The noble knight whom the comrades of the intrepid band had helped enter the kingdom had just put his scheme into motion. He stood before the others, resplendent in his shining armor, boldly proclaiming the so-called "crimes" of which the Baron insisted they were guilty. Their hopes were pinned upon the arrival of his compatriot, a senior commander among the knights, that he could bring them to a proper and just magistrate not in the pocket of the evil Baron ...
"Jenny, are you sure you got all that?"
Jenny blinked rapidly and looked towards Jason. She saw him wrapped in the armor she had just pictured in her mind's eye. Her heart skipped a beat as she glanced at the others, but no one else appeared to notice it.
"Yes, I got it," Jenny said.
Jason eyed her for another moment before turning away. Had he started to sense a magic surge? He was a unicorn after all. As the imaginary armor faded away, she vaguely remembered he was reading them their Miranda rights.
"About these so-called crimes," said Eileen, and for a panicked moment, Jenny thought her aunt had only echoed how the Story was unfolding in her head. When it was clear Eileen was speaking with her own voice, Jenny relaxed somewhat. "I can think of any number of ways that a bunch of them are pure bullshit given the circumstance."
Jason rolled his eyes. "You do realize you're giving up your right to be silent if you continue, right?"
Eileen frowned. "You're really going to be anal about that?"
"This can't be just for show," said Jason. "We have to do this by the book. It's the only way the law will be satisfied and allow you to have your day in court. You won't get that if Fuller's people get hold of you."
Jenny looked around. They were standing near the center of the common area. The pony residents of the building had been asked to keep clear, but several sympathizers hung around, whispering to one another with concerned looks. From the way many of them focused more on Jenny than her compatriots, she wondered if they were simply waiting to see her ability again.
"I just hope it's only Fuller's goons we need to worry about," Eileen muttered.
"My partner intends to take you to the Broomfield office for processing, where he knows and trusts all the agents assigned there," said Jason. "Also, once he arrives, we'll invite the police inside. It will become a matter of public record then."
"Just because I'm curious, why can't we do that now?" asked Fire.
"Because my authority as an agent may have already been pulled. If there is any sort of APB out for me, the police may be forced to arrest me. It will be better for my partner to complete this."
"If Fuller hasn't pulled Heller's authority as well," Eileen said in a sour voice.
"Despite Fuller's influence, Anthony knows too many people who would get very suspicious if Fuller attempted that," said Jason.
"What about the Narrative?" Bev asked.
Jenny flinched. "Huh?"
"Does it say anything about Mr. Heller's status?"
"It referred to both of them as knights," said Jenny. "I think that means they're still able to work in their official capacity."
One corner of Jason's mouth rose. "Knights, huh? Never really pictured myself like that, but I'll take what I can get if that ability of yours is even half as useful as others say it is."
Jenny did not respond. Already the Narrative was so tightly linked to her that it was like a book that she didn't want to put down. The temptation grew to begin reading it again. She felt a vague sense of excitement juxtaposed upon her own trepidation and anxiety.
How could she be remotely excited about something like this? This wasn't like one of her fantasies that she could turn off or ignore at will. Yet that excitement was not only there, it was growing.
"At least it explains how you all managed to stay one step ahead of the law," Jason said, though his voice held more admiration than admonishment. "Anthony and I were wondering how you had pulled that off."
"I'd say more about it, but right to remain silent and all that," Eileen said in a stiff voice.
"Yes, and I should clam up as well, or someone can claim entrapment."
"I'd rather we didn't just stand around staring at one another for the duration," Fire said.
"If the pegasi managed to clear the main road, Anthony should be here very soon," said Jason.
Jenny wrapped her arms around herself. The Narrative wanted to surge into her mind again. She glanced at the others, but none of the unicorns among them were looking her way. Had she finally established enough control that they couldn't tell when she started to tap into it? Little solace to her when it made her desire the power all the more.
Why shouldn't she use it? Her friends needed her. She didn't need to be a pony to consider friendship important.
She heard a faint chime, and Jason levitated his cell phone from his saddlebags. "Yeah?"
"I may have a problem," came Anthony's tense voice.
Jenny clenched her teeth. She had to take it now. Something was happening, and she had to know.
"What is it?" Jason said.
"Roadblock. A single car, two agents outside flagging me down."
"Shit, they have to be Fuller's men. Can you get around them?"
"Trying now, but--" Anthony's voice was suddenly interrupted by a squeal of tire and a faint crack. "Under fire! Need both hands for--"
The call went dead.
"The fuck is going on?!" Eileen cried, her voice more one of fear than anger.
Jason looked over to them with what Jenny thought to be remarkable calm. She wished she felt even a fraction of it herself. "We may have to make do and hope I'm enough to complete this arrest. If Tonya is still with Fuller's people, we may have a chance. I think we need to--" He suddenly stopped and turned around. "Now what?"
Jenny had barely noticed the approach of galloping hooves. Now Sheriff Dave came to a stop before them. "Gotta give you folks a heads-up. A bunch of cops are being pulled off this detail."
Jason frowned. "What the hell for?"
"They got a report of a gunman near one of the schools in the area."
Ted suddenly gasped and surged towards him. "Sheriff! Was it the Golden Blossom Schoolhouse?"
"That's the closest one to the report," said Dave. "Going into lockdown as we speak."
Ted paled. "Dear God, that's the school Connie's daughter Christina goes to!"
Jason turned to his cell phone. "I'm contacting the GVPD. They've got to maintain at least a minimal presence here."
Jenny was no longer listening. Everything faded away as she let the Narrative consume her.
The Baron soon proved more wily than any of them could have foreseen. Already he had tried to intercept the noble commander who had fought so valiantly to defy the corrupt Baron, and his encounter with the Baron's men was coming down to the clash of swords.
And now yet another disaster threatened to unravel their carefully woven plans. The local constable, having pledged his support, was being called away to protect the citizens from a brigand jeopardizing the safety of the little ones! Could their luck have been worse?
Or ... was it really bad luck at all?
Was it a ruse? A distraction? A clever setup to draw away the constable's men at a crucial moment? What if there was no brigand at all, but merely a fiction conjured to thwart their chances at escaping from the Baron's clutches?
Yet the threat could be real. An opportunist who saw the constable otherwise occupied and thought to take advantage of the situation to his own ends. Or even someone in the Baron's employ sent to give the appearance of a threat when he was no more than bluster.
Which possibility was true?
Jenny's mouth dropped open. She felt the magic still surging through her, yet the Narrative said no more. She finally clenched her hands into fists and shouted, "Which one is it, goddammit?!"
All other conversation stopped dead, and all eyes stared at her. Jason broke the silence first. "Which one of what?"
"Of all the times it won't tell me!" Jenny cried.
"Tell you what, Jenny?" Bev asked in a voice tinged with desperation. "What did the Narrative say?"
"The gunman at the school might not be real," Jenny said. "It might be just a distraction arranged by Fuller."
"Might be?" said Jason. "You're not sure?"
"No, I'm not."
"But Jenny has turned out right every time!" Bev said. "We've never gone wrong following her Narrative!"
"First of all, it's not 'my' Narrative," Jenny said. "And second of all, even it wouldn't give me a clear answer."
"The point is moot anyway," said Jason. "Even if she was one hundred percent right all the time, the police can't just ignore the report. They have to investigate."
"Could you at least have someone check on the validity of the report?" Fire asked. "Especially when we know Fuller has already had his people fire on a fellow agent!"
Jason sighed. "This is insane. Even loyalty to Fuller shouldn't be making these agents act this way." He raised the phone back to his ear. "Chief Hanner, we have reason to believe that this gunman may be a red herring. How sure are you on this?"
"He's talking to the Greenwood Village chief of police," said Bev at Jenny's confused look.
Jason paused as he listened to the reply. "Yeah, I thought so. All right, keep me posted." He lowered the phone. "The report is credible enough to warrant a strong response, especially considering pony-human tensions of late and that the potential target is an all-pony school."
"So what do we do now?" Eileen asked.
"We don't have much choice." Jason put the phone away. "We have to go with what we've got. Sheriff Dave, please invite the remaining police into the building. I want them to formally witness the completion of this arrest. Also, contact Mayor Morgan's office and give her the signal she's been waiting for to have the press show up at the Broomfield office."
Dave tipped has hat back. "Will do. Be right back."
Jenny's heart raced. All their plans had been upended in a matter of moments. She had no idea how Jason could remain so calm in the face of his partner perhaps having already been shot dead.
Or he could have gotten away and was about to arrive very much like the knight surging into the scene on his faithful steed at the last moment to save the day.
She had to know.
The Baron's forces were closing in, and their hopes for fair treatment quickly vanished like so much dew under the morning sun. The valiant knight who could be their salvation was about to gain the upper hand thanks to help he did not expect, but would he vanquish his foes in time?
The intrepid band had to assume he would not. That left it up to them to make their final stand. Who would save them from a dire fate? Would the junior knight rise to the challenge and vanquish their foes with his chivalry and skill at the sword, or was the Countess' sharp tongue still as potent a weapon as it had been at their last stand?
Or would they be forced to combine their talents to save the day?
Jenny clenched her teeth and muttered in a low voice, "Don't force me to make that choice."
Anthony had been about to swing down a side street when the first shot came. When he yanked the wheel sharply to the left, the back of the car threatened to fishtail, and he found it more expedient to drop the cell phone to free up both hands for the steering wheel.
Fortunately, the agents had decided not to use lethal force yet. While the whole "shooting the tires" was more Hollywood than normal procedure, it was sometimes attempted in desperate situations.
Anthony regained control of the car, but not before smacking the rear against a lamppost and shattering the right rear brake lights. He was desperate not to continue this chase for too long, as now he was on streets not designated by ponies for motor vehicles. At any moment, asphalt could give way to a tilled field. At least it was post-harvest, so he had less chance of running down any ponies.
Almost to the moment of his thought, the car bounced violently as he shot off smooth asphalt and onto rough earth. Around him rose a mix of old abandoned human homes and new pony domiciles. He was forced to slow down, both to prevent his car from flying apart and to avoid hitting any ponies.
He heard glass crack behind him and glanced at the rear view mirror. The rear windshield now sported a bullet hole. From the position, he couldn't quite tell if it had been targeted at him or the agents in pursuit had trouble aiming with their car bouncing around. They did not appear to be as concerned about their speed; they were gaining at an alarming rate, which meant they may be considering ramming his car to run it off the road.
As Anthony left the domiciles behind, he tried to reconcile where he was with where he needed to be. He very nearly jerked the wheel to the side in shock when a pegasus suddenly flew before his windshield, tail turned towards him. It took him a few seconds to realize the stallion was flying to keep pace with his car.
The pegasus suddenly jerked a fore-hoof to the left and started to bank. Anthony turned along with him, trusting the pony to be his navigator. He heard a few faint cracks as more bullets whizzed by the car, but now he suspected they were aimed at the pegasus.
The pegasus flew lower to minimize his exposure even as he now pointed right and started to pull ahead. Anthony took this as a sign he could accelerate. He stomped on the gas just as the ground became more level, his tires kicking up dust behind him. He glanced to the right and saw cut stalks of grain, while an apartment building rose to the left. They were skimming the edge of a field that likely had once been anything from a parking lot to an empty, unsold plot of land.
He was startled when the wheels bumped over something, and the sound of the tires changed, like he was driving over wood rather than dirt. Something under his vehicle glowed. It didn't last long, and he was back on packed earth again.
He caught movement in his rear view. A bunch of wooden boards that had been laid on the ground now flew into the air, glowing with unicorn magic. The pursuing car abruptly pitched down and stopped dead, wet mud splashing up in front of it. More mud splattered to the sides as the front wheels of the car spun uselessly in the muck.
Anthony had to grin. Had ponies not been involved, his next words would have been "I can't believe that worked."
The pegasus was still with him. He glanced behind him, grinned, and pumped a fore-hoof in the air. He then gave Anthony a "follow me" gesture and continued on.
Anthony thought about grabbing the cell phone to give Jason a heads up, but he had no idea if those had been the only agents sent after him. Never had he suspected that Fuller would have someone actually use lethal force to stop him. It made one thing very clear: no matter what, this had to end. He refused to let this corruption continue in an organization he had come to both respect and love.
Twilight's packing sat half-finished on her bed in her quarters in MIDROC, the silence broken only by the clop of her hooves as she paced back and forth and the faint click of Spike's claws as he fidgeted. He finally broke the silence when he said, "Um, anything I can do to help?"
"Unless you can somehow divine what's going on hundreds of miles away, no." Twilight said in a flat voice.
"Do you want me to make you some tea?" Spike asked. "I brought your favorite."
"Thank you, but no, Spike."
"I guess there's no way you can find out what's going on, huh?"
Twilight sighed. "I wish I could. I wish I could be there to help, but I can't! We've already risked too much interference as it is."
"Are you really going to have to leave here?" Spike asked.
Twilight stopped pacing and turned towards him. "I don't want to, but I'll eventually have to. I'm hoping it won't matter, but I can't shake this bad feeling that things are already going wrong."
Spike considered. "Maybe Princess Luna--"
"Don't even go there," Twilight said in a low voice. "She's already interfered enough. My meeting with her this morning will be the last one we'll have on the subject until I see that Jenny and Bev are safe. Which reminds me, I should--"
She was interrupted by an urgent knock at the door. Twilight sighed and turned around. "Yes?"
The door glowed and opened, admitting Goldy and Sunny. Sunny immediately took flight and soared over Goldy's head, hovering before Twilight. "I'm sorry, I'm just too worried about--"
"Wait!" Goldy said. "Not until we have more privacy."
Twilight's horn was already glowing. "I was just about to cast a privacy shield anyway, one moment."
A glittering sphere materialized around them, though it was wider than usual and surged with more powerful magic than the two had witnessed before. Goldy was the first to notice it. "Interesting variation of the spell, Princess."
"Suffice it to say, I have a guest arriving shortly I want to shield from notice." Twilight said. "So you need to make this quick."
Sunny landed before Twilight. "I wanted to know if you heard any word. I tried staying in our room, but I'm too worried."
"I share your worry, Sunny," Twilight said in a somber voice. "But I haven't heard anything, either."
"Is there anypony you can contact?"
"Even if there were, I couldn't risk it. It's important we don't give away anything about what we know."
Sunny's eyes glistened. "I just don't want to see my little sister hurt," she said in a quavering voice.
Before Twilight could reply, the room was illuminated in a flash of teleportation magic, and Luna appeared before them within the shield. "My apologies for being late, Twilight, I ... um ..." Luna trailed off and glanced at Sunny and Goldy. "I did not realize you had company. Shall I come back later?"
"Oh, my," Sunny murmured as she stared in astonishment.
Goldy uttered a small gasp. "Heavens, never in all my wildest dreams had I thought I would ever meet one of the Equestrian Diarchy in person. You've honored me more than you can ever know."
"Ah, yes," said Luna in a slightly awkward tone. "I am pleased to make your acquaintance, um ..."
"Golden Sunshine," said Goldy in a reverent voice. "And you likely already know my cohort."
Luna nodded and smiled as she turned to the young pegasus. "Yes, I do. Well met, Sunrise Storm. It's nice to finally meet you in person despite the circumstances."
Sunny managed a smile, her wings quivering slightly despite the kindness of Luna's gaze. Twilight could only imagine what Sunny was thinking about the magic she was sensing from Luna. Since alicorns were supposed to have elements of all the pony tribes in their makeup, and Sunny was so perfectly attuned to her pegasus magic, she likely could feel the full strength of Luna's aura.
"We were just discussing matters in Greenwood Village," said Twilight.
Luna turned to her. "I take it there is no word yet?"
"Not yet. We're worried, but there's not much we can do."
"Are you sure you do not wish me to check? I have a few sufficiently covert locations memorized from Google street view that I could use to ... um ..."
Twilight shook her head. "No, that would only risk jeopardizing their plans, and I don't want to take even the slightest chance you'll be seen or--" She cut herself off when she looked at her fellow alicorn. "Luna?"
Luna had started looking around with purpose, her body tensing.
"Um, is something wrong?" Sunny asked in a tentative voice.
Luna suddenly frowned and flared her wings, her eyes blazing.
"What is it?" Twilight demanded.
"Ryan," Luna murmured. "He's here."
Twilight gasped.
"Not the human you told me about who caused all the trouble at Village Center?!" Sunny cried.
"Luna, y-you mean in the vicinity?" Twilight said. "Like near the building?"
"No, Twilight, I mean very close by," said Luna. "He's inside this facility." She turned and took a step towards the glittering energy of Twilight's spell. "I could pinpoint his location if you would but lower or weaken this spell."
"No!" Twilight's horn flashed. She popped out of existence for a split second, popping back in front of Luna and placing a fore-hoof on her chest. "We can't risk it! Fuller's crystal ponies will pick up on it in an instant!"
"Rrgh!" Luna growled, stomping a hoof. "We have a chance to end this here and now. He cannot be allowed to abuse his powers any further."
"I know how you feel about this, but we have to wait."
"And what if they fail in Greenwood Village and are incarcerated by Fuller's agents?" Luna countered. "They will surely be brought here. Do you really want them subjected to Ryan's mind magic?"
Twilight heard a soft whimper and glanced at Sunny, who looked back with silently pleading and glistening eyes.
"For that can be the only reason Ryan has been brought here!" Luna thundered. "To help pacify Fuller's hostages by keeping them in a perpetual state of fear, until they'll do anything Fuller wants of them just to feel safe!"
Twilight once feared what would happen were Celestia ever to become truly and uncontrollably angry. Since then, after learning more about the dream realm than she had ever wanted to know, she realized an angry Luna could be far more dangerous even without her Nightmare Moon persona.
At the same time, Twilight could not let it intimidate her. She had not let Celestia's power intimidate her when she forced her former mentor to reveal her secret cover-up of Sunset's existence, and she couldn't let it happen now.
She drew in a deep breath and pushed Luna back. "You're not telling me anything I don't already know, Luna. Let me make this very simple: you may be my ruler when we're in Equestria, but on this side of the portal in matters concerning Earth, I'm in charge, not you. We'll do only what I say we will do. Do I make myself clear?"
Luna let out a long sigh through her nose and slowly folded her wings. "You do," she said in a calmer but still tense voice. "My sincerest apologies to you, Twilight Sparkle. I sometimes still drop into the same mode I did with the night ponies when training them how not to use their powers."
"I know this is a hot-button topic for you," Twilight continued in a softer voice. "I promise you." She turned briefly to Sunny. "And you as well, Sunny. I will not allow Ryan to use his power on anyone else if I can do anything to stop it, but we must let matters run their course first."
Sunny let out a heartfelt sigh and nodded. Goldy stepped close and draped a fore-leg around her barrel.
"Would it be remiss of me to ask that I stay until we hear word?" Luna asked.
"Not at all," said Twilight. "I can maintain this spell indefinitely. Hopefully matters will be coming to head sooner rather than later so the extended existence of this spell is not questioned."
Tonya glanced out the window, tinted to hide her presence in the back seat of Handel's car. At first she thought she had made a mistake, that she had either miscounted the cars, or that one more was hidden from her behind the bulkier vans. Yet now the vehicles were going around a curve, and she could look back and see all of them.
"All right, what's up with this?" Tonya demanded.
"I'm sorry, ma'am?" Handel asked.
"I count one fewer car than we started with. What happened?"
"We picked up on the police band that there was a report of a gunman near an elementary school in the vicinity," said Handel. "Agent Danton thought it would be a good idea to provide some support."
Tonya frowned. "Without informing me."
"With all due respect, we don't need your consent to handle Bureau business."
"No, but I'm an inherent part of this operation, and anything you do that could jeopardize it, I need to know about."
"We determined that the loss of two more agents--"
"On top of a loss of two from the day before!"
"--would not impact this operation," Handel said in a rising tone. "We've followed established procedures concerning our allocation of agents. If you have an issue, you're welcome to file a grievance with the Bureau upon the conclusion of this operation."
Tonya could say that she had more than just one "grievance" she could "file." Despite all their claims, there was no way any of this could remotely be correct procedure. The only reason they felt they could get away with it was because she was not formally a member of the Bureau. She ground her teeth at the idea that they were specifically taking advantage of her lack of jurisdiction over them.
She glanced out the window. "At least we're almost there. I can see a police perimeter around the building. At least that can compensate for our losses."
Tonya had hoped for a reaction from Handel, as she was very much aware of the lack of any communication or coordination with local law enforcement. Yet he remained silent, keeping his attention focused on the approach to the building. The number pf police officers was far less than she had hoped, likely due to the report of the gunman.
Tonya took a deep breath and let it go as a slow sigh. If things had gone according to plan, Heller would have beat them there and have already taken them away, or was in the process of taking them out another exit to avoid a run-in with this group.
As Handel pulled up, Tonya saw an earth pony stallion with a sheriff's badge talking to some of the police officers outside the building. He then gestured before turning back towards the entrance, the police preparing to follow.
No sooner had the car come to a stop when Handel jumped out. As Tonya's hooves touched the pavement, several other FBI cars came to a halt with a brief screech of tire, disgorging more agents. They ran up to the police, brandishing their badges despite the huge letters "FBI" boldly imprinted on the front and backs of their jackets.
From one of the other cars, Danton was the first to reach the officers. "This is a federal operation! Stand back and clear out."
Tonya frowned. "Wait, what?"
"We were about to assist in that operation," said one of the officers.
"We appreciate it, but this is a very sensitive matter," said Danton. "We'll take it from here. Head out now."
"Hold on there, sir," said the pony sheriff. "Some of you boys are already handling this situation. Everything's under control, and they're coming quietly."
"We're the only ones authorized to handle this operation," said Danton. "Anyone else who claims to have jurisdiction is not operating in an authorized capacity." He looked towards the lingering cops. "What did I just tell you? Clear out! Now!"
Tonya galloped towards them.
"Sir, these people have as much right to be here as you do," said the sheriff.
"This is federal jurisdiction, and that trumps local law enforcement," Danton said. "Final warning: clear out now, or be subject to arrest for interfering with a federal agent in the performance of his duty."
Tonya got within about fifty feet when Handel stepped in her path. When she tried to go around him, another agent flanked him and stopped her. "What the hell are--?!"
"Ms. Jarris, I'm going to tell you for the last time," Handel said in a low and deadly voice. "You will stop interfering in Bureau procedure."
Tonya jabbed a hoof towards the departing officers. "And you call being outright antagonistic towards local law enforcement to be part of normal procedure?"
"That is not your concern, ma'am. Your sole concern is supporting this operation. Do I make myself clear?"
Tonya narrowed her eyes. "As crystal."
"Thank you. Now, we understand that the rogue agent with the targets is a unicorn. Please make sure your cohorts are aware of this as well."
She glanced to the side, where Sun and Verdant were looking on with a combination of concern and confusion.
"Yes, I'll let them know," Tonya said in a low voice.
"Thank you. Now, please stand by until we have secured the perimeter."
Handel and the other agent headed away, the latter glancing over his shoulder as if to ensure that Tonya would do as she was told.
Tonya glanced past him. The sheriff had stepped off to the side and had a fore-hoof lifted to his face. He appeared to be speaking, and Tonya assumed he had a cell phone strapped to his leg. He glanced over his shoulder when an FBI agent started to approach him. He interrupted his call to trot away.
Tonya turned away and headed towards her team.
"Is something wrong, ma'am?" asked Sun as she approached.
"I want to make something very clear," Tonya said in a hushed voice. "There's much more going on here than you know that I don't have time to explain. You're to follow my lead."
"Of course."
"And only my lead," Tonya continued. "Not the FBI. Not the police. Only me."
Sun's pupils shrank slightly and he exchanged a worried look with Verdant. "Ma'am, with all due respect, the regulations state that we're pledged to follow the orders of--"
"Yes, I know, but the regulations also account for your safety, and that trumps everything else."
"Ma'am, are you afraid for our safety?" Verdant asked in a concerned voice.
"Yes," Tonya said. "Do I have your support? Will you follow my lead?"
Sun lifted his head high. "Ma'am, if I may say so, you're very well known and highly respected among other ponies in the FCPA. I was excited at the prospect of working with you. Say jump, and I'll ask how high."
"Same here, ma'am," said Verdant. "We'll obey whatever orders you give us."
Tonya nodded and relaxed somewhat, even though it was clear that Jason's plan was failing. At least she could prevent Fuller's people from doing any collateral damage.
What was not at all clear to her was how she could stop Miss Tanner and Ms. Kelton from winding up being spirited off somewhere. All she knew was that something had to be done. All her instincts as a cop demanded it.
The morning was quickly turning into Connie's worst nightmare.
When word had come down that her daughter's school was going into lockdown, all her worst fears had become crystallized in that one phone call from the GVPD. She had to remind herself that she was mayor first and mother second. She had too many people relying on her to remain at her post and keep the citizens calm. She didn't want to believe that Fuller's organization had become so corrupt that they would stoop to threatening children.
Then again, if Fuller's attitudes were anything like what she had been told, he likely considered them "only" pony children.
Connie emerged from her office for another cup of coffee. Her worry distracted her, and she spilled some cream on the counter. She cursed under her breath as she grabbed a paper towel to clean it up. She flinched slightly when a hand touched her shoulder.
"Sorry, I didn't mean to startle you," said Ellen.
Connie let out a windy sigh and forced a small smile. "It's fine, I just had my mind on other things."
"And I can guess what one of those is."
Connie shook her head. "This city is more than just my daughter, Ellen."
"You don't really feel that way."
"No, I don't," Connie admitted in a lower voice. "But it's what people have to believe if I'm to be at all effective in this crisis."
Ellen nodded. "Does Frank know yet?"
"I sent him a text, yes," said Connie. "He's left the office and is heading back home so he can be ready to pick up Christina when this is over." She took a sip of her coffee and sighed. "Somehow this feels worse than the ETS crisis, and even that involved my daughter."
"Yes, but at least Chrissie was right there where you could see her," said Ellen. "You knew she was safe."
Connie simply accepted the statement and didn't try to correct her friend. They could say Christina had been "safe" only from the benefit of hindsight. At the time, all Frank and Connie knew was that their daughter was transforming into something strange right before their eyes. Their own transformations had not gone far enough for them to accept it as "normal."
"I have to believe she'll be safe now," said Connie. "The GVPD is on its way there now. They didn't like having to pull officers from the FBI operation, but--"
Connie interrupted herself when her cell phone chimed. She took it out and saw from the caller ID that it was Sheriff Dave. "I better take this, Ellen," said Connie before she rushed back towards her office. "Connie here, what's going on?"
"Had to pass the word to you, ma'am," Dave drawled. "Things are going to hell in a hand-basket here."
Connie's blood ran cold as she set her coffee down. "What happened?"
"Fuller's agents showed up sooner than expected, and they're clearing all the cops out of the area."
Connie fell heavily into her chair. "Can they do that?"
"They claim they can, and no one here's got authorization to tell them otherwise."
Connie frowned. "Where's Chief Hanner?"
"Likely coordinating the report of the gunman near the school," said Dave.
"And I can't pull him off that."
"Well, that's just it, ma'am. We got reason to believe we're being sold a fake bill of goods."
"Come again?"
"That gunman may be made up, something to distract us."
Connie's heart raced. "How sure of this are you?"
"I admit, it's only a possibility, but -- ah, hang on, I'll have to get back to you in a minute."
Connie was about to protest when the line went dead. She frowned as she set the phone down. "Ellen!"
In seconds, Ellen was at the door. "Yes?"
"Get police chief Hanner on the line," Connie said. "I want to know if he can get down to that FBI operation."
"In person, you mean?"
"Yes. I'll explain why later, I just need him moving now."
"Got it!" Ellen said before she rushed off.
When her phone rang again, she snatched it up. "Yes, I'm here."
"Sorry, ma'am," Dave said. "FBI agent ran me off."
"Dave, is Heller there?" Connie asked.
"Hasn't shown up yet, and the agents are getting ready to head inside. I don't know what's going on in there now as I'm persona non grata along with the police."
Connie gripped her phone tighter as Ellen appeared at the door and said, "Connie, Chief Hanner doesn't want to leave his office. He's too concerned about the report of the gunman."
"Fine." Connie stood. "I'll go."
Ellen's eyes widened. "What?"
"Ma'am, if I'm interpreting the conversation I'm hearing there, I don't think that's a good idea," said Dave.
"Fuller is obviously trying to keep as few witnesses around as possible," said Connie. "Despite what my political opponents say about me, even they admit I'm someone of integrity. If I can even get a glimpse of what's going on, it may make them think twice about doing anything other than due process."
What she had not mentioned was that she and Anthony had come up with contingency plans were they not able to follow through on Jason's original plan. She was simply executing on one of those now.
Ellen stepped up to Connie. "Think about what you're doing. If Fuller really is as unscrupulous as Heller and Madsen made him out to be, he might not respect your authority."
Connie considered before she said into the phone, "Did you hear Ellen just now, Sheriff?"
"I did," said Dave. "And I think she's right."
Connie stepped out from behind his desk. She had another idea but didn't want to mention it over the phone. "Can you remain a discreet distance away from the building for now?"
"I intend to whether you order it or not," said Dave. "I refuse to let you do this without some protection."
"Thank you. I'll be in the pony sector shortly." She hung up and headed towards the door.
Ellen stood before her. "Connie, please ..."
"You're not going to convince me otherwise," Connie said.
"I know, just ... be careful, okay?"
Connie's eyes glistened. She hugged Ellen briefly and was about to head out when she glanced at the book. She picked it up and handed it to Ellen. "Take care of this book, Ellen. Do not let it out of your sight."
Ellen nodded as she took the book. "I'll keep it safe. Now, you be safe, okay?"
Connie nodded, gave her a small smile, and rushed out.
Jenny could not get her heart to stop racing. Even upon hearing Agent Heller's voice over Jason's phone and knowing he was alive and well and still on his way did nothing to soothe her. She took another quick, deep breath, but she still felt winded as if she had just run a mile. The Narrative still lingered around her, its power still throbbing, that same odd and unidentifiable sensation she had detected earlier teasing her, almost daring her to discover what it was.
"If I'm reading where I am correctly, I should be there in another five minutes," came Anthony's voice.
"I'm not sure we have that much time," said Jason as he slowly paced back and forth with the phone levitated before him. "Sheriff Dave was supposed to be right back with the cops, and he's been gone far too long."
"Any way to find out what's going on outside?"
Fire stepped forward. "I can do it! That is, if me being technically under arrest allowed me to--"
"Just do it!" Jason said, and Fire galloped away.
Jenny wrapped her arms around herself. The Narrative almost demanded to be used. Or was that just her own fear talking? Not so much fear of what would happen as fear of the unknown.
Suddenly it made perfect sense why she vacillated between wanting nothing to do with the Narrative and wanting to embrace it fully. It represented an escape from her worst fear, fear of the unknown. Ever since ETS, she couldn't count on anything being the same from day to day, and now she was presented with a means by which she never had to experience that fear again.
"I've sent someone to check on things," Jason said. "Otherwise, we're flying blind here."
Jenny was well aware of the furtive glances towards her. They all wanted her to use it, to tell them what was going on and how they could stop it. If this hadn't come with additional powers that made her afraid she would run afoul of some secret overlords ...
Jenny let out a ragged sigh and seized the power again.
Hopes were becoming dim. The Baron's minions stood at the gates, sending away the constable's men with claims of noble authority which trumped theirs. The knight commander, having escaped those sent to stop him, would not get there in time. That left it up to the Countess and the junior knight to fend off the Baron's forces.
Yet would they be able to pull off as spectacular a victory as they had before? These were no weak-willed men; the Baron had made sure not to repeat that mistake. They would be swayed only by deeds and not words, and the only deeds they knew were those of the sword.
Meanwhile, the trusted Mayor of that burg, incensed that the Baron would threaten -- even if by false account -- the life of her daughter, is boldly stepping into the fray herself! Even now, her carriage careens towards the keep where the intrepid band has sought safety, a safety that was quickly evaporating.
Jenny saw both Wildy and Jason staring at her. Several other unicorn onlookers were whispering excitedly to their friends and pointing at her.
Jason stepped forward. "If you do have an insight for us, please let us know."
"Fuller's people are here and about to come inside," Jenny said in a quavering voice.
"Shit," Eileen muttered.
"I knew this was a bad idea from the start!" Wildy cried.
"And Connie is on her way," Jenny continued. "Maybe if we could stall somehow until she gets here."
"I doubt she'll have much of an impact unless we somehow talk down Fuller's agents," said Jason. "And I don't think that's going to happen anytime soon."
"But it can!" Wildy cried, jabbing a fore-hoof towards Jenny. "She can make it happen!"
Already a scenario was starting to form in Jenny's head. All she had to do was fully open herself to the Narrative's power. Even just considering it, Jason was once again wrapped in knightly armor, Eileen stood tall and confident in her formal dress, and Bev was bedraggled in her threadbare peasant clothing.
"I'm not telling you this again," Eileen said. "If she's going to use her power, it will be because she wants to, not you."
And yet in the way Eileen had shaped her words, Jenny could tell that even her own aunt was desperate for Jenny to use her ability. This was exactly the fear she had expressed to Psychic Calm, that her friends would be in trouble and looking to her to get them out of it.
"With all due respect to Jenny's abilities, I don't want to rely on magic I barely understand to solve the problem," said Jason.
As he spoke, galloping hooves approached them. Fire appeared, a pained look on his face. "The FBI is right outside! They'll be in here any moment, and I didn't see any cops with them!"
"They've been sent away," Jenny said in a weak voice.
"We have to stop them somehow!" Wildy cried.
"Let us help!" came a cry from one of the lingering spectators. A unicorn rushed forward. "We can help you fend them off."
"Yes, let us help you, please!" came a cry from an earth pony.
"We'll even become part of Jenny's scene if she wants us to!" cried a third.
"Yes, please, Jenny, find a role for us, we want to help."
"So do I!"
"Me, too!"
"That's enough!" Jason called out. "I should've cleared all of you out of here a long time ago. I want you all to head back to your apartments and stay there until someone gives you the all clear."
As protests rang through the hall, Fire stepped over to Jenny and whispered, "I can only guess how hard this is on you, considering, well, you know."
Jenny said not a word, as her emotions were running too high and too fast for her to come up with anything coherent to say.
"You have to decide for yourself whether to use your power or not," Fire continued in a normal voice. "But if you do, I hereby formally give you my consent."
Wildy rushed up, having overheard. "So do I! We all do!"
"Stop speaking for everyone else," Eileen admonished, but her own conviction was weak. "But, uh, yeah, I do, too, if it comes down to that."
Jason turned towards them. "You all need to stop thinking along these lines right now. Even if I did trust this magic, it won't work, not when they have Tonya with them."
"You told us she was on our side!" Wildy cried.
"She's doing as much as she can without exposing herself. She can't openly disobey--"
Wildy frowned. "So you're saying she's as much of a traitor as the rest of the crystal ponies. Why did you even trust her in the first place?"
"If I hadn't trusted her, we wouldn't have even gotten this far."
"Unless she was just seeing to it that we all stayed put until her fed overlords moved in."
Bev turned to Jenny. "Did the Narrative say anything about Tonya?"
"Not a word," said Jenny. "It's like she doesn't even exist to it anymore."
"I may not know a lot about this power of yours, but I'd say that could mean it knows it can't hold up against her," said Jason.
Jenny was not getting that sense at all, but she had no other explanation. Before she could reply, she was startled by a commotion just outside the hall.
"This is it, I have to go," Jason said into his phone. "Fuller's people are here."
"What are you going to do?" Anthony asked.
Jason frowned. "What else can I do? I'll improvise." He terminated the call and put the cell phone back in his saddlebags.
The Baron's men were almost there. The noble knight stood alone against them. He had no plan and was armed with only the sword bestowed upon him with his knighthood. If the battle was to be won -- if even there was a battle to be had -- it could not be fought with weapons nor with words.
Yet they had one thing that the Baron's men did not: the power of the arcane.
That's right! Not only was the noble knight a virtuous defender of the innocent, he was also one of those strange and exotic tribes who commanded the art of the spell.
Jenny ground her teeth. The Narrative had almost sprung up unbidden in her mind, as if its own excitement was becoming too much for it to wait to be summoned. As much as she wanted to push it away, she felt compelled by her own burning curiosity to continue.
The noble knight thought his skills wanting, but had he not only just the night before cast a far more powerful spell than he ever had before? Had he not earned praise from the great magess who had taught him from a distance? How did he get such power?
From his heart. His virtue. His loyalty to his knightly code. Combined with the sheer willpower and determination poured into the woman that was the Countess, the knight could channel it all into a power that could possibly stop the Baron's men cold!
"I-I can't do that," Jenny said in a weak voice.
"Can't do what?" Bev asked.
Jenny barely heard her, for the Narrative spoke again.
It is the only way the knight could save the day.
Everyone around her was dressed in the trappings of her fantasy, even down to the spectators who still milled about despite being told to leave. Now they were slowly advancing, as if somehow drawn to them.
Or Jenny was drawing them in with the Narrative.
Jason suddenly stepped between the group and the doors to the hall. "Everyone stay behind me. I may have an idea."
Jenny swallowed hard. "No, you don't, you're just--"
Bold moves and epic actions are what make any story great, and there would be no greater story to date than how the intrepid band stood up against the evil Baron and brought all his carefully crafted plans crashing down.
All it would take would be a little courage.
Jenny's eyes widened. Had that been directed at her? Was she letting her fear over using this power sway her judgment? Was she really the only thing standing between them and salvation?
Everything around her seemed to sparkle. She knew the magic was on the ragged edge of fully manifesting around her. Already Wildy was snapping her gaze about, as if the fantastic garb was just barely in the grasp of her senses, like an optical illusion appearing at the corner of one's vision only to disappear when examined directly.
Jenny forced herself to take a deep breath. This was no surge; the Narrative simply responded to her every thought and whim, like a car racing to top speed with only light touch to the pedal.
Will the intrepid band stand up to the Baron once and for all?
Jenny let out her breath with a single syllable, "No."
The doors to the hall burst open. Men and women wearing the letters "FBI" boldly on their jackets raced into the room. They leveled their guns at them, one in the lead shouting "FREEZE!"
Jenny's breath caught in her throat. For a moment, all she saw was that gun pointed directly at her.
Her conviction faltered, and it became a sword.
Her Narrative power exploded into the real world.
"Stand down, foul miscreants!" shouted Sir Danton as he leveled his sword at the wayward beings before him. "We have you now. There will be no escaping the Baron's righteous justice!"
"You shall not need to trouble yourself, noble knight," said the beset but still honorable Sir Madsen as he stood resplendent in his armor, still polished to a glowing sheen despite the trials he had suffered. "For I have taken upon myself to secure them in your stead. It is I who will be bringing them before our lord."
"You are considered by the Baron to be the worst of the lot," Sir Danton sneered. "You are as much of a brigand as the rest. Throw down your sword, you have no power here!"
"And by whose authority do you revoke my knighthood?" Sir Madsen scoffed. "The Baron?"
"It is within his right to--"
"To carry out a task that by its very nature is foul and corrupt?" Sir Madsen narrowed his eyes. "As is your precious Baron!"
"He is not my Baron, he rules over us all."
"He cannot have any more power than that which we choose to bestow, as his power hinges on our obedience. Blind obedience, it appears!"
Tonya finally blinked rapidly and staggered back a step. The power had come over her fast and hard, like a tidal wave crashing against the shore. Only her crystal pony nature and instinct had prevented her from becoming just another player in this forced scene. Despite having channeled enough of Jenny's power to preserve her free will, she could still see everyone dressed as if they were attending a renaissance fair; uniforms were still knightly armor and guns were still swords.
"You can stop your speech right now," sneered Sir Danton. "You have nowhere near the wit of the Countess, nor will we be swayed by mere words. It is time you and the rest of you mongrels come to heel."
"Good God, this dialog," Tonya groaned. She turned to her cohorts, only to find them staring as if mesmerized by the scene. She gave each of them a light kick in a foreleg. "Snap out of it!"
The two ponies blinked rapidly and let out a ragged sigh. "Sorry, ma'am," said Sun.
"My God, is that really coming from a single person?" Verdant said in astonishment. "And a human no less??"
"And what if I choose not to believe that my authority has been revoked?" Sir Madsen said as the scene continued even as the crystal ponies spoke. "An authority that is not for the Baron to either grant or revoke! He does not have as much power as you apparently have deluded yourselves into believing."
"Can it," said Tonya to her cohorts. "I need you both focused and grounded in reality."
"This almost seems like too much power to get a handle on, ma'am," said Sun. "Do we need backup?"
"Backup won't get here in time. It's us or nothing."
"I've had enough of this useless banter," Sir Danton proclaimed. "You will all come quietly now. We are not afraid to use force. You will not be talking your way out of this one."
Tonya looked towards Jenny. While she was also dressed to fit in with the others, she stood rigid and rock-still, her eyes fixed and staring at nothing in particular. All the magic surging through the air was centered around that single girl.
"At least a five," Tonya murmured. "All right, let me get a feel for this first. Stand by."
Sir Madsen stepped back. "My words are obviously falling upon deaf ears. If it is indeed deeds you prefer over speech, then that it what you will have."
"I warn you, do not oppose us with force!" Sir Danton said as his fellow knights closed in, brandishing their swords. "You and the brigands you chose to align yourself with will regret it!"
Tonya knew that by stopping Jenny's magic, she was foiling what was likely an attempt to avoid being taken by Fuller's agents. Yet if she allowed it to continue, someone could become seriously hurt or even killed. She had to hope that there was some way of stalling until Heller finally showed up.
If he was going to show up. She could only assume that the reason more agents had been called away from the operation was to intercept him. She sorely wished Fuller had given her some sort of sign earlier that he had not been everything he seemed.
Tonya found the central flow of Jenny's power and tried to seize it.
The full fury of Jenny's magic poured into her, and it felt like thousands of needles pricking her from all sides. Her fur and hair blazed as her body went full crystal, turning her partially translucent and dazzling the floor, walls, and ceiling with iridescent sparkles of light.
She was absorbing everything she could with her passive ability, and it had barely made a dent.
"We will not use force," said Sir Madsen. "There is more than wielding a mere sword to winning a fight. There is, for instance ... a shield!"
A large, glowing shield shimmering into dramatic existence before the knight and the ones whom he would protect, his horn blazing in full magic glory as he held it between the Baron's men and his cohorts.
While Sir Danton looked on in astonishment, his cohort Sir Handel rushed to the fore, teeth bared like a madman, his sword raised. He brought it crashing down upon the conjured defense, only to see it bounce off. Encouraged by this bold but rash action, his fellow knights also converged, yet their swords were as impotent as Sir Handel's.
Tonya's heart raced. She could just barely sense the underlying reality upon which the invented fantasy had been overlaid, and she had to assume that those sword blows were really bullets. If they were really being deflected by a magic shield, there was no telling what direction the ricochets were going. She had to stop this now.
"Light up!" Tonya shouted to her cohorts.
Both ponies immediately burst into crystal radiance as Jenny's magic surged into them, brilliantly illuminating the room, but drawing no more attention than they had before.
"Back off, fellow knights!" Sir Danton said with a frustrated growl. While most of the knights obeyed, his cohort Sir Handel simply applied his sword with renewed vigor after a brief pause, sparks flying where cold steel met hard magic.
"There is no point to this, you disloyal cur!" Sir Danton cried. "Though I should have known you would resort to such abominations, having turned your back on what it means to be normal."
"If being normal means throwing my scruples under the carriage wheels, then abnormal shall I be!" Sir Madsen proclaimed.
"There is no way such a simpleton at magic can keep this up for long."
"I can maintain it long enough it would seem!"
"Hah! Even you have no idea how you are managing it!"
Sun looked on with astonishment before turning to Tonya. "Ma'am, are we even having any effect?"
"I've absorbed all the magic I can, and I can still sense more!" Verdant cried.
Tonya looked over to Jenny. She was trembling, as if it was taking all her effort now to maintain the scene. "Yes, we're having an effect, we just need to ramp it up. Stand back a bit, I'm going to be throwing off a lot of waste energy and don't want you two caught up in it. But don't let up for a moment!"
"We won't!" Sun called out as he and Verdant backed away.
Tonya narrowed her eyes, and she felt the rush of power flowing through her being as she called on her special talent. She looked towards the scene and realized she had another problem. While there may indeed be bullets bouncing about that might hit someone, if that shield was part of the scene and disappeared along with Jenny's power, someone definitely would get hurt or killed.
Were the agents' actions being completely commanded by Jenny's ability? She hadn't been sure, though she had managed to catch very brief snippets of more normal conversation underlying the fantastic overlay. If what she had gleaned was right, Fuller's agents were aggressive enough to actually open fire before there was a clear threat. Especially Agent Handel; he had catalyzed the violent reaction of the rest, as if they only needed that spark to set off the powder keg.
This was not how normal FBI agents should operate, and Tonya was not entirely convinced that it was all Jenny's doing.
"How I am standing up to you matters not," declared Sir Madsen. "What matters is if you will listen to reason before you exhaust your strength as your cohort here appears to be doing."
"Sir Handel!" Sir Danton barked. "Sir Handel, stand down! We will maintain discipline here and not be goaded into foolish acts as they would have us do."
Tonya waited until she saw every last sword lowered. She was about to apply her power until she saw the Countess take a bold step forward, now placing herself in direct line of fire were the shield to fail.
"Dammit," Tonya muttered under her breath.
"It would appear to me that you need no goading to commit acts of utter foolishness," declared the Countess in a haughty voice. "Witness what you witless wonders are trying now."
Sir Danton raised his sword and pointed it at the Countess. "You be silent, you foul-mouthed witch. Perhaps you can impress your underlings within your own castle with that tone, but you'll get no rise from us."
Sir Handel stepped up to him. "Do not engage in this useless discourse with them," he sneered. "This is naught but a means to delay. They are under the misguided notion that another of Sir Madsen's friends will swoop in and rescue them. He is just as disloyal as this bastard."
"Impugn the name of Sir Heller at your own peril," said Sir Madsen. "He is twice the knight as the rest of you combined."
Guilt and uncertainty tugged at Tonya. This could indeed be little more than an elaborate delaying tactic. But what could Heller do now? All their plans had hinged on him getting there first. She had no idea if he was still on his way; the two agents that had been peeled off from her contingent likely had stopped him already.
Yet she could not let this continue. Regardless of intentions, this represented a danger. People were not acting in their right mind. For all she knew, a ricocheted bullet had already hurt someone, and this fantastic setting was covering it up.
"I'll hear no more of this," said Sir Danton. He lowered the sword and turned to his cohort. "I propose--"
"Now," Tonya whispered, and she applied her will.
Her coat darkened until it became as black as the inside of a cave deep in the earth, then, somehow, became darker still. Her cutie mark stood out in sharp relief, as if to emphasize her talent. She shuddered as magic stronger than anything she had ever tried to absorb flowed into her. A burning sensation manifested deep within her, as if the power were about to burn her alive from the inside out.
Jenny had sunk to her knees, trembling hard in the effort to maintain the scene. Tonya tried to shout, but it came out as a raspy croak, "Stop fighting me, you'll only hurt yourself in the end!"
Yet Tonya was more worried about hurting herself. She had never encountered this much raw power before, nor had she ever sensed one with a resonance like this. Even when she had noted Jenny's lingering, unidentified magic back at her rehumanization, it had not felt like this, and she had a good memory for that sort of thing.
Tonya clenched her teeth. What had been a burning sensation was now edging over into pain. Around her, the fantastic imagery was wavering. Dialog was stuttered and confused, like an actor having gone completely off-script to the confusion of his fellow players. Whatever Jenny had tapped into, it was feeding her power almost as fast as Tonya could absorb it.
Almost.
Jenny collapsed, and with her, the imagery as well. Halting dialog settled into confused silence. What had been a glowing shield suspended in mid-air became a weakly-glowing bubble around the others. It flickered and went out, as did the glow from Jason's horn.
She heard a moan from behind her. Both her crystal pony cohorts had sunk to their bellies, breathing hard and still in full crystal mode as the lingering magic in their bodies was slow to dissipate.
"Sun, Verdant, stand down," Tonya said in a soft voice. "We've got this."