//------------------------------//
// Back in Action 
// Story: Reformation... It's a Pony Thing 
// by Lets Do This 
//------------------------------//

Several hours later, Tempest came awake. Sharply, all her senses alert.

There had been a familiar knock at her door.

As she watched, the door creaked open. A blue eyeball peered in. It was Grubber.

Seeing her awake, he yanked the door wide and all but fell into the room. Then he wasted precious seconds figuring out how to say something he really didn't want to say.

He settled for all-out panic.

"Tempest! Ya gotta move fast! These guys I came with... they're after Twilight!"

She glared at him. "Duck."

Grubber threw himself flat on the floor. And Tempest left the room in a single standing leap from the bed. She landed in the corridor outside, pirouetting with a single hoof thrust against the opposite wall. Then she came about and dashed away up the corridor.

"Woah, yeah!" Grubber picked himself up, amazed. "She's still got it!" He realized he was suddenly very much alone. "Uh... right behind ya, Tempest!" He hustled out of the room as fast as he could manage.

Tempest slowed as she neared Twilight's door, keeping to the carpeting to muffle her hoofsteps. The door was standing slightly ajar. Quietly, she pushed it open and slipped into the room.

In the moonlight falling through the window she could just make out Twilight's bed, with the slumbering alicorn gently dozing under the covers.

And there were two other shadowy figures in the room. One was carrying a sack. They crept closer to the bed, glancing at each other as if uncertain of their next move. 

Amateurs, Tempest thought grimly. She stalked forward, making use of their footfalls to conceal her own. In only a few strides she was standing right between them. Smirking, she leaned down to put her head even with theirs.

"Going somewhere?"

They froze, turning to look at her. She allowed a slight play of power to sparkle about the stump of her horn, mostly for the implied threat, and because the light would help screw up their dark-adaptation.

"Oh, and by the way..." she added lazily, "that wasn't a question. It was a prediction!"

A leap in the air, and her hooves lashed out to both sides. One of the invaders was booted clear across the room and crashed heavily into the wall. The other was knocked squealing right out from under her helmet and into the wardrobe... straight through its unopened doors.

Tempest let off a crackling electric blast from her horn, stunning the first of them even as he stood up, shaking his head. He collapsed in a smoking heap where he stood.

Out of the corner of her eye she saw the other one thrash her way out of the tangle of cloaks and hangers, and then draw a knife. But the idiot didn't even try to throw it. Instead, she turned toward the bed again, as if determined not to leave empty-hoofed.

Stupid move. Tempest's forehoof stomped the rim of the helmet still spinning on the floor, sending it into the air. A swift leap and spinning kick sent it flying square into the head of the knife-wielding attacker.

CLONG.

The knife clattered to the floor. Its owner joined it with a heavy, permanent-sounding thump.

A gleaming illumination spell lit the room, revealing a very startled-looking Twilight sitting up in her bed. She stared in amazement at the unconscious forms of her would-be attackers, and then at Tempest.

Who snorted in disgust. "You really should think about locking your door at night, Princess. These two were able to just walk right in here." She arched an eyebrow, thoughtfully. "So was I, for that matter."

"Look out, Tempest... behind you!"

Tempest didn't even have to look around.

"It's all right. He's with me. I think."

Grubber had finally wandered cautiously into the room. Surveying the damage, he pumped a fist enthusiastically. "Ohhh, yeah! She's back in action! Would ya give it up, please... for the one... the only... Tempest Shadow! Yeahhhhhh --"

He froze in mid-cheer. And then quailed, as Tempest swung fiercely on him, her ruined horn fizzing dangerously.

"-- uh oh."


- - - - - - - - - - - - - - -


After a hurried message sent via Spike-post, a small army of Royal Guard ponies arrived to take charge of the still-groggy intruders, sitting trussed like turkeys on chairs in the map room. They were a gray-scaled fishman and a heavy-snouted sow, both dressed in battered, nondescript armor that had the grimy, hand-me-down look of everything in Klugetown.

And then the Lieutenant in charge of the guards tried to take in Tempest and Grubber as well.

Twilight quickly stepped in. "Ah... that won't be necessary!"

"We think it's a wise precaution, Your Highness," he replied smoothly. "Just until we have all the facts straight about what happened, and what connection they have with all this. Come along, you two!"

"Ahem!" Twilight said, putting herself forcefully in the way. She pointed a forehoof at her mane. "Do you see this crown? Uh... I mean, the one I would be wearing if it wasn't still safely in its box in my room? I am the Princess of Friendship, and this is my castle!"

"But... Your Highness..."

"And besides," Twilight went on, brightly, "you can't possibly arrest my bodyguard!"

The Lieutenant looked astonished. "Excuse me?"

"I recently appointed Tempest here as my personal bodyguard." Twilight feigned surprise. "You mean, you didn't you get the memo? And I've put her in charge of this investigation, based on her experience with the Southlands. I trust her to get to the bottom of things."

She glanced significantly at Tempest. Who didn't miss a beat.

"I'm not offended, Lieutenant," Tempest said smoothly. "You were just doing your job. To show there's no hard feelings, you can take these two with you, just so you're not leaving empty-hoofed." She waved dismissively at the two captives. "I doubt we'll get much out of them, in any case!"

She rounded on Grubber. "As for this one," she snarled. "He knows something. And I'm going to find out what!"

She glanced back at the guards, smiling sweetly. "Oh, and don't worry... you'll get a full report."

She eyed Grubber angrily again. "I'll make him write it!"

Grubber put up his paws, trying to look small and compliant. "Works for me!"

Eventually the guards left, grumbling but placated. And then Tempest asked if she could use one of the castle's audience chambers to interview Grubber... alone.

Twilight looked about to object. Then she nodded. "All right, Tempest. Let me know what you find out."

In short order, Grubber found himself sitting on a hard chair in a large, empty room. Tempest stalked angrily around him, her horn sizzling.

Grubber didn't need a bright light shining in his eyes to feel nervous.

"I'm waiting," Tempest finally said. "Oh and believe me... this had better be good."

Grubber shivered. He recognized that dangerously soft and languid tone. It usually preceded someone hitting the ground at high speed.

"Okay, so, it's like this... after the Friendship party, I headed south looking for work. Didn't find much, like I said. And then, well, I ran into these guys. They wanted a lookout, someone to wander around, case the neighborhood, report back. They didn't tell me much about the jobs they were pulling. The less I knew, right? And I was okay with that. I mean, the pay wasn't great, but it was easy work."

He sighed. "And then we came here. I started wondering what we were doing, so close to the Princesses again. And then I ran into you as I was walking around. And seein' ya again, Tempest, well, kinda brought it all back. Made me think about what I was doin', ya know?"

"Oh, do let me guess..." Tempest said sarcastically. "You suddenly wanted to turn over a new leaf, right?"

"You kiddin'?" Grubber looked positively offended. "I wanted in! A piece of the action, right? Or at least I wanted to know what they were doin', so I could feel like I was part of something again!"

"Go on..."

"Yeah, right... well, they went off to get some supplies. And I went through their stuff. And I found this..." He reached into his hair and pulled out a scrap of grubby paper. "They're poachers. There's some kinda ivory trade thing going on down south. They had standing orders to bag anything with a horn on it... especially magic users, like unicorns."

Tempest came to a halt, swung about, and lowered her head so she was eye to eye with Grubber. Who swallowed and hurriedly went on.

"... and uh... well, when they headed out this evening, I followed 'em. And when they headed for this castle-tree thing, I had a pretty good idea which pony they were after. And then I remembered you were here, so I hurried to find you."

Tempest blinked at that, momentarily puzzled. "How did you find my room, Grubber? All the doors in this place look the same to me."

He looked skyward, and scratched his ear nervously. "Ehh, old habit. I just looked for the doorknob with the scorch marks around it. You never give up tryin', I'll give ya that!"

Tempest frowned at that, then nodded.

"This ivory trade," she went on, intently, "who's behind it?"

Grubber shrugged. "Search me! I only know what those guys knew. And they didn't know squat!" His shoulders slumped. "I wanted to be a part of something again, Tempest. I just ended being up part of a big nothin'. And I meant what I said, earlier. When you and me were workin' together, that was the best time of my life, best time I'd ever had!" He shrugged hopelessly. "I just wanted somethin' like that again..."

Tempest eyed him silently, her horn still sparking.

Grubber hunched worriedly, grimacing. "So... what happens now? You... gonna fry me one more time, just for old time's sake? Before you kick me out the door?"

Tempest glared at him a moment longer.

Then her horn fell silent. "No. I'm going to do a lot worse. You're going to be my assistant."

His eyes went wide with hope. "Seriously?"

"Yeah. I'm still working on this whole reformation thing myself. You can join in, help out if you like."

"Just like that? You willing to trust me again?"

"It's what ponies do, apparently." She smirked. "That is, if you're okay with working for the good guys for once."

"Hey, you know me! If there's three squares in it, I'm in!" He eyed her stern expression. "Not good enough, huh?" He stood up on the chair and raised his paw. "Ahem. I solemnly swear not to do bad stuff." He looked at her. "Still not doin' it for ya? Okay, how about this: I solemnly swear not to do bad stuff... 'cept when you tell me to do it!"

Tempest finally smiled.

"Better. It'll do for now, anyway." Then she sighed, and looked at the door. "Now we just have to square it with the Princess."

But it turned out that Twilight was totally okay with the arrangement, particularly once she'd heard what Grubber had "volunteered" about the intruders he'd been "following", based on his suspicions about them. "And I'm proud of how you handled this whole thing, Tempest. Particularly the way you leapt into action to protect me. I know I said you were my bodyguard just to get the guards to back down, but I'd be happy to make the post official, if it appeals to you."

Tempest eyed her, amused. "Would you be at all offended, Princess, if I said it's high time you had some kind of defense around here?"

Less straightforward were the other occupants of the castle. Starlight Glimmer had finally wandered downstairs to find out what all the excitement was about. She expressed her feelings succinctly and diplomatically.

"Like, seriously? Do you need me to spell out how many ways I think this is a bad idea? You're going to trust a pony who put you in a cage to be your bodyguard? And I'm saying that as a pony you decided to befriend after I nearly destroyed Equestria's timeline trying to get back at you!"

She glanced at Tempest. "It's a long story."

"Sounds like a good one. You should tell me sometime." Tempest rolled her eyes. "Look, ladies, considering how lax security is around here, if I actually wanted any of you, we wouldn't be having this conversation. So let's take my allegiance as given for now. And I'll be responsible for the groundhog... because he knows if he steps out of line he'll answer to me!"

"Ooh, loud and clear, boss!" The hedgehog gave a sloppy salute.

"Spike," Twilight said, "Grubber here is going to be Tempest's assistant. Would you mind showing him around, helping him get used to the place?"

"Uhm... okay..." Spike eyed Grubber with suspicion.

"Hey, Spike!" Grubber turned to the dragon, and stuck out a paw. "Tempest says you're Numero Uno Chief Assistant First Class around here, so I should take my cue from you. Annnd... I'm kinda new to this whole assisting thing. Can ya gimme a few pointers?" He added a grin like a hacksaw blade.

"Riiiight..." Spike cautiously shook with him. "Well... seeing how everyone's already up, should we run up an early breakfast, Twi?"

"Good idea, Spike," she said. "Tempest and I have to make some plans... for a trip to Klugetown to find out who's behind this horn trade."

"Okay, sure. Uh... you like pancakes, Grubber?"

"Ohhh, I love anything with the word 'cake' in it," he replied, as they wandered out of the room together.

"Well, I'm going back to bed," Starlight said. "Maybe this will all make an ounce of sense in the morning... though somehow I doubt it!"

Twilight was already using her magic to summon charts and books to the table, plus paper and quills for the first of several checklists. Then she suddenly came to a halt, and spoke without turning around.

"Tempest... please don't make me regret this!"

"Right at this moment, Princess, that's the very last thing I'd do."