done karate, and I am very good at Bladecasting" Astral said, looking around. Without warning, the unicorn was thrown into the air. Surprised, she only just managed to turn herself around to land on her back hooves, falling into the traditional karate pose. Highkick just looked fascinated, walking a tight circle around Astral, who kept standing as a preemptive measure. "Well, you're certainly incredibly balanced. Who taught you this?" "Pinkie Pie." " . .That sounds about right. Rainbow Dash teach you karate then?" "Yup." "Talkative, aren'tcha?" The old mare grinned wryly, before settling into business. "Krav Maga is a mixture of a lot of fighting styles; kung fu, karate, aikido, basic parkour, street fighting and kickboxing. You already have a it of a leg up from others, considering you know karate, and, knowing Pinkie, parkour. But that does not mean it will be easy." She took a step forwards, and looked up at Astral, smiling a slightly feral smile. "Brace yourself sweetheart. I am going to break every bone in your body." Yeah right, like she could really- WOAH! She had stumbled home at the very end of the week, muscles weak and tired in a way they hadn't been for years. She had fallen into one of those deep sleeps, the ones it's hard to wake up from. The box was on the foot of her bed when she woke up. Astral almost mistook it for the box she already had, but then she remembered that that box was in her saddlebag. This was a new one. She bolted upright, and telekinetically brought the box up to her, letting out a little "oof" when she overshot her magic and it slammed into her chest. She whipped out the new note, and scanned it, feeling a smile pull at her cheeks; R3lvZyBvam8gcGNoIEt6aSByZnIgbWdlIE52bC0KCkt6aSB6ZyBmdncgbmZ3YXUgbHJ6ZyBnYyBxeWw/IEt1YyBzYnYgbWJpIGx5IHlzZT8KCkN6IFFmcmYsIERkb3JnciwKCk9qbyBwY2ggaHpvIEJzcmR3Yj8gS3ZyIFZnY2s/IAoKVXJoIGdlaywgVXJoIGdlaywgVXJoIGdlaywgVXJoIGdlaw== As a precaution, she had had Binary Ink, the totally not a secret agent, send her a decoding spell for both Base64 and the vigenere cipher. Using Base64, she got; Gyog ojo pch Kzi rfr mge Nvl- Kzi zg fvw nfwau lrzg gc qyl? Kuc sbv mbi ly yse? Cz Qfrf, Ddorgr, Ojo pch hzo Bsrdwb? Kvr Vgck? Urh gek, Urh gek, Urh gek, Urh gek Finally, she used the vigenere cipher with Kronos as the key, and, sure enough, the real message came up. Sudden, stark terror, as an ice cold bolt of lightening shot down her spine; Kronos or Ebony? Kronos and Ebony? You are being watched. Get out.