Ponyville, Ponyville Barracks; 6:00pm
After the duel, the guards passed the time by examining some of the training equipment they’ll be using for training. They talked and introduced themselves to Twilight’s friends – the current wielders of the Elements of Harmony – and another one of her friends, a traveling entertainer by the name of Trixie. Once introductions were made, the guards went back to their barracks to arrange some of their belongings and equipment they brought with them.
Some time later a delivery was made to the Ponyville Guard Branch, which was more food supplies, several equipment items for the research room, several other things, and some bags of bits to be used for trade with the town. They brought the supplies back to the barracks and after putting it away safely, they finally received the invitation to Sugarcube Corner; since they had nothing else to do, all the guards made their way to where the party would happen.
Once arriving, they met up with the girls and Eclipse, who were setting up tables outside the bakery, as the party would take place outside too. A large banner was spread above the bakery which said, “Welcome to Ponyville New Guardponies” and just like any Pinkie party, all of the townsfolk had arrived to enjoy the festivities.
“Whoa! This is one awesome party you have set up,” said Mango, amazed.
“Hey everypony, glad you could make it! We got games, food, drinks, music, and more food!” shouted Pinkie. “OH, we even have a photo booth set up too!”
As everypony began to enjoy the party, both Orion and Ves decided to speak alone, while the rest of their squad partied with the townsfolk. The two officers stopped near an empty part of the town square, before turning to face each other.
“Sooo, why we’re all alone here, hmmmm?” asked Ves, sultrily.
“Quit your fooling around, I need to ask you what you think of Eclipse,” said Orion. Ves finished her drink before tossing it to a nearby trash bin, facing Orion once more.
“Well… for starters, he’s trained in a style of a sword-wielder that’s similar to how minotaurs wield weapons… But then that’s where all similarities end as minotaurs often use axes or hammers and rarely use swords. Not to mention his unorthodox way of fighting, nopony would be crazy enough to throw their weapon like that, risking to disarm themselves.”
“My exact thoughts and at first I thought he was being reckless, but he acted like he done that exact move before, multiple times even. For now, you and I are to be keeping close tabs on him and report any unusual findings to the princesses… the rest of the squad can’t know of this,” said Orion.
Ves agreed, but before they left, she stopped Orion, the stallion turned around and he noticed the worried look on her. Deciding to press about it, he placed a hoof on her withers as she looked up at him.
“Vespy? What’s wrong?” I hate it when he uses that nickname.
“...I received reports from some buddies stationed at the Lunar Guard branch at Manehattan… the situation there is getting worse. The mysterious attacks are getting worse and worse and both the Royal and Lunar Guard, are up at their necks on both complaints and accusations toward ponies that are innocent… Many of the populace believe a thestral is behind this, one that’s sucking the blood off of ponies.”
Here Orion’s brow raised, speaking back about the absurdity of the situation. “That’s an old mare’s tale, thestrals only eat bugs and fruits, while occasionally you guys eat fish but usually as a last cause. You think somepony is trying to defame thestrals… or worse, Princess Luna? This isn’t the first time something like this was attempted, ever since she returned, a majority of thestrals came out of hiding, living within Equestrian towns and cities now.”
“Betting you those cultists are behind this...”
“No, Princess Celestia ordered the Church that all their operatives are to be returned to Canterlot and within their Cathedral… Though there have been rumors of a small force in Manehattan, but I hear they’re leaving sometime soon.”
“They better… but seriously, what else could it be?”
“…I don’t know… but let’s hope whatever it is,” said Orion.
It’s dealt with soon.
Elsewhere – Manehattan, Manehattan Royal Guard Branch HQ; 7:00pm
After the investigation that happened a week ago, no new sightings or attacks have come up since the murder of Tool Box. Private E2 Watcher, had finished doing some minor tasks for his superior and was heading home for the day. “Heading home, Watcher?”
Turning around, his fellow guard – Private E2 Niche Spot – sat lazily on his chair, checking his own work; this ranged from reports on robberies, arguments between ponies, or the usual prank from adolescent foals. “Yeah, just finished my paperwork for the day, going to head home now.”
“Well you stay safe you hear, things been getting a tad unstable with these random attacks,” said Niche.
“What makes you think they’re random?” asked Watcher.
“Well for starters, all our victims have no connections to the government or any shady groups we know of, so that rules out that these are planned attacks. Most likely, somepony found some evil ancient artifact, has gone bonkers in the process, with the only difference being that it’s one of the more violent artifacts…”
“And your other theory?” Niche stayed quiet in thought, before shrugging.
“Who knows, heck, I bet it’s some sort of creature from the Everfree or further beyond that wandered here.”
Watcher thought of this, but no, these attacks were too focused… precise… but what connections do these ponies have with each other. They are all residents of Manehattan, being here for years, none of them have ever met or encountered one another… but there has been one connection.
A majority of the killings have happened around the abandoned industrial area to the north-west of the city. The only reason we haven’t caught the culprit, was due to the randomness of the attacks and while some of the ponies did indeed live near this area, others didn’t. It even gets stranger when these ponies are secluded from others, meaning nopony – not even known family – knows much about their whereabouts.
Watcher decides to think about this another time, as he waves goodbye to Niche and makes his way back home. Leaving the Royal Guard Branch HQ, Watcher makes his way back home, wearing his civilian clothes which consist of a small fedora and vest. After trotting for several blocks, he reaches his apartment, entering the empty foyer, he goes to the elevator waiting for the door to close and pressing a button listed as seven.
As the elevator shifts and climbs up, he exits as the doors open, heading to his room near the end of the hall. Using his magic, he levitates a key from a pouch hung around his neck, unlocking the door, he enters inside.
Undressing himself, he hangs both his vest and fedora on a coat stand, making his way to his desk. His room consisted of three rooms that weren’t that large – the bathroom consisted of a shower, sink, and toilet, the kitchen had several drawers, a basic stove, a fridge, and a small table with a single chair. The main room which had his bed in one corner, a couch facing opposite of his bed, a desk with various items on it, and a chest with all his clothes inside were the only furniture in the room.
A window was above his desk, with it being the only window in his apartment room. Approaching his desk, he pulled the chair and sat on it, pulling himself closer to the desk with his hooves. Using his magic, he cleared all the items on the desk swiftly, before opening a small drawer to his right.
Searching with both his magic and eyes, he pulls out an interesting item – a red crystallized… something. He found this object during the investigation of Tool Box’s death, the object was left near a dumpster some distance from the body. At first he wanted to show this to his superior, but the item didn’t look magically imbued or shown any other interesting traits; after some further examination he decided to take it with him back home.
Now alone with the crystal, he took a careful look of it and unlike crystals he knows or read about, this one was pretty jagged but hardy, not even his strongest hammer from the local store that he bought could crack it. What was also interesting was that, while it was indeed red, the coloration… was scarily similar to the color of blood. Shining a light on it, didn’t seem to reflect back any light so it’s luster wasn’t that great.
Leaning back on his chair, he sighed to himself, the strange crystal perplexing him even more. Just what is this thing?
Suddenly, Watcher hears a loud crash from the wall near his bed, the noise was coming from his neighbor next door. At first it was quiet like something may have fallen, until a loud crash of glass being smashed was heard. Hearing further noises of a struggle and grunting, Watcher got to his hooves, rushed to his door and quickly reached the door next to his.
Readying to break in the door, Watcher nearly got slammed to the wall when the door busted open with his neighbor flying out, slumping down on the ground. Checking if he was alright, he saw a large slash wound around his mid-section, with what appears to be several stab wounds. “You alright?”
The stallion grunted, wheezing a little, glad he was still alive, he cast a quick healing regenerative spell on him before rushing into the room. Looking inside, the lights were off which left the only source of light coming from the light of the moon. The window was smashed open, with shards of glass all over the ground, but looking carefully into the dark room, he noticed something shift from the shadows.
Preparing to fire a stun spell, he shouted at whoever was hiding in the darkness. “Come out! I’m a member of the Royal Guard, if you attempt to resist, I have no choice but to use my magic against you!” shouted Watcher.
Having heard no response, he added more power into his spell, enough to brighten the room… until his gaze fell upon something shocking. Standing under the glow of his magic, was a thestral unlike any thestral he’s met before.
He has seen and know some members of the Lunar Guard – both during his patrols during the evening and personally meeting a few – so what he was seeing… was the impossible.
Her mane and tail were the color of red, but this red was a mix of two reds – a faint red… and a crimson red. Instead of the regular black, dark blue, or dark purple fur common among thestrals, hers was an off-white tone similar to pink, but had a slight red sheen to it. Her lithe form and slender legs made her very alluring and attractive, two thoughts that confused Watcher, considering he was never this distracted no matter the sex or looks anypony had, especially during an arrest.
What really caught his attention were three major details – her eyes weren’t like a normal pony’s or even a thestral’s would look like. Instead of the common oval shape, they had two points that curled up, leaving her iris to pierce deep within him as if she was seeing everything… but her eyes… weren’t that of a pony, but of a predator.
Having catching his attention, she smiled, revealing the row of sharp, pointed teeth that could carve through flesh and bone; this was the second thing he noticed, the third however was what made his body turn into a shivering mess.
Her teeth… their stained with blood, fresh blood. Watcher has seen his fair share of the aftermaths of fights, seeing the cloth-covered bodies and sometimes the small pools of blood they leave behind, before being cleaned up.
Blood dripped from the mare’s mouth and Watcher was certain it wasn’t hers, the thestral – if ‘it’ could be called a thestral – smiled further, the smile changing from a mischievous one, to a crazed smile. Before he could act, her wings burst from their folded position and she flapped with one hard stroke, sending her through the already shattered window.
Quickly reaching the window, he found nothing but the moon, the distant buildings, and the evening lights from faraway streets below. Watcher began to calm down, but soon his panic rose once more, what he saw wasn’t some sapient being, he wasn’t even sure it was sentient either.
He sat down, surrounded by shattered glass, broken furniture, and now the noticeable droplets of fresh blood staining the wooden flooring. Watcher gazed at the night sky, thinking of his next move with this new knowledge on hoof. “That thing… just what the buck was it?”
The next day later – Equestria; Ponyville, Town Hall Square; 12:30pm
As the sun was at its highest peak, the day was beginning with the newly stationed guard, preparing a presentation to the townsfolk of Ponyville. Orion, Ves, and their respective guards stood behind a cloth barrier, separating them from the town. All of them wore their guard armor, each of them having a small mark on their armor on their withers with the left side holding their rank, while the right side held the symbol of either the sun or moon, depending on if they were part of the Royal Guard or the Lunar Guard.
Twilight stood on the podium addressing the townsfolk – as usual she prepared and brought some papers for a quick speech – starting with her talking about the new arrival of the guard being stationed in Ponyville. “With the newly built guard barracks to house the new Royal and Lunar Guard branches here in Ponyville, it is my honor to introduce the leading officer of the Royal Guard – First Lieutenant Orion Grey!”
Everypony stomped and cheered as the lieutenant approached the stage and stood behind the podium; clearing his voice and facing the crowd, he thought to himself on what to say, until speaking to the mic.
“Citizens of Ponyville, it is my honor to be chosen by their highnesses, Princesses Celestia and Luna to command and watch over this quaint town. Even though I and my fellow guards, have only been stationed here for a single day, I hope to diligently work and protect all of you from any manner of danger. I thank all of you for placing your faith and trust in the Royal and Lunar Guard and that we may do our jobs swiftly, efficiently, and in our best capabilities we can with all of you!”
Bowing his head down in respect to the crowd, then to Mayor Mare, and Twilight Sparkle, Orion soon stepped off the stage allowing Mayor Mare to come up. “Thank you lieutenant, with that, I officially say that the Ponyville Barracks and the newly stationed Royal Guard and Lunar Guard to hereby be official! Cheers to the new guard!”
As the cheers of everypony echoed across the town, some decided to do a small celebration here on the town hall square, while others went back to their daily business. Orion and Ves ordered their guards with the assigned patrol rights, time schedule, and who be partnered with who. As they went off, the duo decided to take a short walk away from the celebration, making their way halfway to the park before stopping by an empty bench.
Sitting down, Ves removed her helmet, sighing in content from not wearing her stuffy helmet anymore. “I know we had to do this speech in the afternoon, but the heat is killing me, especially with my armor on,” said Ves.
“Now now, don’t be complaining by something a recruit would had to deal with, besides didn’t you had to go through a three-day training regime under daylight hours, so you would be used to the sun in case of emergencies.”
“Yeah, but back then, we weren’t forced to wear armor and to not stand under the sun all the time… Soooo, what are you planning on doing now? We’re going to get more troops next year, so I’m wondering, are you planning to upgrade the barracks or build another one.”
Orion gazed around town, before remembering the open space near the train stationed, an idea coming to him. “The northern area of the town could be useful and placing a small outpost near the train station for either supplies or surprise guests would be a good choice. The barracks that we have now can be refurbished to be the barracks for new recruits.”
Ves nodded in agreement, the two sat there alone until Ves remembered something this morning. Having checked the local post-office, she apparently received a letter from one of her old pals stationed in Manehattan. The situation there is getting worse, a private who was at home spotted the possible suspect attacking his neighbor… the details were sketchy, but they know now they’re not dealing with some thug or criminal.
“Something bothering you Ves?” asked Orion.
“Nothing, I’ll tell you later, let’s go around town and do our job.” The two went off, making their rounds as the new guards of Ponyville.
Ponyville, Town Hall Square; 1:15pm
After the guard presentation, Eclipse and Fluttershy watched their friends and the rest of the town, talk and mingle with the new guard. Pinkie was passing pastries and other goodies to everypony with the help of Mango, who enjoyed helping the pink mare. Rarity was talking with Crystal and how it was like being a guard in Canterlot, the others talked to each of the guards, whether it was about their own lives, where they came from and so on.
“Things are going well for them, though I’m assuming more guards will be posted here some time in the future,” said Eclipse, speaking to Sight.
“From what I can understand, a platoon worth of guards will be stationed here and considering both the Royal Guard and Lunar Guard being here… roughly around thirty guards.”
“That’s more than double of the guards here already,” said Fluttershy. “Where will all of you be staying if that many are going to be stationed here?”
“My superiors will handle things like that, but that won’t happen in a year or two.”
As the three were talking, a gray mare wearing a mail-saddlebag approached Eclipse; Derpy landed – flopping in front of them to be specific – and quickly stood on all four legs, giving her cheerful smile toward the three. “Special delivery for an Eclipse Light, from Canterlot!” shouted Derpy.
Reaching into her saddlebag, she pulled out a letter with the mark of the Canterlot nobility and after receiving the letter, Eclipse nodded his thanks to her as Derpy flew off. Opening the letter while the others wondered what the commotion was about, Eclipse read the letter’s contents to himself.
“What’s the letter about Eclipse?” asked Fluttershy.
“Hmmm, a noblepony wishes to make a trade agreement with me at Canterlot, it doesn’t specify from who, but I have an address and date of when to meet. I’m to leave for tomorrow, I’ll tell the others later of this, but I need to send a quick message to a hotel to have a room rented in Canterlot. It was good to be speaking to you again Sight, I’ll continue our conversation another day.”
As Eclipse made his way to leave, Fluttershy quickly caught up to him, a worried look on her. “Is it safe for you to go to Canterlot, those Church ponies are mainly stationed in Canterlot. What if you bump into them and they cause something?”
Eclipse gazed thoughtfully back at her, before smoothing her mane, a small grin in response to her worries. “Then they’ll pay the price for breaking the agreement they made with Celestia and do not worry, I been to Canterlot so I know my around and which places to avoid when necessary. I’m only going for business, that’s all, so be calm till I return,” said Eclipse. “I’ll bring a souvenir in turn maybe while I’m there.”
Fluttershy smiled in turn as Eclipse left and headed back home, later on the girls and the rest of Eclipse’s friends soon learned of his leave to Canterlot. Twilight decided to send a letter to Celestia, seeing as she too was worried that Eclipse might get in trouble with the Church and hoped her teacher could make sure Eclipse’s visit to Canterlot went smoothly.
The rest of the day went smoothly as everypony went by their usual daily business, with the guard now beginning their jobs of patrolling the town, answering any problems to come, and bringing security and peace. Eclipse prepared his business trip to Canterlot, having left the responsibility of his property to Luella, the cub simply watching over the place, with an odd but simple gesture of loyalty to him.
Later that night – Manehattan; 9:00pm
Deep in the abandoned section of Manehattan – the north-west part of the city – within the desolate factories and abandoned quiet streets; inside one of the abandoned factories, an albino thestral gazed out a cracked window, the moon at its fullest, the light beaming downward toward her.
The thestral was twirling a knife on her hoof, the edge was coated in crimson red, staining both her hoof and fur. She didn’t seem bothered, gazing forth at the horizon, watching the glimmering lights of the towers and buildings that made up Manehattan’s landscape. The mare gave a crazed demented smile, showing her shark-like teeth, glinting from the light of the moon.
“For a place full of pastel ponies, things have been getting interesting since I ended up here… Wonder what other wonderful surprises I can find…” The mare looked behind her at the lifeless form behind her on the catwalk; the body was drained of blood, leaving nothing but a lifeless husk, the eyes sunken and showing a face of eternal horror, the last vestiges of this denizen were unheard screams of terror.
“She fought, but I became bored after the... what was it, seventh… eighth stab?” Shrugging to herself, she tossed her knife up before catching it with her hoof once more, sheathing the serrated knife back into a hidden sheath under her wings. “Oh well, can’t be sitting here doing nothing, time to go back out and begin the hunt once more.”
The mare giggled to herself, her eyes showing not a shred of sanity, revealing a hungering blood-lust of both for blood and other unsavory needs.
“Gotta go and grab another meal before the night’s end, hehahehheheeeee.” The albino thestral soon flapped her wings, flying through the night sky, awaiting for another pony to target – another pony to feast upon.