//------------------------------// // Chapter 37 // Story: The Tome of Faust // by DungeonMiner //------------------------------// When they returned from the trip, Mouse traded Cut for Storm, and together, along with Golden Shield, they left for Canterlot once again. “This part of the plan is going to be fairly simple,” he explained. “We go in, and we convince the Founders to raise an army.” “That’s it? We’re raising the army?” Cut asked as they walked through the halls of the sanctuary to the shadow gate. “That’s it,” Mouse replied. “Well that’s the most sensible thing I’ve heard all day.” “With the military supporting us, we’ll be able to hold the mages that Baron Jet brings with him,” Mouse said. “If they can hold back the army, then we can face the Baron.” “And where will we face the Baron?” Golden asked, watching the smaller pony as he walked in the shadows of the hallway. “Darkwood,” he mumbled as a reply. “He’s heading for the heart.” “The what?” Cut asked. "Like the heart of the forest?" “No. Don’t worry about it,” Mouse said. “If all goes well, you won’t have to see it.” “If?” the thief asked amused. “You mean you don’t know?” “No, I’m just trying not to be so...creepy.” Golden smirked. “At least he admits it,” she whispered. They stepped through the shadowgate, and appeared next to the old brothel that Mouse saw the last time he was here, though this time, it was a bright, sunny day. A living city met them with joy, and Mouse wasted no time stepping out into the street, to let himself be carried by the flow of traffic. “How is he that squirrly?” Golden asked, before she pushed her way into the street. “He’s good at it, right?” Cut asked beside her. “He has a lot of natural talent, I admit it. If I had the time to get him properly trained, he’d be invisible.” Golden shook her head, and followed behind. After a short time trying to catch up to the assassin-made-oracle, they finally met him again, at the base of the raised mound where the castle sat waiting for them. “Mouse, wait!” Golden yelled at him from the street. “You’re about to leave us! We’ll do you no good out here.” Mouse turned and waited, as though expecting this. “Speaking of doing good,” Cut said, as he lazily flew over the crowd and landed next to Mouse. “Why am I here?” “What do you mean?” Golden asked, catching up. “So, I get why you’re here,” Cut said, pointing to the guard. “You can actually request military help. Why am I here?” “You’ll know,” Mouse replied, before he moved forward, up to the castle drawbridge. “I mean,” he continued, walking up beside the unicorn, “if you want the Guild to pledge support, you’ll still have to talk with the boss, and he’s not here, so…” “You’ll know,” Mouse repeated. The guards stopped them only a moment before Golden managed to get them through the door, and soon after that, they were in line for court. “We’re going through the long way?” Cut asked. “We could probably just nudge and wink our way in, couldn’t we?” “That’s not how the founders do business,” Golden said. “Why not? It’s a perfectly reasonable way to do business,” he said. “The people you trust are the ones with the important information anyway. They get to cut to the front of the line.” “The point is that everypony is important, Cut,” Golden said. “I mean, fair, but there’s a difference between asking for land to farm more potatoes, and we need the army to literally save the country.” “It’s an important, symbolic procedure.” “And symbols are important, but we are literally trying to save the country.” A finely-dressed unicorn behind them rolled his eyes, and Golden nudged the pegasus to silence. Which lasted about a second before Cut spoke up again. “Honestly, every second in line is another second where the safety of Equestria is at risk.” “Cut,” Mouse whispered. “Now’s not the time.” “Alright, alright,” he conceded, before he went silent and waited in line again. Some time passed, and finally, they were called into the throne room. Mouse waited only a second at the door, before walking in. “Lord and Ladies,” announced the court herald. “Presenting Officer Golden Shield, and her escorts.” Princess Platinum straightened slightly in her throne as she watched the three ponies approach the three founders on the other side of the room. Commander Hurricane looked between them, his hooves together in front of his face, and hiding any expression. On the other side of the Princess, opposite the commander, sat Chancellor Puddinghead, who nodded as she watched the three approached. Along the sides of the throne room, a number of richer ponies gave curious glances at the three newcomers to court. “Officer Golden,” Hurricane greeted. “What brings you here? I thought you were on a special mission.” Mouse removed his hood. “She still works it faithfully, Commander. May we have the room, Princess?” Platinum nodded, and motioned to a handful of guards to empty the room. They obeyed immediately, pushing the rich ponies out. The moment they were out, Princess Platinum spoke again. “Mouse, what brings you here? Have you found the Horn of the Mystic Oath?” “No, Princess, we have not.” “Then why are you here?” Hurricane asked. “You were given a mission, you need to complete it.” “We have an update of vital importance, Commander,” Mouse said. “You need to know this.” “What do we need to know, Mouse?” the Princess asked. “The Horn wishes to alter history itself in order to remake Equestria in his image. In three weeks time, he will lead an army to the Darkwood forest, in search for a place of power that will let him wield a terrible power.” “The power to alter history?” The Chancellor asked. “How?” “Through very powerful magic,” Mouse said. “He has an artifact, and by that artifact, I discovered this plan.” “What can we do to stop this?” Platinum asked. “I need your aid, Princess. If you bring an army to the Darkwood in three weeks time, then we can stop him.” “I see,” the Princess said. “Hurricane, can we do this?” Hurricane shook his head. “How many soldiers would we need? What is the strength of the enemy force?” “They are three thousand ponies, and my estimate is that it would take five thousand ponies strong to ensure victory.” “Five thousand? You want a whole Legion to march into a field on nothing more than your word?” “Hurricane,” The Princess began. “No, Princess,” he said, with a growl. “I understand that Clover trusted him, and so by extension, you do, but this stallion has done very little to earn that.” “Trust, perhaps not, but what has he done to earn our mistrust?” the Princess asked. “What indeed?” Hurricane muttered. “He left. He disappeared off the map, never to be heard from again, and it was by a stroke of luck that we found him again at all. You admitted it yourself, you did not know this was the same pony the Clover fawned over until the day he appeared in the castle. How do we know he won’t just leave us again?” “Perhaps a more measured approach should be taken,” the Chancellor said. “Perhaps we send only a part of the army.” “A part of the army does no one any good, Chancellor,” the Commander growled. “Either we send everyone, and the city is left defenseless, we send no one, and ignore what Clover’s Chosen One has to say, or, heaven forbid, if we do split up the Legion, we may find that neither side can do the job.” “Well I say we vote on it,” the Chancellor said. “Oh, and here we go about the votes again!” he cried. “Militaries do not run on votes. You need discipline, duty, and quick, decisive orders!” “A vote mean everyone is heard!” “Voting is slow! With one leader, and one voice, the entire country can come to bear!” The Commander growled. “And I refuse to bring my voice to bear for someone I cannot trust.” “Commander,” The Princess said. “I would trust Mouse with my life. That should count for something.” “You are still grieving for a friend. You’re not thinking correctly.” “Commander,” Mouse said. “I know my path has been fraught with flights of fancy and I have not been the model citizen at that, but I would not betray Equestria. We need the Legion at the Darkwood forest in three weeks time or Equestria will fall.” “I’m sure,” Hurricane growled, sarcastically. Cut sighed. “Commander,” he said, stepping forward. “I can vouch for him.” Hurricane glanced over at the pegasus that just spoke up. “And who are you to vouch for him?” Cut removed his hood with a sigh, and snapped to attention. “Decanus Cutting Wind, reporting for duty, Commander.” Hurricane blinked. “Cut? But, is that you?” “Yes, sir. It is.” Golden looked between the two, now very much lost. “Commander,” the Princess said. “It seems you have us at a disadvantage. Who might this be?” Hurricane stood from his throne. “Cut...where...where did you go? I know I let the Hundred go, but I never expected you to simply disappear.” Golden blinked, before the truth suddenly snapped into her mind. Cut...cut wasn’t just a thief. Cut was a veteran. One of Hurricane’s Hundred. He wasn’t just a soldier, he was one of the founding members of the Equestrian Military. He had the sway, he had the pull. He was exactly the pony Mouse needed to convince the Commander. “I grew tired of Military life sir,” Cut said with a smirk. “Tired of spilling blood, mostly. Besides, getting a job is surprisingly difficult around here, so I didn’t have many other options.” There was a long second of silence in the throne room, before the Commander sighed, and straightened himself. “You vouch for this pony, Decanus?” “I do, sir. Mouse is a good pony. He helped me out when I needed him, and I’ve never known him to fail a job.” Hurricane nodded. “I see,” he said. The Commander breathed a moment, staring down at the pegasus, until he turned to the Princess. “Well, if nothing else, your pony knows who’s who.” Platinum smiled. “Very well. I shall have the Legion prepare to move out. Where do they need to be posted?” “The East side of the Darkwood Forest,” Mouse replied. “Three weeks time.” “Three weeks time...” The Commander repeated. “Thank you,” Mouse said simply, before With the boon they requested secured, they bowed and backed out of the throne room, even as a number of rich ponies flooded back into the room. The  three ponies didn’t say anything between them as they left the throne room, and stayed silent all the way to the castle courtyard. That’s when Golden couldn’t hold back any longer. “You’re one of Hurricane’s Hundred?” “Hey, keep that down, I have a reputation to uphold,” Cut whispered back. “What is one of Hurricane’s hundred doing running a ring of thieves?” “I’ve heard rumors,” Cut whispered. “Rumors that the guy who hired the thieves is an Earthonian noble trying to destabilize the country.” “What does that have to do with anything?” Golden asked. “I didn’t leave Pegasopolis for some Earthonian jackass to ruin my new home. So I played the part of a thief that was too good at his job.” “What?” “I stole from rich targets,” Cut Whispered, “the ones that could afford to get robbed from. I trained every pony to think that way, and next thing you know, us thieves are putting more money into Equestria then we’re taking out. Instead of being the terror of the poor that keeps ponies away, we’re breathing gold into it.” “But...that’s…” Golden said. “That’s doing what the Commander ordered. Help Equestria any way they could,” Mouse said. “Yeah, and you’re welcome, Mouse. Nearly ruined ten years of undercover work with that,” Cut muttered. “I hope that it’s not lost,” Mouse said. “Though I do know there are spies in the court.” Cut sighed. “I just sacrificed ten years worth of work, didn’t I?” Mouse didn’t answer. “You’re one of Hurricane’s Hundred…” Golden whispered to herself. “We need to get back to the sanctuary,” Mouse said. “We need to move quickly, we only one chance at our next meeting.” “One of Hurricane’s Hundred…” “Alright, Maple, you’re with us next,” Mouse said as they walked back through the sanctuary. “What?” Maple said, standing suddenly. “What’s going on?” “You, me, and Golden. New Job.” “Alright, I guess…” he said. “What are we doing?” “Well, considering he just ruined ten years of my work, who knows?” Mouse still didn’t respond to that. “He...um...what?” Wraith grunted, holding a tray full of fresh bread. “I’m surprised you didn’t jump on that one, Storm.” Storm shrugged. “Guess I’m trying to figure my approach,” he said. “Too many to work with right now.” “This is the ultimate mission for the safety of Equestria,” Mouse said, “Sacrifices will be made by everyone. Including me.” “Yeah, yeah, let me be mad for a bit, I’ll cool down,” Cut muttered, before he grabbed a roll of bread off the tray. “Are you sure I can’t kill him?” Wraith said. “It’d be easy!” “Not yet, we’ll talk about it,” he said. “Sounds good!” “Maple,” Mouse said. “This is important, you’ll need to have a few runes ready, and be ready to talk magic, alright?” “O-ok? When do we leave?” “Tomorrow.” “Guys!” Golden said. “Cut is one of Hurricane’s Hundred!”