//------------------------------//
// Chapter Three - Assassin 
// Story: Fairlight - Blood of the Foal 
// by Bluespectre 
//------------------------------//


CHAPTER THREE

ASSASSIN


I awoke earlier than usual, taking the time to have a good yawn and stretch my legs before trotting over to the table and arranging some breakfast for us both whilst the mistress dozed, still ensconced within the  crumpled covers. Slipping over to the kitchen area I was careful to be as quiet as possible so that I didn’t disturb her. Waking up to an already prepared breakfast would be a small offering for such a kindly mare of course, but hopefully would be well received. After all, it was the least I could do for her. Rolling the stiffness from my hips and shoulders, carefully, I began my search. The kitchen proved to quite well stocked, yielding a good, if fairly plain selection of ingredients. I found a packet of oat crumbles in the cupboard which would go perfectly with a splash of cold mild. Several apples came next. Coring them without magic was no easy task, although I think I managed well enough. I picked up the box of oat crumbles, giving the box a shake to loosen the contents. Boy, did they smell good too! Instinctively I tried  to use my magic to levitate one from the packet, but of course, there was nothing there, was there. With a sigh I tipped them into the bowls with my hooves, nearly losing my grip on the slippery box as I did so. Thankfully, I managed to catch it before I ended up with the whole lot on the floor. Now that would have got me in trouble! Breathing a sigh of relief I put the pack back on the counter. The colourful image of a young family sat around a dining table, no doubt enjoying a ‘wholesome start to the day’, as the packet claimed, stared back at me. The green mare, presumably the mother of the group, was wearing an apron which… I frowned, staring at the picture. She looked strangely familiar. Did I know her? Ha! Of course not, in any event, it was only a painted picture, not an actual photograph. The artist had clearly intended it be a depiction of the stereotypical family unit – mother, father, two point four foals. I huffed, flipping over the box. ‘Eat as part of a balanced diet,’ the information claimed. ‘Full of flavour!’ I smiled. I suppose they were really. Deftly I popped one in my mouth, savouring the deliciously sweet taste. Almonds, sultanas, brown sugar… all the major food groups a fellow could ask for were there. I chuckled to myself, “Full of goodness, full of flavour, bring the taste for you to savour.” Such a simple ditty, and in reality no more than a silly advertisement for a commonly available box of cereal. The tune got stuck in your head like a splinter though, staying there long after you’d thought it had gone forever. Knowing my luck I’d probably carry the blasted thing to my grave. And then, out of the corner of my eye, I caught my reflection in the mirror. The long white sheet covering it must have fallen off during the night, allowing me an unimpeded view of the stranger looking back at me. I lifted a hoof to my face and stared at myself in amazement. Was that… me? Dear gods, it must be, and yet… I looked so different! It was a new me, a different me. Checking myself over I couldn’t believe the change. My tail and mane were that two tone blue as I knew, but my coat… it was now a dark uniform grey, almost black. My scar too had disappeared, cover in the artificial fur blending it in seamlessly. Slightly alarmingly, my cutie mark was gone, replaced with a pair of cherries. Whatever the hell that was supposed to mean, I had no idea. Perhaps I worked on fruit machines? Strangest of all however, were my eyes. The bronze colour was quite interesting I suppose, but I looked somehow… nondescript. Was that the right word? I may not have been born with the most exciting of colourations, but I liked how I looked normally, and clearly the mistress did too. I lifted up the sheet and threw it over the mirror. I didn’t like this new me. Hopefully it was only temporary and I’d be able to return to the real me when my task was complete – however long that may take.

A voice murmured behind me. “Captain?”

I turned to the mistress whose golden mane had stuck to her face during the night and bobbed my head respectfully. “Good morning, Mistress.” Walking over to her, I brushed away the stray strands of gold with a smile. “Your breakfast is ready.”

“Breakfast?” She looked confused. “Oh… right...” Carefully, the white mare eased herself from the covers and walked over to the wash stand. “Bless the morning...” she mumbled under her breath.

We washed, brushed up, and ate breakfast in silence. The mistress was unusually quiet this morning for some reason. Her normally vibrant eyes looked dull, her mane hanging limp and lifeless. Was she feeling poorly? I didn’t like this. Whatever was going on was weighing on her heavily and I wanted to do something to cheer her up. Any thoughts of how to do that exactly were immediately derailed when a  knock on the door caught our attention. Immediately the mistress’s ears pricked up and she walked over to it, opening it to the waiting visitor. Outside, a cloaked and veiled figure waited.

“My mistresss hasss ordered me to collect the pony,” it hissed.

The white unicorn looked over her shoulder at me, her eyes suddenly wide. My heart leaped in my chest at her reaction, but before I could say anything, with a shake of her mane, the mistress walked over to me and whispered in my ear, “Captain, are you ready?”

Ready? Was it time for the mission already? I had studied everything I’d been given and had memorised as much of it as I could. Besides, the sooner I completed my task the sooner I would be able to return. I bowed my head. “Yes, Mistress.” I smiled, showing my eagerness, but then… to my surprise… 

“I… I don’t want you to go…”

What?! I stood up straight, looking from her to the cloaked figure, then back again. What did she mean? I thought she wanted me to do this? “Mistress?” I asked in confusion.

Suddenly she lunged at me, hugging me tightly to her chest, then stepped back, rubbing a tear away from her eye. “Just… just do what you have to do and come back.” She tried a shaky smile. “Make sure you come back, yes?”

I bobbed my head. “Yes, Mistress, I’ll be back. I promise.”

The mistress addressed the cloaked pony, her voice lowering to menacing rumble. “If anything happens to him…” The pony however, said nothing. It just stood there in silence with the occasional buzzing noise emanating from its back. The beautiful white unicorn spanked me on the flank making me jump. “Go on then, Captain. Be a good boy… Get going!”

Obediently I trotted out after the pony who was already setting off down the corridor. Behind me, the sound of something soft hitting the floor and a stifled sobbing followed me out as the door closed with a heavy finality. Part of me wanted to go back, to make sure she was alright, but I had my orders. It didn’t do to question orders, nor disobey them. Disobedience was punished. Being a good pony brought treats. And I did so enjoy treats. I followed the mysterious pony down several darkened corridors that were lit only with the occasional strip light, until we eventually reached a set of steel doors that my odd companion opened without warning. Light flooded in, filling my eyes and the corridor around me with blindingly bright sunshine. High above me the sky was the purest of blues, the air fresh, fragrant, and without the hiss of steam nor the sound of metal against metal. Having been locked up for as long as I could remember, surrounded by concrete walls and artificial magical light, I stopped dead in shock. My legs locked up solid as fear began to snake itself around my heart. It was all so… so open! Two large ponies, the ones I remembered that had helped the mistress before I had taken their place as her favourite, walked out from behind a large carriage parked several yards away. Without any ceremony, let alone any care for my situation, they grabbed me and hauled me out. My mouth hung open in horror. There was no ceiling! No walls, no doors, no… no nothing! What was going on? I was scared, or to be more specific, absolutely terrified out of my wits. I couldn’t do this. I couldn’t! If I turned round now and headed back to the mistress she may forgive me, or at least give me more time. I know I’d promised her I’d do this task, and I would, of course I would, it was just… it was so…

One of the big louts swiped me across the muzzle. “Get a bucking grip will you? The mistress has given you a job, are you going to let her down now?”

Let her down? Would I… Would I do something like that? I stared at him blankly, my mind working feverishly to gather my sensibilities. He stared back at me, obviously expecting an answer. But what answer could I give? He thought I was going to retreat, to run away, and as much as part of me wanted nothing more than to turn tail and run, to betray the mistress was unthinkable. Would I run away? The answer was simple. No! No, by the gods I wouldn’t! I had to pull myself together and be strong, and I was strong, I would do my job and come back. It was simple really when you thought about it. There was nothing to fear at all. She would be waiting for me as she’d promised, and we would be together again, as a stallion and his mistress should be. I shook my mane and stepped forward. I didn’t need to saying anything, the big brown stallion understood perfectly well. Perhaps he’d been in a similar position to myself at some point? Either way, he nodded his begrudging approval and guided me up the ramp into the back of the large windowless carriage. This at least I had expected. As the door closed behind us my heart rate gradually began to return to something approaching normal. Gods, what a relief… Walls, ceiling, a dim light… It was familiar, and best of all hid me from that wide open nothingness beyond the mistress’s domain. The interior of the windowless vehicle was plain, with long storage racks running either side. A small magical light set in the ceiling hi-lighted the subject of my next task: a set of burnished golden armour, a heavy looking helmet, and a wicked looking spear with a razor sharp point that was no doubt just as functional as it was ceremonial. I knew what was expected of me from the documentation I’d been provided with. Times, locations, floor plans… it had all been there, laid out in meticulous detail. I’d read it all, finding myself absorbing it surprisingly quickly too. I put that down to the diligence of the mistress. She had sat with me in her room, helping me go over the information again and again until I could recite it all without hesitation. She had confidence in me. All I needed now was to carry that knowledge with me, and use it to help focus my mind on completing the mission as quickly and efficiently as possible. 

The heavy set stallion helped me into the armour whilst the other took station in the driver’s compartment up front. Two sharp raps on the back signalled all was well, and after a rumbling start we lumbered into the air. Almost immediately I felt the wind begin to buffet the large sides of the carriage as we cleared the shelter of the surrounding buildings, the sound of it reminiscent of waves crashing upon the shore. I would love to walk beside the sea once more, to feel the sand beneath my hooves and the wind in my mane. When all of this was over, when I was home again, perhaps the mistress and I could enjoy such simple pleasures together. She was busy, I knew that, but was it wrong to dream? The scuff of hooves on the hard floor pulled me out of my daydream. My companion, his task of outfitting me complete, sat down on a pile of folded blankets and glowered at the plain wall from under his heavy brows. I didn’t bother speaking to him. I knew my mission, and I would carry it out calmly and efficiently without his, or anypony else’s help. Now, it was just a matter of sitting and waiting until we arrived. Closing my eyes I let my body relax as I ran through the plan in my mind again and again until I could recite it perfectly. There was always a chance it could go wrong of course, but if it did, I was to press the device in my pannier and help would come to get me out of there. I doubted I’d need it though. Motivated and driven, I knew already I would succeed. Celestia was a bad pony, she had hurt the mistress and she would have to be punished so the mistress could be happy once more. I hated to see her cry, and I would protect that smile for as long as I drew breath. Beside me the long spear shifted as we began to bank, drawing my eye. I wasn’t particularly familiar with such weapons, although there could be no doubt how dangerous such a thing could be in the hooves of a skilled wielder. The spear’s head was lightly engraved with a swirling floral design, polished until gleamed, and reflected the bronze of my eyes like a mirror. I smiled to myself; it was a good weapon. And yet looking at it now, feeling the weight and balance of the thing… I wasn’t used to spears, was I? Normally I preferred swords, and something else… something curved… what was it again? At the edge of my consciousness I could see it, a vague, shadowy outline of whatever it was. But what was it? Now that I thought about it, had I even used swords before, or was it my imagination playing tricks on me again? The answer, as always, was on the tip of tongue. I shook my mane as a sudden surge of pain engulfed my mind, submerging my train of thought. Taking deep breaths I tried to clear my mind as the mistress had shown me, to focus on nothing but the sowing of the wind outside. And slowly, mercifully, the pain began to subside. Thank you mistress. I leaned back against the wall of the carriage and let out a quiet exhale of heartfelt relief. I couldn’t afford to let this distract men not now. I’d had them before of course – the headaches. If I concentrated on them, or tried to fight them, they could overwhelm me in seconds. Damn it all, why did it happen every time I tried to think about things too much? The mistress had cautioned me about letting my thoughts distract me, trying her hardest to look out for my best interests in everything I did, yet here I was failing her right when she needed me the most. No! I couldn’t let that happen! I had to focus on what mattered. I trusted her. I trusted her implicitly, and yet whenever I let my guard down, even for a moment, my own brain would wander off on a path all its own, and with the inevitable consequences. Was it my magic doing this? I reached up and touched my horn, the ring on it cold and hard against my hoof. I couldn’t use magic of course, my mistress had blocked it to help control the headaches. At that it quite successful to some degree, although exactly how much I wasn’t sure. I sure as hell didn’t want to know what would happen if it wasn’t there. Besides, I didn’t know anything about magic anyway. The mistress was all the magic I needed. Yes, that was it. She was my magic, my guiding light in the darkness, and the centre of everything in this cold, heartless world. I smiled to myself, safe in the knowledge that she was with me. Always with me.

I sat there with my silent companion, letting the world pass by. Something outside however, was changing. We were banking, the sound of the wind changing along with a feeling in my stomach that told me we were descending. Not long afterwards the wheels touched down on the cobbles and the relative peacefulness of flight transformed to the hard rattling rumble of earthbound travel. From outside a cacophony of sounds penetrated the carriage: horns, metallic ringing, and the background buzz of many ponies talking. Wherever we were was a veritable hive of activity, that was for certain. We were slowing now, still moving forward, though virtually inching along until we eventually lurched to a halt. Voices, muffled yet still distinct, penetrated the thin skin of our carriage.

“Papers…” the first voice asked. “State your destination and cargo, sir.”

“Catering supplies for the wedding, officer.” It was our driver. “We’re to deliver to the kitchens.”

“You know where to go?”

“Through the arch and to the left I believe.”

“That’s the one. When you back up to the dock, give one of the porters a shout to come and help you unload. They’re up their hocks in it at the minute though, so you may have to do the lot yourself, okay?” 

“No problem.”

Another voice this time, younger sounding. “Scans complete, sir. No anomalies detected.”

“Very well, go on through. Be as quick as you can, we’ve got limited space and deliveries coming in all the time.”

“Will do.”

The carriage lurched forward and we clattered over the cobbled road into, judging by the echoing of hooves and wheels, some sort of enclosed space. A courtyard perhaps? My mind ran over my instructions and the layout of the palace, noting the locations of the kitchens, the service corridors, stairs, and so on. This was it alright. Parked up with all the other delivery carriages, nopony would give us a second glance. 

“We’re here.” The stallion who had said nothing throughout the entire flight was suddenly alert. “You know what you have to do, right?”

I nodded. “I do.” Collecting myself, I lifted the spear, adjusted my helmet, and stretched my legs. There was nothing more to said now anyway. 

The fellow nodded to me as the rear door latch was lifted and our driver appeared. “We’re clear,” he said, glancing over his shoulder. “Move it!”

Checking the area was clear, I jumped down from the carriage and onto the raised dock of the loading bay. The guard had been right, there were delivery carts and carriages packed into the place like sardines. We were just one more, and me? I was just one more guard at the palace. Just beyond the loading bay the metallic crash of trollies merged with the shouted jokes and laughter of the porters who were hauling sacks and boxes from the light of day into the mysterious depths of the palaces interior. And that, was where I was heading. As expected the staff were all in a busy world of their own preparing for the upcoming wedding, and I wasted no time making my way through this industrious hive of activity. It put me in mind of a bee hive, with the queen at the centre, surrounded by her workers and guards. Hopefully though, my disguise would pass muster. Without wasting time I picked my way through the kitchen area, noticing one of the kitchen staff walking through the kitchen towards me carrying a stack of crockery in her magic. She bobbed her head respectfully, then slipped by me into a side room. So far, so good. Up ahead a stallion in a white and gold trimmed tabard was lighting the lamps on the walls. It was dark outside now, but such trivialities meant nothing to the inexorable machinery of this immense place. There was always more work to do: cleaning, preparing meals, washing clothes, welcoming guests… In some respects it was like a miniature city all its own, and like a city, one that never slept. 

The other princess would be in control of the night sky now, whilst Celestia rested in her chambers, oblivious to the hard work going on down in the bowels of her home. That said, even if she was she wouldn’t have heard it anyway. Far beyond the cacophony of crockery, pans, and cutlery banging and rattling away, I knew from the plans that I had a good distance to travel before I reached my goal. At the moment the busy clamour of a kitchen in full swing served another unintended purpose – helping to mask me from any curious eyes. I needn’t have been concerned however. The kitchen staff all but ignored me as I passed by, flowing around me like waves passing the prow of a ship as they tended to their bubbling and simmering pots that added their own chorus to the general din. To me though, it was all just background noise. Unerringly I quickly found the door that lead from the kitchen proper into the staff hallway. It was quieter here, though not by much. Maids dashed past me pushing trolleys laden with cleaning equipment, bedding, fresh laundry and the like, whilst a myriad of butlers, porters and other assorted staff slipped through it all with their own equally assorted burdens. These were the plainer parts of the palace, intended not for observation by the many visitors to the majestic marble statue lined arcades and elaborately carved vaulted ceilings that most saw, but rather it acted as its arteries and veins, carrying the very life blood of Canterlot Palace. Through this hidden world I passed as unseen as a breath of wind: unseen, unnoticed, and yet shining as brightly as the sun in my golden armour. I headed for my target, following these plain passageways down one corridor and then the next, taking the back passageways and stairs that showed decades, if not centuries of wear by successive generations of staff who tended their own mistress as surely as I tended mine. This way at least there was less chance of being detected and, hopefully, a quick escape route for me to return to my mistress with the good news of a completed mission.

I kept my head up and ears alert, quickly noting the two guards walking towards me. I nodded to them solemnly and they returned the gesture, passing me by without so much as batting an eyelid. Thus far, the disguise was working perfectly. The next corridor I came to opened out into a much grander hallway of richly coloured tapestries and luxurious carpets. Naturally only the best would do for the royalty of the palace - a palace that was, after all, just as much for show as it was a home. They certainly helped muffle my hoofsteps as I approached the large door to what was, according to my documentation, Celestia’s bedchamber. The pony who had provided me with the map of the vast building had done their job well, of that there was no doubt, but the rest was still up to me. In fact, my first major test was before me now. Two guards stood outside the elaborate door to the princess’s rooms, alert, and well armed. Thankfully I’d been prepared for this, and slipped on the respirator I had inside my pannier before rolling the small canister along the carpet towards them. Simultaneously, I ducked behind a pillar as the silver coloured object came to a rest before the guards’ hooves. One of them glanced down, just in time to catch a whiff of the gas before collapsing to the ground in a heap. The second guard noticed me and took a step forward, opening his mouth to shout something a moment before his eyes rolled up into his head and he too collapsed next to his comrade, motionless. There wasn’t a second to waste. Quickly, I dragged the bodies into the nearby cleaner’s room and shut the door. They wouldn’t wake up for at least an hour, and that was far more than I needed to complete the next part of task anyway. The door itself however, was enormous. Gold inlaid with gorgeous filigree work and a smattering of gemstones tastefully depicted some scene, I presumed, from Equestria’s past. Ponies of all the three races stood a hillside looking up towards the sun shining high above them, whilst on another panel, others slept peacefully beneath a crescent moon that had been picked out in silver. Despite its size however, the monstrous door was perfectly balanced and opened effortlessly to reveal the room beyond. Personally I had expected it to be locked, despite the documentation informing me that this was never done. Was the princess really so trusting? Foolish perhaps? Or was it because she was so confident in her own abilities and power that she believed herself to be beyond the touch of those who would wish her harm? Either way it was to my advantage this night. I closed my eyes, took a deep breath, and slipped inside. Moonlight shone in through the arched stained glass windows adding a pale light to the dying glow of the fire in the hearth. A pair of comfortable chairs sat before the fireplace, beautifully upholstered in red velvet and plump cushions of the purest white and gold. The mantelpiece held several carved figurines of animals – a cat, a curious looking pony-like creature I had never seen before, a stylised phoenix rising from a nest, and a bowl of pot-pourri. Above this was a large portrait of a dark brown earth pony stallion with a shining black mane, wearing a short blue coat, and a sporting an expression that suggested he was far from pleased about being posed for the artist. Whoever he was, I neither knew nor cared. Before it all was a small occasional table complete with empty wine glass, a wine carafe, and a partially read book upon which sat a pair of spectacles. The whole ensemble added a warm homely feel to the tastefully decorated room. Throughout it all however, the smell of books pervaded the entirety of the room, tickling my nostrils and reminding me of… something… or was that somepony…?

My head suddenly throbbed so hard it was like the damned thing was being rammed into a vise, the agonising sensation of burning lancing through my brain with the subtlety of a mincing machine. Damn it all, I had to concentrate! I must be quick, decisive, and do my job correctly. The mistress was depending on me this night, and more so than ever too. I couldn’t let her down, not when I was so close! My ears twitched, focussing my attention. I could hear what sounded like a body sliding against sheets, and then a soft feminine sigh. It was emanating from the next room. This was it, my time to accomplish the mistress’s task was finally at hoof. Carefully creeping forward, I edged towards the door. The carpet was soft and gave easily beneath my hooves, allowing me to silently enter the bedroom like an avenging ghost. I held my breath. There before me on the bed, not even under the covers, was the princess of the sun, the ruler of Equestria - Celestia herself. I readied my spear. One quick thrust would be all it required, and then the mistress would be happy. I had to see her smile again, to hear her say just how pleased she was with me for being a good pony. But… standing there, my spear held ready, why did I hesitate? Despite the desire to obey and carry of my mistress’s orders, for some infuriating reason part of me held back, silently stopping my movements. What the hell was wrong with me?! I tried to adjust my breathing, to concentrate on the point of aim. One thrust was all. Just one. One! Suddenly pain threatened to overwhelm me once again and I took a deep breath, fighting against it as my muscles tensed, aiming the spear point right at that pristine, elegant white throat. Before me Celestia’s mane rippled in some unseen, unfelt breeze. Rainbow colours, muted somewhat in the moonlight through the window added to the serenity of this majestic creature, and no matter how you thought about it she really did look so much like the mistress the resemblance was uncanny. In fact it would be like killing… It would… No! No, this wasn’t the mistress! This was Celestia, a bad pony, the one who had hurt my mistress, the bitch who had killed my family, who had… Arathea… My son...

The headache smashed through my skull, sending me to my knees and making my stomach retch. Sweat broke out on my face while I squirmed, desperately trying to clear my mind of these accursed thoughts and those damnable memories! I… I just needed to think of my mission, to do what had to be done. That was it. That was all I needed to do. Clear your mind, think of nothing. Thrust, kill, escape. That was all. Slowly, shakily, I stood up and shook the tears from my eyes before lifting the spear to her throat.

“So, you’ve shown your true nature at last… wendigo.” The soft yet powerful voice drifted up to my from the figure on the bed. “Well, what are you waiting for? You came to murder me didn’t you? Come to avenge yourself for a war that ended over a thousand years ago?”

“I…” I froze. I didn’t… I didn’t know what to do! What was I supposed to… “Mistress? I...” My head exploded in pain, a million pinpricks of light bursting in my vision as I dropped the spear, the useless thing clattering to the ground and rolling under the bed. Almost immediately my stomach emptied itself in response to the excruciating pain roaring through me in a tidal wave of agony that made me cry out in utter torment.

Celestia rose from the bed, her horn glowing with the light of the midday sun. “I should have had you executed when I had you before me last time, wendigo. Your kind never change. Murderers, traitors, and now assassins.” Gasping for breath and clawing at my head to get the damned helmet off, I was utterly helpless before her. The alabaster alicorn stood over me, her magic effortlessly lifting me up and pinning me against the wall, allowing her to examine me more closely. “Curious,” she muttered, her purple eyes boring into me. “You look... different from last I saw you. The eyes, the cutie mark… Normally I can sense your kind long before I see them. The smell of blood and frost, it…” She blinked in surprise then leaned forward to sniff my coat, peering into my eyes then at my horn. “Something else is at play here. All is not as it would seem. Hmm… most intriguing.” 

Celestia stared into my eyes with those huge purple orbs that reminded me so much of... “Mistress,” I gasped weakly, “I’ve… I’ve failed you...”

“Mistress?” Celestia replied. “No, not I.” She held me there above the ground and turned to the door. “GUARDS!” There was no response. The princess turned back to me, eyeing me coldly. “What have you done with them?”

I croaked out a reply. “Sleeping.”

“Lucky for them, and for you,” she said coldly before lifting a large blue crystal sphere from her bedside table. She spoke into it. “Luna? One of your ‘things’ is here. I suggest you cease what you are doing and make you way here. Now.”

A voice emanated from the orb. “Tia? What ‘thing’? Who or what are you talking about?”

Celestia glowered at me. “I think you know. I await you, sister… or should I say, ‘Mistress’.”


********************


The cell was dark, not surprisingly, and I’d not been treated as harshly as I thought I would have either which was something to be grateful for. If there was anything to be grateful for at all. My biggest concern right now was the mistress. I’d failed her. I was, without any doubt in my mind, a bad pony. Perhaps there was some way I could redeem myself, that I could put myself back in her good graces? Could I try again? And if so, how? It was a foolish thought of course, though one that might not prove to be as impossible as it first appeared. If I played along with my captors, lulling them into believing I was utterly defeated, I may yet have that opportunity to finish what I’d started. Right now though, that was looking distinctly unlikely. Celestia was aware that an assassin had been sent after her, and her security would have doubled, maybe even tripled. You’d be lucky if a moth could get anywhere near her without being incinerated now, let alone a… what did she call me? A… a wendigo? What was- Ow! My head throbbed, and I put the thought aside hurriedly. Why the hell was my brain trying to kill me?! My stomach was still aching and throat felt like I’d been gargling with acid. Sighing, I lay back on the straw mattress, took a sip of the water on the small table there, and waited. Something or somepony would decide my fate sooner or later, and that would be that. Indeed it was, for all intents and purposes, over. A tear rolled down my cheek. I missed my mistress terribly, from such simple things as the breakfasts we shared, to the smile she gave me whenever she was pleased with me. I wanted to be with her forever. A shiver ran down my spine as I sat upright. It was cold in here, I could see my breath clouding above me, but strangely didn’t feel it at all. I wonder why? A hollow sound from outside made me look up. Hoofsteps. Their owner was approaching the door, then stopped. I jumped to my hooves in a flash. This could be my chance! If I could surprise them, I’d have a chance to-

“Fairlight?”

Who? I stared silently at the stallion looking back at me through the open hatch in confusion. The guard stared at me with an expression that mirrored my own. From where I was standing he looked like your typical palace guard, this one being a white unicorn male with blue eyes. I glared at him, weighing up my chances of getting past him and overpowering him. Now if I could only entice him to open the door and come inside...

“Lord Fairlight,” he announced, “it’s me, Nimble. Corporal Nimble. You okay?” He reached down. “Hang on, I’m opening the door.”

I stared at the stallion as he worked the lock. He thought he knew me did he? The fool must have confused me with somepony else, but that was his problem, not mine. As the door swung open I stood back, feeling my muscles tense in preparation to launch myself at him the first chance I got. He was on his own and completely unsuspecting. I couldn’t believe my luck, now was my chance! But before I could move something extraordinary happened, forestalling me. The guard took off his helmet, and before my very eyes his coat changed from the pure white of the royal guard to a plain slate grey. His eyes too similarly morphed from a bright blue to a rich yellow. He was… strangely familiar...

“Fairlight, don’t you recognise me? What are you doing in here?” The fellow glanced over his shoulder at the corridor behind him. “I couldn’t believe it when I saw you being brought down here earlier. What the hell’s going on?”

“I… Nimble?” I began. 

“Hell fire, I thought they’d packed in the search after that palava in the caves,” Nimble continued. “Shit. We’ll have to think of something. I’ve some friends who...”

Nimble kept talking, but I’d already ceased to hear the words as his voice gradually faded away into the silent darkness – the darkness of the tunnel. I was there again, hiding behind that bitterly cold and unforgiving rock, hurt, trapped like a rat in a cage and desperate to escape. All around me the stench of death mingled with the horrifying screams of the living and dying alike, their frantic attempts to escape the claws and teeth of the creatures that were tearing into them lancing into my soul. I could do nothing, for them or for myself. All that was left was to hide… hide and pray. But here, deep beneath the ground away from the sun and the sky, there was no goddess. There was nothing but the horror of complete emptiness… and death, endless, agonising death. Something fluttered into my vision. It was black, blacker than night itself. Claws caught at my hide, razor sharp teeth snapping towards my throat. Green eyes like fiery emeralds peered up at me. And then… the flash of magic. The world transformed into a crucible of magical fire, flensing the flesh from the living and wounded, stripping them to the bone and sealing us all into that blackened tomb beneath the hill. I was trapped, trapped beneath untold tonnes of rock and soil. Buried alive. Buried… alive… Pain lanced through my skull so fiercely it took me to the ground. By all that was holy in this world, why wouldn’t it stop? WHY WOULDN’T IT STOP?! My screams echoed around the room as I collapsed into a shaking, convulsing heap.

The corporal, replacing his helmet, reached down and pulled me towards himself. “Get me some help here!” he bellowed up the corridor. “For the princess’s sake, get a medic! Quickly!”

The world swirled and drifted away from me as darkness pushed in on my consciousness. The last thing I saw, the last wonderful vision, was of a beautiful green mare, looking down at me in concern. Her yellow eyes and pale green mane… By the gods she was so beautiful. So, so beautiful...

A white light shone in my eyes, blinding me. It wasn’t exactly the most auspicious start to a day I’d ever had, that was for sure, but at least I was alive. Struggling to escape the glare I found that I had also been  strapped down to a table, not uncomfortably so mind you, but still secure enough to prevent me from doing anything other than lie still. Thankfully the light moved away soon after, replaced by a large pair of brown eyes that stared at me as though I were some interesting specimen of mould under a scientist’s microscope.

“Can you hear me?” the pony asked. “Nod if you can.”

I nodded. Not that it was easy of course, having my body immobilised the way it was, but I still managed well enough for her to acknowledge me. The bloody idiot...

“Good. Your majesty,” the mare began, “this pony appears to have had his memories overwritten with a memory spell, and a very powerful one at that. Whoever put it in there knew what they were doing too; it’s buried deep into the subconscious part of his brain which will make it very difficult to extract without causing permanent physiological and psychological trauma. His blood work results also suggest the inclusion of a chemical neural pattern blocker, similar to that found in Winter Thistle distillate. Used in tandem, this could make the subject highly suggestible whilst simultaneously suppressing various characteristics, such as conscience, sociability, and bring some of his more ‘primal’ instincts to the fore. The coat as you can see has been dyed, the cutie mark shaved off and artificial fur and markings applied. It’s the same with the mane and tail.” There was a faint clatter of metal. “I noticed something about his eyes too. Here…” She held up a glass dish-like thing. They were the eye covers I’d been wearing earlier. “His eyes are an unnatural blue,” she explained. “See how they shine with that strange background light? It’s magical in origin of course, though of a type I’ve never seen before. Possibly a mutation of some kind. These lenses he was wearing are tinted so as to hide it without hindering normal vision. He’s still hornlocked though. The thaumaturgical inhibitor ring had been disguised with the helmet, and I’ve left it on him as you ordered.” 

“Thank you, doctor.” The serene voice was all too familiar. Celestia herself was here.

A midnight coated mare walked up to me, her aquamarine eyes looking down into mine sadly. “Oh, Fairlight, what have they done to you?”

“What I want to know, Luna, is who this ‘Mistress’ is,” Celestia interjected.

Luna raised an eyebrow. “At least you don’t believe it is I, sister.”

The white alicorn sighed, rubbing her forehead. “I’m not sure what to believe any more, Luna. Although I admit, it would appear your warnings were not without merit after all.”

Luna harrumphed. “Perhaps you should try listening to me a little more often, Tia?”

Celestia sniffed, turning her purple gaze to me. “I always listen to you, little sister. Sometimes I just…” She shook her head. “It matters not. What does matter is what we are going to do with this… wendigo.”

“Would you please stop referring to him as a thing, Tia?” Luna replied firmly. “He’s a pony who’s pledged himself to serve you, rescuing many of our people from the human realm who were-”

“-Yes, yes, I know all that, Luna, you’ve been quite… convincing.” Celestia shook her head slowly, the corner of her mouth curling up slightly in distaste at the sight of the ragged creature in front of her. “What you don’t seem to realise is that this… ‘stallion’, tried to murder me in my sleep!”

Luna remained unphased. “The doctor has already explain why. He’s been drugged, hornlocked and bewitched, Tia. The pony beneath all that would never harm you, and you know that.”

“The fact remains that he defied me and returned after I had banished him. Ponies died, Luna.”

“And once again, I explained what happened,” Luna replied calmly. “You’re looking in the wrong direction, sister. The one you should be aiding is the very one you are accusing. Can’t you let go of your hate from a millennia ago?”

“It’s not as simple as that.”

“Isn’t it?” Luna asked with a toss of her mane. “Do you still hate me?”

Celestia nickered, fixing her sister with a firm look. “Of course not!”

“But how do I know that?” Luna asked. “How can I be sure that, like this pony before you, one who pledged his life to serve you, that somewhere deep down inside you still harbour distrust and hatred in your heart?”

“Luna! I won’t hear any more of this nonsense from you!” Celestia snapped. 

Her midnight coated sister moved closer, her voice gentle and carrying of note of such kindness it made my own heart melt a little. “Then help him, Tia, please. If not for him, then for me. Can you not find it within your heart to give him a chance, as you did for me?”

For a moment those purple eyes stared into mine, the mechanisms of royalty invisible behind them and yet as ever present as the earth and the sky. Celestia sighed, “I cannot do this without taking that hornlock off him, and with his powers he could-”

Luna placed a hoof on her sister’s shoulder. “I’m here too, Sis, don’t forget that. I can and will protect you. I’m not as helpless as you seem to think.”

Celestia gently touched her sisters’ hoof. “I never thought you were, Luna.”

As I lay there staring up at the tiled ceiling I saw the bright golden glow of magic flare from Celestia’s horn. Like a miniature facsimile of the sun itself it grew in intensity and size, creating a ball of energy unlike any unicorn magic I had ever seen. But then of course, Celestia was far from your common or garden variety unicorn like me, was she? No. The princess of the sun, like her sister standing beside her, was one of the self styled gods of Equestria. Lying here now, helpless before them, I was in no position to argue with that belief. Anyway, who really knew the truth of the matter? Perhaps they really were goddesses, the manifest daughters of the elder gods who inhabited the immortal plain of the Eternal Herd. If that were true, then to these all powerful beings the rest of us would most likely be viewed as about as important in their eternal world as ants were to ponies. We were, after all, mortals, and of no more consequence to the gods than any other one of the innumerable pathetic minions passing them by on a daily basis. To these creatures the rest of us were probably like mayflies: rushing around breeding, only to die in the blink of an eye before starting the cycle all over again. Right now I was more concerned with my own more immediate problems than philosophising over the princesses. I was transfixed, watching the ball of light detach, drifting down until it enveloped my head. Flinching, I struggled within my bonds, at least until I realised that far from causing me harm the magic flowing into me held no feeling of malice whatsoever. Rather it was sending a strange warming sensation throughout my entire body, calming me and relaxing my muscles to the point where I could have quite happily nodded off. I wasn’t sure what she was doing, but the pain in my head had vanished as though it had simply never been. Now, if I could only get a chance to get out of here and-

“NOW!”

Luna’s horn glowed and the small device that had been stuck on my horn gave a quiet yet audible ‘click’ before falling away onto the bed. Without pause, Celestia’s magic quickly grew in intensity until I could feel its presence filtering through my mind like hot tendrils. What the hell was she doing? Damn it all, I had to get out of here! Anger and bitterness surged through me, cold hatred and pent up frustration taking control of me to the point where I started to thrash around, furiously trying to break loose. So many conflicting emotions were running through my mind at once it was overwhelming me, drowning me in a cacophony of raging sensation far beyond the mere physical. One of them however was louder than the rest, rising above the storm whirling around me and pulling me towards it like a moth to a flame - Obey. I had to obey. The mistress demanded it. She expected it of me. I had to do as I was told. And why shouldn’t I? I was a good pony! I had to finish the mission and then... and then I could go home! My eyes snapped open, focussing on my target. The bitch who had caused my mistress so much grief was before me, and infuriatingly just out of reach. If there was one pony, one ‘alicorn’, that I needed to eliminate it was this one. The mistress would be happy with me, my ancestors would sing of my deeds, she had to die… now! I could feel my teeth lengthening, my vision changing, a deep rumbling emanated from my throat...

Celestia’s brows drew down as she concentrated. “Luna… any time now, please...”

“I’m on it, Sis. Fairlight, my lord, please… it’s me, Luna, your mistress.”

“Mistress?” I hesitated, my eyes flicking to the midnight mare. She was my mistress? What was this nonsense? She didn’t look anything like her! She looked like… like the princess of the night, the goddess of the moon. No… No, she was trying to trick me! To-

“Lord Fairlight, look at me, only at me.” Luna’s azure eyes locked with my own, that extraordinary gaze riveting me to the bed. “Remember. Please try to remember…”

“Luna…” I muttered.

The golden glow intensified, sending rampaging images running through my mind in a torrent of impossible colour. On some level I was dimly away of what felt like something trickling out of me, and yet filling me at the same time. What… What was this? It was as if I were staring at a frozen lake of emotions and thought, the ice below my hooves preventing me from reaching them. But they were there, all of them, waiting just below the surface.

“Yes!” Luna cried. “Lord Fairlight, you can do this. Think back to those who love you, who have always loved you. Meadow, Sparrow Song, Tingles, Lumin, Shadow, they’re all waiting for you. They need you. They want you to come home. Please Fairlight, come home to us now. You have been alone for too long. Search for them within your heart. Listen to them calling to you.”

One word above all lodged in my confused mind. “Home?” Where was… No. NO! Home was with the mistress, the other mistress, the white mare… In my tortured brain, all the anger and confusion began to be replaced with images of a sunny day beneath a large tree, beneath which a green mare in a large floppy sun hat stood watching me, her yellow eyes like the warm light from a lantern. A lantern that lit the dark emptiness of my heart. I… I loved her… Didn’t I? I murmured a name, one I remembered and yet had lost. “Meadow…”

The strain was telling in Celestia’s voice. “Not much longer, Luna. Keep him under control a little longer.”

Luna leaned forward, her perfume tickling my nose. It was plum blossom. I loved plum blossom. A shiver ran through me. “That’s right, Fairlight!” the princess said animatedly. “Meadow is waiting for you. They all are, all your family and friends. Did you know little Sparrow can fly now? I’ve seen her with my own eyes, those little wings of hers are so strong. Soon she will be able to fly like the very wind!”

“Sparrow.” A burning sensation began in my eyes and I could feel tears forming, dripping down my cheeks. “My daughter. My beautiful little daughter...” The small grey pegasus, so tiny and frail... I missed her so much. I wanted to see her again! I had to… to… Suddenly a bolt of pain hammered through me making me cry out. No! I had to escape! I had to kill Celestia. I had to kill the bitch who had-

“I’m losing it!” the white princess shouted suddenly. “For goodness sake, Luna, keep him focussed!”

“FAIRLIGHT!” Luna shouted at me, distracting me. “Remember…” Suddenly she grabbed my head and placed her lips on mine, her beautifully feminine eyes filling my vision. “Remember.”

She kissed me. The scent of plum blossom hit me with all the subtlety of a sledgehammer, searing through my consciousness, filling the emptiness in my heart with its intense floral bouquet. This was the smell of my mistress, my true mistress. I was her stallion now just as I had always been, and always would be until the very end of time itself. Come what may I would obey her, just as it was meant to be. I loved her, of that nopony could ever have any doubt. And doubts, that nagging uncertainty which had plagued me for so long, vanished in an instant, burned away in the crucible of our passion. I moved into the kiss, ignoring the burning magic running through my mind. Images of mares, foals, places, worlds beyond worlds - it all ran through me until, with a final deafening crack which resounded throughout the infinite nothingness of the void I had become... the ice broke. Everything flooded back in a sudden rush, drowning me with indescribable sensations the likes of which were beyond my feeble comprehension. I fell headlong, deeper and deeper into the lake of memory and self, remembering who I was, and who I am. It was simultaneously both terrifying and exhilarating. I was… me… I was myself. 

The effort having visibly tired her, Princess Celestia looked down into my eyes. “Who are you?” she asked me levelly. “Tell me your name.”

Who was... What? My name? The white mare standing over me, those purple eyes staring into mine, the long horn, the wings... Celestia? Oh gods no, what was going on here? I looked around in mounting alarm. Luna? Why was Luna here? More to the point, where the hell was I? And why was I strapped to a bed?! A hoof stamping on the ground snatched my attention back to the princess looming over me. 

“Tell me your name!” the white mare ordered.

I swallowed. “I… I’m Fairlight, your majesty.”

To my surprise, Luna reached over and hugged me. Gently, she whispered into my ear, “Thank the gods, Fairlight. I thought we’d lost you.”

Celestia turned away. “Did you? Then perhaps you should believe in me too, little sister.” And with that she left the room, leaving Luna and I holding onto each other as the princess of the night magicked the straps away from my body. Lying there in her forelegs, the warm smell of the mare made my heart cry out with a terrible feeling of loss that shook to my very core. I hadn’t felt such pain since I’d lost Meadow, and yet… why? Why now? I was so confused! I felt utterly lost, and was in all likelihood in a state of physical and nervous shock. But despite all of that, one overriding and all encompassing desire surged through me - I wanted my family. Where were my family?

I sat up shakily, and then, carefully, rolled off the bed onto my hooves. “Luna,” I managed past dry lips. “My lady, what’s going on? I don’t understand… where am I? What the hell am I doing here?”

“All in good time,” Luna smiled softly. “First of all, here, drink this, and then we shall talk you and I.” 

Gently, Luna guided me to a chair before passing me a glass of sparkling silver liquid. Cold and frigid as the mountain’s stream, strong and pure as nature itself, life energy raced through my entire being, refreshing and re-energising me both in spirit and body. By the gods, I never realised how thirsty I had been until I had been filled. Leaning back I let out a long sigh, rubbing my eyes before something caught my eye. Was I seeing things? I looked down at my legs. I didn’t know whether it was the light in the room or not, but they seemed darker than usual for some reason. Luna’s ears, they were! What in the name of all that was holy had happened to me? Checking myself over I certainly still felt like me, just a little ‘off’ somehow, and by the goddess my head hurt like hell too! Watching me with a smile on her face, Luna magicked the empty glass away to sit on the table before thanking the doctor and leaning towards me.

“The headache will pass shortly. Do you feel strong enough to walk?” she asked. I nodded in reply. “Then come, we shall talk as we take the air. By the looks of you, it will do you good.” Beckoning me to follow her, Luna swept out of the room with me close behind. I was still a little wobbly on my legs after my befuddling ordeal, but it felt good to be moving once more. “You’ve been missing for weeks,” she began. “The first we knew of it was when Brandy received a message from Tingles to say she believed you’d been kidnapped from the village. We weren’t sure what to believe at first, but after our investigation team arrived we did find some evidence to suggest that her fears were justified.”

“What evidence was that?” I asked.

Luna looked back at me over her shoulder. “The team found tracks from who we believe was your assailant, outside the tavern. They lead to the carriage barn, where a large quantity of straw had been dropped around a set of fresh wheel tracks. From there they were able to determine the direction of travel.  Unfortunately the tracks ended by another set that apparently belong to a sky carriage.” She smiled sadly. “There the trail went cold. All we were able to determine from there onwards was that you had simply disappeared, only to re-appear here… like this.”

“You never found who did this to me?”

“No.” Luna shook her head, clearly displeased with the lack of progress. “They’re still looking into it as we speak. Whoever it was hid whatever vehicle they’d smuggled you from the village in well enough to prevent it being found, and with the large number of griffins in the village, at the moment there are simply too many potential suspects. Mitre is doing his best, but as you know, the villagers are distrusting of outsiders and not being particularly helpful.”

I nodded, trying to clear my mind and focus on what I knew so far. Unfortunately my head was such a mess right then I was as much in the dark as a mole in a coal bunker. I decided on a change of subject. “Where am I?”

The answer was simple. “The palace.” Luna bobbed her head towards the magnificent stained glass windows that should have tipped me off straight away. “What do you remember?”

A good question. I thought for a moment, furrowing my brow. “Sitting on the porch watching the sunrise, and then… looking into your eyes.”

Luna blushed slightly. “Lord Fairlight, somepony used a very strong and unusual memory spell on you. Not only that but they drugged you with something that was powerful enough to break down your mental resilience, and hornlocked you for good measure.”

Subconsciously I reached up and touched my horn. Everything felt okay, apart from the fading headache that was still lingering there a little, however all I seemed to be coming up with was more and more questions. And no answers. “But… But why?” I asked. “How in Equestria did I end up here?” Glancing over my shoulder, I saw a pair of guards shadowing us. “And how come I’m not in chains?”

Luna clucked her tongue, casting a sidelong glance at me. “You don’t remember anything? About the palace?”

“No!” I replied in exasperation. “I wish I did! Bloody hell, this is last place I wanted to end up. Your sister doesn’t exactly like me you know.” I felt a shiver run down my spine. The last time I’d been here I’d narrowly missed being sent to the gallows. Now, I doubted the old baggage would miss this golden opportunity to have me dealt with once and for all. Even so, it did beg the question – why was I still alive? Something didn’t add up here. Unfortunately, neither did what Luna said next.

“You were found dressed in a soldiers uniform,” she explained gravely, “in my sister’s bedroom. Fairlight… you were going to assassinate Celestia. You were going to run her through with a spear and you… you had an M.A.D with you.”

I stopped in my tracks. I was going to do what?! My goddesses, sure I hated the miserable sow for what she’d done to my tribe, for what she’d done to me too for that matter, but… to actually assassinate her? No. No, that couldn’t be right. Just then a memory of a conversation with a pony a long time ago popped back into my mind. I’m not an assassin. That sentiment was just as valid now as it was then, and yet here was Luna saying I’d disguised myself, entered the princess’s bedroom, and had prepared to do precisely that. The worst part was, I couldn’t deny it either. Here I was in the royal palace, with absolutely no recollection of how I’d arrived here whatsoever. Somepony had clearly messed around with not only my head, but my appearance too. I turned to Luna in silence, not knowing what to say. 

“My lord, come… my sister will be waiting for us.”

Oh… bollocks. “Guess this is it then,” I muttered, half to myself.

Luna frowned at me. “What do you mean?”

“I’d have thought it was obvious,” I said solemnly, staring straight ahead. “Assassination, treason, attempted regicide… and there’ll be more besides that, don’t you worry. Don’t forget that I was warned ‘not to return upon pain of death’, and here I am as guilty as a puppy next to a wet patch. I’m sorry Luna, I don’t think this is one fix I’m going to get out of unless I make a break for it now.” I motioned to the guards behind us. “The goon squad might have other ideas about it though.”

Luna put a hoof on my shoulder, staring straight into my eyes. “Don’t you think Tia would have thought about that?” she said pointedly. “Why do you think she took the hornlock off you? Think, Lord Fairlight, if she wanted you dead, you would never have left her bedchamber alive, let alone have her help you the way she has.”

“Help me? Yeah, right...” I shook my mane in frustration. “I’m sure there’s some sting in the tail yet to come from her nibs, Luna. Somehow I doubt she’d going to invite me to afternoon tea, so what is it do you think? Is she going to use my family as leverage to get me to spill the beans on something I know bugger all about? Maybe she thinks I’m the grand fart-wallah of the blood circle or whatever they’re damned well told. Bloody hell, she probably knows more about that crap than I do!” I narrowed my eyes, feeling a well of anger within me bubbling away. “You’ll forgive me if I don’t share your confidence in the beneficence of your ‘magnificent’ sister.”

The princess of the night sighed and face hoofed. “Fairlight, you’re… impossible.” Turning away she nudged me with her muzzle. “Come along now, let’s not be tardy.”

I almost laughed. This whole situation had gone far beyond the boundaries of strange and was knocking on the metaphorical door of out and out insanity. Weeks of nothingness, a hole in my memory so large you could drive a cart and four through it with only a lingering sense of ‘missing’ something, and here I was being lead through the palace by one of the royal sisters as if I were an honoured guest. Ha! I even had a guard of honour! Unfortunately whatever had been done to me had also interfered with my magic to the point where it was about as coherent as a dropped blancmange. Anyway, I doubted I had much left in me to attempt an escape in any case, let alone defend myself should Celestia decide to eliminate me there and then. Besides, I had very little say in the matter right now, and could only plod meekly along to meet my fate. Whatever awaited me beyond the doors ahead of us however, remained to be seen. 

I took a deep breath as the doors swung open.

The princess of the sun was sat upon a chair before a large roaring fire. By the looks of the sky beyond the windows, it was early dawn. Celestia said nothing, not even acknowledging our entry into her study. Slowly, she sipped a cup of tea thoughtfully, looking into the fire with a faraway gaze. She looked tired, drawn, and far from the more usual depictions of her in full armour leading thousands of troops into ‘glorious’ battle. She was a beautiful creature, though certainly no spring chicken. I mean, how old was she now? Two thousand years old? Three?

“Do you know how much trouble you’ve caused me, wendigo?” she asked plainly. I kept quiet, letting her continue. “Do you have any idea how many of my guards perished trying to find you?” She looked up at me, her eyes flashing with anger, and also… sadness? “Well?”

I cleared my throat. “Your majesty, if you’re going to execute me could you get on with it please? I imagine you’ve got other things pressing on your time, and I’d like to be re-united with my murdered wife and foal as soon as possible, if it’s all the same with you.”

Celestia shook her head, snorting under her breath. “Flippant remarks like that avail you not, wendigo.”

“Fairlight,” I corrected her.

“Pardon?”

I let out a louder than necessary sigh. “I have a name, your majesty. Most call me Fairlight, but I answer to ‘my lord’ or ‘lord Fairlight’ equally well. I may be a wendigo, as you appear to like pointing out, but I didn’t exactly have any choice in the matter. I assure you, if you perchance have some magical way to turn back time and undo what happened to me and to my family, then I’d welcome that chance.”

“Would you now?” she asked. “And lose every friendship, every memory and relationship you’ve made since then?” Celestia curled her lip. “I think not.”

I hung my head, realising the truth of what she was saying. “It’s true I’ve made many friends since then,” I confessed, “more in fact than I ever imagined a simple pony could have. Some of them I even consider as part of my family. But even so, I still miss my wife and daughter, Princess. I still want to hold them. I still want to be with them. And that is something that no amount of friends could ever change.”

Celestia’s expression remained as emotionless as the marble pillars that supported the exquisitely stuccoed ceiling of the study. “I’ll tell you bluntly… ‘Fairlight’, my sister has most vociferous in her defence of you. In fact ever since I made the ruling to banish you, she has beleaguered me almost daily with evidence of your deeds, as well as numerous accounts from our intelligence services regarding what you have ‘done for Equestria’.” She leaned back in the chair and closed her eyes. “I confess that initially I was far from convinced by what was put before me, believing Luna to have become much too personally invested in the matter to remain objective. In that regard, I am still undecided. However...” Celestia let out a soft sigh, placing her cup down with a faint clink of china.

“However?” I prompted. 

The princess opened one eye and stared at me. “I have a special place in my affections for the little creatures you know as ‘Breezies’. To many Equestrians they are little more than a myth; fairytale characters from the pages of a whimsical story used by parents to fascinate their foals at bedtime.” She smiled sadly. “Ironic, is it not, how close such a theory came to becoming fact. Their reclusive and secretive nature has kept them safe all these many centuries, and yet now that very thing which hid them from the eyes of the world around them has nearly proved to be their undoing. One of the greatest tragedies is that the majority of ponies would never even notice that a part of their world had simply ceased to be, and yet as elusive and insignificant as they may appear, they are still a valuable part of our world’s ecosystem.” Celestia floated her tea cup in front of her, slowly turning the delicate china around as she watched how the light caught its painted surface. She sounded distant, as if sensing a great sadness that only she could see. “They are so frail, so gentle, and now they are on the brink of extinction thanks to the actions of a few evil creatures. To think such barbaric behaviour lies within the hearts of my children.” Abruptly she shook her mane and magicked her cup back onto the saucer with a distinct ‘clink’. “You accomplished something that day, Lord Fairlight, something many would have quailed at. You not only saved pony’s lives, you saved an entire species from annihilation. Their reclusive nature coupled with my distraction because of certain ‘events’ in the land, nearly allowed my dear breezies to  die out right under my very nose.”

“Their population will recover though, won’t it?” I asked.

The princess nodded quietly. “It will, although the damage caused by such wanton savagery will not be so readily forgotten by their people. They may be a simple folk, but I can assure you they will remember this for many generations to come. I can only pray that some day they will be able to forgive us for allowing such unthinkable evil to take hold in our land.”  

There was a commotion outside the door which suddenly burst open, revealing three identical looking palace guards who all but fell headlong into the room as they grappled one another. Celestia rose quickly to her hooves. “What is going on here?” she roared angrily. “Another assassin? Explain yourselves!”

Two of the guards grabbed the third who they quickly took to the ground. The immobilised fellow opened his mouth to speak as one of the burly males snarled at him, “Keep quiet you! Your majesty-”

“Let him speak,” she ordered, waving off the guards.

Reluctantly the two of them backed away, though kept their weapons trained on the prostrated stallion. I didn’t doubt that even the slightest sign of aggression would end very quickly, and also, very messily. “Your majesties, please,” he began. “I am Corporal Nimble, First unicorn battalion, fourth company. I was part of the recovery team sent to track down the fugitive. But this stallion, Fairlight, he saved my life in the caverns, and after I’d been sent there to apprehend him too. He faced down a fully grown dragon to save me, and even tried to save one of my colleagues who then attempted to murder him in cold blood. He’s not our enemy, your majesty.”

Celestia walked up to the soldier and picked him up off his knees. “You do know, Corporal Nimble, what this creature is, do you not?” 

He nodded, removing his helmet. In moments his coat changed from white to grey, his eyes turning from the blue of the royal guard to the yellow so typical of the tribe. “Yes, your majesty,” he smiled at me. “I know who he is, and what he is. I sensed his presence as soon as he entered the palace. It was weak, but I knew it was him.”

Celestia rose to her full height, ruffling her wings. “You understand what you are saying here soldier? You were sent on a mission to apprehend a fugitive, were you not?”

Nimble nodded. “Yes, your majesty.”

“And you let him go?”

“I did.”

“You disobeyed a direct order.”

Again, Nimble nodded. “For a friend? Yes, I did. If that condemns me, then so be it. Nopony who would face death to defend another should receive betrayal as a reward.”

Celestia shot him a look before turning to me. “Your ‘influence’ appears to be spreading, ‘Lord’ Fairlight. I am still not convinced I was wrong about you or your kind, however…” She took a deep breath and shook her head in dismay. “I may need to… ‘reconsider’ my decision.”

“They were different times, Celestia,” I said rather more informally than I meant to. “You did what you believed you had to, to protect the ponies of Equestria. I won’t deny that my ancestors relished war, but for myself, all I wish for is to protect my family and to be left in peace. As a great stallion once told me, ‘every creature, no matter how big or small, has a right to life.’”

Instead of losing her temper at my impropriety she surprised me by giving an ironic laugh as she turned to gaze up at the painting of the brown pony on the wall over the fireplace. “Peace? Sometimes I wonder if it still exists. Murder, drugs, rape… such terrible, unimaginable things are happening in my home, and it seems as if we are powerless to stop it. Equestria is sickening from it, I feel it in my heart, even at a time when my niece and the brother of my most loyal student are to married.” She snorted bitterly, “A joyous occasion amidst the horror happening on our very doorstep.”

I stood up to my full height, letting the magic course through me, my eyes and teeth changing as the mist curled around my hooves. The princesses gasped at the transformation, the guards behind me readying their spears. “Then let me help Equestria, my princess.” I said calmly. “Allow me to fulfil my promise and protect both you and your sister, as well as the ponies of our homeland. Let the past stay in the past and restore the light that we have lost.” I bowed before her. “Before these witnesses this day I renew my pledge to serve you, your majesty, both you and princess Luna.”

The princess of the sun watched me warily, but I noticed from the corner of my eye the ghost of a smile drifting across her face. Waving off the guards she turned to Luna. “Contact his family, Luna, they will be missing him. And Corporal Nimble?”

Nimble snapped to attention. “Yes, your majesty?”

“I’m reassigning you. Go with Lord Fairlight and help him in whatever way he sees fit. I will speak to Captain Armour about your transfer shortly.”

“Thank you, your majesty.”

“Oh, and Lord Fairlight?”

I bowed respectfully. “Yes, your majesty?”

Celestia bobbed her head. “I will consider your request to have the lands returned to you and your ‘tribe’. In the meantime, you are to work with the agency and Equus on my behalf to restore Equestria. Root out this evil which is plaguing us. Do what you must to restore the beauty of our land to what it once was.” She nodded to Luna. “After all, nopony should fear the night.”

I thought of the weeks of missing memory, about how I’d been played like a marionette and nearly murdered the ruler of our land. All this time, all these years… How had I been so wrong? As for fearing the night… “Some should,” I whispered under my breath.

And so ended my meeting with the most powerful creature in Equestria, perhaps even the entire world. Princess Celestia – Alicorn ruler of ponies, daughter of the gods, and scourge of my ancestors. I wonder what they would think of me now? How would Maroc, Arathea, and even their son Vela whose own parents had been struck down by the white witch, view our recent accord? In their eyes I expect they would have seen my actions as having effectively bowed my head to the very one who had caused unimaginable suffering and death to our people, even going so far as to, in all but name, sell what remained of my tribe into servitude to the mare they viewed as little more than a monster. No doubt to some I would be viewed as a coward, perhaps even a traitor, and you know… perhaps they were right. Maybe I should have fought to the end, attacking Celestia whilst she sat there in her study. She’d only had two guards with her, and Luna of course. There had been a chance, no matter how remote, that I could have struck a fatal blow before they took me down. And what then? If by some miracle I’d been able to escape, was my tribe really capable of fighting off the entire equestrian army? Could I have defeated Luna too? She may have been the leader of the Legion, the goddess of the warriors of the moon, but would she have simply stood by and let me slay her sister? Of course not. Times had indeed changed. The world had moved on, and more importantly, I had a family to protect. But not just them, there was the tribe to consider. Whichever way you looked at it we were a broken people, a shadow of what we had once been, merely waiting for the day the final nail was driven home, the memories of our past faded, or the villagers simply moved away, tired of living in perpetual fear of discovery. I was the last of the wendigo, but I would be damned if I would let an opportunity like this slip past my hooves. Today I had been given the chance to take back our lands without bloodshed, to be given the right to self governance and self determination once again. If that meant being allied to Celestia, then so be it. If Luna could forgive her, and be forgiven by her, then why could we not follow that very same example of our own goddess? It was a time for change, but it was also a time for us to take back what we had lost. It was time… to be reborn.

Luna seemed to sense my thoughts. “You can trust her,” she said simply. “We may disagree on certain matters, Lord Fairlight, but Celestia is always a mare of her word.”

I nodded, keeping pace with her though the winding corridors. “She said she would ‘reconsider’ her opinion of me,” I reminded her. “And as much as I appreciate not being hauled off to the chopping block, it’s hardly a cast iron guarantee that she will agree to anything yet.”

“It is more than I have ever known her to concede,” Luna replied honestly. The princess looked at me askance. “She is not the only one who has changed recently, either. I know very well what your opinion of my sister was, and as much as I may not have agreed with it, I could still see why you felt the way you did.”

I liked the way she put it in past-tense, as if I’d had a sudden change of heart and magically warmed to the genocidal lunatic. “It was a little more than a few hurt feelings, you know,” I rumbled. “She exiled me for a war that happened a thousand years before I was born! As if that wasn’t bad enough she then sent a hit squad after me, sending who knows how many of her ponies to a horrible death in the process. I don’t think anypony in their right mind would condemn me for being, how should I put it now, ‘less than enthusiastic’ about our beneficent ruler.”

“And now?”

“Now, we move forward,” I offered. “The world has moved on, Luna, and whereas it may not always be for the better, I cannot see how keeping grudges and old enmities alive for countless generations is ever going to do anything other than end in tragedy for all concerned. Let the dead rest, and let the living live in whatever passes for peace in this cocked-up world.”

Luna raised an eyebrow. “Do you truly mean that?”

“Of course I do.” I glanced over at her. “You don’t believe me?” I asked curiously.

Luna shrugged demurely. “You are the returning lord to a people who have been awaiting your arrival since the last days of the war. You have made a new home there, and a new life. Whether you realise it or not, your family have put down roots in Smiling Borders, and regardless of what Celestia decides, you are, and always will be, the ruler of a tribe of wendigo.”

“They aren’t wendigo,” I nickered. “I’m only one by a fluke of… whatever the hell it was. And believe me, I wouldn’t wish that nightmare on my worst enemy.”

“What of you, Corporal Nimble?” Luna asked our quiet colleague.

“Huh?” Nimble looked up in surprise, apparently lost in his own thoughts. “About what, your majesty?”

Luna shrugged. “How do you see Lord Fairlight and his tribe? In Celestia’s study you said you felt a connection to him?”

“Oh...” Nimble blushed slightly. “Well, erm, I suppose it does sound a bit weird now that I think about it. It’s hard to describe.”

“Go on...”

“Yeah, erm,” he scratched his head in thought, “it’s sort of like when you know somepony’s in the same room as you, even if you can’t see or hear them. You can kinda sense they’re there, you know? Only this time it was a lot stronger, and a lot more specific. I didn’t know what to think at first, and by the time I got off my arse to go and see what was going on, he was in the clink.” He chuckled. “I thought I’d had one too many, but nope, there he was alright!”

“So you just ‘knew’ I was there in the cells?” I asked. “Doesn’t that make you wonder why?”

“Sure,” Nimble shrugged. “But I just thought it was one of those things. You know, that whole ‘Magic is friendship’, thing they’re always banging on about in the paper? I figured we must have created some sort of bond after what we’d been through, what with the dragon and all. We’re both unicorns too, so maybe that had something to do with it.”

“It didn’t.” Luna glanced at me. “Do wish me to tell him?”

“If you want,” I muttered, knowing full well she would regardless of what I said.

“All descendants of the tribe of the wendigo share certain traits,” Luna began. “Firstly, they are all unicorns, and secondly they all have similar colouring: grey fur, black mane and tail, and yellow eyes. The last, and most telling trait, is that wendigo are able to sense the presence of their leader through a link known colloquially as ‘the bond’.”

Nimble looked at me, then back to himself. “What, you think I’m one of these ‘descendants’ too?” He shook his head. “Nah, that can’t be right. We have different eye colour.”

“Fairlight is not a pure wendigo, at least not in the traditional sense,” Luna explained. “His father is an earth pony.”

“But he’s still a wendigo, right?” Nimble pointed out. “I’ve seen him turn into one before.”

Luna nodded. “He carries the same bloodline as his forefathers. Or fore ‘mothers’ to be precise.”

“Fair enough,” Nimble conceded. “But what’s this got to do with me? You think I’m one of those wendigo things too?” His ears pricked up. “Hey, could I turn all white and have wings and everything?!”

“It is possible,” Luna replied, “You bear all the characteristics of the tribe. Traditionally it would be your offspring that could bond with the spirit, however an unbonded wendigo can still-”

I held up a hoof, stalling her. “-Princess, please, the last thing we need is any more wendigo springing up out of nowhere and giving your sister more cause for concern than she has already. Nimble is my friend, and whether he’s a descendant of the tribe or not, I think it’s better for him to avoid getting crazy ideas in his head about turning white and sprouting bloody wings!”

“It would still look cool though,” Nimble muttered. “My missus would freak out if I came home looking like that!” He chuckled, a lascivious grin spreading across his face. “She’d be all over me...”

“For all the wrong reasons!” I said loudly in exasperation. “Bloody hell, Nimble, she’d have the army on you in the blink of an eye. Look what happened to me! Do you think I wanted to be Equestria’s most wanted?”

“It is his choice,” Luna interjected.

“I don’t care!” I snapped back. “And for the love of the gods, please, can we just drop the subject? Please!”  

And that, thankfully, brought that particularly uncomfortable conversation to a close. Honestly, I don’t know what Luna was thinking about. Creating more wendigo? Was she insane?! Celestia was hardly going to sit back and let that happen, and the last thing I wanted was to upset her now, especially when we were so close to getting a true home of our own. Besides, so far as I was aware, Nimble knew nothing about his heritage, if indeed it actually had anything to do with the tribe in the first place. In fact he probably knew as much about it as I had when I was his age – which was absolutely bugger all. Sure, he had a sense that told him when I was nearby, but what did that prove? All the villagers in Smiling Borders had that ability. Most of them weren’t even ponies, the majority being descendants of the tribe’s workers, staff and auxiliaries. It made them no less important in my eyes. In any case, as far as I was concerned the thought of putting anypony through the horror of ‘the joining’ or whatever that insanity had been called, was not something that should be entered into lightly. Or at all for that matter. No, as much as I liked young Nimble, he had a certain childish naivety that, if mixed with the power of a wendigo, could prove to be disastrous both for him and the tribe. As far as I was concerned, turning him into a wendigo was simply not an option. Anyway, by the looks of things we were here. Nimble and I pushed open the large rear double doors to the carriage park. After the peaceful sunlit corridors of the palace’s interior, the contrast was, to put it mildly, incredible. Light and sound crashed over us in an instant, flooding my senses. It was, as you can imagine with the imminent commencement of matrimonial festivities, a veritable hive of activity. Shouting, laughter, the crash of metal wheeled cages full of supplies, the clatter of wheels… Every which way you turned you were met by an all encompassing wall of sound whilst dozens, if not hundreds of ponies dashed this way and that, somehow managing to make sense of the chaos. I half expected a large thestral mare to be coordinating it all, but if there was one single mind behind it all, they were well hidden. I slowly took it all in, watching, trying to remember something, anything that could prove to be of use to us in our search for answers. Beneath the blue sky of Canterlot several wagons and other transport vehicles languished in the sunshine, waiting to be unloaded by the myriad of busy ponies pushing sack barrows or using magic to carry crates, sacks and goodness knows what else. It was a certainly busy scene, though one which was not that unusual. I’d been to plenty of factories, warehouses and department stores in Manehattan that looked not that dissimilar once you looked past the elegant columns, walls and towers. Sadly, it wasn’t helping with my current predicament. That being, where to start. In this regard, Luna was way ahead of me.

The princess passed me a saddle bag. “We’ve run a residual magic scan on it and unfortunately it has come up with nothing of any note.” In answer to my questioning look she added, “You brought it in with you. Perhaps it will help you recall something?”

I shook my head in despair. I couldn’t remember anything at all, from the time I’d been abducted right up until I’d awoken strapped to a bed with the princesses looming over me. Except… Hang on, what was that? Taking the bag I sniffed it, my keen sense of smell detecting a familiar scent. It wasn’t pleasant, though quite distinctive.  “Here, what does that smell like to you?” 

Luna and Nimble both took turns sniffing the bag. The princess answered first, shaking her head. “A faint smell of something bitter, although I don’t know what that could mean.”

Next, Nimble took in a deep huff of the bag. “Hmm, there’s definitely something there I reckon. It… yes… yes, that could be it.” He looked up at me. “I was sent to the palace medical wing when I got back from the caves. The quaks put some solution on my injuries to clean them. Burned like hell it did too. I could be wrong of course, but it smells just like it.”

Scratching my head I turned to face towards Manehattan. “The smell of chemicals,” I said absently. Meadow had come home many a time with the very same smell. She’d told me once what it was.  “Carbolic acid. In other words, antiseptic.”

Nimble looked at me suddenly. “How did you get here, can you remember?” 

I frowned in thought, casting my gaze around the courtyard. “I don’t recall, but I doubt I just waltzed in,” I answered honestly. “Do we have any records of visitors or deliveries to the palace?”

“We can check in with the guards on the gate. Everypony arriving has to sign in and out,” Nimble explained. He paused, tapping his chin and looked up at me with those big yellow eyes of his. “Smell,” he muttered, “Of course! Smell! The dogs!” 

In a rush, Nimble beckoned me to follow him and I took off hot on his heels, leaving a surprised Luna standing by the doors after bidding her a hasty thanks and farewell. She didn’t seem to mind. The princess of the night had a bemused look on her face as she watched us go, then simply turned to head back into the palace, flicking her mane back with a chuckle. Caught up in the thrill of the chase, Nimble and I soon reached the gate house. It was a modest size building, housing a detachment of soldiers that monitored all the comings and goings of visitors. Currently one of their number was busy chatting with another soldier whilst enjoying a steaming mug of tea. At our entrance, the two looked up in surprise, first to me, then Nimble.

“Corporal Nimble?” the guard asked, recognising my colleague. “Why are you out of uniform, and who’s that pony with you?”

“Re-assignment,” Nimble explained hurriedly, “by personal order of Princess Celestia. This is Captain Fairlight of the watch. Jet Stream, can we borrow your dog?”

The pegasus stood there for a moment, placing his mug back on the table. “My dog? What do you want Horst for?”

I stepped in. “Soldier, can your dog pick up scents?”

He grinned back at me. “’course he can, best nose in the guard has Horst.”

Hearing his name, a sleek well fed hound appeared from under the table, licking crumbs from his muzzle. He wandered up to me for a quick sniff and a fuss whilst Nimble passed the saddle bag to Jet Stream. “Here you go. There’s a faint smell of antiseptic on the thing. We want to see if there’s any trace of it here in the palace.”

Jet Stream snorted, wrinkling up his nose. “Probably in the infirmary, but what’ll that prove?”

Stroking Horst I glanced up at the guard. “Let’s just see, eh?”

Jet Stream hadn’t been exaggerating about his dog’s abilities. Horst went into action in moments, rushing from the guard room in a flurry of legs and tail. Had he picked something up already? We all followed him outside where he was busily engaged wandering around the entrance road, following what looked like a completely random path - if any at all. Was my hunch wrong? I shared a worried look with Nimble. This could be a red herring for sure, but there were always other avenues to explore if this one lead nowhere. You just had to find them. ‘Keep an open mind’, dad had always told me, ‘Sometimes your first reaction, your first opinion, is the correct one. Don’t over think things and always be ready to accept that you can be wrong’. There had been a boat load of ‘dad-isms’, some useful, some… well, just dad being dad. A bark made us jump and Horst pulled hard on the lead, heading toward a gap in the carriage loading bay where he began to circle and whine.

“He’s indicating,” Jet Stream said. “Something’s been here with that scent.”

“A carriage?” Nimble said.

“Or something larger,” I stated, noting the larger delivery wagons. “Who’d notice one more delivery?”

“Best place to hide a tree is in a forest,” Nimble quoted. “Let’s have a look at the books. Maybe there’ll be something we can find in there.”

Jet Stream was more than happy to show us his record books. Laid out in neat hoofwriting and meticulous detail, every single aspect of every delivery to the palace was recorded both in and out for each day going back over the last year. Each entry held details of the company making the delivery, their time in, time out, cargo manifest, authorisation, and so on. Despite the three of us checking however, there was no trace of any recent delivery of medical supplies, nor had there been since the previous month for that matter. At least thirty deliveries had been made on the day in question alone, but nothing you could really link with the smell of antiseptic, or a smuggled assassin. I was missing something. Damn it, I had to be!

“We check everything for thaumaturgical radiation sources,” Jet stream explained, pointing to one of the detectors hanging up beside the door. “We always work in pairs. One of us scans the vehicle whilst the other does the paperwork.”

“Anything out of the ordinary recently?” I asked hopefully.

Jet Stream shook his head. “Nothing. If anything had shown up we would have been all over it.”

I didn’t doubt it, although I couldn’t disregard the possibility that one of the deliveries had somehow managed to slip through. A careless guard, a momentary lapse in concentration, or even an insider waving them through, no checkpoint was completely watertight. From what I understood from the princesses, my magic would have been blocked by the hornlock, potentially fooling a detector. That was all well and good of course, but it didn’t account for the MAD I’d been carrying. Those things gave off magical radiation like a bloody klaxon. Putting those through to one side, Nimble and I set about interviewing the rest of the guards on duty, even asking around the kitchen staff and porters, but all leads drew a blank. The palace had been so busy with the preparations, nopony would have noticed one more guard walking past. And besides, the fact that they all looked the same due to the magic in their uniforms was far from helpful in singling one out. I was starting to think I’d have to re-evaluate my hunch. After all, it could have simply been a spill from a medical cabinet or maybe the bags had been used to transport medical items at some point and the smell had lingered. There were so many possibilities to explore, but right now I didn’t the luxury of time. I had to try and find who was behind this somehow, and quickly. We already had some possibilities of course: the commissioner, Velvet Cream, maybe even that human mare he hung around with. They’d all been involved in the drug, weapon and sex trade, but assassination? It was a hell of a leap from crime that lined your pockets to regicide. Velvet had a small army of thugs behind him that were well known for committing atrocities of course, but there was a hell of difference between what they got up to and the organisation that had gone into this. I scrubbed my mane in thought. No. No, I just couldn’t see it. Of those three the one most likely to get involved in something so sinister would the commissioner, but would she really become embroiled in something like this? After the incident with the Manehattan Watch I wouldn’t put anything past her. The others were just your run of the mill crime syndicate scum, but this was in a different league all together. Could she be using them somehow? I leaned back in the chair and rubbed my eyes. What wasn’t I seeing here?

Suddenly Nimble stuck his head through the door. “Captain! You might want to hear this.” I trotted across to see what he’d found. Gods know, we could do with some good news right about now. When I reached him, our erstwhile corporal was stood next to a flour coated kitchen worker in an apron. The poor bugger looked far from happy to be there, and kept glancing nervously at the two of us as though we were going to rough him up at any minute. “This is Sorghum,” Nimble continued. “He’s one of the commichefs here at the palace.” 

I held out a hoof. “Hello, Sorghum, the name’s Fairlight. Thanks for agreeing to chat with us. I know how busy you must be right now, so I promise we won’t keep you long, okay?” I smiled pleasantly, trying to put the poor fellow at ease. 

The corporal nudged him. “Go on, tell him what you told me.”

The burgundy earth pony began to scratch his mane nervously. “Well, erm, it’s probably nothin’ really, but there was this laundry wagon ‘ere this mornin’ from ‘Bright Mornin’ Laundry’ see? Real early like, like it ‘ad been ‘ere all night. I thought it was a bit funny as the boss ‘ad fell out with ‘em ‘bout a week ago an’ told ‘em we’d be changing our supplier. I says to Cleo, I says ‘That’s funny in’t it? What with Clatter fallin’ out with ‘em an’ all.’ She thought so too. She says, ‘That’s right funny that is.’ ‘Aye,’ says I, ‘Bet ‘e goes off ‘is nut when ‘e sees that lot!’”

“Do you remember anypony with the wagon?” I asked. “Any drivers? Or crew?”

Sorghum shook his head. “Nay, it just sat there for a few ‘ours an’ then it were gone. Probly Clatter got wind of it, I reckon.”

“Any idea what they fell out over?”

The stallion shrugged. “Dunno. You could always ask ‘im though, he’ll probly be in ‘is office today.”

“What’s his name?” I asked.

“Seville Clatter,” Sorghum said, wiping his hooves on his apron. “An’ speakin’ of which, I better get me arse back to work. I’m on the clock y’know.” 

I clopped him on the shoulder. “Thanks friend. Nimble, let’s have a chat with those gate guard chaps again, shall we? After that, we can go and have a natter with Mister Clatter.”

So… Bright Morning Laundry, was it? A wagon they didn’t expect to see turns up, stays here overnight, then vanishes first thing in the morning. Coincidence perhaps? Maybe, but I doubted it. In any case I’d have to do a little more digging first before I could begin to start piecing it all together just yet. The information from Sorghum had been a godsend, once you could get your head around his west country dialect, and could prove to be just the break we needed. I had a good feeling about this lead, and depending upon what I unearthed next, we could really be onto something. Back in the guard house we checked the books once again, and sure enough the wagon from ‘Bright Morning Laundry’ was recorded in all its glory. It had arrived in the evening with a delivery of laundered staff uniforms and then left early the following morning. The times coincided perfectly with when, according to Luna, I had been apprehended, and then shortly after when the spell been removed. Thank the goddesses that the MAD I’d had in my bag hadn’t been activated or else I’d have been nothing more than dust motes right now. What the hell had I been planning on using that for anyway? Damn them! They’d really done a number on my memories alright, not to mention the mess they’d made of my coat. What else had they done to me?

We sat down in the guard room as Jet Stream brought us a cup of tea each. Nimble, in typical style, stretched his forelegs out and stared up at the ceiling as he munched on a biscuit. “What do we do now, Cap’? You’re the ex-watch guy. I’m more used to breaking heads than using mine to be honest.”

“One step at a time,” I replied, taking a sip of my tea. “We check in with the laundry people and go from there. Bright Morning seem like a legit company, but there could be an insider with them or it could have been a stolen wagon they used. There’s always the possibility whoever was behind it simply made up their own livery to make a facsimile of a legit wagon. Regardless, we need to speak to the agency and see if they can get some agents to do some digging on the company itself. They’ve got the resources and the pony power to do that a lot quicker than us.”

“What about the watch though?” Nimble asked. “They’d know if any vehicles had been stolen.”

I shook my head. “No. As far as we’re concerned the watch is compromised, Nimble. I’ll explain later. Just trust me on this.”

He shrugged, helping himself to another biscuit. “You’re the boss. Hey, can you hear that buzzing noise?”

Buzzing? I looked down at my cloaks pocket. My communicator, freshly provided by the princess, was indeed making my pocket vibrate. “Agent Nox,” I answered. Nimble’s eyebrows shot up, apparently unused to such advances in magical technology. 

“Fairlight?” Mitre’s voice crackled over the comm. “Her majesty has just sent word. What’s the situation?”

I explained things briefly to my old mentor, receiving only a simple ‘I see’ in response. Silence followed.

“Chief, how’s my family doing?”

“Last I saw of them they were frantic,” came the reply. “Your ‘tribal friends’ have been out searching high and low for you, which has caused no end of worry for the other villages in the area. Apparently they’re not used to having heavily armed minotaurs suddenly appearing and turning the place upside down. So much for bloody subtlety, lad, you’ll need to have a word with those things when you get back.”

I tried to hide my mirth. “Will do, Chief. Right now if you can crack on with looking into the laundry peoples company, we’ll get ourselves over to the Canterlot agency hub and pick up some gear. Is my credit still good?”

“It has Celestia’s name to it, boy.” Mitre paused, his voice sounding a little softer than usual. “Look, keep safe out there, I’ll be in touch as soon as I have anything to go on.”

I nodded. “Thanks, Chief, owe you one.”

Nimble stared at the communicator, shaking his head. “Some bit of kit that. I’ve heard of them but never seen one.”

“It does the job,” I said, slipping it back into my pocket. “Up for a trip?”

“Bright Morning Laundry?” he asked. “Should have brought my spare tunics with me, they could do with a spruce up.”

I chucked, adjusting my cloak. “We’ll need to divert to the agency hub here in Canterlot first so we can pick up some gear. I don’t know about you, but this old army tunic’s bloody awful.” I scratched at the thing I’d been wearing and frowned. “I look better in black anyway.”

It didn’t take long to travel to the Canterlot agency hub. It was a fraction of the size of the Manehattan one, but held all the usual items including a set of agency clothing, shades, and a smart new PDW each. Good old ‘sun butt’ had actually come through too, her signature on our requisition chitty the veritable golden ticket for whatever our grubby little hearts desired. Well, almost. The cafeteria food was just as bland and flavour free as I remembered in Manehattan, and the two of us settled down to a bowl of ‘something’ that looked like it would be best employed in fixing bathroom tiles.

“Luna’s arse, Captain, what the hell is this crap?” Nimble’s nose wrinkled in disgust. “It’s bloody well inedible!”

I sniffed, taking a mouthful. “Yeah, but it’s full of your ‘five a day’ and all that. Flavour wasn’t factored in.”

“Five a day?” he huffed bitterly. “Huh! It’ll keep you regular if nothing else.”

I raised my eyebrows and grinned at him. I liked Nimble, he was a good pony. “Any thoughts on the job at hoof?” I took another mouthful of the agency gloop, trying to get it down before my tastebuds thought better of it.

“Yeah, I do.” Nimble put down his spoon. “The chemical smell, the antiseptic...” He made a circling motion with his hoof. “That laundry wagon? If it was the one that brought you here it may have made other collections, maybe even one where they use that antiseptic stuff. The clothes and equipment come in, get cleaned, then go back to the customer.”

“So?” I asked twirling my spoon encouragingly.

“So, we’re looking for whoever has contracts with the cleaning company and may use antiseptic: clinics, doctors surgeries, hospitals, dentists, that sort of thing.” Nimble nodded to himself. “That’s what I reckon anyway.”

I nodded in agreement. “We need to visit the laundry and do some digging of our own. The agency will be doing their own work, but I don’t think it would hurt to do a little sniffing around in the meantime. You up for a trip?”

The corporals ears perked up. “Sure!”

“Let’s see if we can get a pilot and a carriage,” I smiled. “Celestia’s magical chitty should sort that out without too much bother.”

Nimble nodded. “Yeah... Just one thing though, Cap’.”

“Huh? What’s that?”

The corporal glowered at his half consumed bowl of gloop. “Let’s stop off and get something to eat first, eh?”